Rules, Rules, Rules!

We have been busy discussing rules in class and who likes rules anyways?  Yet, in reality, a school building and classroom would not flow as smoothly without guidelines for students to follow.  We have explored different areas of rules, from schoolwide policies encouraging positive behavior to specific classroom rules with strict consequences.  Overall, as the teacher, you may have schoolwide rules to follow or you may have to create your own.  If you think about it, being a kid is all about rules!  Knowing this, I think being creative when making rules and policies is a crucial piece to a positive, structured classroom.  Rules don't have to be such a negative thing.  As a teacher, the creativity of rules and implementation lies in your hands.  Here are some creative and fun ideas I have found that put a twist on the old list of do not do this rules!  Some are alternatives to having "listed rules"! 

A positive and appealing sign

Student created postings

Good way to remind students without saying a word

Allows visual students to see

Can help with students who shout out or disrupt instruction or quiet worktime

A great idea for younger children who tend to tattle alot

Yes, you can!

Classroom suggestion box

Love this idea! 

Hope these are useful for someone ;)

Moon Over Manifest

For E371, we were required to read Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool.  The book is about a little girl who is surviving a summer in a new town during the Great Depression.  The book has many aspects that could be successfully implemented into a Unit.  I would say that this book would be appropriate for ages 9 thru 12.  The book explores many subjects including the Ku Klux Klan, immigration, segregation, and some small pieces of more mature nature including bootlegging and killings.  Here is my idea for a Unit plan based on the book:

            I think there are many ways to incorporate this book into a unit.  My favorite idea would be to take a week and pretend your classroom is the town of Manifest. 

Setting the Stage:

·        Create posters that would include the lingo used in the book (south slang)

·        Make areas of the room parts of the town that the book includes

·        Assign each person a role to play for the week and follow a character in the book

Language Arts:

·        Find old letters or create them;  have students work with a partner and read the letter aloud.  Have the students write a scenario, predicting what was going on and why the letter was written (like the girls did with the spy)

·        Create written rhymes or poems similar to Abilene’s

·        Write a story with a beginning, middle, and end like Abilene was instructed to do for her summer project

Writing:

·        Have students write letters like the ones in the book; research ideas or time periods to focus the topics of the letters on

·        Create written advertisements like those in the book

Math:

·        The book references the use of coins frequently.  Use coins as the basis and create story problems for the students to solve based on events in the book

Science:

·        Research the plant poison ivy that the book discussed.  Decode what reaction it may cause and illustrate what the plant looks like

·        Miss Sadie uses many plants for home remedies.  Have the students research some of these plants and other uses they may have

Social Studies:

·        Research some of the listed events and dates listed in the book (Great Depression, Babe Ruth, Stock Market Crash, Charles Lindberg, etc)

·        Draw a map of Manifest including stores and specifics that the book discussed (Manifest Herald, Funeral Parlor, Hardware Store, Koski’s Diner, etc)

·        Use the idea surrounding the cigar box that Abilene found and have the students create their own box that could tell a story

·        Research the Ku Klux Klan and other rally groups in the 1900-1940’s.  Create posters about the rebellious groups and list reasons why they protested or rallied

·        The book refers to immigration a lot.  Have the students create a timeline based on events in the book that refer to immigration and segregation

·        Locate some old newspapers;  have the students use the newspapers and find information; write summaries based on the information

·     Divide the students into 2 groups.  Have one group create a Manifest timeline of 1936 and one a timeline of 1918. 

Music:

·        Find a variety of songs about “riding the rails” similar to the one Abilene and her friends sang; print out the lyrics and have the students sing some of the songs

Art:

·        Make a poster advertising people to come to Manifest; include key points in the book

·        Create an advertisement with drawing for one of the advertisements in the book

·        Create a victory quilt like the one in the story; have each student draw a piece for the quilt and then put each piece together to make a quilt

Geography in the classroom

Geography can be a starting point for many subject and content areas.  Geography isn't just about our country, it is about alot more!  There are many different types of Geography.  Here is the list we referenced in class:
Incidental Geography The geographic knowledge we have developed from everyday life and experiences.

Intentional Geography The geographic knowledge that we purposefully learn.Geography The discipline that teaches knowledge about places and environments.

Human Geography A branch of geography that deals with people, their environment, and their interactions.

Spatial Understanding The ability to perceive oneself and other natural and human-made things in space.

Cultural Systems How or why people move or settle in places and conduct economic and social life.

Physical Systems Non-human structures such as weather and landforms

Regions A specified district, territory, or other often continuous place on Earth’s surface.

Human Culture Social patterns, arts, beliefs, institutions, and all other products of human work and thought that contribute to a common way of life for a group of people.

Spatial Reasoning The ability to mentally organize information about people, places, and environments

We discussed the 5 themes of Geography which are location, place, region, human-environment interaction, and movement. You can use these themes and allow children to explore different areas of a place. Using these 5 themes allows the study to include the elements related to the area.




I found some great resources and ideas for teaching Geography.  

*This site has some great ideas and resources: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/geography/

• Fun states memory game: http://deceptivelyeducational.blogspot.com/2011/05/scrambled-states-memory-game.html
• Cool book full of Geography songs: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002CB3KPM/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl/?ie=UTF8&tag=passionhomema-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B002CB3KPM
• Cool website with Geography games: http://games.co.za/topography
• Really cool blog devoted to Geography: http://www.digitalgeography.co.uk/

PINTEREST ideas:

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Not related but..

If your not on Pinterest you need to be!  Michelle has created a link-up for teachers on Pinterest!  Check it out!
http://michellesmathinthemiddle.blogspot.com/2011/07/pinterest-linky-party.html

This for that

I brought these feather hair clips and lanyards to our classroom trade fair:

I traded with my classmates and professor and ended up with these:

Conducting a trade fair can spark alot of interests and allow for hands on social studies learning experiences that can be connected to other areas.  As we learned in class, there are many aspects to consider when planning a trade fair in your classroom.  The first thing to consider is how you will connect this to an aspect of social studies to make it a valuable learning experience.  The next thing is to decide when in the lesson you will conduct the fair.  The third is to analyze what goods the students can bring and what you will do to accomidate students that do not have items to contribute.  You must also consider what guidelines to set so that every student gets to participate and actively gain this valueable learning experience. 

I found some sites that give various ideas about trading posts or trade fairs in the classroom.

~This site shows a neat idea using nature items for trade

http://fairydustteaching.blogspot.com/2010/11/trading-post.html

~Neat lesson plan idea:

http://www.lessonplanspage.com/ssbarteringtradeactivity3-htm

~Resource website on the history of trading posts

http://www.thelastbestwest.com/last_best_trading_post.htm

It takes time to teach

Today in E325, we discussed the detailed process behind teaching a lesson to students.  The diagrams and lists created might shock someone who thinks this is a simple process.  The days of deciding on a cute theme and teaching it for weeks, implementing cute art projects, and giving bubble-type quizzes are over.  In the education field today, teachers go through a process behind each and every lesson they teach.  The first step is planning the curriculum.  The next step is instructing the students and the final step is assessing the lesson.  This process repeats itself as the year progresses.  Each step has a list of tasks involved in it.  This diagram shows a simplified version of what we discussed in class:

I thought the most important things we discussed were the concept of knowing what you want to teach, following through with your plan to teach, check for understanding, prepare for speedbumps, and properly assess not only the students but you as a teacher.  As I thought about the planning process, I explored some resources to assist in the process.  Here are some sites worth exploring to enhance the planning, teaching, and assessing process:

This site has great strategies for enhancing a subject and ideas for teaching:
http://www.readingquest.org/strat/

A graphic organizer is always a good planning tool:
http://www.graphic.org/index.html

A site with great templates and planning tools:
http://www.lessonplans4teachers.com/templates.php

A variety of assessment ideas:
http://www.lessonplans4teachers.com/templates.php


Hope these are good resources for others too!