A Room Full of Authors and Illustrators

In a previous post I alluded to the idea that in the coming weeks students would be writing their own stories (based on events in their lives) using all we have learned from reading Old Favorites.  I'm very proud of this crew of young writers who over the last two weeks brainstormed ideas in a writer's notebook, discussed those ideas with a partner and listened to feedback, chose an idea and planned the beginning, middle and end, and then wrote and illustrated the story across pages using connecting words such as  "next", "suddenly", and "in the end..." Here are some pictures that show the process.

Visual Phonics Link!

At long last!  Here is the link to the masterful Karin Vogel demonstrating the Visual Phonics cues we use.  Have fun practicing with your Kindergartners!

Visual Phonics Link

Deep Into Stories

A careful look at the previous post let's you in on a story REtelling lesson led by Miss Jess.  After reading the classic, Mrs.Wishy Washy to the class, each student reconstructed the story with pictures and words on a paper strip.  The challenges of placing the story events in order and matching pictures with words are two of the ways we are preparing for writing our own stories based on real life events next week.  Below you can see a different type of retelling activity that goes with the story Harry The Dirty Dog by Gene Zion.  In this "old favorite" we stressed that really great stories, the ones we love to hear again and again and come to know by heart, often have a very recognizable beginning, middle and end.  Hopefully this structure will come through in the our original stories in the weeks to come!

Cooperation!

As I looked back at photos from the week it was clear to me that whether the task was building at Explore Time, retelling a story, or gathering natural items on a scavenger hunt the children were doing a spectacular job working together. Here's little look:

 

Welcome Back!

I'm learning a new trick for posting photos directly from my phone to my blog . This photo is a test taken right before the break.

With Gratitude and Happiness

If you had a chance to read this week's newsletter you might recall the discussion we had about the connection between gratitude and happiness. Turns out, people who regularly take time out to acknowledge the things they are grateful for are happier and healthier! The week before Thanksgiving seemed like the right time to build "being grateful" into our mindfulness practice.  Here is the link to the music video we watched.  ...AND learned some signs to go along!  

PLEASE NOTE THERE IS SOMETIMES AN ADD BEFORE THE VIDEO IF YOU ARE VIEWING WITH YOUR KINDERGARTNER!

gratitude by Empty Hands

And now for a look through our week... you can see a finished weaving taken off the [cardboard] loom, a look at Melissa's Candle Day (all about her love for rainbows), designing paper quilt squares and story writing with some traditional Native American picture symbols.

The Learning Deepens

In my last post I shared how we'd begun learning about differences between the past and present through stories, props, and crafts. This past week our look at how daily life has changed over the last two hundred (or so) years continued to "weave" it's way into our literacy learning and forest exploration. I hope you enjoy this look at the children embroidering during quiet time,learning to weave an over/under pattern on cardboard looms and dipping candles.

 

In this next picture you can see students working as a group to make a list of all the things they could remember the Ox-Cart Man packing up to take to Portsmouth Market.  In this activity we discussed how lists are a useful thing to be able to write and how when we say words slowly we can heard the sounds that different letters make and begin to spell.  Look carefully at the white board in the photo and you will see that the Ox Cart Man's items have been spelled inventively.  They've also been shaped out of modeling clay and loaded onto the carts!

Friday's forest exploration included some terrific teamwork and a bit of a mysterious happening.  Take a look at the children moving a long log in an effort to reinforce the bridge.  And, notice the small vertical hole that in the large tree?  We discovered that if you slip a small object in it the object will come out the hole at the bottom!