A Learning Community

As we wind down for the year, I am reflecting on the year. Each year, of course, is different, some more different than others.  One thing I love as a teacher is watching a classroom culture develop.  I enjoy helping the children establish their learning environment and taking responsibility for their own learning.  Each year is different because we are a new set of people with different strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, and personalities.  Even the weather trends for the year can make a difference in how we proceed through second grade!  What I hope for my students, and the adults who are part of our community, is that we work together, enjoy our time together, benefit from our time together, and grow as learners and people by the time the school year is over.  

After reflecting on this particular year, I am certain we have created a successful learning environment where the children feel they are responsible for their own learning and the learning of others. The children show pride in their own accomplishments while encouraging others to achieve.  

Here are my top ten observations that demonstrate, to me, how I can tell my students have been part of their classroom learning culture: 

Top Ten Ways I Know My Kids are Part of the Learning Culture

1. They come into the classroom in the morning knowing what they want to accomplish.
2. They are bringing in information from home to enrich discussions.
3. I am hearing them ask EACH OTHER, “How did you do that?” and watching as they show each other new skills.
4. They take the compliments I (and other teachers in the classroom) give the children and use them on each other. 
5. They critique me, the teacher, even when I don’t ask for critiquing. 
6. They ask if they can take work home to finish.
7. They ask if they can do their own, additional, learning at home.
8. A handful of children are immersed in a book series, passing around the books to one another as they finish, spending much of their day reading the books, completely oblivious to whatever the rest of the class is doing or to the fact that they are not “supposed to” be reading.
9. I find “water cooler” groups of children discussing some topic at a time when they are supposed to be doing something else.
10. I observe a group of children rearranging the desks because the way they were set up was not working for the class. (My all time favorite!!)
    
    

PETE&C - Recycle-Reduce-Reuse

Did you attend the Pennsylvania Educational Technology Expo and Conference in Hershey, PA? Here are some great ways to make your PETE&C 2011 experience "green."


Recycle

• Do you still have your badge holder?  It makes a great "press pass" for your students.  Just make and insert your own badge into the plastic pocket.  Try BigHugeLab's Badge Maker for a fun project.
• Did you get "freebies" that you really don't need?  Re-gifting is totally OK.  Kids, and teachers, love to get stuff.  So, give away your things, and share the wealth.  
• Did you get papers that you don't need?  Don't throw them away, use the backs for scrap paper, or post the info. in your faculty lounge to share with colleagues.

Reduce

• Make sure if you are sharing all that great information with colleague that you make use of all the paperless resources we have.  Many presenters have their information posted to the PETE&C Ning.  No need to print things out.  Just direct colleagues to the site.  Or connect to their links and start your own resource site, either on your own school web site or perhaps on a free wikispaces. 
• It's too late for this conference, but as a note for the next conference, don't forget to bring your reusable coffee and water bottles.  No need to create trash just because you are away for a few days.  Just make sure you have a backpack with a side pocket, and you'll be good to go!

Reuse

• Did you get packets of information or product flyers in folders?  Don't need the folders anymore?  Reuse them in your classroom.  
• Did you get schedules of events, program books, advertisements?  Use them to plan training in your district. They can remind you of some topics that you might be able to present yourself and that others in your district would enjoy hearing about.

Do you have more ideas?  I'd love to hear them!

 

image obtained with permission from http://www.flickr.com/photos/colleen-lane/4399378949/

Bored? How?

This winter has been brutal.  We've had several snow days and some late openings and an early dismissal due to the weather.  But no matter where you are, there's lots of learning to be done.  Parents and children should celebrate the time they have together because there is so much they can do! Learning doesn't just take place at school, and learning can be, or should be, FUN!!

Here's what I did today.  If you have some extra time with your children, look at it as an opportunity to do something different.  And if your power is out and you can't use the computer...well, be creative!!

1.  Art Lessons:  I spent some time laughing and making a cat.  There are more lessons, so bring on the snow!  I can't wait to share this with my school kids. This is a drawing course for kids pre-k to third grade, but it was just right for me.   Check out illustrator Will Terry as he helps us all learn how to draw.  http://www.youtube.com/user/willterryart#grid/user/0455BA1360AC306D

2.  Make puzzles.  I made some cryptograms to share with my class.  I bet your kids will love these.  Or, better yet, have them make puzzles for YOU to solve.  You can trade.  http://www.discoveryeducation.com/free-puzzlemaker/?CFID=4876881&CFTOKEN=30792682

3.  What?  You're not following the Iditarod?  It starts in about a month, so get moving.  I spent a lot of time revising my lessons and preparing for our annual Iditarod Banquet. The Iditarod site has tons of suggestions for how to use the Iditarod to teach children, and there are even blogging dogs.   Lots to do, lots to do!  http://www.iditarod.com/

4.  Do you want to learn how to make comics with kids?  The National Association of Comics Art Educators can help.  http://www.teachingcomics.org/

5.  And if you think you have it bad stuck in the house for a day or two, visit this Alert Map site.  It shows every type of disaster imaginable happening in the world now.  Then count your blessings.  http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php

A Day of Reflection

What a great day!  A snow storm. Horrible driving conditions.  Several students absent.  Early dismissal. 

So what's so great about that?  For whatever reason a day that could have been chaotic turned out to be relaxed, pleasant, and very productive.  The children trickled in this morning and we didn't start our day as a group until well over an hour after the official start of the school day.  But, the children arrived seeming happy to be in school.  Everyone had something to do--something of educational value.  There were activity choices posted and deadlines for projects were close.  Even though these children are young, they didn't need much (if any) guidance to get started with their "work day."  They didn't need an official "go ahead" from me either.  It didn't matter if there were five children or fifteen, things ran the same.

For me, it was a great morning to observe the children, something I love to do and something that I find to be crucial to creating the best learning environment I can for the learners.  I watched the children to see what choices they made and who interacted with whom, and I was able to spend time having conversations with individuals. 

At one point I wondered if the children would have even noticed if I left the classroom!  One small group had organized a subtraction flash card practice session, a few children were working on creating submissions to our Junior Doodle project (discussion the best way to represent the word "incognito"), and a couple of children were working on some sort of writing assignment.  One child asked for help with an independent research project he wanted to do.  After I guided him in the right direction, he was all set to work on his own.  And a few children were doing various independent activities they had chosen for themselves that morning. 

The day progressed quite calmly even with constant interruptions with important announcements about changes in lunch schedules, information about the early dismissal, and messages from parents about how children were going home.  We moved into some group work and then returned to some independent work.  We had a very early lunch, discussed some upcoming projects, worked on a current project, and all the time, the children seemed content with their time in the classroom.  While, outside the window, the snow blew, the streets filled with a slushy mess, and we wondered if we would have another snow day tomorrow.

While it's nice to enjoy a snow day, it was also great to reflect on the current learning environment.  Do the children enjoy where they are?  Do they own their learning space?  Do they understand that their learning space is for them to learn and they don't have to wait for someone to tell them to learn?  Are they just as happy to be at school with their friends working on their activities as they are building a snowman in their backyard? 

If not, how you can make your learning environment as exciting as sledding down a snowy hill?

Junior Doodle - Indefatigable

We're all caught up with our Junior Doodle posts for now.  Check out the first three words of the year!  I thought this word would be difficult, and it was.  I realized that the children definitely can understand and remember words more easily when we use visuals, but I wondered if they could create an image of a word that was not very familiar to them.  And, I wondered if this would help them remember and "own" this word as part of their personal vocabulary.  The word "indefatigable" is a word that's in a book we are reading (see the blog post on our Junior Doodle page for more information).  So, through reading the book they were introduced to the word and its meaning.  But, they needed several explanation of what the word meant as they tried to show in their own drawings a representation of "indefatigable."  At the end of the week, however, several of the students completed a drawing and shared it with the class.  It was the discussions along with these images that, I think, where the most effective in helping the entire class build this word into their vocabulary.  

Check out the Junior Doodle Indefatigable page as well as the other two pages to see some great 2nd grade work!

Junior Doodle - Conductor

Click here to find our second installment of Junior Doodle.  The word is CONDUCTOR.  This activity is fast becoming a class tradition, and I'm thinking of ways to make the most of the children's interest in it. 

Visual representations of vocabulary words are a tremendous help to children as they build their knowledge of words and work them into their memory. 

Here's another resource for using visuals to help children learn vocabulary:  http://www.literacyhead.com/index.php.  Check it out!

Junior Doodle

This is the second year I'm working with Junior Doodle.  I have connected to the Creative Juices blog and their What the Doodle posts and created our own primary-level version of this activity.  I've found this is a great way to build vocabulary, connect with some creative authors and illustrators, develop critical thinking skills, and have some fun.  Basically, you obtain a word from a random word generator or any way you'd like.  In our classroom, we start by thinking of the various meanings and uses of the word.  Then we discuss some of the possibilities for creating an interesting drawing (later the children might find other ways of representing the word that are not just drawings).  Then, at the end of the week, we share.

We have only done one word this year, and the second word was just introduced today - it's "conductor."  What can you do with conductor?

Find out more about Junior Doodle here - http://tinyurl.com/24x8lnr