Slow

As my homeroom students re-entered my room for our 6th period social studies class, T, a student, walked by and flashed me a copy of the demerit she just received from my teammate.  It explained that T was caught cheating on her math test.  I allowed her to put her things down before calling her back into the hallway to discuss this indescretion.

After explaining to her that this was very serious and something she could not continue, T looked up at me and immediately began sobbing.  The tears rolled down her face and her body shook as she clung to my midsection.  At that point, all I could do was hug her.  It was one of those cries that I remember having as a child (and adult) where you feel utterly helpless and just want someone to care.

The sobbing lasted only a couple of minutes.  T looked back up at me and, with tears still falling, explained to me that the teachers knew it wasn’t possible for her to remember all the things she needs to know for her tests.  She told me that she “was slow and got it from (her) mama”, a line she repeated several times.

As her teacher, I promised her that I would help her find some really good ways to study for those tests.  I reminded her about the tutoring her mother signed her up for the day before.  I reassured her that I knew she could do this 5th grade thing on her own (without the cheating) and made sure that she understood that when she did really do it, she would feel amazing.

Even after the pep talk, I’m still a little bit heartbroken for her and her image of herself.  Hopefully we can repair that a little bit by the end of this year.

Tags: school, self-image, study habits, teaching

Important Things

The best thing to come out of my preschool teaching job that I held before graduating college was the knowledge I acquired from Kathy, the school’s director.  When it comes to pre-school kids, Kathy knows it all!  I learned about NAEYC accreditation and how to layout a pre-K3 classroom for success.  During one of my last staff meetings, she introduced us to a wonderful book that I use at the beginning of every year.

by Margaret Wise Brown (illustrations by Leonard Weisgard) presents different objects in new ways to students.  The illustrator weaves the words into each picture, creating an interesting aesthetic.  Each page describes an object by listing some of its characteristics, but it always points out the “most important” characteristic of a daisy, the wind, or a spoon.  I personally love the way these descriptions force me to think about mundane objects in new ways.

This book is especially great for the classroom thanks to its predictable text structure.  Each page begins and ends with the same “skeleton” of words.  This skeleton lends itself to student adaptation.  They can easily choose an object and think about its importance in their life.  By filling in the skeleton with their object and its importance, they have already written two sentences and are instantly feeling accomplished (making the description part less intimidating).

Today, I led them in a discussion about the five senses and using these senses to observe their thing.  These observations would provide the inside or the “meat” to put on their skeleton sentences.  By the end of it all, students were describing how games taste (eating buttery popcorn while playing their DS) and the sounds of basketball.  They were, in fact, looking at common items in new ways.  Success!

Tomorrow, they will be returning to school with their rough drafts, primed for a little peer editing before writing and illustrating their final copies.  These final pages will be glued into a hardback book I got from LP Pencil Box, and we will have published our first class book!

I would definitely recommend this activity to any upper elementary/lower middle school teachers.  In my classroom over the past few years, it has really started my students on the path toward thinking and observing as writers.

P.S. In looking for other resources, I ran across this lesson plan where a teacher uses the book as a self-esteem/community builder.  We might revisit the book later in the year and use the text in this way!

Pop Culture

Today, my students kicked off their day with a 30 minute long practice writing prompt.  Our state administers a writing assessment in the spring of our students’ 5th grade year, and the students prepare for it all year long.  For them to be prepared, we practice.  And then we discuss.  And then we practice again.  And then we discuss and teach.  And then we practice again.  And then we….well, you get the idea.

Fifth graders are asked to write a narrative in response to a prompt they are given.  Today’s practice prompt asked them to write about an imaginary place they would like to visit.  I didn’t have the opportunity to read many of their responses, but one I did read was an absolute gem.

It was about visiting Atlanta (note to student:  Atlanta is a real place.  Not imaginary at all.) and staying at “the hotel motel Holiday Inn”.

I wish I was kidding.  But I had to laugh.  Don’t lie–you laughed too!

And don’t worry–I have only had my students two days, so we’ll be working on this.  In the student’s defense, his actual writing wasn’t too shabby!  We will just have to tone down the pop culture references and be sure to read the prompt more carefully.

P.S. Bonus points if you can name that song.

Tags: prompt, school, standardized tests, teaching, writing

Day One

Day one is in the books!  We managed to prevent falling tears and broken dreams.  My fifth graders dream about lockers like I dream of wedding Joe Mauer (except their dream will be realized).  We’ll climb that mountain tomorrow.

Last year, the first day resulted in numerous tears, a few scolding remarks, and a couple of grey hairs.  This time around, I was determined to make things run more smoothly.  From having name tents on their desks to explicitly teaching procedures using the Time to Teach Teach-To’s, the day flew by!

A good read aloud thrown in there allowed me to feel as though I am not completely ignoring all academic tasks.  Kevin Henkes’ Wemberly Worried is an all-time favorite and a great read aloud.  The young mouse Wemberly worries about everything in her life (and I do mean everything!).  But the thing she worries most about is school.  Like any good children’s book, all is well in the end, and my students easily identify with the main character.  Her worries about school are the exact emotions they are experiencing as they begin their middle school years.  They also really enjoy closely examining the detailed pictures and discovering bits of irony and humor that are right up the alley of these pre-teens!  Who says you can’t read picture books to middle schoolers?

That was my main joy for the day–being able to share my excitement for reading with my new students.  Many of them seemed enthusiastic and I am excited about the rest of the year with them.

For now, it’s off to dream about pencil sharpeners and locker combinations (three times to the right, pass the number to the left, turn right…).

Tags: children's books, first day, kevin henkes, reading, school, teaching

Question

Why am I so much better at writing in the mornings?

It’s currently 10:30pm and I was hoping to get tomorrow’s post written and ready to go before the dawn breaks.  However, that last episode of So You Think You Can Dance paired with yet another 12 hour work day has zapped my brain.

I suppose I know the answer to my own question:  I’m better at writing in the morning because I my mind is clear and I don’t feel as though I’ve been run over by a Mack truck.

My students must experience some similar feelings at certain times during the day.  I have vivid recollections of the post-lunch drowsiness that always struck during Mrs. O’s 8th grade English class.  Even more recently, I just today experienced the “after lunch nods” at a training session–not because the session was boring and uninformative (quite the opposite, in fact), but because my tummy was full, happy, and ready to rest.

I wonder how I can help relieve these “lull” times for my students?  Perhaps I will dream up some great ideas tonight….

Tags: difficult students, motivation, school, teaching, writing

Morningtime

My feet rhythmically struck the concrete to propel my body forward through the heavy air.  A dog barked as it ran through the field to my right.  A young child squealed with delight as his father spun him around on a tire swing in the front yard.  A passerby smiled and said “hello” as we recognized that we were both hearing, seeing, and feeling the same things.

I refocused myself on my (rather laborious) breathing and my (loud, but motivating) music.  The things around me had served as a temporary distraction from the physical uncomfortableness that results from strenuous activities like running.  The breathing and the music always have helped me to make it through and to reach that state of mind where nothing else exists.

The the air, thick with humidity, and the blistering sun caused sweat to drip into my eyes–but it didn’t matter.  The hellos, the squeals, the barks, the rhythm, the music, the breathing all kept my focus where it needed to be.  And that’s what I loved about that morning run.

Note: This is part of the Slice of Life Story challenge hosted by Two Writing Teachers.  Head on over there to find other teachers writing to improve their craft, as well as great ideas about teaching writing.

Tags: music, running, slice of life

LP Pencil Box

As the new school year approaches more rapidly that I anticipated, I have been scrambling to prepare myself.  My classroom has desks, papers, laminating film, books, baskets, cleaning supplies, notebooks, art materials, chairs, and paint all strewn throughout its small space.  It looks as though it has been hit by multiple natural disasters….or just me.

Yesterday, I took a break from the organizing to drive across town and shop for some free school supplies.  If there’s one thing I love, it’s shopping.  Add “school supplies” and “free” into the mix, and this girl has found heaven!  I have mentioned LP Pencil Box in a previous post that explained how grateful teachers in my district are to have such a helpful service.  It truly is amazing.

The flood back in May (or the #othersituation2010, as many Nashvillians dubbed it) essentially wiped out the stock of school supplies the Pencil Box had stored away for future use.  After some pretty amazing renovations and donations, they were able to reopen this week, just in time for school to start.  However, it is certainly apparent that they are short on supplies.  The storage rooms are along the hallway you walk down to enter the actual Pencil Box.  These rooms used to be teeming with various supplies and volunteers working to sort through them all.  Yesterday, they were eerily bare, indicating to me that there is a chance they will run out of supplies before all teachers have the opportunity to shop.

As the school year starts up, and Tennesseans prepare to shop tax-free this weekend, please consider sending a few items to LP Pencil Box.  There is a room as soon as you walk in for you to simply drop the donations (the walls are 95% pink and it’s awesome).  If your church, school, or workplace is doing a school supply drive, this is the place to donate.  The items go directly into the hands of teachers from every school in the county and the teachers individually distribute them to the students most in need.  They also have volunteer opportunities, if you are looking for another way to get involved.

For now, I’m off to work at the mall for my first of 3 consecutive days (who said this job was “part-time”?).  Happy tax-free shopping, Tennesseans!

Tags: donations, LP Pencil Box, school, school supplies, teaching