Spring is in the AIR!!! Spring brings warmer weather, testing, blooming flowers, testing, chirping birds, testing, flip flops......and did I mention testing??!!??. I don't know about you, but I feel like the months of April and May consist of state assessments, district-mandated assessments, and classroom assessments. It feels like it never ends. What better way to kill the monotony during the day than to have a book scoot......a garden book scoot!
House in Despair(right) Land after the house was torn down (left)
A few years ago, there was a house in despair less than a block away from my school. The city owned the land and received a grant from the port authority to tear the house down. The town mayor allowed the property to be turned into a community garden. Everything at the garden has been done through grants that a local parent (by the way, she is one of my FAVORITE parents of all time!!!!) has applied for and received. Also, all the labor that is done in the garden is completed by local neighbors. The garden grows several different vegetables, fruit, and flowers. A farmer's market is even held on the property several times throughout the spring, summer, and early fall. Classroom teachers are also allowed to take the students to the garden for lessons, activities, and to just enjoy. This lead to my idea of a garden book scoot.
A sign was recently added to the entrance of the garden!
A book scoot is a great way to pique students' interest in reading. It can also expose students to a variety of genres, authors, and topics. For this book scoot, I pulled some spring and garden picture books from my public library and classroom collection. My students brought in beach towels, sunglasses, and water bottles in order to read more comfortably in the garden. We scattered the books around the garden and partnered-up with a friend. I allowed about 5-10 minutes per picture book for the students to enjoy with a friend. Unfortunately 5 minutes is not enough time for the students to enjoy the entire picture book....but we would be outside for a very long time if I were to give the students 10-15 minutes per book. Scooting through the various books can at least pique a student's interest for future reading. As you can see from the pictures below, the students had a blast.
My plan was to only be out in the garden for about 30 minutes. I knew that wouldn't be enough time for the partners to scoot through all the books, but I knew this was an activity we could do again later in the week. The students begged convinced me to extend the 30 minutes to 45 minutes. Not to mention, they were super bummed when I said it was time to go inside. It was so great to see the students reading for enjoyment and have discussions with a friend about what was being read.
What do you think? Is this something that you think would be meaningful and beneficial to continue with my students? I'd love to hear about your ideas for a book scoot!
As some of you may know from one of my previous posts, I was picked at the beginning of the year to receive new and innovative school furniture for my classroom from School Outfitters. (Such an amazing opportunity!) I am truly grateful and appreciative to be one of the lucky teachers in my building to experience this wonderful opportunity....and I have been getting anxious to see what my classroom will look like in the end. If you are unfamiliar with what I am talking about, head over to my original post and read about this awesome opportunity that I have been a part of.
UPDATE TIME!
This past Friday was considered a Wavier Day at my school, which means students had the day off and teachers had professional development meetings all day long. I was told last Wednesday that School Outfitters would be coming into my room on Friday to replace some of my old furniture with the new furniture. Super exciting! Unfortunately, I was unable to be present in my classroom during this transformation but that actually made things even more exciting! It truly felt like Christmas when I walked into my room last Friday afternoon.
The Friday meetings for the Wavier Day felt like F.O.R.E.V.E.R long. I was so anxious...excited....nervous....ecstatic... (I could go on and on) to see my classroom and to get everything in its right place. I was excited for the new furniture and all the awesome possibilities that came with it, but overwhelmed at the fact that I now had to put my classroom back together. I had to unpack all the items that I packed up the day before and be ready to teach for Monday morning. Needless to say, I spent Saturday and Sunday working in my room (luckily I have a little seven year old that loves to help me in my classroom).
After moving the new furniture around several times, I finally settled on a set up. I am still waiting on a few things items to arrive. The company is designing a new teacher desk. So for now, I have a table. A few shelves still need to be replaced, my teacher storage area will have new shelves, and I am working out the kinks of the new lockers. My wobble chairs and rockers will arrive soon as well.
BEFORE: Library area AFTER: Library area with some new shelves and soft seating
BEFORE: My teacher storage area AFTER: Storage area turned into my students' mailboxes and lockers
BEFORE: Student coat room AFTER: Student coat room turned into teacher storage area
BEFORE: Rectangle desks, large laptop cart, large teacher desk, old book shelves, mismatched chairs AFTER: Trapezoid desks, smaller teacher desk, smaller laptop cart, new bookshelves, soft seating
And one of my favorite items.....
How cool is this kidney-shape reading table with a whiteboard top? This table is soooo much smaller than my old kidney shaped table. I used to have to lay across the table to just read one-on-one with a student. This one is more compact....plus it's a whiteboard! This will be perfect for my Words Their Way lessons!
Let me know what you think of all my new additions! I will keep you informed and up-to-date with what happens next!
Wednesdays are super important to my two children. In my house, Wednesdays are called Library/Pizza Wednesdays. Wednesday evenings are spent at the public library together as a family, followed by pizza for dinner at Dewey's. My kids look forward to this evening every week.....and honestly, I do too. It's a fun tradition that we started over the summer with my sister and two nieces.
Pizza after the library with my two nieces
This past Wednesday, I came across a picture book that I haven't read before and I really want to share it with you!! It is called Sidewalk Flowers by JonArno Lawson and Sydney Smith. I immediately fell in love with this book. The pictures are beautiful.....and did I mention that it is a wordless picture book in a style that looks like a graphic novel?!?! Awesome, right?!?! I love it!
Sidewalk Flowers is such a powerful story about a little girl showing small acts of kindness as she walks home from the grocery store with her preoccupied father. Along their walk through the busy, black-and-white colored streets, the little girl pays close attention to the world around her while her father is distracted with his thoughts and cell phone. While walking through the streets, the young girl collects colorful weeds and flowers that are springing up through the cracks in the sidewalk. She begins to give her colorful bouquets away as an act of kindness to a dead bird, a sleeping/homeless man in the park, a neighbor dog, and lastly her mother and siblings once she gets home. As you turn each page, the scenes start to fill with more and more color....and by the end of the book, the page is complete with beautiful watercolors.
Wordless picture books are perfect to use in the classroom because they have so many functions. I especially love to use them when teaching my students how to make inferences. Wouldn't this book be good to use when teaching character traits too??
There are so many wordless books that I love and this one is definitely going on my list to purchase. Have you read this one before?
Do you ever find yourself reflecting on your day as you drive home from work? The good thing about living 25 minutes from my school is that I get to use that time as an extra plan bell. I spend that time thinking about my day....what went right.....what went wrong....what could have been better.....what I will change......and what I will reteach tomorrow.
The other day, on my drive home from work, I was thinking about my upcoming unit. Now that quarter 3 has started, my students are ready for their biography research project. This is one of my favorite and most challenging units to teach. I love how the students get excited about this project, but teaching students how to research can be HARD! Not only do they get to choose their famous person (within the parameters), but they also get to use the Internet and non-fiction texts for their research. Plus, their end product is represented in a neat file folder display. So....as I'm slowly driving down I-71, I'm thinking back to the unit and what my students did last year.....and I immediately recall what needed to be changed. I thought to myself...."I didn't like this part.....I'm going to change that part.....This didn't work well.....Never-will I do that again..." And by the time I got home from work, I had completely thrown the project I did last year out the window. Therefore....I am, once again, reinventing the wheel.
(SIGH)
I went into school the next day and pulled my biography research file out of my cabinet. While thinking about my reflective drive home the previous night, I concluded that there isn't a single thing I want to use from last year.
(SIGH)
Why do I create more work for myself every year? Why change everything I created last year?
Why reinvent the wheel?
(SIGH)
I thought about this over the next few days. And after consulting with and venting to my #1 role model (aka sister....aka Curious Firsties-Em), I think the answer comes down to three important words. Three words that have me reinventing the wheel every year.....Three words that have me choosing another route than the previous year.
1. Growth- I've been teaching for 11 years. That is roughly 4,015 days as an educator....1/3 of my life. These 11 years have been filled with (but not limited to) a master's degree in curriculum and instruction, countless hours of professional development, mentoring several new teachers, and a three year commitment to a piloting project through the Ohio Department of Education. With that being said, I still have SO much more to learn and many more years to grow. Every day I am learning something new in education. I learn from myself, my students, my amazing colleagues, and all the wonderful bloggers out there. I am in the business of changing and shaping lives, so it is my duty to evolve and grow everyday to become the best educator I can be.
2. Change- Change is constant. Change happens whether we want it to or not. The lessons I taught last year are not going to fit perfectly to what my upcoming class needs. Every student is different. Students learn differently. Behave differently. Respond differently. We spend 9 months getting to know our students inside and out. We do this so we can teach them the way we know they will learn best. But what worked for one group of students will not necessarily work for the next year's group of students. Every year is different with a different set of learning styles and needs. Therefore, changing my lessons every year is a necessity.Change is a must.
3. Improve- Improve is defined as making something better or to raise to a more desirable or more excellent quality. If your doctor told you that you needed to improve your health....would you? Of course. So, if you teach a lesson that could be better....wouldn't you try to improve? Of course. No matter the number of years I have taught, I will never be perfect. I will never know everything there is to know about education. But what I can do is make sure that I am improving every day....every year. By growing and accepting change, I will improve.
So, I guess I could say that I am not necessarily reinventing the wheel. I am growing. I am making changes. I am improving.
Do you reinvent the wheel every year or are you growing, changing, and improving?
A few days before the 2015-16 school year started, my principal called me into his office. In my mind, I figured he wanted to talk about the previous year's test scores...or something to that nature. Boy was I WRONG!!!! Needless to say.....I think I walked out of his office looking like Taylor Swift when she wins an award!
Imagine your principal saying that you have been picked to test out new and innovative school furniture.... What would you say? What would you do?
Honestly..... I thought my principal was joking! This is not a question most teachers are ever asked in their entire teaching career. I don't know about you, but I just get super excited over a new pack of pencils or Papermate grading pens.....My brain can't even fathom new furniture---basically a brand new classroom!!!! It is every teacher's dream to have new, ground-breaking furniture. I can't think of a single teacher that would say "no" to this opportunity! And this year, I get to experience this amazing opportunity. It honestly feels like I won the jackpot! By accepting this amazing opportunity, I have to understand that this is going to be a year-long process. I also need to be willing to invest time outside of my classroom and workload to work with School Outfitters. Needless to say.... I ACCEPTED!
A local company in my area, called School Outfitters, approached my district, last summer, looking for teachers that would be willing to transform their classrooms to test out 21st century furniture. Since 1998, School Outfitters has provided convenient online shopping and expert customer service support to educators looking to create productive learning environments for all types of learners.
Next, I met with a panel of employees from School Outfitters. These members included the sourcing and supply chain VP, sourcing director, sourcing coordinator, and designer. Our initial meeting in September is where I explained and discussed the biggest obstacles (classroom furniture and design) I currently face while teaching. I discussed what I like about my classroom/furniture and what could be more efficient or systematic. I explained my need of an easier flow from whole group instruction to station rotations. I mentioned that I would like a place where I can store my stations that will make it easier for students to access. I also described the amount of space that is not utilized due to large pieces of furniture (I am so thankful to have 25 Chromebooks in my classroom, but the cart where they are stored takes up so much space). Plus, I currently have to stand in the back of my classroom when using my Elmo Machine (which means my students' backs are to me as they look at the whiteboard). My kidney-shaped table, again, is so large that I almost have to lay on the table to read closely with my small guided reading group. (This is only a few of the things I talked about during this meeting......I could go on and on.....)
In October, a team from School Outfitters came to take measurements of my classroom. And I mean measurements of EVERYTHING! From my chalkboards..... to the area where my students place their bookbags..... to my teacher storage area...... to my window ledges. A few days later, one of the source coordinators observed my classroom for about two hours. She took notes about everything she saw (notes on what I did and what my students did).
Afterwards, I was asked to send them a quick sketch, or layout, of what I would want my classroom to look like in the end. OH MY----this was SOOOOO hard. I was told that it just needed to be a rough sketch....just an idea.....BUT-seriously?!?-I have never had the opportunity to come up with what my ideal classroom. I took this task very seriously.....maybe too seriously.... Here's what I came up with (please keep in mind that this was very difficult and I have already thought of ways to change it!):
Between all the meetings and emails, School Outfitters also brought me furniture to try out in my classroom. I was brought four different types of chairs and two different kinds of desks. My students have used these products for almost two months. Check out my pictures below and let me know what you think. Would you find these chairs or desks to be useful? Have you used anything like these in your classroom?
Stay tuned....... I will keep you up-to-date with my classroom transformation. What is something you would want for your classroom if you had the opportunity???
I am linking up with Farley to tell what I am Currently doing in 2016.....
Listening: I am listening to my seven year old jamming out in her room to Taylor Swift. She asked for the CD for Christmas. I was a little hesitant, but I went ahead and got it for her. She LOVES it!
Loving: I love the time that I was able to spend with my two children, husband, parents, sisters, brother-in-laws, in-laws, nieces, and friends. It was so nice to relax and get ready for the new year. It was a MUCH needed break!
Thinking: During the school year, I go to bed around 9:00. I love my sleep. My day starts at 5:00 am, so it's important I go to bed early. During my winter break, however, I stayed up way too late and slept in (sleeping in = 7:00 am in my house). It is going to be SOOO hard hearing my alarm clock go off tomorrow morning.
Wanting: SNOW! It was 60 to 70 degrees during winter break. That is very unusual for Ohio weather. I miss the snow. I want some snow days!!!
Needing: I need to get off the computer and make dinner.....enough said.
One Little Word: Love.......I want to spend this year loving all that I have in life. Sometimes I think I take things for granted.
Thanks for stopping by and reading my Currently January 2016.
Hello and welcome to our second annual Winter Wonderland link up! Last year, The Reading Crew sponsored a winter literacy hop, but we decided to run it a little different this time. Instead of hopping with the potential of dead links, we decided on a closed link up. What this means is that there is a "map" of the blogs at the bottom of each post, so you can hop through them all at once, visit some today and some later in the week, or see what best matches your literacy needs.
On each blog, you will see a word in blue font. This is the blog's mystery word. Please be sure to record them because you will need each word for a five point entry in our raffle. To help you keep track, you can print and use the recording form.
"Run,
run, run.....as fast as you can! You can't catch me! I'm
the........"
As
a child, we learned to end this refrain by saying "..Gingerbread
Man!" Did you ever learn a different way to end the refrain when you
were younger? Luckily, our children now have the opportunity to read so
many different versions of the gingerbread man. Too many versions to read
in a year! I love teaching my third graders several ways to end this
refrain. And I am so excited to share one of my favorite gingerbread versions with you!
The Matzo Ball Boy is written by Lisa
Shulman and illustrated by Rosanne Litzinger. This 2005 fictional fairy
tale is a Jewish version of the gingerbread boy. On the morning of the
Passover seder, a lonely grandmother, or bubbe, decides
to make a delicious matzo ball boy for her soup. Before long, the matzo
ball boy runs away from the old woman, the schneider, the yenta and
her children, the rabbi, and hungry fox with a dream to see the
world.
This
familiar story of the gingerbread man is an updated twist which will leave your
students wondering how this version will come to an end. Plus, this book
offers a way to introduce and teach your students about a Jewish holiday which
is celebrated by many around the world.
I
look forward to December every single year. It's not just because the
holidays are around the corner. It's because I spend the whole month
exposing my third graders to different versions of the gingerbread man.
You won't imagine how many versions there are of the gingerbread man!!!
The Matzo Ball Boy by Lisa Shulman is definitely a must to
have on-hand!
I
start the month with reading the traditional version....the version that most
people are familiar with, The Gingerbread Man by Eric A. Kimmel. Each
student is given a story map graphic organizer at the beginning of the lesson
to record the characters, setting, refrain, and ending. Next, I like to
read The Gingerbread Cowboy by Janet Squires, The Gingerbread Girl by Lisa Campbell Ernst,
or The Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett.
These versions are closely related to the original. While
reading the versions, the students continue to complete their story map
while I fill in my giant story map gingerbread house. Next, I like to
model how to compare and contrast the two versions using the cookie jar venn
diagram. By modeling this activity, my students are more comfortable
completing the venn diagram independently or with a partner when I read The
Matzo Ball Boy.
After
reading the more traditional versions, I like to introduce my students to
versions that they have hopefully never read before. Such versions
include The Cajun Cornbread Boy by Dianne De Las
Casas, The Runaway Rice Cake by Ying Chang
Compestine, and The Musubi Man by Sandi Takayama...etc.
BUT one of my favorite gingerbread books is The Matzo Ball Boy by Lisa Shulman. I
have the same story map from above copied for the students where they can
record the characters, setting, refrain, and ending. This year, my
students are comparing and contrasting the The Matzo Ball Boy (Jewish
version) and The Musubi Man (Hawaiian version). With a
partner, the students use their story map to compare and contrast the two
versions using the cookie jar venn diagram from above. This lesson is not
just for teaching compare and contrast. Below is another freebie that
help practice another important skill.
Once
the students have become familiar with The Matzo Ball Boy, they are ready to
identify some cause and effect relationships. Teaching cause and effect
has never been my favorite skill in third grade to teach....(never!) But
it must be done! By December, I have already exposed the students to
cause and effect, so this activity is more of a review to practice the skill.
Below is the cause and effect freebie!
Once
the students are familiar with the story, this cause and effect activity freebie can be a
great way to practice the skill. I have done this activity two different
ways. I have had the students complete the cause and effect t-chart while
I am reading, in partners, or as a whole group. I have also made a few
different versions, depending on the level of your students. On the first
two pages, the students only find the cause of each effect. In the second
version, the students are to find the cause and effect. The third version
has the students draw a line (match-up) the correct cause to the effect.
To
extend on this lesson, students can continue reading more versions of the
gingerbread man. The list keeps growing every year! I also have my students complete a gingerbread persuasive writing piece. The students convince the reader (Mr. Fox) that they are not a gingerbread man and do not want to be eaten. They have to convince Mr. Fox they are something other than a cookie. Plus, the students get to decorate their gingerbread man to match their writing.
Before
you go, I will remind you that my mystery word is gingerbread. You can enter it onto your sheet or into the rafflecopter below.
Good luck to you, and I hope you'll come back soon.
