We had a spooktacular day here at PR! Thank you to all our parent volunteers for organizing and running a fabulous party! Have a safe and fun night! Below are some pics from the day.
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If we want our children to read more, than we have to start talking about books with them.
When something is talked about, it gains popularity, and eventually grabs our interest as well. Naturally, our curiosity wants to check it out. Think about Silly Bands. Fidget Spinners, squeeze balls, Fortnite, “The Floss”, popular movies, etc. They all gained attention by being talked about, which spiked our children’s interest . This lead them to join the bandwagon. Well, if we want our children to hop on the reading bandwagon, then we need to start building a reading community. The way that we can do that together is by talking about books. Often I find myself asking my own children about what they read and they get annoyed with me. They perceive talking about reading as a chore or something they do for school. What I need to do more of is share with my children what I am reading and my inner voice. Maybe there was a part of a book that I enjoyed, or a funny tale, or a conclusion that I drew, or a connection I made. Maybe a book left me with questions of wonder that I want to pose to another. When our children start to hear us talk about books as we would a TV show, they will start to view reading as a form of entertainment and it won’t be pigeon-holed into something they do for school. One of the reasons I have the students create book reviews on SeeSaw is so they become comfortable talking about their reading. I also know that when we hear our peers talking about a book, we tend to listen more, which leads us to check it out. That is why a site like “Goodreads” is so popular and successful. We all like to be in on the latest and greatest. Reading has been one of the greatest sources of entertainment for centuries. Yes, we have other distractions and forms of entertainment now, but reading can still bring us just as much pleasure. If we want our children to be strong and passionate readers, then we need to show them the wonderment and excitement that a good book can bring. We need to start talking. If you have not done so already, please listen to your child’s book review on SeeSaw and add a comment. Let them know that books are worth talking about. On Friday we celebrated International Dot Day! I love this day because it stems from a book with an uplifting and powerful message. The book is The Dot by Peter Reynolds. The book is about a young girl, Vashti, who has a fixed mindset and believes that she cannot draw. She only knows how to make a simple dot. Her teacher frames her dot, hangs it, and gives Vashti the courage to create more. Vashti creates dot masterpieces and eventually passes along the same encouragement to a young boy at the end of the story. The class came up with all the thematic messages that Reynolds teaches us:
Try your best Believe in yourself Take a chance Say, "I Can" Have a growth mindset As Vashti's teacher states in the book, "Just make a mark and see where it takes you." So, that is exactly what we in fourth grade are going to do. We are going to try, we are going to make mistakes, we are going to step out of our comfort zones, and we are going to find success. We will find beauty and joy and excitement and encouragement in making our marks and seeing where they take us. To celebrate International Dot Day, we each colored our own dot and then literally saw where they took us using an app, Quivervision, which makes drawings 3-dimensional. Below our some videos an pics of our excitement about seeing where our dots can take us. I have also included photos from all our fun science experiments on energy, as we are making our mark there too! Each year I read this book and each year I ponder how I want to make my mark for the upcoming year. How can I step outside my comfort zone and take a risk? I love asking my own kiddos how they want to make their mark. It gives me great insight into their inner voice. That being said, if your looking for a good dinner table topic, go around and share ways that you can make your mark independently and together as a family. I hope it allows you to see your child's inner beauty. Click the link below for videos! International Dot Day Videos! Metacog…what? Metacognition, that’s right. Metacognition is thinking about your thinking. It is the ability to listen to your thoughts as you navigate any situation, to reflect, and to plan for the future. metacognition builds self-awareness.
We all want our children to become independent thinkers, active citizens, and to make a positive impact on the world around them. The kindest, most empathetic, most perseverant people are the ones who are the most comfortable with themselves. They are the ones who are able to wonder, reflect, and ask why as naturally as they breathe. They are the ones who were taught metacognitive strategies. Metacognitive strategies involve children pausing, recognizing their thoughts, and asking why. We can help them do this in social and academic situations. For instance, when a child makes a poor choice, ask him/her, “Why did you do this?” and “Next time this same situation arises, what can you do differently?”. If a child displays a fixed mindset and says, “I can’t”, we can ask him/her “Why do you feel this way?” and “Why do you think this one part is challenging for you?” and “What are some strategies you have used in the past?”. We can encourage them to talk positively to themselves: “You can do it!” “Your best is good enough!” “You’ve got this!” Believe it or not, having good metacognition makes you a better reader too! As we read, we often think about the characters, the setting, the author’s words, etc. Active readers recognize their thoughts and hold onto them as they read. They hear their inner voice and talk to themselves. To help practice listening to our inner voices, I introduced think marks to students. Think marks are marks that students make on post its (stickies) to show their thinking as they read. For instance, they might write down LOL on a sticky and attach it to a page in their book if something is funny. They could write down a ? and a question they have about what is going on or about a character, etc. Like any sport, good athletes don't just go through the motions, they always have their head in the game. They are always listening to themselves think about their next strategy and reflecting. Think marking helps students keep their head in the game. It conditions them to hear their thoughts and respond. Life-long readers have metacognition. Below are pics of students using metacognitive strategies in various settings. We are listening to our peers, reflecting, hearing our thoughts and talking to ourselves! Empathy is the act of understanding and being sensitive to another's thoughts, needs, and feelings. I would argue that empathy is the most powerful tool that I can help your child learn.
Humans are complex. We have a range of emotions, thoughts, wants, needs, some negative, some positive. A huge part of early child development is teaching our children to become self-aware and to verbally communicate their own beliefs in an appropriate manner. It is beautiful to witness a child coming into his/her own self. However, at some point, we need to shift the focus and have our children start tuning into the needs of those around them. This is not always so easy to do and quite frankly can sometimes feel unnatural. Today we started our social-emotional curriculum, Second Step. The first lesson is about empathy and I salute this curriculum for recognizing that knowing how to be empathetic is key in any type of problem-solving situation, be it social, academic, or work-related. Throughout the year, the students and I will continue to explore how recognizing another's thoughts and feelings from verbal and nonverbal cues will help us be better communicators. We will practice what can we say or do in certain situations to foster inclusive settings and meaningful conversations. Learning content is important. Learning to be empathetic is a life skill that reaches far beyond the classroom walls. This week we focused on the essential question of "Where do I learn best?". Throughout the week, we explored working in the various learning spaces in our classroom. Many students began to realize that they don't always learn best in the same spot. For instance, when reading independently, a child might like to curl up on the floor, but when working in a small group, that same child might like standing at a tall desk. So our conversations started revolving around what is a power spot and can your power spot change.
A "power spot" is a spot where you are able to learn best. Your body feels comfortable and relaxed and thus you feel ready to take in information and focus on the task at hand. A power spot helps you increase your work stamina (Another word introduced, which I'll write about later). Sometimes a power spot is by your friends and sometimes it is not. Even at home, we have power spots that help us accomplish the task before us. When I am eating dinner, my power spot is on the bench at my kitchen table, my son's is sitting upright in a chair at the kitchen table. When I am typing on my computer, I like to be nestled in the corner of my couch, my husband likes to be sitting at the desk in our living room. My daughter's power spot for doing her homework is sitting on her bed. My son's power spot for doing his homework is at our kitchen table. The freedom of choice to decide what is best for your body and mind in that moment gives you the power to focus, absorb & retain information, reflect, and achieve your goal. If we want our children to become 21st century learners, to think outside the box, to be independent thinkers, then we have to give them the opportunity to know their bodies and know where and how they learn best. We have to let them find their power spots. Below are pics of us trying out various learning spaces. We continue to reflect on knowing what are our power spots. For many years, I have prided myself on meeting students’ various learning styles through my flexible instruction. Like many other educators, I have designed and revised my lessons to accommodate different learners and to help my students achieve their full potential. However, what I have found is that this is not enough. In order for my classroom to truly be student-centered, it also needs to adapt to the varying and ever-changing physical needs of my students.
I have always taught in a classroom where each student was assigned a desk and an upright chair. The philosophy was that when sitting straight at a desk, students are best able to focus and be productive. What I did not question until recently is why do I believe my students will be the best possible learners when conforming to a physical boundary that I personally find so limiting. When I am reading, I like to curl up tight and get lost in a chair, when I am writing, I like a wide flat surface before me, when my legs ache, I like to stretch out, when I feel restless, I like to bounce or rock, and when I want to converse with my peers, I like seek furniture or nooks that provide comfort and togetherness. My students are no different than I. Since my philosophy is truly student-centered and focused on teaching to the whole child, I am driven to empower my students to explore how they learn best. With our new redesigned learning space, I hope to give them the freedom to choose the physical modality that best meets their needs in a given moment, guide them in building self-awareness, and ultimately lead them in taking ownership of their learning. As, Kayla Delzer, a leading educator from North Dakota, states “If we truly want to prepare our students for the real world, we need to put them in responsive, dynamic environments that reflect life outside of a traditional classroom. And what’s that life outside like? Full of choices.” I always brag how much I adore my class this year. Each child brings positivity, kindness and energy to our class! However, what makes this class really special is their ability to work together.
I am constantly throwing them in various small groups to problem-solve and explore. Each time, I am more amazed by how they openly communicate ideas, treat each other with respect, ask questions, and persevere in tasks as a team. This class got the memo on how to cooperate and collaborate! With these skills in their tool belts, I foresee great futures ahead! Below are some pictures of the class working in teams at the Grove and in our Escape From Ms. Storrie’s Library Challenge. Enjoy! “Math starts in 5 minutes. Finish your morning work.” Time. “Thumbs up if you are ready to go onto the next problem.” Time. “Finish up your observations.” Time. “Quickly write down your homework before we move on.” Time “Line up for lunch, we will finish our book discussion later.” Time “We have to be at PE in 5 minutes. Put away your work.” Time We are in a constant battle with time. Lessons revolve around time. How many minutes, hours, days will they take? By this date, where do we need to be? Did we spend enough time on that topic, skill? Do I need to rearrange our schedule? Do some students need more time? When is it time to move on? Time can be stressful. It can cause anxiety and rush our thoughts. I search endlessly for the wrinkle in time, where we can freely continue our task without the worry of what we are missing or what comes next. Our narrative writing unit began today. I really want my students to feel comfortable writing and at ease. I really want my students to let their imaginations take the best of them. I really want my students to not worry about writing a masterpiece every time they write. So, I asked myself, “What do I need to give my students so that they can accomplish and feel all these things?” Time. If I want my students to understand that being a writer means thinking and writing and crumpling and rewriting and starting anew and revising and editing, then I need to give them time. Time to relax, time to just stare out and think, time to explore their thoughts, time to transfer ideas into written words. So often we judge the end product, and label ourselves by that. Being a good writer is not about the end product, but rather about stamina, tenacity, confidence, and the freedom to make changes. Today I gave my students a gift, a little wrinkle in time. After our first narrative writing mini-lesson, we took a notebook and pencil to our “Power Spot”, a self-chosen spot that helps us get in a zone, and just wrote a story. No interruptions, the world around froze, but our minds did not. Some students wrote 1 sentence. Some wrote 3 pages. Regardless, all students were on their way to becoming writers. At the end of our session, I asked the students for input about the writing lesson. Below are their responses and some pics. I see writers everywhere. “It was fun to just sit down and write whatever I wanted.” “It was nice to have time to write.” “I would have liked even more time because it takes me awhile to think of my idea at the beginning. Usually I don’t like writing about a certain topic, but I like writing about what I want.” “It was fun just making up a story and expressing my thoughts.” “I liked seeing what my stories would form into.” “It was OK. I kind of like writing, but not really. Sometimes I can’t think about what to write and I just sit there and think.” “I liked writing in the morning because usually I am stressed and it helps.” “I liked writing about whatever I wanted to write.” “It was nice and helped me calm down because I can just think of my happy story and I had the time to think about it.” “It gave me the opportunity to think about the story I was writing.” “I liked it because we had a lot of free time to write what we wanted and I got a lot done.” “I thought it was pretty good because I got to write about something I imagined in my head and not about a certain topic.” “I really liked writing today because I like writing in first person and I got to write from my head. I like putting myself in other characters and how they would feel.” “It gave me time to write a long story.” “I think it was good because we had time to write.” “I felt like it was a fun lesson today because I got to write what I wanted to write about today. I like writing my own story and it takes me a long time to think of something to write.” “I like writing interesting stories and I like to sit in a quiet spot and write. I liked what I wrote today.” “I liked writing today because it gave me time to relax.” “I liked it because I got to write about what I wanted. I still need more time for my story.” “I still need more time because it takes me a long time to think about what to write about.” There is a beautiful expression in Spanish, “Hasta Siempre”. It means until always. I was once told by a professor to replace the sorrow of goodbye with the comfort of “Hasta Siempre”.
In just a couple of days, one of our fabulous 4th graders is moving and embarking on a new journey. I am so thrilled for her family and what the future holds for them. However, like many of the students, I too will miss her dearly. Even though, as a teacher, I watch my students move on each year, I am never quite prepared to say goodbye. Goodbye sounds so final. Goodbye feels like a loss. It is sometimes hard to say goodbye. This week, I will remind my students that although my path might never physically cross with my students again, I like them to know that they are always with me. Please take a moment to inquire how your child feels about seeing a friend go and feel free to give them the words, “Hasta Siempre”. |
Welcome to Room 314!
Have fun following our fabulous 4th grade journey! Important Dates
August 22nd- First Day!
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