Cats

     This year marks the 10th or so year that I've been teaching out of the Houghton Mifflin reading series.  I won't go into budgets/categorical funding/state of California or whatever is the reason behind having the same series for this long, but suffice it to say, it's stale.

     We start off with very easy, phonetic and predictable stories like The Cat Sat and The Mat.  Both are about cats, which are typically a high interest topic with first graders, but I think they each have about 25-30 words total, with the featured sight words making up about a third of that.  When I thought about teaching this again, I was filled with dread.  Ugh, the same old same old...

     But being trained in GLAD strategies, I was able to breath new life into Sam, the cat who sits on the laundry, tv, and dining table no matter how many times he's told "Go, Sam Cat!"  I gathered pictures of cats and taped them to a blank "mind map" which had the word "cats" in the middle of it.  I had the kids put their "heads together" and talk about cats, then tell me words that describe cats, which I wrote on the mind map.  Doing this readied them for reading the story and making it more interesting.
 

     Later in the day, we chanted and put motions (total physical response) to a poem about cats.  When they put it in their poetry folder, they had to copy the simple sketches, highlight their words, then read and tally.  It was an awesome day and made me look forward to more cat activities during the week!

I don't know the author of this poem.  I've been using it for Forever, though.

     The next day I used the Sentence Pattern Chart strategy to teach sentence building.  GLAD encourages using academic vocabulary, so across the top of the chart I put the parts of speech that would be in our sentences.  I had to complete the chart over two days, as the kids got antsy more quickly than I had anticipated, so the first day, we just brainstormed the verbs and prepositional phrases (the where? and when?).  The next day, we reviewed the poem and the story, then finished the chart by adding adjectives.

Made by First Graders who talked it out first.  I messed up on the color for verbs, which is ok, since I don't encourage perfectionism.

     We practiced singing the sentences to the tune of Hickory Dickory Dock and had lots of practice orally.  By the next day (day 3) I had the parts written on strips, color coded.  Their table teams were tasked with building ONE sentence with the parts I had given them.
     Their first cooperative learning lesson went pretty well.  There was some protest such as, "I don't have enough"  or "She took mine," which I knew would happen.  It's so interesting that even though I modeled and explained, had individuals repeat directions back, and I had the whole class repeat directions back, that this still happens.  It must completely baffle new teachers.  Anyway, it took some maneuvering (thank goodness there were 3 adults in the room!), but they were able to successfully make their sentences.

This was the 10th day of school, as evidenced by the Zero the Hero puppets!

        Each team then had to make sure everyone at their table could sing the sentence.  Each table got a chance to show off!  A few tried to hide and not do it, but when we all encouraged and clapped after their second try, their faces lit up with huge smiles.  This makes my heart sing.

        So on the final day, a Thursday, I wanted them to write their own sentences using the pattern chart.  Again, we practiced some singing to the tune of Hickory Dickory Dock all together, then I told them to "turn and talk" and tell someone a sentence.  Then I had volunteers say their sentence aloud.  After I modeled how to build my own sentence by using the parts of speech on the chart, I gave them some cat stationary on which to write their own sentences.  They ALL did a great job!!

Serious, orange cats sleep on the couch.

I didn't worry so much about punctuation and capitalization, as the objective was to build a sentence properly.

      GLAD works, and I encourage anyone who has to teach anything at all, to get trained and utilize the strategies.  There is no other way (that I know of at least) to get kids talking and using academic language quite like it.  

    Next week, we will read another tired story, Ten Dogs in the Window.  I plan on doing these same activities, plus some others...

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

     My first grade team and I are taking our students on a journey around the globe to learn about the oceans and continents.  So far, we've taught about North America, Europe, and Antarctica.  With only 61 days of school left, we better get moving if we're going to finish the tour!
     This week, we introduced Asia, with China being the focal point, and celebrated Chinese New Year.  They l.o.v.e.d. learning about the firecrackers, the dragon, the parades, the feasting, the red envelopes of money, the chinese alphabet, and most importantly, that it symbolizes a renewal.
     To start off, I re-visited our world map and reviewed what we'd covered already and then labeled Asia and China.  We looked at an Atlas and discovered that Russia is actually on two continents (I never realized).  See?  We all learn something every day!
     Since we have only 3 days to cover this, I went straight to my big book called Lion Dancer, a non-fiction account of a little boy named Ernie and his experiences getting ready for the new year.  The fact that he learns two languages and has to go to school on Saturday is not lost on my students!  They also loved learning that most of them were born in the year of the Rooster.

photo by amazon.com

     I then used a GLAD strategy called "10/2" and let them turn and talk to each other about the story.  Then I asked questions about it, and what I love about getting this training is that if someone can't answer a question, a friend can tell him/her the answer and then that student can in turn answer the question.  It seems like such a simple thing, but one that I had never used before.  It gets them ALL talking on topic!
     The next day (today, actually), I taught a poem my colleague found online.  I don't even know who it's by, but it was a lovely short and simple review of Chinese New Year that rhymed and had tons of phonics and sight words for them to hunt for and find.  After they read it again later today, I let them choose what they wanted to draw...fireworks, lions, red envelopes, or "I could teach you how to draw a dragon."  That was a bit hit!
     To go along with the theme, we made red Chinese lanterns by folding a piece of construction paper in half the long way, cutting slits (not all the way through).  I gave them a phonetic Chinese alphabet so they could write their name on their lantern in Chinese in gold crayon.  When all that was done, they rolled it into a cylinder to be stapled and hung up with string.

     They're all "kid made," meaning I didn't help them much, and beautiful.  Beauty, is truly, in the eye of the beholder.  When they were done, they wanted to write in their journals in Chinese...THIS is why I love first grade.  While some of them did that, I read Dragon Dance.  What is it about lifting a flap?
   

photo by amazon.com

     Tomorrow, to wrap it up, they will hear another story called The Dancing Dragon, which is folded accordion style and will be one long dragon when it's finished, and given a fortune cookie.  I know they'll love it.  Next week, we will get into Komodo dragons, pandas, and bamboo... Whew!

photo by amazon.com

     

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

February in First Grade

     I love February in First Grade, mostly because it's a turning point.  Most of my students have become readers and they can write a sentence or sentences on a topic.  Since my GLAD (Guided Language Acquisition Design) training, my students, I believe, have learned to love learning.  I hear, more and more, phrases like, "I LOVE Martin Luther King, Jr.!" and "I LOVE the presidents!"  I don't believe I've ever heard anyone exclaim that before this year.
     I've found two children's books about George Washington and Abraham Lincoln that I cherish and that really make these two beloved presidents come alive for children.  Not only do the kids learn a lot from these two books, but I learned a little something as well.  George Washington actually had very bad dental problems and lost his teeth while he fought the Revolutionary War!  Since children in first grade are in the midst of losing their own baby teeth, they can relate.  The timeline at the end of the book, along with pictures of his false teeth, only adds to their fascination.

photo by amazon.com

     Another book I really like is called Mr. Lincoln's Whiskers.  It's about a little girl named Grace Bedell, who wrote to Mr. Lincoln about growing whiskers.  The back of the book has a photo of her actual letter.  This book also brings to light the issues of equal rights (they gasp at the fact that women couldn't vote!) and are appalled at the idea of slavery.  They also get a glimpse of what life was like before tv, cars, internet, and cell phones!

photo by amazon.com

     I sometimes feel bad that I make them genuinely care about these historic figures and then they get the bad news:  they're dead.  Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot.  Abraham Lincoln was shot.  At least George Washington died of natural causes (I think).  

     But on a lighter note, I taught them how to draw each president, mounted the drawings, and then they wrote sentences about each one.  I gave them the first sentence to copy, then after they discussed as a group what other facts they remembered, I had volunteers tell me some facts they might like to write for their second sentence.  I wrote those on the board.  

Here are some samples:

    I cut gray paper to 8" x  6".  I used gray so white crayon would show.  I also had visuals of both presidents and I talked a little about how artists use colors to show shadows (the picture of Washington had hints of purple and blue in his white hair).  When I was a new teacher, I got Art for All Seasons by Evans and Moore, which had a lesson on drawing Lincoln and Washington, which is very easy to follow.  This is the version I have:

photo by amazon.com

     

     Another great book I have, that's on a lighter note and fun for the kids, is Abe Lincoln's Hat.   My students really liked the notion of putting important things up inside a stovepipe hat, so they got to make a hat to wear and write what they'd put in their own hat.  I loved the responses...my stuffed bunny, my mom and my legos, and "my shrink ray, so I can fit all my toys inside."  Awesome!

photo by amazon.com

     And then there's Valentine's Day...