On our second day in the Connected Combo, we focused on each child's individual light. The children shared unique traits and talents about themselves that make them shine like the Olympic torch. We did a writing activity where the students had to brainstorm about three different categories: What makes you you? What are your talents? What would your friends say about you? The students then picked their favorite idea from each list and wrote a short paper.
We kept the learning going by playing a game called "Find a Friend
Who..." In this activity, the students had a list of items like "went to the ocean" and "lost a tooth." The students walked around with
clipboards. They had to shake a friends hand and then find a category
the friend could sign. The goal was to find a different friend to sign
for every category. So fun! We learned so much about each other.
The first day of our combo class was GOLDEN! What a terrific group of enthusiastic learners! I am so excited to be teaching these 16 amazing children. We were busy, busy, busy this week! For our first day, did several activities to learn each others' names. One activity was a response chant using the "Knock, Knock" joke pattern.
Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Courtney
Courtney, who?
Courtney Niemeyer
Good morning, Courtney Niemeyer!
Each child introduced themselves and was greeted by the class. We also made a book of the "Knock, Knock" greeting. All the students made a beautiful name page to add to the book.
We read a funny book called First Day Jitters! I think it helped ease some of our own first day jitters. There is quite a twist at the end of the book. Ask your child if they remember what it was. After lunch, the students were introduced to one of my absolute favorite apps. Reading Rainbow! The app is filled with incredible fiction and nonfiction books that are read aloud to the children by terrific, fluent readers. There is also an amazing library of videos that build background knowledge and take the children on interesting virtual field trips. The kids are so engaged in reading anytime they are logged in. Their eyes light up as they "turn" through the pages of the digital books. You can hear giggles as students listen to funny stories and "WOW"s when the students see and hear something interesting.
You can get a Reading Rainbow subscription at home for $4.99 per month. Visit their website for more information: https://www.readingrainbow.com/. Just last year, the app launched the education version of the app. Our teaching team has used some of the money raised from last year's Read-A-Thon to purchase a subscription. You may access our class account from home. How exciting is that! On any web browsing device, go to our class blog. On the top button bar, click "Reading Rainbow." You will be taken directly to our class's page. Click on your child's balloon and have them enter their password. Please take advantage of this incredible library. You will not be disappointed!
Of course it is not all about the digital books. We read a perfect book that combined our Olympic theme and a great message about dreaming big and believing in yourself. The book is called Nadia: The Girl Who Couldn't Sit Still. We also watched a short video clip of Nadia's gold medal performance in the 1976 Olympic games. The children were amazed. After reading her story, we set our own goals for our first and second grade years. The students did some great thinking and writing. I will share some of the goals in a later post. With our goal setting we had a gold medal snack!
Yes, it was certainly a busy day. We also mixed in some math, recess, and birthday treats. We often took brain breaks. I used a site called GoNoodle. They have tons of fun brain breaks including virtual track and field events introduced by real Olympic track athletes. I think the children's favorite was the 100M hurdles. Look at them go!
At the closing ceremony at the end of the day, each student earned a gold medal. I asked the students what their gold medal moment was for their first day in the combo. Enjoy the slide show below the photo collage to see each child's gold medal moment.
Hello! Welcome to our classroom blog! I use this blog to give you a view into our classrooms. I try to post weekly with pictures and videos of classroom happenings. I include learning objectives with helpful links for review and extension activities. My goal is to keep us all CONNECTED in the learning!
If you are interested in learning more about me, click on the "Meet the Teacher" tab above. The link includes information about my family and experience, as well as, links to articles I have written and a short video documentary on my work with educational technology. Further, I have posted my contact information. Below is the back to school letter I sent home Wednesday. I am looking forward to a golden year in first and second grade!
I still can't believe this happened! I just love how these little sweeties ended up narrating the video that they showed at the Golden Apple banquet. I am so honored and humbled to receive this award. It is difficult to write such a personal post but I need to have a way to thank all of you. Thank you so much for the amazing nomination letters. I will treasure your words. Also, thank you for the kind cards and encouragement after the announcement. At the Golden Apple banquet, I had to give a short speech. I have embedded it below. Again, I am so grateful.
This is
the only summer slide I want our children experiencing this summer! The
first graders have made such wonderful progress. We don't want them to
lose any of the learning they have worked so hard to achieve. If
children don't read over the summer months, they can lose up to three
months of progress. Please don't let this happen. In the children's
last day bags, there is a summer learning packet. The review packet is
filled with reading, writing, spelling, and math activities to help the
students sharpen and maintain their skills. Also, don't forget the
blog! The top button bar for the blog has tons of FUN and ENGAGING ways
to keep those little minds sharp. RazKids is available all summer and so is Reading Rainbow. Get involved with a summer reading program through the public library or Barnes and Noble. Use our school district's free e-library to check out books on your devices. There are so many great ways to keep reading. Also, the Learning Links tab at the top of the blog will take students to interactive web games. Last, don't forget about the app suggestions. There are some great apps for developing math fact fluency. Keep learning and growing all summer!
