Start of the Year Inspiration

I love to get inspiration from the blogosphere. That inspiration comes from lots of different places--reading blogs, checking Twitter, reflecting on books, talking with friends. Here are some links to things that have inspired my thinking as this new school year has started. (More beginning of the year inspiration.)


Say Good-Bye to Calendar Time (Teach Preschool)
Deborah reviews some of the reasons she changed her morning routines and discontinued the traditional calendar activities. "When I asked myself, 'Is the precious time we spend everyday on these kinds of rote drills truly the most meaningful and valuable use of our time?' or 'Does calendar time lead to meaningful conversations' or 'Does calendar time assist in building a strong community' or 'Are the children loving the process?' I had to say 'no.'”

Check out the related Studentcentricity broadcast: Is It Time to Dump Calendar Time and Letter of the Week?

Thief (Austin Kleon)
This poster shared by Austin still has me thinking. "The worst thief is he who steals the playtime of children."
(So much thinking, in fact, that I wrote about it.)


Upcycled Inventors Box (Little Worlds)
Ann writes about using recycled and repurposed items for play. Put all those things in a box and let the kids enjoy creating and exploring. "Never before have I come across a 'toy' that is as self sufficient, ever changing and always popular as the inventor’s box."

The 40 Book Challenge Revisited (Donalyn Miller)
Donalyn reviews her idea of the 40-book challenge and the ways that others have implemented or adjusted it. In doing so, some of these teachers have totally negated the rationale behind it. "Honestly, I don’t care if all of my students read 40 books or not. What matters is that students stretch themselves as readers and increase their competence, confidence, and reading motivation through their daily participation in our reading community." While this particular post does target practices for older students, it reminds me that I should (1) understand the WHY behind a recommended practice or strategy and (2) evaluate everything I do and make sure I know why I'm doing something and how to fit the strategy to meet my kids--and not the other way around.


Teaching Certainty (Seth Godin)
Seth challenges my thinking in broad ways all the time. In this short piece, he reminds us what students should be learning. "We've trained people to be certain for years, and then launch them into a culture and an economy where relying on certainty does us almost no good at all." He makes me want to rethink not only what I'm teaching but how I'm teaching it.

Teaching Tribe
I've become a part of the group The Teaching Tribe. It's been a great way to connect with other preschool teachers, get some inspiration (and ideas), and even encourage and be encouraged. I would recommend this group. But even more, I would recommend that you find a group of others (online or in real life) that could be a motivation, a support, an encouragement to you as you work with young children. Maybe a place to vent (occasionally) but really a place to grow.


Twitter
I've been a part of Twitter for a while. I've been through various stages in my Twitter journey. At this point, Twitter is primarily a way for me to be inspired and to grow. How? By finding (and sharing) great articles or blogs. By connecting with other educators (of all levels). By participating in chats (like #teacherfriends) that builds skills and connection. Recently I asked this question: "What's your best advice for an early childhood teacher?" Here are some responses:

• Let them play! Trust that they are learning! Just… Trust! @CarrieMarshall1
• Know WHY you are doing what you do with children. Be able to articulate your reasons for how you plan, what you do, the environment @ece_nerd
• 1. Trust that kids R learning while they play. 2. Stand up 4 what U know is right 4 kids. @sandychilton
• Follow the student's lead! Observe and support them where they are. @spiraledu

Those are some inspirational words for this year. 

What Should They Be Learning?

In addition to starting to read The Power of Play, I am finishing reading the book Creative Schools by Dr. Ken Robinson. The book is a good discussion of issues that are facing educators today. Dr. Robinson includes some good thoughts about what schools should do (and provides some real-world examples of some of these things).

His discussion on curriculum was very interesting to me and still has me thinking. He lists eight competencies that schools should facilitate; what teachers do in the classroom should help students develop these competencies.

Curiosity – asking questions and exploring how the world works

Creativity – generating ideas and practicing them

Criticism – analyzing information, evaluating ideas, reasoning and forming arguments about these things

Communication – expressing thoughts and feelings clearly through different media and in a variety of forms

Collaboration – working constructively with others

Compassion – feeling empathy and acting on it

Composure – developing a strong sense of self and creating balance within

Citizenship – engaging with society and participating successfully in it

I can see a place for all of these competencies in a preschool or kindergarten class (as well as a high school or college classroom). As I continue to think about how to act purposefully and intentionally, these competencies will come into play.

What do you think? Do you see these working in the curriculum you teach and the things you do in the classroom?

I haven’t quite finished Creative Schools. But it certainly is a thought-provoking book and fits nicely into all I’m thinking about at the present time.

Inspiration from the Blogosphere - 1/20/16

Reading blogs in my feed, on Facebook, and on Twitter is a great way to learn new things, have your thinking challenged, and just get inspired. Here's what inspired me recently from around the blogosphere--

Teaching Children the Way They’re Meant to Learn: Read Along Section One
Amanda at Not Just Cute has started a read along of Rae Pica's book What If Everybody Understood Child Development? As you know, I read and reflected on this book last summer. I'm really interested in what Amanda has to say about it.


QuotED: Rae Pica
Speaking of Rae Pica, here's a quote of hers that I love. It was posted in the quotations area of BAM Radio and inspired me again this week.


7 Truths Every Teacher Should Know About Sensory Processing
Dayna of Lemon Lime Adventures was a guest blogger on Pre-K Pages. Every time I read her posts, I think more and more about how kids are different and that we as teachers need to think about how our individual kids react and reflect on what we do.


Turns Out Monkey Bars and Kickball Might Be Good for the Brain
This NPR post highlights an elementary school in Texas that is adding more recess to the school day and seeing academic increases as a result. I'm reading more things about the value of play and movement...at least more people recognizing the value of those things. It's encouraging and affirming when I read these things in more mainstream places.


Picture Books in Middle School
The always-inspiring Pernille Ripp posts about why she uses picture books in her middle school classroom. I love picture books and have used them in all my classrooms (preschool, kindergarten, 1st grade, 2nd grade). These books can be important ways to talk about all kinds of things - for all ages of kids. Pernille inspires me in many ways and often challenges me to examine my practice. I loved this post.


Shake Painting
I enjoy seeing a "new" way to paint or explore art. No Time for Flash Cards has a new (to me) way to paint - shapes and paint in a container and SHAKE! I think this is a great way to paint...especially for those adults and/or kids who don't like a mess.


What has inspired you lately?

Inspiration from the Blogosphere: Teaching Strategies

I've been reading a lot lately about different ways to teach in the classroom. Here are some inspiring posts about what to do (and not do) in the classroom:


Play Is Not a Four Letter Word - Dr. Walter F. Drew gives commentary on play, particularly self play, for the Early Childhood and Youth Development blog book study. Check out the great information and resources.


When Did 19th Century Learning Become So Trendy? (8 Old Ideas That Are Actually Pretty Innovative - John Spencer looks at some old-but-new ways of teaching. I think his insights are argument that most things are useful when used with intention and in balanced ways.


Pandora in the Classroom - Music is a great resource for the classroom. Angela at Hippo Hooray for Second Grade gives some ideas for using Pandora to bring music into the classroom. I like using Pandora. Angela's list of stations make me want to explore and broaden my collection.


5 Common Practices I'm Kicking to the Curb - Over at Cult of Pedagogy, Jennifer is writing about practices that may need some re-evaluation or abandoning. Some great thought-provoking information and research here.


Understanding the Child's Mind-Body Connection - BAM Radio's episode examines the importance of movement to helping kids learn. Is movement important? "Sitting is the new smoking."

Beginning of School: Inspiration the from Blogosphere

As the school year begins, I've been reading all kinds of posts related to the classroom. While lots of blogs have been including activities and other helps for teachers, some posts have been triggering thoughts about students in the classrooms. Here are a few posts that have me thinking.

The Small Changes I Can Make (Blogging Through the Fourth Dimension) - Pernille Ripp always makes me think. But this post really hits home. What small things can I change or do that will make kids more successful? Have I been doing things that hinder kids' success?

The Secret of Success (Teacher Tom) - Speaking of success, Teacher Tom reminds (and challenges) us to remember that success in education is more than academics; we must think about those emotional and social skills. Our classrooms should be places children can "practice cooperating, sharing, resolving conflicts, and being sociable in the real world."

Working Together to Create a Classroom Community (Fun-a-Day) - This post is a great companion to the previous one. Check out these ideas for building community in your classroom. "A classroom community means that my room is a safe, friendly environment for everyone (kids and teachers, alike) to learn and grow together."

Hard Questions 5: New School Year Edition (#WmChamberlain) - This list of five questions can trigger lots of thinking. As you are preparing the classroom or beginning the year, these questions can lead you to reflect and possibly shift direction.

Does Your Classroom Tell a Story? (Edutopia) - Your classroom can be a place of curiosity and wonder. It can be a space that engages students and fosters meaningful conversations. These tips can help you create that type of environment.

What's Important (Brick by Brick) - Does your classroom focus on what you think is important or is it flexible enough to adjust to what kids think is important?

Inspiration from the Blogosphere

Lately I've been seeing posts related to my favorite thing - repurposing materials and creating your own resources. Here are a few that have inspired me recently--

• D.I.Y. Letter Stamps (Make, Take, Teach)
  
• Craft Stick Marble Run (Frugal Fun 4 Boys)
  
• Traffic Signs (Doodles and Jots)
  
• QTip Manipulatives (Kindergarten Smorgasbord)

My kids enjoyed using newspaper rolls to build. They explored lots of ways to use them. Check out my post on Pre-K and K Sharing.

Follow my Dollar Store and Dumpster Ideas Pinterest Board. Pins about ways to reuse, repurpose, and recycle are added regularly.

Inspiration from the Blogosphere - Windy Day Edition

Spring is finally coming here. I've been thinking about fun things to do in the spring weather. Here are some fun "windy day" things to do.

Kites

Use a paper plate to make a kite: Decorate with markers, stickers, or your favorite art materials. Punch a hole in one side. Attach ribbon or crepe paper streamers to the side opposite the hole. (Use a stapler.) Tie string through the hole; tie a craft stick to the other end for holding. Experiment in the wind to make the paper plate kite fly.

Check out this Jellyfish Kite (Sun Hats & Wellie Boots). 

Repurpose a plastic bag for a kite (I'm a teachers, get me outside here!).

More kite ideas (Kids Ministry 101)

Airplanes

Make an airplane from straws and paper strips.

Or fold lots of different paper ones using these ideas (10 Paper Airplanes).

Streamers

Staple or tape ribbons to dowel sticks to make streamers to hold in the wind. Or tie long ribbons to small plastic bracelets to play with in the wind.

Or use scarves to explore wind (B-Inspired Mama).

Make a homemade anemometer (Weather WizKids).

Flags, Pinwheels, Weather Vanes

Set up a small weather vane or stake a few flags or pinwheels in the ground. Watch them spin, turn, and flutter.

Make your own pinwheel - check out this how to (Red Ted Art).

Other Ideas

Blow bubbles and watch them float on the wind. Make your own bubbles (Science Kids).

Hang windchimes or mobiles and watch them move in the wind.

More wind ideas from I'm a Teacher, Get Me Outside Here!

What I've Been Reading: Lost at School

I read a lot of things. Since I'm finishing my university classes this semester, I read a lot about teaching for school and not much on my own time.

But I'm trying to read through all my "to be read" lists (and I have several...long ones). The book Lost at School by Ross W. Greene has been on my "education" list for a while. I checked it out from our great public library and have just finished it.

It was a really great book - one that kept me thinking and pondering.

This book focuses on kids with challenging behavior. You know those kids - the ones that always seem to be "in trouble." (This book focuses on elementary and older students.) The ones that don's seem to respond to discipline plans or incentives or consequences or anything. Throughout this book I kept thinking "I wish I knew this last year."

The core of this book: Behind every challenging behavior is an unsolved problem, a lagging skill, or both.

Students with challenging behavior are lacking thinking skills or problem-solving skills to deal with concerns so they use whatever tools they have to deal with the issues...and that leads to challenging behavior. This book presents a plan to help teachers and students work together to collaboratively solve problems in ways that are mutually satisfying.

This book reaffirmed my own thinking - behavior is telling us something. Usually unmet needs are at the core of challenging behavior. And working with kids (instead of forcing things on them) will help solve the problem and diminish the behavior.

Meeting needs - helping kids develop skills - helping kids discover other tools and other ways to act - great goals that every teacher can support. That's been my goal all along. This book just helped me rethink how I was doing it and what I could do differently.

As I work with kids from now on, I will look for ways to talk with them and discover their concerns. Not just impose my concerns or my solutions. Working WITH kids, not ON them.

Pinterest - I Gave In

For quite a while now, I keep telling people that I have resisted Pinterest.

Not because I think it isn't valuable or helpful. It is. In fact, even as I resisted, I would peek from time to time to find something specific.

But I kept resisting. Because I knew it could be a bad idea for me. Pinterest, it wasn't you. It was me.

I often fall into the rabbit hole of social media and blogs. I sit down to get some work done, take a look at Twitter or Facebook or Feedly for just a minute, and look up hours later with nothing accomplished.

And I knew that Pinterest would probably be even more so.

But I recently decided that it would be more helpful that hurtful - and I would just need to exercise some restraint. So I joined up.

I have two boards that have received the most attention at this point--

• Art Ideas - ideas for all kinds of fun art explorations for kids

• Dollar Store and Dumpster - ideas for repurposing and reusing items - really lots of ideas for homemade, inexpensive teaching and play resources

I also have a board for Brick by Brick posts and a couple of other school ones. I plan on adding specific areas of play or types of activities in the future.

You see, I'm trying to exercise restraint. I don't want to spend a lot of time there, all at once.

Maybe this will work out after all.

Feel free to post links to your Pinterest boards in the comments. I'll visit...some time soon...I think.

Play Dough Inspiration from the Blogosphere

I've posted about play dough on PreK and K Sharing blog.

So I've been thinking a lot about play dough. I remember my mom making play dough. And years later, when I made my own play dough for the first time, those memories came flooding back.

Play dough is so versatile and can generate lots of learning opportunities. Here are some ideas from around the blogosphere related to play dough.

Dr. Jean, on her great blog, recently had a whole series on using play dough in the classroom--

• Play Dough 101
• Play Dough 102
• Play Dough 103

Here are some other recipes for play dough--

• Got Dough? (Dr. Jean)
• Best Ever No-Cook Play Dough Recipe (Imagination Tree)
• Ocean Slime (Buggy and Buddy)
• Dirt Dough (Growing a Jeweled Rose)

Here are some things to do with it--

• Fresh Herb Sculptures (Nurture Store)
• Make a Puzzle (This Reading Mama)
• Play Dough Center (Pre-K Pages)
• Fun Props for Play Dough (Teach Preschool)
• Name Search Play Dough Game (Homegrown Friends)
• 3 Essential Play Dough Tools You Might Already Have (Tinkerlab)

Wandering Around the Craft Store

My word for this year is ENJOY. I'm working on being present and enjoying what happens as I teach and learn.

As this summer has unwound, I've discovered something. Well, not discovered it; I already knew it. I've just been reminded of it. I feel guilty when I'm not doing something "productive." When I do something just for the enjoyment of it, I feel like I'm wasting time. 

I've been reading. A lot. And not books on being a better teacher or techniques for helping kids learn. Novels. Mysteries. Interesting nonfiction that has nothing to do with education. I felt guilty about it. But I don't now. (Check out my Empty Shelf to find out what I've been reading.)

Resting and enjoying are productive. I can get recharged and inspired and ready to tackle the next productive thing.

I was feeling rather down and uninspired the other day. So I went to a local craft store and just wandered around. I wasn't looking for anything. In fact, when I went to the "teacher section," I immediately turned and left.

And I found some inspiration and ideas. I jotted a couple of things down for this blog. Ideas that I hope will grow into reality. Or may not. And that's okay. I was energized, my enthusiasm jump-started again.

I saw this.

It's a stand-up caddy for crafts. It folds closed. It has smaller pockets and the large storage area. I began wondering. What could I use this for in my classroom? A portable center. A reading nook accessary. A bin for a tossing game. Lots of ideas. It was on sale but I didn't buy it. Yet.

Then I saw these.

T-shirts with chalkboard area. What? I didn't know these existed. I think these would be great as pillows. To use in a center/area of the room. These were also on sale. I didn't buy any but I think I may go back and get some to make some pillows. (If I do, I'll post about it.)

When I was talking to my wife, a sewing expert, she said, "Well, you can get some of that fabric and make pillows, too." What?? I checked online. You can get blackboard fabric. 

I did enjoy myself. I think I'm going to go on other exploration trips for ideas and just relaxing.

On my exploration at the craft store, I also saw this sign.

Yep. It's my motto for this summer.

Inspiration from the Blogosphere - Repurposing Edition

This week I read all kinds of posts about repurposing things. That's my favorite things to do for the classroom and the kids! Here are some great ideas that I ran into this week--

10 Playful Ways to Transform a Pizza Box (Teach Preschool) - Deborah and Courtney give ideas for all kinds of ways that pizza boxes can supplement your classroom.

Lego Math: Skip Counting (Kids Activities Blog) - I've never seen this idea before. Use Lego bricks to "build" a skip counting sequence. Lots of thinking can happen with this.

DIY Pool Noodle Connectors (A Little Pinch of Perfect) - A truly great repurposing idea (and just in time for summer)! I don't have a need for this at the moment, but I still want to hit the dollar store and get these just to make them.

Rock Dominoes (childcareland blog) - I'm always looking for ways to incorporate nature materials in learning experiences. I love these rock dominoes. I think they look great just in a bowl or jar, too.

Sidewalk Chalk (Mr. Mark's Classroom) - Kids love chalk, and kids love writing on sidewalks. Make your own sidewalk chalk and have a great time outside.

Build a Play Dough Toolkit (Modern Parents, Messy Kids) - Play dough can be a great creative exploration for kids. Throw in a few household items and have even more fun. Look around your house or classroom and find new things to add to your play dough fun.


P.S. It's summer, so it's time for the summer book study. This year the focus isn't on a book but a topic - challenging behavior. Find out all the details at Pre-K Pages. (Check out this page for past book studies. I'll post updates for this year's study there, too.)

Favorite 2013 Posts from the Blogosphere

I love using Evernote. I use it to store ideas and posts that I want to remember and use. What I discovered as I looked through the notes I made during 2013 - I save a lot of things and don't review those ideas. I rediscovered some ideas that I really want to try. 

As I looked through those ideas and thought about this past year, I chose some top posts that inspired (or will continue to inspire) me. 

Starting with the Answer (Matt B. Gomez) - Give kids the answer and ask them to come up with the story/question. This post echoed in my mind for a while. And it's the inspiration for our morning math routine.

Ten Ways to Deal with a Hard Year (Education Rethink) - Okay, technically this post was in 2012, but I have continued to reread it through 2013. John Spencer states some truths about hard years. My first year last year was challenging...and this year has had some challenges, too. John's post reminds me to look for the successes and to look for the learning.

Two Words the World Needs (Jon Acuff) - This post is no longer active. Jon has moved and his old posts have disappeared. (One reason I love Evernote. I copied the post into my notes and can still read it offline even though it's gone online.) Jon wrote: "The world has a lot of stuff. It does. .... But there is one thing that the world is lacking. One thing it is desperate for. More you." This post challenged me to think about what my class really needs - it needs for me to bring my own unique perspective and talents to help my kids learn.

How a Second Grader Got Me to Stop Teaching and Start Listening (Elementary Math Maniac) - I'd recommend this post just for you to see how a second grader is thinking about addition. But this post also challenges me to remember that my students are thinking and building understanding in different ways. Sometimes I need to guide it and sometimes I need to listen and understand it.

Using Twitter in the Primary Classroom (Learning and Sharing with Ms. Lirenman) - This post is inspiring and I wanted to start using Twitter in my classroom this year. I tried and ran into connection problems. Then I moved schools and was confronted with starting over - so I haven't accomplished this goal. But I still want to do it and this post continues to remind me why.

25 Clever Classroom Tips for Elementary School Teachers (Buzzfeed) - I love quick ideas, especially reuse or repurpose ideas. These are some fun ones. (I use binder clips to label my student mailboxes and Angry Bird beanbags go on desks when students leave the room.)

As I read through all those notes, I discovered these top ideas from 2013 that I want to try--

Interactive Notebook (Matt B. Gomez)

Early Finisher Board (Teaching in the Early Years)

Junk Drawer in a Box (Education Rethink)

Brain Chains (Teacher Tipster)

Got any great links to share with me?

Baby Steps with Technology

I love reading about people using technology in their classrooms. People like Matt Gomez, Ms. Lirenman, Mrs. Wideen, and many others challenge me, inspire me, and make me want to use it more in my classroom.

My goal this year was to start tweeting with my class. I tried to get it started with my new first graders but ran into some access issues. I couldn't get on to Twitter at school and HootSuite decided to act up when I was trying to use it. Then I moved to a new school and to a new grade level.

I'm still working to get back into my "flow" of teaching after the move and reboot. Twitter is still on my list of goals, but we're working up to it. As a step, we are reflecting on our day and listing things that "stuck with us" on sticky notes and put on a poster. This will evolve into tweeting (if I can work out the access stuff).

The instructional coach at my new school pointed me toward some new (to me) online resources. One that I have been using regularly is We Give Books. I use it during our morning snack. As kids eat, I project a book and read it to the class. We have read several books (some more than once) and talk about characters and plot. We find words that match our focus for the week (vowel sounds or other types of words). We talk about illustrations and how they support the text. Things that we would do with any read-aloud. But this book is projected and easy for all to see. 

I like that the pages turn like a "real book" and that we see the cover, title page, and back cover, too. This has helped me add more reading in the day and keep kids focused on instructional things during a time that could easily become wasted time. (Yes, we talk and have conversations and build our community. That's important, too.)

Another resource is portaportal. You can sign up and create your own bookmarks that can be accessed anywhere. The coach has set up a school set of bookmarks and given us the visitor sign in. Links to We Give Books, online support for our reading resources, links for math resources, and other pertinent links are all there. I don't need to remember how to get to a place or create bookmarks (that I can only access when I'm at school). I can use this to check out resources from school, home, or wherever I am on whatever Internet device I'm on.

I have also taken my "old" iPad to school. We've mostly used it for music. I play "thinking music" while kids work on some tasks. I'll put on some "dancing music" so we can move for a few minutes and energize our brains. I'm looking forward to integrating it into our day in other ways, too.

I'm happy with these "baby steps" in using technology and will continue to work toward being like those inspirational teachers.

Inspiration from the Blogosphere: Literacy

Each week I read lots of blogs and get lots of inspiration. Here are a few things inspiring me this week.

Journals--I'm look for ways to adjust/improve our journaling in the classroom. I like the idea of interactive notebooks that Matt Gomez blogged about. His follow-up post about math in the interactive notebooks was also thought-provoking. I also liked this post about interactive journals on Literacy & Math Ideas.

Centers--I'm always looking for center ideas. This week I saw these iPad Literacy Stations on Mrs. Wideen's blog (and I'm always looking for a way to use Legos!). This post from Elementary Matters has ideas about managing centers.

Rubric--We've been working on a writing rubric for our first grade classes, a child-friendly one. Kindertaining Kindergarten posted a writing rubric for her kindergartners.

And I loved this post on PreK & K Sharing about using the hallway - but all the ideas are great for the classroom, too.

Inspiration from the Blogosphere: Sight Words

In my new adventure in first grade, I've learned a lot of things...and a lot of things have become more prominent to me. One area that is now looming large in my awareness - sight words. In the past few weeks, I've seen that knowing these words can really help my readers. I have some low level readers that just don't know many words. They can use their knowledge of sounds to figure out unknown words. They can use context clues and illustrations to get those "tricky" words. But their reading would improve if they just knew the sight words, those recurring words that sometimes defy the rules of phonics.

My goal in these last (?!) weeks of school is to help those readers move forward. One way I'm going to do that is to help them gain a few more words. We'll practice at school and I'll try to help them practice at home. So, I've been gathering ideas from the blogosphere.

One idea that we've already been using it sight word parking lot. I first read about this game on Simply Centers. I filed the idea away in my brain for a while. And recently decided to use it with my readers. I had used these Word Wall Bingo cards in the past. (My cards are laminated.) I wrote sight words on the spaces with wet erase markers (to be more durable but still erasable). I would call out words and the kids used cars to mark the words they found. We would continue until we had three in a row. They loved this. We will be playing this again...and I'll make a center for pairs to play together.

Here are some other ideas that I've seen recently that I want to use with my readers:

Sight Word Guess Who (This Reading Mama) - The post is older but someone just linked to it recently and I discovered it. A reading version of the Guess Who board game. Players must guess the secret word of their opponents.

Sight Word Path (Classroom Game Nook) - This game is adaptable for sight words, vocabulary words, or any other word learning you need.

Teaching Sight Words (Make, Take & Teach) - This post is full of ideas and games for sight words. The one that I definitely will incorporate quickly is Fiddle Sticks, words on craft sticks. Kids draw out words from a cup and keep the ones they read. If someone draws out the marked stick, he must return all his sticks to the cup. Fun!

High Five Sight Words (Growing Kinders) - I like the simplicity of this idea. It can help all my readers, with reminders of words they know or focusing on new words we are working on each week.

I have lots more ideas in my file...and find new ones each week. Do you have any particular favorites in helping readers?

Bricky Awards 2012

Last year, I decided not to try and weed through all my favorite blogs to nominate for education blog awards. I chose to create my own "awards" so I could name whomever I chose. Thus, the first Bricky awards.

I looked back through that post. I realized that I still go and read all of those blogs still today. I would recommend them readily to anyone who wants ideas, thoughts, and inspiration for teaching. So, this year, I decided to spotlight some of my new "finds," some blogs that I regularly read now (in addition to the previous list).

Inspiration Award - My Hullabaloo
Matt is the teacher/blogger I want to be when I grow up. He inspires me with his use of technology in his kindergarten classroom and the other things he does with kids. I hope I can be a teacher like him, using technology as a tool but not as the end itself, as I grow in my first grade role.

Getting Techy Award - Digital Kindergarten
I love the thoughtful approach this blog takes to technology, looking for ways to use it meaningfully and appropriately with this age group.

Freebie Award - Freebielicious
This blog is a collaboration of several bloggers. You can get some free printables for centers or other activities. I follow several of the individual blogs, too, but this is a great aggregation of free stuff. (Always a great thing for teachers!)

It Adds Up Award - Math Coach's Corner
This blog has great ideas for math activities. It covers all grade levels, so sometimes the ideas don't apply. But I have adapted some of them to fit my first graders.

And go to last year's post to read about some great bloggers that I respect, admire, and still read.

Game On!

Today I am blogging on the collaborative blog PreK and K Sharing about making games for kids.

Here are a few posts about making and playing games.

Posts on Brick by Brick

• Letter Twister Game (using the Giant Game Floor Mat)
• Toss and Spell Game
• Our Trail Board Game
• Life Sized Board Game
• Pick Up Sticks 

Posts on Other Blogs

• DIY Bored Game (Gardening Without Skills)
• Swimming Pool Math Toss (Blissfully Domestic)
• Paint Chip Matching Game (Irresistible Ideas for Play Based Learning)
• Parking Lot Game (House of Baby Piranha)
• "Car"d Game (Toddler Approved)
• Paint Chip Game Board (Alphamom)
• Ziplock Quilt Math Game (Pre-K Pages)
• Color Game (Teach Preschool)

What homemade games have you made? What's your favorite game to play with kids?

Inspiration from the Blogosphere - Painting

We love to paint in our classroom. We paint almost every week. So I'm always looking for new ideas (new at least to me). Here are some painting posts that I encountered recently.


Teach Preschool: Painting with Color Cubes - Deborah always inspires me in many ways. Her use of cubes is something that I always want to try. And we're definitely going to try using color cubes in our painting explorations.


My Hullabaloo: Lego Painting - Matt gave Lego bricks and paintbrushes to his kids. The results are great. I think combining Legos and paint is genius!


The Artful Parent: Painting Stickers from the Stationary Store - We've painted a lot of things but never stickers. I buy stickers from the office supply store but not white ones. I love the results that they got - both with the stickers and with the paintings they made that used them.


The Artful Parent: 35 Homemade Art Materials - Lots of links for different kinds of paint (and other art materials) that kids can make and then use.


Ooey Gooey: Flashlight Brush - I didn't know I needed one of these until I saw it. I wonder about painting in a darkened box or under a table tent. This just seems like a fun idea and I want to try it out.

Repurposing Inspiration from the Blogosphere

I love to repurpose, reuse, and recycle stuff. We use all kinds of things for different purposes. For example, we used a cooling rack (and wood kindling and tissue paper) to create a campfire for our fishing trip. We cooked our "catch" over the fire.

This week I read some other great ideas and inspiration for reusing and repurposing items.

Reuse sweet potato bags and cardboard for sewing cards - The Wish to Find Out: Simple Sewing for Toddlers

Recycle and reuse bottle lids for art explorations - Inspiration Surrounds, Creativity Abounds: Bottle Top Creations

Repurpose old drawers for imaginative play - Irresistible Ideas for Play Based Learning: Good Old Drawers

Reuse an old game spinner and burner cover to create a better, easier-to-use (and changeable) spinner - Pre-K Pages: Easy DIY Magnetic Spinner

Recycle food containers and number labels for your grocery store - Getting Messy with Ms. Jessi: Numbers Everywhere

Repurpose all kinds of things to create invitations for play - The Imagination Tree: Creating Invitations to Play


Let's repurpose with purpose - and let kids play and learn!