I don't often race home to blog about my day. In truth, I didn't really race home today. But I looked forward to creating this post after the day I had.
Today was the first day I combined my 2nd and 3rd grade gifted classes. Previously 3rd grade had been on their own. 2nd grade was with my 1st grader. Because of my own daughter being placed as a kindergartner...I had to move 2nd in with 3rd. I was a little worried about it because there are some potential personality Collisions in my future. I capitalize with purpose here. Clash seemed to tame a word.
If any of you have ever had a gifted child in your classroom, you will know what I mean. They are more different than they are alike despite having many common characteristics. I have super hypersensitive kids. I have underachievers. I have kids who love to please. I have kids who argue that the sky is a Celadon blue if I say it's really just blue. I have kids who barely speak. I have kids who wont stop speaking. Needless to say that with all the extremes in my class, I can have a very tumultuous day.
They never cease to amazing me however. The 2nd graders jumped right in with the slightly older kids. Once of the kids favorite activities is Stories with Holes. It was first time I had done them with the 2nd graders. They asked great yes/no questions and figured out many of them. I think the 3rd graders were shocked at how tenacious the 2nd graders were. I was impressed with how my quiet non-talkers suddenly came alive.
I am excited to teach them like this because the options for cooperative work are vastly different now. I did a lot more share structures than I normally do today. It felt really good. I even witnessed many of them coaching each other through some problem solving.
Which brings me to my favorite story from today. Gifted children often struggle with accepting their failures. Whether they have been labeled underachievers or perfectionists...they struggle with things get hard. Last week, one of my 5th grade students kept saying how hard the math was. We were doing some pre-algebra problems. She just wasn't grasping the trial/error method the particular problem posed. She struggles with her confidence in math as well. I told her she was no longer allowed to use the word can't. Immediately, the little darlings in that class start listing all the synonyms they would use instead.
We abandoned our math, pulled out the thesauruses and iPads. I sent them out to find all the synonyms of can't they could come up with. We may a huge list and posted it on the wall in the room. They aren't allowed to use negative works to describe their learning, conversations, or relationships in the room.
I talked over this lesson with the 2/3 group today. Later in the day, one of my strong math students was struggling with an algebraic thinking problem. He said, "Mrs. Parker these are so hard...Oh! I'm not allowed to say that! Mrs. Parker, these problems are challenging!" We discussed the work hard and challenging. They decided that challenging implies that they can success at it even if it's "hard". While the word hard just sounds like complaining.
I love these kids!
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Friday, August 10, 2012
And it begins...bring it 12-13...I got this.
A new year is about to begin. This will be my sixth year teaching. This summer I completed my masters degree program at UF! Now that it's over, I know that I am a much better equiped teacher.
I was able to get into my room on Thursday. I'm glad I wont be housing the computer lab this year despite the fact that I used it constantly during my classes. 22 laptops and all their wires took up a lot of space! The lab will be just down the hall and I will just have to sign up for it like everyone else. Housing last year caused a lot of mobile teaching situations for my classes. I taught in hallways, the library, the stage in the cafeteria, the picnic tables, a grassy area behind one of our buildings. It was a learning expierience.
At any rate here are my before day one pics. As you can see there are just piles of boxes everywhere. I'm not sure if I will be allowed to keep the large rectangular tables since they were purchased for the computer lab. They are much sturdier than the usual rectangular tables we have. I'm hoping for the regular ones or round tables. I can't stand student desks.
These are the pictures after about five hours of work. The lovely children are my neice, Kyleigh, and my nephew, Jacob. They were great helpers. I'll admit, it doen't look like much righ now. But I got most of my rubbermaid bins unpacked. My oldest neice, Alexis, will do my library next week while I am at meetings. I am not going to do any major bulletin boards this year. I am going to put up inspirational quotes from famous gifted learners around the room. I want to use the students projects as my displays so that our room turns into a sort of museum for our theme, Colonial America.
I was able to get into my room on Thursday. I'm glad I wont be housing the computer lab this year despite the fact that I used it constantly during my classes. 22 laptops and all their wires took up a lot of space! The lab will be just down the hall and I will just have to sign up for it like everyone else. Housing last year caused a lot of mobile teaching situations for my classes. I taught in hallways, the library, the stage in the cafeteria, the picnic tables, a grassy area behind one of our buildings. It was a learning expierience.
At any rate here are my before day one pics. As you can see there are just piles of boxes everywhere. I'm not sure if I will be allowed to keep the large rectangular tables since they were purchased for the computer lab. They are much sturdier than the usual rectangular tables we have. I'm hoping for the regular ones or round tables. I can't stand student desks.
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| The view from my bathroom door. |
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| The view from my back door. |
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| The view from my front door. |
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| View from the bathroom door looking over my smartboard and teacher area. |
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| View from my back door looking toards the front door. |
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| View from my front door looking at the back door. |
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| View from my teacher area. |
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Thoughtful Thursday
I love Thursdays. I am with my 1st/2nd/3rd group of kids. They are inquisitive, eager, and excited about learning. While they need affection, they aren't yet hormonal. We struggle with transitions because they want to stay longer in a subject, not because they are dreading the next.
I started our day with a Brainstation called Clue Cards. Students look at 10 cards with various designs cut into their edges. They then have to pick with card matches a particular word. Then you flip the cards upside down and they have to match it to a more complex phrase. It's logic and flexible thinking strategies. We had a great time agreeing and disagreeing with each other.
I introducted their choice projects and academic contracts. The contracts were rough to get through. These kids don't yet know how to plan for a project in the long term. I want to stress to them the importance of breaking a big project up into smaller parts so that it doesn't 1)sneak up on you and 2) get frustrating. They seem excited about their projects. I hope they turn out well. They are definitely interestied in the topics so we will see what they come up with.
What I am thinking about today though isn't my instruction so much as the delicate balance between nature and nurture. We are born a certain way. Some of us have physical challenges while others have emotional challenges, and still others have mental challenges.
I'm a very strong believer in early interventions. Identifying issues as early as possible and getting kids the therapies that are needed. Young brains are such an amazing thing. They grow, make millions of connections. And by the time they are in the adolescents, have overcome or at least adapted to their challenges.
So where and when do we stop just looking at nature and start to focus on nurture. Is is a balance of the two? We are surrounded by the frustrated echoes of, "He has ADHD," or "No meds today". "She's oppositional defiant". And all of these said with such defeat. I'm guilty. When you have put everything you can into a kid and you still feel like you hit a brick wall.
But I have seen kids with challenges turn around 360 with the love and attention of parents, friends, family members, teachers, counselors, physical therapists, etc. These child are the reason we say, "It takes a village." Adults loving and caring for children with any type of challenge need a network of committed individuals. No one person will be ALL the difference, but they can be the start of a difference.
Tonight, I'm thinking of a teenage boy who is struggling with a new diagnosis, new meds, fears, depression. I hope he knows he has a team of people ready, willing, and able to nurture him...if he will let us.
I beleive we can accept our nature, chose who we allow to nurture, and consciously decide to become better than we were when we thought we were alone.
I started our day with a Brainstation called Clue Cards. Students look at 10 cards with various designs cut into their edges. They then have to pick with card matches a particular word. Then you flip the cards upside down and they have to match it to a more complex phrase. It's logic and flexible thinking strategies. We had a great time agreeing and disagreeing with each other.
I introducted their choice projects and academic contracts. The contracts were rough to get through. These kids don't yet know how to plan for a project in the long term. I want to stress to them the importance of breaking a big project up into smaller parts so that it doesn't 1)sneak up on you and 2) get frustrating. They seem excited about their projects. I hope they turn out well. They are definitely interestied in the topics so we will see what they come up with.
What I am thinking about today though isn't my instruction so much as the delicate balance between nature and nurture. We are born a certain way. Some of us have physical challenges while others have emotional challenges, and still others have mental challenges.
I'm a very strong believer in early interventions. Identifying issues as early as possible and getting kids the therapies that are needed. Young brains are such an amazing thing. They grow, make millions of connections. And by the time they are in the adolescents, have overcome or at least adapted to their challenges.
So where and when do we stop just looking at nature and start to focus on nurture. Is is a balance of the two? We are surrounded by the frustrated echoes of, "He has ADHD," or "No meds today". "She's oppositional defiant". And all of these said with such defeat. I'm guilty. When you have put everything you can into a kid and you still feel like you hit a brick wall.
But I have seen kids with challenges turn around 360 with the love and attention of parents, friends, family members, teachers, counselors, physical therapists, etc. These child are the reason we say, "It takes a village." Adults loving and caring for children with any type of challenge need a network of committed individuals. No one person will be ALL the difference, but they can be the start of a difference.
Tonight, I'm thinking of a teenage boy who is struggling with a new diagnosis, new meds, fears, depression. I hope he knows he has a team of people ready, willing, and able to nurture him...if he will let us.
I beleive we can accept our nature, chose who we allow to nurture, and consciously decide to become better than we were when we thought we were alone.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Themes
For my personal blog, I have created themed days. It helps give me focus when I write. So here we go. I am going to theme my days:
Math Monday
Teamwork Tuesdays
Writing Wednesdays
Thoughtful Thursday
Freedom Fridays
Science Saturday
Study Sundays
Today is Wednesday, Oct 5. My first Writing Wednesday. Recently, a friend of mine asked for some advice on how help her son with handwriting. I have to admit I came up absolutely clueless. I have never really taught handwriting. Every once in a while I would get a kid who held their pen a funny but their writing was legible and they didn't complain of pain. It bothered me that I could offer no help to my friend. Also, now that I have primary students, I feel that maybe I should gain some skill in this area.
I was in the camp of handwriting being obsolete. I grew up in the midst of the technology boom. I hardly ever handwrite anything despite the fact that I love to write. I mostly type or create stuff digitally. However, I have read some articles about handwriting. This one out of the Wall Street Journal discusses how the act of writing stimulates the brain and is tied to fine motor skills. This article also discusses how some standardized tests are still handwritten, like Florida Writes and the essay portion of the SAT, and your handwriting can effect your score. The "scorer" may judge the clarity of your ideas by the neatness of your handwriting...however subconscious it is.
It seems to me, also, that more and more parents are asking about handwriting curriculum and practice for their students. This is a teacher speculating but I have to wonder if that's because handwriting is perceived as easier to deal with than math or science homework?
In this article, the author discusses how technology has been blamed for the demise of handwriting. However, she sites a professor who states the truth is that no is forcing our youth to improve their handwriting. So, perhaps as more of Generation X, Y, and the Milleniums become teachers, administrators, and policyamkers (and the focus on standardized tests that are more often multiple choice) there is less of a push for handwriting curriculum.
I don't have the answers and a quick scoure of Google about how to fix bad handwriting came up with a lot of handwriting products, but also a lot of forum posts from teachers, parents, and adults wanting to improve their or their kids handwriting. Most of the sites I visited talked about fine-motor skill development for kids as early as possible, correct pen grips, etc.
If any of my teacher friends have resouces they want to comment with to help my friend out I would greatly appreciate it!
Math Monday
Teamwork Tuesdays
Writing Wednesdays
Thoughtful Thursday
Freedom Fridays
Science Saturday
Study Sundays
Today is Wednesday, Oct 5. My first Writing Wednesday. Recently, a friend of mine asked for some advice on how help her son with handwriting. I have to admit I came up absolutely clueless. I have never really taught handwriting. Every once in a while I would get a kid who held their pen a funny but their writing was legible and they didn't complain of pain. It bothered me that I could offer no help to my friend. Also, now that I have primary students, I feel that maybe I should gain some skill in this area.
I was in the camp of handwriting being obsolete. I grew up in the midst of the technology boom. I hardly ever handwrite anything despite the fact that I love to write. I mostly type or create stuff digitally. However, I have read some articles about handwriting. This one out of the Wall Street Journal discusses how the act of writing stimulates the brain and is tied to fine motor skills. This article also discusses how some standardized tests are still handwritten, like Florida Writes and the essay portion of the SAT, and your handwriting can effect your score. The "scorer" may judge the clarity of your ideas by the neatness of your handwriting...however subconscious it is.
It seems to me, also, that more and more parents are asking about handwriting curriculum and practice for their students. This is a teacher speculating but I have to wonder if that's because handwriting is perceived as easier to deal with than math or science homework?
In this article, the author discusses how technology has been blamed for the demise of handwriting. However, she sites a professor who states the truth is that no is forcing our youth to improve their handwriting. So, perhaps as more of Generation X, Y, and the Milleniums become teachers, administrators, and policyamkers (and the focus on standardized tests that are more often multiple choice) there is less of a push for handwriting curriculum.
I don't have the answers and a quick scoure of Google about how to fix bad handwriting came up with a lot of handwriting products, but also a lot of forum posts from teachers, parents, and adults wanting to improve their or their kids handwriting. Most of the sites I visited talked about fine-motor skill development for kids as early as possible, correct pen grips, etc.
If any of my teacher friends have resouces they want to comment with to help my friend out I would greatly appreciate it!
Friday, September 23, 2011
A new structure
This new job is causing me to pause and think about the structures I live within. I need structure. I need it just as much as my students need it. It's why I was always good at school. I always knew what to expect from each day. I always knew what I would be doing.
Now, however, I am learning that flexibility is in my job discription with a new definition. When I was a general education classroom teacher, flexibility meant extending my math block when my students needed more time in a concept; it meant compacting curriculum for academically talented students; it meant cancelling an activity because of an assembly.
As a gifted teacher and push-in math teacher, flexbility means I might now see my students; it means having several lessons ready in case I get a few spare moments to meet with some kids; it means 15 minute planning sessions with teachers about student needs; it means learning how to put on the student news in the mornings; it means scheduling my own time...
it means I found a gray hair the other day for the first.time.ever!
I love my kids. I want what is best for them. Right now, I feel like I am struggling to meet their needs because I am struggling to figure out how to build structure for myself. This makes me feel guilty and tired and sad.
I so want to love my job and be passionate about it. Since starting my master's, I have felt like I was walking on the beach. The sand is hot and it's difficult to walk but I'm making progress and I can see the shore and the refreshing waves and the cooler wet packed sand. So far this year, I fell like I'm in the desert. The sand is scorching and ever step feels like it's pulling me downward; mirages pop up here and there looking like refuge but disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Will I ever get the hang of all of this paperwork and scheduling? I will strive to give my students the support they so desperately need and to challenge them and love them. Lord knows they are the best part of this work we do as educators.
Now, however, I am learning that flexibility is in my job discription with a new definition. When I was a general education classroom teacher, flexibility meant extending my math block when my students needed more time in a concept; it meant compacting curriculum for academically talented students; it meant cancelling an activity because of an assembly.
As a gifted teacher and push-in math teacher, flexbility means I might now see my students; it means having several lessons ready in case I get a few spare moments to meet with some kids; it means 15 minute planning sessions with teachers about student needs; it means learning how to put on the student news in the mornings; it means scheduling my own time...
it means I found a gray hair the other day for the first.time.ever!
I love my kids. I want what is best for them. Right now, I feel like I am struggling to meet their needs because I am struggling to figure out how to build structure for myself. This makes me feel guilty and tired and sad.
I so want to love my job and be passionate about it. Since starting my master's, I have felt like I was walking on the beach. The sand is hot and it's difficult to walk but I'm making progress and I can see the shore and the refreshing waves and the cooler wet packed sand. So far this year, I fell like I'm in the desert. The sand is scorching and ever step feels like it's pulling me downward; mirages pop up here and there looking like refuge but disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Will I ever get the hang of all of this paperwork and scheduling? I will strive to give my students the support they so desperately need and to challenge them and love them. Lord knows they are the best part of this work we do as educators.
Friday, September 2, 2011
Week 1: A fresh start
9/1/11:
I had my first, second, and third graders today. I will see the first grader seperately starting a month from now but I'm doing so many screenings and he's by himself so I'm having him work with my second graders.
The first day was all about fun. We did a Brainstation (Rasmussen, 1989) called Shape Up! Students picked one tag board shape and then had to create either a robot, bird, fish, bug, or monkey with their shape. I tied this activity to flexible Thinking Skills (Lorene & Reid, 1990). The kids enjoyed creating their pictures and the conversations about how they used their shape or how they might use it differently was very rich.
I had them take a Gardner Learning Invetory. They are a mixed bag of learners. Most of them are visual learners. I'm not sure how accurate it is to give them only one inventory. We will have to see. Most of them scored low in the intrapersonal and bodily/kinesthetic learning styles.
I had them work on a glyph. This was very challenging. They thought they were recreating their house. But they were actual creating a fictional house based on what they have at their real house. Once I made one for me they got the hang of it.
We finished the day by having them get into teams to create a community map. Their fictional community had to have specific items on it. Most of the teams worked well together. They are pretty competetive though.
I look forward to working with this group!
9/2/11:
I had my fourth and fifth graders today, we well as three students from Bellaire. They were very eager to be with me and to figure out how I work differently from the previous teacher. They struggled with my behavior plan. I have a couple of kids who are pretty squirrely and we'll have some growing pains together I'm sure. One male student really has trouble with talking while I am but I explained to him how concerned I was about this behavior. I told him, in a very caring but firm voice, that in my culture it is considered rude to speak when someone else is speaking. I explained that I could tell he wasn't trying to interrupt me to be rude but it was important for him to realize that it doesn't excuse the behavior. He thought about it and apologized. I think we'll be fine.
We used the same Brainstation activity and they had some great conversations. They LOVED stories with twists. We worked on a glyph too. I created this one. They also struggled to realize that the answers to the research questions were being incorporated to create a paper model of a space shuttle. They struggled with keyword searches. I think they will get better at it as we go.
I struggled with one student in particular all day. This student is very immature compared to his classmates. I will have to keep a tight leash on him.
So the first week is over and I think I survived just fine.
Quote of the Day
Quality is never an accident. It is always the result of intelligent effort.
I had my first, second, and third graders today. I will see the first grader seperately starting a month from now but I'm doing so many screenings and he's by himself so I'm having him work with my second graders.
The first day was all about fun. We did a Brainstation (Rasmussen, 1989) called Shape Up! Students picked one tag board shape and then had to create either a robot, bird, fish, bug, or monkey with their shape. I tied this activity to flexible Thinking Skills (Lorene & Reid, 1990). The kids enjoyed creating their pictures and the conversations about how they used their shape or how they might use it differently was very rich.
I had them take a Gardner Learning Invetory. They are a mixed bag of learners. Most of them are visual learners. I'm not sure how accurate it is to give them only one inventory. We will have to see. Most of them scored low in the intrapersonal and bodily/kinesthetic learning styles.
I had them work on a glyph. This was very challenging. They thought they were recreating their house. But they were actual creating a fictional house based on what they have at their real house. Once I made one for me they got the hang of it.
We finished the day by having them get into teams to create a community map. Their fictional community had to have specific items on it. Most of the teams worked well together. They are pretty competetive though.
I look forward to working with this group!
9/2/11:
I had my fourth and fifth graders today, we well as three students from Bellaire. They were very eager to be with me and to figure out how I work differently from the previous teacher. They struggled with my behavior plan. I have a couple of kids who are pretty squirrely and we'll have some growing pains together I'm sure. One male student really has trouble with talking while I am but I explained to him how concerned I was about this behavior. I told him, in a very caring but firm voice, that in my culture it is considered rude to speak when someone else is speaking. I explained that I could tell he wasn't trying to interrupt me to be rude but it was important for him to realize that it doesn't excuse the behavior. He thought about it and apologized. I think we'll be fine.
We used the same Brainstation activity and they had some great conversations. They LOVED stories with twists. We worked on a glyph too. I created this one. They also struggled to realize that the answers to the research questions were being incorporated to create a paper model of a space shuttle. They struggled with keyword searches. I think they will get better at it as we go.
I struggled with one student in particular all day. This student is very immature compared to his classmates. I will have to keep a tight leash on him.
So the first week is over and I think I survived just fine.
Quote of the Day
Quality is never an accident. It is always the result of intelligent effort.
-John Ruskin
Friday, August 26, 2011
2011-2012 Classroom setup
My classroom doubles as a computer lab for the school. I teach in there with kids three days a week. The other two days I'm out in classrooms as a math teacher so other classes can come into my room and use the computers and Smartboard.
Our theme this year is Space Community. We will study space exploration, travel, and colonization. I'm excited. Here are some pics of my set up. I am not completely done yet. I have to wrap it up on Monday.
Our theme this year is Space Community. We will study space exploration, travel, and colonization. I'm excited. Here are some pics of my set up. I am not completely done yet. I have to wrap it up on Monday.
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| View from my teacher resource area toward the south end of my portable. |
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| View from my resource area to the east side of my classroom. |
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| View from my resource area showing the north side. |
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| View from the northeast door shoing my resource area. |
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| View from the northeast door diagonal across my room the the southwest corner. |
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| Showing the south side. |
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| The catch all area for now. That the huge cart the laptops go into...I have no idea where I'm going to conveniently store that bad boy! |
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| Geometry bulletin board. My 14 year old neice, Lexi, made this. |
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| Fractions Bulletin Board...again made by Lexi. |
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| Geometric shapes board...by Lexi. |
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