Could I possibly love flexible seating any more than I already do? Doubtful.
This week I had a few colleagues to pop in at random times to pick up valentines for their students (I always keep a stash of extras). Each time someone came in, they all had the same reaction- "WOW! This is awesome!" followed by questions about how they could do it, how engaged students are, etc. The kids have loved feeling like "models" and they really enjoy sharing about their choices and about our system. We have been very active on social media, posting with the hashtags #GEF, #GEFgrant, and #FlexibleSeating. We've gotten a lot of responses and questions, and most people seem genuinely interested in what we're doing and want to implement the same model! I've even heard it pop up in conversations about PD at EDCO (and since Classroom Environment is one of the domains of our Danielson Framework, it's no wonder why!). I've been learning a lot and I'm glad to see so much buzz around here. We have just started going into full day implementation. Students come in the morning, select their spot, and then keep it for the entire day. I was worried that some kids would get fatigued, however, due to the way we rolled out our implementation plan, I felt like we were well-prepared and ready for the full-day implementation! The kids are still doing really well. I have a feeling that in a few weeks' time, we will need to revisit the examples and non-examples of proper usage. I found some great "Brag Tags" online at TeachersPayTeachers.com that feature tags on proper usage of each item. The bonus was that they were free, and they featured the same items that we use! :) We've been having a lot of fun with our college project. The University of Indiana just yesterday sent us two packages- one from their office of diversity and one from their alumni association. We were sent huge bundles of pencils, stickers, booklets, pennants, and a children's book called Hoo-Hoo-Hoo-Hoosiers! The kids were really excited about those packages! :) We tweeted them right away and they retweeted us right back, so we felt very "famous." Our hallway board is starting to fill up and our pennants from the ceiling bring a lot of color and excitement to our classroom. I'm excited to do another raffle today to hand out the "extras" that were sent! Our social media platforms have been really fun for the kids. Right now we are learning how to use hashtags without spaces. Yesterday our Word Work got a kick of excitement when we relaunched Words Their Way, this time in English. The kids were given their lessons via Educreations videos on their Ipads. They were really excited to find their lesson and have it delivered to them individually. I purposely create the videos with prompts so that the kids will have to listen, pause, and complete an activity before resuming the video. The kids were really reflective at the end of the lesson and actually provided some insightful feedback on the work flow and the productivity of everyone! I'm always so impressed with my kids when they're comfortable enough to tell when they felt good, or when they feel like they didn't give their best effort. I feel like the kids are really self-reflective and they're able to think about how their behaviors and their choices affect their learning. Next up? Continue college studies, continue flexible seating, begin phase one of our CAREERS project, with the use of business cards from all over the country! :)
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I'm obsessed with Hispanic Heritage Month. Towards the beginning of the year, it is a great way to set the stage for empowerment, cultural studies, and learn about how awesome the students' cultures are. I teach all native Spanish speakers, with the majority being from Mexico. This year I felt compelled to ask my students about Black History Month. I have to admit, I'd do the usual one or two lessons and then not do much else. When I asked them to name 5 African American heroes, they could only name ONE. Guess who?
Yes, they named Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Another child shared that he knew of another Black hero. When I asked who it was, he answered: Abraham Lincoln. YIKES. I knew I needed to change my instruction. I threw myself online to Newsela (which is great by the way, if you're a teacher, you must check this out- English and Spanish articles, Lexiles, every topic you could imagine, comprehension questions, writing prompts, etc.). I found four short articles on different heroes and had the kids jigsaw to learn about them. We learned about Edmonia Lewis, Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, and Jean-Michel Basquiat. I learned a lot and the kids did too as they turned into teachers and presenters. I'm dedicating more time each day to learn about more heroes that we should know! Who will we learn about next? The kids have been really excited as the mail keeps pouring in. We started coloring in our US map of all the states that have been represented so far. We have four more packages to open today, but so far, we have 11 states represented. This is such a more meaningful way to learn about geography. The kids truly feel an actual connection to each state and will have more success in remembering where the states are located!
We have been building on our Inspiration Wall in the classroom. We have filled up almost all of the available space. That means that pretty soon, we will be expanding our Inspiration Wall into the hallway! I can't wait! Inspiration is everywhere! We also have a growing number of college pennants growing from our ceiling. Excitement is building as the kids interact with universities on Instagram and Twitter. Last week, the University of Kentucky retweeted our photo. On Friday, Penn State's Creamery on campus sent us messages commenting on a student's drawing of Penn State. The kids are really excited about meeting friends and inspiring other classrooms and teachers on Twitter. This morning I was contacted by two teachers- one in Texas and the other in North Carolina. Both wanted to know more about our College Unit and what we do. It's exciting to see that other teachers are interested in our learning and would like to try to implement similar things in their classrooms! Another phase of our College Unit that I haven't been considering for the past 4 years is using the college materials to introduce Persuasive Writing. I'm looking into how I want to launch this with my existing unit. More research and planning must be done, but I'm excited to use the momentum and the interest and launching a new portion of our Unit! On Sunday evening, one of my fabulous colleagues Cecilia Hagist from Henking sent me a PowerPoint Presentation that she created about Don Lorenzo Servitje from Mexico. He was the leader of the Bimbo Group and was a very successful businessman. He passed away on Friday. I shared the presentation with the class and they were really excited to learn about him and his company. They were impressed that so many of the brands that they're used to seeing in the States were actually linked back to him (and Mexico!). It was a cool moment for me to learn about an unsung hero! Like I said, we have four more packages of mail to open today, so be sure to keep an eye on our Instagram and Twitter accounts @MrsSpinasClass. :) Another "something new" this year for me is using Twitter & Instagram in our classroom. It's been so much fun for the kids to learn about digital citizenship, develop digital literacy skills, and have an authentic global audience to interact with about their learning. Today's Twitter conversation was a great example.
We've been doing a lot of non-fiction reading and writing this month after our NGSS unit on ecosystems. We've been learning about the efforts of different aid workers, scientists, and the worldwide community with endangered plants, animals, and even insects. Yesterday and today we spent time talking about the bumblebee and how much of an impact different bees have in the world. While we were scrolling through our colleges' websites, the students noticed a RESEARCH tab on Penn State University's site that featured a picture of scientists studying bees. We clicked on the link and we were brought to an article and video done by a PR/Media pro at Penn State. He talked about the research being done by PSU and he even suited up to meet bees, sample fresh honey, and talk to scientists and researchers. The kids were amazed! During the video, several kids paused their iPads when they noted that this gentleman had a Twitter account. "Can we please Tweet him?" they begged. I looked him up and agreed. The kids had some questions and comments. Within an hour, he responded! We asked him other questions about the university, which he also responded to. What a great connection for my kiddos to make! Not only did the content tie in directly with our learning, but the kids could see the real-life application. They saw pictures of scientists in lab coats (just like them!!!) working to solve a real-world problem that they were studying. Now they have a new professional "friend" that they made a connection with, and they feel like they have another pro in their corner! This week, we explored the different types of colleges. We identified colleges by their athletic conferences (BIG12, BIG10, SEC, ACC, PAC12) and we also spent time talking about Ivy League schools.
So far, we've received mail from the following schools: *Clemson *Purdue *Michigan State University *University of Alabama *University of Nebraska *Columbia University *University of Kentucky *Rutgers University *Penn State The kids are keeping a list of postage on the packages that were sent by USPS and later we will add up how much money has been spent on postage. Tomorrow, the students will receive a US map and we will shade in the states we have represented so far. The kids are also going to learn how to address an envelope & where/why to write the return address. We are thanking each university as we go by using our Twitter and Instagram accounts. We are also sending each university a thank you note through the mail. The kids are feeling pretty special to have colleges "recruiting" them. ;) We've taken several field trips on our Expeditions app- Did you know that Penn State has their own creamery on campus? The kids are really excited about that one! Who doesn't love ice cream?! The kids were also very excited to see that Barack Obama attended school at Columbia University! We were amazed to see that long ago, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered a speech to students at Penn State. We were quite interested in the research of the endangered bumblebee that was listed on one university website (we just read an article about that!). One campus talked about their broadcasting program, and I saw a little spark in one child's eye. Who would have known she had that interest? The kids are making connections all over the place, and the energy is rising! One of my little girls shook her head, stared at me, and said, "How will I ever decide?" That's right, girl- you've got CHOICES! I love being able to see the transformation that occurs- kids are talking. Kids are interested. Kids are planning. Kids are thinking ahead. Kids are regarding themselves as future college students. Kids are looking at themselves differently. They have goals, they are focused, they are learning, they are ready. <3 Love my job!! This week was another great week for us in working with our Café Classroom! At last week's staff meeting, I shared a little bit of information about the GEF grant with other teachers. There was a lot of positive feedback and some great questions from my colleagues. I invited them in to stop by and check it out!
This week is our final week of half-day implementation. Next week we will begin full day choices. Depending on how well we do, or the challenges we face, we may decide to go back to the half day model. This week's successes so far: I've noticed that several students have been making the same choices for their mornings, and the same choices for their afternoons. When I asked about this, they all reflected in similar ways: "I do math best at the low tables because I can stretch my legs, but when I read, I need to bounce" or "When it's time to write I like to do that with a wobble stool because I can think of better ideas while I'm moving" or even "I'm more tired in the morning and I have more energy after recess." I found it so awesome that the kids are being so reflective and are really tuned in to what their bodies are feeling and needing. They're able to make choices based on their need- how's that for empowerment? I'm also still loving the fact that the kids are naturally grouped for activities and I have more time for collaborative conversations. For today's math lesson, we did need to move our desks to the back and our "coffee shop" to the front so that we could all sit together in a big circle on the floor. I was surprised at how much easier this was without desks and clunky chairs. It made for a quicker and smoother transition to a fun math activity, which allowed us more time to be engaged in the activity. (*Today's lesson was one of my favorites- it reminds me of what Dave Burgess refers to in his book called Teach Like A Pirate. Our UCSMP materials do not cover teaching fractions on a number line. I laid out strips of washi tape on the floor, passed out popsicles sticks and a pompom, and we created our own number lines and identified fractions. Check it out on our Instagram @MrsSpinasClass- every year I have great success with this method! When kids can physically manipulate these materials themselves, it's so much more engaging! Who doesn't like math on the floor?*) Our writing has also been going really well. One thing I've noticed is that some times we have to relocate to a different spot to see the board to reference an anchor chart. One student asked if he could take a picture of the anchor chart using his iPad so he could bring it back to his work space. I thought to myself- Duh! Why didn't I think of that? Problem solved. I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before, but we were able to successfully take our NWEA exams and our ACCESS tests using our flexible seating model without issue! Last week, I had a substitute when I stayed home with my daughter due to a no-school day. I left a copy of the GEF grant and the research articles in my sub folder, and I referenced it in the sub plans. Later on, I saw that same sub in the building and she said she had a lot of questions about this new model. I'll be sure I lay out more information in my sub plans next time around. Hopefully that will help! It is a complete shift in what educators are used to, so I can understand that that may be a challenge when different adults are in the classroom! Overall, I'm still absolutely LOVING this model. The kids are excited, empowered, engaged, and in control! Their conversations can last longer, our lessons/activities can last longer, they're already grouped based on their physical need, and are far less distracted. It truly makes the day more fluid! Today was a great day in Room 9! We received our final shipments of our new Flexible Seating model for our Café Classroom, thanks to the generosity of the Glenview Education Foundation (GEF). Our three Wobble Stools have arrived as well as our five disc seats. The kids were excited to see two huge boxes after they came in from recess. We unpacked the boxes and tested them out. Then we had a quick class meeting to discuss examples and non-examples of each seating choice. Then we threw them into the rotation! The kids were THRILLED to have these new additions to our Classroom Café. Tomorrow will bring more reflection, but so far- We are ALL absolutely loving having the freedom to move, wiggle, bounce, and get our energy out. As a teacher, I've noticed my students are more engaged and more focused in their work- especially in reading, writing, and math. For writing, we have been working all year on building our writing stamina (especially in English, our L2). Since coming back from break and having more seating options that allow us to move, our writing block has been so much quieter and I have seen a huge improvement in the overall quantity and quality of written expression. Math has been awesome because the students have had more natural opportunities to practice their oracy while working. My hope is that this increase in oral practice while have an impact on their mathematical written expression, which is a huge component of the PARCC assessment.
We also received COLLEGE MAIL today! We received a package from Purdue University that contained a big pennant that we immediately hung from the ceiling. We Tweeted Purdue to thank them for their package and for inspiring us to go to college one day! :) We also received a package from Michigan State University that contained a pennant, Trojan cutouts, College Planning Guides, and informational brochures. The kids were so excited to dive through those. We Tweeted MSU right away to thank them. We also posted on our Instagram. We were SO EXCITED when Purdue and MSU liked our tweets! We felt famous and important! As a side-note from me, I just want to say THANK YOU to both of these wonderful universities for helping to support the dream of higher education. Both of our new pennants are hanging from our ceiling! This week we've added a few new elements to our flexible seating implementation. We added the addition of lap desks and we were able to remove 6 other student desks. Our classroom really has transformed into a Classroom Cafe! We have one row of desks in the front, where students can opt to choose a stool or a stability ball. We have two desks in the center of the room with stools. We have a small table with crate seats or scoop rockers, and we have our low table with scoop rockers or ottomans. We also have a small work space in the back of the room with a bench and stools and a small yellow table. The kids are truly blowing me away with their excitement, enthusiasm, and engagement!
Once we added in our lap desks, we again came together in a "family meeting" to discuss examples and non-examples of how to properly use and care for our new lap desks. The kids are really excited about them. I actually found them for a cheaper price at Hobby Lobby than Amazon. They are located in the same aisle as children's art supplies/project kits. When you use the 40% off coupon on your phone, you can save that much more money! Woohoo! Yesterday, I talked with the kids about making a choice for a half day. The kids enter the classroom in the morning and select their learning spot from 8-11. Then after recess the kids have the chance to switch their learning spot from 12-2:25. This builds up stamina for the students to maintain their seating choice for longer stretches of time. We will maintain this half day schedule for this week and possibly next week. Later this month, we will move to full day implementation. I'm hoping to order the disc seats (or cushions) later this week as well as the new wobble stools, which I am really excited about. Maintaining the half day schedule will allow all students the opportunity to try each seating arrangement. Yesterday during math, we had a review day for our Unit 4 test. While kids were already placed in their learning spots for the afternoon, I told the students that we'd be collaborating with peers to complete the review packets. We talked about how to have successful collaborative conversations and did some role-playing, and then I turned them lose. Do you know what was so awesome? The kids were already placed by NEED! The kids who needed to move more were already placed with other kids who needed to move more (stability balls). The kids who needed to stretch their legs out were already grouped together (lap desks). The kids who wanted to use stools or the floor were already grouped together. This was so neat for me as their teacher to see. These weren't groups that I would have naturally formed. The kids were not grouped according to who they wanted to work with, or who I wanted them to work with. They were simply the closest in proximity and it turns out, they all shared similar needs. This made their work so much more productive! I walked around and took some notes about their successes. The students were really holding each other accountable for participating and sharing. I had zero need for corrections for any child for improper use of the seating choices. I noted that kids were working through the problems slower and with more thoughtful conversations, which produced higher quality work. I was really impressed with their conversations, their high quality work, and their written expression in math. After we corrected our work as a class, I asked the students what they thought made for such a special day. One kid excitedly called out that he and his group "put their heads together" (since when did he master THAT English idiom???) and made their answers great. Another kid said that he moved more so he could think better. AWESOME! The only struggles we have so far are for transitions. The kids are still getting used to tucking in their stability balls and stools when leaving (much the same way they had to get used to pushing in their chairs). Also sometimes the kids forget to move their scoop rockers and lap desks out of the middle of the floor when they leave the room for PE or Art. Our final struggle is to remember to pick up lap desks and scoop rockers at the end of the day so they're off the floor. I think I may suggest to the class at our next class meeting that we put that work on the Cleanliness Captain. Today was our math test and while I was nervous about testing with a flexible seating model, I didn't really see any issues when we played it out in real life. This was just a curricular unit test and soon we will be taking some standardized tests, so that may look slightly different. I'm loving our results. Don't forget to tune into our Instagram and Twitter accounts @MrsSpinasClass to see pictures and videos of our flexible seating in action!! Today was a GREAT DAY in our classroom!!! This afternoon, we heard a knock on the door. The kids all looked up, wondering who it could be. The door opened and in walked two friends in our community. One was the fabulous Mrs. Jill Brickman. Many of us know Mrs. Brickman from different events in the community. She serves Glenview in a myriad of ways, including being the Director of the Northfield Township Food Pantry. She is also a frequent volunteer to bilingual classrooms in our primary school, Henking. Most of the kids in my class know her very well. The second person was a mutual friend of ours, Mr. Ray Wisbrock. Mr. Wisbrock is a true community man, and is a friend to people (and animals) everywhere. Both are also fellow volunteers for Wagging Hearts Animal Rescue. :)
Teaching third graders about college is a huge passion of mine. So many times in our society, the first time kids hear about college is when they're in high school. If your family comes from a culture of attending college, that's probably fine. However, if we are waiting to introduce our students to the concept of college until they are in high school, it is too late.
I believe that all kiddos need to have a seed planted while they are young that college is FOR THEM. It's not just for monolingual students, rich students, or for students whose parents attended college. College is for EVERYONE. That being said, I believe that ANY college is good. My aim is to promote higher education- whether that be a community college, a four-year university, a technical school, a trade school, or truly any other type of continued education beyond high school. I need for my students to enter the workforce with the highest level of education possible, with necessary skills and training for them to be successful. In previous school years, I have "planted the seed" by introducing the students to the concept of college. We would visit college websites, e-mail college students that I know, interview college professors, and write letters to colleges. Writing letters to colleges is very important because not only does it teach students how our postal service works, but it also helps us develop our English writing skills in an engaging way. Not to mention how our geography skills develop throughout the unit- we are able to locate all 50 states on a map and have a meaningful connection to each one! We talk about Ivy League schools, Big Ten Schools, four year universities, community colleges, and more. We share questions that we have. We review the application processes. We explore majors and minors. We examine financial aid programs. We learn about the various activities, sports, and clubs that colleges offer. We learn about staying and living on campus in dorms or on-campus houses and apartments. And the best part? We get MAIL! In the past, different universities have been very generous in sending my class information about their schools. We've received pamphlets, bumper stickers, pennants, pencils, keychains, magnets- The University of Alabama even sent a t-shirt for every child in my class one year. It was such a special day when a huge box arrived and students opened it knowing that a big, real college BELIEVED in them and wanted to encourage them to attend their school one day! Those students wore their t-shirts proudly and knew that there was an entire force in their corner, cheering them on and wanting them to succeed. On Monday of this week, we started our Unit. On Tuesday, we "visited" Clemson by using our Expeditions App on our iPads. I led the students on a guided tour and pointed out various buildings on their beautiful campus. They were beyond excited to feel like real college students- many expressed their interest in attending college at Clemson in the future. The Expeditions App is something I'm really excited about- and a huge plus is that there are so many colleges and careers that are expeditions! I'm thinking we may need to visit a college or two each week during these next few weeks/months. I'm really looking forward to this. There's a lot of positive energy floating in our classroom this week. Crossing fingers for a big response this year! |
Mrs. SpinaMy thoughts, my ramblings, my reflections, my thinking. Not perfect. Always learning. Always trying. ArchivesCategories |