Monday, June 18, 2012

Daily 5- Ch. 1 Reflections

Thanks to Tammy at Live, Love, Laugh Everyday in Kindergarten for hosting ch. 1 of the Daily 5 Book Study for Kindergarten! {If you want to participate in a D5 Book Study for primary grades there are some fabulous ones going on HERE and HERE!}

This is actually my 3rd time reading this book.  I have never whole-heartedly embraced The Sisters program in my own classroom but it has definitely influenced the way I have run my literacy block these last few years.  I'm looking forward to revisiting these chapters and diving deeper into them.

Here are my reflections on ch. 1:

1. How do I teach new behaviors?
I'm definitely one of those that relies heavily on modeling.  I love to role play.  I'm usually the one that acts out the not-so-desired behaviors.  {The kids  usually think I'm hysterically funny for some reason...} I teach routines and behaviors for EVERYTHING!  I learned early on that you can not assume that a child knows anything.  Therefore, I teach, model, and reteach.  Constantly.  Ever heard of Whole Brain Teaching?  I use a lot of WBT in my classroom too.   One of my favorite principles of the program is the partner reteach.  Basically, I teach the kids and then they reteach it to their partner.  This works really well for teaching (and practicing) new behaviors.

2. How do I teach expectations?
Boy do I love a good anchor chart....especially if it outlines and illustrates my expectations!  I love creating these with the students and referring to them throughout the year.  This goes along with the constant modeling and practicing.  I make it a point to never leave the classroom without going over my expectations for the hallway.  Even on the last day of school I reminded my students of how I expected them to be standing in line when I returned to the cafeteria to pick them up from lunch.  The same goes for inside the classroom.  Rather than assume that the kids remember how our room sounds during station time, I always remind them of my expectations beforehand or have them describe it to their partner.

I have a clip chart that I have adapted to my learning detectives theme.  My students start each day out on "Clued In and Ready to Learn."  Their goal is to make it to "Hot on the Trail" by the end of the day.  I also have a "Super Sleuth" which is for those that go above and beyond for the day.  I'll be honest.  I don't do a very good job of moving clips up or down throughout the day.  I rely heavily on my daily inspector (one of my class jobs) who can move someone's clip up-never down- if he/she sees someone doing an incredible job.  I also do a lot of self-monitoring.  I'll ask my students to reflect on the choices they made during an activity or a specific time period and they can adjust their clip to reflect their choices.  This actually works quite well for me.  I rarely have someone "abuse" the system mainly because I think they are worried that their friends will tell on them.  Plus, my students learn early on to be's always better for them to move their own clip down because they do NOT want me to move it. (That's kind of my idle threat....but it works!)

I'm all about the "mini" conferences.  If I see a child is having a really difficult time I usually pull them aside and talk to them first.  I also try the whole reteach, model, practice thing again without drawing specific attention to the person.  There's always hope that THAT person will figure out we are going over the desired behavior again for them!  If that still doesn't work, I usually end up resorting to a loss in recess time (though I still make them walk around the playground so they are getting exercise).

5. Whose classroom is it?
I'm a huge stickler for OUR classroom and OUR things.  I refuse to pick up the room, restock supplies, or clean up messes....we are all responsible for keeping our classroom clean and organized.  That's one of those expectations I drill throughout the year.   I also focus a lot on referring to our class as a family.  We support and respect each other.  End of story.

6. Locus of control?
My inspector carries around a bag of goodies when we are outside of the classroom.  If he/she sees someone who is going above and beyond then that person can choose something from the bag.  It usually has a selection of "smellies" (flavored lip balm that they can swipe on their hand), stickers, pencils, erasers, etc.  I am also known to react quite dramatically to lovely behaviors.  I like to make a BIG deal by saying things like, "Oh my gravy!! Did you just see that???" or "Oh. my. word.  Look at this!! I think I feel a warm and fuzzy coming on!"  Warm and fuzzy feelings = classroom rewards like extra recess or extra reading time.  I make a HUGE deal out of it and usually drag on my warm and fuzzy feeling for a bit...

7. Where are supplies stored?
I keep all my station supplies at that station.  I have little drawers and organizers galore. guessed it...I'm a labeler too!  My kids have direct access to anything they should need.  If they can not find something during stations they are supposed to ask the "materials expert" (another class job).  I keep all the extra supplies in labeled containers in my tall 2-door filing cabinet.  I usually do not allow my kids to go in there....unless they have specific permission.  They usually don't need to go in there anyway so it works out.  :)

Ok that's enough chit-chat for now.  I'll get more in detail with the components of my current literacy block (and how I plan on changing it) soon.  In the meantime...

Make sure you check out all the great pins on this Daily 5 Pinterest board:

I'll be diving into ch. 2 later this week with Caitlin at Kindergarten Smiles.  Make sure to check her out!

1 comment:

  1. You are going to love daily 5.
    I am your newest follower.
    Stop by and check out my blog sometime!


Thank you for your comment!