Morning Meeting is one of my most treasured times with my students. Monday's Meeting is usually my favorite. Over the last year and a half, we have really become somewhat of a family. If they only knew how much I've learned and grown from them... I've been able to share the most important happenings (good and bad) with this particular group of kids. Kids have lost parents, grandparents, and pets. Through our conversations, I've been part of family gatherings, traditions, new siblings, and birthday parties. How lucky am I?!?! I've always shared about myself, my family, and what is happening in my life too. How can I expect them to feel safe and comfortable if I don't do the same?
Today was a little different. I wasn't at school all of last week. I went home Friday feeling pretty bad. I packed up a bag and figured I would get my work done over the weekend after some rest. I went straight to bed and didn't really leave until I went to Prompt Care on Sunday afternoon. The flu. UGH. High fever, chills, MISERABLE. I called for a substitute, complaining the whole time that "I needed to be at work". I spent Monday and Tuesday in bed. I was feeling a lot better when I got a phone call about the sudden death of my grandmother. To say the least, my grandmother and I were incredibly close. She even visited my class last year to talk about our family tree. She had EMBARRASSING pictures of me and the rest of my family. My students loved it and so did she. I didn't return to work at all last week.
I was really excited about returning today. Well, I will be honest, I was terrified and excited at the same time! Could I hold it together? Could I answer the questions I knew they would have? So... I arrived this morning and and waited anxiously for their arrival. They came in one by one with the biggest smiles and warmest greetings. They were SO happy to see me and I felt the same! There wasn't one kid who didn't come and hug me. I was bombarded with hugs, cards, and smiles.
When we gathered for our Morning Meeting, we shared about our weekends as usual. When it came my turn to share, I talked about having the flu and how we really needed to be better about washing our hands (in true teacher fashion). Then I also told them that I had some sad news as well. I was SO nervous. I told them that about my grandmother and that I was feeling a little sad. I've been surrounded by the security blanket of my family for the last several days and today was no different. Here were these amazing kids who gave me one of the greatest gifts. They expressed how sorry they were, gave me permission to cry (so cute), and promised to be really good! Although this post doesn't directly apply to our curriculum, it is a true testament of the sense of community that we have. Can any of us access the curriculum with out that? Much like a family, we have built relationships that have taught us all the real value of trust, communication, and honesty. By sharing with them and allowing them to be more a part of my life, will only deepen the sense of community in our room. I'm trying to "practice what I preach."
This post isn't meant to focus on my loss. It is about the strength and power there is in this true community of learners. At our best and our worst, we get though our days together. Every student has made tremendous academic and social growth over the last year and a half. I would like to think that the safety net that we have built in our classroom has something to do with that. I'm learning so much from them. I think they saw that today. I think they saw me as a real person.
I need to blog more. I need to post kids work. The things they do each day amaze me. I believe in them and they believe in me. This class have given me a whole new definition of family. Stay tuned and keep pressuring me to document this amazing journey!
Monday, February 7, 2011
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
First Day, Not Just Putting Supplies Away...
Wow! I'm not even sure where to start... What an AMAZING day. Best first day yet. The students came in incredibly excited to be back. It was almost like we never left! It was a powerful milestone in this looping experience. My principal told me yesterday that the "first day of the second year would be one of the best", that proved to very true today. The relationships that were built last year were picked right back up with ease. The students welcomed our new friends that were joining us and it seemed like we've all been together for a year already... and of course, most of us have!
Our Morning Meeting was a beautiful example of the community and relationships that most of us formed in the previous year. They knew the routines and procedures of Morning Meeting and were encouraging, helpful, and patient explaining to our newcomers how things run. They made eye contact, shook hands, and greeted one another. They shared something about their summer. We sang a song which left everyone with big smiles, and closed with our morning message.
I tried something new this year. Usually when students come for Open House, they bring their school supplies. I usually spend a few hours sorting through them and finding them homes (not sure why...) But it occurred to me that this was a job that students were certainly capable of and would give them ownership of our room. So, I dumped out ALL of the supplies that came in on five round tables and told them to work together to "organize" them at their tables. Once supplies were sorted at the tables, they agreed to combine all "like" items in bins so we could store the supplies. The students assigned themselves roles at their table (no direction from me) and set out to merge all the supplies from individual tables to a central location. The problem solving, conversation, and teamwork that was displayed was amazing. I can tell you because I was literally sitting back and watching it all happen around me. The engagement was high and everyone was participating. Once we had all "like" items grouped, we needed to find a place in the room to keep everything (no small task!). The discussion about where things should go and what should go together was pretty incredible. They decided that they wanted some supplies on their tables all the time. Fortunately, I had supplies bins to make that happen! They categorized supplies on a "what we use everyday" basis. Pencils, erasers, scissors, and glue were voted to stay on the tables. Everyone agreed, and then decided that we should have a set number of supplies in each bin for use each day. One student suggested "since there are four students at each table, we should have at least that many." Another student agreed, but said that we should have extra pencils as they "break all the time." I couldn't believe the conversation going on around me. Of course I wanted to offer suggestions and pitch in, but I forced myself to sit back, and only allowed myself to ask questions. They decided to put the paper towels behind the door ("they are too big to fit anywhere else, and we should keep them all together"), the tissues are in a pile in a corner of our room (not what I would have done), but I have to say, I LOVE IT! Every time I saw the tissues in the corner and the paper towels behind our door today, I couldn't help but smile. They were assigned a task, worked hard to complete it, and were thrilled with their success. Yes, it is only supplies we are talking about, but it was empowering for them, gave them ownership, a sense of accomplishment, and gave their teacher a powerful reminder that they are capable of anything. It was loud, probably looked like total chaos, but it was a priceless experience for us all.
The rest of the day was pretty much the same. Easy. I knew what to expect, they knew what to expect, and we had an AWESOME day! I was excited about looping before, but now I'm realizing that this is much bigger than I could have ever imagined. I can't help but wonder where we will be in a month, two months, and so on... Stay tuned.
Our Morning Meeting was a beautiful example of the community and relationships that most of us formed in the previous year. They knew the routines and procedures of Morning Meeting and were encouraging, helpful, and patient explaining to our newcomers how things run. They made eye contact, shook hands, and greeted one another. They shared something about their summer. We sang a song which left everyone with big smiles, and closed with our morning message.
I tried something new this year. Usually when students come for Open House, they bring their school supplies. I usually spend a few hours sorting through them and finding them homes (not sure why...) But it occurred to me that this was a job that students were certainly capable of and would give them ownership of our room. So, I dumped out ALL of the supplies that came in on five round tables and told them to work together to "organize" them at their tables. Once supplies were sorted at the tables, they agreed to combine all "like" items in bins so we could store the supplies. The students assigned themselves roles at their table (no direction from me) and set out to merge all the supplies from individual tables to a central location. The problem solving, conversation, and teamwork that was displayed was amazing. I can tell you because I was literally sitting back and watching it all happen around me. The engagement was high and everyone was participating. Once we had all "like" items grouped, we needed to find a place in the room to keep everything (no small task!). The discussion about where things should go and what should go together was pretty incredible. They decided that they wanted some supplies on their tables all the time. Fortunately, I had supplies bins to make that happen! They categorized supplies on a "what we use everyday" basis. Pencils, erasers, scissors, and glue were voted to stay on the tables. Everyone agreed, and then decided that we should have a set number of supplies in each bin for use each day. One student suggested "since there are four students at each table, we should have at least that many." Another student agreed, but said that we should have extra pencils as they "break all the time." I couldn't believe the conversation going on around me. Of course I wanted to offer suggestions and pitch in, but I forced myself to sit back, and only allowed myself to ask questions. They decided to put the paper towels behind the door ("they are too big to fit anywhere else, and we should keep them all together"), the tissues are in a pile in a corner of our room (not what I would have done), but I have to say, I LOVE IT! Every time I saw the tissues in the corner and the paper towels behind our door today, I couldn't help but smile. They were assigned a task, worked hard to complete it, and were thrilled with their success. Yes, it is only supplies we are talking about, but it was empowering for them, gave them ownership, a sense of accomplishment, and gave their teacher a powerful reminder that they are capable of anything. It was loud, probably looked like total chaos, but it was a priceless experience for us all.
The rest of the day was pretty much the same. Easy. I knew what to expect, they knew what to expect, and we had an AWESOME day! I was excited about looping before, but now I'm realizing that this is much bigger than I could have ever imagined. I can't help but wonder where we will be in a month, two months, and so on... Stay tuned.
Monday, August 23, 2010
Gearing Up!
What an awesome week it has been! I got into our new classroom... Which was a little overwhelming to say the least. I knew that I wanted to ditch the desks and go for round tables to really encourage and support the idea of cooperative learning. I spent time with my new team members working on our learning targets for the first few weeks and charts to monitor student growth. (I will post pictures of them soon!) Pretty powerful work and planning. We wrote enduring understandings, long term targets, supporting targets, and began to match them to assessments of and for learning. Productive work! In the upcoming week we will be mapping out all the learning experiences that will help guide us through. I'm also part of a team that will be working to implement student-led conferences this spring. I couldn't be any more excited about this year!
Last Thursday, our entire faculty/staff participated in an event our school calls "Stepping Out." Every teacher made contact with each of the families in our classes and arranged for a time to visit them at home. We took each student a bag with a pencil, a note from us, and important information about Open House and a PTO Popsicle social held on Saturday morning. If families were unavailable, we left it on their door. It was AMAZING. What a great way to start off our year! Families were welcoming and students were so excited to meet and greet their teacher.
Tonight was our Open House. Our class had a great turnout! It was so nice to see the familiar faces of families and students that I had the pleasure of teaching last year and will again this upcoming school year. I also met our "new" students that will be joining our class this year. One of our new students, I actually knew from the past! I taught her older sister my first year teaching. My students were happy to see me and one another. It was exciting to see them introducing themselves to our new friends and greeting one another as they arrived. The community that was already established last year is back in action and they haven't missed a beat! I am so proud of them and can't wait to start our year together. Can't we just start tomorrow?!?!?
Last Thursday, our entire faculty/staff participated in an event our school calls "Stepping Out." Every teacher made contact with each of the families in our classes and arranged for a time to visit them at home. We took each student a bag with a pencil, a note from us, and important information about Open House and a PTO Popsicle social held on Saturday morning. If families were unavailable, we left it on their door. It was AMAZING. What a great way to start off our year! Families were welcoming and students were so excited to meet and greet their teacher.
Tonight was our Open House. Our class had a great turnout! It was so nice to see the familiar faces of families and students that I had the pleasure of teaching last year and will again this upcoming school year. I also met our "new" students that will be joining our class this year. One of our new students, I actually knew from the past! I taught her older sister my first year teaching. My students were happy to see me and one another. It was exciting to see them introducing themselves to our new friends and greeting one another as they arrived. The community that was already established last year is back in action and they haven't missed a beat! I am so proud of them and can't wait to start our year together. Can't we just start tomorrow?!?!?
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Past, Present, and Future
As I get ready to head back to school, I find myself very reflective. I'm getting ready to begin my sixth year of teaching. It went by so fast... I spent four years working in an elementary school that I myself was a student at, for kindergarten through fifth grade. It was an AMAZING four years. I was surrounded by other teachers who supported and helped me become the teacher I am today. I worked for two different administrators that pushed, challenged, and supported me all at the same time. My first year teaching, I taught second grade. I moved down to first grade the following year to be a part of the huge jump in reading that most first graders accomplish. It was also that second year, that I decided to pursue my Master's in Reading. I realized that as wonderful as my undergraduate program had been, that I lacked the knowledge of how to help these first graders accomplish that amazing jump in reading. I spent the next two years in first grade. Somewhere in the middle of that fourth year, I began to think outside the walls of my school. I had the curiosity of a first grader! I started to look around at other schools in our division to see how they structured their days, their reading instruction, and other initiatives that were being put into place. It wasn't that I was unhappy, I had built a family where I was but I felt restless and curious about the unknown. It was a very difficult decision, but that spring I decided to leave and head to another school. It was difficult to leave my friends, students, and families that I had built deep relationships with over the past four years. But at the same time, I was excited about what was ahead.
I decided to venture out and see how a different building within the same division ran. I felt compelled to make my move to a school that was implementing Responsive Classroom, Expeditionary Learning, and various other initiatives that I felt matched very well with my own personal ideas about education. I immediately (thankfully!) felt that I shared similar values, hopes, and strategies for learning with my new administration. I met amazing teachers, my new students, and realized that as much as I missed my other school, this was a HUGE step professionally for me. I had learned to take risks. Isn't that what we ask of our students? It was a valuable reminder that I needed to be able to do the same. It was hard to be "new" at times, but I was welcomed and included pretty quickly. It was an amazing year of professional learning and growth for me. I also discovered that by moving to a new school, I had doubled the teacher resources that I could lean on for support, ideas, and reflection.
Last year I taught first grade in my new school and I had the pleasure to work with amazing students, families, and support staff in my building. I wouldn't even begin to compare the two schools that I've worked in. Both have and will continue to play a huge part of who I am and are equally special places to me. As the end of the year came last year, the opportunity to loop up with my class presented itself and I was incredibly excited! I began to weigh out all the options and really reflect on how and why this seemed to be exactly the perfect time to try this. I completed my fifth year of teaching last June by sharing with my students and their families my plan to continue on the journey of learning for one more year with them. I was met with amazing feedback, tearful parents who felt relieved that I already knew their child, and the personal sense of gratitude that I would spend another year with this amazing group of children. Now anyone who knows me, would say that I've loved each of my classes with incredible sincerity. I am that teacher who cries every year when they leave. I work hard to build relationships with my students and their families and I would have gladly spent another year with any of them!
As I go into this year, I am thrilled to continue to watch this group of students grow academically and socially. It is my hope that this blog will serve as a way for me, as well as my students and their families to reflect on our two years together. I'm hoping to include student work, thoughts, and ideas to show the growth along our journey. This is the beginning, well... continuation of something wonderful!
I decided to venture out and see how a different building within the same division ran. I felt compelled to make my move to a school that was implementing Responsive Classroom, Expeditionary Learning, and various other initiatives that I felt matched very well with my own personal ideas about education. I immediately (thankfully!) felt that I shared similar values, hopes, and strategies for learning with my new administration. I met amazing teachers, my new students, and realized that as much as I missed my other school, this was a HUGE step professionally for me. I had learned to take risks. Isn't that what we ask of our students? It was a valuable reminder that I needed to be able to do the same. It was hard to be "new" at times, but I was welcomed and included pretty quickly. It was an amazing year of professional learning and growth for me. I also discovered that by moving to a new school, I had doubled the teacher resources that I could lean on for support, ideas, and reflection.
Last year I taught first grade in my new school and I had the pleasure to work with amazing students, families, and support staff in my building. I wouldn't even begin to compare the two schools that I've worked in. Both have and will continue to play a huge part of who I am and are equally special places to me. As the end of the year came last year, the opportunity to loop up with my class presented itself and I was incredibly excited! I began to weigh out all the options and really reflect on how and why this seemed to be exactly the perfect time to try this. I completed my fifth year of teaching last June by sharing with my students and their families my plan to continue on the journey of learning for one more year with them. I was met with amazing feedback, tearful parents who felt relieved that I already knew their child, and the personal sense of gratitude that I would spend another year with this amazing group of children. Now anyone who knows me, would say that I've loved each of my classes with incredible sincerity. I am that teacher who cries every year when they leave. I work hard to build relationships with my students and their families and I would have gladly spent another year with any of them!
As I go into this year, I am thrilled to continue to watch this group of students grow academically and socially. It is my hope that this blog will serve as a way for me, as well as my students and their families to reflect on our two years together. I'm hoping to include student work, thoughts, and ideas to show the growth along our journey. This is the beginning, well... continuation of something wonderful!
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