K is for Kindergarten

S is for Super!

2012-02-05T05:26:00.001-08:00

It's finally here! Super Bowl Sunday! It's been two weeks since Our New England Patriots became AFC Champions, there's been a lot of hype and anticipation and soon it will all come to a halt at kick off time.

Now I'm not a huge football fan, baseball is my sport, I won't turn on football just because there's a game on, but these are The Patriots and I will always tune in to watch the "home town" team no matter what the sport.

On Friday we celebrated Patriots Day. Not to be confused with the Patriots Day in April, that's for The Boston Marathon, this Patriots Day was for all things football!

We asked the kids and staff to dress in red, white, and blue. We made signs, designed our own helmets, and made some predictions.

I tried my best not to influence their picks in any way, but cringing when three of my little kiddos placed their helmets in the NY Giants column was probably not the best way to show impartiality!

So I'm hoping that my cherubs have a little insight when it comes to picking a winner.
Final score...Patriots 14, Giants 3.

Works for me! Go Pats!

Snow is a four letter word!

2012-01-23T16:00:00.000-08:00

It's late January and we finally have snow! Since we came back from our holiday break we've been making snowmen, reading snow stories and making snow predictions but the weather just didn't want to cooperate. Until...

This weekend when we finally were blessed with 4-6" of the white fluffy stuff.

So today before it all melts away I planned some really fun snowy activities!

While my little snowflakes were at art this morning I filled a bucket with snow, collected some materials and waited for them to return.

I sat them all in a circle and we built a new little friend.

We talked about what we thought would happen to our snowman during the day.

Some thought he'd run away like our gingerbread man, but most knew he was going to melt.

I gave them each a simple recording sheet so we could draw our observations at different intervals throughout the day.

recording our observations!

We measured our new friend to see how many cubes tall he is.

And then we made some predictions.

He melted...

and melted...

and melted!

We were sad to see our new friend reduced to snowman soup, but we sure had a lot of fun watching him!

C is for Community

2012-01-19T16:31:00.000-08:00

I am grateful and humbled. Today I personally witnessed a community come together to make a difference in the lives of young children.

With only 4 days left to fund my DonorsChoose project, I watched my email box fill with notifications of donations. Someone was doing some networking on my behalf. I am not completely positive who that someone was, but I'm 99% sure and I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank that person.

I have always known my school was a special place. A place where teachers and parents come together to make education better for their children. We truly are a community of caring individuals and I can't imagine teaching anywhere else.

The last email I received was from DonorsChoose telling me that my latest project has been fully funded! What a great surprise! As one of my donors said, "it takes a village!" I couldn't agree more.

Thank you all for your kindness and generosity...it is truly beyond measure.

G is for Giving

2012-01-17T17:32:00.000-08:00

There are two reasons for this post, first and foremost to thank some very generous people for their incredible generosity. With their compassion and donations my classroom is a better place for students to learn and grow.

Donors Choose is an on-line charity where teachers like me can post classroom projects that are not or can not be funded through traditional school budgets. The items we ask for enrich the learning experiences of our students in ways that would normally not be possible.

During the past two years, because of this wonderful organization and the people who donate here, my students have two brand new classroom carpets, and a beautiful reading area with new book shelves, book baskets, and comfy cozy bean bag chairs.

I can not begin to tell you what a difference these items have made to the look and feel of my room. The children choose to sit in the library area to read, play a game, or just sit quietly with a friend. Books are more accessible and children are wanting to read, and therefore becoming better readers!

Many kindergarten teachers can attest to the fact that kindergarten has become very academic and because of that, it has also become less developmentally appropriate. Academics and a very full schedule have taken the place of play. There have been many studies that show the importance of play in early childhood education. Through my latest project "Let's Put the Kid Back In Kindergarten" I am attempting to do just that!

I am lucky to have a playhouse built right into my classroom. This playhouse has been there since 1946! It's adorable and has seen it's share of 5 year-olds. I've recently given it a new paint job, but it's needs a bit more.

In my latest project I'm asking for dress up clothes, and some new pretend food and dishes. All materials to help foster imagination and pretend play. Play, that's so important to development. Where young children can learn to share, imagine, negotiate and just have fun without a lot of direct adult interaction.

With only 6 days left to fund this project I am asking for your help. Any donations are greatly appreciated but if that's not possible, just pass it on and get the word out!

If you are a teacher, I can not tell you what a valuable resource DonorsChoose can be. It's not a lengthy process to post a project and it's worth every minute spent doing it. Your students will thank you for it!

Thank you!

Lisa

Let's Put the Kids Back in Kindergarten

M is for Memory

2012-01-08T20:00:00.000-08:00

I do some of my best thinking in the shower. It's the one truly quiet moment of my day. I'm usually the first one awake in the morning, so while the rest of my family is still snoring beneath the covers I'm starting my day with my brain working overtime trying to solve the world's problems.

Okay, maybe not the problems of the entire world, but at least the part of it that I'm in charge of...my classroom.

There is a little girl in my classroom, she is one of the sweetest little girls I have ever come across. She's exceptionally kind to her friends, always has a smile on her face, comes from a wonderful home with parents who read to her, work with her, and truly care about the success of their child. She listens during lessons and tries hard to finish her work the best that she can, but for whatever reason, she's struggling to remember the letters and sounds I have introduced.

There is just a connection that is not being made. I've tried different strategies, her parents are working with her at home, but it's just not "sticking" for lack of a better term.

So there I was in the shower thinking about her...and then I remembered something!

On Friday while in line to go out to play she asked me to tie her shoe, as I knelt to do that she said, "Mrs. Collins, you smell just like my mom." Then later that same day, after blowing her nose, she gave herself a squirt of hand sanitizer then said, "That stuff smells like my doctor's hands!"

Wow! Who doesn't have scents that bring us right back to a place or time? Smells that remind us of people we know or knew? Jergen's lotion reminds me of my grandfather, Polo by Ralph Lauren reminds me of the big man on campus at college, incidentally I'm pretty sure he took a bath in that stuff, the smell of Johnson's baby powder brings me right back to changing diapers when my boys were babies and when I smell Coppertone, I'm baking in the sun at the local beach.

So there I was...in the shower, rinsing the shampoo out of my hair, the same shampoo that reminds my little cherub of her mom. So, I thought what if I somehow match each letter to a scent? The letter O smells like oranges...B like a banana! If certain smells help her to remember, I'm willing to try. It might get a little tricky somewhere around the letter Q, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it!
Wish us luck...I'll keep you posted!

"Smell is a potent wizard that transports you across thousands of miles and all the years you have lived."~ Helen Keller

V is for Versatile!

2012-01-02T18:56:00.000-08:00

A really big thank you to Sarah at A Kinder Garden in Bloom who is my newest follower and has graciously awarded me wtih The Versatile Blogger Award!

These are the rules:

1. Thank the person that nominated you with a link back to them.

2. Tell 7 things about yourself.

3. Pass this award on to 15 newly discovered blogs and let them know that they’ve received an award!

And now 7 things about me...

1. I truly love my job. I work with the best teachers on the planet hands down. Even when I've had a bad day, I can't wait to go back and try again.

2. I rock at parallel parking!

3. I am the mom of three really good boys. All brilliant and very handsome.

4. I am married to a teacher and my oldest son wants to be one.

5. I live in the Halloween capital of the world, and Halloween is my favorite holiday.

6. I am a huge Red Sox fan, even though I'm currently mad at them.

7. I love the summer and despise the winter. Considering I live in New England I get the best, or worst of both seasons!

And some really great kindergarten blogs!

1. Kindergarten Tales

2.Mrs. Wills Kindergarten

3. Lil Country Kindergarten

4. Kindergarten Garden

5.Playing with Pixie Dust

6. K:Double Stuffed

7. Thoughts from a Kindergarten Teacher

8. Peace Love and Kinder

9. Kindergarten Rocks

10. KinderKaren

11. A Little Kinder Told Me So

12. Giggle Giggle Kindergarten

13. Its a Jungle Out There

14. Mrs. Patton's Patch

15. The Teacher Diaries

And there you have it! Thanks again Sarah!

I is for Inspiration

2011-12-03T19:36:00.001-08:00

The school where I teach is a lab school. We are located on the campus of our local university, so many of the teachers in our school are teaching not only children but future teachers as well.

I take this part of my job very seriously, remembering my teacher mentor and the wonderful way she inspired me.
She's retired now, but still continues to mentor student teachers inspiring them with her knowledge, her leadership skills, and her love of children.

As I think of her, I wonder If I am doing the same for those college students who walk through my door. There are many, freshman and sophomores who are there to just observe, juniors who are given lessons to teach, and finally seniors who this week are responsible for taking over the classroom.

I think I've been able to teach them some classroom organization, how to read a good story with expression, plan a lesson or two, hopefully a little bit of classroom management (which in kindergarten can be a bit like herding chipmunks) and how to switch gears on the fly. I hope I've taught them how to roll with the punches, work really hard and tirelessly, and how to be patient even when it's really really difficult.

It's the inspiration that I worry about.

I think of the conversations we often have at lunch time in the teacher's room. It's the place where we vent our frustrations over administrative policies, reading and math programs we may or may not like, how exhausted we all are, how sometimes children and parents can get the best of us. We vent about how hard we work and how little we are paid for our efforts. There are days when I'm pretty sure we aren't very inspiring at all.

I know I can do better.

What I really want those future teachers to know is how much I love my job. How being a teacher really is the best job in the world. That even though the paycheck isn't a big one, I love going to school each and everyday. That even when I've had a bad day, and yes bad days will happen, I can't wait to get there the following day and try again, how lucky I am to be working with some of the best teachers in the world, and...

how very great it feels knowing that I am making a difference in the lives of children.

Now that's inspiration.

F is for Friendship

2011-11-16T18:14:00.001-08:00

Children are little mysteries in many ways. In the way they learn, navigate their day, and interact with the people around them. Their relationships with their parents, with me, other adults and mostly with each other is interesting to watch.
This year I've really enjoyed watching the friendships grow.

I have children in my class who were already friends because they went to preschool together. I have the twins who are the best of friends. There are a few who have found it easy to make friends because they have something in common; maybe siblings together in another grade, or maybe because the live in the same apartment building and have seen each other in the elevator.

But friendship is a funny thing. Two kids can meet on a beach, on a playground or at the park and become the best of friends for that moment even if they most likely won't ever cross paths again. However, there are other times when one little girl or boy can have a tough time knowing how to make friends because they can't quite figure out how to find that one little connection that would bring two kids together.
I try my best to guide these kids in the right direction, maybe partner them up with different kids hoping something will click but sometimes despite my best efforts it just doesn't happen. It can be heartbreaking to watch but I guess you can't force a friendship.

Friendship is a special thing. It takes time to build and grow. Friendships need to be nurtured carefully because friendships are fragile. Children can't possibly know how fragile because at that age, friendships change daily. How many of us can say that the best friends we had in kindergarten, high school or even college are still our best friends years later?
It's only when we grow up do we realize how important our friendships are to us. I'm not sure what I'd do without mine. We vent about work, and about kids, we laugh together, and sometimes cry together. We cheer each other's accomplishments, and comfort each other when things aren't going so well.

Unfortunately, sometimes it takes almost losing a friend to realize how very important that friend is to us. It's just one of those really difficult life lessons. The ones that really have to hurt so we can learn from them.
Friendship is not something I can teach my kids. I can teach them to be kind , take care of one another, and have fun together but I can't teach them the importance of not only being a good friend but having one too. I know I wouldn't trade mine for the world.

"Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another, 'What! You too? I thought I was the only one." ~C.S. Lewis

S is for Soapbox

2011-10-02T16:07:00.000-07:00

This blog post will not be a story about how cute kindergarten kids are, there will be no funny anecdotes, cute or creative bulletin board ideas, lesson plans, pictures of field trips or ideas for classroom management. There won't be any of that in this post and for that I am sorry.

Certainly posting about those subjects is where I feel most comfortable as a writer, but occasionally something grabs my attention that just screams, "Write about this!"

I was puttering around Facebook this morning and came across a friend's status update,

"Okay, I don't get it.....let's use more assessments in kindergarten to assess our students....here's an idea, let's look at those in the trenches, get them to talk with the DESE and really make progress! Silly people!"

Now, knowing this friend like I do, I knew he had to have read about this somewhere, so I Googled, and sure enough, there it was, State Aims to Test its Youngest Students.
I dove in and almost instantly felt my spine start to tingle, my jaw clench and every fiber of my kindergarten teacher-self cringe more and more with each word.

Now ask any early childhood teacher and they will tell you that it was only a matter of time. We all knew this was coming. We already suffer from assessment overkill. Before these little ones walk through our classroom doors for the first time, we assess their early learning with the ESI-R. Within a few weeks we will begin the DIBELS, DRA, K/1 inventory, and BAS. These acronyms mean little to most people but to early childhood educators, they mean more time away from our students. Assessment certainly has it's place. It can help drive instruction, helping us to differentiate our instruction to help all learners; the students who struggle and the students who need to be challenged, and all those in between. I welcome the data that these assessments produce because it helps me to understand my students better. I am not opposed to assessment per se.

However, these new assessments will tell us what we kindergarten teachers already know. There is a huge disparity of ability and knowledge when 5-year-olds enter kindergarten. Much of the disparity comes because many children have not gone to preschool, come from families who live in low socio-economic backgrounds, or come from families who are not proficient in English. Many may not have been read to, or have enriching life experiences with other children.
Whereas other children may have attended quality preschool programs, come from families who are well educated themselves, who are read to and have many enriching life experiences.

The focus on kindergarten readiness certainly can begin by improving the accessibility of quality preschool programs by offering them in our public schools, or perhaps improving parent outreach for our at-risk families. The problem is, resources. According to this article that's what our state will receive if a kindergarten assessment is developed. So I have to ask the question, is this assessment student driven, or is it money driven. Do they go hand in hand? Yes, if the funding received is spent in the right place.

However, to "those in the trenches" as my friend refers to us, it doesn't really matter how much they know when they come through our doors. Would we like them to all have the ability to identify their letters and numbers, write their names, know their shapes, how to create a pattern etc...of course we would. What we know, is that no matter what they know when they walk through our doors, it's up to us to take them to the next level. To teach them as much as we can, to inspire the love of learning in our students. To love books, to create, to get along with each other...to become people and ready them for the next step! Adding more assessments will NOT allow us to do that. It will pull us away from our students, time away from learning.

Like the rest of my kindergarten teacher friends, I will do whatever "the experts" tell us we must do, as frustrating as that might be. I understand the importance of academic achievement, I really do, but let's get back to developmentally appropriate learning. Let them be little just a little big longer. Let's inspire, teach them how to play, negotiate, share, be respectful and at the same time learn to love learning...the rest will certainly come.

And now I will step off my soapbox and get back to doing what I do best.

Kindergarten by the Numbers

2011-09-24T19:07:00.000-07:00

1...the number of boo-boo'd fingers I had to kiss.
2...the number of goldfish funerals this week.
3...the number of times my toes were stepped on.
4...hours spent prepping for Open House.
5...the number of shoes I tied on Friday. (apparently there is a lot of velcro in my classroom!
6...Macintosh Apples in a pot to make applesauce.
7...families who attended open house.
8...the number of kids who like red apples best.
9...really good books read aloud.
10...days of school.
9...little girls
8...little boys
7...days in a week
6...kids who only like applesauce from a jar!
5...school days until the weekend.
4...sunny days
3...trips to the nurse
2...two new HEALTHY goldfish!
1...very tired teacher.

F is for Friends

2011-09-21T17:11:00.000-07:00

I am falling in love with my new little ones. They all have such great little personalities. They are all so different and of course I'm still getting to know them, but I think we're going to have a great year together.
But, as much as I love the prospect of a new year, and new kids to teach, I go through a time when I really miss the ones who just left. I see them in the halls from time to time, so confident now than the day they walked into my room over a year ago.

Over the course of the 9 months they spend with me I get to know them pretty well. Their likes, their dislikes, their strengths and their struggles. By the time June rolls around I know them pretty well, and it's a little unsettling sometimes to have 18 new ones to get to know in September.
I know it's a journey and I often wonder if I'll ever get to know them as well as the ones who have become those confident first graders. I also wonder if they'll come to love me as much as the ones that left! Today, with one little girl in particular I found out.

I was sitting on the floor helping a little boy with a puzzle when she walked over to me, pointed to the letters written across her t-shirt and said, "Mrs. Collins, you're my new B.F.F."

One friend down, 16 more to go!

Facebook Fan Page Linky Party!

2011-09-18T07:00:00.000-07:00

The Lesson Plan Diva is hosting a Linky Party! There are some great teacher blogs out there and they spill over onto facebook!

Hop on over to Lesson Plan Diva and check out the great list of blog's all sorted by grade level.

You won't be disappointed!

While you're at it, don't forget to check out K is for Kindergarten on Facebook!

I'd love to see you there!

H is for Hug

2011-09-17T19:22:00.000-07:00

artwork by Shel Silverstein

It's official, my kindergarteners and I made it through our first week together. The first week is always the hardest but I feel as if I've just had the smoothest beginning so far. Perhaps that comes from experience, or maybe I just have a really nice group of kids, but whatever the reason, I'll take it!

I've always said, the first 10 minutes with a new class is the scariest for me. When they are finally all sitting in a circle looking up at me with those little eyes, waiting for me to begin, waiting for some reassurance that this kindergarten thing is really going to be fun!

There were no tears on the first day, at least from the kids. There were however a few teary eyed parents looking for some reassurance, and just for the record, I hug parents who need reassurance too.

The kid tears came on the third day, when those little kids, babies really, realize how long a day it is. Mostly they are just tired from their new experience, but I'm ready for the tears. I'm ready with the tissues, ready with the kind words, and ready with the hugs. I tell them, that even though I'm not their mommy, I am someone's mommy and I'm really good at hugs. The hugs help.

Thursday evening our school held its annual Welcome Back Cook-Out. I was tired, but because I promised my now fifth grader that we'd go, I went. I'm glad I did. One of the best parts about being a kindergarten teacher is you know the kids in the school better than any other teacher. You've known them all from the start, when they were little and unsure. I still get hugs from my former kindergarteners, and I get them often. I make it a point to chat with them when I can because even though they are much bigger and have moved on from my classroom, I still want them to know how important they are to me. Maybe in some small way I'm still important to them too.

My favorite hugs Thursday night came from my newest students. I've known these little people for only 4 days and I've already become hug-worthy. The feeling is definitely mutual!

Hug O' War

I will not play at tug o' war.
I'd rather play at hug o' war,
Where everyone hugs
Instead of tugs,
Where everyone giggles
And rolls on the rug,
Where everyone kisses,
And everyone grins,
And everyone cuddles,
And everyone wins.

-Shel Silverstein

A Body in Motion...

2011-09-13T20:05:00.000-07:00

I have a whole new flock of kindergarteners! They are all adorable and tiny and year after year I forget how little they know. I'm not talking about the academic stuff, but the everyday, navigating through the school day stuff.

Last year's flock are doing well in first grade, I know because I've checked on them. I always take a few minutes on the first day of school to check in with my cherubs because even though they leave my room, I still think of them as mine, and I always feel a little bit like a rock star when I walk in the room. I suppose it's because I'm something familiar and comforting in an uncertain world.

Now it's time to get to know another bunch, and even though it's only day two, their little personalities are starting to appear. There's the little one who's decided it's her job to make sure everyone is doing what their supposed to from not touching the fire alarm on their way up the stairs to pushing in their chairs.
The ones who have a really hard time sitting up in during circle time, because it's really a lot more comfortable to lie on the floor.
There's the little one who claims he can tie shoes, but really just likes to make knots that are impossible to untie!

Mostly, they are just really really funny, and even though they are still have a lot to learn I am amazed at what they already know. I have readers, and writers, incredible artists and creative thinkers.

It is a really long day for those little ones, we have full day kindergarten and it's busy...really busy.
Some kids are coming from preschools where they take naps, or even just attend a few days a week, so when they suddenly find themselves in a pretty busy full day they have some adjusting to do.
I had led a "Guided Discovery" today on the correct way to use scissors and glue and in order to practice their knew found knowledge, a quick cutting a pasting work sheet. I explained that not only did they need to cut and glue, but they needed to color too.
So off they went to get their little paper done. After a little while, one of my little ducklings brought his paper to me and explained in no uncertain terms that he was done. I took a quick look and reminded him about the coloring.
"Actually Mrs. Collins, that tree is covered in snow, so I don't need to color it. Snow is white."
"Hmmm, I think you're trying to snow me my friend!"
"Huh?"
I chuckled, but continued, "can you at least color the bird, because he wouldn't be covered in snow, and really it's part of your work."
"Well, I'm not really a worker, I'm more of a player."
"You know, I'm thinking you might be!"
And really I know he was spent, and just needed to play so I let him put his paper away and just have some fun.

Now I mentioned earlier that I was amazed at the knowledge these little five year-olds have managed to gain in their short little lives, here's a little example of what I was talking about...

Our school is unique in that we are located on the campus of our local state university. Our building is an old one, celebrating it's 100th anniversary this year so it is with it's limitations. For one thing, we do not have a gym in our building, so each gym day we load the kids onto a shuttle bus and drive them to the college's gym down the street. The kids love the bus ride, they think it's cool.
Because of our unique situation I had to give the bus safety talk. I explained that the school bus does not have seat belts and for this reason it's important to sit with our bottoms on the seat and our backs as far back as they can be because if the bus stops fast, you don't want to slide off your seat.
A hand shot up.
"I know what it's called when you slide off your seat, it's called inertia!"

A five year-old Sir Isaac Newton!

It's going to be a good year!

Ready, Set...GO!

2011-09-11T12:27:00.000-07:00

I know many of you have already started school, we have too, kind of. Our upper grades all started last week, but because of our schedule and screening the new little ones our official first day of kindergarten is tomorrow!

I've been doing this awhile now, and I still get a little nervous when 7:50 a.m. nears and it's time to usher in the newbies! Having spent the last three school days meeting them, I'm anxious to get started. They are a cute bunch already entertaining me with their cuteness and things they have to say.

One little guy in the middle of his screening looked at me and said, "Mrs. Collins, I'm SO happy!"
I hope it lasts.

Then there was that little girl who pointed to me and asked her mother, "Is she going to be my teacher?"
Then shouted, "YES!" when he mother told her I would be.
I hope that lasts too!

So tomorrow is the day, and I think I'm ready for what they have in store for me. If I'm not I better be soon.

At least my room is kindergarten ready!

The Front of Classroom

Part of the Reading Corner

The back of my room, and the play house

The play house...everyone's favorite spot!

Inside the Playhouse, Newly painted and redecorated!

I'm really fortunate to have such a great space to teach in. I hope the kids love it as much as I do.

I'm really looking forward to another year of sharing my kindergarten stories with all of you!

Stay tuned!

V is for Vacation

2011-08-12T17:23:00.000-07:00

Here we are in mid August. I'm not really sure how it got here so fast. I guess time just ticks away like always. It's been a quiet summer, but a busy one too.
The big boys were busy working all summer. One slinging pizza, the other working the grill at a seafood joint. The little one as usual finds a way to stay busy hanging with the neighborhood kids, and going to camp, swimming and of course eating fudgesicle after fudgesicle.
Hubby, the newest teacher in the family has been busy working at summer school and running soccer camps for the youth of our city, and for the last few weeks setting up his new third grade classroom.
Because everyone was so busy I found myself with a lot of down time. Time for me! I actually had days when I could go to the beach to read, browse the book store, grocery shop, and play in my garden all by myself. I treated myself to pedicures, bike rides and ice cream. Sounds blissful doesn't it?
At first I found all this alone time a little unsettling. I'm so used to at least having the little one to hang out with, but after awhile I got used to it and it was really nice. Time to really relax and refresh.

I found myself wishing at one point that I was going away somewhere. We had a big vacation last summer and we're planning another big one next summer, so we decided to just stay home this year. I watched my friends take off across oceans, to houses on the beach or the mountains and I was jealous.

But then one day I woke up to a beautiful day. Hubby and the big boys were gone to work and it was just me hanging with my best buddy Patrick. We packed up our breakfast and hopped on our bikes. We rode to the park and ate. After breakfast we played in the garden a bit, Patrick helped me water and weed, then we finished our bike ride.

This summer was full of little moments like that, walks on the beach, ice cream on the pier, fireworks on the 4th of July. Vacation doesn't have to mean expensive vacations, packing up the car and driving for hours, or crowded airports. Vacation just means, time away from doing what you normally have to do. Time to get to know each other again. To play, or nap, or just be.

In a few weeks we'll be back to schedules. I'm not dreading it because I know all the down time can get old too. It will be time to get back to homework, and bed times and soccer practices.

But we'll be ready because even though we stayed right here...we had a really great vacation.

W is for Winner!

2011-08-10T16:53:00.000-07:00

Thank you to everyone who entered the K is for Kindergarten drawing for a copy of
Have You Filled a Bucket Today? by Carol McCloud and Illustrated by David Messing.

The winner was randomly drawn today and she is Danielle B from Illinois!

Again, thank you all for entering and being such loyal readers to my blog. Best of luck to all of you for a very successful new school year!

Lisa

W is for Wow! and G is for Giveaway!

2011-07-27T17:45:00.000-07:00

I got a big surprise yesterday when I checked on K is for Kindergarten. My little piece of the World Wide Web found it's 200th follower, or should I say the 200th follower found K is for Kindergarten!

I've been writing this blog for a few years now. It really just began as a place to put into writing my thoughts and feelings about my family and stories about teaching. I never thought it would be of any interest to anyone but myself. I've always loved to write and for me it's therapeutic.

But my little blog evolved like most things do if you plug away at them long enough. I know as a parent I've come a long way from those first few scary days with an infant to being a confident mom of three.
As a teacher I am always evolving, finding new methods, new ways to reach and connect with my kids.

K as for Kindergarten has evolved into a place where I share ideas, both my own and those great ones I find from reading other teaching blogs. There is an enormous amount of information out there, just there for the taking!
Some of my favorite posts are still those where I can tell a funny story or two. Kindergarten kids say and do the funniest things. Sometimes the things I write about are heartwarming, sometimes heartbreaking, but if I'm going to write "stories from the trenches" I have to include it all.

One of the most amazing things about writing this blog is being able to witness where you are all arriving from. Knowing I was nearing 200 followers I started really paying attention. Within the last two weeks I've had visitors from 47 states, (Not sure what's going on with the other three!) Washington D.C, and 50 different countries. That's mind boggling to me that people on the other side of the planet are reading my words!

Yes, there are blogs out there that pull in many more readers than I do, but I'm pretty proud of my 200. There have been some milestones along the way that I'm pretty proud of too...the most recent being named one of the 50 Top Kindergarten Bloggers!

The awards and accolades are nice, but seeing that follower list increase is really what it's all about. Each and everyone of those names in that list has helped Fill my Bucket just because they checked in and liked what they saw!

So in the spirit of Bucket Filling and to celebrate K is for Kindergarten's 200th follower, I'm going to have a little (very little) giveaway! I will send a copy of Have You Filled A Bucket Today by
Carol Mc Cloud to one of you!

Just fill out this form: K is for Kindergarten Fill My Bucket Giveaway

Good Luck...and thanks for reading!

B is for Breakthrough

2011-06-28T19:47:00.000-07:00

Back in September when I first met my little cherubs I knew I had a special bunch. Special in so many ways, but what stood out the most was the young-ness of them. So many of them with birthdays in June, July and August, and so many of THEM were boys.
Most kindergarten teachers know that young boys need some wiggle room, understanding, patience and often times a little guidance about the social comings and goings of a busy kindergarten classroom.

I am a mom of boys so I understand how those little-boy minds tick. I know how they roll. They need space to move and activities to keep them engaged but most of all they need to be allowed to be all the wonderful things they are!

The little boys in my room this year were wonderful little creatures. Smart, funny and all boy. For the most part there were no big behavior issues in my classroom this year, but two little boys in particular needed just a little more guidance to navigate through their kindergarten year.

For Charlie, it became clear fairly early on that he would not make friends easily. I believe now that it was just fear and simply not knowing how to go about the business of making a new friend. He played by himself often, and in some cases turned people away by either saying unkind things or just moving away to be by himself again.
For Harry, personal space was the issue. This little guy does not have a mean bone in his body. He's sweet, funny and so easy to please. He feels badly when he makes a mistake and truly wants to be the best kid he can be. Sometimes he just forgets that everyone does not want a hug at the same moment that he does.

I thought from the start that these two would make a great little pair of friends, but despite all my trying to match them up, it just didn't click and that's okay too. You can't force a friendship.

I worked on social issues with these two every day we were together from the very first until today and most likely will during our last three hours together tomorrow. I just won't give up on my job of turning them into the kind of people they should be. Kind, friendly, forgiving, understanding and comfortable socially.

Today after snack time, I let them play for a bit. I didn't put any limitations on their play, letting them choose what they wanted to do and who they wanted to play with.
As they played I sat and chatted with Christine our adjustment counselor while the kids played. Christine, who in my opinion has rock star status, has also spent some time with these two and knows the struggles that they've both had.

One of Harry's favorite games is Hi-Ho-Cherry-O, the board game with a spinner and the little red plastic cherries. David grabbed it and asked if we wanted to play.
Christine in her sweet knowing way, told him that she and I were talking but she was sure he could find a friend that would love to play.
His eyes went right to Charlie and in his little voice said, "Charlie, will you play this game with me?"
I think I cringed when he said it, afraid of the response Charlie would give him, but then I heard, "Okay."
I know that little "okay." was not easy for Charlie, but he said it!

They sat down together and played, not only played but played nicely.
I looked at Christine and said, "They can drive you crazy, but it's moments like that..." I couldn't finish my sentence because I was tearing up.

It took 177 days...but it was worth every one of them.

B is for Behavior

2011-06-23T10:39:00.000-07:00

It is June 23rd and we are still in school. Still trying to move children along, still trying to keep them busy and engaged. Still trying to keep the fun in learning while still trying to teach them to negotiate, share, be empathetic, kind and caring and generally teaching them how to be good people! It is not an easy task when the school year has gone on longer than it should.

Snow days are fun when they happen, but not so much fun when our school year is extended by six long, hot, sticky humid days. Tensions are running high. There's bickering, name calling, and general unkindness. There's little sharing going on and a lot of tattling and venting.

It's so obvious in my kindergarten classroom where the kids have spent a long year together. Those cherubs who were once the best of friends are not very tolerant of one another and in many ways have become a lot more like siblings than friends. They are competing for my attention more than ever.

The behaviors that we worked so hard to keep at bay all year long are coming out again. It's time for a much needed break and some summer fun.

We've had a stressful year, full of changes, some good, some controversial, some that are hard to swallow and sadly because of it, a lot of the grownups in my school, myself included are not behaving very well either and we then wonder why so many of our kids are having trouble too. The fact is, even the best of friends need a break from each other and teachers are no exception.

Saying good-bye is never easy, and I'm torn between hating to say good-bye to friends that I love and care about, but also knowing that we really need that break from each other too. We need time away to learn to be empathetic, kind, caring and tolerant of each other again, and just learn to be good people because if we expect it of our students, we need to expect it of ourselves.

Just be good people...just be good.

M is for Miracle

2011-06-09T10:17:00.000-07:00

Every spring in kindergarten we have visitors to our classroom. Our painted lady caterpillars arrive in their little jars, they are teeny tiny and hungry!

I've been watching the miracle unfold for a few years now and I never cease to be amazed. The butterfly life cycle is one of my favorite lessons to teach for so many reasons.

I love watching the kids become so interested in the smallest and quietest of creatures. They are connected somehow in ways I don't understand. Kindergarten kids are both small and hungry, but they are certainly not quiet!

Are they so interested because the changes happen so quickly? Actually now that I think about it, even though they might not see it, those kindergarten kids and those caterpillars have quite a lot in common.

Those little kindergarteners crawled in here in September and even though they don't know it, the changes I've seen in them happened quickly too.

There were the ones that couldn't identify a single letter and are now decoding words. Those that couldn't even write their names, are now writing sentences. There are those that were already decoding words and now they are reading like they've been doing it their entire lives...all 6 years of it! Then there's the one that wouldn't let go of his daddy's leg on the first day of school. Just a few short months later he runs down the hall each morning to meet his friends and bring his smiling face into my room.

Our caterpillars emerged from their chrysalises early this week and today we made our way out to the grass to let them go. The kids all sat in a circle around the butterfly house. I gave them directions about not chasing them and letting them fly off to find a flower, that it was time to say good-bye.

I opened the house so they could make their escape. Some took off right away, flying off to find their flowers, some lingered a little and needed a little coaxing to fly up and out. Then there were those who struggled a little that needed a hand to pick it up and let it know that it was really okay to fly away, and there was one, who's wings just didn't do what they were supposed to. I gently picked that one up and found a flower. I gently placed it on the flower and let nature take over.

Now we are fourteen days away from the last day of school. The day I'll open up the doors for my kindergarteners for for the last time before sending them off to summer and then in the fall, their first grade teachers. Like those butterflies some are ready to fly, and some are going to need a little coaxing to know that it's really okay to spread their wings and leave the safety and comfort of my kindergarten classroom.

As I opened the butterfly house today to let them go, one of my little girls yelled, "I'm not ready!"

Sweet pea, I know just how you feel.

Run run as fast as you can...

2011-06-05T06:22:00.000-07:00

I woke up early today. Way too early for a Sunday morning. A Sunday morning where I have nothing to do, nowhere to be. I could have slept in...if my busy brain would let me.

There are times when I wake up thinking. I hate starting my day that way. I woke up thinking about "Share Your Success Day". Share your success day is this Thursday and is basically parent open house. Parents come in to school and their children guide them through the classroom showing off all the wonderful things they have done throughout the year. I've collected writing samples and art work, we've planted seeds, watched caterpillars change into butterflies and learned some songs and poems.
I have plenty to show them, but it's a matter of organizing it all is a way that suitable for presentation. With those five and six year-old kids by my side we've run a marathon of sorts. The starting gun went off in September and the June 29th finish line is within sight. They have a lot to be proud of and showing it off to their parents is always fun.

I woke up thinking about this and could not go back to sleep so rather than fight it, I got up and decided to go for a run to clear my head.

I have a love/hate relationship with running...mostly hate. I have to talk myself into every step. Giving birth was easier for me and I know why. When you have a baby there is no choice in the matter. Your body takes over and does what it's naturally supposed to do. Running is a mental decision. You can stop at anytime. It takes real perseverance to go on...at least for me.

As I was running I was listing the hates and loves of running. This is what I came up with...

Five reasons why I hate running

1. Uneven sidewalks. My knee hates them. An injury waiting to happen.
2. Running full face into a spider web strung across the sidewalk.
3. Idiots who yell stupid stuff.
4. Drivers who do not yield for runners.
5. Dog poop

Five reasons why I love running

1. The sun and breeze on my face.
2. Helps keep off the 30lbs I lost.
3. It clears my head. I can think things through rather than worry.
4. It's cheap. Only cost...a good pair of running shoes.
5. The sense of accomplishment. Even if it's only a mile or two, I feel good when I'm finished.

So although I was able to work up a good sweat, I also decided not to sweat the small stuff. Thursday will come and go and I'll be ready like always. The parents will be thrilled, the kids will be happy and I'll cross the finish line with my hands held high.

Another race over.

5 Reasons

2011-06-01T13:01:00.000-07:00

Patrick has been harping on me to get him a cell phone for awhile now. Apparently some of his friends have them. The boy is ten. He's always with either me, his dad, one of his big brothers or a family friend. Rarely do we drop him off anywhere on his own, not even soccer or baseball practice.
The child has no good reason to own a cell phone. At least not yet. His older brothers got theirs when they hit middle school or turned 12, just about the time when I needed to know where they were and who they are with. After all that is the job of a good parent.

Now on the few rare occasions that I've spoken to Patrick on our home phone our conversations go something like this...

Me: Hi Patrick
P: Hi Mom
Me: Whatcha doing?
P: Nothing.
Me: Where are your brothers?
P: I don't know.
Me: Where's Dad?
P: Here.
Me: Can I talk to him?
P: Okay.

Riveting stuff. The child does not talk to his friends on the phone, he barely talks to his Nana on the phone, there is no good reason for him to own one, at least now.
So our cell phone conversation continued yesterday afternoon, and exasperated I told him, "If you can give me five good reasons why I should get you a cell phone, I will. (With absolutely no intention of following through since I would be the one determining what is or is not a good reason.)

Patrick's Reasons

If I was walking home with Kevin and his mom and I sprained my ankle and his mom's cell phone was dead and his mom couldn't carry me home.

I got dropped off at soccer practice. I got injured and mom and dad weren't there and the coach's batteries were dead.

I'm at baseball practice. I get hit with a baseball hard in the ankle and had a hard time walking and the coach's batteries were dead and coach A.'s phone got broken when it was hit with a foul ball and he couldn't use it.

If I was playing basketball at the park with Kevin, I sprained my ankle after taking a shot. We were the only ones there.

I was at the park with Kevin and he started throwing up from a bad sandwich he had eaten earlier and his parents weren't there I could use my cell phone to call them.
Hard to argue with the bad sandwich logic.

But the kid still has to wait until he's 12.

G is for Grow!

2011-05-31T18:00:00.000-07:00

Our little garden project is coming along quite nicely! We've finally had some beautiful gardening weather so I felt it was safe to plant our little seedlings into the ground where they can spread their roots.

Although the kids have helped in the classroom, sowing seeds, watering and measuring their plants,

I've done all of the outside garden work. Tomorrow will be the first time I march my kids down to the garden to see their sprouts in their new home.

They will finally get a chance to plant their tomato plants that have gotten really tall and have more than outgrown their little paper cups.

I can't wait to watch them get their hands dirty!

June 3, 2011

The weather finally decided to cooperate and we were able to plant our tomato plants this morning.
Our little cherry tomato seedlings are soaking up the sun in their new garden home.

T is for Tattle

2011-05-19T16:54:00.000-07:00

My kindergarteners have now spent the better part of the year together, working, playing, and learning.

I really have a great class of personalities. We've had to overcome some difficulties but for the most part we have persevered with a lot of hard work. Some who couldn't speak a word of English, suddenly are conversing as if they have been all along. Kids who joined our class mid-way through the year are part of our community as if they have been from the start.

They have become readers and writers, mathematicians, and scientists. They can solve problems, share, and negotiate. Some can now tie shoes and zip zippers. They know how to follow routines, like packing up a back pack, cleaning up a mess when they make one, walk in line quietly like mice, or snowflakes, or butterflies and they can also tattle on each other. They have become pretty good at tattling on each other.

It's that time of the year, when they suddenly behave more like siblings than classmates. They have spent a lot of time together and it's starting to wear on them and to be honest, me too! Listening to them argue over the littlest things is tiring and the tattling has suddenly become relentless. I hated to do it, but once again I've had to pull out....the tattle jar.

I really didn't think I was going to need it this year, they have all gelled so nicely, but it's happened despite my best efforts. I won't go into detail about how the tattle jar works. I've written about it before. You can find that post here: Tattle Tail, Tattle Tail.

There are three really great things about the tattle jar. First and most importantly it cuts down the tattling by at least 80%, at least by my best estimation. I've never really done the research.
Second, it gives them all a little writing practice even if they are telling on each other, and third I get a really good chuckle when I dump them out and read them at the end of the day so I thought I'd share the chuckles (names blurred to protect the not so innocent).

"_____ is bothering me in my spot. "

"_____ is mean because he was lying."

"_______ stole a pencil from me."

"______ was blocking the tattle jar!"


"______ be'd mean to you." (thank you for your support!)


I love it when no caption is necessary!

And my all time favorite.....

"_________ flushed a squirrel down the toilet."

This required a little clarification.

Me: Does this say what I think it says?
Kid: It says, _______ flushed a squirrel down the toilet.
Me: Did this happen at school?
Kid: No, she told me she did it at home. I just had to tell someone.
Me: Well thank goodness you did.
Kid: I know Mrs. Collins, I hope she doesn't flush anymore animals!

C is for Carle

2011-05-16T18:22:00.000-07:00

Eric Carle of course! C is also for caterpillar, cocoon and chrysalis! For the past week or so we've been reading and doing activities surrounding The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. It's amazing to me that this book, first published in 1969 is probably one of the most widely used picture books in any kindergarten classroom.
It lends itself to so many different lessons, the days of the week, art, author study, nutrition and of course the life cycle of the butterfly.

The kids love the colorful artwork and the funny adventures of the caterpillar as he eats through some of their favorite foods.
Since our caterpillars will be arriving by week's end, I thought it would be a good time to pull out "Caterpillar".
I started by introducing some of the vocabulary. I chose words that they would be using in the writing activities I had planned for them. We placed the words and corresponding illustrations onto a portable word wall which I created from a tri-fold project board. I trimmed it so I was only using 2/3 of the board, which makes it much easier to transport from center to center as needed.

During the week, I read the story a number of times and also provided multiple copies for children to choose during quiet reading. Because the story has predictable and easily remembered text, even the lowest ability readers can feel successful.

During our computer lab time, I pulled up a slide show of Eric Carle creating some of his art work.
When we got back to our classroom, we jumped right in creating some masterpieces of our own!


First we drew and added details with crayons.


Then brushed watered down school glue over the tissue paper on our drawings.

And got some very nice results!

They really added pizazz to our new bulletin board. I love the way this brightens up the room!

And the kids think having a caterpillar in the room is pretty cool!

G is for Grow

2011-05-09T13:46:00.000-07:00

I was pleasantly surprised today when I walked into my classroom! Sprouts EVERYWHERE!
It won't be long now and those little baby plants will find their way into our Kinder-garden raised beds.

Some of them began as a little experiment. The old, "Seed in a Baggie" experiment. This is a great way for kids to see the beginnings of plants.
All you need is a few quickly sprouting seeds, I chose green beans, a paper towel, some water and a zip-log bag.
I am always amazed how quickly these little things grow! Kind of like kindergarteners!

materials set out and ready to go.

1. Fold the paper towel.

2. Then soak it in some water. You want it wet, but not drippy.

3. Place the wet paper towel in the bottom of a zip-loc bag.

4. Place two seeds on top of the paper towel and seal the bag tightly.

5. Hang them in a sunny window and watch the magic!

Seeds after only 2 days! You can see a little root shooting downward.

After one week!

Transplanted today!

G is for Garden

2011-05-08T18:56:00.000-07:00

Kids aren't the only thing growing in my classroom these days. We're getting our hands dirty playing with soil, worms, and all things green and flowery.
I usually plant a seed or two over the course of a kindergarten year, but this year the project has gotten bigger than ever.
It all started with a letter I received in the mail from my neighborhood park association. The school where I work, and the neighborhood I live in are one in the same. The park association is fixing up our park, adding new play ground equipment, and generally making it a safer and prettier place to play.
Within this park lies a tennis court...well at least what used to be a tennis court, but now is home to a beautiful community garden!

The wheels in my head started spinning. The park is in walking distance to our school. So why not turn this into a kindergarten project?
I approached one of our fifth grade teachers thinking that this would make an excellent collaborative project, mostly because the thought of marching 18, 5 and 6 year-old children down to the park alone was a little overwhelming. So now not only do we have Reading Buddies, we have Garden Buddies too!
So I secured my 4 raised beds, bought some seeds, pots and dirt and let them go at it!

Our garden center, with directions it's become pretty independent.

garden word wall, portable of course!

Our Little Nursery

Waiting to Sprout


Cherry Tomatoes!

I'm hoping to get something planted into our garden beds sometime this week or next, I'm just waiting for some warm weather so our little sprouts will be warm and sunny!
I can't wait to see what pops up!

T is for Texting

2011-05-03T21:02:00.000-07:00

It's been a school year full of changes. Some good ones, and some that have been very hard to get used to. We've had our share of drama, snags along the way but I have no doubt we'll all come out on top feeling good for having persevered.

Because of all these changes, as much as I love teaching, and love those kindergarteners there are some days, when it's just hard to hard to get myself out of my cozy warm bed and go to school. The one thing that this sometimes difficult year has taught me is to be grateful. Grateful that I have the friends that I do. We support each other when we need support, we make each other laugh, or are there for each other when we just need a little boost of confidence or a listening ear or shoulder to lean on.

I was reminded of that today. I was in the middle of a conversation with one of my little cherubs. I was trying to convince her to stop telling on her friends and get back to work after getting out of her seat for what seemed like the millionth time. I had one foot inside the room and the other in the hallway so I could keep my eye on the ~~camel~~ munchkin getting HIS millionth drink from the bubbler.

One of my friends walked by. I must have looked like I needed one of those "you can do it" hugs because I got one and it was just what I needed.

"Cherub, go back to your seat and be friends, no more tattles, give hugs instead of tattles."
"OMG! You mean go be BFF's like you two?"
"Yes! BFF's just like us."
"'LOL Mrs. Collins'"

<3

M is for Middle

2011-04-21T17:55:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of theories out there about birth order and the stereotypical characteristics of children born first, last or somewhere in the middle. I’m not sure if birth order has anything to do with how successful a child will be or how confident they are, but I do know as a mom of three I see certain characteristics that are hard to ignore.

Daniel is the one stuck in the middle. He was born just a little over two years after his older brother Mikey and 6 years before his youngest brother Patrick. He had a good chunk of time getting to be the youngest so when Patrick was born I think it threw him for a loop. I’m not sure he ever really got over it!

I remember Daniel’s reaction the day his baby brother was born. He walked into my hospital room and said, “hi mom.” His voice was shaky and he had tears in his eyes. I’m pretty sure it was because he was worried about me and relieved to see I was okay, and not because he was so happy to have a new baby brother. He was also not happy to know that he wasn’t as welcome to come trotting into our bed in the middle of the night now that there was a nursing baby in the bed too.

Daniel’s never been the child who got to do things first. His older brother was our guinea pig, so when Daniel was a baby, we were already pretty good at being parents. We were definitely more confident anyway. He had the benefit of getting parents with experience, and with experience comes a more relaxed attitude about a lot of things. He got to eat chocolate way before I ever considered giving it to his older brother!

Because Mikey is the oldest we are still experiencing things for the first time with him. Most recently learning to drive, graduating from high school, and now attending college. In many ways Daniel benefits from this experience not only because we are more relaxed about it, but because we now know what to do.

But I can’t help but wonder if he sometimes feels like he’s not as important because we don’t make as big a deal out of these things.

If that’s the case, he couldn’t be more wrong. He’s always been the kind of kid who quietly goes about his business without making a lot of noise. He is an excellent student, but you wouldn’t know it, because he doesn’t talk about it. He just does it because he knows it’s important.

On the soccer field or on the track he works hard and his hard work pays off, but he works hard quietly. Taking it all in, doing what he’s supposed to do because he knows it’s the right thing to do, he doesn’t do it for the recognition, he just does it.

I rarely get to hang out with just Daniel because most times I have Patrick with me too, but yesterday I took him on his first college visit. It was nice to hang out with him just the two of us. He still has another year of high school, which I am very thankful for, but the search for just the right fit has definitely begun.

As we walked around the University of Connecticut yesterday I watched his reaction as we went from building to building. We saw the library, some classrooms, dorms, dining hall, and student union. What I didn’t expect was the smile on his face when we walked into the stadium where the Huskies play. The UCONN Huskies, 2011 NCAA champions. Daniel is a sports guy, one who truly appreciated the fact that he was standing in a stadium of champions. The names were plastered around the walls, names most people would recognize even if they aren’t college hoop fans.

I’m not sure if UCONN is the place for him, but because he’s the kind of kid he is, he’ll find the place that fits.

I suspect Daniel has always felt a bit overshadowed by his older brother and he really has no reason to be. He’s smart, he’s funny and well rounded. He’s a good person with a good heart even though his little brother would argue that point.

I am insanely proud of the young man Daniel has become and I expect big things from him.

It’s your turn to shine Daniel, show the world what you’ve got.

R is for Run

2011-04-17T17:33:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is a holiday here in Massachusetts. It's Patriot's Day. A day that celebrates the anniversary of the Battles of Concord and Lexington. The first shots were fired just as the sun was rising on Lexington Green and so began the American Revolutionary War.
So, I sit here and drink my tea, tea I can drink tax free mind you thanks to those patriots of long ago that decided dumping box after box of the stuff into Boston Harbor was a good idea.
Patriot's Day is also special around here because runners come from all over the world to run the Boston Marathon.

I live in a family of runners.

My husband has run eight Boston Marathons, and a whole host of others from Florida to Washington, D.C. He is a real runner and he loves it.

My two oldest kids are runners. Both have had successful high school running careers winning race after race. My oldest is now training to compete in tri-athalons.

My little one is not a runner in the runner sense of the word, but he will be. He's got those long skinny runner legs. He pretty much already runs where ever he goes. Upstairs to brush his teeth....he runs. To get an oreo...he runs. He runs to get to school, to go to bed, to get up in the morning. He has one speed and that's fast. It's the little boy in him.

I watch the kids at school, running across the room, down the hall, outside at recess. Always running.

Makes me wonder...
When did running for me become "exericise" and no longer fun. Running for the sheer joy of it. The joy of getting somewhere as fast as you can even if it's just to brush your teeth!

I know why...because running hurts!

I ran today, 2.5 miles, or something like that. I would have run longer, but when I stepped off the curb, my knee went one way, my body the other. Ouch! I sat on the sidewalk and cried. I called the runner in the family, reported my location and told him to come pick me up because not only could I not run home, I wasn't walking very well either.
So I won't be lined up in Hopkinton tomorrow waiting for the shot that signals the start of the 2011 Boston Marathon, but I will be cheering from the comfort of my couch, ice bag on my knee.

Ready! Set! Go!

A is for Author

2011-04-10T09:51:00.000-07:00

This year I have the distinct pleasure of being the teacher of an amazing bunch of budding authors. I am surprised each and every day by their ability as readers and writers. I love to write myself so whenever I see a child showing real interest in writing I do my best to encourage him or her.

During choice time, my kids have been wanting me to put together "books" for them. I just fold and staple a few pieces of paper together for them to use to play author. Since it's been occurring at choice time, I've tried to stay out of it and just let them create for creativity sake.
Most of our serious writing happens in their "serious writing" journal during writer's workshop. This is where we pay close attention to our writing. Topic, punctuation, editing, spacing is all part of our serious writing time.
One little cherub came to me last week with a book she had created titled"Mrs Colins Fafrit Gob" biy Tinkerbell (obviously not her real name, although these days you never know!)

Now unless you're really good at reading kindergarten writing you might not know the real title of this book is Mrs. Collins' Favorite Job.

Kindergarteners, because they are just learning about letters, sounds and how words work, spell phonetically. Reading kindergarten writing is not always an easy task and I often have to have the kids read their writing back to me, but in Tinkerbell's case, I've seen enough of her writing to know what she's trying to spell.

She worked on this little masterpiece for the better part of a week. This book was so good, and so carefully illustrated, I had to encourage more. It didn't hurt that it was all about ME!

So Tinkerbell and I sat down together as she read each page. I was teary listening to her. She was so excited about her accomplishment. We talked about "book spelling" and how real authors edit their work to make sure things are spelled correctly and that they've use punctuation in all the right places.
After carefully checking the spelling of each word, we made our way to the computer lab where together we typed and printed the words.

I cut out the sentences and carefully glued them to the pages of a new book. Over the next week she re-illustrated her story. I let her choose her medium, paint, crayons, markers or colored pencils. She chose the pencils, took her time and came up with some amazing illustrations.
She is so proud of her book she asked me to make multiple copies for her Granny in England and her grandparents in "Vreemont".

I couldn't be more flattered that I was the subject of her book and more proud of the effort she put in to writing and illustrating it.
Enjoy!

The end.

P is for Present

2011-03-28T13:41:00.000-07:00

Going to school each day is a gift. I've said it before, I love what I get to do everyday...hang out with kids. Yes, kindergarteners can be exhausting, but most of the time I don't realize that until I'm home and falling asleep on the couch!

The best part of my job?

Kindergarten kids really are very funny and most of the time they don't even know it.

Today I was doing a lesson on instruments to tell time. So on chart paper I wrote,
"What tools can we use to tell time?"
The brainstorming began. I got "watch", "clock", "timer", "stop watch", "microwave"...all excellent answers.
Then I got a few funnies...
"a llama clock" (alarm clock!!!)

and my favorite...

"The television."
"Yep, great answer! Some televisions have clocks on them, I know my cable box has a clock on it."
"No Mrs. Collins, that's not what I meant."
"Oh, so how does the television help tell time?"
"Well, there's this show called 60 minutes. It has a clock on it, that ticks!"
"Yes it sure does!"

Today during choice time a group of my girls decided I needed presents. They asked to borrow the tape and went at it. They were coloring, and cutting, wrapping and taping. When choice time was just about over, they walked over to me to present me with my gifts, all carefully and lovingly wrapped and very securely taped.

We have been discussing weather the past few weeks and today was water cycle day. I read a story, and talked about what happens to puddles. My little Tinkerbell was obviously listening very intently because she had it down! I was presented with this...

See the blue blob? That's the puddle, and if you look very closely to the left of that puddle you can see water vapor rising up into the air. How great is that?

Then I unwrapped this...

This would be the Sphinx and the Great Pyramid of Giza.
"Because you have Egyptian hair Mrs. Collins"
I'm not really sure what Egyptian hair is, I'm thinking dark and straight like Cleopatra Queen of the Nile?

Very well could be, because my next present was this crown!

Perfect attire for a leisurely trip down The Nile!

So it was a good day, my 60-minute watching, llama clocking, water cycling, pyramid drawing, crown- makers helped make it that way!
I can't imagine better presents than that.

W is for Weather

2011-03-23T18:11:00.000-07:00

This week is all about weather in kindergarten. First up...wind!
I started the lesson checking on their prior knowledge by asking them for some weather facts.

Once again I was so impressed with all they already knew. I wrote their windy facts on chart paper and we review them each day.

Once we collected our windy facts, I read a story by Pat Hutchins titled The Wind Blew.

Then we tried a windy experiment. We wanted to find out how far wind can move things.

I gathered my materials: A feather, some plastic straws, some masking tape and a permanent marker.

I placed a piece of tape on the floor to mark our starting spot, then gave each child a turn blowing their feather as far as they could. Once the feather landed, I marked that spot with a piece of masking tape.

The following day, we measured our distances with unifix cubes and recorded them on chart paper.

The kids had a great time and learned a little something about air movement and wind.

The measurement piece added some math concepts, estimation, measurement, and addition and subtraction.

Next up...Rain!

C is for Chat

2011-03-21T15:41:00.000-07:00

Some of my most favorite moments with the kids are those times when I can chat with them one-on-one.
I had that opportunity today at dismissal.
All the kids had been matched with a mom or a dad except for one, so he and I sat just inside the door and watched for his mom together. He's a great little kid. So full of energy. You can just see the excitement well up inside him when he's happy about something, he just can't contain it.
He has one of those smiles that can light up a room. He can be a little challenging at times, needing reminders about personal space, or to sit quietly, but he's a good guy and doesn't have a mean bone is his little 5- year-old body.

"Mrs. Collins, when I leave you'll be the only one left. Will you be lonely?"
"No, I have some work to do in my room, I'll be so busy I won't have time to be lonely."
"Work? Like what? When we leave you're done right?"
"Well after awhile I go home, but first I have to clean up a little then get things ready for tomorrow."
"That sounds like a lot of work."
"It is a lot of hard work, but it's the best job in the world."
"I don't want to be a teacher when I grow up."
"You don't? You should think about it, why wouldn't you want to be a teacher?"
"It's too much work I think."
"Well what DO you want to be when you grow up?"

"A JUGGLER!!!"

"That's an excellent choice! I can juggle."
"You can?"
"Ah huh."
"Can you juggle oranges?"
"Nope, I can juggle kindergarteners!"
"You're funny Mrs. Collins! Kindergarteners are too heavy to juggle!"

"Oh, If you only knew!"

B is for Bucket

2011-03-13T18:12:00.000-07:00

It's inevitable, I've seen it happen before. Right around the beginning of spring a transformation occurs. The cherubs in my class begin to behave more like siblings than classmates. The little arguments begin, the name calling and the tattling that we had a handle on, reappear and it becomes time to pull a new trick out of my kindergarten hat to help resolve these little issues before they turn into big issues!

I admit it, some of my best ideas come from the other blogs I read. There are some very talented and creative kindergarten teachers out there and I'd be crazy not to tap into some of that talent.

As I was searching I came across Rachelle's blog, What the Teacher Wants.
This is where I discovered Bucket Filling. I was so inspired I knew I needed to buy this book! I couldn't wait to read it to my class. The premise of the book is that everybody carries around an invisible bucket to hold all their good feelings.
You are a bucket filler when you do or say something nice to someone, but you can also be a bucket dipper. A Bucket Dipper is not something you want to be. Bucket dippers try to fill their own buckets by saying or doing things that hurt feelings,but it doesn't work like that. Buckets can never hold bad feelings, only good ones.

So I read the book to my kids, and they immediately embraced the idea. We talked about it a lot, but I knew I wanted to do something more. So I took Rachelle's idea which she posted on her blog and made it work in my room.

I found these really cute little metal buckets in the dollar aisle at Target and added clear labels with the kid's names on them.

I have 18 kids in my class and at a dollar each it is bordering on pricey, but I really felt like it was a worthwhile expense.

Then I added a little basket with little bucket filling papers (which can be downloaded from Rachelle's blog) and a pencil, then explained what I wanted them to do.
I told them that when they wanted to make a friend feel happy, they should write down something nice and put it in their friend's bucket. It can be as simple as a smiley face, or a compliment, or a little note to tell them how much you like being their friend.
I wasn't really sure how they were going to handle it, I was pretty sure the first day would be over the top bucket filling, but I was wrong. It seemed they really were careful about what they were writing and who they were writing to.

I also got in on it, mainly because I wanted each and everyone of them know they are special to me too, each in their own way, and I was rewarded with my own little filler.

At the end of the day I gather all the bucket fillers and send them home with the recipients so their parents can see what wonderful friends their kids have.

Since starting the bucket filling project, I have noticed a difference in how they interact with each other, after all, nobody wants to be a Bucket Dipper!

S is for Seuss Part 2!

2011-03-04T18:15:00.000-08:00

Today we said good-bye to Dr. Seuss week with a Green Eggs and Ham lesson.

I'm pretty sure by now I can recite this book from memory but I still enjoy reading it. Even though most kids have heard it quite a few times in their five short years they still sit quietly as I read each page and rhyming word.

I started the lesson with a question...

Do You Like Green Eggs and Ham?

I gave each child a green fried egg with their name on it and asked them to place it on the graph. As you can see, we only had a few hold outs. I was surprised to be honest, because really...green eggs?!?

Then I settled them down for the book. As I read each page I gave them the opportunity to finish the rhymes for me. It's a great way to assess their rhyming ability and it keeps them engaged too.

After the book we had a quick discussion about lessons learned.
Me: "Have you ever thought you wouldn't like something and then you tried it then realized it was really good?"
I got some really great answers!

"Broccoli."
"Mushrooms"
"Pepperoni Pizza"
"Salmon!"

Then I pulled out a surprise. My version of Green Eggs and Ham.
In the past I've made actually green eggs and ham, but this year I have a child with an egg allergy, so I went with a safer version.

So easy! So tasty!

A close up!

These were so quick and easy to make. I melted some white chocolate chips in the microwave then plopped some onto two pretzels to represent the bacon (ham) and added a green m&m to finish off the egg. They were a huge hit!
This is what our graph looked like after sampling my green eggs and ham!

Good-bye Dr. Seuss...until next year!

S is for Seuss!

2011-03-03T18:10:00.000-08:00

I love celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday! His books are my favorite to read aloud because they are just F-U-N!

This year was especially fun because our school held its annual words and numbers extravaganza!

Each participating teacher was responsible for planning one literacy and one math activity. The collective creativity of some outstanding teachers provided children and their families with lots of learning opportunities all while having a great time and promoting some great school community spirit!

The Cat was there to greet our visitors.

These signs hung above each activity.

I started with a graphing project based on One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish.
Each child went "fishing" then had to add their fish to a graph I created that hung above the our fish pond.

The kids loved this and came back over and over again. I was actually afraid I was going to run out of fish!

My literacy activity was a simple "at" word activity based on The Cat in The Hat.

The box held ziploc bags of magnetic letters.

Add caption

My Lego table transformed into a word building center!


Each child was awarded one of these after completing the center.

The evening was a huge hit, but made for some very tired kids, not to mention a few tired teachers too!

A is for Appreciate

2011-02-27T07:05:00.000-08:00

Lately it seems that, everything I read or see on the news focuses on teachers and education.

I know there is other news happening, the Middle East is always in the news, earthquakes in New Zealand, The Oscars, the weather, but when I hear the words, teacher, education, and budget cuts, my interest is suddenly piqued.

There is constant debate on whether or not our public schools are doing a good job educating our nation's children. People in authority who claim to be experts in what our schools need put unrealistic benchmarks in the way and in the process take the creativity out of teaching.

Teachers in Wisconsin are fighting for their negotiating rights, but more so their livelihoods and their ability to make ends meet for themselves and their families. Can the rest our state governments be far behind? The education issues are endless and they aren't going away anytime soon.

I read a very discouraging blog post this morning titled I Don't Want to be a Teacher Anymore. It's a good read, but a sad one. Thankfully I don't feel this way, I love my job. I hesitate to even call it a job because I don't think of it that way. I go to school each day and know I'm going to love being there. Even when I have a particularly difficult day and believe me, those happen, I can't wait to go back the following morning. It's been a tough year with a lot of changes but I love what I do because of the amazing people I get to do it with, and of course because it's all about the kids.

Because of all the negativity I see and read it's very easy to become disenchanted with the profession and although I've never questioned my choices to become a teacher I can certainly see how others do.
However, a very interesting thing happened to me yesterday in the most unexpected of places.

I took a trip to Target for a few essentials. Conditioner, laundry detergent, band-aids. I always take a quick trip down the bargain aisle in the front of the store. There are deals to be had there and you just never know what little treasures you'll find. I found a package of flower seeds, some gardening tools for a school project, two strings of light up Easter eggs to decorate the playhouse, and 18 adorable little metal sand pails for my Have you Filled a Bucket Today project. One for each child in my class. I put all of it into the carriage without a second thought of the twenty-three dollars I was about to spend. I never go to Target without purchasing something to be used in my classroom. Sometimes it's little metal buckets, sometimes paper towels and cleaner. Like most teachers I do it knowing reimbursement will never come.

I made my way to the check out aisle to the cashier. I've seen her here before. She's talkative and friendlier than most. It's apparent she loves her job too so we had something in common.
She noticed my 18 little buckets and Easter lights and said, "you must be a teacher."
I told her that I taught kindergarten here in Salem and then...she thanked me. Thanked me for being a teacher!
She acknowledged the money she sees teachers spending on our classrooms. She told me how most people just don't realize how much teachers spend and the dedication they have in making sure our children have the things they need to succeed. She said, you are making a difference in the lives of those children and I want you to know how much I appreciate that.

This cashier, this friendly woman gets it. She understands.

As I grabbed my bags to leave I thanked her.
She said, "Oh, don't thank me and don't forget what I told you, you are making a difference."

You can't put a price on appreciation, but yesterday I'm pretty sure I got my $23.00 worth.

W is for Writer

2011-02-19T12:27:00.000-08:00

Anyone who truly knows me knows I love to write, so it's only natural that as a teacher I want to foster the love of writing in my students.

This year I've stumbled upon an amazing bunch of budding authors. I'm not sure why this year is any different than past years, could it be our new reading program, is it my brilliant teaching, or just natural talent? I'm willing to bet it's a little bit of all of that...teaching brilliance aside.

Whatever the reason, I've really enjoyed watching them become more and more confident in their writing ability.

When the year began I gave them each a journal and explained that it was theirs to do with what they wanted. They could scribble, draw or write. It belonged to them and I was not going to tell how to use it. I only asked that they take it out at least once each day, usually after snack time and do something with it.
I had the scribblers and the name writers. Some who copied the alphabet off the wall day after day, some who drew only pictures of flowers or rainbows, but then I had a handful who put pencil to paper and came up with some nice little journal entries. Two little girls filled each page and asked for a new journal which I was more than happy to give them.

When we came back from winter break I decided it was time to get serious. So twice a week I sit down with a small group and write. "Tinkerbell" calls it "Serious Writing Time" and the name works so we stick with it. This is where we really think about what we want to write about, we pay attention to spaces between words, capital letters and punctuation. We don't worry so much about spelling, that will come in time.

I gave each child a new journal and was sure to take one for myself. I told them that one of my favorite things to do is to write because I can write what I'm thinking. It helps me get my feelings out when I'm feeling happy or sad. I told them that sometimes I write about my family or my best friend. Sometimes I write about a dream I had or a place I've been or I'd like to visit. I told them that I would be writing with them during Serious Writing Time. Not only because it's something I love to do but because I want to be a good example to them.

Some Very Serious Writing Going On Here!

They were very excited to get started so we did some brainstorming and decided a favorite animal would be the topic of the day.

I have writers of all levels in my classroom, some are still struggling a bit, putting only random letters on their papers with a name or a sight word mixed in here and there, and some are really taking off sounding out words with very little help from me. I am amazed with all of them and their commitment to becoming Serious Writers!
I hope you are as amazed as I am!

P is for Penguin

2011-02-05T13:11:00.000-08:00

Penguins. Who doesn't love penguins? I love learning about them and I love teaching about them.
I find them fascinating. They are ultimate examples of adaptation and survival.
They are amazingly dedicated as parents and amazingly adorable as babies.

Year after year my kindergarten kids are amazed by them too. We read both fiction and non fiction books about penguins to learn more about them, or to just enjoy a good story.

Non-fiction titles like...

and fun fiction read alouds like...

Once again I was surprised at how much my kids already knew about penguins. Never underestimate how much a five-year old brain can hold!

Of course we had to create some of our own. I saw this project on another blog, so if you are the originator or know who is, please let me know so I can give credit where credit is due!
I love the simplicity of this project.
So cute, so easy!

Snowmen at Night

2011-02-03T18:39:00.000-08:00

We've seen more than our share of snow this winter and because of that we've had more than our share of snow days!
All that snow leads to some great opportunities for some fun read alouds and activities.
One of my class' favorite books is Snowmen at Night written by Caralyn Buehner and illustrated by Mark Buehner.

They've asked for this book more than once, it is a nicely illustrated story with rhyming text. Since I love reading rhyme out loud I'm more than happy to oblige.

I read it for the first time on Monday, following the reading I gave a quick snowman drawing lesson. Some of my kids are in such a hurry to finish everything and move on I really wanted to stress that I wanted details, details details.
After my quick lesson I sent them off, paper in hand and I was pretty happy with the results. They put a lot of thought into their snowmen!

Then it happened...we got hit with yet another snowstorm which gave us two more snow days. It's so hard to get any momentum going when we are constantly being interrupted by weather!
So when we were finally back at it today I thought I'd revisit the story, but this time, I turned it into a writing activity.

I gave them this writing prompt and asked them to really use their imagination.

I think they did a great job but I'll let you decide!

Likes to eat ice cream and play soccer. And make friends.

...likes to play snowfights and snow football...

...likes to eat snow with maple syrup.

Goes to a wedding and the snowball silly games.

...likes to play in the pool.

...likes to dance and sing.

Cold Hearted

2011-01-19T17:10:00.000-08:00

Wintertime in New England presents certain challenges when it comes to recess. The weather is cold, wet and unpredictable. Mittens get forgotten, not every child remembers to wear their boots or snow pants and hats go missing.
Our principal is a big advocate of getting the kids outside, and in most cases I agree. I know outside play leads to healthier kids. They are more focused and fresh air is just a good thing, especially in kindergarten. It's their chance to blow off some steam and release all that pent up energy they've been holding in all morning long.

My kids seem to really like bringing some of the great outdoors inside with them. I have rescued more than one snowball from certain death in a child's pocket.

Today one of the little cherubs carried in a chunk of ice in his little mittened hand. I put out my hand to take it from him.
"But Mrs. Collins."
"We need to put the ice back outside, it's just going to melt and make your pocket all wet."
"But Mrs. Collins I...."
"No, we can't bring it in, give it to me and I'll just put it right outside the door."
He relunctantly gave it to me, but as I turned to place it outside I took a look at it and understood.

I didn't put it outside like I said I was going to. I carefully carried it back into our classroom.

When we were back upstairs I called him over.
"I understand now why this piece of ice was so special! The problem is it will melt in our really warm classroom. But I have an idea."
I walked him over to the windowsill and placed his little piece of ice on top of our spider plant.
"Now your special little block of ice will melt here and give this plant some water and a little bit of love to help it grow."

The smile that grew from that little gesture could melt even the coldest of hearts. I know it melted mine.

...and sometimes Y.

2011-01-04T17:51:00.000-08:00

Dismissal time in kindergarten can be crazy. Cubbies to empty, folders to fill and back packs to pack.

In the winter there are boots, hats, scarfs, mittens, gloves and jackets...oh the jackets, the person who invented those jackets with the zip-out linings in kindergarten size, was obviously never a kindergarten teacher. I can not tell you how many sleeves I've had to tuck back in so their little arms go through the right hole.

So during dismissal I try my best to make things as calm as possible.
There they were today, packed up and ready to go. The bus kids were in their holding patterns in the hallway waiting for Mission Control to call their ~~space shuttle~~ bus, and the parent dismissal kids were waiting quietly in their circle spots.

I play a little game when it's line up time. I might say, "if you are wearing stripes, you may line up" or "if you are wearing pink, you may line up". Today I decided to go with a little phonemic awareness.

Me: "If your name rhymes with silly, you may skip to the line."

Billy: "YES!"

Me: "If your name begins with a "c" sound, you may hop to the line."

Me: "If your name begins with a vowel you may tip-toe to the line."

My three vowel kids toed it to the line, but the fourth didn't move.

Me: ( I repeat) "Yolanda, if your name begins with a vowel you can tip-toe to the line."

Yolanda: "Mrs Collins, what's a BOWEL?"

Me: (without skipping a beat, cause I that's how I roll) A,E,I,O,U and sometimes....?

Yolanda: Y!

M is for Missing

2010-12-29T11:53:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone,
Along with this blog, I also have another titled Miss B Travels. It is a Travel Blog for my kindergarten's Miss Bindergarten Doll.
She has been traveling the country with her travel journal and books, visiting other kindergarten classrooms across the country.
It's been a great project for my class teaching them a little big about the geography of the country they live in.
Each week I pull up Miss B's blog in the computer lab as we keep track of her travels.
But Miss B has gone missing and I'm trying to track her down.

Her last known whereabouts were in Georgia and she was headed toward Citronelle, Alabama, but I'm not sure she arrived.
I'm hoping by posting this here, she will somehow be located. If anyone knows Miss K in Citronelle, can you please let her know we are looking for our Miss B!

Thank you!

Lisa

T is for Tummy Trouble

2010-12-16T19:48:00.000-08:00

Six little ones stayed home from school today. So my little group of 17, was down to just 11.

Now you would think a kindergarten teacher would welcome the quiet.
Yes, it was easier to shuffle them all to our holiday concert, and line them up on their little rows on the stage, and yes I had twelve less shoes to tie, and 6 less jackets to zip.

But, the lessons I had planned, now need to wait until tomorrow because I don't want 6 kids to miss too much. So I had to wing it a bit, pull some tricks out of kindergarten sleeve to keep my 11 happy and busy.

We spent the day singing, playing, building and making snowflakes and I threw in an extra story. The mood was lighter, not quite as busy, a little more relaxed and still fun. We really did have a good time with no real schedule to follow. But somehow it just didn't seem right.

The fact of the matter is those six little personalities were missed!

Each one of them has become so important to the dynamic of our classroom.
They all contribute, each in their own little way, and when one of them is noticeably absent it just doesn't feel right.

I hope with plenty of rest and some Mommy and Daddy love, they'll be back in the morning because we just aren't complete without them!

G is for Gingerbread

2010-12-12T04:15:00.000-08:00

Last week was gingerbread week in our classroom. The theme provided us with a fun week of activities that helped the transition between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

There are so many different versions of the classic Gingerbread Man that we never lacked for enough literature!

We started the unit with The Gingerbread Man illustrated by Karen Schmidt.

It's a classic take on a classic story with the Gingerbread Man meeting a very sticky end on the end of a fox's nose!

During literacy centers, I designed a glyph in which they created a gingerbread man of their own.

We added a little glue and some sparkles then hung them up to dry.

One of the centers I designated as "The bakery." I put out gingerbread boy and girl cookie cutters and ginger and cinnamon scented play-do, which I made using a basic play-do recipe with lots and lots of spices mixed in. It smelled good enough to eat, but came with a stern warning not to!

I provided googly eyes and beads for decorations. They had a great time creating their Ginger people and were pretty impressed that their hands smelled like Christmas for the rest of the day.

About mid-week I read The Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett.

I love this story, mostly because it ends happily with the little Gingerbread Baby living happily in his own little gingerbread house and not in a fox's belly.

Later, I created a graph in which I asked, "Which Gingerbread Story did you like best?

I gave each child a small gingerbread cut out with their name on it and asked them to place their gingerperson on the graph.

Gingerbread Baby won by a landslide!

We finished the unit by creating our own gingerbread houses.

The day before I collected empty milk cartons from the lunch room and rinsed them well.

We used cinnamon graham crackers for the sides. A little glob of frosting is just enough to glue the graham crackers to the milk carton.

We used canned frosting, but next time I will definitely make my own. Home made is a little big stiffer and stickier, where the canned stuff tends to be a little too slippery.

It did eventually work with a little perseverance, but it was a little frustrating for little fingers.

I provided, star mints, gumdrops and red cinnamon hearts to stick to the graham crackers.

The most difficult part of this was keeping their frosting covered fingers out of their mouths!

The kids were so proud of their sweet creations...and so was I!

Just the Facts please!

2010-12-06T13:35:00.000-08:00

The weeks after Thanksgiving and before Christmas are always a little tough to fill. The kids already have sugar plumbs dancing in their heads, so it's important to keep them busy and engaged to cut down on the chaos.

Away went the Thanksgiving and fall books and out came the Chanukah and Christmas books. The fall leaves on bulletin boards and the playhouse have been carefully packed away, and little by little the evergreens, dreidels, and Christmas lights are making their appearance.

It's sometimes a struggle to come up with activities in order to make a smooth transition from one season, holiday, or big event to another. So we kindergarten teachers have to be kind of creative.

Last week was gingerbread week, (more of that coming in my next post), this week we are talking about all things "Reindeer"!

I started my lesson with a web. I wrote the word Reindeer in the center, then went about my business trying to assess their current reindeer knowledge, which by the way exceeded my expectations as you will soon discover. I kid you not!

Me: Does anyone know any real facts about reindeer? (hands shoot up)

Darcy: I do Mrs. Collins, I know that Reindeer evolved from horses, they are horse cousins. Way back millions of years ago in the Jurassic period, Reindeer had 5 toes, but because they evolved now they only have two toes.

Me: Speechless, Jaw on floor.

Maggie: I know another reindeer fact Mrs. Collins. I know that reindeer leave a scent trail on trees and bushes so they can mark their territory and other reindeer can find them. And, I know they have iron in their noses so they can tune in to the earth's magnetic field and find their way if they get lost out on the tundra.

Me: uh huh.

Amanda: Mrs. Collins, Mrs. Collins I know another true fact!

Me: Okay, Amanda go ahead.

Amanda: Reindeer can FLY!

Now that's more like it!

T is for Thanks

2010-11-22T19:38:00.000-08:00

I usually like to keep my blog posts on the positive side. There are certainly ups and downs of teaching kindergarten and the good things I write about always outweigh the bad.

But occasionally I see and hear things that I just feel need to be addressed. Maybe this blog is my way of venting.

Our school recently held its annual Harvest Fair. It's a nice little tradition where children can bring in a little money and purchase some gently used items from the White Elephant Table, some recycled jewelry, crafts or snacks from the snack table.

Most kids bring a small amount of money to school on that day but there are always a few who just forget or who's parents just can't afford an extra dollar or two. I am always sure to have some single dollars or quarters on hand just for that reason.

I noticed three of my cherubs had no money with them, so I handed them each a dollar. The first two both smiled and said, "Thank you!" One sat and said nothing as she took the dollar from me. I noticed the pout on her face so I had to ask "what's wrong?" Somehow though, I knew what the answer was going to be.

"Just a dollar? That's all? That's not enough."

I was speechless, and what I really really wanted to do was take the dollar back from her. Instead I gave her my "good manners" speech, and how a simple "thank you" was really a much better thing to say.

Is the sense of entitlement so ingrained in children that being grateful for the things they have is a thing of the past? Or is it simply a question of good manners. Just knowing when to say "please", "excuse me" or "thank you, that was a really nice thing you did for me."

Now I know she's only five and I suppose manners are something you have to be taught. I do my best to model good manners. I say thank you when they hand me their little drawings in the morning. I say please when I ask them to pass me a pencil or crayon. But there is only so much I can do.

It needs to come from home, after all, a parent is their child's first teacher.

However, being thankful goes beyond using good manners to show it. Being grateful is appreciating the little blessing that come to us each an every day.

What am talking about are the blessings of the people in our lives. Mothers, fathers, sons and daughters, husbands and wives. Special friends who are there with a smile or hug, and teachers who care enough to place a dollar into a child's hand.

I was reminded today how truly grateful I am when I saw a facebook post from a friend who just arrived back in Afghanistan to serve after some time spent at home. He was mentioning how time stands still there, that it hadn't changed, it was the same "dusty and nasty", but in all of that, being away from his family for the holiday, he still managed to find something to be grateful about..."the food is pretty good though."

If that's not thankful...I don't know what is.

Stay safe Brian, God speed...

Thank you.

B is for Butter

2010-11-10T18:43:00.000-08:00

Popcorn, baked potatoes, warm bread...some things are just better with butter. My days are filled with it, little five-year-olds buttering me up. Spreading the little niceties in the form of compliments and lately they are laying it on thick. I enjoy it because it is always heart warming to hear something nice, especially when it comes from the people who matter the most.

Most of the buttering has been coming from one little one in particular. I knew from the minute she walked in the door she was going to challenge me. Cuter than a button, but a tough nut to crack. Just a little bit stubborn...sussing me out, wondering how far she could push me, wondering what she could get away with. She's one of those kids who was just looking for limits and I was sure to set them right away.

She's suddenly become my best friend. Happy to be in school, following directions, and thriving, but she is laying the butter on so thick I can barely taste the bread. Hugs after hugs come my way, sometimes she'll just feel the urge to get up in the middle of a lesson and give me a hug.

A typical conversation goes something like this....

"Mrs. Collins, do you know who my favorite teacher is?"

"Who Amanda?"

"You Mrs. Collins"

"Thank you Amanda!"

"Mrs. Collins, do you know who the best teacher is?"

"Who Amanda?"

"You Mrs. Collins."

"Thanks again!"

and my personal favorite

"Mrs. Collins, do you know who the prettiest teacher is?"

"Who Amanda?"

"You Mrs. Collins!"

"Why thank you Amanda, that makes my heart happy."

Now little Amanda isn't the only one spreading it on thick...My little Tinkerbell has her buttery moments too.

We've been learning all about symmetry and today was the day we painted symmetrical pictures.

I folded their papers in half and instructed the cherubs to paint only one half of their papers.

Tink needed a little clarification...

"Miss Collins, what side do I paint on?"

"You pick, but only paint one side of the paper."

"Just one side? But which one?"

"It doesn't matter, but only paint one."

"Is this side okay?"

"Yep, that side is perfect, excellent choice!"

So she painted, and then I showed her how to fold the paper, and rub her hand over it so one side of the paper would transfer to the other.

"Okay, Tink, ready for the magic?"

"Ready."

We carefully unfolded the paper...and her jaw dropped. Instant Symmetry!

"Mrs. Collins, you are a genius!"

Sweet buttery goodness.

S is for Security

2010-11-04T17:59:00.000-07:00

My cherubs this year are a very young bunch with most of them having summer birthdays.
Their young-ness presents itself in a lot of different ways, I have seen some separation issues, and some difficulties with fine motor skills.

But this year, more than any other, I've noticed a lot of thumb sucking. I am a little stumped as to what to do about it.
Since I'm not a dentist, I don't find myself concerned with what it's doing to their teeth, but I am concerned with its social implications.
The other kindergarteners don't seem to have noticed the thumbs, but if it continues into the upper grades they certainly will. Let's face it, kids can be mean to each other sometimes and although we do a lot to curb that, it still happens.

I've been wondering if it's the newness of their kindergarten experience that's bringing it on. Are they scared? Unsure? Am I in any way causing them to want to suck their thumbs in order to feel more secure?

I've been reading up on the subject, and most everything I've read tells me that school-aged kids who suck their thumbs do because it's become a habit. So if that's true, how do I break the thumb habit in school, and how do I suggest to parents that the thumb sucking at home should probably stop as well?

I pulled my little thumbkins over the other day to have a little chat. I explained to them as gently as I could why sucking their thumbs in kindergarten was not a good idea. I explained about germs, and what a big deal it was to be big enough to come to big kid school! I told them that I was ready to help them to not suck their thumbs if they wanted me to. I wanted to make it a choice, just in case it was some sort of security thing. I didn't want to make them feel any less secure than they may have already been feeling.

I told them, that when I noticed their thumbs I would just give them a quick "thumbs up." I knew this would be discreet enough not to call the other kids' attention to what we were doing. I give a lot of thumbs up in my room and this little gesture wouldn't seem out of the ordinary.

In the last few days we've been trying our little strategy, I haven't seen a huge difference in the frequency, but I have noticed that they immediately stop when I give my little sign. I'm hoping with a little consistency we can take care of this without too much drama. I've been giving a lot of positive reinforcement to these two, and just a few extra hugs too, because there is nothing like a good hug to help a person feel just a little more secure.

C is for Compliment

2010-10-24T18:45:00.000-07:00

I love new ideas to help with classroom management, so I thought I'd share one that works pretty well in my classroom.

The kids in my room love to collect compliments!

We talk a lot about what a compliment is. Sometimes compliments are about how we look. Sometimes they might receive a compliment about a good job they did, or my favorite...compliments for good behavior.

We collect them as we travel from place to place. As we visit art, music, science or gym. As we eat lunch, play on the playground, or walk through the hall. We collect them when we've been able to sit for a long time during an assembly or when our 4th grade reading buddies come to visit.

I tell them when I hear compliments about their good behavior it makes my heart happy. They also know that I have to hear the compliment with my own ears and they have to come from some one other than me.

I compliment them a lot, but the notice has to come from other adults or students in our building.

Lately, we've been getting a lot of compliments, so I knew it was time to present....The Compliment Frog!

The Compliment Frog lives in her pond on our classroom wall. Each time the class receives a compliment she hops up one Lily Pad, with a great big "RIBBIT!"

When she reaches the top, they earn some kind of special treat. Maybe a movie with popcorn, make your own sundaes, a choice from the prize box or extra recess!

So far the response has been great! When we are lined up and ready to move about the building, I just need to remind them that we are "collecting compliments" and they turn on the good behavior...and my heart is happy!

A is for Amigo, F is for Friend

2010-10-19T18:54:00.000-07:00

A little boy joined my class today. He and his family have just arrived from the Dominican Republic.
He speaks no English. I can't even begin to imagine how this must feel.
New surroundings, new people, and on top of it all, a new language. How must that feel, not understanding?
I know he'll learn quickly as he's immersed in a language that comes so naturally to us, but is so difficult for others to learn. He has a big advantage being in kindergarten where the curriculum is so language rich.
As I struggled to communicate with him, I found myself wishing I had paid better attention during those 6 years of Spanish I took.
There are words I remember, but with no one to practice with, any conversational Spanish I may have had is now gone.
I was amazed however, at the vocabulary I did manage to pull out of my head when I needed to.

"Escriba su nombre aquí por favor." "Write your name here please.
"Es hora para el almuerzo." "It's time for lunch."
"Siéntese aqui por favor." "Sit here please."

Do this, do that, go here, go there. I felt for him.

I had the luxury today of being able to spend a little one on one time with him because my student teacher has taken over for the week. We sat together and played a simple card game. I named the pictures in English, he named them in Spanish. He smiled when I repeated what he said, maybe feeling good that he had taught ME something.

My favorite moment of the day came right after he arrived. I think that the other kids found him interesting. Mostly because he was a new arrival to a pretty well established bunch of kiddos and of course because he didn't speak their language.
One little girl decided to be his friend. She told me she'd stick by him and help him out.
"I can help him Mrs. Collins because I can speak Spanish."
"Really Tinkerbell, I didn't know that about you."
"Yep, amigo, that means friend."

"Well Tinkerbell, I think it's safe to say the job is yours."

F is for First Field trip to the Fair on Friday!

2010-10-09T18:26:00.000-07:00

After four solid days of wind driven rain I was starting to have my doubts that this field trip I had been planning since August was actually going to happen.
But I awoke to the sun and all my weather fears disappeared. It was going to be a glorious day!

I arrived at school extra early so I could get organized. Name tags ready, chaperones set. I had emailed the bus company two days before just to confirm.

Jayna, my student teacher and I kept the kids busy for the hour before it was time to leave. We made sure they had used the facilities, checked the lunch situation, ordered bagged lunches for the kids that forgot then lined them up to go. The kids were getting antsy so I made the decision to wait for the bus outside.
There we sat...and sat. We waited...and waited. Thankfully, I have some moms who are very good at singing "The Wheels on the Bus."

At exactly 9:05 I decided to make a phone call to transportation, only to hear this, "We are unable to take any calls now, but please leave a message and someone will return your call."
So I left a message which basically said, "Hello, we are waiting, where are you???"

A bus pulled up, but sadly, not our bus. I did ask the bus driver to radio in to find out where OUR bus was, was it coming? Did they forget us?
She assured me there were only two buses out that day, the one she was driving and another waiting at Collins Middle School to take those kids to the Topsfield Fair.
"Umm, could it be remotely possible that they sent the bus reserved by Mrs. COLLINS to COLLINS middle school by mistake?"
Nice bus driver relays the message, gets her reply and politely says to me, "we're sorry there seems to be a mix up. The bus will be here in 10 minutes.
Now the only reason I even thought that was a possibility was because last year 10 giant boxes of file folders were delivered to me at my school, but were supposed to go the middle school, but I digress.
Exactly 30 minutes past the time we were supposed to leave, 54 kindergarteners and 15 grownups were on the bus headed for the fair! Hurray!
Because of our late start we hit some traffic. Arrival 10:15, 45 minutes later than planned. This was going to be a world record tour of a very large fair.
We split up into our groups, Jayna and I took 5 kids with us and headed off. The first stop, snack in the arena while we took in a horse show.
While I explained the fine art of walk, trot, canter and posting (yes, I know this stuff) the kids ate their snack. Because if we were going to run through this fair, we needed some energy!

Look how happy they are! (sorry for the smileys...privacy rules and all that.)

We stopped briefly to look at this amazing sand sculpture on our way to the sheep barn.

If you've never had the "pleasure" of smelling sheep, you haven't lived.

Yes, they are quite cute, and fuzzy, but they are not nicest smelling of creatures.

The kids didn't seem to mind though.

It's funny to see kids with farm animals. Some make friends instantly, some aren't so sure. This little girl wanted to take this one home with us.

One of my little guys imitated every animal noise he heard. He baa'd when we visited the sheep barn, until he saw the cows, then he mooed. Until he saw the roosters, ducks and alpacas. I had no idea what sound an alpaca made until I heard the little guy make it.

Funny, no matter how much you tell a kid NOT to put your hand near an animal's mouth or into a cage, they will attempt it anyway.
These little horses named after the Seven Dwarfs may looks sweet and innocent, but they BITE, and little kindergarten fingers look an awful lot like carrots!

The hit of the fair, as always is the Giant Pumpkin. The kids are always amazed at this thing. Is it any wonder? Three of them could fit inside this amazing orange squash.

But the highlight of the fair this year had to be my friend the animal impersonator, he's kind of a funny little kid.
We saw this...

I said to Jayna, "Here come the duck sounds."
I readied myself for the quack, but it never came. Instead I heard....

"AFLAC!"

It was a great day, and you know you had fun when the kids (and chaperones) fall asleep on the way home! Can't wait for next year!

Recognition

2010-10-06T17:10:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty proud to be able to call myself a teacher and even more so to be able to call myself a kindergarten teacher. Not everyone understands how difficult a job teaching kindergarten can be.

I don't mean to diminish what other teachers do because I know how hard they work. I see it everyday. The planning, the patience, the paperwork and the preparation. The planning of field trips, differentiating instruction, notes to parents, meetings to attend. The school day begins long before the kids arrive and ends long after the kids go home, and more often than not we are working at home too because there are just not enough hours in a day.

I am not complaining. I love my job. We don't do it for the money or the summers off. We do it because we love kids and it's pretty reassuring to know that we are making a difference in the lives of children.

Even though we know in our hearts we are making a difference sometimes we just need to hear it. Just as we let the kids in our class know when they are doing a good job, sometimes grownups need to know it too.

For teachers it might come in a note from a grateful parent, a good review from a principal, another teacher, or the best thank you of all...the smile on a child's face.

I'm also really proud of this blog. My own little spot on The World Wide Web. I write from the heart, which is why I don't post as often as I might otherwise. I am thrilled with every new follower both here and on K is for Kindergarten's Facebook Page, and every little comment left.

Today I received an email message from teachersalaryinfo.com congratulating me on K is for Kindergarten being named as one of their Top Teacher Blogs! I don't receive any actual "prize" for this distinction, but I do get to post a little badge on my blog page. Which is really enough for me, because sometimes all you really need is someone to say,

"Congratulations, you did good."

C is for Chocolate

2010-09-21T13:33:00.000-07:00

"Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get." ~Forrest Gump

Even though Forrest was talking about something much bigger, the same can be said for kindergarten. Because many of the children who come into our classrooms in September are unknown entities it's up to us teachers to discover who they are.

I always love the little one-on-one conversations I have with them as I'm playing games, singing and dancing, helping them to cut around a particularly difficult corner, discussing a story or assessing their abilities.

I enjoy finding out what they like to do, who their friends and pets are. They are always so eager to tell me about their parents, brothers, sisters and cousins.

Although I have loved each and every one of the children who have walked through my classroom door, there are some classes who, for whatever reason are more difficult. Sometimes socially they just don't mesh. Some years they require more loving care, patience and understanding because of things they are dealing with both in school and out. Some years they require more one on one attention because academically they need a little more support.

They are all sweet, each in their own way, and I truly do love them all for their uniqueness and diversity.

This year I have 18 little bon-bons, and they all fit very nicely in my chocolate box. They all seem to compliment each other without being over-powering. Some are crunchy, some a little nutty, some are soft and squishy, some nicely fruity but ALL are very sweet.

Yes, kindergarten is like a box of chocolates...and this year, I got the Godivas.

B is for Busy!

2010-09-20T19:49:00.000-07:00

Busy, too busy to blog! Here my little corner of blog-dom sits. Unattended, unwritten.
I have inspiration...18 little inspirations to be exact, but I lack the time, and energy.
Thanks for sticking with me and visiting regardless. Rest assured the writer in me can't stay idle for long.

Back soon!

Lisa

First Day

2010-08-19T05:24:00.000-07:00

There is something in the air this time of year. I can feel the buzz. I see the occasional school bus rumble by with drivers new and old rehearsing their routes. The newspaper is stuffed with circulars with deals to be had on supplies, new clothes and shockingly new white sneakers. The shelves are stocked with lunch boxes and back packs. The days are still warm, but the nights are cool now and the crickets have come alive with their late summery songs.

Back to school means something different to everyone. Those without a vested interest might think of it as busier roads and a harder commute in the morning with those big yellow busses with their red flashing lights in the way or too crowded aisles at the local Staples.

For kids it marks the end of running around barefoot and dirty grass stained feet that leave footprints in the bath tub. The end of staying up late and sleeping in, of playing in the waves and digging the biggest hole on the beach. It marks the beginning of homework, soccer practices, football games, and figuring out new schedules, report cards and meeting new friends. The beginning of getting out of bed to the sound of an alarm and eating their Frosted Flakes with their eyes half-shut.

I am a parent AND a teacher.

The start of school holds so much promise for me but in different ways. As a parent I was never sad to see my boys start school. Maybe it's the teacher in me, but I've always known they were where they were supposed to be.
They were adorable walking into kindergarten for the first time, lunch box in hand and L.L. Bean on their backs. I was full of questions. Would they succeed? Will someone hug them if they cry? Will they make friends? Will they ever have to visit the principal's office or sit in the "thinking chair"? Will their teacher love them as much as I do? There was really no way to know the answer to those questions as I sent them off for their first real experience without me, but time does tell and I'm happy to say I can answer "yes" to all those questions.

As they have grown older I don't worry so much of their school success because they have proven themselves as students, but the question now is what kind of people will they become?

I have come to realize that school doesn't just teach kids academics it helps teach them how to be people. How to get along with others on the playground, how to share, how to take responsibility for their actions, how to be part of a larger community and hopefully to become life-long learners.

Being a parent has made me a better teacher. I understand how those mommies and daddies feel dropping their children off for the first time. The building is bigger, there are more kids, and the expectations are higher. I try to greet those nervous parents with a reassuring smile, a comforting touch on the shoulder and even sometimes a hug and a tissue to wipe the tears. I want them to know that yes, I will hug their little boy when when he cries, and give a band-aid to her little girl when she scrapes her knee.

When the school year begins and I look at those scared little faces looking up at me from their spot in the circle I do my best not to let them see that I'm scared too. Will they like me? How will I possibly teach them all they need to know? How to walk in a line, pack up a back pack, write their names, when it's okay to tattle...to read!!! But every year I take their little hands and lead them wherever they let me, wherever they need to go and wherever OUR learning will take us. It's just what I do, but mostly what I do is love them as if they were my own, because for 9 months of the year that's exactly what they are.

I first posted this in August 2008, I'm repeating it now, because I don't think I can say it any better than I did then. One thing has changed however, this year I'm sending my oldest off to Syracuse University, farther away than he's ever been from me. So even though I've never been sad to see them start school, this year might be just a little bit different in that respect!

W is for Winners!

2010-08-15T06:35:00.000-07:00

Thank you all for the wonderful response to K is for Kindergarten's Very First Giveaway!
I am pleased to announce the two winners of the Bob Books giveaway.

Winners were chosen randomly and have been notified by email, they are

Diane B. and Laurie C!

Diane and Laurie will each receive...

A Bob Books Lunch Box
Copies of Bob Books Sight Words Kindergarten
Copies of Bob Books Sight Words First Grade

Congratulations Winners!

Since my first giveaway was so successful I will be doing others in the near future. Thank you to everyone who entered and for checking out K is for Kindergarten!

Please come back often!

Lisa

K is for Kindergarten's Very First Giveaway!

2010-08-09T16:22:00.000-07:00

I was approached earlier this month to provide an opportunity for a giveaway for you, my loyal readers!
Having never done a giveaway before I was a little skeptical. I wanted to preview "the goods" before posting them to my blog.
After receiving my preview package of Bob Books I decided to go ahead with the giveaway. To be honest, I was also thrilled to have the opportunity to fill up a little blog space since my posts over the summer come few and far between!

Here is what Scholastic has to say about Bob Books...

"From the #1 bestselling learn-to-read program come two brand-new sets focused on learning and practicing Sight Words.

Sight Words are words that are recognized by sight rather than sounded out, in order to achieve reading fluency. They are the most frequently used words in the English language, and are often unable to be read phonetically (“was”, “are”, and “out” are examples). Bob Books Sight Words feature the top Sight Words in two sets – one for kindergarten and one for first grade – in order to allow parents and children to read, learn, and practice easily and enjoyably."

Two winners will each receive

A Bob Books Lunch Box
Copies of Bob Books Sight Words: Kindergarten
Copies of Bob Books Sight Words: First Grade

The giveaway will run until Saturday, August 14th and the winners will be announced on Sunday August 15th.

To enter click here, and Good Luck!

A quick thank you to Scholastic for sponsoring this giveaway!

L is for Listen

2010-08-01T13:46:00.000-07:00

One of the most popular literacy centers in my room is the Listening Center.
In our school we are lucky to have a book room full of leveled books and literacy material as well as our school library where we can borrow books on CD or tape for use in the center. I also have various titles in my room, but I am always looking to add to our choices.
Buying multiple copies and CD's of favorite stories can get expensive, most starting at $35.00 for a CD and multiple copies of books to accompany it.

I love to read aloud to my students, especially books with rhyme. I find rhyming books are engaging for them, and entertaining for me as well. I have favorite stories that I could read over and over and the kids certainly have their favorite stories, so I decided rather than spend my allotted instructional supply money or my own hard earned cash, I would make my own.

I still needed multiple copies of favorite stories and thought using up some of my Scholastic Points would be a good way to get copies without having to pay a lot of money for them.
I chose 7 titles, books I love to read aloud and books I know they would want to listen to and ordered 4 copies of each book.
Titles such as If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Joffe Numeroff

and my personal all time favorite, Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes.

All tallied I got 28 books for less than 10.00 in shipping cost, quite a bargain!

I know a lot of teachers tape their own CD's but since I had never done it before I was just a little intimidated by the little microphone on my computer. I never really like the sound of my recorded voice, but it's something I just had to get over!

So I pulled up the Garage Band Application on my Mac and got started.
I began by reading the title, author and illustrator and didn't forget to say, "When you hear the chime, please turn the page!"
The hard part was remembering to ring the chime before each page turn!

It took a few "takes" before I was happy with my expression and clarity but once I was, I was pretty happy with the final result.
A carefully designed CD cover, and tah-dah...instant listening station!

After listening, I always give the kids a task, sometimes I'll ask them to journal about what they heard, sometimes simply to draw a picture, or often I'll give them a "book report" to complete. As the year progresses I make these a little more challenging by adding a space for their written thoughts. I collect these and include them in their reading portfolio which goes home at the end of the year. These are a good way for the me and the kids to keep track of all the books they've read...or in this case listened to!

A Really Great Idea!

2010-07-22T16:32:00.000-07:00

One of the great things about summer is I have a lot of extra time to surf The Net looking for great ideas from other teachers. Some I bookmark for future consideration, but every once in awhile I hit on something that I need to act on right away.

Disclaimer: I can't take credit for this Really Great Idea, I discovered it on Filth Wizardry. But it's too good not to pass on!

I had a bucket of Duplo blocks which my now nine-year-old grew out of a long time ago. I had them in my classroom but discovered that the kindergarten kids were much more interested in regular sized Lego blocks.
I had been considering donating them to a home day care or preschool but then came upon this Really Great Idea.

First I dumped the blocks into the sink and sanitized them using 1 Tbs of bleach per 1 gallon of water and let them soak for awhile, I rinsed them and spread them on a towel to air dry.

The drying part is pretty important before moving on to the next step.

I purchased Avery Removable Multi-Use Labels. Number 5418 works best, the labels are 1/2" x 3/4" and fit perfectly on the square Duplo bricks.

I used Sharpies to write lowercase letters on each label. I used a red Sharpie for vowels and blue for the consonants. Then applied each label to a Duplo block.

Letters should be placed horizontally so the Duplo "bumps" are facing to the left. The label on the Duplo block above is NOT placed correctly, but I only discovered that as I was typing this!

When the blocks are joined together, children can build words using the Duplos.

Then I labeled large Duplo blocks with Sight Words.

I love finding ideas like this...a new purpose for some old toys!

A Day in the Life...

2010-07-12T14:02:00.000-07:00

...of a kindergarten teacher on vacation.

6:30 a.m. Turned over and opened my eyes, blearily looked at the clock mocking me from my bedside table.

6:35 Ignored evil clock, turned over and TRIED to go back to sleep...it's summer I can do this.

7:00 Gave up. Stretched and was very happy to realize my sunburn felt much better. I might even be able to attempt a bra today! Really, it's the little things.

7:10 Sat down at the computer. Logged in. I have a daily ritual here.
Email account #1...a few updates from friends, and one from my sister in law in the midst of planning her son's wedding.
Gmail account...nothing. boo.
School account. nothing. yeah!
Facebook..read updates, looked at photos, dug for treasure, played a little Bejeweled.
K is for Kindergarten on Facebook
Empire Avenue
The Salem News ...I read the news today...oh boy!
Read my daily blogs

8:00 Arrival of Kid #3. He's an early riser like his mom.
"Hey mom, your sunburn is brown now!"
"Yes, it is!"
"What's angina?"
Seriously...where does he come up with these questions?

9:00 (Yes, I really wasted almost two hours on the internet)
Decided I was hungry.
"Hey Patrick, what should I have for breakfast?"
"Lucky Charms, they're magically delicious."
"Okay then, Lucky Charms it is." Yes, I really did eat them, but I ate around the marshmallows. Yuck.

9:10 Grabbed my latest read, Three Cups of Tea, poured myself a cup of my own and sat on the front porch in my jammies to read a chapter or two.

And so began my day. Vacation day # 19 if you count the weekends.
I really enjoy my mornings of leisure, when I'm in no real hurry to go anywhere. I did eventually leave my porch. I had things to do, mundane things, like the bank, and the post office, Target (why Target do you torment me so...), and to Salem State College to check on a schedule change for hubby. A lot of running around but I did get a very nice surprise when I was able to say hello to some very good friends. :)

Summer is like that, full of little unexpected surprises.
A sudden shower when the sun is shining brightly, an email from a friend suggesting a girl's night out, the lady bug that landed on my leg while sitting on the beach, lunch without the kids, discovering the laundry fairy...or fairies folded it all while I was out, or a card in the mail just to say, "I'm thinking of you."

Vacation doesn't always mean days at the beach, mini-golf, trips to the water park...sometimes it's just nice to kick back and enjoy the surprises...they're magically delicious.

Good Things

2010-07-08T17:22:00.000-07:00

   Without any kindergarten stories to tell, my summer blog posts consist of a lot of rambling about pretty much nothing.
   We are just 15 days into summer vacation and we've already gone on countless bike rides, sometimes twice a day, been to The Willows at least 5 times, once to play some Skeeball but most often to get ice cream...I could live on the stuff. We've been to the movies twice and tomorrow we'll head to the beach to spend the day in the sand, sun and surf.

   I like the summer because I get to be just Mom. My boys don't have to share me with 18 other children, they get my full attention.
As Patrick gets older he needs my attention less and as Mikey and Daniel get older they WANT my attention less.
   With this lack of attention I find myself with some time to fill. I find it hard to do nothing. I actually find it a bit unsettling.
   I did pamper myself the other day with a pedicure, there is nothing better than that, and I browsed the book store and came home with three books that can not in any way shape or form be considered "professional" reading. I've taken naps, gone for walks, and sat on the porch and watched the world go by. All these things help me to rejuvenate. It's what all teachers (and kids for that matter) need after 9 months of really hard work.

However, today, I made a big mistake.

I woke up nice and early, before the heat and humidity of the day settled in. I laced up my running shoes and decided to go for a run. I took it slow because I wasn't out to win any races. (Not that I could anyway) I just wanted to get in a little exercise, enjoy the beautiful weather, the early morning quiet and clear my head a bit.

The mistake wasn't in the running, the mistake was in the route I decided to take. I live less than a mile from school and my route this morning took me right up past the front door. That's when I should have looked, smiled and kept going. Did I? Nope.

I walked up the steps and tried the door.
I pulled and it opened. I felt something drawing me in. I walked up the steps and looked down the dark hallway. I could hear the common sense voice in my head saying "Don't do it Lisa, turn, run as fast as you can...run now!" I really should learn how to listen to that voice.

Somewhere below me I could hear a radio playing. Most likely a custodian polishing a floor. I kept walking until found myself standing at my classroom door. I took a step inside. The mess was still there. The piles of materials still covered with sheets just where I left them. Did I really expect it to be any different than when I left the mess two weeks ago? Was I secretly hoping some magic spirit, perhaps the ghost of Horace Mann himself may have had pity on me and taken care of that mess? Moving is a messy business and it will be mine alone to deal with. Thanks a bunch Horace.

I stayed for only 5 minutes because I wasn't going to do anything about it at that moment anyway, and a dark quiet school building kind of gives me the creeps, so I turned and left.
That little five minute visit pretty much ended any hope of a peaceful, serene, clear-my-head run. My head was now filled with visions of the piles of materials I'll have to put away, planning I'll have to do to start the year, and the kids I will welcome into my room in September. That feeling of being overwhelmed that I've been trying so hard to overcome was hitting me again, a left to the gut, a right to the head. I ducked, I spun, and then I arrived back home defeated as I hit the mat.

Then two very nice things happened.
First, the mail came and in it was card. A thank you card from a very good friend. Reminding me that I have people in that building that care about me. She reminded me that good things WILL happen. I needed that reminder.
Then the phone rang and on the other end was another very good friend. Offering to meet me at school next week and help me get through some of the mess. She has so much more going on with her life right now, but still offered her help.

I instantly felt better. Just knowing that good things will happen and I don't have to go it alone lifted my spirits. I poured myself a cup of tea, sat on the front porch and decided to let it all go and enjoy the rest of my day.

It wasn't long before Patrick woke up and joined me on the porch with his bowl of Mini-Wheats.
"Mom, what's nougat?"

Ahhhh....Back to being just Mom.

Settling in to Summer

2010-07-01T09:45:00.000-07:00

My favorite summer writing spot is my front porch. Even though I live on a busy street, there is something so relaxing and old fashioned about the front portch. I will admit though, I'm not sipping lemonade or eating watermelon while sitting on my front porch swing, but I am sipping my Starbucks Iced Green Tea and typing away on my Mac Book. It may be the front porch, but I'm not one to turn my back on technology. So here I sit. Writing and wondering.

It usually takes me a week or two to settle in to summer. It's not easy for me to switch gears from my usual routine during the school year of getting up at 5:30 to being able to sleep in just a little bit later. I'm not a person who can lie in bed for hours anyway. Once I'm awake, I have to get up, but being able to hang about in my jammies for awhile is very appealing.

My summer vacation only started yesterday even though we've been out of school for a week. I had moving to do, from 124 across the hall to 134. The amount of "stuff" I've managed to collect is five years is amazing to me. It was, and still is an overwhelming task and even though my stuff is sitting in a new room it's far from organized. I have a good week if not more of work ahead of me.

But there comes a point when you just have to walk away. I had to walk away from the expectations. Expectations that it should all be done faster and more completely. But as I was cleaning out the last closet, seething with frustration and wilting from the heat and humidity, I realized the mess will still be there in August. It's not going anywhere, but I wonder...will I ever really be able to settle in to summer vacation knowing it's there waiting for me?

I think the answer is YES and I realized it yesterday. It was a beautiful, picture perfect summer day. Big puffy white clouds floating in a blue sky. Warm without a touch of humidity.
Patrick has been asking...no begging for me to take him to Salem Willows.

I reluctantly agreed as I do every year, reluctant not because I don't like spending time with the kid, reluctant because I know you can't go to the Willows without dropping some cash. But to a nine-year old there is something so very cool about dropping quarters into a machine and seeing how many tickets are going to come out. I'm good for at least one visit a year, and each year we have a great time together. Truly, it's one of the highlights of our summer, and it was a perfect day for it.

We spent close to two hours there and as we were walking back to the car, eating our ice cream, along the harbor on this picture perfect day, I realized that this is why I'll be able to let my room go.
Why what other people expect of me doesn't matter, right at that moment, Patrick mattered more than an organized classroom.
Because...

August will be here soon enough.

On Saying Good-Bye.

2010-06-25T18:45:00.000-07:00

"Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened." ~Dr. Seuss

I said good-bye to my kinderkids on Wednesday. It was a day that I expected to be filled with emotion, happy for what they accomplished, yet sad to see them walk out of my room for the last time. Usually it's the children who challenge me the most that stir up the most emotion in me. In the past I would find myself a little choked up as I hugged each child and sent them on their way. But this year was different. I didn't feel much of anything, and that bothered me. Was I becoming cold-hearted and unfeeling?

I thought that maybe after a few years at this I had become immune to the sadness that comes with saying good-bye, or perhaps the sense of relief that I felt after a particularly hard year was masking the sadness, hiding it for me to deal with at another time.

But after two days of packing up my room to move across the hall, while watching my friend Leanne pack up hers to move to another school, watching Diane my friend and retiring principal pack up her office and my friend Pattie our retiring adjustment counselor pack up her office, it hit me. I had bigger emotional fish to fry. I have not become cold-hearted, unfeeling and immune, in fact it's just the opposite.

My 18 children will be replaced by 18 new ones, but these teachers, my friends and colleagues can not be replaced. Sure, their rooms and positions will be filled by new people, but you just can't replace people you love and care about.
Will they still be my friends? Of course. We'll keep in touch, see each other for dinner or at an occasional professional development day, but it won't be the same. We laughed together, vented to each other, shared ideas, materials and the occasional cupcake and so much more. We are all different, yet so much the same. Passionate for what we do, teaching children.

We've spent the last two days together cleaning our spaces, being so busy that we haven't said good-bye...at least not yet, and I'm not really sure that when the time comes I'll be able to do it with much composure.

So I realize now, that I'm not cold-hearted or unfeeling, this year I didn't cry saying good-bye to my kids, because I'm saving my tears for my friends.

"and your little dog too!"

2010-06-14T17:50:00.000-07:00

I had an interesting conversation with one of the munchkins today...

Me: "Dorothy", you need to clean up those crayons you spilled.
Dorothy: Why?
Me: Because when we make a mess we are responsible for cleaning it up.
Dorothy: Why?
Me: Because it's the right thing to do, if you make a mistake you need to fix it.
Dorothy: Why?
Me: (quickly losing patience) Because I'm the boss and I said so, that's why.
Dorothy: Well I think you are the Wicked Boss of the West!
Me: (completely void of patience) Yes, I am. Now pick...them...up!

Where are those flying monkeys when you need them?

T is for Teacher

2010-06-06T10:30:00.000-07:00

This has been an emotional week for me. I've felt every emotion possible. Fear, worry, doubt, hope, sadness, joy, elation, relief and pride.
Mikey graduated from high school on Friday. There was a lot of doubt as to whether or not he would even get to graduation much less through the ceremony, but he did it!
He was fighting a virus this week, and it was a doozy...spinal taps, CT scans, procedures...but he powered through it and walked across that stage to receive his diploma after 4 years of hard work.

As I stood watching him walk in during the procession I was relieved to see a smile on his face and I instantly felt the tears in my eyes, so proud of the young man he has become. Once he took his seat I couldn't take my eyes off of him, watching every move making sure he was okay. As each speaker rose to the podium, my mind started to wander.
I was thinking of all the teachers he's had a long the way, the ones that have made the biggest impression on him. Those from elementary school, middle school and high school who inspired him to reach a little higher. The ones who showed him through their passion for what they do, what dedication and hard work can accomplish.

I am lucky enough to call some of them my friends and colleagues. So Andy, Tricia, Judy and Linda, I want to say thank you, not just for being Mikey's teachers but for what you do each and every day to make the world a little bit better one student at a time.

It is because of you, and the impression that each of you in your own special way has made on him, that he has decided to become a teacher himself.

I couldn't be more proud.

Much Love,

Lisa

Who is Mother Nature Anyway?

2010-05-28T12:38:00.000-07:00

I live and teach in an urban community. I teach city kids, who don't always get a chance to explore nature on their own. Despite this fact, we are lucky enough that our school is located just a stone's throw from Forest River Park. Forest River is an ocean side park with wooded areas, meadows and beaches.

I partnered the kids up, explained the rules about walking together, crossing streets, and generally being safe, and off we went. It took us less than 10 minutes to get to the park and meet up with Miss P our science teacher.

This is the second time this year we made a visit. We went first this fall, where we looked and listened to the world around us, tying it in with a unit on the five senses.

This time, we were there to look for stages of the life cycle in different animals and plants. We also took the opportunity to release our painted lady butterflies who recently emerged from their chrysalises.

I'm still amazed at the transformation even though I've seen it year after year. Squeals of excitement rang out as each butterfly took off into the air, twelve little miracles.

After we said good-bye to our butterflies we made our way to the beach where they scoured the beach for sea creatures. Crab parts were big hits once they got past the fear of being pinched! We looked at muscles, barnacles, and periwinkles and managed to spot a few live crabs. We stopped on the way back to listen to bird songs, and smell the ocean air.

I wanted them to see the little details of the natural world around them, away from the four walls of our classroom, away from their computer screens and televisions.

As we were walking back to school Robin looked at me and asked, "Mrs. Collins, Who is Mother Nature anyway?"

"Well Robin, today, Mother Nature is me!"

Tickets Please!

2010-05-27T17:55:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what it is, perhaps it's just that time in the year. Perhaps I've just become less tolerant or could it be that the cherubs are just feeling a little unsettled with all the talk of school ending and the prospect of first grade. Whatever it is, tattling has made a reappearance in my classroom.
The Tattle Jar has stopped working. It was a pretty effective deterrent for awhile, but the novelty has worn off.
I was wracking my brain trying to come up with a solution, and then, suddenly, an idea!

I sat them all down and gave the tattle talk. I explained again about the big things that should be told about and also the little things that can be solved without a grownup's help.
Any blood? I need to know!
Someone is doing something that could cause blood? I need to know!
Someone stuck his tongue out? Unless it's bleeding, I don't want to know.
I threw a few scenarios at them, and they seemed to understand. However, we've had this chat before so I really wanted to make sure they understood.

Then I took out my sticky notes, the ones shaped like stars, and wrote each child's name on one and stuck them to the white board in front of the room.
I explained, "These my little cherubs are Tattle Tickets. You are allowed one, and only one Tattle per day, you can tell me anything even if it's little and silly. If you just can not hold it in and you really need to tell me, you can tattle but it will cost you your Tattle Ticket. Once the ticket is gone, you are done for the day. No more tattles."
They seemed excited about this plan, so I even added a bonus..."If your Tattle Ticket stays on the white board for the whole day, I will have a treat for you. (Eyeing the giant bag of M & M's on my desk)

Now, to be fair, not every child in my room is a chronic tattler, one even announced to me, "Mrs. Collins, this will be easy because I have never tattled in my whole life!", but I do have a few that just can't help themselves, these are the ones that really need a strategy to help them break the tattle habit.
I wasn't sure it would work, but by the end of the day, only 5 kids had tattled, and my two worst offenders? Their tickets remained where I placed it, right there on the Tattle Ticket Board!

They were so proud of themselves and I was thrilled to be able to hand out those M & M's!

Today, I only had three tattlers. Just three! Amazing.
I didn't pass out treats today, they need to learn, that to be proud of an accomplishment is reward enough. Judging from the smiles when I told them how proud I was of them, I think they understood.

Do I dare hope for a tattle free day? That might be too much to hope for, after all, sometimes you just need to be heard...even if there isn't any blood.

L is for Laugh

2010-05-13T18:45:00.000-07:00

Some of the best things about being a kindergarten teacher are the daily chuckles I get when kids say or do something funny. Sometimes the laugh might come from a look or expression or maybe a crazy dance move, but mostly the laughs come when they say something funny.

There must have been something in the air lately, or perhaps my funny bone is on the particularly sensitive side. I'll let you be the judge.

We had an early release day yesterday and the usual reminder note did not go home from the office. In the morning out principal made an announcement suggesting that any child who thought their moms or dads did not know it was an early release day to please come to the office. I was in the office at the time and got my first laugh of the day when a little boy came trotting in...

What's your name?
Alex.
Alex what?
Alex Ander

Sometimes I break out into song for not particular reason. Sometimes it's the song in my head when I wake up in the morning or sometimes I get a little inspiration. Today I had the kids all lined up for dismissal, with my friend Maria at the front of the line. I looked at her and started belting out show tunes.
"Maria....I just met a girl named Maria."
She looked right at me and said, I know that song! I'm sure you do was my reply.
Do you know any other songs about me Mrs. Collins?
I sure do!
"How do you solve a problem like Maria!"
I know that one too! Hey Mrs. Collins did you know my friend Ronan has a song about him too?
Really? I don't know any songs with the name Ronan in it.
Sure you do. You know Mrs. Collins...Ronan, Ronan, Ronan on the River!!!

go ahead....laugh.

M is for Mom

2010-05-09T07:09:00.000-07:00

I know, today should be all about me because I am a mom. The truth is if it weren't for my three beautiful children I wouldn't have the privilege of being "Mom".
The three boys are all so different. Each unique in their own way, but so much the same too. I hear all the time how much they look alike. Sure they have their similarities, they certainly look like brothers, but perhaps I don't see it because I see them as the individuals they have become.

Patrick is the "baby" of the family, but at 9, he would argue that he is no longer a baby. That is true of course, but like his brothers, he will always be my baby.
He wasn't the easiest of babies. He cried a lot when he was really little, he hated the car, and I pretty much walked around wearing him in a Snugli for the first 6 months of his little life. He walked at 9 months and was running two weeks later. He hasn't stopped running since.
Patrick is a little on the quirky side, and I say that with the utmost affection. He's funny and most of the time he doesn't even realize he is. We stopped at the store the other day and because he had money in his pocket he had to buy himself something. He brought his lemonade up to the counter, paid for it with a handful of change and as he walked away, he pointed to the store clerk and said, "Now you have a good day." What nine year old says that?
As we were walking home from school one day last week, he announced to me that he was becoming very good at impressions. He told me he was really good at doing his brother Daniel.
So of course curiosity got the best of me and I asked him to go ahead and let me hear Daniel.
Not in how Daniel sounds, but more what Daniel would say..."Patrick, you are such a tool!"
Spot on impression!

Daniel and Patrick don't have the best of relationships. There is no doubt in my mind that they love each other, but I'm pretty sure Daniel never really got over the fact that when Patrick was born he was no longer the baby of the family.
I do see glimmers of hope for them. Daniel is making an effort to do things with Patrick. He takes him outside to play catch, or to the gym to play some hoop. I think Daniel sees the potential Patrick has as an athlete and he's trying to help him on his way.
I think there is hope for them as brothers and friends.

Unlike Patrick, Daniel was a good baby and has grown into a really good kid. He was born during a snow storm and we were lucky to get to the hospital in time. He was born quickly and even as a baby he moved quickly! He chose not to walk until he was almost 14 months old because he could get everywhere he needed by crawling. I'll never forget the day when he was about 10 months old, when I found him sitting in the kitchen sink playing in the water. He had the smarts and resourcefulness even at that age to push the kitchen chair over to the sink and crawl in.
Despite is mischievous beginnings he has grown into a young man that any mom would be proud of.
He's respectful, kind and well liked. He's smarter and more talented than I could ever have hoped to be at his age. He is an amazing writer and very good athlete, but mostly he's a good person. He quietly goes about his business without a lot of fanfare. He quietly gets the job done whether it's academics or sports. He excels at both but in his own quiet way and people notice. He's teachable and coachable always willing to improve. He's not as socially out and about like his older brother, preferring to sometimes just hang out at home or with his the friends he's most comfortable with.

Mikey, Michael really, but he'll always be "Mikey" to us, was my first and the best baby of the three. He never cried, he was always content and easy to please. I'd walk in to a smile every morning as I lifted him out of his crib. I remember thinking how crazy it was that I was responsible for such a small little thing when I had absolutely no experience with babies.
But my instincts kicked in and I was never the same again.
He has always been a good big brother to both of his younger siblings. He has given Patrick a lot of attention, helping him out when he needed to, consoling him as a baby when nobody else could. He is Daniel's best friend and Daniel looks up to him in many ways. Mikey takes this job very seriously striving to be a good example to both of his brothers.

I was approached the other day by his boss at his new job. He told me that when the other kids are just chatting and sitting around, Mikey is up and working, finding things that need to be done. Whether it be cleaning tables, emptying trash or the dreaded...cleaning the bathroom, Mikey does it without being asked. I was of course very proud, it's always nice to hear the good things your kids do, but I couldn't help wonder why he's not cleaning the bathroom at home!!!
Mikey will be headed off to Syracuse University in the fall. I know our house will never be the same. I've never been one to get emotional over the different stages of life they've gone through. I was not a mom who cried when I dropped them off on their first day of kindergarten, or during their various moving on ceremonies, because going to kindergarten or starting high school is what they are supposed to do, but as I'm writing this, thinking about Mikey moving on to college I'm feeling more emotional than I expected to. Syracuse is far away, he won't be coming home every weekend. Do I wish he was going to school closer to home? Yes, but I can't deny him what he's worked so hard to achieve. I have to let him spread his wings. I know he'll soar, it's the kind of person he is.

I couldn't be more proud of all three of them.
So I don't need a day to celebrate, I get to celebrate everyday I hear my name...Mom.

Happy Mother's Day!

F is for Funny, S is for Sweet

2010-04-30T18:30:00.000-07:00

I don't have a long thought provoking post today, but sometimes kindergarten kids say things that are just so funny they need to be written about.

It turned out to be a beautiful spring day today, but it was pretty chilly this morning. When the kids came in from recess all hot and sweaty, "Margaret", realizing she would not need her jacket on the way home, asked me to help her force her jacket into her too small back pack. I tried to explain that it was just not going to work.

Me: Margaret, it's just too small, you wont' be able to zip it, and it's going to squish all your hard work.

Margaret: But Mrs. Collins, you HAVE to make it fit.

Me: I think you can manage to carry it. Leave it on your hook and we can tie it around your waist when you leave.

Margaret: No, that's not going to work.

Me: Why not, I think that's a perfect solution.

Margaret: Well you see Mrs. Collins, if I put it on my hook I'm going to forget it.

Me: No, I'm sure you won't.

Margaret: Oh, yes I will. I suffer from Short Term Memory Loss!

I wasn't about to argue with that logic!

And sometimes they say something that is just so sweet, it needs to be shared.

"Katherine" was having a particularly difficult day. She cried easily and I suspect she was over tired or hungry for lunch, or maybe a bit of both.

In the middle of our guided reading group she started to cry claiming one of the other kids called her ugly. I don't doubt this happened because as we get to the end of the year they are becoming more like siblings than classmates. They've spent a lot of time together and frankly they are just getting tired of one another!

As I was trying to get to the bottom of what had happened, "Kevin", one of my little cherubs got up out of his seat, walked over to Katherine, put his arm around her and said,

"Don't cry Katherine, because you are a pitty, pitty, pincess."

Her tears were gone, and in their place a smile.

I have a tiara that I sometimes wear to remind the kids that I can not be interrupted when I'm working one on one with a child. I placed the tiara on the pitty pincess' head and didn't see another tear for the rest of the day.

Funny and Sweet, they are what makes my job so perfect!

A Sign of Diversity

2010-04-18T06:46:00.000-07:00

I am very fortunate to have a very diverse classroom of kindergarteners. I have some whose parents are from Haiti, Africa, The Dominican Republic and Brazil.
In addition to English, many of my children speak Spanish, two speak Portuguese and one speaks French Creole.
One child, whose mother is deaf is fluent in American Sign Language. This has presented some challenges with parent/teacher communication and technology certainly helps with that. Text messages, and email have been the norm rather than the exception, and translators for parent/teacher conferences have to be scheduled weeks in advance.
The children have a natural curiosity about how "Jackson" communicates with his mom and I have to admit, I'm fascinated as well.
"Jackson" is a very active and endearing little boy. I watch as he runs around on the sidewalk chasing his friends at dismissal time and when all the other moms are yelling for their children to come to them and stop running, Jackson's mom waits patiently to catch his eye. He instinctively knows not to run too far and to check back in her direction on occasion. It makes me wonder about all the challenges she has to face on a daily basis in raising a child in a silent world.

The other children have experience at least in hearing other languages but for many this has been their first exposure to watching people communicate with ASL. They are fascinated by it and ask a lot of questions. I am still learning too! At the start of the year Jackson told me that he wanted to have a play date with a certain child, so I suggested that he talk to his mom about it. He looked at me funny, then said, "But I don't know how to spell "Matthew"!"
During a parent teacher conference, his mom brought to my attention that there was some difficulty helping "Jackson" complete some of his homework because she could not help him decode and sound out the words. An issue that had not occurred to me. It's been a learning process for all of us, but it's been a welcomed one!
The other day during choice time one little girl asked me if she could use my lap top because the other computers were being used. I set her up and left her to it. She went right to one of her favorite web sites, Starfall. This is a great web site, full of letters and sounds, stories and learning games. After a time, I noticed her concentrating intently on the computer screen and when I realized what she was doing, I quickly grabbed my camera!

I often call on "Jackson" to help me sign the letters when we sing the alphabet song, something he jumps up quickly to do, but it looks like soon he'll have a little competition for that job!

I love that kindergarten children have such a natural curiosity to learn and I especially love it when they are willing to embrace and learn about the things that make each of them unique.

Diversity is a wonderful thing!

Miss B Travels!

2010-04-09T18:37:00.000-07:00

With the impending departure of Miss B on her whirl wind across the country, I'd like to introduce her new travel blog, Miss B Travels!

Here you can keep track of her travels across our great country!

Stop by and check it out!

Slops

2010-04-07T19:47:00.000-07:00

Every year in January I start introducing chapter books to my class. I start with simple ones like Henry and Mudge by Cynthia Rylant, I move on to Junie B. Jones by Barbara Park, and when I think they're ready I move on to the classics James and the Giant Peach and Charlotte's Web.

I still remember my 3rd grade teacher Mrs. Vangel reading Charlotte to my class. I loved listening to her read. It is such a sweet story about friendship. It's so descriptive and language rich that I now look forward every day to reading it aloud to my cherubs.

It can be a little wordy and the chapters sometimes a little too long for their attention span, so I will occasionally stop, retell and ask comprehension questions along the way to be sure they are understanding.

Today we read the Chapter III. Escape.

In this chapter, Wilbur the pig is convinced by the goose that squeezing through the boards in Wilbur's pen is a good idea. Poor little Wilbur has no idea what he's in for, being chased by a dog, Mr. and Mrs. Homer L. Zuckerman and Lurvy the hired man. With the goose and gander yelling directions at Wilbur is it any wonder that Wilbur decides following a pail full of slops right back into the safety of the pen is a very good idea?

After reading about the escape I really wondered if they kids understood what I had just read, so I asked...

Me: "How do you think Wilbur felt when he first got out of the pen?"
Matthew: "I think he felt good."
Me: "I think you're right"

Me: "Do you think the goose and gander were being helpful to Wilbur when they were yelling directions at him?"
Jack: "No way Mrs. Collins, that goose should have just SHUT UP!"
Me: "Jack, we don't say 'shut up'. But I think you're right, he should have been quiet and left Wilbur alone."

Me: "Now, how did Mr. Zuckerman get Wilbur back into his pen?"
Margaret: "He used the old food in the bucket trick!"

I think it's safe to say they understood every word!

Travels with Miss B...an update

2010-04-07T12:44:00.000-07:00

Wow! I never thought the response to a visit from Miss Bindergarten would be so amazing! I am truly overwhelmed!
I have gotten over 50 responses and it is obvious that Miss B will not be able to get to everyone before school ends for us in June.

However, there's always September!

If you have responded, thank you and you will be hearing from me within the next day or two. Miss Bindergarten will leave Salem, Massachusetts by the end of the week...her first destination is a secret!

Thank you all!

Lisa

T is for Travel

2010-04-05T19:13:00.000-07:00

Meet Miss Bindergarten, created by Joseph Slate and Ashley Wolff. Most kindergarten teachers not only know her, but identify with her. In my class we read her books all through the year starting with Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten.

Miss Bindergarten, at least the doll version lives in my classroom. She sits on top of my easel, keeping watch on all that goes on.
In my last post I mentioned that the wheels in my head were spinning. Realizing the limits of my kindergarteners geographic knowledge, I have been trying to come up with a way to take them on a field trip of sorts, to teach them a little bit about the country and maybe even the world they live in.

I have decided it's time for Miss Bindergarten to go on a trip. A trip to visit other kindergarten classrooms across the country. I'm still working out the details, collecting a few trinkets for her to bring with her, a travel journal, a map to chart her travels, a disposable camera to take pictures of her new friends and the places she visits, a passport and a few of her favorite books.

In order for her trip to be successful she's going to need the help of some very eager and willing kindergarten teachers. These teachers must be willing to treat Mrs. Bindergarten kindly, help her with her journal and picture taking duties, and send her on to her next destination when her visit with you is over.

If you are willing to host Miss Bindergarten or would just like a little more info, just send me an email at lisabella964@gmail.com with "Miss Bindergarten" in the subject line, and I'll be sure to add you to her itinerary.
I'm excited to see how far Mrs. Bindergarten can travel before our school year ends in June!

Thanks for your help!