MCC Friday Reflections

One hundred. 100. The number of unsolicited compliments earned by this year's 4th graders in Room 202. 100. They set their goal at 81. 100. They had runs of several compliments in one day. 100. They had runs of one compliment a day for several days in a row. 100. They had dry spells; some lasting a week or two. 100. They encouraged each other to "do what it takes" to earn a compliment. 100. Many students earned a compliment for the class by getting an individual compliment. 100. They were just as excited for their first compliment as they were for their 100th. 100. Compliments were given by teachers, administrators, support staff, and parents. 100. Throughout each day opportunities presented themselves to earn a compliment. 100. They capitalized on (at least) 100 of these opportunities.  Often times more...which went unrecognized...but I saw them! 100. They earned them in t...

Charms indeed come in threes... For the past 12 years my students have set a class goal for themselves beginning on the first day of school.  We call it our "Unsolicited Compliments Goal".  When I introduce this idea to my new 4th graders they understand the concept of a "compliment" but aren't quite sure what "unsolicited" means.  The pursuit of the meaning of "unsolicited" becomes our first official lesson of the school year.  In the end, they understand that "unsolicited" means that  a request for something is not expressly made outright. Following par for the course in their endeavor to reach the goal set for themselves, the "unsolicited compliments" always roll in comparatively "heavy" during the first weeks of school.  Kids naturally are on their best behaviors when school commences in the Fall; they are just figuring out their new environment; they like to put their best foot forward;...

One of the advantages of teaching the same grade level for an  extended period of time (12 years and counting in my case) is that  one learns what works with kids and what doesn't.  One learns the  likely outcomes of certain practices.  One learns how to avoid  common pitfalls in lessons and projects which allows for maximum  learning opportunities for students. Science is a favorite subject among many students.  It is interesting, dynamic, and lends itself well to a variety of learning styles.  We  read, discuss, watch videos, create projects, and perform  experiments.  We allow the verbal, visual, auditory, and kinesthetic  learner to experience the concepts...each receiving the information suited to them. Currently we are studying the "Changing Earth".  The unit began exploring the different layers of the earth; their composition,  temperature, and...

Two subjects took precedence this week...Reading & Social Studies.  One theme wound through both of them.  This theme has been in the works for most of the year.  This theme is what I believe it means to "teach children".  This theme presents itself as a philosophy of teaching that I strive to fulfill each year. "Be a self-directed learner". By the time State Report time comes around the school year is almost at a close.  Routines and expectations have been clearly defined in terms of social and academic behaviors.  By this time the classroom ideally should "hum along" in harmony, thus opening the doors for learning to take place.  Learning can come in many forms, each form having its place within a school year, a school, a classroom, and each student.  There is rote memorization, modeling, guided practice, independent work, critical thinking, and abstract thought.  All of these are engaging to some degree, some more than other...

Trimester 3.  The last leg of the year.  The final few months that we have together.  My favorite trimester of the all.  Not because the end is in sight but quite the opposite...because we have spent about 6 months together and as we enter our 7th, 8th, and 9th months we have established a phenomenal students-teacher relationship.  Such relationship have been in the making and are based on mutual trust, respect, and good intentions.  It makes for a classroom that is a delight to teach in and hopefully, to learn in as well.  Trimester 3 is also my favorite trimester because we get to utilize much of what we learned in Trimesters 1 & 2.  We build on ideas, concepts, skills, and strategies.  We employ the knowledge we have gained and capitalize on the successes we have experienced.  We keep in mind the mistakes that have occurred; always learning from them.  It's almost as if Trimester 3 is a "culmination" of the p...

For the past eleven years I have taught the Science Curriculum Component known as "Biomes in Balance".  It is a general introduction to the 8 biomes of the world, covering the idea of adaptations of plants and animals in these biomes along with the concept of energy transfer between organisms via the food chain and food web as well as man's impact on the biome and earth as a whole. As of this week we had just completed the food chain/web part of the unit.  For two weeks we discussed food chains/webs, explored and studied graphic representations of food chains/webs, and saw videos as well.  The culminating activity was for students to construct a 3-D model of a food web (which is many food chains that are connected).  This culminating project is accomplished as a guided activity.  Two groups of 8 students each are the organisms in the food web.  One student is "Mother Nature" and another is "Father Time" for each group.  There is one board re...

This week in Science we learned about food chains.  We discussed the scientific purpose of food chains (transfer of energy) and named the participants (Sun > Producers > Consumers > Decomposers).  From there we began a hands-on experiment to further explore the decomposers. In short, each student has three baggies.  One baggie has a quarter of an apple in it, the second baggie has a piece of bread, and the third baggie has a piece of bread with a bite taken out it (by the student).  These three baggies will be left in the classroom on paper plates for 8 days.  Every other day or so we record our observations (touch through the baggie, sight, and smell).  The purpose is to gain a better understanding of how decomposers work on different foods. What I found rather interesting is that when we were hypothesizing about what would happen to the food within an 8-day period the kids naturally knew that the food would begin to rot (or d...