Preparing to Celebrate for Dr. Seuss

Dr. Seuss Day is quickly approaching!  I love this day for two reasons: 1. It's Dr. Seuss' birthday which means we have the opportunity to read all the fabulous works by this favorite author and 2. On March 2, 2007 I began dating the man I am marrying in a few short months, after spending the day dressed as Cat in the Hat for my school district.

As a senior in high school who wanted nothing more than to be a teacher, I was beyond thrilled by the opportunity to visit all the elementary schools in district and participate in all their Read Across America activities.  (Here's a picture from The Record Journal)

Since dressing up as Cat in the Hat, I have found myself in a variety of costumes throughout the years that help bring books and characters to life. There's something about the amazement on the students' faces when they see their favorite character in "real life".  And for my fiance, he's accepted the fact that I will never grow up and that being a kid at heart is just who I am. As for my students, I can't wait to see their faces when Cat in the Hat is their teacher on March 3rd.  But until then, I tried creating an Animoto that includes images from some Dr. Seuss books that we will be reading this week (I needed way more than 30 seconds, but unfortunately I was not paying for an upgrade to include them all).


Celebrating Dr. Seuss

What's your favorite Dr. Seuss book?  

Reading Aloud to a Child

In Kindergarten, I get the pleasure of teaching children to read and watching them grow into their new identities as a reader.  For some it is a seamless and easy process, for others it is laborious and difficult, but for all it is a meaningful journey that I am fortunate to be part of.  

When the school year started, I stressed with parents the importance of reading every single day to their child.

From: Facebook: The Literacy Site

But as more students are reading in their just right books, I have been hearing from my students that they are always doing the reading at home, not their parents.  I have some of my reluctant readers constantly "forgetting" their just right books at school and often asking if we can have an extra read aloud instead of independent reading time during workshop.  I know my parents are trying to help their child and they want them to be the best readers they can be, but I began to worry that they were getting caught up in the fact that their child is an emerging or beginning reader.  Sure students are excited that they can read the words on the page and can retell the simple story, but they still need to foster a love of books and stories.  The books that most are reading are simple pattern books with little to no story line (i.e. I see scissors.  I see books.  I see crayons.).  Students need exposure to literacy-rich environments.  They need exposure to great role models who read everyday and foster the love of reading and learning.  They need to hear the language of books to learn it and apply it when they read.  They need to see that reading is fun and exciting.  They need to see that books can take them places that a video game or tv show can't.  They need to see that people don't just read because they have to, but rather because they love to. To help make my case to parents, I sent them the link to this article: 10 Awesome Reasons for Reading Aloud to Your Kids Whatever Their Age.  I wasn't sure how well it would be received by some, but I received nothing but positive emails and responses from parents and families.

So here is my plea to you all - read today and everyday for 20 minutes to a child in your life.  Never miss a chance to share a favorite story, a new character, or a hysterical sequel with someone who might just need that extra motivation to find their love of reading.

20 MINUTES A DAY

Read to your children
Twenty minutes a day;
You have the time,
And so do they.
Read while the laundry is in the machine;
Read while dinner cooks;
Tuck a child in the crook of your arm
And reach for the library books.
Hide the remote,
Let the computer games cool,
For one day your child will be off to school;
Remedial? Gifted? You have the choice.
Let them hear their first tales,
In the sound of your voice.
Read in the morning,
Read over noon,
Read by the light of
Goodnight Moon.
Turn the pages together,
Sitting close as you'll fit,
'Till a small voice beside you says,
“Hey, don't quit.”

Author Unknown

From: 20 Minutes a Day

100 day

So I have procrastinated writing a post all week because I didn't know where I wanted to take it, but I have decided that even though I cannot have a blog or outside website for use IN my classroom, I still want to reflect on what I am doing.  So here it goes!

Today was the 100th day of Kindergarten.  For any of you who work with young children, you understand the significance and magnitude of holidays.  I'm not sure about others, but for me, 100th day is the holiday celebration in my room that I cannot wait for.  Rather than just spending an hour on a party, we celebrate it all day, incorporating all the academic areas.  I love that my students are so engaged and learning more than they'll ever know that day.  We started the day with an ambitious list.  Some of our activities included: 

• making 100 day crowns
• building a tower of 100 cups
• doing 100 exercises
• creating portraits of what we would look like when we turn 100
• collecting 100 cans for our community food pantry

As our day progressed, I stepped back and watch a community of learners doing activities.  I was able to just facilitate these activities.  I watched students doing age appropriate things without feeling pressured.  I lost count of how many times my students told me that it was the best day ever.  They had no clue that we were addressing so many standards through our activities.  They counted and wrote their numbers without any hesitation or resistance.  They willingly worked together and problem solved.  They saw the tasks as challenges that they HAD to work together to accomplish.  They did not see it as "this is mine, this is yours".  As they decorated their crowns and made their fruit loop necklaces, I watched them collaborate and help one another.  Groups counted the fruit loops together, while another all sorted the colors first.  I agreed with them - it was the best day ever. Why can't we have more days like this?

It was even more gratifying when students begged me to take pictures and send them home.  They couldn't wait for their parents to see what they were doing.  As we made 100 snowballs at recess, one student came running over, "Quick get the iPad - we need pictures so we can write about it!"  

I stood back as a proud teacher and realized, yes I have to teach curriculum and standards and assessment does drive instruction, but so does creativity and play.  5 and 6 year olds need time to be just that.  And guess what, they are so inquisitive by nature that they are going to question and learn throughout.  The card I received at the end of the day asking, "When can we have another 100 day?" left me thinking, when can we?