Holiday Parent Gift Calendars

Today my 5th graders put the finishing touches on their parent gift calendars! I was beyond excited and extremely proud of my students. You see, this is my first year teaching 5th graders. Being that they are older and from a different planet... I presented this project to them as a choice. 

Once I explained the purpose and showed examples, my 5th graders whole-heartedly morphed into focused, artful beings. The outcome was way more than I expected and I hope that parents, grandparents and guardians appreciate the effort, love and care that each student poured into making his/her calendar special. 

THE PROCESS

• get started early (we started two weeks ago and only worked during free time)
• choose a cover (there are 2 to choose from)
• if possible print the calendars one-sided on white card stock
• students illustrate each month (some students also drew emojis on holidays or special days on each page, they even added family member birthdays😊)

• students write a letter to the calendar recipient (it is at the back of the calendar)
• laminate the cover
• add a colored piece of card stock to the back of the calendar to add pizzaz 
• book bind or hole punch
• wrap with yarn and add a candy cane

Happy Holidays from me to you!

A Mindful Classroom

When was the last time you said to your students, “Let’s take a moment for you to arrive in the classroom.”

I know, as teachers, we are under constant pressure to prepare students for tests, to stay on schedule or to just fit it all in. We want our students to be academically successful. But what about their social and emotional well-being? Each year, the stress and anxiety levels of students are increasing due to many factors. Now more than ever, students need tools to help them deal. Consistently giving students a moment to “feel how they feel” allows them to be more engaged in learning. Mindfulness is a great way to teach students to become more aware of the world around them and how they fit into their world.

Mindfulness is defined as being aware of one’s own thinking, experiences and feelings in the present moment. About three years ago I decided to implement a mindfulness routine in my classroom. It was super simple, after recess my students would spend a few minutes focused on breathing and being still in order to notice their thoughts and how their bodies feel. In the beginning, many students had a difficult time being still even for a few minutes. I persisted and gradually they began to be still for longer periods of time. As a result, they were calmer in the afternoon; more focused and even showed more compassion towards each other.

I created a mindfulness corner in my classroom so that students can practice mindfulness whenever needed. It gives a student (or teacher!) a moment to process emotions (anger, sadness, frustration, confusion) instead of acting out impulsively or negatively. My heart runs over when I see a student quietly walk over to the mindfulness corner and  just be still.

 
Research suggests that mindfulness can increase focus and attention in children. As a result, they are able to synthesize and analyze to better delve for deeper cognitive understandings during class activities and discussions.

 

Here's a mindful activity you can try in your classroom starting today:

Deep Breathing

Have students find a comfortable place to sit in the classroom. They can sit at their desks or sit or lay on the floor. Have them close their eyes and just focus on taking deep breaths in through their noses while counting to five. Then they should slowly let their breaths out while counting to five. Remind them to keep their heads up and shoulders straight. They should be able to feel the air as it moves in their noses and down their throats. As students breath in and out, their stomachs should not move in and down in an exaggerated form. Repeat this process a few times. When done, ask students to share how they feel and what they were thinking during this mindful breathing exercise. You can also encourage students to write a reflection with this freebie reflection handout.

For more mindfulness activities, take a look at this resource, A Mindful Classroom. It includes six mindfulness activities that students can practice daily, reflection handouts and a mindfulness journal that can be used throughout the year.

Namaste😊

Countdown to Summer!

   As I peer across my classroom, I see the glazed-over eyes of my 2nd grade students who are waiting for the lazy days of summer vacation! With less than a few weeks left of this school term, students are looking forward to sleeping in, swimming at the pool and hanging out with friends. Parents are organizing carpools for summer camp and planning family vacations. The last thing anyone wants to think about is doing academic work over the summer. 

   As much as they deserve and need a break (teachers too!), all kids should continue to build their intelligence during summer months.  Research suggests that children who read just six books on their reading level, will maintain or increase their level over the summer! Also, summer writing helps students continue to organize their thoughts on paper and increase written comprehension skills.

   Some activities that will keep your child engaged over the summer are:

• visit your local library, most have summer reading programs
• have your child keep a daily journal in a composition notebook and spend 15 minutes each day just free writing
• go on a nature walk and find a shady spot so that your child can draw and illustrate his/her surroundings
• cook a meal together, your child can write down the recipe and/or write a review of the meal
• document a family trip by letting your child take photographs; create a memory book by adding captions to the pictures
• let your child redesign the layout for his/her bedroom; then draw the blueprints and add notes about colors and items that will personalize the room
• read a book with your child and have book discussions while enjoying lunch or a snack; Harry Potter is still a summer favorite
• Download and print My Summer Reading & Writing Journal; it includes 16 writing prompts, reading response handouts to build comprehension and 2nd & 3rd grade book lists of great summer reads

 This journal has everything that a parent needs to help their child continue to improve writing skills and build reading comprehension.  Download a sample freebie here:

Whatever your child does over summer break... make sure he/she does it with happiness, kindness and a huge heart!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to every mom who works tirelessly to make sure that their kids have everything that they need. My remarkable second graders were able to give their moms a present that was truly grown with lots of love, a little science and a scoop of curiosity. Six weeks ago we embarked on the journey of learning about the life cycle of plants. On day one, each student chose a seed to plant - radish, zinnia or lemon basil. I placed rocks at the bottom of the clear plastic drinking cups and challenged my students to figure out why as they added soil and seeds .  

The plants were placed excitedly on a window ledge so that each one received plenty of sunlight and students eagerly watered them each day. We recorded our observations in a plant observation journal daily and wrote written reflections each Friday. Some questions asked were:

1. Why do the leaves seem to turn towards the window?
2. Why do the seeds grow at different rates?
3.  What will happen to the plant if it receives too much water?
4. Can a plant grow in the dark?
5. Why are leaves different colors?
6. How come some kids plants grew taller than mine?

My Plant Journal: Life Cycle of a Plant

Wow! Six weeks later we have learned all about plants and have awesome blooms to give to moms in honor of Mother's Day.

My fantastic intern, Emilee, attached tags to each plant. On Friday, my students lovingly took their plants home to give to moms for Mother's Day along with a card.

Oh... a few students figured out that the rocks aided in water drainage from the soil and helped to increase the humidity levels in the small clear cups!

So, from my family to yours... Have a wonderful Mother's Day!

 

Why Should Students Master Sight Words?

     I must admit, I never really thought about the importance of a child "mastering" their sight words. I took it for granted that sight words are something that kids just innately know... okay, not innately but pretty darn close! As I reflected on the end of this semester, I focused on three areas -

• self
• my pedagogy
• what my students need more of to be successful  

     I checked off the first two boxes (to be discussed later) and laser focused on my students and what they needed. I have an amazing class filled with a rainbow of personalities and abilities. They tackle most assignments with a zeal that only 7 and 8 year-olds can have. Sometimes in their zest, they forget that little things are important. That brings me back to the beginning, sights words are an area where some of my students really struggle. They seem to ignore that these words require memorization in order to spell them correctly. I assumed that as the year progressed this area would organically improve with input from me. It has not been the case. So I started doing some research. I'm sure you know the basics:

• sight words account for up to 75% of the words used in early readers
• most sight words do not follow the basic phonics principles, they can't be sounded out
• the first 100 sight words represent over 50% of English text
• sight words build the foundation for reading comprehension and writing fluency 

     When a student recognizes his/her sight words with proficiency, their reading and writing confidence sky rockets! My goal is to ensure that each of my struggling students become sight word experts by the end of the year. I searched for sight word practice sheets and activities to get me started, however, most of those focused on beginning learners. I didn't want my students to feel that their skills were somehow inadequate. You know me... I created sight word packets for my students! So far, I have four resources. One each for grades 1-3 and a sight word bundle. In my class we are starting with 2nd grade sight words and moving either up or down from there. First I looked at their sight word data and created individual plans for each student who needs additional practice. In some cases I introduce the word in guided reading with one of my practice sheets and they finish it for seat work follow-up. Celebrations are important no matter how small. So each student has a check list to circle words as they are mastered.

Take a look at at what we've done so far. Also, check out a sample of my Sight Resource on my FREEBIE page.

The practice sheets can be made into a student booklet.

...working on sight words during guided reading (ignore the bagel).

Sight Word Practice Sheet

Celebrating Dr. King

     A few weeks ago, I embarked on the arduous task of teaching my 2nd grade students about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Being that the civil rights movement was 50 years ago, most of my students didn't know about it or Dr. King. They don't understand that true freedom was just a fleeting word to many African Americans and people of color. In order to get them to understand, I found myself starting with slavery and teaching over 300 years of American history in just under two hours. The impact was powerful. Students asked tons of thoughtful questions and reflected on how their lives might be different if Dr. King never existed.

     As a result of their eagerness to learn more, I created a TpT resource that focuses on Dr. King's life and his contributions to our world. To participate in a Day of Service on January 15, my students made cards for people in our school and/or community who makes their days better and easier. The results were amazing! Some students made 5 cards or more. Of course... we had to deliver them all.

A collage of our Day of Service Cards

He was so pensive when reading about Mr. King!

Below is the Dr. Martin Luther King resource that I created. I included a "think about it question" on each page of his biography, a character trait graphic organizer, a KWL chart and a Day of Service card templates. When you get a moment, check it out and let me know what you think.

Dr. Martin Luther King's Dream

Have the best day possible!

How to... Comic Strips

Brr... baby it's cold outside!

To kick off the winter season and a new year, I used my love of art to inspire my students to explain how to make snowflakes by creating a comic strip. Of course, I couldn't just give them paper and pencils and expect artistic perfection. I spent some time teaching them the art of comic strip making. It was amazing to see the light shine super bright in some students' eyes as they realized that pictures are worth a thousand (well, maybe a hundred) words. First our art teacher taught a lesson on how to cut paper snowflakes. Then I taught a lesson on how real snowflakes form.

Next, students learned the basic mechanics of comic strip making like the purpose of narration boxes, panels and word bubbles and how to create original characters and draw block letters. They used those elements, combined with their knowledge of paragraph writing and created these awesome comic strips!

 Next students brainstormed, then draw rough drafts and finally published their work in color. Sounds familiar? Yep... it's the writing process! They peer-edited each other's work and checked to see if illustrations could stand alone without words or if words were necessary to help the viewer understand the action. I reminded students that their comics, like stories, needed to have a beginning, middle and an end.

Et voila!

While I read my students' work, I realized an amazing thing. Students explained how to make snowflakes from different perspectives. For example, some students told their story through a character's eyes. Other students students told their story as if the reader was a part of the story. Even more, one student explained how real snowflakes are formed in the atmosphere and included very scientific words in her comic. That's what authentic writing is about! I had so much fun that I created a TpT resource, How to Comic Strips, to make it easy for other educators to get started. 

click to download

It includes 

• 26 How to Comic Strip templates
• 1 rough draft template
• 1 blank template 
• a background information page with teaching resources and suggestions.

Check it out and consider following me on my TpT page.

As always, I'm proud of the zeal that my students displayed in order to complete their comics. I know that at the end of the day, what's most important is that they learn how to build their own intelligence because that can't be taken away!

Wishing you much peace, happiness and joy in 2018!