Keep Them Engaged, Learning, and Having Fun!

In my experience, kids need to move! That shouldn't keep them from learning, in fact, moving is a great way to enhance learning!

As many of my readers know, I have studied how the brain learns and using research on the brain to design resources to help children learn. (For more information, check out these posts:)

Ten Classroom Management Tips With the Brain in Mind

How Do We Keep Them Engaged? 

Ten Brain-Based Learning Strategies

How Can I Keep My Active Students Learning?

Ten Tips for Helping Learning Stick 

Seven Brain-Based Learning Principles 

Five Tips for Teaching Reading Using Recent Brain Research 

 

Some of the common threads in these posts include movement, integrating the arts, working with others, and making it fun. Plus, we all know from developmental studies that it's important for them to move! 

(See this post: Is Digital Learning in the Best Interest of Children?)

It just so happens that I have a series of resources that address these needs while promoting learning at the same time! There are 15 resources in this series (so far) and they all have the exact same format: 

• an informative text about an interesting science or social studies topic (Perfect for close reads and guided reading!)
  
• 10 questions about the text
• 4 sketching tasks to go along with the text
• 6 brain breaks related to the text

Once they catch onto the format, less time is wasted on teaching them how to use the tool, and they become quite independent in their learning with this tool!

There are many different ways to use these resources! It can be differentiated for different learning levels, different organizational needs, as well as different social needs.

I always start off with whole group instruction! Everyone gets a copy of the text with the answer sheet, and we read through the text together. I go through some of the questions and show the students how to go back to the text to find the answers. (They LOVE using highlighters on this!)

We do all the brain breaks together, and discuss the sketching tasks.  

 

Once they "get" how the whole thing works, we can play a game of Scoot. (See directions here: Active Students? Try Scoot!)

Some of my more challenged readers usually need more guidance. I'll bring copies of the text to some of my reading groups. We read through the text together, discussing vocabulary and talking about what we've learned. I'll let the group take turns reading the different task cards. We discuss what the answer might be, and go back to the text to find where we found the answer. (Again, the highlighters!)

 

Once the small group has gone through the whole process, (and yes, of course we all do the brain breaks together!) they're ready to do the whole process independently! (These make great centers!) 

 

Yes, they can re-read the same text and answer the same questions all over again! Why? Because there's a lot of information in those texts, and even though they've answered the questions already, that doesn't mean they remember all the information! A second (or even third) time through, especially after a passage of time, is ideal! Not only are they practicing important skills (reading for information) but they are learning interesting information!

These sets make great centers! I often assign centers to be done in pairs. Why? Because of those great conversations! Talking about the text internalizes what they're learning. (More brain research!) Plus, they learn from each other through these rich conversations. Some may share information about the topic that's not even in the text! (More learning, yippee!)

 

Another reason to let partners use these activities? Because some children need a stronger reader to help them out. This can be a delicate situation, since we need to be sensitive about our lower readers, but you know your kids! Make smart choices for partners who will support each other without insulting each others' abilities!

These are also perfect for your fast finishers to do independently during centers time!  Again, each set can be used more than once... hopefully, they'll remember more information each time!

This one is easy! Anytime! I find they're perfect as centers during those last couple months of the year when their skills are strong and they've developed some independence.

They're also great for the beginning of the school year when you're teaching procedures!

Plus, if you're doing a unit related to one of these topics, these are perfect!

 

If you're interested in these, check out this link:

Reading Comprehension for Active Learners

 

You can try one for free here:  

Wildfires: Reading Comprehension for Active Learners

How do you keep your students learning and engaged?

Three Things to Do When a Student Gets Frustrated

School can be very frustrating. 

Some children find school frustrating once in a while, 

and others find school frustrating quite often.

Frustration happens often with math concepts, but it can happen in many areas of the curriculum as well in social issues. No matter what causes the frustration, here are a few things a teacher can do if a child becomes frustrated.

1. Show some empathy! 

Seriously, we've all been there!

I'll bet you could easily name at least 5 things that you found frustrating in your past. Here are a few of mine: sports, (That should count as 5 by itself!) making friends, (I was painfully shy as a child.) teaching, (As much as I love it, we all know it has its frustrating moments!) parenting, (Who really knows all the answers?) and relationships! I often told students about how I was expected to play sports, but was horrible, no matter how I tried. 

It's pretty tough for children to feel frustrated in school. It matters to them that we care. It might also help to remind them of times when they had successes after working hard on something!

2. Practice stress relief strategies! 

When something is causing stress, the kiddos need to release that stress! 

Here are some of my favorites for children:

-deep breathing

-exercise (Don't you love Go Noodle?)

-music

-a snack

-coloring

-laughter

3. Put it to the side. 

If something is frustrating you, or a child, it's not always best to keep drilling that concept at that moment. The brain often works better by putting it aside. 

If possible, leave it until the next day. A good night's sleep will give the brain the chance to process the information and make sense of it all. More often than not, a quick review will bring those favorite words of a teacher, "Oh, now I get it!"

The brain really does go to work when the body sleeps, and often works things out by the next day!

5 Tricks to Help Them Remember Sight Words

I've been fascinated by the brain for years now. I have been reading quite a bit about how the brain works and the best ways to help children learn. 

There are basically two types of words for the children to learn. One kind is based on letter sound relationships and letter patterns. In other words, they can be "sounded out." The other kind of word can't be "sounded out" and must be learned by the way it looks: by sight! These suggestions are to help with sight words. 

Here are some brain strategies that are easy to implement into the classroom to help the kiddos remember those important sight words.

Practice makes permanent! When the children practice a little bit each day, it will help them remember. It's also a good idea to introduce small amounts at a time. If they need to know the first 100 Sight Words, only give them 10 at a time, then slowly adding on as they master those. Going through their pile of sight words for 5 minutes every day is more valuable than once a week for 30 minutes. Remember when you were in college and cramming for an exam? It didn't work so well, did it. (But somehow we got through it!)

Exercise brings oxygen to the brain, and helps the brain become more receptive to learning. We all know that sitting still for too long makes for cranky, wiggly children (and adults!) Experts say bodies to move every 20 minutes. Bodies of children need to move more frequently than that! A quick walk, a little yoga, or a nice stretch are perfect Brain Breaks for little learners.

 Emotions play a big role in memory. If you make it fun, they're more likely to remember. Games make learning fun! A little healthy competition gets the pulse moving and the emotions rolling. It really makes a difference!

Brains are visual! Brains remember colors and other visuals, like cute little pictures. Use color when making word lists or word cards. You can use a variety of colors, but make sure they can be easily read. Make sure the words are appealing for the children.

Experts recommend sight words be practiced in phrases rather than in isolation. Words in isolation don't have much meaning to the children, and brains need meaning. Three or four words in phrases have a lot more meaning and are more likely remembered by growing brains.

I do have some sight word phrases that follow these suggestions. You can find them HERE.

There are built in Brain Breaks.

There are color coded word cards, if desired, with "cute pictures."

There are plenty of color coded phrase cards, again with "cute pictures." The different colors on the borders correspond to the Fry Sight Word level.

There's also a game that can be used to practice the words or phrases! The pictures correspond to the pictures on the individual cards. Each level of words is compatible with the game board, so it's easy to differentiate.

The game board and cards are easily stored in ziplocks!

 

What are your tricks to help them remember sight words?

Election Day Options for Little Learners

I'm tired of watching the attack ads all over the TV, my phone ringing constantly, getting flyer after flyer in the mail, and the signs all over town. Luckily, this campaign season is almost over, thank goodness!

 

 

 I also think it's important to teach the importance of the election to the little ones. But in a gentler, kinder fashion.

We vote for our favorite indoor recess game! See the above image or see HERE for this freebie for Election Day. It includes ballots, graphs, and suggestions for the day.

We've been working on common and proper nouns, so I've cooked up this matching game with an election theme. I find ANY special day makes learning more fun, doesn't it? This set has several options, including a board game. You can learn more about this set HERE, or by see the image.

Kids always need brain breaks, and squeezing in a little patriotism doesn't hurt! See the image or see HERE to download this Dollar Deal!

Here are a few books I've found with an election theme.

Don't forget the Patriotic Music!

How do you honor election day with your little ones?

Pass the Clap - A Fun Game for Team Building!

A couple of years ago, I learned a fun circle game called "Pass the Clap". My kiddos really love it, and it's got many benefits!

 

 

1. It's a nice break from the regular routine.

2. It helps the children learn to work together.

3. It forces them to focus and concentrate on each other, and the game.

4. It's been known to create giggling children. 

5. It works well with all ages, preschool through adult!

If you don't believe #4 is a benefit, you'll have to read THIS post about how laughter is healthy!

So here's how to play:

To pass the clap, you must make eye contact with the "clap receiver", then clap.

That person passes the clap to the next person, and so on. 

There are a few varieties. We start simple.

1. Pass the clap, one by one, all the way around the circle.

2. Pass it around the circle, then reverse and bring the clap back to the starting point.

My students like to time how fast it takes for the clap to get around the circle. Then we time it again and see if we beat our previous time. (Which usually brings a celebration!)

A couple more variations:

3. Anyone can change the direction! This certainly livens things up!

4. The clap can be passed across the circle.

This last variation really requires focus and concentration, and plenty of team work! The children do rise for the occasion, and it's totally amazing!

 

Side note: some people don't care for the name of this game. Feel free to change it. Since I work with little ones, the name is not offensive and it's very clear.

If you like this team building game, try some of these: 60 Team Building Games and Activities.

How Can I Keep My Active Students Learning?

 Kiddos sure have a hard time sitting for long periods of time, don't they?

 

According to research, they shouldn't! So how can we let them be active, yet keep them learning?

 

 

 Clearly, the answer is... have them learn standing up!

I've got a very active group of kids this year, so we've been learning in a variety of positions all year!

Here are some ways we can keep moving as part of their learning:

1. Have them move as part of the learning! For example, when we learn to spell a new word, the kids "dance" the words. For each tall letter, we stand tall with our hands in the air. For each medium sized letter, we put our hands on our hips. For the letters that go below the baseline, we squat with our hands on the floor. A couple of my students really enjoy the "dance" concept, and have added a hip movement as we spell and dance out the words. I'm all for making it more fun! 

2. Brain breaks! Sometimes children need a break FROM learning, and that's fine. But it's possible to add a physical break that's also part of the learning! For example, in math, the children could do "wall push ups" while counting by fives... or reciting math facts. When sharing a story with the children, the children can take a walk as if they were one of the characters in the story.

Here's a little freebie with some Social Studies and Science related Brain Breaks!

3. Scoot! Scoot is an active game where children move from desk to desk answering questions or performing tasks. It's fun to play any time of year, but I find it particularly necessary as we get to those last few weeks of school.  Here is a blog post explaining how to play Scoot.

 

Keeping these ideas in mind, I've made a couple of new resources! Each resource has an informational text with 10 text based questions, 4 text based sketches for drawing, and 6 text related brain breaks. These are perfect for Scoot, or simply as task cards for those kiddos that need to move. Explore the links below if you want more information!

Freedom Isn't Free: Learning About the USA

 

  Parts of a Plant for Active Learners

 

 Keep those kiddos moving!