I am excited to link up with Fabulous in First for this book study. We are discussing Chapter 5 - Graphic Organizers, Semantic Maps, and Word Webs.
I love Graphic Organizers! They are such an awesome tool for the classroom. The students use them as reference and we learn so much about what our kids know or think they know. They are also a great way to keep all your information in an organized state!
On page 39 Marcia Tate said it best when she said " the best classrooms are ones where students are actively engaged in the learning- talking to one another, moving to learn content, connecting ideas together, thinking positively, and having a purpose for learning." This thought summed it up perfectly and it is an idea that I wholeheartedly believe and agree with!
Here are just a few of the organizers I use in my room:
Here is a video I found about Graphic Organizers:
So here is my takeaway from chapter 5:
Click on the picture below to see what some other awesome educators have to say about Chapter 5!
As I read this book, the information is not new but it is still enlightening. It is so important for us as educators to realize that there is more to teaching then worksheets. I am linking up with Katie from the Queen of the First Grade Jungle for the Worksheets Don't Grow Dendrites book study on Chapter 4 Games.
Many great points were made in this chapter. People feel that play does not belong in schools anymore. That there is too much to learn and accomplish. But we have lost sight of the importance of games/play. I love the quote on page 31- "You don't stop playing because you get old. You get old because you stop playing!" This sums it up!
Here are some of the insights I got from this chapter:
We do a lot of games during small groups. Here are two they really enjoyed:
Some last thoughts on this chapter,
Here are a few videos about games and math!
Click on the kids below to go see what some other awesome educators thought about this chapter!
We just had the 3rd annual STEM Showcase for our district. My students did such an amazing job. The showcase was a big hit. There were over 1000 attendees.
The STEM kit for First Grade is the Wind and Me. The students learned about the engineering process and what a mechanical engineer is.
We used the following videos to teach the students about mechanical engineering.
After we learned about Mechanical Engineering, we began our kit. The two experiments we did were Windmills and Sail Boats.
For the Windmills, we first researched Windmills. Then they had to research them further at home and write a report. They were amazing. Here are just a few of them:
The experiment was to take a styrofoam ball, popsicle sticks and index cards. Using these materials they had to create windmill blades. of course, before they create they must design. They were in groups of four. they had to cooperatively create a design of what their blades will look like. then they took the materials and created their design. Then they tested it on our windmill. The windmill was created from an orange juice container, dowel, string, cup and duct tape. If the blades were correct, the cup will rise with washers in it, if the blades do not turn, the students had to go back and modify. The goal is to raise the cup of washers.
The other experiment was to create a sail that will take the boat from one table to another. They first designed their boat. Then they created their sail using any of the following materials: coffee stirrers, popsicle sticks, aluminum foil, index cards, tissue paper, wax paper and scotch tape. The boat base is made out of a styrofoam tray, straws and duct tape. The boat base is attached to the tables using 2 rulers, fishing line and duct tape. Once the sails are created, the kids test them by sticking them into the base and turning on the box fan. If the boat sails down the fishing line from one table to another then they are successful. If it does not they have to modify it and retest it.
The kids had a blast. They did an excellent job designing, creating, modifying and testing. We talked about windmills and wind turbines.
Here are two books I got off of Amazon that go awesome with this unit:
8 of our students came with us to the showcase and presented their projects. They explained what we did step by step. Here is our display:
Stem is such an awesome addition to the science units.
Here is my student teacher and the other science teacher who went to the showcase with the kids and who worked so hard to make this a success!
Chapter 3 is about field trips. Field trips are such a controversial topic unfortunately in education. Many feel they are not beneficial, yet educators know the importance of them. Marcia Tate reminds up that we do not always have to travel for a field trip. We can bring the field trip to the school or take the students outside for a field trip, take advantage of the surroundings of your school.
We are allowed two field trips a year. We need to be mindful of the cost to insure that all students can afford to go. It seems every year, they make it harder and harder to go on a field trip. Gone are the days when we took field trips to provide our students with experiences that they may never get from home. many of us can not go on a field trip unless it is aligned with our grade's CCSS.
Marcia Tate made a wonderful point on page 26, she wrote and I quote "The purpose of the brain is not to make good grades or to score high on standardized tests. The brain has but one purpose -survival in the real world."
This year we have gone to Dover Air Force Base. We will be going to Ashland Nature Center in April.
So as I read and reflected on this chapter, here is what I have come up with:
So those were my thoughts about Chapter 3. Click the picture below to read the thoughts of some other awesome educators!
Can I just say that I have read one of the most helpful and awesome books that I have read in a while!
Being
a member of the Jossey Education Ambassador
Program, we were to picka
publication, read it and discuss it. The book I chose was The Together Teacher
by Maia Heyck-Merlin.
When
I read the description, I knew this book was for me. Being a veteran teacher of
21 years, I have my issues with organization due to my plethora of materials
and the fact that I can’t find my calendar because of the condition of my desk.
What
I found most helpful about this book was it covered everything. Organization of
my calendar, inbox and my classroom.
It
introduced me to Daily and weekly worksheets. These are a resource which you
plan out your week, write down appointments, deadlines, Priorities, schedule,
emails/calls you need to make, to dos, and upcoming events. It essentially kept
me on track. I returned emails and calls that needed to be. Through
prioritizing items of the week, I accomplished all that I needed to. This has
been a lifesaver.
I
loved the idea of creating a poster that tells and shows the students what is
expected of them. This helps organize your day right from the start.
Another
feature I loved was the note taking section. A form is provided to organize and
maintain your notes from meetings. It divides it into sections: Main Topic,
Next Steps, and other notes.
Not
only does this book provide you with a plethora of ideas and procedures to
become a Together Teacher, but it also comes with a CD that includes all of the
forms seen throughout the book. It includes color calendars and many many
templates.
The
ideas and suggestions in this book are ones that can be used by teachers of all
varieties: Veterans, Newbies, Elementary, Middle
and High School, quite honestly a lot of these templates can be used by many
professions. Here is the link to the Together Teacher website: http://www.thetogethergroup.com/ Listen to the author talk about this awesome book in this short video:
Click on the book below to purchase this amazing book:
When I saw that there was going to be a book study on this amazing book, I knew I had to join!
This book and it's author are amazing! The book Worksheets Don't Grow Dendrites by Marcia Tate was one of the first books I bought at a Brain Based Conference I attended back in 2003. I had the privilege of attending a week long professional development on Brain Based Learning in Atlanta, Georgia. The week was amazing. The presenter was Eric Jensen. I learned so much and when I implemented all that I learned, my students soared!!!
Sorry I digressed, so the book study is being hosted by so many awesome educators! If you do not have the book please click on the picture below:
This post is on Chapters one and two. This section is hosted by Elizabeth of Kickin It In Kindergarten. I have to admit there is nothing that drive me crazy more then to walk into a classroom and see the piles of worksheets that the children are expected to complete. Not only is it killing trees but it is killing the students' creativity and growth!
Brainstorming and Discussion
Talk, Talk, Talk! Students learn through talking with you and with each other. Think Pair Share is a strategy that is used that allows the students to converse, discuss and brainstorm with each other. It is often a belief that a quiet classroom is a classroom full of learning. NO!!! Students need to talk. Having students sit and not talk is unnatural. Can you do it? Would you want to do it?
It is said that children will be more successful when asked questions that are on all levels of the Bloom's Taxonomy chart!
This poster of Blooms Taxonomy was found on Pinterest. It was posted by Hello Literacy. Please click on the picture to go to original site.
That was Chapter one now onto
Drawing and Artwork
This was such a breath of Fresh air! I love to see my students' creativity. I believe that art is so important in order for the students' to be successful. Marcia Tate stated on page 21, "A person's ability to draw and design serves them well in the real world", "Yet in traditional classrooms, these talents are often perceived as interfering with instruction" and finally on page 21, "Use the artistic creativity of students' brain to your cross curricular advantage."
I find it mind boggling that creativity is viewed as an interference! It is actually an enhancer!
Here are some examples of how I incorporate drawing and creativity in my classroom!
Here is my summary for Chapter 2:
Wow!! Just two chapters read and I am so enlightened already! I love the set up of this book. It is an easy read! Here is the schedule for the rest of the link ups:
Link up (click on the blue button) and prepare for your chapter 3 discussion over at Mrs. Wills Kindergartenon Saturday! Here is the rest of the schedule and you can join in at anytime!
