The last two days of our summer training were so rich with exciting strategies and ways to enliven the classroom with a focus on heroes. I was very inspired by Dr. Denenberg and his over the top crazy ways. At our school, we have had a tradition of celebrating "Hero Day" on September 11th as a way to remember the tragedy of 9/11 and the heroes that grew from that day. I could not stop taking notes and snapping photos as he share ideas that I knew I would use. I began the school year by having a quote of the week by famous heroes. The children learned these quickly and always want to learn more about the heroes.
I loved the literature ideas that Dr. Fran Macko presented and used one of the books as I introduced the writing of our classroom Constitution. I also like the idea of connecting to time periods through rich historical fiction.
Back to the heroes...we had a great week in my classroom where we brainstormed characteristics of heroes. we learned about American heroes, heroes in our communities, and chose personal heroes. The children wrote letters to their personal heroes thanking them for their "heroic" actions. We held a Hero Brunch in the classroom and the children invited their heroes. The hero sat in a big hero chair while they were honored with the letter (read aloud) and a special handmade medal. It was an amazing, tearful event!
To conclude, I will use the hero theme all year. Our school has embraced the "Seven Habits of Happy Kids" this year and we talk about these habits as being the "way of the hero". I am thankful to Dr. Denenberg for all of his wonderful ideas and enthusiasm!
Monday, October 3, 2011
Summer Learning
It has been over a month since our summer institute and I have had a chance to use some of what I have learned in my classroom. Over the last week, I have had the chance to revisit my notes and here is what struck me...
Dr. Sharon Sundue: The background information broadened my knowledge, and though the content is not what I teach in Fourth Grade, my understanding of the chain of events and thinking throughout history is a powerful backbone for any history lesson. One of the reasons I wanted to be a part of this grant, was that when I taught abroad for a year, I was ashamed by my limited understanding of my own country's history. Dr. Sundue's lessons walked me through American settlements and through the colonies and enlightenment with an understanding of the cultural and religious implications.
Anthony Fitpztrick: Exciting! Mr. Fitzpatrick is quite the entertainer. He is always full of great strategies that I can use right away...even in the Fourth Grade setting. I loved the "Elementary My Dear Watson" method of using primary sources to search for clues using Holmes' rules. He returned to the strategies he had shared with us in past sessions (ARTIST, SPEC, Return Address, and White out). It was great to hear these again and gain confidence in the possibility of applying them more to lessons in my classroom. Solving for Y was an interesting process. Y=MX=B Finding the meaning of the reference, 3 examples of its use, and bringing it home! I feel like I need more practice with this before I could use it. I would like to spend some time looking through political cartoons to see what could fit with my curriculum in Fourth Grade.
These two presenters went hand in hand to help provide me with background knowledge...and how to bring it into my teaching!
Dr. Sharon Sundue: The background information broadened my knowledge, and though the content is not what I teach in Fourth Grade, my understanding of the chain of events and thinking throughout history is a powerful backbone for any history lesson. One of the reasons I wanted to be a part of this grant, was that when I taught abroad for a year, I was ashamed by my limited understanding of my own country's history. Dr. Sundue's lessons walked me through American settlements and through the colonies and enlightenment with an understanding of the cultural and religious implications.
Anthony Fitpztrick: Exciting! Mr. Fitzpatrick is quite the entertainer. He is always full of great strategies that I can use right away...even in the Fourth Grade setting. I loved the "Elementary My Dear Watson" method of using primary sources to search for clues using Holmes' rules. He returned to the strategies he had shared with us in past sessions (ARTIST, SPEC, Return Address, and White out). It was great to hear these again and gain confidence in the possibility of applying them more to lessons in my classroom. Solving for Y was an interesting process. Y=MX=B Finding the meaning of the reference, 3 examples of its use, and bringing it home! I feel like I need more practice with this before I could use it. I would like to spend some time looking through political cartoons to see what could fit with my curriculum in Fourth Grade.
These two presenters went hand in hand to help provide me with background knowledge...and how to bring it into my teaching!
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