Back to School

In many cases Preschool is the first school experience for a child. Last year I had students that came from daycare since day one and some students who had never been in a classroom before. Many of the children are already four years old, while some are still three years old and approaching their fourth birthday. There is a lot of growth and development that occurs during the course of the preschool year and the transformation is incredible to watch. I decided to do booklets with the students on the first day of preschool. These pages were created on my computer and are intended to highlight the child's development. The first day booklet contains a handprint, a short questionnaire about the child, and a page for them to do a drawing. I held onto the booklets all year and then in the last week of school we did "Last day of pre-k" booklets. The last day booklet also has a page for the handprint, a new questionnaire about the student, a drawing page and a page where students will write their name. The parents expressed joy upon receiving these booklets. The children also enjoyed measuring up their handprints and seeing how much they've grown. The photo above is a side by side comparison of one student's drawing with the first day on the left. Every student created a drawing on the first day that resembled scribbles. On the last day, students drew pictures. On the first day, many students could not write their names, on the last day, they all wrote their names. This project was a lot of fun and I will definitely do this one again.

Since the last post...

Well, a lot has happened since my last post. In fact, this blog was originally started as a class project when I was still in college, hence, all the philosophy. However, after my graduation, application of such classroom philosophies were hard to come by since I was working as a substitute teacher. In the past few years I have gained valuable classroom experience. Now that I am working as a preschool teacher, I would like to share these experiences on my blog, thus changing the name from "It's Elementary" to "Paula in Pre-K". I still try to adhere to my philosophies in the previous posts but now I get to put them into action. I hope to reflect on these experiences so that I can grow as a teacher and learn new ways to enhance the classroom experience.

Literary Connections

Literary connections are a great tool when studying any subject. I discovered how helpful this was during a particular social studies experience. As luck would have it, one night I was watching a TV special about the history of Robin Hood. being that this show focused a great deal on history rather than the story of Robin Hood himself, I learned a lot about feudalism. The very next day I was called to substitute for a 6th grade social studies class. They were studying, of course, feudalism. The teacher left a packet of vocabulary words for the students to study for the day. Many students complained that they did not understand any of these words even though they had looked them up in their textbook glossary. This is when I realized how useful the story for Robin Hood was in relating certain vocabulary words. This is a great story to use because almost everyone knows this story and therefore it can be used as a quick reference, however, as a teacher you can also read it to your students if you are able to plan ahead. In the story of Robin Hood we know that King Richard goes on the Crusades, Prince John takes advantage of the peasants by raising the taxes and of course there is Robin Hood himself who robs from the rich to help the poor. Right away we are able to give name to specific characters who lived in the different classes that existed in a feudal system: Kings and Peasants. Kids can draw an instant connection to this. Other vocabulary words included John, who really lived, and then there is the Crusades, also real event in history that is mentioned in the story of Robin Hood. Upon explaining this to the students, they became more interested. Why? Perhaps it's the fact that a character they have heard of may have actually lived (Robin Hood). After all, King Richard and John were real people. The story also helps them understand why certain events take place, like raising taxes on the poor. When students realized how unfair this was they had a base understanding of the importance of Magna Carta - another vocabulary word most students never seem to grasp the concept of. Why do we even mention Magna Carta? Are schools teaching the importance of this document or are we forcing children to remember names and dates? Magna Carta was the beginning of freedom and is what the US constitution is based upon. The influence of Magna Carta can be clearly seen in the United States Bill of Rights. American students should know the reason for this - not simply that "It is an English Charter". Give students something they can relate to and they will always remember the important information. Literature provides a foundation on which we can build. That foundation is a great and enjoyable story. When students enjoy a great story they will grasp the concepts through connections with great characters.

Sound Centers

I really enjoy teaching through experience. For my second graders I gathered a few household objects and set up sound centers. The students were expected to answer questions on a worksheet for each center. here are a few of the activities enjoyed by the students:
1. To help students understand that sound comes from vibrations I had them put their hand to their throat as they made a sound. They could feel the vibrations with their hand.
2. Students will be able to see vibrations with the Dancing Salt experiment. I covered an empty tissue box with plastic wrap. Then I put some salt on the plastic wrap. Students took turns making sounds near the salt box by tapping pots with wooden spoons. The vibrations from the sound make the salt "dance" or bounce around.
3. Students used a ruler to listen to vibrations. First, they placed the ruler on their desks with part of the ruler hanging over the edge. Then, they lightly tapped the edge of the ruler that was hanging over the edge of the desk. This causes the ruler to vibrate and it makes a sound.
4. Students really enjoyed making guitars. We used cardboard boxes and rubber bands. The depth of the boxes and thickness of the rubber bands made a difference in the sound that was produced.

Learning About Our World

Science is defined as "knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation" (www.dictionary.com). They key words here are observation and experimentation. These activities are an essential part of learning about our world. Therefore any lesson on science is not complete without experimentation and observation. I finally understand what it is that draws me to science; it is the fun and excitement of discovering the world for myself and not through someone else's eyes. As I have shared science with children I have found that they too enjoy learning through their own observations and experiments.
As an adult, I still delight in the wonder of discovering the world through experimentation. Over the summer I tried some new ideas in my garden. It has sparked an interest in horticulture. My latest experiment began with a scrap of onion in the kitchen. I simply placed a toothpick through a small piece of onion and hung it over the top of a cup filled with water. Roots have sprouted from the bottom and a green plant emerges from the center of the onion. Everyday it gets bigger.

Rhythm, Movement and Social Studies

Second grade social studies is a very important part of building a foundation for learning about our world. A simple concept like learning how to use a compass rose became an opportunity to use rhythm. When there is rhythm we have to incorporate movement. This simple and enjoyable lesson began with a picture of a compass rose. The children had already seen one before. There were directions (north, south, east and west) on each wall in the classroom. A compass rose was mounted on the wall beside the chalkboard. To help students remember the order of the directions on the compass rose I had them point up and say "north." Then they point down, and then side to side, saying the directions as they do so. Rhythm came from a poem. The poem I used was Eve Merriam's Snow in the East. The children enjoyed moving their hands side to side as I said east and west. There were other movements for words like eyelashes, window and bed. Since we had discussed the fifty states in our last lesson I pasted my compass rose onto the map of the United States. I simply used tape to hold the compass rose onto a Post-it note. The children were surprised that I was able to stick the compass rose to the map. Students were then asked to name a state west of our state. Then they were asked to find states in the east, north and south. This activity was fun and engaging for the students.

Matter

The concept of matter may not seem difficult to grasp, but for many children it can be. Without interaction with our environment many scientific concepts are easily misunderstood. Textbook definitions can seem very confusing and the photos often used in these textbooks show images that children cannot relate to. ESL students and visual learners can benefit from the use of pictures. Although there are many objects in the classroom that can be used to illustrate the idea of matter, having students look through a magazine helped broaden their perspective. Each student looked through magazines and cut out pictures. They had to decide whether it was a solid or a liquid and glue it in the appropriate column. This activity helped strengthen their understanding of matter because it reinforced the idea that everything in nature is made up of matter, not just the pencils, desks and water.

Researching the Continents

I really felt that my students would benefit from doing a research project on the continents. Many of them had no idea where the continents were in relation to the oceans and other continents. I also thought that it was important to know at least three countries on each continent. I put students into groups and assigned each group a different continent. Each student was given an outline map of their continent and a research study sheet to record their data. The research sheet listed the things they should be looking for such as: Oceans and other continents near by, animals, countries, landmarks, and landforms. Students used the Internet, maps and books to do their research. When their research sheet was completed they were given a large piece of construction paper cut into the shape of their continent. They decorated their continent with photos and facts from their research. Finally, each student was required to write two sentences about their continent and present their poster as a group to the rest of the class. They were so excited about what they had learned that many students wrote much more than two sentences. Many students were surprised to learn that certain countries they had heard of were on their continent. Best of all they did a great job presenting their posters and discussing their continents with the rest of the class.