As I take a break, I'm reflecting and pondering the past year and next year. I always see great ideas and inspiration. Here are some things I'm thinking about using next year.
Genius Hour - The idea of a genius hour is providing time for kids to work on whatever they want. I want to find a way to include some of this self-directed play/learning in each week's schedule. Here are a few posts related to this idea.
- "Genius Hour" in Kindergarten (The Way I See It...)
- Yes! Genius Hour in Kindergarten! (CanTeach)
- Ten Minute Play Challenge (Matt B. Gomez)
Tinker Box - I want to add a box with a variety of items that kids can use in any way they choose. Maybe we'll use the box during the genius hour/play time. Or maybe we'll use it in other ways. This idea was inspired by this post from Education Rethink.
Early Finisher Board - I often have kids who finish work quickly. They are looking for what to do next while others are still working. Next year I want to have a system to keep all kids busy, using all time productively. This idea is one I want to adapt and use.
- Early Finisher Board (Teaching in the Early Years)
- Early Finisher Board product (Teachers Pay Teachers) - I will probably come up with my own stuff but purchasing this is always an option.
Exit Tickets - I'm reading lots about exit tickets. I wasn't able to implement them in ways like I wanted this past year, but we're doing to be doing more of this in the coming year. I like the stoplight idea for exit tickets.
Interactive Journals - I want to do many things to revamp our journaling, to make it more productive and lead to progress in writing; to provide more feedback (both for me and for students); to make it an engaging experience for students. I read about interactive journals in several places. I experimented with this a little this year, but not a successful as I know it could be. Matt's posts about this continue to inspire me.
A couple of other inspirations.....
