This Week's Five

Hello Saturday! Thanks Kacey at Doodle Bugs Teaching for the Five for Friday linky. Here's five things from my teacher life this week.

1.   Here's an idea and a request. This year I have more than the usual number of students who struggle with fine motor movement. There are a slew of strategies to help kids develop fine muscles, but this week we did some of our centers UNDER the table... as in, writing on the table as if it were the ceiling. I had the kids put reading cushions down on the floor first to make it more comfortable and to give a boost to those with shorter arms. (No, I don't have T-Rex students... you know what I mean...)

Writing Under the Table– they LOVED it, especially the boys!

Writing this way gives kids great fine motor practice, but perhaps more important than that, it is fun. The joy of doing it gets even the most struggling writer excited about writing and drawing. As this was the first time I did it this year, I just gave them blank paper and markers.

I would like to do this more regularly with different kinds of writing and drawing activities, and this leads to my question- what is the easiest way to set it up, or let the kids set it up? I put masking tape loops on every corner of every sheet for the kids ahead of time. It worked, in that they could get it up there and it stayed, but it was such a long prep on my part. I have a couple of ideas floating around in my head but I want your tips before I begin. Anyone have ideas on how to streamline this process? Please share!

2. Another favorite activity this week was Twenty Clues. The kids arranged a few chairs as pairs, back-to-back– I love when the kiddos do the set-up, good for them and good for me. I put out picture cards upside down on a tray. Kids partnered up and then one chose a card. After peeking at the picture (they keep the card pressed to their belly to cut down on cheating) they came up with clues so their partner could guess.

Twenty Clues

Listening to the clues was hysterical very insightful. We have played this whole group several times, with me giving the clues, so they know the general idea. You see the complexity of giving good clues as you listen, though. Here are the clues one little guy gave for a picture of a semi-truck: It is black, it is big, it is round, it is fast... needless to say it was taking a while for his partner to guess. They both happily stayed at it, though. (I intervened with some prompts to give clues for what it is used for which is one of the most valuable sorts of clues.) The language practice is fantastic and even my ELL kids who have to work harder than the rest want to play it again and again. And they have to cooperate in order for it to work at all.

You can change this game to Twenty Questions, too, where the partner without the card asks the questions, but in my experience that is a harder version.  I have various picture cards with photos of all sorts of objects. I figure I'll print up small copies of pictures off the internet if we run out. Give it a try- bet your kids love it. And it's good for kids of all ages.

3.   My new business cards just arrived. Whoot! I have a couple conferences coming up and they'll be especially handy to have. I was very selective in the info I shared as I wanted them to be broad enough to cover my various roles in life. I wanted people to be able to contact me, of course, but I ended up limiting that to just my email and blog address. I considered printing front and back, but decided a blank back was handy for writing any notes I wanted to give a specific person. I didn't include my district as I would prefer people to contact me directly and not through work, and they can jot it on the card or email me if it is pertinent to them.

What do you think? It helps to have a husband who is also my designer. I love how it ties to the blog. And although Jonathan says that QR codes haven't caught on as well as they could, I decided to use QR code link to the blog as it allows anyone using a phone to just click instead of typing out the address. Do you have a business card? What do you include?

4.  I HOPE you all read this week's guest blog post done by none other than that same husband of mine. Between business cards and posts I've kept Jonathan pretty busy. This quick read will give you a grin and a chuckle!! Click on pic!

5.  And last but not least, I HOPE you'll read my review of a delightful new book, When a Dragon Moves In Again. It comes with a little freebie so you'll want to check it out by clicking.

All for now. Check out everybody else's favorite linky party to see what's up with them.

Thanks for stopping by. See you next time!

Laughs, Linkys, Logos and Winter Suff, too!

We were all expecting to have a no school "cold day" because it was minus 20+ degrees this morning. And we did end up having the day off, but it was a "transportation day" instead of a "cold day." At first I thought perhaps the busses had an opinion about running in the cold and opted out, but perhaps it was the bus drivers instead. Although I enjoy the occasional winter stay home day, I feel for the parents left without child care. It's all in your perspective, isn't it?

So what did I do? Thanks to Kacey at Doodle Bugs Teaching and her Five for Friday linky for giving me the way to share. And look for one more new FUN logo link-up below thanks to Kelly at Art with Jenny K.

1.  Fortunately... unfortunately... fortunately.... I found new Jim Gaffigan videos on YouTube this morning quite by accident... oh the places you wander when you a leisurely morning. I am a big Jim Gaffigan fan... well, not THAT big a fan or I would have known he came out with a new tour back in the spring. Those or you who were reading my posts this summer, know my family and I find him quite funny. His observations of life are right on, and mostly we are laughing at ourselves– we love the "bonus fry" as much as the next gut. However, Mr. Gaffigan was NOT the person to stumble upon this morning when I had big plans of how much I was going to get done with my extra time... how do you spell procrastination? J-i-m G-a-f-f-i-g-a-n. SOOOOO funny.

You've all heard of the Common Core. Well, I'm starting a new workout plan called the Jim Gaffigan Core Program... my core gets such a great workout from laughing that I can barely move afterward. I just need a quick dose every day. Catch yours here.

2.  I've been meaning to share this resource for a while and decided to get some details for you today. The Cornel Lab of Ornithology has many resources about birds that are especially valuable to teachers. There are curriculum resources, apps, tips for getting kids hooked on birds, taking lessons outside, a student e-mag that is free to download, and my favorite– live bird cams and snippets of videos from those cameras that show various birds in action– Barn Owls, Red Tailed Hawks, Great Blue Herons, and feeders in several locations. So if you can't put up a feeder at your classroom window, you can let your students watch these for a little live bird action and download the free bird feeding guides to help your observations.

Click on the pic below to go to the bird cams, but then check out the whole site for all the other good stuff.

Bird Cams and MORE

3.  I have been doing a mini thematic snow unit in class. I found myself in need of more factual info and photos. I found SnowCrystals.com a good site for both. There are great photos and illustrations of the various kinds of snowflake patterns and elements. They do allow you to use the photos for small personal classroom non-commercial purposes, like showing your kids. Check them out by clicking on this collage.

Beautiful snowflakes photos can be found here

My Snow, Snow, Glorious Snow Pinterest board is growing! It includes science videos about how snowflakes form which are especially educational and beautiful and add much to student discussion and learning. The videos are worth checking out no matter what science unit you're on or what climate you live in. Take a look by clicking on the board below.

Lots of snow resources including some really good snowflake science videos. 

4.  What's the story behind the logo? I am linking up with Jenny from Art with Jenny K to tell my story.  Thanks, Jenny, for asking the question.

I coined the phrase "kidpeople" many years ago. From the time I was a kid myself people would say I was a "kidperson" because I was usually doing something with little kids.  It wasn't a big leap for me or a surprise for anyone when I became a teacher. As luck would have it my early years of teaching involved a good bit of public advocacy work. There were times when I felt the needs of kids and their families were completely ignored, and policy makers never once thought about our youngest citizens– ugh. Kids are people, too, you know!

I've been a Kidperson in lots of different ways. I ran my own preschool program- Kidpeople Clubhouse; did teacher training, consulting and PD as Kidpeople Consulting, ; and had a traveling storytelling program called Kidpeople Tales. I've always referred to kids and those who love kids, teachers and parents, as Kidpeople. So it was easy to use Kidpeople Kindergarten when I embraced Brain Compatible Learning and the tribes concept in my first public schools classroom. The blog became Kidpeople Classroom because not everything here is about the kindergarten year, but useful to classroom teachers of many grades.

And my logo? Well, that was easy, too.  When your husband is an illustrator who's been drawing little cartoon sketches of you ever since you first met, well, one of those little cartoons is bound to make it to your cover. I don't think anyone doubts they are at Kidpeople Classroom or on the Funny Kid Friday page when they see my cartoon self. It's the small details that have made the whole blogging journey so much fun... as I come up on the one year anniversary! Time flies...

Click on Jenny's button up there to go to the linky and find other logo stories. And bloggers, be sure to link up your story, too.

5.  This time of year in Michigan can be difficult on many levels, not the least of which is lack of movement when day after day it is too cold to go outside for recess. I swear the classroom walls start to push in. In addition to brain breaks on my Brain Break Pinterest board- the easiest way to store and organize videos for quick use in the classroom–

Click to find lots of follow-along brain breaks
in one place

–I also provide the kids with standing centers and a motor kid movement center. Click on photos below to see my posts from last winter and gather some new ideas and tricks to give your kids movement outlets during the long, cold, winter months.

Standing centers for built-in movement

Motor Kid Center– they love it!

Click on back to Five for Friday to see all your favorite bloggers. Thanks, Kacey!

Whew! That was fun! Now I'm off to check out some other bloggers through the links! And don't forget if you have a funny kid story be sure to link up with this month's Funny Kid Friday. Have a great day!

The post Laughs, Linky, Logos and Winter Stuff, too! first appeared on kidpeopleclassroom.com