So Much to Blog About...So Little Time

The last week and a half have been truly blog-worthy in my classroom, but I have a feeling that any elementary classroom around 7 week itch time (a.k.a. approaching the end of the first grading period) is pretty exciting.  Lately there have been several times of trial (large and small) for the kids in my class, but they are handling it well.  They were also on their best behavior for my first observation...though with it being 8:30 on a rainy Monday, they were too quiet for an interactive lesson!  Oh well, I got what I asked for ;) and I am bringing them popcorn tomorrow as a treat.

The lesson that I have learned from them recently is that children are much more resilient than adults.  Whatever personal tragedy or illness strikes them, they are somehow able to bounce back.  It must be in our DNA to block certain traumas to survive childhood.  That sounds harsh and I, by no means, am saying that children lack a sense of morality; because even though most are resilient, they are still sensitive and caring.  I just feel that they take bad news with a sense of curiosity.  They want to solve the problem instead of just complaining about it.  I can learn a lot from them! I will say that kids can also say some of the most thoughtless things from that sense of wonder, but you can't blame them.

Enough with the inward reflection time and on to the fun stuff!  I'm not sure how wise my hat lesson was, considering lice, but given the amount of fun involved and the lice-prevention spray you can buy, I think the risk was worth it.  I used hats to teach the types of sentences!  First, I acted it out for them then let them pick which hat went with each sentence that they read.  See photos below ;)

 The detective hat represented Interrogative Sentences...the kids got a kick out of how I went around pounding my fists on their desks and asking questions...I got a little carried away ;)

The gardening/southern lady hat represented Declarative Sentences, so I went around saying "Well, I declare..." and spouting off silly statements like a chatty Cathy.

This was my favorite because wearing a crown just feels so good.  The crown obviously represented an Exclamatory Sentence because I was an excited beauty pageant winner!

I think the kids liked the Imperative Sentences the most because I was a bossy coach and when it was their turn they loved it; however, I did not let them use my whistle...haha...germs!  (I was already risking my hats with lice).  Anywho, we had a really fun time!

A Confession & An Obsession

I guess I'll start with the confession...more like confessions.  I'm a little manic about crafts and projects so I spent all of last weekend making wreaths...the good thing is that it was quite fun and I only suffered a few minor glue gun burns (which doesn't compare to the 2 scars and power outage I caused with my last glue gun!).  This little problem is just a facet of my personality.  I have lots of energy then I crash...or I have lots of patience then I lose it suddenly!  This leads me to my other confession...I have been losing patience with my students.  And, I learned when I first starting teaching not pray for patience because God will send you lots of things to try that patience.  It's better to pray for mercy.

I thought I could cure my frustrations by spending 3 days going over the skill of "following directions" because I've been so frustrated!  The results were pretty humorous...we did this activity sheet that said to read all of the directions before beginning but most of them (literally 18 out of 19) read them one at a time and embarrassed themselves.  Here is a brief account of the worksheet...

1. Write your name on your paper.
2. Stand up and say "Moo!"
3. Draw a star on the back of this paper.
4. Clap 3 times.
5. Only do direction #1.

The funny thing is that this activity (in which I tricked them) has caused them to ask even more questions so I finally came to the conclusion that my students are wonderful, cute, smart kids but they are still kids...with very little attention spans.  More importantly, I learned that my attention span isn't much better than a kid's and that I still ask a million questions just like they do.  Plus, I don't want the kids to be afraid to ask questions because that's what learning is all about!

The only known solution I have come up with to save my sanity is to use my digital timer! I have them do as much work as they can on their own for the first 15 minutes in the morning and force them to skip and circle questions that they don't understand.  When the timer goes off they can ask for help...this does end up in line of students but it goes faster because they've circled just the ones they have questions about.   Stay tuned for more updates as this is definitely not a perfected procedure!  I just need to be more patient...which is so hard for me and pretty much everyone.

I guess my obsessions are intertwined with my confessions, but I will go ahead and tell what my original obsession was going to be in this post.  I love office supplies and I go nuts when I find something new and innovative.  I found these "backpack file folders" at Target that are just too cool.  I doubted my $3 investment until I opened them and fell in love.  They are files that go in your (or more likely a child's) backpack to organize your papers without the need of a binder.  The tabs face up so you can see them...see picture below.  Also see the pic of my classroom wreath ;)  I love what I do!

Rainbows & Rationale

The school year is in full swing and I feel like that kid that pushes too high on the swing and starts to come up from their seat...the excitement is mixed with fear!  I'm enjoying third grade and my new students very much but I don't feel quite comfortable yet.  I feel like my rationale for reading instruction is out of whack.  I want to do whole group and small groups to meet all of their needs, but the over-scheduling is making things a little tough for me to manage plus I'm not devoting enough time to Language Arts.  I'm trying to mix it in with Reading but that's just not enough!  Hopefully I will work it out eventually...that's where the rainbows come in!

I was on my way to work Friday, after being sickly but still going to school for 2 weeks without a voice, and I saw the most beautiful rainbow that followed me all the way to work.  It really did help make my outlook on the day much better.  I've been enjoying work but haven't been able to get into the groove...hopefully, this Labor Day off will rejuvenate me.  So far, I haven't done any school work yet but maybe my brain will feel refreshed ;)

 My rainbow!  Don't worry...I slowed down to take the picture but I was a little bit of a distracted driver!  It was just so pretty.

Here's an idea I got from pinterest (and my sister-in-law).  My kiddos seemed to enjoy it.  A lot of their career choices were vets, artists, army men, and the random choices of cashier and rock star!  Haha...they were cute.

Lastly, I need to apologize for not posting sooner...I had created an awesome post last week entitled Laryngitis, Lice, and the Labelmaker but it didn't post for some reason...oh well, everyone missed some great confessions...there's always next time!