Fast Four: WBT, Hide-N-Seek, and GoNoodle

Hey there all! Man has this been a great week and it's only Tuesday! How often can we say that? Hopefully, very often. At least that has been the case this year. My kiddos are rocking with their use of WBT, our activities, and their responsibilities. Because they have been absolute ROCKSTARS this week, I thought I'd quickly share four of the joys so far. Keep an eye out as this will hopefully be a new section of post this year (Fast Four)!

1. GoNoodle!
"Hey Class!" Hey What? "Are you ready?" For what?.....For some awesome brain breaks, that's what! If you haven't jumped over to GoNoodle you are missing out. We love doing their videos for quick little breaks. With each video our champ gets closer to moving up a level. We only need one more video and we get to head to the transmogrifer! It's always a hooting and hollering good time as our champ grows!

2. Hide-N-Seek
Everyone loves the game. How fun would it be to use this game while learning? That's exactly what we did. For our last math unit over number bonds I created a review activity before our test. I took pictures and material from our series, Math in Focus, and created 16 different question cards. I then hid these around the room while the class waited outside. Pairs were then tasked with 1) finding the cards 2) working together to create the number bond 3)switching roles. The kids had a blast and to make it better.......wait for it.....we did it in the dark and used flashlights!!!! Cue the teamwork and awesomeness!

3. WBT Connection
We have really been working on using our Whole Brain Teaching strategies, tools, and gestures. The students have been rockstars with using the correct responses, following the examples, and trying. That last part is the most important. This isn't just a passing trend. This really is something we are all working on and the students really are trying. For an added bonus I showed a video from the wonderful Mrs. Shipley who has offered me a ton of guidance and support through this journey. The video showed her teaching about sentences with her past kindergartners. Small world....that's exactly what we are learning about now! Students found similarities and differences and then we practiced our gestures!

4. WBT Gestures!
After we reviewed our writing gestures and watched other students using gestures we decided to practice. As an added challenge I gave the presenters the tasks of calling the attention of the class as well as leading them in their example. These are only a few of the amazing examples we had today! Notice they are not only presenting, but also leading their class (who are all mirroring them) and using gestures! Proud teacher moment right here! *insert teary eyes and goofy smile*

They amaze me every day. Here's hoping you are having an amazing week too! 

Weekend Update- Long Weekends are for More Work, Right?

Hey all! If you are anything like me you were not only longing for this 3-day weekend, you were ecstatic when it arrived! What did I have planned for this great weekend you ask? All of the usual of course: sleeping, watching Netflix, relaxing, reading books, and STAYING INSIDE! (It was a game weekend in my college town and I wanted nothing to do with the mix of crowds, chaos, and people.) Well now my weekend is coming to a close and what have I actually done?

Sleeping, Netflix, grocery shopping, newsletter, WBT newsletter, school week plan and prep, copies of homework, SIW update, book box organization, and center organization! And you know what? I wouldn't have it any other way.

My main focus this weekend involved getting information to my families. Some of this was in the form of our monthly newsletter (our first to be exact). This gives a month snapshot of all we hope to cover this month while also giving important dates and reminders.

The rest came to be with a new newsletter I am starting. Since I am starting some new practices this year with Whole Brain Teaching I need my families to know what we are doing in the room and why we are doing it. Cue our new newsletters.

While we have gotten into the groove of using many of the Whole Brain Teaching practices such as Class-Yes, Mirror, and the Scoreboard....I hadn't taken the leap and started the Super Improver Wall. This week, we take on that challenge.  If you are anything like me a couple months ago, you are asking "What is the Super Improver Wall?"  It looks gorgeous but what is its purpose, how does it work and how will students benefit from it?

The Super Improver Wall, or SIW from here on out, is a great tool that is used to chart and encourage student improvement on both academic and behavior goals. Students are "rewarded" for improvement and not just for academic performance. For example, students don't just earn owls, or marks, for passing tests or scoring a certain score. They get to mark an owl off when they have shown improvement. So a student who normally only scores 5/10 on their spelling test might have a goal of getting 8/10 while a student who consistently gets 10/10 on tests might have a goal that includes the use of bonus words or enrichment. Once students show that improvement they get cross out an owl. Goals are geared specifically towards individual students and relate to their academics or behavior needs.

To start, our class will all start by using a class goal. For us, we will all start by focusing on WBT Rule #1- Follow directions quickly, as well as Showing "ready". (Ready is always 1. Eyes forward 2.Voices Off and 3. Body to yourself.) This will apply whether we are in line or at our desks.

Notice that our teacher names are on the wall as well. It's important that students see their teachers are working towards improvement also. This will also help my intern and I establish our own goals. After students pass the first level by getting 10 owls they will get to take that card home and it will be replaced with a card of the next level color. Starting at level 2 individual student goals will be assigned and monitored. I can't wait to get started with this tomorrow!

Here's to happy activities, big gestures, and lots of improvement this week!

Step Inside My Room - A Classroom Reveal

It's done! It's done! It's done! Our classroom is finally set up and students have arrived. You know what that means......time to get busy, get learning, and makes some messes! So before that all starts lets take a look at what the space should look like :) To do so, I've joined up with Ashley Schroeder over at Schroeder Shenanigans in 2nd as well as Angie over at Lucky Little Learners to link up because just like at the beginning of August, #2getherwearebetter !!!!

So let's jump into our classroom!

The hallway and outside of a classroom is the first space that students, family, and staff see. It needs to be encouraging, welcoming, and functional. Welcome to our class!

Here's a quick view of our classroom bulletin boards. I fully believe that bulletin boards should be educational and functional. They must go beyond simply being cute. If students and teachers can't benefit from their use then what's the point? For a more in-depth look at our classroom bulletin boards take a look back at our August post here.

We LOVE centers in our class. Between daily literacy centers and a rotation of math centers weekly we are constantly rotating through our activities. Students have designated areas for center materials, center order, and center groups. While reading centers locations are designated by material locations, our math center locations are designated by hanging shapes from the ceiling.Tip #1 for center management: color coding! Reading is yellow and math is blue! Check out our blue center location shapes, math tubs, and we'll even have blue math folders next week!

Organization is key. Somebody important said that once, right? Does organized chaos qualify? When walking in you may quickly scan and see chaos but believe, we know exactly what we are doing, where we are supposed to be, and how to get our materials!

 After our school went through construction and renovation, our classroom lost it's closet doors. Not only did this mean that we had to get creative with our storage (no one likes looking at things crammed in closets) but we also lost a ton of display space. This year we are using every nook and cranny of our wall and whiteboard. From focus walls, yearly information, Whole Brain Teaching materials and class motivators, our walls are packed full of knowledge and tools!

Last but not least......Welcome to my little corner of the world! Where I stock treats, cram resources, and make magic! It's a work in progress. I mean, can a teacher ever have enough resources or ideas? ;)

Thanks for taking the journey through our room! Be sure to check out the link-up and tour some other awesome classrooms! Welcome back to school everyone! Let's make this year AWESOME!