Monster Week!

Week three is here!  We made our first bundle of 10 sticks for days in school.  The kids are learning the routines and getting more comfortable.

In Daily Five news, we are working on Read to Self.  They have four books in their book boxes and they are reading for four to five minutes.  They are all trying so hard.  One of the hardest parts of practicing is that they are all pretty close together (even spread all across the room!).  Once we start Daily Five, there will only be five or so kids doing Read to Self at one time, so there is naturally more spaces for them.  On the other hand, it is much quieter now than it will be once we start reading groups and the rest of the Daily Five centers!

We also reviewed our class rules using The Five Little Monsters went to School and the felt puppets I made six years ago.  The kids love to act out the story  (we did it four times so they all got a turn).  We also read Ten Monsters in the Bed, which is a fun way to practice counting backwards.

Aren't these cute little monsters?  I don't own these yet but I am very tempted!!!

 We sang the Months of the Year song by Greg and Steve for the first time, too.  I have the kids stand up when it is their birthday month the first time through and then sit back down when they sing their month the second time.  It is always a little confusing in the beginning of the year.  Several kids had no idea which month their birthday was in.  One little girl didn't know the month but she did know that first it is her birthday, then it is Halloween.  hehehe.  We'll get it eventually.

Pete the Cat Roll and Dot

We started some new centers in the afternoon.  We did a fun math center with big cards.  The kids moved bears onto the cards to match the numbers 1-10.  They completed the Pete the Cat roll and dot game at the next center (click the link for a freebie).  They glued in the numbers from 6-10 in their math journals.  The last center was a September book.

Math Journals: writing numbers 6-10

Big Playing cards: place the correct number of bears on each card.

September book

We made some cute monster faces in art time today.  Only five kids finished them.  To begin, I gave them each a square of construction paper and showed them how to cut off the corners.  They made big mouths (many fun colors!) with pointy teeth, circles for the eyes, some interesting noses, and some frightening hair!  I'll try to take a picture tomorrow when a few more get finished.  The kids were very creative and did a great job (with no templates-my favorite kind of art!)

Monster Faces

We have a few more monster books to read this week, too.  Such a fun way to encourage good behavior.  We are having fun!  How do you teach your class rules?

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Have a great week!!

First week centers

I am still adjusting to our new schedule (we eat lunch an hour and a half after the kids arrive at school). We took four days to do four centers (among other activities) and on Friday we started four more. I let the kids decide which centers they go to (limit of five per group) but they all go to all of the centers. I can already tell that I have 5 or 6 kids who are reading and most of the other kids know all or most of their letters.


 The centers are also meant to introduce the kids to the abc/word work centers that they will be using during Daily Five.


The four new centers we started included some in math and some in reading.

Using the ladybugs to explore numbers 1-10.

Counting bears and exploring new manipulatives

Matching coconuts and numerals to 20

School Day Colors emergent reader

We finished our Chicka Boom Boom trees.  We use dotters for the borders, torn paper for the leaves and trunks, and sticker letters (dollar spot at Target!).

How was your first week back?

Teaching Kindergarten with Themes

One of the best things about Kindergarten is we use themes to teach.  When I first started teaching Kindergarten, we had a theme every week!  We had  a theme that we tried to fit in every book, paper, a letter, and art project into.  It was crazy!  We used to joke about having to finish up one theme while starting the next one (So, children, there were spiders on the Mayflower with the Pilgrims).

We hate to give anything up but I cannot teach one thing each week.  I have lots of books that do not fit into a theme.  Many of the art projects and math papers were not appropriate for the skill levels for that time of the year (but they fit the theme!!).


Flash forward a few years.  Themes are even easier now. There are so many cute units available to buy or find for free on the internet now!  It is overwhelming!  How do you decide what to focus on?  Do you need new stations every week or every other week?  Who is going to pay for all that ink and cardstock???!!?



Ha!


So, we have tried to make our lives a little simpler.  I use Daily Five for my reading instruction.  The kids read books that are on their level, write on their own level, listen to fluent reading in great storybooks, read with a buddy, and learn their letters and words through Word Work centers that I try to keep simple enough for them to understand and do without adult help.  I no longer worry that they are working on theme related centers (although I stick them in occasionally!).

I use a similar system for math.  I set up sixteen centers based on the objectives we are working on that quarter.  We started Common Core last year. I completely differentiated my centers the fourth quarter to better meet the needs of that class.

I am trying to differentiate more this year.  Some of the centers are cute and based on favorite books (like Pete the Cat and Chicka Chicka Boom Boom! in the beginning of the year) but most are dice or spinners or other manipulatives and a recording sheet.  I am not sure that kids notice the cute clipart as much as we do!  I will write another post about math centers and differentiation but I also greatly admire Marsha from A Differentiated Kindergarten.   You should check out her math centers for the beginning of school.

Wow!

What a long explanation of teaching with/without themes.

Now I do try to incorporate my science and social studies themes into my read alouds, shared writing, and art projects.  For example, our first social studies theme is Home and School.  We will spend some of our first nine weeks on this theme.

I am wondering if the Common Core Social Studies goals will be anything like these:


UNIT 1:  Home and School
Goal 1. Political Science - Students will understand the historical development and current 
status of the democratic principles and the development of skills and attitudes 
necessary to become responsible citizens.
Objectives – The student will be able to:
a. Identify reasons for classroom and school rules, such as maintaining order and 
keeping the community safe. 
b. Recognize rules help promote fairness, responsible behavior, and privacy. 
c. Describe the roles, rights, and responsibilities of family members.  
d. Describe the roles of members of the school, such as principal, crossing guard, bus 
drivers, and teachers. 
e. Identify and describe rights, and responsibilities in the classroom and family. 
Goal 2:  Peoples of the Nation and the World - Students will understand how people in 
Maryland, the United States, and around the world are alike and different.
Objectives – The student will be able to:
a. Give examples of qualities, such as customs, interests, skills, and experiences that 
make individuals and families in their immediate environment unique.
b. Demonstrate how groups of people interact.
c. Identify, discuss, and demonstrate appropriate social skills, such as listening to the 
speaker, taking turns, settling disagreements, and reaching compromise at home and 
in school. 
Goal 3:  Geography - Students will use geographic concepts and processes to understand 
location and its relationship to human activities.
Objectives – The student will be able to:
a. Identify situations where people make choices. 
b. Recognize workers as human resources. 
Goal 4: History - Students will use historical thinking skills to understand how individuals 
and events have changed society over time.
Objectives – The student will be able to:
a. Identify and describe events of the day in chronological order. 
b. Describe daily events in terms of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. 

It is a little overwhelming!  These are our objectives for one subject for one quarter (to be integrated into our language arts block).  If you look it over, you will see many ideas that we have traditionally covered in Kindergarten: school rules, families, working as a group, showing the day in sequence, yesterday, today, and tomorrow.   We learn about geography and history (Columbus, the Pilgrims) Some of the others are a little...um...more..... difficult? (Um, we are supposed to tell them workers are human resources.  Oh!  Community helpers!  That makes sense, I guess.)

  We do the best we can.  (Most of my kids will never see a crossing guard.)  :)

We will be using these themes this year :

September Friendship, Rules, Apples (got to slip that in there!)
October Bats, Spiders, Pumpkins (and Columbus and oh!  Fire Safety!)
November Fall and The First Thanksgiving
December Gingerbread and Celebrations
January Winter, MLK, Peace
February Groundhog's Day, Valentine's Day, President's Day, Dental Health (I know!!  too much for such a short month.  But it isn't like we can move any of the days around!)
March St. Patrick's, Rainbows
April Frogs, Spring
May Bugs, Pond


I still feel like some months are crazy!  Especially October and February.  And we fit in our science and social studies into these themes the best we can.

So, is anyone still with me?  Do you do any of this?  Do you celebrate as you go through the year?

Listening to Reading

1.  How will you instill the importance (or urgency as the sisters call it) of 'listening to reading' in your students and especially those students who have had little 'lap time' or reading done for them in their own homes?


I personally have no problems with this part of listening.  They love it!  I think there is something soothing and magical about the headphones!  We have to have lessons on not talking with the headphones on, though, otherwise they yell at their friend next to them.

 2.  What devices or strategies are you going to use to conduct listen to reading?' Will you use a community recording device with one cd and several earphones, individual cd players, tape recorders, ipod-type devices or computers?


I use computers (Starfall and Tumblebooks) and MP3 players in my room for listening.

One summer I took all of the books on tape that I had accumulated through my years of teaching and transferred them to my computer (I used a cord to connect the computer to a tape player and a free program called Aud.  the details are on my website if you need more directions.).  Then I transferred 12 or 13 to each MP3 player (I originally used Fisher Price players, then Discovery players.  I know it is harder to find them now but I found some on Ebay at the time.  I like ones actually made for kids because they are sturdier and easier for the kids to use.  I am thinking about asking the parents at my school to donate any old Mp3 players or ipods that they no longer use and setting up some of those.)

 I labelled each player with a number and put it in a tub with the coordinating books.  I let the kids choose which books to read.  Each tub has a variety, including non-fiction, holiday books, series books, and picture books.  They can listen until I play the music to clean up.

These are the listening bins and the kind of MP3 players I have (they were much cheaper when I bought them!)



They are independent as long as everything goes smoothly. (Ha!)  If they can't get the computer to work, I usually just go over and help them get started.  If they can't get an MP3 player to work, I have them put it by my desk so I can check it later and get another one or share a friend.

4.  Do you have enough 'listening to reading' type materials? If not, what ideas do you have for securing these materials?  Where will you store them? How will your students retrieve these items? Where will they be used (will there be a designated spot in your class for listen or reading or will it be their choice)?

I let them listen anywhere in the room.  The players are kept under the whiteboard, unless I can think of a new brilliant place to put them.  I really like the tubs I use: they are deep and have a lid that hooks on.

3.  What expectations will you have for your students during 'listen to reading' and how will you keep them on task and independent instead of needing your assistance when they can't manage 'devices?'

As I said, I don't find this to be a big problem.  If someone does not behave on the computer, they will lose that privilege.  This is an easier time for them than playing a game, for example, because they are not taking turns, they both listen to the book at the same time.

4.  The sisters do not really talk about this in their book, but how do you feel about listening response sheets?  Will listening to reading be just for 'listening' or will there be follow-up work required of your students?  If there is reading response sheets, what will they look like?


I do not ask my students for a follow up sheet.  I believe the benefit of listening is to hear the books, to gain fluency, and enjoy the story. I prefer they use the time to hear another book if they can.  Some of my friends have them draw their favorite part of the book.


5. I would be remiss to not add this so . . . how can this station be differentiated to meet the various learning profiles, interests and/or readiness of your students?  


My students get to choose which books they want to hear.  All of the students are able to participate in listening.  


Check out the other posts on Listening at A Differentiated Kindergarten.

Daily Five Chapter Four

Kindergarten Daily Five Book Study

Reading to a duck on pajama day!  Notice her book box.

1)  How far into the school year do you think kinders need to be to be able to begin the process of Read to Self?  What is realistic?  When do you plan to begin implementation?


I actually begin the second day of school.  We talk about the three ways to read a book, I give them their book box and lead them to a special place to read.  I whisper the whole time and we practice sitting still, looking at the book the whole time, and using a whisper voice.  As soon as someone gets restless, I play music and they return to the carper.  We discuss how well they did and dance a little.  I read them a story and then I let them try again.  We usually only make it to two minutes at first but slowly they will get the idea and be able to read for longer times each day.  After a few days, I let them trade books with a friend.


2) How will you make sure that each child views him/herself as a reader (whether they are reading words or not)?


I think my kids are used to being read to and looking at books so this one is pretty easy for me.  We talk a lot about the three ways to read and how they can start looking for letters in the words even if they don't know any words yet.

3) What are some ideas you have about "Launching Read to Self" in kindergarten?  How will you go about it and what are some ways to make sure it is "kinder friendly"?  


I have outlined how we build our Read to Self skills in the plans on my website under Teachers. It takes some patience and practice to let them slowly gain stamina.  It can be hard not to rush them (since the teacher has assessing to do!) but they can get there.
My kids get to do name centers the first few weeks of school as we build the Daily Five skills.  I think writing is the hardest for my kids (they want to color the whole time).


4) How will you/do you build the children's belief that this IS important?  What can we do to encourage the ones who do not value it and create disruptions for others?


I think the check in time is by far the most important thing for getting the kids on board.  Afer each round, we gather on the carpet and share what we learned.  The kids from word work share the words they made, the kids from writing share their writing, I try to comment on the partner reading and how well they did working together.  Some years I have given the kids doing read to self sticky notes to mark an important part of the book or connection.  This time is truly how I reinforce concepts and expectations each time.  And the kids amaze me!


5) How valuable is Checking In and Reviewing with kindergarteners?  How often will you do it?  When will you do it? What are some different ways to "check in"?


See above!

6)What are some problems that can occur during this problem (either that you anticipate with your kinders OR that you have experienced)?  How can we be proactive about these issues?


I usually have 2 or 3 special ed kids in my class (who are usually much lower or have behavior challenges).  I work with my special ed teacher and we try to anticipate their needs.  Sometimes they can't focus as long as other kids so we have some other activities for them (although they are great at the listening center!  and this year we had great success with working with a friend in partner reading).  Some kids may need to work longer on learning letters than the other students so I try to have some activities for word work that meet that need. 
 I try to not have parents volunteer during this part of the day.  I like the kids to work independently while I am with reading groups and not be dependent on another adult.  This may sound weird but I find it is quieter with just the kids working.  I usually have a special educator or assistant working with some of the kids, though.  

I try to start  reading groups during daily five when we get to 15 minutes of reading stamina however I do some small group work during the other parts of the day before we get to that point.  So if they are working on name centers, I will call 4-6 kids over to read with me.  This way, I get a feel for where each child is before I start assessing more formally.




I am linking up to Mrs. Miner's Kindergarten Monkey Business.  Go on over and see what other Kindergarten teachers have to say.

Kindergarten Core Curriculum in Reading

This year in Maryland, Kindergarten teachers piloted the Core Curriculum in Reading, Writing, and Math.  Truthfully, at my school, we mainly focused on the changes to the math curriculum.  We changed our writing a little but very little in reading.  The Core Curriculum doesn't represent a big change for our school (and I guess, our county and state) because it closely matches the curriculum that was already in place.

Here is a link to the Common Core expectations in Reading for Maryland.

The Common Core breaks Reading into several areas: Reading Fictional Text, Reading Informational Text, Reading Foundational Skills, Writing, Speaking and Listening, and Language.  It is overwhelming to look at!  I will be spending more time this summer trying to read it all and translate it for my own classroom.

Personally, I know the way I am teaching reading is a mix of my experiences, the reading I have done, and the other teachers I have worked with.  I know Kindergarten expectations went up tremendously when we moved to full day six years ago.  We do still include the whole group reading experiences with big books, interactive writing and reading, games, and acting out stories but we also have reading groups every day.

Read to Someone

I discovered the Daily Five six years ago, too, happily.  I love it!  By the end of October, you can walk in my room at reading time and see my little friends all actively engaged in reading and writing activities.  It does take about six to eight weeks to teach all of the expectations.  I actually try to follow the book as closely as I can.  If you want to see my lesson plans for the beginning of the year, click the link on the left to my website and follow it to the teacher tab.

The other Kindergarten teachers at my school also use Daily Five but all of us tweak it a bit to fit our own styles.  I allow the kids to choose their centers, one of the teacher assigns the centers.  I only use the five activities listed in the book, some of the teachers include a reading response center (an art project that connects to the read aloud usually).  I think you can change the structure to fit what you want to teach.

Writing from an end of the year Kindergartener (written independently during Work on Writing)

The other part of Daily Five that people sometimes have trouble understanding is that you do as much as you have time for (not usually all five in one day!).  I actually let the kids choose two or three a day.  I keep the check off sheet and just keep checking off until everyone has finished all of the choices, then I start over (even if that is the second choice of the third day).  I don't worry about what they are choosing since I know they will get to all of the centers.  My kids all have other times during my day when they read to self and write in journals so I don't do the "must do" part.

I meet with small groups even before the kids are independent at all of the centers but I know I may need to go help out.  It all settles down and works like a dream, eventually!

Here are my reflections on Chapter 3:

1. Establish a gathering place for brain and body breaks.

I have a cute froggy rug.  I call it the rug or the carpet (fun, right?).  Sometimes we sit around the rug so we can all see each other as we share and sometimes we sit on the rug to hear a story.  Some kids get assigned a letter but not all of them.  I prefer they learn to manage their own behavior but some kids need more structure.

2. Developing the concept of "good fit" books (There are LOTS of examples of different good fit lessons in blogland AND Pinterest) 

I used to do this in first and second grade but I feel that in Kindergarten,  I need to convince them that they are READERS!  I let them choose any book and teach them the three ways to read.  I also give them their books from reading group for their book boxes so they always have just right books, too.  This was a change I made a few years ago and I really like it.  They can read to each other with much more confidence from books they already have read with me.  They get lots of practice for fluency and expression, way more than just reading with me would give them.  And they love it.

3. Create anchor charts with students How will these be visual in the room? Where will you store them? What about small spaces?

I do create the anchor charts with them each year.  I laminated five or six 12 x 18 white papers with a different color of frog on each one.  We made the I charts and I post them on a bulletin board at the front of the classroom.  We refer to them many times.  Each year, I seem to make a different number of charts, though.  Some years we make it through all of them and some years we don't.  By the time you have made two or three, it all blurs together.  I truthfully can't review all of them very many times, either.  So the first ones have to serve for all of them, I guess.  Mine did stay up all year.

4. Short, repeated intervals of independent practice and setting up book boxes (How are you going to keep track of stamina? What will you use for book boxes? What are you going to put in those book boxes on the 1st day of school?)

Yes, I love our book boxes.  I use plastic baskets that I bought in the dorm set up section of Target a few years ago.  I think they are Stearlite?  I have them in several different colors.  They are very sturdy and have all held up well.  I have attached nametags (laminated) with velcro and I write their full names on there with a sharpie.  They can detach the nametag to help them learn to write their last name the second half of the year.  Before school begins, I put a few books in each basket.  I choose song books, board book, extra copies of books we read the first week, abc books, and non fiction books.  We add to each book box the first few weeks of school with little easy reader books from scholastic or Rigby.  I don't visually keep track of stamina.  I just gradually keep increasing it and let them know they are reading longer.

5. Calm Signals and check in procedures (Do you already have a signal? How will you handle check ins?)

I use music for all transitions in my room.  My kids know to clean up and come to the carpet when a song starts.  It gives them time to finish up, clean up their area, and be ready to share.  I think the sharing is one of the most important parts of our Daily Five time.  I use it to instruct and monitor their progress.  They know they will be showing what they got done so it motivates them.  
I let my kids choose and I check them off on a class list.  My special friend gets to choose first so I start in a different place each day.


I am linking up to the Daily Five Linky Party at Live Love Laugh Kindergarten.