20 Weeks to Go

THAT is a number that blows my mind. Not that I'm keeping track; we just happened to count how many weeks are left in the school year because we redid the classroom job chart, and then we counted to see if every student would have a chance to cycle through each job. They will - just barely.

The first week after break is done and gone. It was a good week. There was a lot of good work that got done, and the mood in the classroom was upbeat. I got key experiences done for the conjunction, the exclamation mark and synonyms. I also got a cool little language manual created for my students. I have a set of seven manuals that cover grammar topics (only for now - other topics to be added soon) spanning grades 2-4. What I love about it is that I'm going to split the kids into three groups and we're starting language circles. Each group will use the SAME MANUAL, and we'll all cover the same topic each day, but I can customize the lesson by having the students turn to different sections of the manual. It takes away the feeling of being more or less advanced than other groups. I'm tickled by the stealthiness of my plan.

We are also starting back up with our math teams on Monday. Each team gets math twice a week, and we will be giving workbook assignments, but they are to be completed in school - the workbooks won't be going home most of the time.

In the cultural curriculum, I introduced US history and geography and also did a key experience for the amphibian. Kati introduced desert habitats. After Kati's lesson Thursday, the class was very chaotic. I came back into the room and found overwhelming craziness, so she finished up and I called loudly, "OK, I want everyone to lie down on the floor! Just lie on your back and close your eyes. Make sure you're not touching anyone else." Some of them held onto the silly, but I eventually got everyone on their backs. Then I talked them through a yoga savasana (corpse pose). In a soft voice I talked them through giving their breath a color and feeling that color fill their bellies and flowing through their whole bodies. I talked them through letting their minds go blank and shooing away intruding thoughts like dry leaves being blown away by the wind.

Peace came back into the classroom.

I held them in savasana for about five minutes, and it was a beautiful feeling. After a few minutes I told them I would come around and touch them gently on the forehead. When I touched them, they were invited to *very quietly* get up and get their journals or DEAR books. It was a lovely end to the day.

SPEAKING OF DEAR. I had a revelation in training yesterday: MORE THAN ONE BOOK! Yes! I will have the students choose at least three books at the beginning of DEAR time, and then they *stay put* the whole time. No more up and down and up and down. No, they will sit and read. What a concept.

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Case Study: JS, seven years old, 2nd grade. Non-traditional family.
This is the button child from last post. I have chosen to do a case study of this child so that I may better address her needs in the classroom. I will likely have her in my classroom for one more year at least, so I need some better options when it comes to encouraging her to make progress.