Happy First Day of School!

I love a good photo op!

As a classroom teacher, I was always creating photo opportunities for my kids, documenting our learning journey together. At the end of the school year, I would compile them into a video slideshow with music, and yes, tears. I took so many pictures that the slideshow was usually close to an hour long, or even longer, and would you believe that those kids sat them, mesmerized by their growth, how much fun we had, and just how far they had come? Oh yes. 

So, as the year begins, think about how you can make this year memorable and special for you students. I think that is just as important as the academics - no big SEL events, but weave SEL throughout your year by being supportive, listening, and providing opportunities for kids outside of academics. It's so important, and that time spent building a strong foundation through relationships will come back to positively impact academics and behaviors. After all, kids work hard and listen to adults who respect them and care for them. I mean, they just know.

Mentor Text Alert: Jabari Jumps

Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall is an amazing picture book! It is great for teaching skills such as persevering through a challenge, facing your fears, and supporting each other. The text will lend itself well to discussions around fears that kids may have and how they can overcome those fears either on their own or with support.

In this book, the boy is so excited to jump off the diving board, but then he realizes that he is quite frightened. The book explores how he overcomes this fear and ultimately has success. It really does demonstrate to kids that they can do anything.

Common themes include: courage, perseverance, supportiveness, and so on. Remember, any theme can work as long as you have evidence from the text to support it!

Included below is a sampling from this text. I highly recommend adding it to your library ASAP! (Also, my version is from First Book marketplace. Check it out for discounted texts for teachers in Title 1 schools. It is the best!)

How do we connect with our students in a virtual education setting?

Hi everyone!

How do we connect with our students when we are working with them in a virtual setting? Here are some ideas to build that strong foundation for trusting relationships!

1. SNAIL MAIL

Send your students post cards, letters, or cards to say hello and drop a compliment! I stocked up on blank greeting cards every year and usually put them in my classroom mailboxes, but this is the same idea. When my students received a handwritten note, they were thrilled. Many parents told me that the kids kept their cards on display in the house, others kept the cards in their desks at school as a reminder that they are respected and loved. Send them mail! They'll go nuts, I promise you.

2. MORNING MEETING

Responsive Classroom is just good teaching. I love it. I love that our staff has been trained in Responsive Classroom! Morning Meeting is a cornerstone of the program, focusing on social emotional learning. Teachers express that Morning Meeting sets the stage for kids and teachers to connect, develop respect in the classroom, and bond. We all know kids work hard for teachers they connect with AND LIKE. 

So, keep it going. Maybe not every day, but try to have a class meeting once a week on Zoom or Google Meet. Get the kids together.Use fun activities like, "Would You Rather?" or  "This or That?" Make it fun so the kids participate and want to come back for the next meeting. If you can't have synchronous meetings, use a platform like flipgrid to record themselves and watch their peers. We did this last spring and had a theme each day: Minute to Win in challenge Mondays, Talk About It Tuesdays, Would You Rather Wednesdays, Think About it Thursdays, and Free for All Fridays!

3. BE ORGANIZED, STRUCTURED, and CONSISTENT

If the kids understand your expectations, know what they need to do in your class, and feel comfortable asking you questions, you're winning. At our school, we're using the same style choice boards across grade levels, everyone is using Google Classroom, and grade level teams have decided on the same organizational styles for their Google Classrooms. Consistency is key.

Let me know in the comments how you're connecting with kids during virtual teaching!

Five for Friday

I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching this week for Five For Friday! 

FLASHLIGHT FRIDAY

I still love it.

And so do my kiddos.

We spend 15 minutes every Friday reading in the dark, with flashlights, all around the classroom. It's so popular that one little girl came into my room on the first day of school and brought in her own flashlight because she had heard about it from one of my former students and was excited!

It's definitely a lot of fun!

And even kiddos who don't always choose to read during Daily 5 are pretty engaged during Flashlight Friday!

STICK PUPPETS!

Yep, we used stick puppets earlier this year to retell our Greek myths. It was tons of fun, and some kids STILL pull them out, months later, to retell Greek myths that they really enjoyed. 

GONOODLE.COM

Still love me some GoNoodle. Last year I used it as an incentive to pack up quickly so we could watch a video before the end of the day announcements came on. This year I have a special the last half hour of the day, so my kiddos are dismissed right from special! They don't even come back to the room! So, I throw this up during indoor recess and it's always a big hit. They love taking turns choosing videos to watch.

I even have a few girls who talk Irish Step Dancing classes. They throw up Call Me Maybe and do their class dance! They're teaching the other girls, too!

GoNoodle.

Keeping kiddos occupied during indoor recess all year!

Does anyone else love Trivia Crack?
I do.

It's addictive.

I have the app on my phone and play whenever I get the chance. Play against your friends and get competitive answering silly trivia questions about everything and anything!

And a little Lucy for the road!

Teacher Planners

I'm just a wee bit frugal...and every year I have created my own grid on the computer, filled in my schedule, printed them double sided and hole punched the pages to go into a cute binder. That was my plan book. Still is. But THIS. THIS is on my wish list. You can basically create the plan book you like, with various types of pages, like seating charts and grading pages, and personalize it to fit your needs! It is just so cute and organized! I know there are online plan books that lots of teachers are using now, but, call me old-fashioned, I just like writing down my plans and having that quick reference where ever I am, whenever!

Click the link below to check out the website for ordering information. It's never too early to start on next year!

Erin Condren Teacher Planners Website

Who doesn't love glow sticks?

These doodads were sitting on the desks of my lovely fourth grade kiddos on the first day of school this year. I found the printable online (and yikes, I just can't remember where...it was oh so many years ago that I originally downloaded it.) and hole punched...stick a glow stick bracelet from the dollar store in there and VOILA! Instant awesome teacher!

My kiddos loved these, and since they were bracelets, they weren't a major distraction during the school day...just a cute bracelet and easy way for me to identify which fourth grade newbies were MY newbies when collecting them from lunch, special, or the playground!

Birthday Pencils!

This year, I decided to make my life easier. Instead of giving out candy or writing cards for birthdays, I made my bouquet of birthday balloons! I put a styrofoam ball in a flower pot. Next, I sharpened a ton of pencils. After that, I taped a Happy Birthday balloon to each, and pushed them into the styrofoam. Easy! I saw it on Pinterest with flower cut outs, so it would be a bouquet of flowers, but my classroom decor is black and white polka dots, so this worked with the theme better!

And now, when kiddos come knocking on my door to share their birthday treats, instead of stopping instruction to get them a treat or pencil, I just direct them to select their birthday pencil! Easy Peasey Lemon Squeezey!

Fourth Grade Classroom Photos

                                                                 The meeting area

                                                                  theme charts

                                                                     CRAFT Board

                                                                      Daily 5 Charts

                                                                   Genre Graph