Literacy Observations

Art and line- The most inspiring moment I had observing a language moment, occurred during the second day of kindergarten, when I accompanied the class to an hour of art with Eleanor. First I'd like to mention how welcoming the art room is and the fact that the lesson of the day dealt with different types of lines, which fit snugly with the line lessons pertaining to the alphabet we have been having in the regular classroom. As a group, we met together and she visually and verbally explained the differences between the different lines, including zigzag, castle, fat, thin, and so on. The children were engaged in the activity and even knew most of the line names. It was impressive and neat to see how she tied art in with the process of learning to write letters by observing line forms and names.

Writing folders- Another great literacy activity are the children's writing folders. Each afternoon they have an opportunity to 'write' a story or as it has been the first couple of weeks, draw a picture. Although, some of the children from the beginning have included letters as well as words using invented spelling as well as sounding out the words phonetically. This past week, I had the privilege of assisting several children in their quest to write out a story or sentence to go along with their picture. It is fun to watch them as they try out the letter formations and scrunch their foreheads in thought as they think about the letter sounds and match them to the written form. Whenever they struggled, I referred them to the posted alphabet on the wall, as way to familiarize them with the letters and a way to job their memory. I would also choose other words that began with the letter sound they were trying to think of as a hint for them. Once they did figure out the correct letter or finished a word/sentence/phrase, the look of accomplishment on their grinning faces makes it all worthwhile. I can't wait to see how their stories grow and I need to remember to ask Jean when we start incorporating the author's chair as well.

Welcome Board

Sorry for the delay; the display was up before the first day of school, I've just been trying to figure out how to upload pictures on the blog. Anyway, here they are and the poem on the right is one that I made up myself and I must say I am quite proud of it. :)

Literacy List

- Two strings of the Alphabet are found in the room.
- There are a minimum of four shelves/bookcases.
- Beneath the letters of the alphabet, we are posting the children's names based on the first letter of their name.
- They each have their own story journal to write/draw in throughout the year and time is set aside just for that.
- They each have a Handwriting without Tears workbook.
-They have ample opportunities to write their name or practice recognizing their letters.
- There is a calendar space complete with the days of the week, month, and so forth.
- There is a 'secretary' station and a shelf filled with a variety of writing materials.

The First Day of School!! (And Week)

The first day of school, I was nervous and excited; the night before I kept wondering what the families would really be like, and would the children like me, what would the schedule be like, and so on and so forth my thoughts bounced around in my head. The next morning, I was up and ready to go and once the doors of the school opened and the new kindergartners arrived, it was a whirlwind of teaching or reminding parents of the classroom morning routine and it was intense, but in a good way. I admit, I had a hard time remembering all of the parents/guardians names from the interviews the week prior and while that was slightly embarrassing, I am proud to say that I was able to retain all of the childrens' names. Once the parents headed out to the new family tea and surprisingly only one teary goodbye, Jean, Sheila, and I set about getting to know the children individually and encouraging new play experiences by helping them into Caycee's classroom as well as introducing them to new friends. We also started pull outs that morning and thus the submergence of establishing the routine and social etiquette began. Actually, the entire week whizzed by and over all, I must say things went pretty smoothly, with a few bumps along the way, but after a brief team meeting, we have a game plan on how to handle any further situations that may arise. That's the great part about being in Jean's room, she's not afraid to speak up when a behavior is inappropriate and I appreciate being included in the team planning and decision making process. The atmosphere is awesome! :)

Today Jean and I are officially finished with the kindergarten interviews and just in time too, since they will all be arriving promptly at 8:10am. I cannot wait! I also had the privilege of leading some of the interviews and although I was nervous to begin with, after the first one, I thought they flowed pretty well. There were a few children during my sessions that had a hard time focusing on the tasks, but other than that they went smoothly. I can always count on standardized tests to make me feel more at ease. (Just kidding). I do understand the importance of 'knowing where a child is' when they first begin kindergarten, but seriously, how many teachers are able to sit around and mark off a check list? Aren't they supposed to be teaching?

Anyway, we have quite the mix of personalities with our group and I am excited to get to know each one and their families more and more throughout the school year. I am not quite used to having such a high volume of family involvement, but all of the parents/guardians have been extremely friendly and welcoming, so I am not too worried. :) It's all about open communication and that's something that I hope to promote during my time at Chugach.

The next step in my journey, will be the first day of kindergarten tomorrow!!!

Kindergarten preparation

My first week and half at Chugach Optional has been amazing! Never having been there before, I wasn't entirely certain what to expect and what I have found is very inspiring for one who understands and respects the way children learn and develop. The school is highly based on parent participation and open communication between staff and the families; as for their teaching philosophy, my mentor, Jean, is still able to promote the power of play within her classroom, when most schools have cut play in kindergarten. I was very surprised at the care and time that the teachers must put into their classroom prior to school starting and I now have a great appreciation for all of the hard work and planning that goes into the room preparation; I never realized how many pencils needed to be sharpened before school! During the preparation, I had the privilege of offering my own ideas as well as watching Jean work her magic as she set up a positive learning environment that was both warm and welcoming. The process is still ongoing and we still have a few things to organize before school starts on Tuesday, but for the most part we are ready for the little ones. :)