It's that time again! It's officially Back to School season. I have mixed emotions, just because I had sooo much more I wish I would have accomplished this summer. Oh well. The best part though about back to school is buying fun stuff for my classroom. And you know what? I got most of my stuff at Target! The dollar bins are incredible. Some of the things I bought (each for a dollar) a pack of nametags, a grade book, homework chart, easy readers, whiteboards, dryerase handwriting sentence strips, weather chart, super sized reward stickers, and post it notes. Other fun things I found in there but didn't buy were lesson plan book, stickers, nameplates, and all kinds of goodies you could use for a treat bucket. So if you haven't checked it out, you REALLY should! Even if you aren't a teacher, I highly recommend the dollar bins right now!
I'll be posting again in a couple of days (maybe even tomorrow) with some more back to school ideas and goodies! So check back!
Happy Pickin'
Mrs. L
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Quiet Mouse
I think as teachers we all tell our students at some point to pretend they are mice in order to get them to be as silent or quiet as possible, right? Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. However, with the help of the quiet mouse puppet...we accomplish being quiet in the hall pretty well if I do say so myself. :-)
I got this idea from my cooperating teacher when I was student teaching kindergarten a little over a year ago now. I love it and so do the kids. If you are a lower elementary grades teacher and happen to take all your kids to the bathroom at the same time; this is a fun and great little way to have them wait patiently and quietly in line for the bathroom.
My class lines up outside the restroom for a bathroom break together twice a day to prevent accidents and also to limit the constant bathroom interruptions while I'm trying to teach. And the way I try to keep them silent in line is through the use of a puppet. Ours last year happened to be a mouse (which worked well with the idea of quiet mouse). I choose one student who walked down the hall quietly and correctly to start with the quiet mouse. They take the mouse, stand in front of the class for a couple of minutes and look for a friend who is also being a quiet mouse and they then pass it on. This continues until everyone has used the restroom.
It's amazing how well this works and how excited they get over getting a chance to hold the mouse. And the best part? It works ALL YEAR LONG. At least it did for my class. They never got tired of using it. It was always fun and exciting to be chosen. However..you will have to disinfect poor little mouse often...And probably replace him every year.. I'm thinking I might go with Quiet Bunny this year...since I have an amazing book calling Quiet Bunny..hmm..sounds like a book review in the making to me. ;-)
Happy Pickin'
Mrs. L
I got this idea from my cooperating teacher when I was student teaching kindergarten a little over a year ago now. I love it and so do the kids. If you are a lower elementary grades teacher and happen to take all your kids to the bathroom at the same time; this is a fun and great little way to have them wait patiently and quietly in line for the bathroom.
My class lines up outside the restroom for a bathroom break together twice a day to prevent accidents and also to limit the constant bathroom interruptions while I'm trying to teach. And the way I try to keep them silent in line is through the use of a puppet. Ours last year happened to be a mouse (which worked well with the idea of quiet mouse). I choose one student who walked down the hall quietly and correctly to start with the quiet mouse. They take the mouse, stand in front of the class for a couple of minutes and look for a friend who is also being a quiet mouse and they then pass it on. This continues until everyone has used the restroom.
It's amazing how well this works and how excited they get over getting a chance to hold the mouse. And the best part? It works ALL YEAR LONG. At least it did for my class. They never got tired of using it. It was always fun and exciting to be chosen. However..you will have to disinfect poor little mouse often...And probably replace him every year.. I'm thinking I might go with Quiet Bunny this year...since I have an amazing book calling Quiet Bunny..hmm..sounds like a book review in the making to me. ;-)
Happy Pickin'
Mrs. L
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Blessed are the Peacemakers
Hey everyone! Hope you all are still enjoying your summer. I cannot believe how fast it is going. I wish it would slow down just a bit as I'm pretty sure I was designed to be a summer creature. But that's besides the point.
If you read my last blog, (if you didn't click here...I'll wait..*taps foot* Done? Good!)I was talking about how even though I established my "crayon crowd community", that doesn't mean everything goes swimmingly now does it? No, of course not...as much as we would like it too. I mean even us, as the teachers, get cranky and have to ask for forgiveness from others, so naturally our students aren't going to get along all the time.
My solution? Drum roll please.
*ahem*
The Peace Table.
I designed the concept of the peace table in college when I had to create my classroom setup and ways to manage my classroom. The peace table in my room is a tiny table off to the side that is designed for two friends. The purpose? To get students to resolve conflict...on their own. I have two reasons for this. The first is (to be quite honest with you)..I'm selfish. Tattling can drive me absolutely CRAZY! And I'm pretty sure every teacher (at least the lower grades) would agree with me. You could spend all day dealing with tattling it feels like. The second reason is because students need to learn to work out their problems on their own..without me. There are adults who don't know how to resolve conflict...and it is important to learn to work problems out rather than gossip, hold a grudge, or lose friends over an argument. Am I right?
So how does it work? Students who are arguing or frustrated with another student may at an appropriate time (indoor recess, free time, quiet work) discuss with the other student what their problem is and work it out. Now for the first few weeks of school..I walk them through it and we discuss as a small group. But as the year goes on..they don't need me anymore. They learn to calmly and kindly share their opinions and feelings with each other. When they are done discussing, they come and tell me what they talked about and how they found peace with one another. It was sweet to watch kids who were so frustrated with each other..leave with a hug and a smile and run away to play together. Obviously, this might need modified with whatever grade level you are teaching. Fortunately..I work with first graders and they haven't figured out how to manipulate the situation to make it the "talking table", so that's a major plus with this age group.
My sneak preview for next time has TWO words: Quiet Mouse....
Happy Pickin'!
Mrs. L
If you read my last blog, (if you didn't click here...I'll wait..*taps foot* Done? Good!)I was talking about how even though I established my "crayon crowd community", that doesn't mean everything goes swimmingly now does it? No, of course not...as much as we would like it too. I mean even us, as the teachers, get cranky and have to ask for forgiveness from others, so naturally our students aren't going to get along all the time.
My solution? Drum roll please.
*ahem*
The Peace Table.
I designed the concept of the peace table in college when I had to create my classroom setup and ways to manage my classroom. The peace table in my room is a tiny table off to the side that is designed for two friends. The purpose? To get students to resolve conflict...on their own. I have two reasons for this. The first is (to be quite honest with you)..I'm selfish. Tattling can drive me absolutely CRAZY! And I'm pretty sure every teacher (at least the lower grades) would agree with me. You could spend all day dealing with tattling it feels like. The second reason is because students need to learn to work out their problems on their own..without me. There are adults who don't know how to resolve conflict...and it is important to learn to work problems out rather than gossip, hold a grudge, or lose friends over an argument. Am I right?
So how does it work? Students who are arguing or frustrated with another student may at an appropriate time (indoor recess, free time, quiet work) discuss with the other student what their problem is and work it out. Now for the first few weeks of school..I walk them through it and we discuss as a small group. But as the year goes on..they don't need me anymore. They learn to calmly and kindly share their opinions and feelings with each other. When they are done discussing, they come and tell me what they talked about and how they found peace with one another. It was sweet to watch kids who were so frustrated with each other..leave with a hug and a smile and run away to play together. Obviously, this might need modified with whatever grade level you are teaching. Fortunately..I work with first graders and they haven't figured out how to manipulate the situation to make it the "talking table", so that's a major plus with this age group.
My sneak preview for next time has TWO words: Quiet Mouse....
Happy Pickin'!
Mrs. L
Monday, July 4, 2011
Building Community- Through Crayons and Colors!
Happy 4th of July everyone!
When I think of the 4th of July, I think of the obvious things like our nation's freedom, hotdogs, watermelon, and of course fireworks. Fireworks are beautiful-made up of many different shapes, sizes, and of course...COLOR! And it is color that leads me back to my classroom theme of community through the use of the crayon box.
In my last post, I did a book review on The Crayon Box that Talked by Shane DeRolf. In this post, I'm going to tell you a little bit about how I used this book and its theme in my classroom the whole year. The first thing I did when my students first came in my classroom was give them 1 crayon and one piece of paper. I asked them to draw me a picture using only that one crayon. I gave them about 15-20 minutes to color as other kids were settling in. Afterwards, I asked them how it was to create a picture only using one crayon. They commented that it was difficult and not as fun. I then pulled out the wonderful and magnificent book and read it them. We talked about how a picture needs lots of colors to be completed. I then showed them how our classroom is like that. We're not all created the same way (I teach at a Christian school, so I talk about how God's created us differently, but even if you don't teach at a Christian school..you can obviously still talk about celebrating differences) and each of us has gifts and personalities that form the beauty of our class.
At the end of the first day of school, together as a class we made a giant mural of our classroom and classmates to hang on the wall using many beautiful colors. The students really enjoy creating the mural, and it is a good reminder for them when they see it, that our differences are something to be celebrated, and not criticized.
But I'm not finished yet...oh no...we can't forget the CRAYOLA PARTY! At the end of the first week of school, we have a Crayola party. Each student signs up for a color and a food or party item and brings it in for us to have a crayola party where we eat and celebrate our differences. We enjoy our snacks and colorful decorations, and then students get to share with one another what they have like about their friends.
But unfortunately...as we all know..children squabble and children tattle...so where does that fit in with my crayon class? Find out in my next blog! :-)
Until the next apple pickin'
Mrs. L
When I think of the 4th of July, I think of the obvious things like our nation's freedom, hotdogs, watermelon, and of course fireworks. Fireworks are beautiful-made up of many different shapes, sizes, and of course...COLOR! And it is color that leads me back to my classroom theme of community through the use of the crayon box.
In my last post, I did a book review on The Crayon Box that Talked by Shane DeRolf. In this post, I'm going to tell you a little bit about how I used this book and its theme in my classroom the whole year. The first thing I did when my students first came in my classroom was give them 1 crayon and one piece of paper. I asked them to draw me a picture using only that one crayon. I gave them about 15-20 minutes to color as other kids were settling in. Afterwards, I asked them how it was to create a picture only using one crayon. They commented that it was difficult and not as fun. I then pulled out the wonderful and magnificent book and read it them. We talked about how a picture needs lots of colors to be completed. I then showed them how our classroom is like that. We're not all created the same way (I teach at a Christian school, so I talk about how God's created us differently, but even if you don't teach at a Christian school..you can obviously still talk about celebrating differences) and each of us has gifts and personalities that form the beauty of our class.
At the end of the first day of school, together as a class we made a giant mural of our classroom and classmates to hang on the wall using many beautiful colors. The students really enjoy creating the mural, and it is a good reminder for them when they see it, that our differences are something to be celebrated, and not criticized.
But I'm not finished yet...oh no...we can't forget the CRAYOLA PARTY! At the end of the first week of school, we have a Crayola party. Each student signs up for a color and a food or party item and brings it in for us to have a crayola party where we eat and celebrate our differences. We enjoy our snacks and colorful decorations, and then students get to share with one another what they have like about their friends.
But unfortunately...as we all know..children squabble and children tattle...so where does that fit in with my crayon class? Find out in my next blog! :-)
Until the next apple pickin'
Mrs. L
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