So Many Learning Levels, So Little Time

(Post from my class blog)

One way we differentiate instruction to meet students' needs is through small group instruction. Both of these groups are studying the 'in' word family, but the instructional focus is different for each (one group is reading with Mrs. Cummings, the other is spelling with me).

Collaboration!

Our wonderful PE teacher arranged for the 4th graders to help the kids practice their jump roping skills. The kids had so much fun, the learning went smoothly and the children built relationships that span grade levels. I can't say enough about how valuable this type of learning among students can be - give it a try!!

A Little Something About Art

Our school is lucky enough to have an artist coming to visit soon. (Our art teacher is beside herself with excitment!) Mark Kistler is his name and he has a great website for teaching children how to draw. It's a wonderful site to have for practice at home, if your pull-out art program has been cut, or if you have a few extra moments in the day.

The -op Word Family

We are working on the -op word family this week. We read a book about a bunny hop, so (of course) we HAD to learn the Bunny Hop. I actually own a record with the song! The kids loved it and burst into giggles every time the 'hop, hop, hop' came up. It was so funny!

More on Wood and Water

Here's a writing sample from a child's science notebook from our experiment:

"Wood + Water
I put wood in
water. The wood
sat in the water
I watched the wood
I liked it a
lot. The water
went on the tables!
It was fun!"

Science: Wood and Water

We explored wood and water today. We made predictions, used eye droppers and made a glorious mess. Here are some pictures - I'll post their writing, too.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

I met a friend for coffee other day and in our discussion she asked, “Where do you see your self in 5 years?”

Ouch! It’s the question that flogs me over the head and I cringe. It makes me feel quite inept, almost like a 5th grader who is asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up up?” I always fumble a bit while 300 wild dreams zip through my mind, then sputter out a whiney, “I don’t know.” (Seriously, besides questions about the stock market, its the one thing that makes me feel like I’m not really a grown-up yet.

Do I need to have this vision sorted out already?

The short answer is - yes.

Now, I don’t thing this is the answer for everyone, but that day I discovered it’s the right answer for me. Want to know why? Hit the rewind back to the moment after someone asks me the question...what was that zipping through my mind...that’s right, 300 wild dreams.

Soooo, they are in there after all. Floating around, waiting for something to anchor onto.

Humph. Now what am I going to do about that?

I suppose acknowledging they are there is the first step to recovery. So, in no apparent order, here are two things I might be doing in five years:

• Having won millions on the lotto, I’ve moved to California and am living in a great little house on the beach. Every morning I wake up, walk next to the water and spend the rest of my time writing, visiting school, meeting with teachers and doing a bit of teaching at Pepperdine or USC (where my dad went to school). I’s spend my evenings and weekends with my family (eating, talking, crafting and relaxing) and finding ways to use my talents to better my community.
• I’m not sure where I’ll be residing or what my specific job is, but overall, my talents and insights are being put to great use in the revolution of education our children and teaches so desperately need and deserve. Hopefully, this would include writing, working with students, teachers and administrators, and inspiring other to ditch wasteful educational policies, enrich the lives of learners and help educators to continue learning themselves. I’ll work my tail off in my career, but have the ability to create balance in my life; understanding the most important part of my being is family and living accordingly. As much as I adore teaching kindergarten, I can see I need to be doing more and I’m ready to make that leap. This could include something on the side or jumping into a whole new endeavor.

While these two plans are quite different (one being more realistic than the other), they have some commonalities: family, writing, helping others, changing public education.

There! I’ve got that out in the open.

I suppose the next step would be a plan of action.

Oh dear.

I think I’m going to need another cup of coffee for that one.

To be continued... 

Don't Worry, Folks! There are ZERO roaches in the science center.

Yesterday we were sprucing up our science center (since our newest FOSS kit arrived) and we were discussing the Nature Box. (This holds any treasures the children haul in from recess/home that would be categorized as ‘nature’.) All the kids said we should keep the box in the center, but one child piped up with, "Actually, there is a ROACH in the nature box!" I was a little bewildered by this comment. Typically when a little living creature makes its way into K4, I hear about it immediately, from each child, at least three times.

Soon a few other children agreed with the original roach-sighter and we were thrown into a full-on investigation. I began pulling pine cones and leaves out of the box and someone yelled, "Be careful! It will jump out and bite you!" This comment yielded a deep conversation (read as: yes they can/no they can't argument) about the probability of being bit by a cockroach (especially for children lurking around the science center). So then I had to slowly pull one thing out at a time, allowing the feared viewers to visually search each tidbit. I picked up a bur oak acorn and half the group screamed. (The acorn was cracked at the bottom and a portion of the meat inside was visible - which apparently can be interpreted as being a cockroach.)

Half the group was stunned I was actually touching it, the others looked at me with disgust. I tried to explain what was inside, how it was perfectly normal, and definitely not living! I tried to bust it open, but my non-squirrel-like hands failed me. So, I pulled out my hammer. (This earned me immediate accolades from the boys and three requests to personally swing it around like a sword or bang on the tables.) Once we got the acorn cracked, the children could see how it was actually very un-cockroach-like and agreed to keep the nature basket on the science table.

The conversations trailed on...how to kill a cockroach...what if you just cut off their legs...sometimes they keep running even if your dad steps on them...you know, your typical super scientific stuff. 

Also, they still have not decided if I am correct in my statement that a roach is the same thing as a cockroach. Not sure when that will get cleared up.