Remember to come Thursday night starting at 6:00 to the Dunham School Variety Show. The kindergarten will perform. Meanwhile, look at how much fun learning to play the ukulele can be.
See you tomorrow.
Be well.
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Thursdays always seem to go by quickly, especially on Thursdays like today that include time with our fifth grade buddies. A third of the class went out to the garden to spend time with Mr. Hansen out there in ideal weather conditions for garden work. (The rain that had been in the forecast to fall this morning did not materialize here in Petaluma.) A third stayed inside and another third went with Ms. Schmidt to make doodle bugs.
Jaelyn had a very loose tooth this morning. At snack, as she was eating a strawberry, it came out and she brought it over to show me.
The boys were really putting the Stepboard puzzles together quickly this afternoon. I was pleased with how quickly Aidan and Leland could do them. I think I will put them out at Open House Night for you to see.
Jaelyn had a very loose tooth this morning. At snack, as she was eating a strawberry, it came out and she brought it over to show me.
The boys were really putting the Stepboard puzzles together quickly this afternoon. I was pleased with how quickly Aidan and Leland could do them. I think I will put them out at Open House Night for you to see.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Dress Alike Day
Spirit days are extra spirited around here. If you know kindergartners, you know that just a tiny dash of extra stimulation—like dressing like the teacher—is enough to ignite the afterburners of joy and make the day a loud, fun whirlwind of a day. We had a good one, though. Work through the Sudoku puzzle with care, and hopefully enjoy it.
Here's just one photo taken before the rechargeable batteries in my camera called it a day.
Short post today, a staff meeting day.
See you tomorrow.
Be well.
Here's just one photo taken before the rechargeable batteries in my camera called it a day.
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| Blue jeans with a blue shirt |
See you tomorrow.
Be well.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Dress Alike Day Tomorrow & Talent Show Next Week
Tomorrow is another "spirit" day at Dunham.
This one is called "Dress Alike" day. The idea is to come to school dressed like a friend, so that you make a match.
OR
You can dress like the teacher and be a part of the group. My outfit will be regular blue jeans and a plain medium-blue short-sleeved shirt with a dark belt and dark shoes.
This one is called "Dress Alike" day. The idea is to come to school dressed like a friend, so that you make a match.
OR
You can dress like the teacher and be a part of the group. My outfit will be regular blue jeans and a plain medium-blue short-sleeved shirt with a dark belt and dark shoes.
Mark Your Calendar
On Thursday, May 23 at 6:00 PM there will be a Talent Show here at school. The kindergarten will perform 1 song on stage. Please come... you will have a good time. More on this later.Monday, May 13, 2013
Monday, May 13, 2013
I came in over the weekend to reassign the students to table groups and to put names back on the green mat. Students spent first few moments of the morning figuring out where they were sitting and with whom. Most of the boys headed outside to run off a little steam once they saw where their new seat was.
Most of the girls, by contrast, stayed inside. Some of them seemed to be making mental calculations about who was sitting with whom. There was more interest in the social realm indoors.
As we found ourselves between sets of centers today, we had time for freely chosen activities, which the children love. Aidan, Ryder, and William Z. made an impressive structure using the wooden blocks:
Tomorrow we will start up the second-to-last round of centers in kindergarten. By mid week we'll already be in mid-May. Even though I know time flies in late spring, it still surprises me just how quickly it goes.
Be well.
Most of the girls, by contrast, stayed inside. Some of them seemed to be making mental calculations about who was sitting with whom. There was more interest in the social realm indoors.
As we found ourselves between sets of centers today, we had time for freely chosen activities, which the children love. Aidan, Ryder, and William Z. made an impressive structure using the wooden blocks:
Tomorrow we will start up the second-to-last round of centers in kindergarten. By mid week we'll already be in mid-May. Even though I know time flies in late spring, it still surprises me just how quickly it goes.
Be well.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
More with Less
When I told him about my love of ukuleles, a good bicycling friend of mine observed that I seem to be drawn to simplicity. He said, "There's a pattern. You don't ride regular 20 speed bikes like most of us; you ride a single speed or a fixed gear. You don't play a six string guitar; you play a four string ukulele. You don't want a regular RV; you're interested in Teardrop trailers. You don't have boats with motors; you paddle kayaks. You don't teach a grade; you teach kindergarten."
He has a point. My mother and father taught me to look for and choose the simplest solution to a problem. You may remember that during the early days of the "space race" between the Soveit Union (who were the first to achieve manned space flight) and the United States. Our team spent millions of dollars, the story goes to develop a ballpoint pen that would work in zero gravity and the vacuum of space. It was a very difficult problem to solve. The Soviet space engineers supplied their cosmonauts with pencils. (I prefer writing with pencils.)
In any event, in much the same vein, I came across this video by ukulele star Jake Shimabukuro. In it he makes beautiful music using only three of the ukulele's four strings.
See you Monday!
He has a point. My mother and father taught me to look for and choose the simplest solution to a problem. You may remember that during the early days of the "space race" between the Soveit Union (who were the first to achieve manned space flight) and the United States. Our team spent millions of dollars, the story goes to develop a ballpoint pen that would work in zero gravity and the vacuum of space. It was a very difficult problem to solve. The Soviet space engineers supplied their cosmonauts with pencils. (I prefer writing with pencils.)
In any event, in much the same vein, I came across this video by ukulele star Jake Shimabukuro. In it he makes beautiful music using only three of the ukulele's four strings.
See you Monday!
Friday, May 10, 2013
Happy Mother's Day to all the Kindergarten Moms!
We'll go back to our usual routines next week as the STAR testing is mostly complete here at Dunham. The kindergartners missed music and PE lessons that were pre-empted by testing in the rest of the campus. We managed okay. There was a bit more math.
I wanted the class to think about how we might figure out how to find the sum of the tallies I made in my center. The conferred with each other. Many suggested we use a calculator, a sensible solution for sure. Others suggested we count all the marks. (It would work, but be tedious.) A few thought we should count the tallies, counting by 5's as we did so. That seemed sensible to many.
We added the numbers both ways and got the same result: 352.
We also got out the Cusinere rods to investigate equivalencies of 10. Each child did one. Wyatt did all but one of the two block equivalencies (he left out 9 and 1), plus two equivalencies using more than one block: 3 + 3 + 3 + 1. We'll have a few more exposures to these fine math tools.
Of course, like all healthy imaginative five and six year olds, what they really wanted to do was to build with these materials, and I'm all about letting imaginations take the materials in their own directions. Their enthusiasm went up and so did the activity level:
Curtis wanted to give Archy some of the string cheese he brought for snack today.
Look for a brown paper bag coming home with your child this afternoon, but please open it on Sunday.
I send you my best wishes for a Happy Mother's Day on Sunday.
I wanted the class to think about how we might figure out how to find the sum of the tallies I made in my center. The conferred with each other. Many suggested we use a calculator, a sensible solution for sure. Others suggested we count all the marks. (It would work, but be tedious.) A few thought we should count the tallies, counting by 5's as we did so. That seemed sensible to many.
We added the numbers both ways and got the same result: 352.
We also got out the Cusinere rods to investigate equivalencies of 10. Each child did one. Wyatt did all but one of the two block equivalencies (he left out 9 and 1), plus two equivalencies using more than one block: 3 + 3 + 3 + 1. We'll have a few more exposures to these fine math tools.
Of course, like all healthy imaginative five and six year olds, what they really wanted to do was to build with these materials, and I'm all about letting imaginations take the materials in their own directions. Their enthusiasm went up and so did the activity level:
Curtis wanted to give Archy some of the string cheese he brought for snack today.
Look for a brown paper bag coming home with your child this afternoon, but please open it on Sunday.
I send you my best wishes for a Happy Mother's Day on Sunday.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
The Ukulele Festival Performance, and a Silver Lining
Update from the kindergarten:
Our performance onstage at the opening of the Ukulele Festival on Memorial Day weekend is a no-go. We have fallen way short of a quorum. Sad, because this class can really sing and play the uke.
There is a silver lining. I'm working on getting a movie—with a GOOD soundtrack—of this class singing and playing "In the Jungle."
I am hoping we can have it done in time to show at the Ukulele Festival on May 25.
Right now this notion of making a movie is somewhere between an idea and a possibility. There is still not even a plan, and even less a guarantee. But I do hope it could happen, and I’ll see what develops.
I'll keep you posted.
Meanwhile, here's the poster for the festival:
Meanwhile, here's the poster for the festival:
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
I'm finding we use the Toolbox tools to solve the little social issues that are coming up in kindergarten. I'm using the "Patience" tool as we get ready to listen to a lesson. It works! The students find that the "Using Words" tool and the "Listening" tool really do help them work out the conflicts they find themselves in.
It is National Teacher Appreciation week. Yesterday the school board treated the whole staff to a breakfast. Today I unwrapped some nice gifts. It's good to feel the love.... Thank you!
********
The homework I sent home today isn't really for today so much as it is for the first weeks of August when the reading skills we've developed in kindergarten this spring have had a chance to accumulate a layer of cognitive dust and an accumulation of mental rust.
The list of words I sent home will refresh those memories and help bring back the ability to read the sight words and the easy-to-decode words that the first grade staff hopes to see in their fresh new first grade class.
So, no need to send anything back.
Have a good Wednesday.
Be well.
It is National Teacher Appreciation week. Yesterday the school board treated the whole staff to a breakfast. Today I unwrapped some nice gifts. It's good to feel the love.... Thank you!
********
The homework I sent home today isn't really for today so much as it is for the first weeks of August when the reading skills we've developed in kindergarten this spring have had a chance to accumulate a layer of cognitive dust and an accumulation of mental rust.
The list of words I sent home will refresh those memories and help bring back the ability to read the sight words and the easy-to-decode words that the first grade staff hopes to see in their fresh new first grade class.
So, no need to send anything back.
Have a good Wednesday.
Be well.
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Day 2 of STAR testing
No, thank goodness, we don't have STAR testing in kindergarten. The week of STAR tests affect us only by removing PE and music from our usual offerings, and by rearranging the morning schedule to accomodate grades 2 through 6 who need a quiet campus for the first half of the morning.
It's all good. The kinders are taking it all in stride.
Tomorrow is our longer Wednesday schedule. We'll get out on bikes if possible, so bring 'em from home if you want.
Be well.
It's all good. The kinders are taking it all in stride.
Tomorrow is our longer Wednesday schedule. We'll get out on bikes if possible, so bring 'em from home if you want.
Be well.
Monday, May 6, 2013
Monday, May 6, 2013
It was a cloudy, cool Monday morning in kindergarten. I checked the weather forecast early this morning before work. It called for late morning thundershowers right at bike time, but I put on my green shirt anyway with the hope of getting out with the class on bikes.
Our schedule must change this week due to STAR testing in grades 2 through 6. We're minimally impacted—we must advance snack to about 9:40 and delay recess until 10:00. What this means to you is this: if you want to serve a smaller breakfast this week, it will be okay. The class will get to snack earlier than usual.
Although there were plenty of clouds around Dunham, there was no rain. Madilynn learned to ride her two-wheeler today under the expert guidance of Mrs. Everson. Mrs. Everson sent along a photo she took.
Aidan brought a book to share. It was another tale of animal gluttony sort of similar to his well-known and much-admired classic, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. This one was called The Greedy Python and it told the tale of a python who eats ten animals before eating his own tail and disappearing.
After the first reading, we tried to remember all 10 of the animals he ate. It took all of us working together to come up with the list and we eventually succeeded.
Be well.
Our schedule must change this week due to STAR testing in grades 2 through 6. We're minimally impacted—we must advance snack to about 9:40 and delay recess until 10:00. What this means to you is this: if you want to serve a smaller breakfast this week, it will be okay. The class will get to snack earlier than usual.
Although there were plenty of clouds around Dunham, there was no rain. Madilynn learned to ride her two-wheeler today under the expert guidance of Mrs. Everson. Mrs. Everson sent along a photo she took.
.jpg) |
| Way to go, Madilynn! |
Aidan brought a book to share. It was another tale of animal gluttony sort of similar to his well-known and much-admired classic, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. This one was called The Greedy Python and it told the tale of a python who eats ten animals before eating his own tail and disappearing.
After the first reading, we tried to remember all 10 of the animals he ate. It took all of us working together to come up with the list and we eventually succeeded.
Be well.
Sunday, May 5, 2013
No Rich Child Left Behind
Sean F. Reardon, a professor of education at Stanford University wrote an opinion piece that appeared recently in the New York Times titled "No Rich Child Left Behind." In it he makes the case that there is an ever-widening gap between the enriched educational experience provided to rich children in private schools and the paltry fare in public schools stripped of all enrichment by reforms to make good fill-in-the-blank test takers.
In the final paragraphs of his opinion piece, Reardon makes an additional point that children of the rich have enriched preschool experiences. He states that the rich make sure that their children have the best early childhood experiences available.
I have visited some of the schools for the upper classes, and I can attest: schools for the upper classes do not emphasize instruction on numbers or letters. (Some of them actually ban such instruction.) Preschools for the rich are exciting and interesting places filled with music, art, and imaginative play. Their schools do not resemble the preschools run by corporate interests that emphasize early literacy & numeracy.
A good preschool is a place where children are happy—at play in environments that stimulate their curiosity. The teachers in these preschools skillfully encourage the children to investigate the stimulating world around them.
Reardon would like educational reforms that take early childhood education in the opposite direction they've been going in the past thirteen years or so. He writes:
You can read Reardon's entire commentary by clicking on this link: No Rich Child Left Behind.
Be well.
In the final paragraphs of his opinion piece, Reardon makes an additional point that children of the rich have enriched preschool experiences. He states that the rich make sure that their children have the best early childhood experiences available.
I have visited some of the schools for the upper classes, and I can attest: schools for the upper classes do not emphasize instruction on numbers or letters. (Some of them actually ban such instruction.) Preschools for the rich are exciting and interesting places filled with music, art, and imaginative play. Their schools do not resemble the preschools run by corporate interests that emphasize early literacy & numeracy.
A good preschool is a place where children are happy—at play in environments that stimulate their curiosity. The teachers in these preschools skillfully encourage the children to investigate the stimulating world around them.
Reardon would like educational reforms that take early childhood education in the opposite direction they've been going in the past thirteen years or so. He writes:
So how can we move toward a society in which educational success is not so strongly linked to family background? Maybe we should take a lesson from the rich and invest much more heavily as a society in our children’s educational opportunities from the day they are born. Investments in early-childhood education pay very high societal dividends. That means investing in developing high-quality child care and preschool that is available to poor and middle-class children. It also means recruiting and training a cadre of skilled preschool teachers and child care providers. These are not new ideas, but we have to stop talking about how expensive and difficult they are to implement and just get on with it.He concludes by saying
The more we do to ensure that all children have similar cognitively stimulating early childhood experiences, the less we will have to worry about failing schools. This in turn will enable us to let our schools focus on teaching the skills — how to solve complex problems, how to think critically and how to collaborate — essential to a growing economy and a lively democracy.
You can read Reardon's entire commentary by clicking on this link: No Rich Child Left Behind.
Be well.
Friday, May 3, 2013
Do Overs
Over the course of my career, I've come to appreciate the value of do-overs—that is to say, returning to activities (often with some variations) again and again.
For example, in last week's centers the students used the step board puzzles. They had seen them last fall, but last fall was very long ago in their eyes. Many students needed to get reacquainted with the step boards. Now, this week, as we revisit the puzzles again, only a week since the last time, they worked out the puzzles with much more confidence and ease.
This time around I am adding the simple wrinkle of tallying the number of puzzles solved. Together, they did 50 puzzles, which works out to about two minutes a puzzle per kid. When you consider that includes selecting a puzzle to do, working it, and then putting it away, that's fast. In fact, they are working at a little better than twice the rate they did last week.
We launched other centers today. In honor of spring and of the "Fantastic First Grade Spring Hat Parade" this morning, we made some folded paper hats. This project is a part of the kindergarten FOSS science curriculum that we use here at Dunham.
Here I am trying on the hat Austin made, as she narrates into the microphone.
Yesterday, as I mentioned, we did Kindergarten/Fifth Grade buddies. We finished up the "May There Always Be..." customized classroom-created songbook. Here are a few of those pages.
May there always be dinosaurs? If you thought dinosaurs are extinct, well, just ask the future paleontologist behind that lyric. She will point out to you that chickens are descendants of the dinosaurs.
It was a good Friday. A little warm as we approached noon out there on the PE field. The kids were hot and thirsty when PE was finished. To keep from overheating, we voted to watch an episode of "Word World" from PBS in the relative comfort of the air-conditioned classroom to conclude the day.
Have a warm and wonderful weekend.
Be well.
For example, in last week's centers the students used the step board puzzles. They had seen them last fall, but last fall was very long ago in their eyes. Many students needed to get reacquainted with the step boards. Now, this week, as we revisit the puzzles again, only a week since the last time, they worked out the puzzles with much more confidence and ease.
This time around I am adding the simple wrinkle of tallying the number of puzzles solved. Together, they did 50 puzzles, which works out to about two minutes a puzzle per kid. When you consider that includes selecting a puzzle to do, working it, and then putting it away, that's fast. In fact, they are working at a little better than twice the rate they did last week.
We launched other centers today. In honor of spring and of the "Fantastic First Grade Spring Hat Parade" this morning, we made some folded paper hats. This project is a part of the kindergarten FOSS science curriculum that we use here at Dunham.
Here I am trying on the hat Austin made, as she narrates into the microphone.
 |
| She gave a thorough description of her hat. |
Yesterday, as I mentioned, we did Kindergarten/Fifth Grade buddies. We finished up the "May There Always Be..." customized classroom-created songbook. Here are a few of those pages.
 |
| May there always be friends... |
 |
| May there always be Archy! Can you spell Chihuahua? Will can. |
 |
| May there always be dinosaurs. |
May there always be dinosaurs? If you thought dinosaurs are extinct, well, just ask the future paleontologist behind that lyric. She will point out to you that chickens are descendants of the dinosaurs.
It was a good Friday. A little warm as we approached noon out there on the PE field. The kids were hot and thirsty when PE was finished. To keep from overheating, we voted to watch an episode of "Word World" from PBS in the relative comfort of the air-conditioned classroom to conclude the day.
Have a warm and wonderful weekend.
Be well.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Plenty Good Day
I left the classroom camera at school, so no photos of today's activities.
But we had a good day. We began with singing—practice for our opening to the Sebastopol Ukulele Festival on May 25. That's only a little more than 3 weeks away. Look in the Friday folder for a note concerning the festival so that I may procure you a free day pass. (Kindergartners will get in free.) Whenever Andy shows up with his stand-up string bass, we sound better.
We moved on to a class discussion about opening up the seating on the green mat. By a large majority, the kinders voted to try it.
After a quick math lesson it was time for fifth grade buddies.
The day rounded itself out with our usual flow of activity, ending with a nice bike ride in warm (record setting) sunshine.
See you tomorrow.
Be well.
But we had a good day. We began with singing—practice for our opening to the Sebastopol Ukulele Festival on May 25. That's only a little more than 3 weeks away. Look in the Friday folder for a note concerning the festival so that I may procure you a free day pass. (Kindergartners will get in free.) Whenever Andy shows up with his stand-up string bass, we sound better.
We moved on to a class discussion about opening up the seating on the green mat. By a large majority, the kinders voted to try it.
After a quick math lesson it was time for fifth grade buddies.
The day rounded itself out with our usual flow of activity, ending with a nice bike ride in warm (record setting) sunshine.
See you tomorrow.
Be well.
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
We finished up another round of centers today and will take a day off centers. The next round of centers will start Friday. Those centers will include some art inspired by Rachael Zell. Here are sample pieces done today in a test-drive of the center this afternoon.
We finished up the spin art today. There's been some nice color mixing happening around here.
Tonight's homework is a simplified Sudoku (say: Soo-DOH-koo) puzzle. I hope your child enjoys it.
I am very pleased with how the kindergarten is progressing with their musical skills. As you know, our kindergarten class is slated to kick off the Sebastopol Ukulele Festival at 12:00 noon on Saturday, May 25.
I need to know how many free passes I need to get (the kids get in for free; the passes are for a chaperone) so there will be a note home with the Friday folder. I do hope for a good turn out.
Here's a 1-minute long video of eight year old Aidan Powell on stage with his ukulele. It will show you what can happen when a eight year old kid gets an early start in music and sticks with it. Aidan started to play when he was 4 years old. The guy accompanying him, Jake Shimabukuro, is arguably the very best ukulele player in the world right now. (Thank you, Jen, for the link.) This little guy is really talented. Music will be a big part of his life.
Be well.
 |
| The symmetry is achieved by folding the paper. |
We finished up the spin art today. There's been some nice color mixing happening around here.
Tonight's homework is a simplified Sudoku (say: Soo-DOH-koo) puzzle. I hope your child enjoys it.
I am very pleased with how the kindergarten is progressing with their musical skills. As you know, our kindergarten class is slated to kick off the Sebastopol Ukulele Festival at 12:00 noon on Saturday, May 25.
I need to know how many free passes I need to get (the kids get in for free; the passes are for a chaperone) so there will be a note home with the Friday folder. I do hope for a good turn out.
Here's a 1-minute long video of eight year old Aidan Powell on stage with his ukulele. It will show you what can happen when a eight year old kid gets an early start in music and sticks with it. Aidan started to play when he was 4 years old. The guy accompanying him, Jake Shimabukuro, is arguably the very best ukulele player in the world right now. (Thank you, Jen, for the link.) This little guy is really talented. Music will be a big part of his life.
Be well.
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
The last day of April went much more smoothly than yesterday.
No cliques. No clanks.
After centers we had a discussion about why we should avoid saying phrases using the word "best" as in "best teacher" and "best friend" at school.
Sure, we simply intend to compliment the person we're speaking to. But without meaning to, we frequently hurt the feelings of anyone who overhears us say these words.
I role-played a teacher who played favorites among his students. In the role-play I complimented one of the pupils by saying she was "the best student" in the class. That really drove this lesson home. My words hurt them and made me less likable, too.
When we pick out a best friend, we hurt the feelings of all the others who wish to be our friend. There's a net loss to the social fabric of the class.
We also talked about why excluding people from activities is hurtful.
Our discussion set us up for a good day.
In PE our substitute teacher, Mrs. C., had the class play a hot-weather variation on "Duck, Duck, Goose." Her version is called "Drip, Drip, Drop!" Ask your child to tell you about it. (Mrs. C., by the way, talked to me after class to tell me that on a scale of 1 to 5—with 5 being awesome—she thinks our kindergarten class deserved a 5+ for their effort and cooperation in PE today.)
No Tribes tomorrow, but we'll have a 1:20-ish dismissal in kindergarten. The homework will be a simplified Sudoku puzzle. Look for it.
No cliques. No clanks.
After centers we had a discussion about why we should avoid saying phrases using the word "best" as in "best teacher" and "best friend" at school.
Sure, we simply intend to compliment the person we're speaking to. But without meaning to, we frequently hurt the feelings of anyone who overhears us say these words.
I role-played a teacher who played favorites among his students. In the role-play I complimented one of the pupils by saying she was "the best student" in the class. That really drove this lesson home. My words hurt them and made me less likable, too.
When we pick out a best friend, we hurt the feelings of all the others who wish to be our friend. There's a net loss to the social fabric of the class.
We also talked about why excluding people from activities is hurtful.
Our discussion set us up for a good day.
In PE our substitute teacher, Mrs. C., had the class play a hot-weather variation on "Duck, Duck, Goose." Her version is called "Drip, Drip, Drop!" Ask your child to tell you about it. (Mrs. C., by the way, talked to me after class to tell me that on a scale of 1 to 5—with 5 being awesome—she thinks our kindergarten class deserved a 5+ for their effort and cooperation in PE today.)
No Tribes tomorrow, but we'll have a 1:20-ish dismissal in kindergarten. The homework will be a simplified Sudoku puzzle. Look for it.
Monday, April 29, 2013
Monday, April 29, 2013 Clank.
Although I scheduled today to be a bike day, and although the weather was fine, we did not have time for bike riding today. I was disappointed as were many of the students.
We were running late from the start.
The day began with an assembly that went on until 8:25 or so. By the time we finished centers we were at least twenty minutes behind our usual schedule. Snack and snack clean up took longer than usual. There were stomach aches and eye aches and some hurt feelings sprinkled around the class... There were quite a few students absent today. I think I forgot to pass out the May snack calendar in last week's Friday folder, so there is a copy in the cubbies now. Here's the snack calendar online:
Some days everything clicks. Some days things clank. Today there were more clanks than clicks.
The clicks? Centers were cool. We sounded awesome when we pulled the ukuleles off the wall and practiced our songs. The class did a good job listening to the stories (Skippyjon Jones & Twilight) today.
I hope tomorrow will be a better day.
We were running late from the start.
The day began with an assembly that went on until 8:25 or so. By the time we finished centers we were at least twenty minutes behind our usual schedule. Snack and snack clean up took longer than usual. There were stomach aches and eye aches and some hurt feelings sprinkled around the class... There were quite a few students absent today. I think I forgot to pass out the May snack calendar in last week's Friday folder, so there is a copy in the cubbies now. Here's the snack calendar online:
Some days everything clicks. Some days things clank. Today there were more clanks than clicks.
The clicks? Centers were cool. We sounded awesome when we pulled the ukuleles off the wall and practiced our songs. The class did a good job listening to the stories (Skippyjon Jones & Twilight) today.
I hope tomorrow will be a better day.
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Dead Tech
Education isn't mostly about technology. Education is mostly about older generations passing along what they think is important to the younger generation.
Person to person, face to face, heart to heart.
Lots of education happens outside of schools, too.
A Child's Bill of Rights
Janelle Petersen showed me this poem last Tuesday. Its author is unknown, so I took the liberty of altering lines 5 and 6 as well as adding four lines (9 - 12).
A CHILD'S BILL OF RIGHTS
The right to walk barefoot and squish things with toes,
The right to explore with my mouth and my nose,
The right to ask questions, to poke and to pry,
And keep on persisting 'til I find out why.
The right to feel safe, and happy, and kind.
The freedom to rest if I'm so inclined,
The right to make noise without being bugged,
The right to be read to, and sung to, and hugged.
The right to make music, to dance, and to sing,
The right to imagine and build brand-new things,
The right to clean food, pure water, fresh air—
The right to my world filled with grown ups who care.
The freedom to scribble, dabble, and mess,
The right to be "me"—no more, but no less.
(Thank you, Janelle.)
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Fast Food & Cooking from Scratch
As you know, we frequently feature cooking in our kindergarten centers. I believe kindergartners benefit from seeing food made from basic ingredients. When I was a young boy, almost every meal I ate was made by my mom in our kitchen, from scratch ingredients: meat from the butcher, flour, sugar, veggies from the produce aisle. Each week on Wednesday, she baked eight loaves of bread at home. Store bought bread was a rare exception.
I was 15 year old when I had my very first McDonald's burger. I didn't like it. It seemed odd, and disgusting, really, to eat a hamburger that was already made before I walked in the door.
In the 45 years since that day, though, fast food has won the battle. I heard the other day that meals cooked from scratch are the rare exception.
The norm is food cooked by corporations and prepared who really knows how long before you heat it and put it in your mouth?
Watch this video and see what a hamburger that is 14 years old looks like.
If you're going to have a burger today, you might want to visit your butcher today. Have him or her grind up some meat. Take it home, make it into a burger, and fire up the grill.
I was 15 year old when I had my very first McDonald's burger. I didn't like it. It seemed odd, and disgusting, really, to eat a hamburger that was already made before I walked in the door.
In the 45 years since that day, though, fast food has won the battle. I heard the other day that meals cooked from scratch are the rare exception.
The norm is food cooked by corporations and prepared who really knows how long before you heat it and put it in your mouth?
Watch this video and see what a hamburger that is 14 years old looks like.
If you're going to have a burger today, you might want to visit your butcher today. Have him or her grind up some meat. Take it home, make it into a burger, and fire up the grill.
Friday, April 26, 2013
Friday, April 26, 2013
Another day of good cheer and good spirits. I was glad about that, too, because my alarm clock stopped working in the middle of the night and I rushed through my morning routines at double my usual pace. Not a great way to start the day. Had my cat not awakened me this morning, I'd have been a-snooze in bed when school opened.
It was Robert's day. He didn't bring a story for sharing, so I pulled out one of my all-time favorites, Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes.
There was time for centers. I gave the kids at today's step board puzzles the hardest ones they have and they had no trouble working them out.
There was some time for play today. I got out a magnetic dart board game which proved to be very popular with some of the boys. I know I would have loved it if it were in my kindergarten when I was five.
Have a good weekend.
Assembly in morning this coming Monday.
Be well.
It was Robert's day. He didn't bring a story for sharing, so I pulled out one of my all-time favorites, Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes.
There was time for centers. I gave the kids at today's step board puzzles the hardest ones they have and they had no trouble working them out.
There was some time for play today. I got out a magnetic dart board game which proved to be very popular with some of the boys. I know I would have loved it if it were in my kindergarten when I was five.
Have a good weekend.
Assembly in morning this coming Monday.
Be well.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Good Day
With Mrs. Everson off to Angel Island with the fifth grade class our Thursday buddy visit would have to be postponed again. Luckily we had Austin & William Z's moms stay as well as both Janelle Mitnick and Camille from daycare to help me throughout the morning. We began the morning with Andy helping us rehearse our songs. We added a harmony part to "The Lion Sings Tonight" and we're sounding really good. I am sure we will make a good impression at our next performance.
Nora brought a Barbie book about mermaids which was longish, so I preread and told an abbreviated version of the story. For snack Nora provided cheese, pretzels, and apples.
Centers went super smoothly. I helped students work with the step boards. Here are a few of the words they built. Few teachers are as lucky as I am to get the help they need to smile through the morning. We got out to the garden with Mr. Hansen a half class at a time. The morning coastal overcast has made good weather for garden work.
The Crystal Climbers center built this.
While another group built things with wood scraps.
And, of course, the ever-popular spin art center.
A nice day, as Thursdays so often are.
Be well.
Nora brought a Barbie book about mermaids which was longish, so I preread and told an abbreviated version of the story. For snack Nora provided cheese, pretzels, and apples.
Centers went super smoothly. I helped students work with the step boards. Here are a few of the words they built. Few teachers are as lucky as I am to get the help they need to smile through the morning. We got out to the garden with Mr. Hansen a half class at a time. The morning coastal overcast has made good weather for garden work.
The Crystal Climbers center built this.
While another group built things with wood scraps.
And, of course, the ever-popular spin art center.
A nice day, as Thursdays so often are.
Be well.
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Centers & Other Activities on Wednesday, April 24
We launched another new round of centers today. Everything went smoothly—no power outage today.
For this round of centers I am working with the step boards, a fun, puzzle-like activity designed to help kindergartners with spelling. Sometimes the most challenging part of these step boards is looking at the illustrated prompt they provide on the panel and pondering what word the puzzle makers had intended to suggest.
Here are two words of the many solved today by the kids at Table 4.
One of the kindergartners enthused, "I could do this all day!" Another student thought it was too easy, but the teacher can choose puzzles of varying difficulty. In the end, they were smiling—and thinking.
***********************************
Along the way, we did some finger math, read Austin's Twilight chapter book, visited Andrew the music teacher, had lunch, got some homework for tonight, and rode bikes. We're practicing one of the songs for the ukulele festival performance. A good quick day.
***********************************
Mrs. Everson will be escorting her daughter and other fifth graders on their overnight adventure on Angel Island tomorrow and Friday. We will miss her, but are glad to have Ms. Mitnick to help out while Mrs. Everson is away.
Be well.
For this round of centers I am working with the step boards, a fun, puzzle-like activity designed to help kindergartners with spelling. Sometimes the most challenging part of these step boards is looking at the illustrated prompt they provide on the panel and pondering what word the puzzle makers had intended to suggest.
Here are two words of the many solved today by the kids at Table 4.
One of the kindergartners enthused, "I could do this all day!" Another student thought it was too easy, but the teacher can choose puzzles of varying difficulty. In the end, they were smiling—and thinking.
***********************************
Along the way, we did some finger math, read Austin's Twilight chapter book, visited Andrew the music teacher, had lunch, got some homework for tonight, and rode bikes. We're practicing one of the songs for the ukulele festival performance. A good quick day.
***********************************
Mrs. Everson will be escorting her daughter and other fifth graders on their overnight adventure on Angel Island tomorrow and Friday. We will miss her, but are glad to have Ms. Mitnick to help out while Mrs. Everson is away.
Be well.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Power Out! ——Sebastopol Ukulele Festival May 25——New Family Night
Lighting up the Dark
You don't need me to tell you: the power went out today.
No power means no water—and that means no toilets, no water in bathroom sinks & kitchen. No power mean dark computer screens which can be trouble for the upper graders.
So the office calls PG&E and, based on the power company's prediction of how long with power will be out, the principal must decide whether to close school for the day or to hold on and hope for the best.
PG&E thought the power would be out until this afternoon, so they made the call to you to pick up early.
Thank you, parents, for coming so promptly. The dismissal went smoothly.
The kindergarten class did well, even in semi-darkness. We opened the windows and doors. We are still between centers—we start new centers tomorrow—we had some free choice time. Some fantastic art was made. How about this painting of a butterfly?
The power is back on now.
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The Sebastopol Ukulele Festival May 25
We started the day with about a half hour ukulele practice on our songs for the Ukulele Festival on March 25 in Sebastopol.
As you may remember, this class opened a ukulele night there last November. Everyone thought we were great back in November. The organizers invited us back to the much larger ukulele festival in Sebastopol.
Well, we have gotten A LOT better at singing and playing. We're really going to put on a great opener for the Festival. YOU WILL NOT WANT TO MISS THIS ONE!! The kids get in free and each kid who performs will earn a festival admission for a family member for free ($25 value).
I'll have more to say about this, but seriously, make plans to be there May 25. It will be a memorable experience.
**************************
New Family Orientation
Tonight is new family orientation night. The orientation part for new parents starts here at school at 5:30 and goes to 6:00. Then there's a mixer after that. Please come!
Monday, April 22, 2013
Back Again
The class welcomed me back after two days away to meet next year's kindergarten class.
I had some spring trimester assessments to finish up. They will help me group the students for the final round of KIDS club. I hope to complete my analysis of the assessments and have a notice about the schedule for KIDS club out by Thursday.
Today we had the chance to stock up on a little Vitamin P. The kids seemed to perk up like droopy flowers when they got a chance to just be together and play. It was great. We'll have one more day like that tomorrow, so if you're a parent volunteer, you can go out for coffee if you wish (except Andy).
While I was away, Mrs. Jones took the class through more iterations of the "Rolling 2 Dice & Tally the Result" activity that we began before I went away.
Here's the result, and you can see that 7 came up far more frequently than the others.
During our free time, Noah worked on this bird. He modified it again and again.
Leland worked on a block city
Aidan & William Z made a nice building nearby. It had a cool hidden chamber big enough to park a Matchbox car inside.
I had some spring trimester assessments to finish up. They will help me group the students for the final round of KIDS club. I hope to complete my analysis of the assessments and have a notice about the schedule for KIDS club out by Thursday.
Today we had the chance to stock up on a little Vitamin P. The kids seemed to perk up like droopy flowers when they got a chance to just be together and play. It was great. We'll have one more day like that tomorrow, so if you're a parent volunteer, you can go out for coffee if you wish (except Andy).
While I was away, Mrs. Jones took the class through more iterations of the "Rolling 2 Dice & Tally the Result" activity that we began before I went away.
Here's the result, and you can see that 7 came up far more frequently than the others.
During our free time, Noah worked on this bird. He modified it again and again.
Leland worked on a block city
Aidan & William Z made a nice building nearby. It had a cool hidden chamber big enough to park a Matchbox car inside.
The Williams' moms both stayed to help out this morning—thanks Janelle and Rachael.
It was good to be back again and give the class some much-needed vitamin P.
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