Well, there are some big changes ahead for me. I've been teaching Nursery (Kindergarden) for more or less the last 3 years, but I'm moving on to Primary 4/5 (Grade 3/4) in August. I'm excited to finally have my own class, older children, and the chance to expand my experience beyond 3 & 4 year olds! So excited, in fact, that I got started with labels and organisation well before the end of term.
This is the part where I would post some photos of the pretty labels I made, but blogger is being stupid and won't let me post anything. Surprise surprise.
Nevertheless, I've made tray labels and peg labels for all the children. The kids don't have desks to keep their belongings in, but we have these tray units, and each child has their own tray to keep their things in. Instead of desks, we have tables, which I actually prefer. It's easy to move kids around and you don't have to worry about moving furniture because all their "stuff" is in their tray. Anyway, I've made up some simple labels for their trays and coat pegs.
I've also put together a set of subject labels that I will use for our daily schedule. You'll just have to take me word for it that they are super cute.
Besides going on a label spree, I've been thinking a lot about how I want to tackle this year with a composite class and a new stage for me. Reaching all the needs of the children is always a stress, but now that I have two stages mixed in with all their needs already, it makes things a bit tricky. I've decided that I'm going to try to take advantage of rotations or stations of work in order to spend more time in small groups to meet children's needs. What have your experiences been with this? I've put together my literacy block timetable and my numeracy block timetable, which is half the battle, in order to visualise how I will divide up my time with the children and decide how they will spend their time when I'm busy with groups. I'm really hoping this strategy works for their benefit and mine. I anticipate that I may have to shuffle some things around or restructure, but I really want to make a go of stations/rotations.
What else do you think I can be doing with a split class to benefit them and their learning?
Showing posts with label resources. Show all posts
Showing posts with label resources. Show all posts
25 July 2014
05 May 2013
Preparing for a Supply Teacher
I realise I haven't posted on this blog for awhile. Oops! I do have an excuse though. I changed jobs! I left my temporary post as a Nursery teacher and joined the teaching staff at another Primary school as a permanent member of staff. For the duration of this school year, I am teaching Primary 4 (Grade 3). So my excuse is I have been crazy busy. And the first two weeks of April were a holiday. Now that I'm settled in with my new class and my new school, I'm back to posting. And now that I've started my new permanent job, I'm leaving for a week for a wedding! Great first impressions, right? Excitingly, I live in Scotland and I love it, but it makes it tricky when family members get married back home in Canada. As a result, I've prepared some information for the lucky teacher who gets to take my lovely class while I'm gone.
I have a simple cover and welcome letter to give a bit of information about the class.
Next, I have a class list which will have photos of the children. This can definitely come in handy for supply teachers. It's tricky learning 25 new names. Hopefully this will help speed up the process.
After that, I have a page for important information like what to do during a fire alarm, where to put money collected from pupils, and how to log on to the laptop and use the SMARTboard. Every school is different and every class is different, so it's important to me that my supply teacher feels they have the information they need to make the day run smoothly.
For consistency's sake, I have a page dedicated to behaviour systems in place in the class. I'm sure the children would mention table marbles or Mr. Potato Head (because they constantly remind me!), but it's important to have that info in black and white so the supply isn't totally confused when the kids ask, "Can we add a piece to Mr. Potato Head?"
Last, I have a few pages dedicated to the classroom routines. Spelling and Reading are pretty much carried out the same way each day. Kids are creatures of habit and the less change that occurs, the better. I've also included any special things that will pop up in the timetable, like assemblies and swimming lessons.
As someone who has gone into classrooms as a supply, this sort of thing would have been really helpful. I've gone into classrooms where the teacher's desk is a disaster and there is not hint of a plan left to go by. I've just had to fly by the seat of my pants, so to speak. As much as I love going with the flow, I still think there needs to be an element of routine and planning and sanity-saving.
In preparation for my absence, I am also planning to leave some games, worksheets, books, and task cards that can be used so the children are always learning. I still want my kids to accomplish something while I'm away!
What do you do to prepare for a supply/substitute teacher?
I have a simple cover and welcome letter to give a bit of information about the class.
Next, I have a class list which will have photos of the children. This can definitely come in handy for supply teachers. It's tricky learning 25 new names. Hopefully this will help speed up the process.
After that, I have a page for important information like what to do during a fire alarm, where to put money collected from pupils, and how to log on to the laptop and use the SMARTboard. Every school is different and every class is different, so it's important to me that my supply teacher feels they have the information they need to make the day run smoothly.
For consistency's sake, I have a page dedicated to behaviour systems in place in the class. I'm sure the children would mention table marbles or Mr. Potato Head (because they constantly remind me!), but it's important to have that info in black and white so the supply isn't totally confused when the kids ask, "Can we add a piece to Mr. Potato Head?"
Last, I have a few pages dedicated to the classroom routines. Spelling and Reading are pretty much carried out the same way each day. Kids are creatures of habit and the less change that occurs, the better. I've also included any special things that will pop up in the timetable, like assemblies and swimming lessons.
As someone who has gone into classrooms as a supply, this sort of thing would have been really helpful. I've gone into classrooms where the teacher's desk is a disaster and there is not hint of a plan left to go by. I've just had to fly by the seat of my pants, so to speak. As much as I love going with the flow, I still think there needs to be an element of routine and planning and sanity-saving.
In preparation for my absence, I am also planning to leave some games, worksheets, books, and task cards that can be used so the children are always learning. I still want my kids to accomplish something while I'm away!
What do you do to prepare for a supply/substitute teacher?
27 May 2012
Group Task Management
In my short time as a teacher, I've heard pros and cons to using Group Work as a teaching tool. Some people think it's the lazy teacher's way to get through the day, some people believe it's a way to get pupils to take charge of their own learning. If you have self-motivated pupils, then group tasks can be beneficial, but I don't think group work should be avoided just because some pupils need a little more motivation and guidance.
I'm sure I'm not the only teacher who's learned the hard way that dividing pupils into groups to accomplish a task requires more management and thought than you'd think. With no guidance, pupils fight over who will do what, or won't actually accomplish anything because no one has really taken charge or taken initiative. As a teacher, you really have to guide pupils with everything from who will collect resources for their group, to who will physically write down information. To be fair, some pupils just click and get on with it; but there are some who really need your guidance in order to accomplish the task you've set them.
Often when I divide my kids up to work in groups, I assign them roles so everyone is clear on what they need to contribute to their group. I've carried this out in several ways in the past: I've popped wee post-its on certain pupils to indicate who's the Scribe/Author, I've written the titles of each role on slips of paper and handed them out randomly, or I've allowed the children to decide who will be what. What I find to be the best method to carry out assigning roles is having these cards to use and re-use:
I created this set myself, including the illustrations. I've printed, cut out and laminated a few sets of these cards (so you can hand them out to several groups) so I can just keep reusing them. The children quickly learn what group roles are and what their responsibilities are, but I find the cards to be a good reminder. On the back of each card, the role title is written at the top with some reminders of what they should do:
I made up a separate page of the job descriptions and glued them to the back of the picture cards before I laminated them. Easy peasy.
I explained the group roles to the children as their Job Titles. For instance, my job title is "Teacher." The Job Titles, or Roles, that I use are:
1. Manager
2. Illustrator
3. Reader
4. Author
5. Resource Manager
6. Reporter
I don't necessarily use every role for every group task, and not every person in the group gets a role all the time because it may not be necessary for the task. Or sometimes, I have fewer than 6 pupils in a group, but there is a need for all the roles, so some pupils may get TWO job titles! I would slowly introduce these roles to younger pupils, but I've managed to be able to use them for as young as Primary 2 (Grade 1).
Let me know if you find this method of Group Task Management helpful in your classroom!
I'm sure I'm not the only teacher who's learned the hard way that dividing pupils into groups to accomplish a task requires more management and thought than you'd think. With no guidance, pupils fight over who will do what, or won't actually accomplish anything because no one has really taken charge or taken initiative. As a teacher, you really have to guide pupils with everything from who will collect resources for their group, to who will physically write down information. To be fair, some pupils just click and get on with it; but there are some who really need your guidance in order to accomplish the task you've set them.
Often when I divide my kids up to work in groups, I assign them roles so everyone is clear on what they need to contribute to their group. I've carried this out in several ways in the past: I've popped wee post-its on certain pupils to indicate who's the Scribe/Author, I've written the titles of each role on slips of paper and handed them out randomly, or I've allowed the children to decide who will be what. What I find to be the best method to carry out assigning roles is having these cards to use and re-use:
I created this set myself, including the illustrations. I've printed, cut out and laminated a few sets of these cards (so you can hand them out to several groups) so I can just keep reusing them. The children quickly learn what group roles are and what their responsibilities are, but I find the cards to be a good reminder. On the back of each card, the role title is written at the top with some reminders of what they should do:
I made up a separate page of the job descriptions and glued them to the back of the picture cards before I laminated them. Easy peasy.
I explained the group roles to the children as their Job Titles. For instance, my job title is "Teacher." The Job Titles, or Roles, that I use are:
1. Manager
2. Illustrator
3. Reader
4. Author
5. Resource Manager
6. Reporter
I don't necessarily use every role for every group task, and not every person in the group gets a role all the time because it may not be necessary for the task. Or sometimes, I have fewer than 6 pupils in a group, but there is a need for all the roles, so some pupils may get TWO job titles! I would slowly introduce these roles to younger pupils, but I've managed to be able to use them for as young as Primary 2 (Grade 1).
Let me know if you find this method of Group Task Management helpful in your classroom!
10 March 2012
Free Resources - Take 'em where you can get 'em
Last year, I discovered a site called Freecycle, where you can post items that you're getting rid of, post messages of items you're looking for, and people will contact you through the site. And the best part of it all is, it's free!
Recently, I posted a message asking if anyone had a computer keyboard they were looking to get rid of. Why, you ask? I saw this little tidbit through Pinterest:
This is the explanation from the author of "3rd Grade's a Hoot:" "I just took an old keyboard and fancied it up with cutesy stickers. They "type" their words. I get a kick out of watching them do this. Some of my girls take it so seriously and act like they are at the office."
Now, I realize that my wee nursery kids don't quite have the grasp of reading, writing, or letters for that matter, but this idea was just too good to pass up (and I got FIVE free keyboards through Freecycle!). I started thinking about how I could use this idea, but gear it towards my little ones. Some suggestions from friends were to take the keys off the keyboard to use as letter blocks, or to use them to practice username and password for the computer. That's a little advanced for my lot, but some of them WOULD be interested in typing their names (and may even be able to do it!). Most of them, however, would just like to tap away on the keyboard for the sensory impact of it.
This week, I think I'm just going to put some of the keyboards out and see what happens! Kids are clever and creative. They may think up something completely different, but just as engaging.
Recently, I posted a message asking if anyone had a computer keyboard they were looking to get rid of. Why, you ask? I saw this little tidbit through Pinterest:
This is the explanation from the author of "3rd Grade's a Hoot:" "I just took an old keyboard and fancied it up with cutesy stickers. They "type" their words. I get a kick out of watching them do this. Some of my girls take it so seriously and act like they are at the office."
Now, I realize that my wee nursery kids don't quite have the grasp of reading, writing, or letters for that matter, but this idea was just too good to pass up (and I got FIVE free keyboards through Freecycle!). I started thinking about how I could use this idea, but gear it towards my little ones. Some suggestions from friends were to take the keys off the keyboard to use as letter blocks, or to use them to practice username and password for the computer. That's a little advanced for my lot, but some of them WOULD be interested in typing their names (and may even be able to do it!). Most of them, however, would just like to tap away on the keyboard for the sensory impact of it.
This week, I think I'm just going to put some of the keyboards out and see what happens! Kids are clever and creative. They may think up something completely different, but just as engaging.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)