The Good Morning Experiement

Welcome to the blog this week!  I wanted to share an experiment that I did with Good Morning!

I have bus duty every morning and then hall duty after that.  I spend much of my morning wishing students a good morning and to have a good day.  I am sad to report that many times I don't even get eye contact back from them.  

My Experiment:

So, I took the opportunity this week, along with Mrs. Blaney, to model how to respond to someone saying "Good Morning" with the first and 2nd graders in the gym before school.  It only took a few minutes.  It was fun and the kids enjoyed it.  

After, I headed back out to the hall to monitor.  

When the bell rang something AMAZING happened!!!!!!  As the students exited the gym,  they walked by with smiles and even said good morning to me!  There were hugs and an instant change in their moods.  Mrs. Melton was down the hall and I could hear them greeting her too!  

Then, it happened again the next day! 

So what did I learn?  Taking just a small amount of time to reinforce manners can make a HUGE difference in how our students start the day and how they respond to the world around them. 

The time I took wasn't even instructional time!

I know on top of all of the curriculum we have to teach it is hard to think about adding one more thing to our plates but I really do believe that taking a small part of our morning meeting and modeling how our students respond when someone says  "good morning" or "have a good day" can have a huge impact on our school culture.  

The New York Post has a good article about The Magic Words Every Parent Needs to Teach.  I really liked the paragraph about how teaching children to say hello or to respond to a hello is not for the adult but to teach the children that other people have feelings and needs too.  

Children need to learn that there is a big world out there with lots of people.  That adults are not here to do ONLY for them.  That they can do for themselves and for others too!

I encourage you to take just a moment and point out this simple idea and do some modeling with your students.  

Here is a video to get you started!

I am sure you all have seen this one!  I LOVE it and I know several of you have added in some ways to greet each other during morning meeting:) 

 

Changing how our students respond to ALL the adults at PVES can change how they respond to the world around them! 

It only takes a few minutes a day:) 

Q3 Supporting Gifted Students in the Classroom

This week on the blog, I would like to focus on the world of gifted education.  While I am in no way an expert on this topic, I definitely encountered these types of students in my classrooms.  

Did you know that it is estimated that students who are gifted and highly talented encompass 5 to 15% of the school-age population? These advanced students can have increased capabilities in academics, creativity, music, dance, art, and/or leadership. 
(www.education.udel.edu)

I have had several teachers this year searching for resources for students in their current classrooms so I thought this would be a great way to put a collection of resources together for all of you.  

The Difference between BRIGHT and GIFTED?

We are Teachers has some awesome tips, tricks, and ideas for supporting the gifted learner in your classroom. Check their post out below!

50 Tips, Tricks, and Ideas for Gifted Learners

Miss Giraffe's Class has a great post about differentiating work for our gifted learners.  I love the part about allowing them to learn new and funky things like sign language! 

I really like the idea of using an interest survey with students.  This is a simple way to extend learning in your classroom for all your students. Check out a few free surveys below! Fun for Kinders & Hardcore Teacher Resouces!

   

 Our Patriot Block is a great time to check in with students on their interest surveys and allow them to have some choice and voice in a research project or creative piece! 

Q3 More ways to teach SCHEMA!

Welcome to Q3!  Thank you to all that spent the morning with me yesterday talking about SCHEMA!  I can't wait to see your Schema Sticks and One Minute Schema Determiners in your classrooms!

I wanted to share some more ideas to get even more explicit instruction about schema into your classrooms and lessons.  I LOVE this little idea below.  Such a great way for a student to show what they already know about a topic.  

This could be done simply with a generic head cutout and some crayons.  Students could draw the images instead of cutting. 

I would use one color for their schema before they read and then another after reading.  

Then they could analyze their illustrations and see how much knowledge on a topic they gained from reading.  

I created a template for to use in your classroom.  Just click the image to download!

If you read farther into the book Comprehension Connections on page 37 you will run across the idea of Concentric Circles of Connections.  This is simply teaching students to make connections to texts using their schema.  Check out the anchor chart below! 

Here is a great video from Pow Toons about those different types of connections that students make to text. 

Oh MY!   If you haven't jumped on the SCHEMA train yet this blog post from Miss Decarbo will get you on board!  It is filled with tons!!!!! of great information about why we need to start teaching young learners about how to activate their schema!

Happy Planning!

Q3 Book Clubs

Welcome to Q3!  I can't believe we are this far into the school year.  As testing comes to an end, we have a great opportunity to look at our NEW data and make changes in our instruction.  

I have had some questions about Book Clubs and how they can benefit some of our high flyers.  I have compiled several resources for you to check out.  I have novel study sets in my classroom you are welcome to borrow if needed.  

Benefits of Book Clubs: 

• Expose students to different types of text
• Promote a love for literature
• Foster interaction and collaboration
• Help students gain new friends and interact with different students. 
• Gain new perspectives
• Practice teamwork
• Problem Solve
• Presenting Skills
• Support writing skills
• Nurture reflection and self-evaluation

                                                 
The Teacher Trap has a great post on how to get Book Clubs up and running in your classroom!

I love the focus on real reading!

This is an AWESOME post about creating a reading culture in your classroom!

The idea of Jot Spots from Two Little Birds Teaching would be fantastic for students in book clubs to jot down their thinking and then have their post its to share during a group discussion time. 

Grab this FREE rubric from Rocking Teacher Materials on TPT! Hilary's book club resources are amazing!

Kristine Nannini at the Young Teacher Love blog has a great resource that includes assigned jobs for the students to use during the book club. 

Here are some ideas for novels for ages 9-12 from Mom to 2 Posh Divas.  If you decide to read The City of Ember,  let me know.  It is my FAVORITE!

I would love to plan a book club with you!  

Q2 Number Talks

Hi Park View!  This week, our math coach visited our BTNT meeting and shared all about number talks.  It really got me thinking about how mental math is such an important part of growing our student's mathematical toolkit.  

Consistent Number Talks give students the confidence to manipulate numbers/math in a way that makes sense to them. 

Here are some tips from her presentation:

She shared an AWESOME website that had tons of quick-ready to use number talks. It is called, Which One Doesn't Below.  Check it out below!

I also found these FREE printable posters to add to your number talks from Primary Bliss!  I love the "I would like to defend my answer"poster-HELLO PEAK!

The Routty Math Teacher also has a great FREE file on getting started with number talks.  

A NUMBER Talk in K:

A NUMBER TALK in 1st Grade:

A NUMBER TALK in 2nd Grade:

A NUMBER TALK in 3rd Grade: 

This video really stresses the importance of number talks.  It digs into how number talks level the playing field for students who think differently about math. Allowing students to have the opportunity to use trial and error is essential in building confidence in math. 

So in just 15 minutes a day, you can start improving your students' feelings about math and increase their number sense while also providing a safe place to share and learn. 

Happy Planning!

Differentiating in the K-3 Classroom

Let's talk differentiating! 

In a nutshell, differentiating is tailoring work to meet individual needs in the classroom.  You can differentiate content, product, process, and learning environment. Using continued assessment and flexible grouping allows continued success as students progress. 

Check out these examples of differentiating in the K-3 classroom and how we can better meet our 
M-Powerment Strategies!

Watch this video all about differentiation!  

Content: 
M-5 Differentiation and Personalization & M-4 Data Driven Instruction

• Using reading materials at various levels.
• Providing a listening option for reading materials.
• Leveling spelling or vocabulary lists. 
• Presenting materials with different learning styles in mind.
• Meeting in small groups to reteach or frontload information. 

Process:

M-9 Students Skilled for Success

• Providing tiered activities that allow students to work on material with different levels of support. 
• Developing centers with learning styles in mind for students to encounter at their own pace. 
• Using timers, agendas, or a check-in system so that students can complete work at a slower pace.
• Providing manipulatives for reading and math work. 

Product: 

M-10 Student Engagement & M-7 Checks for Understanding

• Encouraging student different ways to express their learning. 
• Providing rubrics that match different learners.  
• Allowing students to produce work in groups with predetermined guidelines of what the project will contain. 

Learning Environment: 

M-1 Collaborative culture of Caring

• Providing a quiet working environment and a place for students to collaborate and work in pairs or groups. 
• Using learning activities or tools to meet the diverse needs in your classroom.  
• Have clear and consistent guidelines for independent work/group work. 
• Keeping to a predictable routine to provide independence for all learners. 
• Create a learning community by helping students understand their unique learning styles and acceptance for other's styles and needs.  

Check out these simple differentiation ideas from Performing Education!

Good Stuff from The Primary Gal!

Let's not forget our gifted learners!  They need differentiation too!  Check out this blogpost for Miss Giraffe!

Surviving the Holidays

So...it's December!  The spirits are high in every elementary school.  While spirits are fun, we still have the curriculum to teach.  How do we embrace the chaos & still keep our students engaged?

Below you will find lots of ideas to bring some engagement to your lessons: 

One of my favorite service learning projects for this season is the Pajama Drive through Scholastic!

How about this FREE Winter STEM Marshmallow Shooter? 

We Are Teachers has a great idea of sending home some scented holiday playdough.  Maybe they will get some making words practice done over break!  You could even add in a list of holiday words for your students to practice!

Check out these Christmas Trees!!!!  These are perfect for a STEM challenge!

How about a compliment present!  A gift for students from students!  

Do you have an elf?  Check out these 24 Zero Elf on the Shelf ideas for your classroom from Me and B Make Tea! 

Or try some reader's theatre from Lisa Frase on TPT! 

Hope these ideas help you head right into the New Year with some holiday fun!