Daily 5 - Alphabags

 There are so many awesome ways to utilize Daily 5 literacy instruction, by Gail Boushey and Joan Moser: http://www.the2sisters.com/the_daily_5.html. Daily 5 results are fantastic! But I found that I had so many different things to manage, so I had to problem solve the organization of this great program.
I created these Alphabags which are labeled with each student's number. In each bag is their Work-on-Writing Journal, their Write-the-Room book, and Word Work alphabet book. I also have them keep their phonics chart in the bag. This is a great storage solution for my classroom! I used removable plastic hooks: http://www.command.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/NACommand/Command/Products/Catalog/  and taught the procedure for how to hang-up and take down the alphabags through Interactive Modeling, by Responsive Classroom.

I still have the children use their own individual book bins, but that bin is specifically for Read-to-Self and Read-to-Someone.
This has really been working well this year. The children enjoy the handling of the materials and take pride in doing it well. They love making choices in their own literacy education and I enjoy the easy management of Daily 5 time.

Brain Break Sticks

 Brain Break Sticks are a great way to get kids up and moving for brief amounts of time. Kindergartners need these little breaks during a busy day! I found these fun popsicle sticks at www.lakeshorelearning.com and used a clear craft bucket with a ribbon for some flair.

Each stick has a label: Chant, Activity, Transition, Song.

At the bottom is the description of the brain break. Some of the physical activities include jumping jacks, planks, cross-body knee touches, etc. Chants include silly rhymes and songs while waiting in the hallway or during transitions like Silly Willy, 5 Green and Speckled Frogs, etc. Other activities include creating a class rainstorm, counting to a number, throwing pretend pizza dough, or playing an air band instrument.

Kids love these little activities and it helps them regroup during the day. I recommend making your own sticks with activities that you are comfortable managing in your classroom. For some fun activities, check out http://www.responsiveclassroom.org/product/99-activities-and-greetings .

 

Open House

Open House is our Kindergarten Orientation. We greet families and meet the children who will be our students for the year. It is also a time to take care of business and accomplish a few things.

 I create a "Take-Home Folder" for each child with the following labels: "To be LEFT at home." and "Bring it RIGHT back!" This helps busy families go through papers and assists with left vs. right skill building. I get these ready for each family and child before open house, with school papers and documents, my welcome packet, and favors. This year for my "bright" theme, I gave out glow sticks with the tag "We're going to have a bright year!"

Children also learn their class number and find their line order spot. (These are laminated stars with Velcro sticking them to the carpet.)



 This summer, I created Open House labels based on the checklist I have for families and students to complete together while they're here.

 

This is the set of labels I created:                         

 1. How is your child going home?
 2. Mark all of your supplies with your name.
 3. Stack tissues here.
 4. Take this home and create a page about yourself.
 5. Any extra supplies go in the baggie with your name.
 6. Sign up for conferences.
 7. Can you find your spot in line?
 8. Instructions for pencil box supplies.
 9. Put your folders in here.
 10. Where is your spot at the circle?
 11. Place your markers here.
 12. Wet wipes go here.

First students grab a checklist with their parents and try out their locker doors.

Then students put on a name tag and parents get some paperwork.

 Families also take home their first project for the year. These papers are scrapbook pages to be displayed on the "Masterpieces" art wall and then put into a class book. It's a great way to get to know one another. 

Here is my example!

At our school, we also have families sign up for conferences. They pick a time for both dates in the fall and winter and then write them down on a slip of paper. I also do reminder calls in addition to reminder notes. They are very well received!

 I keep markers, scissors, gluesticks, and glue bottles separate from our pencil boxes. We use them as community supples in bins that are color coordinated to match the tables. (Orange bin for the orange table, etc.) It's much easier to have families unpack supplies in an organized fashion that saves me time later. They follow the instructions and the community supplies are in bins together and the pencil boxes contain a box of crayons, a highlighter, pencils, and an eraser. Perfect!

Responding to a message is also a job for Open House. I love to see their faces afterwards!

 By far, my favorite part of Open House is meeting my kiddos. I talk to each child as they arrive at the door and as they leave with their families. (I also help when I can with the supply sorting.) The last item on the checklist is to tell Miss Smith one thing you like about Kindergarten already. This is a great clue as to what the students look forward to, enjoy, and feel. There was a sweetie this year who said, "I like you!"

Snack Pockets

Snack time is a welcome part of the day. The children are nourished, they get a little break, and we can use the time to be with them, too. But snack can take up a good chunk of time! Last year, I structured snack so that we washed our hands, got our milk from the cafeteria and walked back to our room to eat. That way, I could progress monitor with one child at a time or work on an intervention for a couple minutes with a kiddo while they ate. I used this shoe holder as a way for the kids to store their snacks (we have snack in the morning). They each have their own pocket and I can see clearly who needs cereal from me because they forgot or didn't bring a snack. It is hung on strong magnetic hooks. It works very well! For allergies, I keep that snack totally separate from the others. I like it because the line walks in, remains in a line, each student grabs his/her snack, and sits down. Smooth sailing!

Hopes And Dreams/Rule Creation - 2011/12

There are just never enough bulletin boards, are there? This is my "Hopes and Dreams" board from last year, which was a big piece of paper and boarder masking-taped up to the wall. I considered it very negative symbolism when the whole thing would be on the ground in the morning and I'd have to add another 20 pieces of tape to the bag and re-stick it up before the kiddos arrived. However, now I see it as a symbol of what we teachers do daily. We remind everyone of why we're at school and keep our goals in sight. We uplift and inspire, and occasionally stick everything back up when it all comes crashing down! It's too bad that this photo wasn't a video - you'll notice the bulging corners of the "board" because the whole thing was about to slide off and bite the dust. I'm happy to say that I have a new bulletin board (a real one!) for our Hopes and Dreams this year!

"Hopes and Dreams" are a part of Responsive Classroom, by Origins from the Northeast Foundation for Children. I am trained in Responsive Classroom and believe in it's validity and ability to empower teachers and students. Here's a link to find out more: http://www.originsonline.org/responsive-classroom .

"Hopes and Dreams" are a part of the Rule Creation process:
1. Establishing why we come to school.
2. Listing our hopes and dreams.
3. Brainstorming a whole bunch of rules!
4. Sorting the rules into Place, Self, and Each Other.
5. Grouping them into positively stated, general rules (no more than 3-5).
6. You add a rule as the teacher.
7. Publishing and displaying the rules with class signatures.

There they are beneath the pumpkin! This is the list from last year. (I didn't get a picture until October? No time!) The beauty of student created rules is the ownership that comes with them. Students are more connected to the guidelines and understand their purpose more clearly. The signatures are great when it's time to point out that we agreed to follow the rules. (Rule number 2 actually came from the kiddos! Score!)