Hands are not for Hitting!

This is one of my favorite books to read when children are having a hard time keeping their hands to themselves. In case you do not have the book or you can not find it here is a video of me reading the book:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8stcoX5mKrk

Some activities that you can do with this book :

• Have the children write what hands are for on a cut out of their hand. 
• Have the children trace and cut out their hand also helps with fine motor skills! 
• Make a classroom chart about what hands are for and what hands are not for. 
• Use this books to talk about our friends feelings and how they feel if they get hit. Etc. =) 

Stop Think Points

During this past semester I learned about a reading technique called Stop Think Points. Stop Think Points are places in a story where the teacher has the student stop and think about something. These can be made into a bookmark which each student will receive before beginning to read. 

This can be a great way to teach reading to the whole class. The teacher is able to have the class read a book and even with the different reading levels they are able to participate and do the same activities. 

When the students stop the teacher has a lot of options they can have the students:

•  think about a question and be ready to discuss 
• summarize what they have read
• draw a picture
• etc

This activity can be used for any grade and some Stop Think Points can be more challenging for the students who are reading above grade level. 

I used this activity in a second grade classroom where I taught a guided reading lesson. I had the children read a couple pages stop and pick out certain information to share with the group. This activity really worked for me and the children were all on task!

Here is the Stop Think Point I made :

This is a great  way to keep children on task and to see if they are fully understanding what they are reading! 

Candy!

Candy can be a big topic when it comes to children. Some will argue that candy makes children over weight and that it should never be eaten. While others believe that you can eat candy on occasion along with a good diet and exercise.

Me? I love candy! I eat candy almost every day. Am I over weight? Nope! 

I do believe that if you sit on the couch all day eating nothing but candy you will become over weight but, most children are not going to do that. A couple pieces of candy here and there will not make them suddenly gain weight like crazy.

I recently had some nerds and as I was eating them I read something very interesting on the box....

It said:

" Want to know where Wonka candy comes from? Read all about it in CHARLIE & THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY by Roald Dahl RoaldDahl.com " 

I could not believe it! Candy encouraging a child to read? Not only is it a great book but an amazing author with many books that children love to read. 

As you might have read in the past I believe that reading is key! Children need to be able to read to excel in other subjects! The fact that a candy is encouraging children to read makes me very happy. 

From finding this out it just goes to show that you should never judge a book by its cover! =) It makes you wonder what other interesting facts will I discover today?

Ideal Classrooms

As the school year comes to an end and you begin to pack up your room think do you think about things you wish you had? I know every teacher out there has their ideal classroom but with budgets getting cut constantly most of these rooms are completely out of the question. 

However, if you won a contest and had no limit on your classroom what would you have in your ideal classroom?

The grade I am thinking about is preschool!

     In my classroom I would have some of the following things:

•         An interactive word wall – if the students went up to the wall and touched a word it would say the word for them

•        Huge classroom library – make sure there is enough cozy space for the students to sit down and look and read books. Reading is KEY!

•        Technology center – some teachers are still unsure about technology but I love it! It is something that the children are going to use throughout their life so as educators I feel that we need to make sure they understand it!

•       Science/discovery center – I want a variety of textures and scents in this center to make it fun and exciting. I have also recently seen boxes where you put stuff inside and the children use gloves to feel what is on the inside. This can be very exciting especially if you have it where the students can’t see inside.

• ·         Storage – having a big area to store things would be great. I could go back and get new and exciting things anytime it seemed like my kids were getting bored.

•       Dramatic play – I want real world items that would interact with the children like stoves and cash registers. I think it is important for these items to be as real as possible because it is something almost every student will be around their entire life. 

•        Social studies- fun interactive way to help children with their social studies skills. 

•     Math - fun ways to teach all the different types of math. Like all the different geometric shapes, adding, subtracting, sizes, and colors (to name a few).

Of course there are many many more I could list but I didn't want to go crazy. =)  

How about you?

What are some things that you would have in your ideal classroom?

Parents what are some things you wish your child’s class had? 

The Family said what?

A few days ago I wrote about some comments that were said by early childhood teachers. Today we are going to look at some of the comments that are made by families with children in an early childhood classroom.

There are five of these comments which are probably made frequently around the country:

1.    “I send my child to preschool so that he can learn. The teacher’s job is to make sure he does. I resent being asked to volunteer in the classroom.”

                   Me: The teacher is helping your child learn but showing your child that you care and are there to support their learning will make a huge difference. Children feel special when their parents come into the classroom and help out. Show them you are supportive!

     2. "I did not like school when I was a student I am not comfortable being in the classroom." 

Me: School has changed so much in the past couple years. Just keep in mind that you are there for your child. Do not let them know that you did not like school! Keep school a positive place for them that way they keep the urge to stay in school and keep working to finish their degree. 

3. "I don't want those teachers at my daughter's daycare telling me how to raise my children. I won't go to any of the parent meetings as long as they're telling me what to do."

Me: These teachers have your child's best interest in mind. They want to make sure that your child is growing and learning. If they give you suggestions of what to do they are just trying to help. Teachers do not want to tell you how to raise your child. 

4. "School is school. Home is home." 

Me: School should feel like a second home for the children. School needs to be a safe loving environment where kids feel safe. Not all children have a safe loving home. 

5. "Children learn to read at school. I'm not a teacher; how can I help my child to learn."

Me: Children learn everywhere not just at school. Parents/guardians can really help children learn to read just by talking with them! Show children familiar signs (restaurants or stores) and read them what it says. Pretty soon they will start to understand letters and be able to begin sounding out words and reading. 

The Grizzly, Grumpy, Grouchy Grog

The Grizzly, Grumpy, Grouchy Grog is one of the Itty Bitty Phonics Readers by Creative Teaching Press. The story itself is only eight pages long. 

What  I really like about these books is just how they are set up. Each book has a purpose vowels (short and long) , consonants, and blends. Inside the book the pictures are blank so that each child who has the book can personalize and make the book special for them. 

The book says it is for grades K-1 but this would be a nice beginning book for parents/teachers/guardians to read with their younger children. This will get them more familiar with the story and they would be able to learn the words quicker and be able to put the pictures with the words. 

The book also has a page to have the children use their imagination and create their own book. It also comes with a list of vocabulary words that are in the story! 

I believe that reading is key! Any chance you get, read and talk to children!! No matter what age they are. Children need all the vocabulary you can give them!

Reading

As a student to become an elementary educator I have really come to realize how important reading is. When making lesson plans for my class I have always incorporated a book with it. I feel that the children can never learn too many words. As they get older knowing a vast vocabulary will help them throughout their lives.

In the center where I work we have some children in first grade. They love to read! I am always finding challenging books for them to begin reading. The schools are now giving an incentive to read for example the first graders were telling me how their school participates in reading counts. (A program where the children read books that are worth different points and take tests on these books) The school where they attend are taking some of the kids with the highest points for a special lunch at Max and Erma's where they will be allowed to get dessert with their lunch. I feel that this is a great incentive to keep these children reading and moving forward.

Reading is used in every subject for example in Music the different notes have meaning and in order to know and understand these meanings you must first be able to read the words. Reading is also used in Math for word problems and in Science for the different plants and animals. In social studies we talk about houses and the different types these all have separate names and meanings. Without reading and understanding the children will have a harder time in these other subjects and may end up falling behind in school.

Reading does not begin in elementary school. Instead it begins in the infant stage when parents and caregivers read to the children and point to the pictures and give them names.