When Student Interests and Teachers Strength Collide

First, I teach kinder.  But,  what I have to say doesn’t matter what grade you teach.  As teachers, we can sometimes lose ourselves and we can be moved away from our own personal philosophy of teaching.   It can be hard to find ourselves again at times.  What is you strength?  Really?  What is it?  You can be good at a lot of things but what is it that you do that perhaps people in your grade level are constantly asking you about or help with?  Think about what you are constantly getting complimented on.  Something you do that is instinctive – it’s second nature to you and you enjoy it.  Once you can really pinpoint that quality in yourself, ask yourself, “where is it seen in my teaching?  In my classroom?  Did I abandon it? Is it non-existent?”   If it isn’t apparent to you and you cannot identify it in your teaching then try to find a way to bring it in because that is where your best teaching will surface.     

The pictures that follow will show you exactly what I am talking about in a nutshell.  It wasn't planned at all. I followed my students interest and went with it.  We are actually still in the process because they just discovered the acorns! There were many other learning outcomes but below are just a few. 

Let me tell you.  I found that I became my most creative and resourceful self when I challenged myself to pull from what I had and be creative to find a hands on approach to teach the standard(s).  I believe this to be true for kids too (think about how resourceful and how creative people are when they do not have anything).  I stopped telling them what they were going to do and they started telling me how we could do it. The difference between that statement is HUGE. The kids started coming up with “ outside the box” solutions. They were more engaged and activities became more hands on and self created.  The motivation was high and children learned.  

Pinterest can be overwhelming, inspiring, and at times to be honest – very depressing.  That is if you find yourself asking yourself, “How do they do it? And  How do they keep up?”  As a side note – remember you are seeing the best of the best of activities in pictures and  with a mute button.   So it seems like a lot but you are seeing a menagerie of many teachers activities all at once and it’s constantly in your face.  If you find yourself trying to keep up with the teacher next door and life as a teacher has become much like keeping up with the Jones then hopefully this post will help you remember your inner qualities and strengths and remind you that YOU ARE GREAT!

If you find you are interested in these type of ornaments that require very little in terms of costs and you want the ornament/craft imbedded in the academic curriculum you can check the units out below. Just click on the picture or HERE.

To follow up on the acorn felt tutorial I should have pictures posted late tomorrow since we will be finishing them up.  You can click HERE to go to my blog for the update. 

My strength is creating things and reading how-to books to figure out how to create things I am curious about.  I have been slowly writing "how-to"" student readers (sort of like a beginners manual). Students read, and follow instructions and diagrams to create something. 

Before you go . . . don't forget to share in the comments your strength and how you use it in your teaching/class to inspire us. 

Warm regards,

Tonya Leslie 

Young Hoosier Books!

Hi there!  It's me!  Hilary from Primary Planet!
I am moving my weekly Young Hoosier Book post over here this week!

The Young Hoosier Book award was started by the Indiana Library Federation to encourage recreational reading in elementary and middle/high school students across Indiana.  The wonderful librarian at our school participates in this program every year.  If the kiddos read 12+ of the books that were nominated they get to have a pizza party, but they also get to vote on their favorite!

Now, if you are not from Indiana, no worries!  These books are great no matter where you live!  If you want to read more information about the program, click on the picture of the boy above.

I have been doing a weekly series on my blog about the different books on my blog, but thought I would share the wealth (and the freebie) over here!

So today I want to talk about this gem:

Ben Rides on by Matt Davies!

In this story Ben's prized possession is his bike!  He loves it so much in fact that going to school has become fun because everyday he rides his bike.

The problem is getting to school.

At school is the world's biggest 3rd grader: Adrian!

Of course Adrian the bully steals Ben's bike.  Later however he needs Ben's help!

I won't tell you how it ends, but it is a happy ending.

This book is great for talking about bullying, empathy, and compassion.

This book is also great for talking with your class about making connections.

After reading this story, we talked about what kind of advice we we give to Ben about how to handle the situation with Adrian.

The kiddos had a great time talking about different ways to deal with a bully, and how they would handle the situation.

You can get your little freebie here:

If you would like to read about some of the other Young Hoosier Books and pick up a few other freebies, you can find them on my blog HERE:

Thanks so much for stopping by!

What Would YOU Call a Miracle? Songs and Helicopters

It's the Wild West. A batch of rugged cowboys gaze up at the sky - dumb-founded! What in the world is that strange object hovering in the sky? Is it some kind of miracle? Is it magic?

Oh please. It's just a helicopter. No the parent kind, the machine kind - the kind that flies.

You and I are not amazed when we spot a helicopter. We realize it's a helicopter. There's nothing magical up there in the sky - just a noisy gizmo bound for somewhere. It's not E.T - not much of anything.

Or is it? It certainly would have impressed cowboys way back when.

Sweet Stuff

Have you seen this brilliant little rant by comic CK Louis around how un-fascinated we all are these days by life, how unappreciative? The guy is so spot on. CK pretty much covers how most of us keep forgetting to notice there are things worth noticing all around us. Life is still fascinating, but unfortunately, we're usually too busy texting these days to notice. Who even looks up as they walk around? It makes me sad.

Song to the rescue

Each year, I bring out my Miracle song to share with kids. Its message is potent: Please put down that silly phone and look around - breath life in! Sing a song, hug a tree. Note the beauty of the universe and in each other.

Here's the good news...

Most kids enjoy my Miracle song. Most like it a lot. In fact, many ask to sing it over and over. That's a good sign, right? Maybe there is hope for our kids after all. They're still awake - they still can wonder! And if so, they might still be inspired to care a lot for our planet - and everything and everyone on it! Big relief.

What the Lyrics Say

In every dream that takes its flight... in every truth that share its light... in every time we think we might find a miracle... there's a miracle!

It's not just our eyes that need to remember to notice the magic outside of us - the gorgeous sunsets and such. We need to remember to notice magic with our hearts too. Doesn't it feel great to be kind to another person? Aren't happy friendships full of magic?

Kolbe and Dani

Above; Kolbe offers up a special story about collecting light. After that, Dani shares thoughts on being thoughtful. The holiday video above was created with very little scripting. Trust me, these spectacular munchkin mini-teachers really do mean what they say. They're super sincere!

Note: The video link above leads to Youtube. If you would like to own this video, click here.

Below: a music video featuring Whimsy Workshop art with a twist of Awesome Sauce. Again, the first link is to Youtube. If you'd like to own this video, click here.

Studios are Fun

I sang lead on the track for the video. The backdrop of sweet voices are my students and some parents who love to sing. In the photo below; a few sweet kids who were there.

 

Our bass player on this project, a life-long friend, is one of the Abiders. Randy brought in his "band guys" to lay down basic tracks. I love mixing up generations in the recording studio - kids, parents, and professional musicians. It adds such a cozy glow to the final product. It also creates such fond memories!

 

 

Piano Parts

That's me on piano. I often plant colorful keyboard parts inside my songs to inspire kids to practice. It's a little trick that really works! After all, it's kind of a miracle in itself - getting kids to practice.

*If you'd ever like to hear the same song with one of my gifted students singing lead click here. As with many of our recordings, we have lots of different versions of this song.

Scoot

Feel free to check out the Holiday Scoot below. It covers many holidays around the world. I strongly believe in encouraging kids to peek outside their personal bubbles this time of year - we are the world! Co-created with lovely Retta from Rainbow City Learning, it is full of heart, education and fun! And yes, it includes the Miracle song. It's a Bullyproof Rainbow Resource.

Thanks

Did you have time to read this post today - even though you're probably very busy? Well, isn't that a miracle?Thanks for taking the time.

Peace, love, and a holiday hug. Let's dig deep and keep kids captivated!

 

Christmas Traditions in the Classroom

December is a great time to teach about traditions, especially Christmas traditions.  And what better way to introduce and explore Christmas traditions than to create and experience your very own Christmas traditions in the classroom?!

1. Set Up the Classroom Christmas Tree Together- I love handing out branches to each student and then calling them up to help me place the branches on the tree.  But the best part of all is when we string the lights and I light up the tree for the first time!  The excitement and amazement in the kids eyes simply makes it all so wonderful!

2. Hang Students' Ornaments- To make our tree even more personalized and memorable, ask students to bring in an ornament from home with their name written on it to decorate the tree.  Before students are encouraged to hang their ornament on the tree, we do a quick Show-and-Tell which makes for a sweet memory for all!

3. Celebrate Christmas Around the World with Food- Nothing makes students or anyone for that matter, happier than FOOD!  Sure, arts and crafts make learning about Christmas Around the World fun, but what kids love most is tasting the traditional Christmas FOOD that goes along with each country!  Here's a sample of different foods that you can serve.

England- Pudding
France- Cheese/Cake
Italy- Goldfish (Italians eat seafood for Christmas)
USA-Cookies & Milk (Snack for Santa Claus)

4. Exchange Family Recipes- Send home a recipe template and ask parents to help their child share their family's favorite recipe.  Once completed and returned, bring out the crayons, markers, and glitter galore and encourage students to decorate their recipe template and exchange them at the class Christmas Party.  Students love sharing their own family favorite recipe and getting to take one home to share with their own family!

5. Make Gingerbread Houses- Making Gingerbread houses at our Christmas Party is one of my favorite traditions in the classroom!  Using empty milk cartons, graham crackers, icing, and a plethora of candy and sprinkles, students always have the best of times creating their own mini-gingerbread houses.  After completing them, students place them in an empty shoebox to take home.  But...the shoebox is not just any ordinary shoebox, it is wrapped with Christmas paper and decorated that was done at home as a family project!  Why place the gingerbread house in a shoebox?  Simply because I have found that it is the easiest and safest way for their gingerbread houses to stay in one piece from school onto the bus and then home!

There are so many wonderful classroom Christmas traditions out there!  What's yours?

Resources You May Be Interested In:

     

It's ALL About TIME and a FREEBIE!!!

Hi Everybody!  I'm Deb from over at Fabulously First and I'm excited to be here.  I'm a first grade teacher, mom of four and a grandmother of four! EEEEKKKK!

My first graders are doing fine with telling time to the hour.  When it comes to teaching them about the half-hour, I know what's headed my way.  It always confuses them when the hour hand is in between two numbers, so we made up this little rhyme to help them know where to look.  I taught them to look where the hour hand is and if they don't know which hour it is, then go to the lowest number.  So we reduced it to: "If you don't know, go low"!  

I use the website "Stop the Clock" and you can click below to go see it.

We start with using the site practicing time to the hour.  I give them a sheet that we use to write down how many seconds/minutes it takes them to get the analog and digital clocks matched.

Then, after we have mastered telling time to the hour we move on to the half-hour:

I have six little stools that they pull up to my activboard to play the game.  It becomes highly competitive as they all try to get the lowest score after five attempts.  It is a race after our whole group and math buddies time to get to this game.

FREEBIE ALERT!

If you are interested in using the "Stop the Clock" sheet, click below:

I also have a product in my TpT store which I know you will love!  Click below to see the product preview:

Thanks for joining us today and please feel free to leave a comment below!

Gingerbread Pirates- A Gingerbread Freebie

We are all about gingerbread this year!  I am starting out our gingerbread unit with the book the Gingerbread Pirates.  This is a great book to incorporate gingerbread and the Christmas spirit of believing.

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Let me tell you a little about my book and freebie!  This year I am focusing our Christmas unit around the Gingerbread Pirates!  I am so excited to dive into a new unit!  To go along with the Gingerbread Pirates I made a compound word match.  Right now my first graders are working on retell to increase our DIBELS scores.  I made a foldable brochure over sequence of events, contractions, and favorite part of the book.   Click herefor the freebie!

Happy Teaching!

Supplies--community or individual??

Supplies--community or individual??

Let's talk classroom supplies!!  Does your classroom have community supplies? 

 Or does each student have their own set of supplies?

Currently we have individual supply containers.  We call ours work cups.  

They came from the Dollar Spot at Target and are metal tins in bright primary colors!  

Each child has their own "work cup" that has their number on it.  Inside the cup they keep 

two pencils, one glue stick, their scissors, and their crayons.  

I've always done individual supplies.  

A few years ago my students kept their supplies in plastic cups from WalMart.  

I've also had my students keep their supplies in plastic baskets.

  

Here's what I like about having individual supplies:
I like the idea of that each child has to be responsible for their own things.
I like the idea of them having to keep up with their own crayons, pencils, glue stick, etc. 

But here's what I don't like:
I really don't like listening to arguing.  It seems like every few minutes someone has accidentally picked up someone else's pencil.  SHE'S GOT MY PENCILLLLLLLLL.  THAT'S MIIIIIIINE.   Or it's a crayon.  SHE HAS MY RED CRAYON!!!  THAT'S MIIIIIIINE.

I know it's important for them to be responsible for their things.  That's one of our main classroom rules...."Be Responsible."  But I also want them to be able to work together and share and get along and not argue.   So I go back and forth on this issue.  Sometimes I think that maybe community supplies would be a better way to go.  But then I think about the flu....and think about how fast it would probably spread through community supplies....and I think um.....NO.  Ha ha!

I know there are pros and cons to doing community and individual supplies.  It could also depend on the class.....and how the students get along with one another.  I would love to know how you handle supplies in your classroom and if you've found a way to stop losing the little tops to glue sticks.   (because that is another big problem LOL)