A Teacher

As a teacher, I know my daily schedule will be busy each day.  As a kindergarten teacher, I know I will be "on" every minute of the day.  A kindergarten teacher doesn't get a breather, a kindergarten teacher doesn't give an assignment and know the kids will handle it from there.  I've had the makings of today's post floating around in my head for months now and today just seemed like the day to try to shake it out.  Teachers...I bet you can relate.

Once upon a time, in a galaxy far, far away...

A teacher
got to drink her coffee while it was still hot.

A teacher
used the bathroom when it was needed.

A teacher
ate her lunch without interruption.

A teacher
always remembered to take attendance.

A teacher
went home without a full bag of work.

A teacher
didn't write lesson plans on Saturday.

A teacher
had students who heard the directions the first time.

A teacher
didn't have to buy classroom supplies out of her own pocket.

A teacher
had students who didn't goof around and play social butterfly...

A teacher
stayed home sick because planning for a sub was no big deal.

A teacher
woke up.

A teacher
realized it was all a dream.

A teacher
remembered all the things that make teaching hard.

A teacher
got out of bed anyway.

A teacher
knew the reward far outweighed the hard stuff.

A teacher
smiled and hugged her students.

A teacher
shared her heart and watched a child grow.

A teacher
inspired.

A teacher
loved.

We Are Blooming!

I absolutely love to watch my students learn and grow!  I know, there probably aren't any teachers out there that wouldn't say the same thing, but this year it just keeps smacking me in the face!

I have a student teacher that does a wonderful job.  She knows what she's doing and what to expect from students, where to support them and enjoys what she is doing.  It's been fun to watch her grow and learn as well this year!

Because she is so capable, I have been able to really sit back and watch my students.  Yes, I see behaviors in some of them that are less that desirable and its often hard to sit back and let her handle it without jumping in to help, but I see her growth when I do so I know how worth while it is.  The best part thought is watching the students really begin to shine.  Last week they were engaged and in love with literacy and math tubs...and I was able to watch it all unfold in front of me.  The flowers in my kinder garden are really beginning to bloom!  Take a look!

You will notice two levels of letter work below - first identifying a letter in an apple card game and then writing letters in sequence.

 Next up, more letter work.  First, students place the magnetic letter over the picture of the matching letter.  The next level is matching the letter to the beginning sound of the word/picture.  Finally, some students are beginning to spell color words.

 

During math tubs we have been playing a roll a number and write it game, counting by tens and writing the numbers in order, playing a roll and color activity to practice dot patterns and

 And more literacy tubs...we are working on identifying and writing letters.
 

We also practiced identifying beginning sounds of words/pictures and a roll a sight word game where we identified the word and practiced writing it.

The difference in what my students are capable of doing now versus the beginning of the school year when many didn't know any letters or sounds or numbers is just amazing!  I'm awfully lucky to be able to do this job I love!

Giving credit - I used activities from the following:

The Common Core Diner by Greg Smedley-Warren at Kindergarten Smorgasboard
Apple Letter/Sounds Game, Making Words and More, & All About Bats by Caitlin Clabby at Kindergarten Smiles
Lunchbox Letters by Alessia Albanese at www.mrsalbanesesclass.blogspot.com

Pressure Cooker

I'm standing on my soapbox today for my slice of life.  This topic has been eating at me for a while now and I couldn't help but write about it.  It just came out.  

For more slice of life stories, be sure to visit Two Writing Teachers.

I feel it.  I feel it building this year like a pressure cooker.  I hear it in comments from my colleagues.  I see it on the faces of fellow teachers I pass in the hallway.  I can’t get away from the feeling of content and deadlines being shoved down my throat.  I can’t get away from the notions of “we have to get the kids to do things faster/sooner/better.”  

Logically, I understand it.  I know that things change at the top and there is a trickle down.  I know that when you sit at the bottom of the educational mountain, the push down is going to stop there. Unfortunately, it seems that the trickle down has become more of a gushing, roaring river as it has cut a path down the mountain and found the way to my kindergarten doorstep.

While I may know how this works LOGICALLY, I feel very differently in my heart.  My heart knows that my students are only approximately 60 months old.  My heart knows that I can push the thinking of my students only so far, and more than that is useless.  My heart knows, as a teacher, I am should meet my students where they are as an individual and then guide them toward the next step.  However, the next step should not be expected to be a huge LEAP.  

It seems the expectation has changed.  Now I am expected to meet the children where they are and then SHOVE them toward where they “should” be.  It’s a game of tag gone awry…ready or not here it comes!

What happened to learning through play?  What happened to looking for the next step and guiding the child to discovery?  What happened to learning about child development and then using that knowledge to help determine what the child is ready for next?  When did “they,” whoever the decision-makers are, learn about what is best practice for teaching?  When did “they” learn about the developmental stages that a child grows through?  Most importantly, when did “they” learn what is best for children?

Learning and growing is like planting a seed.  A child is a seed that we plant in our kinder garden.  We give that seed the sunshine, water and nourishment that is needed for growth to happen but it will ONLY happen on the seed’s own timetable.  There is no pushing the agenda for a seed.  I cannot force a seed to sprout without light and water and nourishing soil any more than I can force a child to learn something the brain is not ready to accept.  I can use all the best techniques and spend time one-on-one with that child and put the best materials in the hands of the child, but if that child is not ready to take on the learning, it’s not going to happen.

This group of people who are the “they” are making decisions about things that they know nothing about.  I would like the opportunity to ask them to consider a few things.  When you need brain surgery, do you ask your neighbor to do it for you?  When you have a tooth that is painful, do you pull it out yourself?  Of course not!  We call upon the experts. 

Why are “they” not calling upon the experts to make educational decisions?  When did it become logical and appropriate to ask lawyers or businessmen to determine what should be taught in a classroom? Where is the professional respect for teachers?  I wonder what would happen if “they” went to the emergency room only to find out that their so-called doctor was really a plumber or a computer programmer?

Why I Teach

In my school district, for the past...hmmm...probably 8 years or so...we have run a summer program for the incoming kindergarten students.  This program has gone through a few reincarnations over the years, starting as a three week program and changing to a one week program over time.  It used to be very structured and rigid and is now more relaxed.  It's a fantastic way for the new crop of kindergarten kids to get used to being in school.  We have open choice play time, a little bit of physical movement time, we sing songs and do finger plays, we read stories and learn how to sit down, we work on fine motor activities and we even eat lunch together, learning how to manage a lunch tray and socialize with each other.

From a teacher's perspective, it's wonderful to know that at least half of your students each fall have been to the summer program and already know a little something about kindergarten.  It's nice to start the year knowing you will already have at least a few good models.

From a parent's perspective, it is also great!  My third child is participating in the program this summer.  It's nice to know that my child will know a few familiar faces when the school year begins, she will recognize the teachers, she will know a little bit about going to school and what is expected of her while she is at school.  My daughter attended a local preschool so she knows a few kids from there but there is a portion of our local population that does not attend a preschool so the program is a nice opportunity for those children especially.          

This year the program was held a little earlier than normal, starting in July.  JULY!!!!  Now, you have to understand that July is like my sacred month.  It is the month that I avoid school and school-related things to the best of my ability.  It is my month to decompress.  I'm done analyzing and reflecting on last year and I'm not thinking about next year yet.  It's just my month off.  That being said, you can imagine my dread at knowing that the summer program was being held in JULY!  Yeah, great program, bad timing.

So...we started on Monday.  I was greeted by one very tearful little boy, three "trying-really-hard-not-to-cry-wobbly-chin kiddos, and 6 kids who were ready to go.  The wobbly chins soon calmed and the tearful boy finally stopped crying/hiccuping by the end of the first hour.  From there, we just had a good day.  It was fun to only have 10 kids...yes, you read that right...I only had 10 kids!  Now, that is both good and bad.  The good - it's only 10 kids!  You can do a lot more with your time when you only have 10 kids!  And, add to that the fact that I have a parapro to help as well as my student teacher, and that's an amazing kid-adult ratio!

Day one went well once we got past the separation anxiety.  Day two started off much better.  No tears at all and only one wobbly chin, and that only lasted for about 10 minutes.  YES!  But the real kicker, the final straw that told me that even though I was there at school when I didn't REALLY want to be, happened this morning.

I was greeting my students at the door as parents and grandparents were dropping them off.  I was getting lots of smiles and hearing great comments from parents who told me how much fun their child had had the day before.  Then in walked little A, a sweet, outgoing little girl with bright blue eyes and a big warm smile.  She smiled at me and then immediately opened her backpack and pulled out a coloring book picture that I recognized from yesterday.  I already knew that she took it home to finish it, that she colored the princess's dress blue because it was her favorite color, and that she liked to color but liked all things princess even more.  She handed me the finished picture and I told her how beautiful it was.  I mentioned how hard she must have worked on it and she just beamed.  She leaned up against me, smiled up at me and said, "It's for you!"  Her grandma leaned over to me and explained that she just had to bring it to school today to give it to me, her teacher, because she wanted me to have the first picture she ever made at school.  Not her mom.  Not her dad.  Me.  The teacher she had known for one day.  In some way, I had made a positive impact on that little lady yesterday.  In turn, she made a huge impact on me today.

Hmmm...that is exactly why I do what I do.  For those moments when you know that what you do everyday matters.



Join hosts Ruth Ayres and Stacey Shubitz at their Two Writing Teachers blog for more Slice of Life stories.

Let It Be

Slice of Life Tuesdays are hosted by Ruth and Stacey at their Two Writing Teachers blog.  Check out more Slice of Life stories on their blog!

Last week, on the hottest day of the year, maybe the hottest day known to man, my husband and I packed up the family and headed to the zoo!  Had we not already made hotel reservations and had my husband not already taken a vacation day, we probably would not have embarked on this trip on the 102 degree day.  Maybe that isn't crazy hot to every one, but where we live, we just don't get too many of those days!  All you had to do was stand completely still outside in the shade to work up a sweat.  But, it was still a fun trip and we still saw most of the zoo animals...except for the ones that thought they would stay inside where it was cool.  We really enjoyed the penguinarium and the arctic circle buildings...where it was air conditioned!  After the zoo, we found our hotel and made a beeline for the pool.  Well, as quickly as you can after changing four kids and two adults into "baby suits" (as my four year old calls them-love her!).  After the pool, there was some hotel room down time.  This is where my ponderings began to take root.  Not that I've never felt this way before or thought about these things before, but this was when I realized just how at odds I can be with myself.  Oh, and a little wisdom from the Beatles never hurt, right?


Let It Be

I'm caught in this crazy web of Teacher Me and Mother Me.
How do I know when to be which?
I am so much of both at once.

We take a family trip to the zoo.
We take in the sights: butterflies, penguins, tigers, polar bears, seals, zebras.
We feed the giraffes with great delight!

Teacher Me asks the kids: what animal was your favorite?
Mom Me says: what was the best part of the zoo today?

So much the same, yet so different, these parts of me.
Teacher Me whispers in my ear: The zoo!  The zoo! Write about the zoo! 
It's real, authentic, not forced by me!
Mom Me speaks in the other ear: their teachers said to write over the summer.
Here is the perfect topic for both! Have them write a story about the zoo!
Maybe a list off animals? Write the best part? Write about the heat?

Alright, maybe it's a tad forced.  It's summer.  They don't want to do school stuff;
Not anymore than Teacher Me wants to.

What?

A third voice?

"Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be.
Whisper words of wisdom.
Let it be."

Where did that come from?  Lovely...another Me?

Writer Me speaks her mind: Let it be.  Let them be. 
Let them fill their tanks this summer. 
They are reading.  [Reader Me rejoices!]  They are experiencing. 
They will write soon enough.

But how do I feel about it?
How do I bring these Me voices together?
A mixing, blending, meshing of Me parts and pieces?
A co-existing, cohesive me?
Is it possible for them to live happily in a place side by side?
And...is it a place of writing or not?

"Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be.
There will be an answer. 
Let it be." 

Monday - Reading Time!

This has been a great reading week! I was about a third of the way into Same Sun Here by Silas House & Neela Vaswani last week.  I have finished it but I'm not totally sure of my feelings about it.  It was a good book. I enjoyed reading it.  It was interesting in the way the two main characters wrote letters back and forth to each other as pen pals.  It was written in a clear, character driven voice that was enjoyable.  As the reader, it was easy to hear the voice of the characters in your ear as you read.  It was slightly disappointing to me in that I didn't really feel like it built to anything in the story.  There were building events and I felt like the plot rose to something, but then it left me hanging without concluding as I hoped it would.  It was a good read that I would still say is worth reading, it just didn't end in a satisfying way. But, that is just my opinion!

I also read Grandpa Green this week.  This was a sweet story about a young boy and his Great-Grandpa.  It told the story of his Great-Grandpa's life and gave a child's view of his Grandpa Green's aging process.  It was a lovely story and one with unique illustrations that I could see sharing with my kindergarten students.  The illustrations are different from most books and I think the book would evoke some interesting conversations with my students.

I also began to read Math Work Stations by Debbie Diller.  I had gift cards from Barnes and Noble burning a hole in my pocket and after seeing Debbie Diller speak about small groups at the All Write conference, and hearing about her session on math work stations, I had a renewed interest in reading this book.  I just got it in the mail last night and I have just begun to dig in.  Already, I am liking what I am reading.  I was lucky to participate in Math Recovery training early in the summer and I have dates planned to meet with my teaching team in just a couple of weeks to begin reworking and developing a math curriculum.  So, I guess I just have math on my mind lately!  When the package arrived at my doorstep last night, even though I had planned to set the book aside until I was done with my other professional reading on reading and writing, I just couldn't wait.  Those books have been set aside and this one is open next to my favorite chair waiting for me to come back to it.

What's next?  Hmm...I'd like to say I will return to the professional reading I have been attempting on reading and writing...but I'm not sure I'm in that mind set just yet.  I have Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer Holm next in my YA stack and I'm also currently reading The Time Traveler's Wife.  I guess I'll just see what comes up next!  Sooner or later, as soon as I can get my hands on them at my local library, I intend to read the Hunger Games series.  So many books...never enough time!  Happy reading!

I Am...

Slice of Life Writing Challenge - Day 15 - hosted by Two Writing Teachers

I am...

a doctor, a keeper of ice packs.

a dentist, a catcher of loose teeth.

a therapist, a giver of smiles.

a speech pathologist, a rephraser and repeater.

a photographer, a holder of memories.

an artist, a painter/sculpter/sketcher.

a writer, a model to watch.

a surgeon, a bandaid dispenser.

a picture book reader, a word enthusist.

a mom, a giver of hugs.

a friend, a person to count on.

It's all in a days work, so they say.

I am...

a teacher!

The Intricate Dance of Sweet Potatoes

If you have ever fed a six month old baby, you know about it.  That intricate dance of sweet potatoes.  The intricate dance of spooning the food in and being ready to catch half of it as it dribbles out and onto that cute little chin. 

Last night, as I was participating in the dance with baby, I admittedly was thinking more about what my slice would be for today than what was happening with the spoon.  Until, of course, my six year old woke me from my thoughts with the insight of a big sister.

"Mom, she's doing good tonight!" she said. 

And she was right!  The baby was doing well!  She was enjoying the dance of sweet potatoes-opening wide and savoring each bite.  I almost missed the beauty of the dance because I was lost in my own thoughts.  Such a wise big sister to point out the obvious to the mommy who was missing it right as it was unfolding right under her own nose!

Almost immediately my mind started to swirl. That one comment from big sister is all it took to set my thoughts in motion.

As I'm scooping sweet potatoes into baby's mouth it hits me.  This intricate dance of sweet potatoes is just like the process of teaching.  We spoon in little scoops of knowledge and only some is retained.  The rest seeps back out uneaten, unused.  So we do what we do and we catch the dribble, shovel it back in and hope that this time it stays.  But, like all good baby-feeding moms, we stay at the ready, knowing that the dance might not be done...knowing that we might need to catch and scoop yet again before the dance is complete.

And so I sat there with my mind buzzing from this idea.  Thinking all at once that it was pretty late in the day to be thinking in metaphors and how cool it was that four days ago I would have had the thought and let it go but now, instead, I will share it with the world through my slice and just maybe someone will read it and relate to it! 

As we get ready to stare down the barrel of Monday, let's remember to have our scoops ready.  There might be a little bit of dribbling, but at least we will be ready for it!

The Persuasion of Penguins

Slice of Life Challenge: Day 3

My first grader is lucky.  She is lucky to be in a classroom with a teacher who is willing to look at all the standards and expectations for a first grader and then put in the effort of making them meaningful.

My daughter has been enjoying a month-long study of penguins.  Her teacher teaches this famous penguin unit every year and it is one of the highlights of the year for her first graders.  It's the time that they all look forward to in all the days leading up to it each year and my daughter is no different.  She couldn't wait for it to begin because she had already heard so much about it from other kids and her teacher.  She'd been saving up all her penguin "stuff" for this moment!  All throughout the first 100 days of school she had been thinking about showing her teacher her penguin socks, her stuffed animal penguins, the talking and dancing penguin she got for Christmas, her penguin books...and the list goes on.

And so it finally arrived and it didn't disappoint.  My daughter has come home every day with new facts she has learned about penguins.  Her class has even decided to raise enough money (by selling tickets and raffling off a blanket) to adopt a Rock Hopper penguin.  Yes, her teacher is awesome!

Her: Do you know why the Rock Hopper penguin is on the "dangered" list?
Me: No, why?
Her: Well...(yes, that's how she talks, my little adult-child)...the sun is coming into the Earth and it gets trapped and can't get out.  That makes the ice melt.  And do you know what happens then?  ...   And do you know why?  Well...      

And on it goes.  She has learned so much about penguins!  But the beauty of it is that she is also learning about writing, both nonfiction and persuasion (they wrote letters to their parents about why we should buy raffle tickets and help them adopt the penguin), reading nonfiction, science, math (they are measuring penguins and comparing how tall they are with how tall the students are) and art (they made posters for the hallway to interest people in buying tickets for the raffle and soon they will be making paper replicas of the penguins they have studied to hang in the hall with labels that give facts about their size, where they live and what they eat). 

She is such a lucky girl to be involved in this unit of study with a teacher who is smart enough and works hard enough to integrate all those standards and expectations into a fun, meaningful unit for her students.  So, you might be asking, how is this teacher going to top this and finish out the rest of the school year with this same level of enthusiasm?  Well...(I guess my daughter gets that from me)...she will begin a unit on farming and farm animals next.  The excitement is already building and they aren't even finished with the penguin unit yet!

Yep, my daughter is one lucky girl!

Trying my hand at a little poetry...

It’s Time Again

Turn the key.

Step inside.

Musty.

Piled.

Dust covered.

Deep breath.

It’s time again.

Push the tables around.

Try again.

Maybe the third time?

Stacks.

Where to start?

Deep breath.

It’s time again.

Arrange the books.

Big plans, big ideas.

Careful.

Thoughtful.

Intentional.

Deep breath.

It’s time again.

Set up the space.

Plans in place.

Jitters.

New faces.

Butterflies.

Deep breath.

It’s time again.

Game face ready.

Deep breath.

On your mark.

Deep breath.

Get set.

Deep breath.

Go!