I left a little piece of my heart in Kindergarten back in 2013, but my teaching adventures have continued! I now own and operate my own home-based preschool, and love the flexibility that teaching at home has given me to spend so much time learning and playing with my amazing son. You can read about my new teaching and learning adventures over at my new blog:
handheartlearning.blogspot.com
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
Friday, April 26, 2013
Book Love: Do You Know Which Ones Will Grow?
Title: Do You Know Which Ones Will Grow?
Author: Susan A. Shea
Illustrator: Tom Slaughter
Why I Love This Book: This book is a fun, and humorous, way of talking about living and non-living things with young children. Written in question format with rhyming text, the pages include a lift-the-flap feature to reveal the rhymes, making it that much more engaging and interactive. I love that it uses questions to approach the concept, because that allows them to think and develop their reasoning skills. Finally, the paintings used for the illustrations are brightly colored and simply delightful. This book is a great match for kids in preschool-first grade, as they are developing their understanding of things in the world.
Author: Susan A. Shea
Illustrator: Tom Slaughter
Why I Love This Book: This book is a fun, and humorous, way of talking about living and non-living things with young children. Written in question format with rhyming text, the pages include a lift-the-flap feature to reveal the rhymes, making it that much more engaging and interactive. I love that it uses questions to approach the concept, because that allows them to think and develop their reasoning skills. Finally, the paintings used for the illustrations are brightly colored and simply delightful. This book is a great match for kids in preschool-first grade, as they are developing their understanding of things in the world.
Monday, April 15, 2013
Seasons
Is it really April?
I don't even know where the last 4 months have gone.
I've been as busy as ever in my classroom, enjoying this time with my 24 little learning wonders. We have been exploring the world through science and writing and math and social studies. We have been changing through it all- learning and growing with each new discovery, just as the seasons have continued to move forward and change. And much like the cycle of the seasons, our journey together is coming to an end, and new learning adventures will begin. It's always a bitter-sweet time, to see one season end and another begin.
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| This is one of the Season Trees we made for our school Arts Night. |
I have also been looking towards a new season in my personal life as well. This summer I will be welcoming my own little learning wonder into the world. I am so excited to become a mom, and to help this little one learn and grow and develop. I'm sure it is going to be a great, life-long learning adventure.
This year has gone by way too quickly, but I'm hoping to still share some of our classroom adventures before it is over. It has been a wonderful year!
Saturday, December 15, 2012
An Amazing Gift
So...it's December and this time of year always feels a little crazy in the classroom. While the kids get excited about all the extra holiday festivities and activities, I'll admit that I have found myself feeling a little stressed and worn out. But I received a surprise this week that made me feel so appreciated and supported. It seriously made my whole year.
After I finished teaching on Monday, I went to go check my box before I tackled my huge list of things to do for the coming week. To my surprise, I found a wrapped gift sitting there with my name on it. I took it back to my classroom, and read the note that was attached. The note itself blew me away and brought tears to my eyes. An anonymous donor expressed their gratitude for the work that I do, and wanted to help provide something for my classroom. I was in shock when I opened the box and saw what was inside.
Sometime last year, I expressed a desire on my blog to try and create a listening center that was more independent, and thought that iPod Shuffles would be a great way to go because they would be very easy for the kids to manage on their own. Even though I knew it would be a long-shot, I asked around to see if anybody had any kind of independent listening devices that they would be willing to donate. After receiving a minimal response and knowing that other things that were more pressing in my budget, I kind of gave up on the idea of making this a reality in my classroom.
Until now.
I hope that whoever decided to give in such a generous way knows that I am so grateful for their support! I was so touched, and still feel amazed at the kind and thoughtful generosity of this person. I am also SO excited to put these to good use in the classroom, and I've been getting them ready to introduce them to the kids when we get back from Winter break. They will be a perfect addition to our Daily Five/Reading Workshop time, and a valuable resource in our room. Thank you so much--whoever you are!
After the tragic events that recently occurred among children and teachers in Connecticut, I am even more grateful for this act of kindness, and all others that I have received as a teacher. Although there are people in the world who make horrible, evil choices, I have to believe that there are more people in this world who do what they can- big or small- to help others and make it a better place. More than ever I am inspired to bring an attitude of caring and goodness to my own students. I hope that we can all cultivate a spirit of giving, love, kindness, and compassion in our small circles of the world, this holiday season and always.
After I finished teaching on Monday, I went to go check my box before I tackled my huge list of things to do for the coming week. To my surprise, I found a wrapped gift sitting there with my name on it. I took it back to my classroom, and read the note that was attached. The note itself blew me away and brought tears to my eyes. An anonymous donor expressed their gratitude for the work that I do, and wanted to help provide something for my classroom. I was in shock when I opened the box and saw what was inside.
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| 4 iPod Shuffles |
Until now.
I hope that whoever decided to give in such a generous way knows that I am so grateful for their support! I was so touched, and still feel amazed at the kind and thoughtful generosity of this person. I am also SO excited to put these to good use in the classroom, and I've been getting them ready to introduce them to the kids when we get back from Winter break. They will be a perfect addition to our Daily Five/Reading Workshop time, and a valuable resource in our room. Thank you so much--whoever you are!
After the tragic events that recently occurred among children and teachers in Connecticut, I am even more grateful for this act of kindness, and all others that I have received as a teacher. Although there are people in the world who make horrible, evil choices, I have to believe that there are more people in this world who do what they can- big or small- to help others and make it a better place. More than ever I am inspired to bring an attitude of caring and goodness to my own students. I hope that we can all cultivate a spirit of giving, love, kindness, and compassion in our small circles of the world, this holiday season and always.
Monday, December 3, 2012
Book Love: Can I Play Too?
Title: Can I Play Too?
Author: Mo Willems
Why I Love This Book: I love Mo Willems' books. His comic and simple approach just really connects with younger kids. My Kindergarten students go crazy over this particular book. They seriously laugh their heads off, and beg me to read it again. I love that it is so engaging to them, but that it also lends itself to a great discussion about friendship and problem solving.
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
I am thankful for...
...my amazing class of Kindergarten kids! They are so fun.
Last week they wrote about what they are thankful for, and we turned their work into a place mat for Thanksgiving. They turned out so cute! I always love open-ended activities like this that allow them to share a little bit of their heart.
Last week they wrote about what they are thankful for, and we turned their work into a place mat for Thanksgiving. They turned out so cute! I always love open-ended activities like this that allow them to share a little bit of their heart.
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| Thanksgiving dinner, the alphabet, Barbie, and my teacher :) |
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| Ice Cream, turkey, car, family |
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| Prophets, Jesus, myself, reindeer |
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| My Mom, food, my football, my soccer ball |
Happy Thanksgiving!
Thursday, November 1, 2012
The Pumpkin Experiment Continues...
Well, our pumpkin sprouts just keep growing...
But the pumpkin just keeps getting more and more rotten...
Some sprouts have even started growing through the pumpkin skin!
So we decided to give our sprouts a new home, and continue to watch their growth. We planted the entire pumpkin inside a pot. I'm not sure how long we can keep it growing inside the pot and inside our classroom, but it will be another fun experiment to find out!
Here are some fun Science Journal entries about our pumpkin experiment.
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