Inspiration from the Blogosphere - Making Me Think This Week

I always get inspiration from the blogs, tweets, and posts I read. Here are a few things I read in the past week (or so) that have me thinking.


How to Get Kids to Clean Up (Pre-K Pages)
I work with Vanessa, helping out on her blog. On of the perks is watching some of her videos for posts. (She hosts live videos each week on her Facebook page. Check out the great topics there.) What I like about this video/post is that most of the tips focus on preparing the environment so kids are successful in cleaning up. I'm thinking about what other ways I can make the environment more successful for the kids in my classroom.


Valuing and Enjoying the Process of Learning (Studentcentricity - BAM Radio Network)
Speaking of an environment that makes kids successful....listen to this podcast with Rae Pica and Amanda Morgan (of Not Just Cute). The discussion focuses on process over product - and not just for art activities but for the entire classroom. Great stuff! (And lots of thinking!)


The Tragedy of Emotionally Abandoned Children (EdWords - BAM Radio Network)
This post by Debra Pierce discusses the effects on children of living in a neglectful home. A lot to think about here - and to wonder and worry how children can cope with these types of internal monologue. But, as Debra points out, we as teacher can give hope and perspective by the way we interact with them. You may never know the impact of your kind words and loving attention.

The Rules of Counting (Erikson Early Math Collaborative)
I love math play and encouraging children to play with math concepts and build ideas through exploration. This article helped me think about the "rules" that young children need to learn and can begin to learn about counting. And challenged me to think of ways I can encourage counting play in my classroom.


Bundled Q-Tip Fall Tree Painting (Pinterested Parent)
No inspiration post would be complete without at least one activity! When I saw this post - using bundled cotton swabs to paint - I began to think of all the different types of painting experiences I could encourage: use yellow/white paint on black paper for a starry sky; use green shades of paint to make grass or hills or mountains (or, yes, trees); cut shapes to lay on paper and paint around the shapes to create negative space pictures; and so forth. A cool new painting idea (at least new to me!).


And one more thing I saw...this book by Rae Pica!
Active Learning Across the Curriculum: Teaching the Way They Learn!
I haven't gotten it yet, but it's on my list to get soon.


What inspired you this week?

A Flexible Room Environment

When I think about teaching, I think the room, the learning environment, plays a key role. The room should have materials that are engaging and will encourage children to explore and experiment. And the room must be a neutral space, ready to accept whatever ingenuity grows from the learners' minds.

The room must be a flexible environment, ready with engaging ideas and ready to be a part of a completely different engaging idea.

And in this flexible space, the children repurpose materials to create their own ideas. In this flexible room, blocks become letters and words and sentences.

Or the blocks center becomes a place to write your name.

Containers become building materials

Headbands (strips of cloth) become doll clothes

Food become bricks in a pyramid tower

Masking tape becomes a hat

A block bin becomes a hat

Tables and chairs become a tunnel

Tile becomes a lake

Green Lego bricks become landscaping

And gems become pizza toppings

Kids have great imaginations and great ideas. They can take just about anything and reimagine it into something completely different. 

But there's one barrier to this - ADULTS. We can dampen those ideas with a just a few words. Or a mindset. (Well, maybe it's not you. Maybe it's me.)

Often we say "no" when we could say "yes." Or at least "Hmm. Let's think about that."

As you work with a group of children or survey a classroom, think about ways you can say yes. Yes to creativity. Yes to fun ideas. Yes to repurposing. Yes to a flexible classroom.

I learn some of the best ideas that way!

Designing Space

I love this quote from Frank Lloyd Wright. And it makes me think about my kindergartners and my space. Each year my classroom changes somewhat to meet the people (kids) using it. Our learning environments must match our kids and incorporate their personalities to make it most effective.

A Big Mistake

What's the biggest mistake you've made in a classroom? Oh, I've made some great ones along the way. I think the first one that comes to mind happened when I was teaching first graders. I had put up a wonder wall and received lots of great questions and wonders. One day, when reading some of the wonders in our group, I read a great question about rainbows - and then I proceeded to answer it instead of leading the group in ways to discover the answer. I realized that mistake as I drove home. I'd missed a great opportunity to lead children in discovering their own answers to questions.

I've made spelling mistakes and factual mistakes in the classroom. I've tried things that just didn't work or that just didn't interest the children like I thought it would.

I think about how to take advantage of mistakes when I make them - showing the children that we all make mistakes and mistakes help us learn. I think about how plan to avoid general mistakes. I think about how to laugh when I make them and how to encourage when kids make them.

But when I think about a big mistake I could make in the classroom, I come back to the mistake of not trying new things. I get really comfortable in my classroom and in my way of doing things. I like when things feel comfortable. But if I always do things the same way without evaluating why I'm doing it - that's a mistake. If I only do something because it worked last year or the past however many years and don't filter what I'm doing against the characteristics of my current class - that's a mistake. If I don't listen and look at the kids I have when I'm planning and when I'm teaching - that's a mistake.

Of course, if I decide to jump on the latest trend in the classroom and don't weigh what I'm doing and why I'm doing it - that's a mistake. Just being novel isn't a good enough reason to bring things into my classroom. It must connect with my kids and our classroom community.

I love consistency - and so do young children. I love new things - and so do young children. But one of the biggest mistake I can make is to be oblivious. Not noticing my kids and their likes and interests. Not seeing their strengths and their areas of needed growth. Teaching as if what matters most is my needs and my comfort.

Why am I thinking about all of this? I'm wondering if I've fallen into a rut with my teaching. I do pay attention to what my church kindergarten kids like and want and need. But things seem very lax lately. I'm not really working much to prepare and plan. Maybe I've become very efficient at it...but it seems like there's something else that may be missing. It's more like I'm going through the motions more than really preparing to teach that group of kids. And if that's true, that's a really big mistake.

Shaped by Experiences

from Bridging the Relationship Gap

What atmosphere are we creating for children? What are we doing to create an engaging and interesting world in the classroom? What are we saying and doing that creates a positive learning environment?



(Check out Enhancing Young Minds' online book study on Bridging the Relationship Gap.)

Ignored Is Still a Success

If children made choices, explored, decided what to do and not do, learned something new - then the day was successful. Even if they totally ignored something I put out.

(And they were all over the tape when I put it out the next week.)

Let Them Mix It Up

Free to Learn by Peter Gray

Chapter 9 - Free Age Mixing: A Key Ingredient for Children's Capacity for Self-Education

"The free mingling of children who differ broadly in age is a key element to children's abilities to educate themselves successfully, on their own initiatives."

When we think of schools today, in fact usually when we think of activities or groups of children, we think of kids gathering with peers that are the same or close to the same age. According to Peter Gray, this segregation by age is a recent cultural phenomenon. In the past, kids interacted with siblings or available neighborhood kids; even in schools they were often taught or at least spent time with wider age spans. Today, in non-Western, non-schooled societies, age-mixing is common. As compulsory schooling expanded, kids were grouped more and more by age. Today children spend more time both in and out of school in settings with children the same age or within 1-2 years of their age. Kids have fewer places were they can freely mix with others of various ages.

And yet we know that kids learn by observing and interacting with others both older and younger than they are. This age mixing is beneficial to both younger and older kids.

For younger kids, they can participate in activities that would be too complex, difficult, or even dangerous for them to do on their own or with kids their own age. They learn from listening to the conversations of older kids and observing how they do things. They can operate more in their zone of proximal development--those activities that a child cannot do alone or with others of like ability but can do with someone more skilled. Often educators talk about adults helping kids achieve in the zone of proximal development, scaffolding (guiding/encouraging/reminding) their work. But these may work better in play situations with older children than with adults. "In age-mixed play, where abilities differ considerably, scaffolding occurs continuously and naturally, often unconsciously."

Younger children may engage in more literacy and numeracy play in mixed age groupings. They hear conversations of older kids and build vocabularies. They see the activities of older kids and incorporate that into their own behavior in self-determined ways. They build observation skills, skills that may not be fostered in traditional school situations. Younger kids also receive emotional support from older kids and develop meaningful relationships through their interactions.

While the value for younger kids are more obvious, free age mixing is beneficial to the older kids, too. They can practice leading others and learn how to function in a relationship. As they teach or talk about concepts with younger kids, they develop deeper understanding. Younger kids naturally engage in more creative activities and draw older kids into these types of experiences through their use of imaginations, pretend play, and materials to create. Older kids gain care and nurturing skills they will need as parents, caregivers, or leaders.

All ages benefit from a freer exchange of ideas when ages mix. Younger kids may feel more free to ask questions or challenge ideas as they talk with older kids than when they talk with adults. Older kids may feel less threatened when their ideas are challenged and look for ways to clarify their thinking (than when ideas are challenged by adults). Also, free age mixing allows people of like abilities to interact. If a child is ahead or behind his age mates, he can find equal partners (regardless of age) in a mixed age environment.

I found this chapter very interesting. I think we naturally think of kids being in same age groupings today. But I've been in groups that include teenagers as "assistants" in the classroom and I've seen the mixing of these kids with preschoolers. And occasionally I've been in situations that have had wider age spans. I agree that younger kids will push themselves to keep up with the older ones. And the older ones take a nurturing interest in younger kids. This chapter has definitely given me some food for thought regarding how education could be enhanced or different with more mixing of ages. And I think that the final point - finding someone of similar ability regardless of age - is an important way we could offer some differentiation (without all the other things that tend to come with that word). I have more thinking to do as a result of this chapter. And that's good!

Losing the Small Things

In my second grade class, we had a pencil sharpener attached to the wall. You know, the regular crank kind of sharpener. The one that seems to command attention when it is used. I didn't think anything of it since I had an electric pencil sharpener and sharpened pencils daily for the next day's work.

Then someone tried to use my "fancy" sharpener with a crayon. A piece lodged in it and I couldn't get it to work again. Still haven't.

So we used the crank pencil sharpener on the wall. I usually tried to keep a stock of sharpened pencils so kids wouldn't need to use it. It was just a distraction, it seemed. But occasionally they did. All was fine until that one fateful day.

I came into the room one day and found the small extension on the crank handle was off. I don't know how it came off. I could not figure out how to get it back on. "Oh, well," I thought. "We'll just do without it." I placed it in my desk, thinking I would ask for maintenance.

I never did get maintenance to come and fix it. And I learned something important. Apparently without that little extension, it is almost impossible to turn the crank. I would wind it (and had to do so with great force). Our pencils would get sharpened but I had to do it. The kids couldn't work it. Their hands weren't strong enough.

Why am I going on about a pencil sharpener that I haven't seen in 2 years? Well, that sharpener taught me (or reminded me) of an important lesson. The small things matter. A lot.

Without that small piece, the pencil sharpener was less efficient and less useful.

Other small things mean a lot. A smile. A simple pat on the back. A handwritten note. A listening ear.

Remembering a story or a birthday. Reading a book about Spiderman or watching a Lego Ninjago video.

Being there every day.

Small things do matter. In fact, they are not small things at all. They are the things that build a relationship and make a connection. They are the things that keep the classroom turning.

Don't neglect them. Don't lose them.

What happens if these "little things" go missing? The classroom doesn't work as well. Things are more difficult. Something just seems amiss.

Listen to your kids. Smile more. Chase an idea that comes from nowhere and seems to lead back to nowhere. 

Follow the child's lead. Have fun.

These small things are what you look back on and realize how big they really were.

Wrap Up and Final Reflections on Teach Like a Pirate

I am reading and reflecting on the book Teach Like a Pirate by Dave Burgess. The "pirate" philosophy is built on these things: Passion, Immersion, Rapport, Ask/Analyze, Transformation, and Enthusiasm.

Part III - Building a Better Pirate

   The Awkward Question

   Where Do I Start?

   Finding a Crew

In this last section of the book, Dave Burgess offers some encouragement to take the leap and become a pirate teacher. He asks the question: "Do you want to be great?" Then he examines why we teachers want to shy away from that question. He challenges us to embrace wanting to be a great teacher - "mediocrity doesn't motivate" he says. And he's right. We should want to be great teachers and not worry about what others may think or do.

He asks a second question: "Where do I start?" The answer? Here and now. Take a step. Don't just swallow the fear, live it. Try something; take a risk; be ready to fail. He says, "If you haven't failed in the classroom lately, you probably aren't pushing the envelope enough." I agree. I think it's okay to fail. It's not okay to just stay there. Learn from it and try again. If others criticize (and someone will), examine it. If it's legitimate, learn from the critical remarks. If not, ignore it and keep working to be great.

And look to build a support system - a crew. You can't sail on your own. "Don't be limited by your subject, grade level, school, or even profession. Take counsel from a wide variety of people and seek out multiple perspectives." That's why I love Twitter. I follow a lot of educators - most of them are in early childhood or elementary. Some are in middle and high school. Some are administrators or leaders in higher education. But I also follow publishers and graphic designers, photographers and ministers. I try to keep a wide variety of perspectives. You never know where the next inspiration comes from. I think this book proves this very principle. Dave Burgess does not teach early childhood kids. But as I read through his ideas, I saw how his concepts fit into my philosophy - and how those concepts challenged my philosophy, too. If I read only early childhood educators, I would have missed this book and what I've gleaned from it.

Final Thoughts

I loved this book. All the questions and different "hooks" pushed me to think beyond what I normally think. It made me take a step back and think about some critical thoughts I've had about some other teachers' approach. (But I still keep my stand as Team No Glitter!)

As I wrote in the previous post on this book, this book is about being intentional. I need to make deliberate choices in what I do in the classroom. Not just what I do but what I don't do, what I create the space to look and sound like, what I let go and what I don't. My teaching is more than a set of activities or a block of content. It's an experience that can be fun, unexpected, and memorable. (Or none of those things.)

Here are a few additional quotes that motive me to be a more passionate - great! - teacher:

• "Great teaching gets messy sometimes and we have to constantly be aware of the changing landscape in our rooms and make 'moves' based on what works, not on what is necessarily theoretically ideal or, God forbid, scripted."
• "When in doubt, take action."
• "Realize that anytime you say yes to something, you are saying no to something else. Learn to say yes to the significant."
• "Some choices are major and others are minor, but even the minor decisions, when added up, create impact."
• "Provide an uncommon experience for your students and they will reward you with an uncommon effort and attitude."

And this one sums up where I want to be as a teacher--

"Forget about all the things that you can't control and play your drum to the best of your abilities. Play with all the passion, enthusiasm, and heart you can muster. Nothing else really matters."

See you out there on the high seas!
(and in the next book - whatever that is)
Next book: Free to Learn by Peter Gray

New Perspective

Learning environment is important. Teacher Tom often echoes the Reggio Emilio philosophy and calls it the "third teacher." As I've read Teach Like a Pirate and Teaching with Intention, I've been reminded of shaping the environment and making choices that are purposeful. I've always thought about the surroundings and the materials in it. But I want to continue to make specific choices intentionally. I want to think beyond what but arrange materials in ways that will intrigue and invite exploration.

But there's another aspect to this learning environment--the child. I've often said to think about things and look at things from the child's point of view. But my children are continuing to emphasize that their perspective is key to what I'm doing.

I have a new friend that is always looking at the environment. As I mentioned in a previous post, she saw a piece of paper on the ceiling and it bothered her. I had to stand on a chair and remove it (while kids were out of the room). When she came in after that, she immediately noticed it was gone. That paper had been there for months. I'd seen it and dismissed it. No other child had noticed it (or at least mentioned it). But she did. And it bothered her.

She noticed yesterday that a clothespin was also on the ceiling. She wanted me to move it. I told her I would after everyone was gone. So, I was standing on a chair, stretching to get it, yesterday before I left. (It's gone now.)

Look at the room, everything in the room, from the child's perspective. Sit on the floor or kneel at the eye level of kids in your space. What do you see? I can almost guarantee that you will see things, notice things, that you didn't from your own eye level. Sit or kneel at the door at the kids' level - what do you see first? What looks inviting? What looks confusing? Are you sending the message you want to send?

Sit at a table. Is it easy to reach the materials that are in the middle? Does something need to be shifted for more easy use? For more interaction? Is there space to move your arms and manipulate as you need to do? What are you seeing as you look up from the table?

Think about the space as a child does. Can you move through the space easily? Does lots of room make you want to run? To wrestle? In moving through the space, do you bump into tables? Others? is there too much stuff to look at, too cluttered? Does the space look like you (the child) own it or you (the teacher)?

As you evaluate the space, what are you communicating? Is that what you want to communicate?

Change your perspective, both physically and mentally. Put yourself in the shoes of your kids. What is the third teacher saying to you?

TLAP: Presentation Hooks, Part 2

I am reading and reflecting on the book Teach Like a Pirate by Dave Burgess. The "pirate" philosophy is built on these things: Passion, Immersion, Rapport, Ask/Analyze, Transformation, and Enthusiasm.

Dave Burgess uses Part II of the book to list some different types of presentation hooks, ways to engage students in lessons. The book contains questions to ask about teaching lessons so teachers can think about how to use the different engagement strategies.

Here's the continuation of the types of presentation hooks. I like that Burgess gives lots of questions and lots of different types of hooks to engage students.

All the World's a Stage - Change or control the environment of the lesson.

• The Interior Designer Hook - Transforming the room/space in some way
• The Board Message Hook - Adding a message/image to the board or screen to intrigue students
• The Costume Hook - Wearing something or adopting a new persona 
• The Props Hook - Bringing objects to hold or using images 
• The Involved Audience Hook - Incorporating students in active ways
• The Mystery Bag Hook - Hiding or concealing something

Stand and Deliver - Develop engaging speaking skills.

• The Storytelling Hook - Using captivating stories or various voices, intonations, facial expressions, and dramatic pauses
• The Swimming with the Sharks Hook - Moving through the audience or in other parts of the room
• The Taboo Hook - Positioning the topic as secret or forbidden knowledge
• The Mime Hook - Using silence, gestures, and written messages (no speaking)
• The Teaser Hook - Creating expectancy through promos, teasers, and trailers
• The Backward Hook - Presenting material out of sequence or telling the end and letting them figure out the beginning

Advanced Tactics - Take your presentations a step further.

• The Mission Impossible Hook - Incorporating mystery, clues, and challenges
• The Reality TV Hook - Using challenges from popular reality TV
• The Techno Whiz Hook - Utilizing technology in different ways as tools for engagement

Around the Edges - Put the finishing touches on the learning experience.

• The Contest Hook - Incorporating games or contests part of learning or review
• The Magic and The Amazing Hook - Adding in amazing information, skills, or magical effects
• The Chef Hook - Using food and drink in meaningful and strategic ways
• The Mnemonic Hook - Creating ways for students to connect and remember
• The Extra Credit Challenge Hook - Developing projects or challenges that could lead students to experience more beyond the classroom and the lesson

So What?

I've taken two posts to list all the different types of ways that Dave Burgess suggests could be used to engage students in learning. I like all the questions that he uses to help us think through the different hooks. In this way, the book is a great reference for creating effective teaching presentations. Think through, make strategic choices, just add content - and you can be better at engaging and connecting with students.

But more than that, these lists of ideas and questions - this book - is about being intentional. (Makes me think of that other book I read!) Making choices and setting the stage deliberately. Thinking about the total learning experience...especially from the students' point of view. I don't teach history to teenagers like Dave Burgess did. But I do have little learners who are coming to my classroom. They will be coming to the space with expectations and agendas and interests and ideas. I must think about them, about content, about myself - and make all those things come together in the best way possible. The kids deserve for me to think about what I'm doing - about every aspect of what they will experience. 

Recently our new group of kindergartners came to my church classroom. They are a diverse group with different needs and abilities. One of my girls noticed a green wedge of paper on the ceiling. It's been there for months. I saw it but just ignored it. She was distracted by it. She kept pointing at it and wanted me to get it down. I didn't have an easy way to do that at the moment so I told her I would take care of it before she came back this week. So I was standing on a chair, stretching to remove a wedge of paper...creating an environment that all my learners could concentrate and work within. I should have kept that paper as a reminder to think about all the elements in my classroom. (I didn't; it's gone now.)

But she noticed. And that's the important thing. 

An environment ready for everyone to learn in.

You Make the Choice

from Teach Like a Pirate

Is there music playing? Can kids use the hot glue gun? Are the blinds open or closed? Do the kids sit and listen or move and do?

If you don't make a choice about it, you have chosen to abdicate and accept the default settings.

If something does work for you, choose to change it.

TLAP: Presentation Hooks, Part 1

I am reading and reflecting on the book Teach Like a Pirate by Dave Burgess. The "pirate" philosophy is built on these things: Passion, Immersion, Rapport, Ask/Analyze, Transformation, and Enthusiasm.

Dave Burgess uses Part II of the book to list some different types of presentation hooks, ways to engage students in lessons. The book contains questions to ask about teaching lessons so teachers can think about how to use the different engagement strategies.

Burgess writes: "Much of your success as an educator has to do with your attitude towards teaching and towards kids. The rest of your success is based on your willingness to relentlessly search for what engages students in the classroom and then having the guts to do it."

Here's a list of the different types of hooks and a brief description of each one. (Well, part 1 of the list.)

I Like to Move It, Move It - Use movement to engage students.

• The Kinesthetic Hook - Incorporating gestures, tossing and catching, motions, walking around, movement in different ways.
• The People Prop Hook - Using students as props or concepts, creating a graph or chart with students.
• The Safari Hook - Getting out of the classroom for part of the lesson (on the school campus or off of it)

Long Live the Arts - Use music, dance, drama, and art to engage students.

• The Picasso Hook - Drawing, making, creating non-word representations
• The Mozart Hook - Adding music, writing lyrics, creating songs
• The Dance and Drama Hook - Performing skits or dance, writing scripts, "interviewing" key people from the past
• The Craft Store Hook - Incorporating crafts or craft supplies

What's In It For Me? - Make personal connections to engage students.

• The Student Hobby Hook - Using outside interests of students in lessons
• The Real World Application Hook - Interacting with the world in meaningful way
• The Life Changing Lesson Hook - Incorporating life lessons in what you're teaching
• The Student Directed Hook - Providing student choice and giving them control
• The Opportunistic Hook - Using current events, trends, TV shows, or movies

These are three groups of hooks in the book. The next post will have the rest of the hooks.

While a lot of his specific examples apply to kids older than I regularly teach, the concepts still remain the same. As a teacher, I must be intentional in what I do. Using movement, art, and personal connections are all ways we can teach in early childhood as well as older kids. 

Making intentional choices - looking for ways to engage students - doing things in a purposeful way. 

It comes back to that great quote in the last post: 

"Everything you do or don't do [in teaching a lesson] is a choice."

(More presentation hooks in the next TLAP post. Part 2)

Some Inspiration from Blogosphere As School Year Starts

It's that time of year. School has started here where I live. Other teachers and students are headed back in the coming weeks.

Here are some things I've read recently that have interested me and have me thinking as school gears up again.

• Opening Up My Technology Can of Worms (Living Avivaloca)
  Aviva muses on technology and self-regulation. She makes some interesting points and made me think.
  
• My Take on Curriculum (The Road Traveled)
  Faige writes that curriculum cannot be one size fits all - and room for genius hour, maker spaces, and the like is important.
  
• Your Classroom Does Not Need to Be Pinterest Worthy to Be Effective (Pernille Ripp)
  Pernille is preaching my sermon. "I advocate for giving the room back to the students" she writes.
  
• 15 Years of What Not to Do (EdWords)
  William reviews some lessons he's learned in his 15 years of teaching. Some good considerations for all teachers as the year begins.
  
• Ideas for Using Environmental Print (Pre-K Pages)
  I love to reuse materials, especially those that would be tossed anyway. I helped Vanessa compile this list of different ways to use familiar words and logos for the classroom.
  
• 5 Quick Classroom Tricks (Really Good Teachers)
  I wrote this article of a few quick tricks and tips that helped me in the classroom. Nothing revolutionary - but sometimes those small things can really cause difficulty.

What have you been reading that has inspired you or caused you to think? Let me know below! I'm always looking for more to think about.

Follow me on Twitter for other links that inspire me.