Straight Lines

I found this in a new book I'm reading. You would think when you graduate from college you would stop reading text books. Not me. I'm currently reading: A Place for Wonder and learning a lot about Inquiry in my little Kindergarten room. I came across this and it struck me, I'm totally guilty of this! 

Straight Lineby Georgia Heard

All the kindergarteners
walk to recess and back
in a perfectly straight line
no words between them.
They must stifle their small voices,
their laughter, they must
stop the little skip in their walk,
they must not dance or hop
or run or exclaim.
They must line up
at the water fountain
straight, and in perfect form,
like the brick wall behind them.
One of their own given the job
of informer – guard of quiet,
soldier of stillness.
If they talk
or make a sound
they will lose their stars.
Little soldiers marching to and from
pretend
their hair sweaty
from escaping dinosaurs
their hearts full of loving the world
and all they want to do
is shout it out
at the top of their lungs.
When they walk back to class
they must quietly
fold their pretends into pockets,
must dam the river of words,
ones they’re just learning,
new words that hold the power
to light the skies, and if they don’t
a star is taken away.
One star
by one star
until night grows dark and heavy
while they learn to think carefully
before skipping,
before making a wish.

I hope that I cherish their little thoughts and help them discover their wonders. 

Like it or Lump it.

"Like it or lump it my third grade students will walk in someone else's Moccasins." Said Mrs. Elliot. Watch this frontline video it's AMAZING. If only we could still do this today, I pretty sure I'd be sued by parents and thrown in Jail if I taught kids discrimination this way, however, Concrete teaching by experience is SOOOO Powerful. Love this. 

WATCH!!!! 

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/divided/etc/view.html

Please comment (all four of you) on what you think about this!!! 

The Garden is Growing.

I'm almost getting to the end of putting my room together. I've been planning with my team now so I feel better in that category. I'm almost done with all of my bulletin boards which is great! Now I need to make some bins for my listening center, finish my focus wall, and get ready for my twenty faces that will enter my room August 15!!!!

This is my awesome closet. I organized my 2000 books on this shelf into categories. 

My Mother is amazing. She made me these chair packs for my kiddos things. 

Focus Wall needs to be finished it will be covered with fun things! 

This will be the Bloom of the Week (star of the week)

Growing Writers...(writing conference table)

This is my huge bulletin board out in our hall. Welcome to Mrs. Sage's Room!!! 

Preparing the Soil for Growth.

I've been working pretty hard in the garden lately. Going in about every night for a couple hours after Brinn goes to bed. I've decided to think of my classroom and students as my garden. I love my sweet little garden. It's not perfect, you will find weeds in there. I do have trouble getting things to grow, and yes I did put way to many plants in there and they all have overgrown each other and are killing each other as we speak. let's just pray that doesn't happen in my classroom. (which some days it will!) Not killing children no, but maybe just rough days, I want to make that clear.

Back to my garden, you have to take time when growing a garden. You have to be gentle and you have to know exactly what each plant needs to grow. Same goes for kiddos, we need to know what it takes for them to learn, they are all different. What excites me and scares me is just that. Will I be able to figure out what they need? What if Suzie gets behind? How will I help her? I'm getting very nervous the closer August 20th comes!

I've been doing a few things in my room and I'd say my 'theme' is a Garden. I have plants in my room, I have greens, yellows, and oranges. I love color especially in a Kindergarten room! 

So... preparing the soil for growth!!! 

I will be having a hanging word wall. After the fire Marshall comes! This will be to save my walls for the kiddos work!

This will be to organize different things we will need. I got the small bins dollar bin at target. The larger bins were in the serving ware at target. 

Our Garden of Reading. (My mom is wood burning a sign to hang over this area :) 

Table numbers definitely classroom management piece. 

My Aunt gave me probably 2,000 plus books no joke. It took days to sort and get put up on a shelf in my closet. I was pretty overwhelmed I think the majority of the sorting I was balling. No Joke. 

My peanut just woke up! More to come in the next couple weeks :) 

It's a process.

If I didn't say that I'm extremely overwhelemed then I'd be lying. Wow. I have a lot of work to do before August 20th. These are my fun finds!

This chair I got from a garage sale. 2.50! 

Check out what Keely got me!! :) 

This lamp was more than I should have spend $13.00. 

Literacy bags, these will be filled with activities and books that will go home each week. Starting in September! Now that they are made gotta get them filled with great learning activities. (yikes)

Free globe from the CTLT at school! SCORE! Also got the moon too! 

(pppsstt look in the background... do you see dede? Yes Brinn loves my classroom!)

This idea came from my first grade teacher they are pointers when my kiddos start reading. You can get the figures at Michales for 49 cents then just buy the sticks and hot glue them on... this takes about 5 minutes. 

I've got lots more to do, just doing the fun decorating this now... I should be more worried about what I'm teaching right!?

I got my ROOM!

I can't even begin to say how excited I am! Brinn loved it too, I need that reassurance. 

Writing in the younger years!

Younger children usually can't distinguish between drawing and writing. They think if you ask them to write you something they can also draw you a picture! Usually you can ask them to "read" their writing and they will tell you a story! WHICH IS AWESOME!!! My favorite is when they begin to see us writing and then they start to scribble. They are recognizing differences and they want to be like us so they scribble! Usually ages 3-4. Gradually their writing begins to somewhat resemble the English System which I THINK IF PHENOMENAL!!!! 

So today while I was showering, I let Brinn draw. By the way side note, I lock her in my room and continually make sure she is in the room. She would totally walk out the front door and down the road to Rebekah's house, if I didn't have her on lock down. So usually I find something to keep her occupied. I showed her last week how to draw a circle. She's really been practicing circles now, that's all she draws are circles. WHAT HAVE I DONE!!! Ok, sorry, I'm getting to my point! So I asked Brinn what did you draw! I used draw because lets get rea,l she's two she will not be writing anytime soon :) I'm not that crazy! She said, "ahhhh circle."  What else? "Momma and Daddy." "My arm." "My hand."  She then started to trace her hand! It was SO NEAT she was telling me her little story sort of. 

Teaching POINTS ARE EVERYWHERE!!!! I think the best thing we can do with little ones is just encourage their little creations. Encourage their little brains. Not make them learn and get worried when they don't know their colors! (used to be me) Just to celebrate those little times when you know they are learning!!! Celebrate learning is the best thing we can do, and there is always something to celebrate! 


Also having that conversation with your child. Making sure they begin to see that you're also invested in their learning, you're committed as a parent. Not trying to tell you what to do just what has been working for me! I've never taught on my own what do I know!? This is basically what I've learned from Brinn :) 

Happy Saturday much love!