Taking Care of Books

I've recently introduced Library books to my class and wish I had this book from Kindergarten Kindergarten for the occasion! Basically, the book is "ruined" with pens, juice, mud, and chocolate in an effort to teach children what NOT to do with books. It's a great stimulus to generate discussion about how we treat books in the classroom and at home.



But it's still early in the year, and I don't think it's ever too late to teach kids the value of books and how we can take care of them (especially as my colleague had a child bring a library book back with the front cover cut clean off!).

I had so much fun scribbling and painting and spilling over the pages of this book. It's very cathartic. I was doing a circle time lesson today on feeling calm and ways we calm ourselves down; I think scribbling is my method of calmness! Head over to Kindergarten Kindergarten to download a free copy and wreak havoc to your heart's content.

Here's my handiwork of the day:


















Have Fun!

Colour Recognition

The other week, I came across a photo of this colour recognition/fine motor activity on Pinterest, so I decided to make a set for my classroom! I popped down to B&Q (just go to your local hardware store) to pick up some wooden clothespins and (free) paint chips to get started.



Make sure you pick up 2 of each colour paint chip because you're going to be cutting up one and keeping one intact.






You're also going to need scissors and glue. I started out by measuring the top of the clothespin and cutting out the pieces from one set of paint chips and gluing them on the clothespins. I realized that I wouldn't have enough clothespins for all the colours I chose, so I ended up cutting some shades off the "intact" paint chips.



I also realized that I could add a third learning opportunity to this activity! I only have 1 yellow, 2 red, 3 green, and so on. So not only will the children be practicing their colour recognition and fine motor skills, but they will also be developing their number skills!



When I got to school, I also laminated the paint chips so they last, and popped them in a basket with the clothespins. The kids had a blast matching them and they were really interested in discovering different shades of colours. One bright spark said as he pointed to the shades of green, "This one is dark, this one is lighter, and this one is lightest!" He was very pleased with his observation, and so was I!

Meet the Teacher.

My name is Katie and I'm in my fourth year of teaching. I had a bumpy start a few years ago at an establishment that shall remain anonymous, but ended up finding myself in a teaching position at a lovely school in late March 2011, and stayed there for over a year. I started a year long contract at another school in August 2012, which I loved, but moved on to a permanent position at yet another school in April 2013, which I'm still settling into. I've always wanted to be a teacher since I was a kid. I would play "school" with my sister and make her do sums, while I got to grade it with a big red pen. I'm pretty sure I took pleasure in getting to put big X's on the page. Not so now. I really love when my kids "get" something and succeed. At the moment, I'm finishing the year as a Primary 4 teacher (grade 3), but heading into Nursery again in Autumn 2013.



I'm Canadian, but I live in Scotland with my husband, Mr. West, who is also a teacher. I did my training in Edinburgh a few years ago and my very understanding husband obediently came along for the ride, and took a job in a private nursery (kindergarden) while I was in school. Side note: I miss Edinburgh a lot! But I like Aberdeen too, and I really enjoy the school I'm at.

When I'm not teaching, I am on teaching blogs or Pinterest or something of the like, which drives Mr. West mad. He can't stand that I am constantly thinking about school and collecting ideas. But then when I give him something he can use in his own classroom that I've found on my internet travels, he understands my obsession just a little bit.

Seriously though, when I'm not doing teacher-related things, I am learning about photography or taking photos, trying a new recipe (usually tasty baked goods), illustrating, doing something crafty, or traveling. Living abroad has opened up many opportunities for us to travel on the cheap and we are really trying to take advantage! We've visited Belfast, Berlin, Paris, Amsterdam, Majorca, London, and much of Scotland.

That's it for now. I'm hoping to remember to take photos of displays and things we're doing in class, so I can post them on here.

-Mrs. West