Organization!!

Sometimes getting organized means making a big mess! My 5th grade study skills kids are on their way to being organized!

It’s been a long time…

It’s been a long time since I’ve updated my blog, and I need to fix that! I’m hoping to update on a regular basis to keep everyone informed about groups and classrooms. Stay tuned!

This week in Classroom Guidance (Jan. 24-Jan. 28th)

This week Kindergarten and 1st grade students began the Safe@Last program. Due to snow, Mrs. Bostelman, Ms. Anglea, Mrs. Engle, and Mrs. White’s classes did not meet.

The first lesson for Kindergarten focuses on learning the term “safe people” (an adult you trust and can go to for help) and talking about safety rules. We also talk about how you should ask for permission before you change any of your safety rules, or if anyone wants to take you somewhere or give you something.

The first lesson in 1st grade is a review of the basics they learned in kindergarten…identifying safe people, asking permission, and strangers. We also talked about what you should do if an adult stops to ask you for directions (don’t talk to them, walk/run away from the car, and tell a safe person).

Second grade finished up the 8 Keys of Excellence by talking about Failure Leads to Success. They heard the story of Wally, who couldn’t get anyone to hire him, started two businesses (that failed), had a brief success only to have it taken away (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit). As we talk a little more, the students learn that Wally is actually Walt Disney, creator of Mortimer Mickey Mouse. The students had a chance to experience failure by working on tangrams. They were very quick to say “I don’t have the right pieces!” (when they did) or “I can’t do this, it’s too hard!” after trying for less than a minute. I encouraged them to keep trying, and a few were able to complete the object. Other students got close, or had a few pieces in the right place. We talked about how it wouldn’t have been a big deal to make the shape if it was really easy, and that they were so excited and proud of their accomplishments because it had been harder to do.

I did not see Mrs. Merlin or Mrs. Klipple’s classes, and they will finish the 8 Keys at their next meeting. Mrs. Branch, Mrs. Mathews, and Mrs. Swinger’s classes will all start Safe@Last at our next meeting.

This week in Classroom Guidance…(Jan. 18-21)

This week the 3rd-5th grade students are starting the Safe@Last program. This a great program about personal safety that is taught K-5. For their first lesson, 3rd and 5th grade students are learning about Passive, Aggressive, and Assertive behaviors. We gave examples of how each type of behavior would look in a restaurant (where your food was late and cold), and how sometimes it’s best to be Passive while other times it’s better to be Assertive. 3rd grade watched a short video about bullying, and how the different behaviors would change the situation. 5th grade students did 3 role-plays that give different situations where they need to be assertive…one about friends skipping class, one where they want a raise on their allowance, and one where a popular student wants to cheat on a test.

The 4th grade curriculum focuses on abduction, and ways to avoid being abducted. This week we talked about safe vs. unsafe people, and did a brief review of strangers. We also talked about the first step to personal safety, which is to AVOID situations that seem unsafe (if possible). Some examples include not walking alone in the dark, being aware of where people are around you, and walking around/away from people that make you feel uncomfortable or unsafe.

As we move through the program, 3rd grade students will focus on gun safety, while 5th grade students will focus on internet safety issues that are presented in the 6th grade curriculum.

(Dec. 6-10) This week in 1st Grade…

…we are finishing up our 7 Habits of Happy Kids! They have done a great job remembering these throughout the weeks. Here are the 7 Habits with hand motions.

1. First Things First (hold up one finger)
2. Listen Before You Speak (put your hand to your ear)
3. I’m in Charge of Me (point your thumbs to your chest)
4. Balance Feels Best (stick your hands out to the side)
5. Always Have a Plan (put your finger to your head like you’re thinking)
6. Think Win-Win (put your other finger to the other side of your head)
7. Together is Better (clasp your hands together in front of you)

We’ll continue to go over these with hand motions each time I see them, even though we will start on a different topic in January.

This week we talked about Together is Better. We learned from our story that if everyone works together as a team, you can get a lot more done! Their activity was a challenge…they had to think of as many states as they could in 1 minute. On their own, they couldn’t come up with more than 4 or 5. But with the whole class working together (and my pointing out which answers weren’t actually states), they were able to come up with 15-25 states.  That’s a big difference!

The kids thought this habit meant that it’s better to always have someone to play with, or to never do things by yourself. I think it’s important to be able to accomplish things on your own and to be ok with being by yourself. But it is also really important for them to learn about teamwork, and that working with the other people on your team (or offering to help someone that needs it) helps everyone succeed.

This week in Kindergarten…(Dec. 6-10)

…we are continuing to learn about feelings. Puppy and Snail visited the classes to help talk about “Same” and “Different.” Puppy said that he liked to go fast on the merry-go-round, while Snail likes to go slow. They are the same because they both like the merry-go-round, but they like to play on it in different ways. The students got in pairs and made faces to show how they would feel in a situation, and the rest of the class told me if the feelings were the same or different. Next we talked about accidents. Puppy and Snail told a story about an accident that happened to them (Snail stopped in front of Puppy, and Puppy bumped into Snail and dropped his snack). We talked about the difference between something that is an accident and something that is on purpose. We passed around our Be-Calm Bunny, and the students shared a time when something happened on accident.

They have been doing a great job in class, and I’m so glad that they are remembering our feeling words and faces.

This week in Classroom Guidance… (Nov. 8-12)

Here is an update on what’s going on in Classroom Guidance.  I plan to get back to weekly updates about what is happening here at ILE.

Kindergarten students have met three new friends—Impulsive Puppy, Be-Calm Bunny, and Slow-Down Snail. They have learned to look at someone’s eyes, mouth, and arms to find clues about how someone is feeling. They have also done a great job thinking about and sharing times when they felt happy and scared. We will continue with feelings by talking about how you can feel your feelings in your body, and that your feelings can change.

Mrs. Bostic’s Class is working through Hunter and his Amazing Remote Control. They have learned about the Channel Changer button, and the Pause button. This week we will learn about the Fast-Forward button, which encourages students to think about the consequences before they act. They will also learn what the word “consequences” means.

1^st Grade students are moving along in the 7 Habits of Happy Kids. They have learned 5 Habits so far…1^st Things 1^st, Listen Before You Speak, I’m in Charge of Me, Balance Feels Best, and Always Have a Plan. This week we’re learning to “Think Win-Win.” Our story talks about how Lily Skunk wants to plant a garden, and comes up with a plan where she can plant it AND her mom can eat the veggies. The students finished the class by working in pairs to draw one picture where both students participated and were happy with their part.

2^nd Grade students are still going strong with the 8 Keys of Excellence. We have talked about Integrity,  Commitment, Ownership, and Balance. This week we are talking about the Key “Speak with Good Purpose.” Usually the students mention that this means to say nice things to others, which is true. But also, sometimes teachers or parents say things that seem mean or upset the students, but the reason (or purpose) for saying them is good…they want the child/student to learn and grow from it. So, we need to say things for reasons that help others and have a “good purpose” behind them. We read the book “Have You Filled A Bucket Today?” and talked about being a bucket-filler or a bucket-dipper. Bucket-fillers say kind words that help fill up someone’s bucket with good feelings, while bucket-dippers say mean things and take good feelings out of someone else’s bucket. At the end of class, I walked around with a bucket, and the students told me one thing they could say to fill someone’s bucket.

As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!

Small Groups Starting Soon

Small groups will be starting as soon as the students return from fall break. The goal of the small group program is for students to work together and support each other as they strengthen their skills in a specific area.  At this time, I will be offering the following groups…

KidSkills
This group is for kindergarten and 1st grade students, and will focus on strengthening basic social skills that children learn in the first few years of school. These include self-confidence, waiting your turn, playing with others, and being ok if you don’t get your way or if you lose a game.

G.I.R.L.S. (Girls in Real Life Situations)
This is a group for 4th and 5th grade girls to discuss topics of friendship, communication, dealing with emotions, and self-confidence.

Boys Only!
This is a group for 4th and 5th grade boys to discuss topics of friendship, communication, dealing with emotions, and self-confidence.

S.O.S. (Study and Organizational Skills)
This group is for 4th and 5th grade students, and will focus on skills that will help them succeed in the elementary and middle school classroom. Students will finish this group with a notebook that they can refer to in the future.

I chose these topics based on the needs that were identified by the teachers in the grade levels. If you would like for your child to be involved in one of these groups, please let me know as soon as possible. If you would like to see a specific group added, please let me know that as well!

Welcome back!

I’m a little late with this message, but welcome back to ILE! I am very excited to start teaching this year. I’m doing new curriculum in almost every grade, and I hope the kids enjoy it!

You may hear your child talking about having to practice things during recess. Instead of just taking their time, I’m having them come to my classroom and we will work on whatever it is that they’re having a hard time doing. For example, if they’re not raising their hand in class, then they’ll sit in their seat, raise their hand, and I’ll call on them. These are things that I think should be habits, and if it’s not a habit, then we need to work on it to make it one!

I am looking forward to a great year, and please feel free to contact me if you have any concerns about your child.

3rd-5th Grade Career Homework

Using your classroom guidance paper as a reference, you will find ONE job from one of your top 3 Career areas.
(For example, if your top three are Social, Investigative, and Artistic, you can use any of these three to find a career that you are interested in.) You will give a brief oral presentation about this career during your next classroom guidance meeting.

1. Go to this site: http://online.onetcenter.org/find/descriptor/browse/Interests/
2. Click on the career field that you would like to explore.
3.  Find a job that you are interested in and would like to talk about in your presentation.

Include the following information in your presentation:
-Name of Career
-Career Area (Realistic, Investigative, etc.)
-Education required (can be seen by clicking on the number under “Zone” column next to the career title)
-A few tasks that this job requires

Don’t make it too complicated! Just make notes on the information listed above, and then use your notes to tell about your job to your classmates.

Homework is due in two weeks during your next classroom guidance meeting.