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What Can We Do About the Violence?


As most of you, I've been very upset by yet another school shooting. I'm frustrated, but I'm trying to come up with things we can do about it.


As most of you, I've been very upset by yet another school shooting.

I've been upset by all the mass shootings we've had in our country in the last few years.

All those children that won't be coming home.
All those parents that can no longer hug their children.
All those children who survived, yet see the scene over and over again in their heads.

It's all too much to bear.

Letting this continue is unacceptable.

What can we do about it?

I know there are many responsible gun owners out there who are afraid of losing their guns. 

There's no way I'd ever suggest that! 

Arming teachers? As a teacher myself, I know there are a lot of us who could NEVER fire that gun, and would feel real uncomfortable having one in a classroom where there are small children. It might be my Catholic School background, but I believe "Thou shall not kill" is not negotiable.

I could never live with myself if I shot someone. 

Other teachers might feel differently. I just couldn't.


If you feel as strongly as I do about protecting our students, you can contact your senators and congressmen through THIS LINK.

You can find them through THIS LINK.

Or,  you could donate at THIS LINK.


What else can we do?

We can make our children feel safe. This is a tough one, since we honestly know the next school could be your school. It could happen anywhere. 

But we need to let them know you will protect them. 

(As we all know teachers will, the best they can!)

This video is worth watching. It's a song I sang with my singing group years ago, which answers the question, "What can we do when there's nothing left to do?"

We Can be Kind.

In honor of the need for kindness, this resource, (which typically costs $4.50) will be free through tomorrow (February 16, 2018) It's readers theatre, where children have typical school conflicts, and the ending is created by the audience, using kindness. I hope it brings more kindness into your life!
As most of you, I've been very upset by yet another school shooting. I'm frustrated, but I'm trying to come up with things we can do about it.

I honestly hope the killings stop, and students, parents, and teachers feel safer in school.

I'm not going to stop praying, but it's no longer enough. 

We need to act!

As most of you, I've been very upset by yet another school shooting. I'm frustrated, but I'm trying to come up with things we can do about it.

Academic Winter Sports Team Building

This time of year, I find the kiddos are starting to get on each others' nerves. Little things can turn into big arguments. They start having "friend troubles." They're cranky. 

What they really need is spring, fresh air, flowers, warm sun, and so on. But we can't actually give them that, can we? 
 

But here's something we CAN do: 

We can shake things up!

Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!

I'm a huge fan of the Olympics, and I like to bring winter sports into the classroom! Plus, it's a great way to bring Team Building into the classroom!

Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!

1, Have fun!
2. Give the students a taste of what the Olympics are like.
3. Give the children a taste of what some countries around the world are like.
4. Review important skills we've learned.
5. Liven up the dreary days of winter.
6. Promote teamwork and positive feelings for each other.

Doesn't this sound exactly like what your students need right now?


Here's how I do it!

Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!
Four or five students per team is plenty. I try to spread the wealth of "talents" for each group, making sure I have strong readers, mathematicians, artists, etc. on each team if possible. I prefer to establish the teams and assign their countries at the end of the day, so they leave school excited and might even ask about their countries when they get home!

Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!
 
The first day is pretty much preparation. (I prefer to spread the academic winter sports out over a week, but you might want to squeeze it into a day or two.) The children need to make a flag for their country, and a banner for their country. They need to make sure they know the colors for their team, so they can wear those colors for the days of competition. Of course, this will take some research. They'll be looking for books in the library, and online. (Plus, they're excited about the research!)  I count these banners as the first competition. and I have guests come in and judge the posters for accuracy, neatness, and how well they represent the country.
 
Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!
Some of our banners, with some of the medals each country earned!


Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!
I absolutely love the rituals of the Olympics, especially the Opening Ceremonies! Did you know that Greece is always the first country in the Parade of Nations? (This is another place where a guest could come in, and the Greek flag is easy to make!) The other countries proceed in alphabetical order, except that the host country always comes last.
Since we're competing in the USA, I take the big flag off the classroom wall and carry that at the end of the parade. (I'm no fool, from the end of the line you can see all the kiddos!)
Yes, we march them all over the school! (I have a recording of the Olympic theme that gets played over and over during the parade.)
 
Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!
I wish I could show you how much pride they have in their faces!
 
After the Parade of Nations, we return to the classroom, where an "honored guest" arrives with the torch. (Secretaries, librarians, and custodians are ideal for this job!) We recite the Academic Creed and the Academic Oath, (See resources below) then we all recite those important words: 
Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!
You can turn most anything into a contest! Be sure to have plenty of ideas. There can be group games, like scoot, or individual games, where each country chooses a team member to represent them. I try to stick to the regular curriculum each day for part of the time, but I'll let the countries sit together and award "behavior" medals each day. There can be brainstorming activities, (How many nouns can you name in a minute?) speed activities, (math facts) a read-a-thon, physical activities, (jumping jacks?) and perhaps even a S.T.E.M. project!

Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!
Toward the end of each day, I have a medal ceremony for each contest completed that day. The children help me get desks and chairs in place, and we announce 3rd, then 2nd, then 1st place countries for each contest. The 3rd place winners stand on the floor to the left of the "podium," The 2nd place winners stand on chairs to the right of the podium, and the first place winners stand on the desks in the center. Then I'll play that country's national anthem while everyone cheers. (They've always been great about cheering for all the countries!)

Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!
Again, I wish you could see the pride on their faces! If you notice in the lower left, there's a guy in a blue shirt who was nervous about standing on a desk. We still celebrated him!   
 
Yes, these team building games shake up the "hum drum" of winter, encourages teamwork and friendships, gives the children the break they need, and gets the children excited about school again. 


Here are a few suggestions and resources: 
Academic Winter Team Building Games (This has many suggestions for contests, as well as the Creed and Oath as mentioned above for the Opening Ceremony)

Academic Winter Team Building Games Freebie (A free version of the one above.)


If you're looking for National Anthems, these images will bring you to Amazon.

     

Of course, books are essential! Here are some great choices from Amazon.

                                       

I hope you and your children enjoy your winter games! 
If you decide to try this, I'd love to hear how it went in the comments below!
Academic Winter Sports Team Building: Here's a chance to take the "Olympic Buzz" and bring it into the classroom for team building as well as fun academics!

Are you ready for the big game?

If you're like me, you're taking advantage of the enthusiasm for the big game coming up!


It's Super Bowl time! Take advantage of the children's enthusiasm and let them enjoy some football themed learning experiences!

When children are excited about something, I always try to bring it into the classroom when I can. Books are a great place to start. (Click each image for a link to Amazon.)

There's a ton of kid-related Super Bowl videos on YouTube. Just google "Super Bowl for Kids!"

Here's one I found. The commercials are often the best part of the Super Bowl. I'm thinking I might have the children vote on their favorite. then make a graph of the voting. 
 

12 Funniest Super Bowl Commercials of all time



I'm sure you can find more YouTube videos that you can relate to classwork!

Here's a Super Bowl freebie with mapping and writing! Just explore the image.

Explore this image for a link to this 2024 Freebie!



Here's a football-themed gameboard, with 4 different games that could be played on it.

Explore this image for a link to this fun set of 4 football-themed games!

Here's a dollar version of the above game, which practices Counting to 1,000. Just explore the image for the dollar deal!

Explore this image for a link to this fun counting game!

This game can be played a few different ways, and always has the children giggling! All the verbs are football-related, too! Football Past and Present Verbs.

Explore this image for a link to this football themed verb game.

I also have a couple of "twin" football BINGO games. This math game practices adding and subtracting tens.

Explore this image for a link to this football themed Bingo game

Here's the literacy "twin," Touchdown R-Controlled Vowels

Explore this image for a link to this popular football-themed bingo game

Looking for a little more math practice? Check this one out: 

Explore this image for a link to this popular math story resource!


Now here's the fun: all these football-themed resources are now bundled at a great discount!

Explore this image for a link to this money-saving football bundle!



With the excitement of the Super Bowl, having football-related games will keep them engaged, and they might not realize that they are practicing important skills!


It's Super Bowl time! Take advantage of the children's enthusiasm and let them enjoy some football themed learning experiences!


How do we keep them engaged?

"They" can be a whole lot of learners. They are the "fast finishers", or maybe the "gifted". They can be children who are "high achievers", or just a child who already knows the concept you're working on because his older brother taught it to him.
How do we keep them engaged? Some children finish their daily work much faster than others. How can we keep them engaged without assigning "busy work?"

There are a million reasons a child might need an extra challenge to stay engaged. 

I know most schools have many ways to address the struggling students with Tier 2 and Tier 3, RTI, Title I, Special Education, and so on. But there's not all that much for those who learn easily or quickly. Yet, they are just as important! (Personally, I think they are ALL important, not just the ones who need to "up their test scores!")

Here are some things to NOT do: 
-give more practice on the same skill
-give "busy work" (work that won't advance the student's skills.)
-another grade level's work (This is a sticky subject, especially with some parents, but I truly believe that a child can be "enriched" without acceleration.)

Try to avoid most of the time:
-helping other students (again, it really doesn't advance the child's skills, but done occasionally can help reinforce the concepts.)

Better choices:
It's easier to challenge and engage early finishers in literacy. They can:
-read more challenging books
-read different genres
-write summaries or book reports
-write a story from another character's point of view
-write poetry
-write a play
-research a favorite subject and create a report

I could go on, but there are plenty of ideas all over the internet. (Check "early finishers" on Pinterest!)

Math can be a bit more of a challenge, because some kids struggle to grasp the daily lesson, while others breeze through the practice. We need to challenge the "fast finisher" brains by having them think of using strategies and procedures that will let them practice their skills with a little extra thinking.

Math choices:
-Yahtzee or other games that involve math strategies and planning
-Make their own math stories
-Complete or make their own math puzzles
-Practice facts with a friend
-Task cards, "I'm done" jars, or "What's next bulletin boards" (again, search Pinterest, there are tons of ideas out there!)
-computer games and tasks (such as BOOM computer task cards)

Here's a little video I made about one of my resources that fits this idea:



What other ideas do you have to keep them engaged?

How do we keep them engaged? Some children finish their daily work much faster than others. How can we keep them engaged without assigning "busy work?"


Five Finger Gratitude

Do you want to be happy? 
Do you want your students to be happy?

Did you know that being grateful helps a person be happy? It works for children, too! This post shares a couple of ways to show gratitude!

I've read from several sources, the key to happiness is showing gratitude. (See THIS ARTICLE for example.)
We as teachers know that happy children are in a better state for learning, aren't they?

Here's a trick that the kiddos love: Five-Finger Gratitude!

It's a great activity to do during morning meeting, in between subjects, right after recess, or at the end of the day. 

The children (and teachers) just need to count their blessings on their hand! It shouldn't be tough to come up with 5 things, and the more they think of their five, they can come up with more and different thoughts of gratitude daily!

It's a good idea to let the children share their thoughts as often as possible. They can share whole group, small groups, or with partners, but sharing is important.

Another option: give the children Gratitude Journals! Any notebook will do, and the children can put these labels on the covers! 

Did you know that being grateful helps a person be happy? It works for children, too! This post shares a couple of ways to show gratitude!


Of course, teachers can keep a gratitude journal, too! The children LOVE to hear the teacher's thoughts!

Be grateful!
Be happy!


Did you know that being grateful helps a person be happy? It works for children, too! This post shares a couple of ways to show gratitude!


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