Digraphs

Last month I visited several other schools and classrooms.  I've done so both semesters, each time focusing on grades near my placement.  In the fall I visited 4/5/6 grade classrooms and last month I observed K/1 classrooms.  The purpose to is see how other classrooms are run, how other teachers do things, and to get more ideas about what type of school and classroom you'd like to have.  I love the idea and I'm so glad it's part of the UVEI program.

In one of the classrooms I observed the students were discussing the H brothers and practicing making their sounds.  The teacher had a neat chart to go with it and clearly the students were familiar with the story and enjoyed it.  I snapped a picture and brought it back to show my mentor teacher.  She loved the idea and asked if I'd make a poster for our classroom too.   Happily!

With inspiration from the first poster and a few I found on Pinterest, I made three digraph posters this weekend.  Three because I made one for her classroom, one for the other kindergarten teacher, and one for myself!

In this second picture the poster looks a little funny, but it's just because the top was curling up.  I didn't make fancy shaped edges.  I printed a copy of the H brothers story from Project Read and glued it to the back of the poster.  I laminated them at school this morning and now I'm looking forward to introducing this story and poster to my kindergarten class.

In my Internet wanderings I came across a few funny digraph YouTube videos as well.   A teacher put up a series of kid videos here and this is a totally silly video called We Are The H Brothers, with four grown men wearing Th/Ch/Sh/Wh t-shirts and doing very silly things.  There are a lot of resources out there these days!

 

Inspiration everywhere

As an aspiring teacher I am always on the lookout for inspiration.  I have the usual places, of course, like books and Pinterest, but I also have a secret source at my disposal.  My kids!

We have a routine we call "highs and lows" that we do each night.  As I'm cuddling with the kids at the end of the day we take turns saying what our high points of the day were, what our low points were, and what we are looking forward to for the next day.  I had intended for it to be a dinnertime conversation starter, but they seem to prefer it being a bedtime routine.  We started it a few months ago and now they like it so much they usually start the conversation each night.  As I was laying with my daughter the other night, after I'd had my kindergarten class all to myself that day, I told her that my low point was that I had trouble getting their attention.  They all chattered and fooled around and I frequently had trouble regrouping them.  She thought for a moment then said, "Well, my teacher does a song," and she taught me a song.  She's in first grade and her ideas are spot on.  Or maybe I should say her teacher's ideas!  She taught me a song she called the "Are we ready?" song.  The next day, another solo day, I taught the kids a new song.  They loved it!   We have a version for sitting in group, preparing for a lesson, and we have another version for standing in line, preparing for the hallway.  We have practiced it a few times over the past few days and the kids are getting better each time.  It doesn't keep their attention forever, they are five years old afterall, but it does help me regroup, get their attention, and get my line straight and quiet.  One step in the right direction!

As a good teacher and learner I think you have to have your eyes, ears, and mind open at all time for new ideas.  Then be willing to give them a shot if they seem reasonable.  I'm thankful I tried this one.  The class also loved knowing that my six year old taught it to me.  I think they love hearing that even teachers are still learning new things every day.    

Math Boxes

I was excited to see the introduction of math boxes in kindergarten this week. As a substitute last year I was always impressed with how well the students did with their math boxes. They seemed to know exactly what to do with each item, they took care of the items, they cooperated with their partners, and most importantly they were excited to do math! When my mentor teacher told me she was going to introduce math boxes this week I was excited to see that process.

When the time came she started by making a big deal about a special new thing she was going to show them.  She gathered them in a circle on the carpet and dramatically pulled a box out from behind her back.  They waited with baited breath.  She told them is was a box full of fun activities they could do with partners or on their own.  She said they would be available to the students at certain times during the day and maybe they could earn them as special treats.  They were thrilled.

Once they were all eager to know more, she opened the box and started taking out each individual item, stopping on each one to tell the students what it was called and what they could do with it.

 The first thing she pulled out was a counting strip. She showed them how they could use it to count forwards and backwards. She also showed them a card they could slide the strip into an use it to look at just one number at a time. Then she pulled out a small deck of cards they could use to identify numbers and count symbols.  One student suggested they play Go Fish with the cards and the teacher agreed that would be a good use of them.  Next was a deck of Garbage Cards, a game the students already know how to play.  She pointed out that the backs of the cards were colored different colors in each box, so it would be easier to keep track of which cards belonged in which box.   Next came the Five Strips, which can be put in order from one to one hundred, and can also be used to count by fives or tens.   The box also has a string of one hundred beads that she gave very little introduction.  Finally she showed a bundle of craft sticks with dots of them and two dice, both of which that can be used for adding, subtracting and comparing. 

After she introduced each item she partnered up the students and set them lose with a math box to explore.  While they worked she and I went from partner to partner to guide them with the tools, observe, and offer new suggestions for things to do.  This is a great opportunity for individual assessment!  I was able quickly notice several children who can count to 100 easily and others who made it pretty far but got stuck in certain areas.  I also had many opportunities to ask "how do you know?"  One girl told me there were 100 beads and when I asked how she knew she told me she had counted the red beads, noticed the groups of white were the same size and therefore must have the same number, then counted by fives to get 100.  Pretty good reasoning!

After 15 minutes of free exploration the teacher brought the class back together in the circle.  She had them sit with their partners and then we went around the room and had each group share something they had done with their boxes.  Many had done something she suggested, but several had done their own thing.  Everyone was eager to share what they had done.  I'd like to say they were also eager to hear what their classmates had done, but mostly they just wanted to talk. :)

A few days later I pulled out the math boxes again when we had an unexpected ten minutes at the end of the day.  I partnered up the students, but had one pair who were very unhappy with the partnership.  I considered rearranging, but then decided that part of kindergarten is learning to work well with others, so I sat with them for a few minutes while they negotiated and figured out how to work together.  They finally settled on a game they both wanted to play and carried on happily together.  Math boxes are as much about the math as about the teamwork and partnership.   

Digital Storytelling

I went to a professional development seminar today on technology in the classroom. There were three session choices: blogging, iPad apps, and digital storytelling. I had to think long and hard to decide between the iPad session and the digital storytelling session, but I finally decided on the storytelling.

At the digital storytelling session the instructor introduced us to three products: VoiceThread, Meograph, and PowToon. Each looked interesting in their own ways, and each would be used for very different things. While he was showing us the products I tried to think of a situation where students could use them in the classroom.

VoiceThread:
VoiceThread lets you add voice narration over photographs. You can have just one photo or a slideshow of photos. It also makes it very easy for others with accounts to comment, via text or voice, on your VoiceThread. At first I wasn't sure what to do with this product, but then I thought for young kids it could be fun to take a picture of their artwork and then have them record a voice narration telling the story. Children often have very elaborate stories to accompany their artwork. I could also see VoiceThread being useful in an art class. Students could photograph their artwork and then record a voice narration to go along with it. Their classmates could then view the projects and leave critiques. It could be a way to include technology in art classes, and a way to teach positive critiquing skills.

Meograph: Meograph sounded pretty cool when he described it, but when I looked at the few samples he showed it seemed less cool. I'll have to go play with it myself for awhile and see what I can build. Essentially it is a tool that ties Google Earth with historical time lines. In his example he had students map earthquakes in time (timeline) and space (Google Earth). The final project is a presentation of sorts. I could see Meograph being useful for an ancestry project, or perhaps a historical project that involves different places over time, such as the Lewis and Clark expeditions.

PowToon: PowToon lets you quickly and easily create animated movies or presentations. I think you could use this for little videos about a topic or as a dynamic introduction to a lesson or unit.

After the instructor introduced each of the three products, we were set loose to create something on our own. We were actually instructed to come to class with a story in mind, but sadly I came with none, so when we were turned loose I chose to make a little animation with PowToon. Not too shabby for a first try. :) The meeting also counted as professional development. I wonder if that counts for anything at this point in my life.

How to blow a bubble

We started our information text unit in writing this week and my mentor teacher had a great lesson lined up! We discussed the many different ways that exist to get information, including how-to videos. Then he had the kids break into pairs and create a how-to video on "How to blow a bubble." The kids LOVED it! Everyone got a big piece of bubble gum (they were sold on that alone!) and an iPad. They had a graphic organizer to help them create their script, then they went to work creating the videos. It was amazing to see all the different ways they did this simple task. Some had one person video while the other did the explanation and demonstration; others had one video and explain while the person on camera just demonstrated; still others propped the iPad up and had both people in front of the camera, one explaining and one demonstrating; and one lucky group of three created a very silly video with one running the camera, one explaining, and the third one demonstrating all the things NOT to do. I was also impressed with the variations of script, from very basic (put gum in mouth, chew, blow), to very detailed (use your tongue to push the gum out a little, then pull your tongue back in, creating a little crevice in the gum to blow air into), to everything in between. Everyone loved the project, students and teachers alike.

It reminded me of a lesson my sixth grade teacher did so many years ago, long before iPads existed! He had us write instructions on how to open a door, then he took each one and followed it, step-by-step, to the letter. The result was many smacks on the head by the door since almost all of us forgot to include the "step backwards" step before pulling open the door. It was hysterical... for us. He probably had a killer headache by the end of the day!

I hope someday I can create lessons that are as clever, engaging, and memorable as these are.

Tour the states

We watched a really cool video today to kick off a fun "tour the states" project.  The whole classroom was abuzz!

Before the video the kids were given blank US maps and asked to fill in as many state names as possible.  Then we discussed who knows people in various states.  Then the fun part!  Each week a student is going to write a letter to someone we know in another state.  Either someone they know (aunt, uncle, family friend, etc.) or someone one of the teachers knows.  We'll write the letter in a journal and send it.  The recipient will write a little letter back, telling us about their state.  We are also asking them to send a blank post card to help us decorate the bulletin board. 

I love the idea of pen pals and have often thought that when I have a classroom of my own I'd love to do a pen pal project.  These days maybe it would be less "pen" and more email and Skype.  When my mentor teacher mentioned this project I was thrilled.  I think it will be an exciting and different way to learn a little more about the United States.

The other thing I love about this is the spontaneity.  This was not part of the long-term plan, or part of the Common Core Curriculum, just something my teacher thought of and decided to do.  That kind of creative flexibility is so exciting to me and I can't wait to share a variety of fun ideas with my own classroom someday.