reflections of an early childhood teacher

The Joy of Oobleck! Integrated Learning at its Best!

2012-01-17T19:09:00.002-06:00

Today we filled the sensory table with corn starch and water, a.k.a. Oobleck! The kids just love this stuff. I love the Integrated Learning that happens. The children are using descriptive vocabulary, making scientific predictions and observations, experiencing cause and effect, experimenting with volume and measurement, exercising their large and small muscles while refining their hand eye coordination as they scoop and pour... and practicing important social skills as they negotiate over different containers and role play with their peers.

I must say at one point during our free choice time I looked over and the sensory table was surrounded entirely by girls as five boys sat at the art table making bead necklaces! Got to love it!
We love to read Bartholomew and the Oobleck by Dr. Seuss to compliment this activity. Check out the book by Jennifer Williams too for more great activities to go with other concoction inspired stories!
Enjoy!

Promoting Physical Activity/Set the Foundation- Meeting Dan Gartrell

2012-01-15T09:35:00.000-06:00

I recently had the wonderful opportunity to attend a workshop hosted by the iconic Dan Gartrell. His books have been integral to the development of my guidance techniques and philosophies. So as one might expect he is a celebrity in my world of early childhood education. He ranks right up with Dr. Jean (Whom I have also met and even had my picture taken with her... "nerd" I know!) What a delightful man I might add! I absolutely fell in love with his contagious laugh!
Mr. Gartrell talked about the importance of being responsive to the activity levels of the children in your classroom, especially the boys. He discussed how classrooms are failing to help boys succeed because often the expectations are not developmental appropriate for young children.
Many times there is not enough active learning and physical activity happening in classrooms. This puts the very active learners, many of whom tend to be boys, at a disadvantage. Dan proposes that teachers take a closer look at the structure of their schedule and the expectations of their classroom to determine if they can better support the learning for all students. He suggests that promoting physical activity is proactive guidance. This seems like common sense when you think about it... But then there is always the question, "Yes, we understand that, but how do we address those who are telling us get them ready for kindergarten...") And by that they often mean teach them to sit and listen....
Dan's answer was welcomed by everyone in the workshop. His response was this...
He talked about setting the "foundation for learning" and how when we teach children the skills they need in developmental appropriate ways, those skills will not be lost or unlearned when they move on to classrooms that might not be as developmentally appropriate. This fundamental statement brought a nod of agreement from our workshop group, as well as, much needed reassurance for many of us to continue to focus on creating developmentally appropriate classrooms without guilt! Thanks Dan, for a great learning experience!

This is Dan's book which I think is essential reading material concerning guidance and creating responsive, respectful, learning communities.

And here are a couple more of his books...
Enjoy!

Apple Basket Counting Activity ~ Free Printable

2011-11-06T11:35:00.001-06:00

We spent a lot of time exploring apples in our preschool classroom this fall. My students needed practice with using a one-to-one correspondence when counting and also with recognizing numbers. I created this simple Apple Basket Counting Sheet to introduce the concepts of matching numbers and quantities. It was a good first number matching activity. Now we are ready to move into doing numbers 1-10! I had the children glue small die cut apples into the baskets, however, small apple stickers would work too. The children could also draw their apples in their baskets. You can see more pictures and read more about our apple activities on my website on our Apple Theme page. You can also find more printables on the www.2care2teach4kids.com website in the Teacher's Files section!

Fall Fun~ A Slide Show

2011-11-04T14:58:00.002-05:00

Check out all the fun things we have been doing this Fall in Preschool!

Wishes really do come true!

2011-10-26T19:43:00.001-05:00

One of my preschoolers brought in one of the most interesting looking squashes this year. It's called a snake squash. The best was the his comment about it. I asked him were he got it and he told me... "I planted the seeds at my grandma Barb's garden and then I wished for them to grow big...and they did!" How awesome is that? Some wishes really do come true!

Enjoy!

Brown Bear Brown Bear Patterning

2011-10-19T22:01:00.001-05:00

Everyone loves the classic children's story Brown Bear Brown Bear written by Bill Martin Jr and illustrated by Eric Carle. We read it every year in preschool and the children love the repetitive text of the story. This leads us into a discussion of patterning and how patterns repeat. I created some fun patterning activities based on the endearing and colorful Brown Bear characters from this beloved book.

My new Brown Bear Brown Bear Activity Pack is available in my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

Enjoy!

Brown Bear Brown Bear~ A Free Take Home Activity

2011-10-14T21:10:00.001-05:00

Just posted a new activity to the www.2care2teach4kids.com website!

Brown Bear Brown Bear~ A Take Home Activity- Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? My First Reader is a classic children's story. The repetitive and predictable text makes it a perfect story to read to young children. This take home activity is great for making a school to home connection and extend the learning at home. This is a FREE download! Enjoy!
P.S. The AWESOME graphics are from KPM Doodles! Check her art out!

New Newsletter Templates

2011-10-01T09:52:00.001-05:00

I have just added some new Newsletter Templates to the website www.2care2teach4kids.com. They are free for you to download. They are also available on my Teachers Pay Teachers store. There is also a Holiday Newsletter Theme Pack available as well.

Science Explorers

2011-10-01T09:46:00.001-05:00

It's Science Week at TBA, so I thought I would post a link to my Science Explorers Guide. It is a 41 page PDF document full of simple science activities. Best yet... it's free!! You can find more science freebies at my website www.2care2teach4kids.com in the Teacher's Files section, Science and Discovery. Enjoy!

Take-A-Break~ Free Printable Cue Sheet

2011-09-23T11:15:00.001-05:00

In our class we promote pro-social behavior based on the Responsive Classroom philosophies. We spend a lot of time creating positive rules for our class, building community, and creating an environment where children can be successful. Most of the time things run very smoothly in our room. However, there can be times when an individual, or a group of individuals, struggles with self control and making the right choices at school. Sometimes redirection and reminders just aren't enough to help a child, or children, regain their self control. Sometimes kids just need a chance to Take-A-Break and get themselves under control.

In our class we have a specific chair where children can go to Take-A-Break. We introduced the Take-A-Break spot this week, our second week of school. We talk about why someone might need to Take-A-Break and then my assistant models for the children what it should look like when you sit in the Take-A-Break chair. We all practice calming breathing, which is something we do a lot in preschool. (Breath in your nose and blow it out your mouth!) We also introduce the children to Be Calm Bunny, who will sit on your lap and you can pet him when you Take-A-Break. (Be Calm Bunny comes from the Second Step Curriculum.)

The GOAL of the Take-A-Break chair is to help children build self control NOT to be a punishment. Often children who are upset about something during choice time will go sit in the Take-A-Break chair on their own to help themselves calm down. Bonus! The children are learning that they are responsible for their own behavior. Of course, when negative behaviors persist we have to get curious as teachers and investigate and try to get to the source of the issue. Take-A-Break is not meant to replace working on specific issues with specific children, but often in the case of many preschool children they just need practice with self control. The Take-A-Break chair helps them do just that.

Preschool is all about learning how to get along and be a part of a community. The Take-A-Break spot helps children learn these important skills.

We use a cue chart to help the children remember how to "Take-A-Break".

Take-A-Break - Free PDF cue chart you can print!

Read more about Take-A-Break on my www.2care2teach4kids.com website.

"Just make an arrow...." - Kids are so SMART!

2011-09-16T18:49:00.000-05:00

This was our first week of preschool and it is always interesting! I am continually amazed at how smart the little preschoolers are right from the beginning! So I am telling all the kids about their new folders and teaching them how to put their papers in them. We talked about what will happen if you carry your folder upside down... The kids all accurately chime in, "your papers will fall out." Then one of my little preschoolers comes up to me (and points to the folder I was holding for demonstration purposes) and says, "Miss Kelly, why don't you just make an arrow pointing up on the folder, so you know which way to hold it." Wow!!! I just looked at my assistant and I know we both were thinking, yeah kids are so much smarter than we give them credit for aren't they! Plus, what a great idea!
Hope this story makes you smile!

Hand Washing Resources - Printable

2011-09-16T18:26:00.001-05:00

It's the start of the school year and the germs are already everywhere... making kids sick. Proper hand washing procedure is one of the first things we teach in my preschool class! I have created some Hand Washing Resources to help teach this important procedure! They are available on my website for you to download for free!!! Read more about my Hand Washing Resources at www.2care2teach4kids.com.

Free Activity~All About Me!

2011-09-01T21:30:00.000-05:00

I always do an All About Me theme at the beginning of the school year. This year my theme is "We are WILD about Preschool!" thanks to my new classroom mascot. So I have a new "Getting To Know You" activity sheet I am having parent's fill out with their kids during Open House. This "Look Whooo Comes to Preschool" pack is available at my TpT store. It features a cute Scrappin Doodles clip art owl! (It also comes in a generic "school" version.)

I also have a generic All About Me Activity Form on my website! www.2care2teach4kids.com It is a FREE download. It features DJInkers graphics. These graphics were used with permission from www.DJInkers.com Check it out if you like.

Enjoy!

Alphabet Block Match - Thanks Target Dollar Spot!

2011-08-21T19:02:00.001-05:00

So I was totally inspired by a post at Teach Preschool, in which Deborah mas making ink stamps with these foam blocks she found at Target in the Dollar Spot. I had bought them too but wasn't sure what I would do with them yet. I liked her idea to add the foam pictures to make stamps. I switched it up a bit and made mine into simple alphabet blocks I will use for letter recognition in my Language and Literacy Center. I created some letter matching mats to go with them. There are three mats, one is just the alphabet in order to help children with recognition and discrimination, one is a mixed up alphabet for more advanced recognition, and one has lowercase letters. If you would like a copy you can download the Alphabet Block Match Game- PDF documents (in a zip file) from my website www.2care2teach4kids.com for free!
HINT: The letters are placed on specific colors to help children with beginning letter recognition skills.
Enjoy!

More SmartBoard Activities

2011-08-18T11:46:00.002-05:00

Just added another SmartBoard activity to my TpT store. I love creating these but boy do they take a lot of time! This one is for older preK and Kindergarten as it focuses on matching upper and lowercase letters. This is a self checking activity as children will "see" if they "picked" the correct apple.

Check it out Apple Alphabet A to Z.

P.S. I think this will go nicely with my Apple Theme from my website www.2care2teach4kids.com .

Enjoy!

Uppercase Alphabet Tracing Cards

2011-08-17T17:26:00.002-05:00

So, I spent last weekend in Alexandria, MN with one of my college girlfriends. We had a blast! She is a third grade teacher, so we just get crazy when we are together and talk "teacher stuff" the whole time! We even went shopping to a cool teacher store. It was so much fun. I found a couple of fun new things for my classroom, but I was also inspired to CREATE some new things too. I found some alphabet tracing cards there that I liked, but I thought the printing was a little to small and they were very busy... So, I created my own. Check them out if you like, I have them available on my TpT store.

Alphabet Tracing Cards @ Teachers Pay Teachers

I can't wait to get back to school!!! I can't believe all the ~~crap~~ good stuff I bought at the dollar spot at Target too!!! I will post pictures soon!
Enjoy!

New Smartboard Activities

2011-08-16T00:10:00.000-05:00

I have just added two new Smartboard activities to my TpT store.

Visit my store and download a free preview!

Apple Alphabet - letter recognition and discrimination

Pumpkin Patch Math- number recognition and counting

Enjoy!

More "Getting to Know You" fun!

2011-08-08T23:49:00.000-05:00

Ok, maybe I should have made my mascot an OWL this year... I keep making all this cute owl stuff for when I get...Back To School! But anyway, here is the newest addition to my TpT store.

"Whooo" Comes to Preschool? A Getting to Know You Pack

It's a simple Getting to Know You form I am going to have families fill out at Open House or during the first week of school. (If it doesn't get filled out with mom/dad I will ask the child the questions myself.) I think I will post them all on one of our classroom bulletin boards... It will look great with my whole Woodland Welcome theme! We have Child Information Sheets we collect on everyone before school starts, so these forms are just another way for me to learn some details about my students right away at the beginning of the year. I like to have this kind of thing on hand so that if I have someone who might be struggling with separation I can have an "in" with them, because I know something about their favorite book or food or game...
Enjoy!

Classroom Mascots

2011-08-08T00:30:00.000-05:00

Just finished reading about Erica Bohrer's classroom mascots on her blog Erica Bohrer's First Grade! She is doing a Linky Party about mascots! I recently blogged about my new mascot for this year in my post Woodland Welcome. As I noted, our mascot for the past few years has been a monkey and our theme for the year was "We are WILD about Preschool." Well, we are still wild about preK only this year I am changing to a woodland animal theme thanks to my new Gopher mascot (at least I think he is a gopher!) I love the idea of having a class mascot and also have a page about mascots on my website at www.2care2teach4kids.com that discusses mascots and offers other classroom mascot suggestions.

Here is our classroom mascot for this year... BTW- I still haven't named him yet! Any ideas?

Join the Mascot Linky Party and share your Classroom Mascot too!

Looking 4 a Song

2011-08-05T15:00:00.005-05:00

We sing all the time in preschool! I love using song charts to help children learn concepts of print. During a shared reading activity, we point to the words as we sing them. This helps the children understand that print carries meaning and songs are made of words!

Just uploaded some of our favorite songs to the website. They are all in PDF form so you can easily print them or use them on your Smart Board!

Check them out! @

Looking 4 a Song in the

The Teacher's Files @

www.2care2teach4kids.com

They are also available in my
Teachers Pay Teachers Store
for FREE!!!!

Enjoy!

Literacy Beginnings - A Book Study

2011-08-04T15:21:00.003-05:00

I am so excited! I just got my copy of Literacy Beginnings. I am a little behind in the blog world but super excited to read this book and get in on this whole Link Party thing... If I can figure it out that is! ;)

New Learning Area (Interest Area) Signs!

2011-08-02T13:29:00.002-05:00

My preschool classroom is set up with Interest Areas, and in each area I switch things up and include different Learning Centers. Well I just finished making new Learning Area (Interest Area) signs for my classroom. I have an old set on my website 2care2teach4kids.com, which can be found in the Center Management section of my Teacher's Desk, that I made a few years ago. They are good but I felt it was time to upgrade them a little bit. The new Learning Area Signs are more colorful and I think the "Learning Objectives" stand out a little bit more now. I print them on card stock and laminate them and have them hanging in each area in my classroom. I think they are a great tool to help communicate to parents/families what kind of learning is happening when their children work/play in each area. Anyway they are available at my Teachers Pay Teaches store. Check them out.

Enjoy!

"Whooo" Comes to Preschool?

2011-08-01T10:55:00.004-05:00

I love making class books with my preschoolers. They will read and reread their books all year. This year I have decided to make a class book right away at the beginning of the year with each student's pictures in it so they can practice reading their classmates names right away! So in keeping with my Woodland Welcome theme I used some cute owl clip art from Scrappin Doodles and created a simple class book. "Whooo" Comes to Preschool? It is available for purchase at my Teachers Pay Teachers Store!

There is also a "Whooo" Comes to School? book for other grades.

Enjoy!

Free! Camping Kids Newsletter Templates & Class Forms

2011-07-30T14:47:00.002-05:00

I am so in to this Woodland Welcome/Camping theme for this school year I have created some new Newsletter Templates and a Calendar and Class List forms. They are available to download for FREE at my Teachers pay Teachers store!

Check it out! Camping Kids Class Forms Enjoy!

Year-At-A-Glance- A monthly planning form

2011-07-28T16:33:00.001-05:00

So I have been busy working on some planning for next year. . . And I came up with a new form that has been very helpful with some of the yearly planning I am doing. It is very simple and probably nothing anyone else couldn't make up quick but since I had it saved I thought I would share it with everyone!
It can be found on the Teacher's Desk @ http://www.2care2teach4kids.com/ in the Lesson Plans section! check it out...
Year-At-A-Glance Planning Form -it is also available in a Word Document. Go to the Lesson Plan page for this and other planning forms.
Enjoy!

Teachers Pay Teachers

2011-07-21T12:58:00.000-05:00

Ok I did it! I am so excited!!! I opened my store at

(Click to check it out!)

I have uploaded some free files as well as my new Woodland Welcome Themed Open House forms and matching Calendars!!!

I am working on adding Woodland Welcome forms that are for Primary grades not just preschool.

Also I have added an adorable Class Rules sign using Thistle Girl Design graphics, cause I love Ashley's work! Obviously...

So check it out if you get a chance and let me know what you think.

Enjoy

Color & Shape SMARTBoard Lesson

2011-07-20T12:31:00.001-05:00

I am so excited! I added my first SMARTBoard lesson to the website! It is a very simple Color Matching game. The kids drag the colored shapes to different colored boxes. I have them tell me the color and shape they are moving as they sort. Kids can play the game individually or with a teacher. I have it up as a choice activity during my free choice time.

Color & Shape Matching Notebook File can be found in The Teacher's Files in the Math & Number section of the www.2care2teach4kids.com website!

Enjoy!

Getting Organized- New Art Bin Supply Labels!

2011-07-18T11:25:00.001-05:00

I am going in to my room sometime this week (if I can get away from this new Blog Addiction I have). I have been reorganizing my entire room! So I made some new labels for my art supply bins I just added the new labels to my website, http://www.2care2teach4kids.com/ so you can use on your art supply bins too! I printed mine on Avery® White Full-Sheet Labels . They have cute graphics and text! Check them out they are on the Teacher's Desk in the Center Management section! I will post pictures of mine from my room soon!

Let me know if you want more labels like these!
Enjoy!

Woodland Welcome

2011-07-17T12:05:00.002-05:00

Okay so the other day at work (my part-time waitress/bartending gig) Tom, one of our regular customers, was in with Mike & Dianne, also regulars, and Tom had this dancing singing woodchuck that he apparently rescued from Mike & Dianne's garage sale. So he brings the little guy into the bar and it's dancing and singing on the bar... funny and cute. Tom is like, I just couldn't see the little guy go... So anyway I am thinking to myself... Huh my preschoolers would love that thing! So I tell Tom that and he is like "It's Yours!" (So big THANKS to Tom, Mike, & Dianne!!!!)

Too funny! I am so excited though. I love him and I can't wait to use him in my room next year. He is going to be our new classroom mascot! I even went so far as to create an entire new theme of resources to go with him!!!!

So my new classroom theme for next school year is going to be...

"We are WILD about Preschool"

and I am going to do everything with a woodland animal theme this year. In the past I have used the same motto and wild animals, especially monkeys (they are so cute). I had a huge inflatable monkey that was our class mascot the past couple of years but he finally popped! So it's a good time for a new mascot! So now, what to name him???

Isn't he cute? What do you think? What's a good name?

Also, I am considering selling my newly made resources online as well. I can't give them away, unfortunately, because Scrappin Doodles (where the graphics are from, BTW they have great graphics!!!) doesn't allow that. And well, honestly, selling them would help support the http://www.2care2teach4kids.com/ website. I am just curious if they are anything anyone else would be interested in...

Here is a preview of the new resources. There are nine documents- A Welcome Sign, Open House Invite, Newsletter Templates, a Welcome Letter, a Class List, and an Open House Sign in Sheet... They are programmable files.

I am getting excited for the new school year!!!

New Button

2011-07-12T14:43:00.001-05:00

Trying to add a button that people can grab and post to their blogs... We will see if I can figure this out.

What do you think?

Dollar Spot CRAZY

2011-07-12T12:55:00.000-05:00

Ok so I have wandered on to all these fabulous blogs and found this entire community of teachers that blog and I am going crazy reading all of their blogs and looking at all the cool stuff they have online... And I saw a couple posts about the Target Dollar Spot and the cute Dr. Seuss boxes someone found... Well of course I had to go pick some up and UGH wouldn't you know it I found a bunch more stuff!!!! I say Ugh cause I am broke in the summer! But anyway found these fun foam hammers I thought I could have the kids use when playing games on the SMART BOARD! They will love this. And found these name tag sized dry erase boards that I think will be perfect for kids to use to practice writing their names!

So cool!

New Programmable Lesson Plans

2011-07-08T14:55:00.001-05:00

Just added a programmable lesson plan format to the http://www.2care4teach4kids.com/ website! Plan to update them all so they are all formatable!
*These are PDF files. You need Adobe to open them. You can download it from my website. The link is on the Teacher's Desk main page.

Here is the link:
2 Day Programmable Lesson Plan

Find more Lesson Plan Formats at:
The Teacher's Desk
Click on:
Lesson Plans

About Me

2011-07-01T00:10:00.003-05:00

Hi! My name is Kelly. I am a mother of three wonderful children and I am an early childhood educator. The kids call me Miss Kelly! (My own kids call me Mom!) I have taught in a variety of different early childhood programs over the past 17 years. I am currently a School Readiness Preschool Teacher and I also teach some ECFE (Early Childhood Family Education) classes in central Minnesota. I love my job!

In addition, I am the creator of the www.2care2teach4kids.com website. It began as a website for my licensed home daycare and it has evolved into a free resource for other early childhood educators and parents.

I hope you enjoy reading about my preschool adventures (I think of them as adventures anyway!) and I will continue to share resources with you as I add them to my website!

Enjoy!

Smart Board, Smartboard

2011-05-31T12:36:00.000-05:00

We have just added new Smartboards to our early childhood school readiness preschool classrooms! I am so excited for this new technology! It is already proving to make teaching and routines run more efficiently and the children are more engaged and interested than ever before! I hope to create all kinds of new resources to add to the http://www.2care2teach4kids.com/ website to share with other early childhood teachers! So excited!!!

Hello Winter

2010-11-13T10:00:00.000-06:00

I live in MN. As I type there are inches and inches of snow accumulating outside. Ugh! And I need new tires on my Jeep. But this is MN and it's certainly never unexpected.

The snow reminded me of a funny thing one of the preschoolers said the other day...

D- Miss Kelly I am going skiing this winter.
Me- Oh really how fun, downhill?
D- Yeah, cause I tried uphill and that's just too hard.

Oh too funny. I love my job!!! Most days! ;)

Kelly

Halloween Funny

2010-10-31T22:57:00.000-05:00

Preschoolers just crack me up. Everyday someone says something that makes me laugh. I should really write a book I know... maybe someday... but for now I will blog.

So this little boy says to me the other day, "Miss Kelly, do you know what I am going to be for Halloween?" I said no. He said, "Yes you do I already told you!"
I replied, "Oh okay well I guess I forgot so please tell me again..."
To which he said, "It starts with Optimus!" (Not just "O" but Optimus!)
LOL how funny is that. I am sure he made a great Optimus Prime!

"Miss Kelly I Puked in my Bed!"

2010-09-15T22:49:00.001-05:00

Every fall we start the new school year off with a bang! Or maybe I should say "BLUTH"... As in the sound one makes when throwing up... So what on earth am I talking about, you might be wondering. Well, as most know, preschool children are germy! Children in general are just germ havens! So therefore I spend a great deal of time at the beginning of the school year reinforcing proper handwashing techniques and I drill it into their little brains that they all have germs on their hands and so they must wash their hands all the time! Of course I try not to freak them out and turn them into little OCD handwashers, but seriously have you seen how many times a preschooler will put their hands in their mouth... or nose! Ick!

The most effective thing I do to reinforce the importance of handwashing is to read the book Those Mean Nasty Dirty Downright Disgusting but Invisible Germs to my class. I kid you not when I say this, this book becomes the number one book of choice for the rest of the entire year! It is every childs favorite! Hands down!

Not only is this book the all time favorite, I would have to say that this book elicits the most stories and personal connections of any other book I read the rest of the year. Every child can relate to being sick. They all have stories to tell. Sometimes they have stories to tell about other people as well. Today the best was my Monday Wednesday morning class. They all started sharing their puke stories when we read about the germ that makes you throw up. They all were raising their hands telling me how many times they had thrown up before. Once, twice, 1,000 times... One little boy raised his hand and said "Miss Kelly I even puked in my bed! It was so Bisgusting." The look on his face that accompanied his comment made this twice as hilarious! Oh the joys of talking about GERMS!
Check out the book yourself!
Those Mean Nasty Dirty Downright Disgusting But Invisible Germs

Just when you think you have heard it all!

2010-03-08T15:57:00.000-06:00

So the other day we are walking back to drop the kids off with their parents at the end of preschool and one of the little boys says to me... "Miss Kelly I love you." Oh so sweet right. I said, "I love you too honey." Then he says I like your name... I'm thinking he is in a lovey dovey mood, it's cute. Then he says... and I quote "Miss Kelly I really like my mom's big boobs." OMG I tried so hard not to laugh! Then he adds, "she has a nice big butt too." LOL!!!! Just when you think you have heard it all! I have been giggling about this one for days!!!

McDonalds can Fix it.. No wonder...

2010-01-05T18:31:00.001-06:00

Today one of my little friends was having an exceptionally hard day. Granted it was his first day back after a long winter break, and we had a bunch of high school students observing us, and the fifth graders came to read to us... so needless to say, it was a BIG day for the preschoolers.

So this little guy was very EMOTIONAL today! But the kicker was at the end of the day during our snack time I commented to him that I noticed he was still sad and that I was hoping he would feel better soon.

He then leans over to me and in a very whiny voice says, "Miss Kelly, I think maybe I just need some McDonalds and then I will feel better."

WOW!!! As much as I tried not to laugh I tried not to cringe as well! I guess emotional eating starts young. Or maybe a better question is do we as parent's use food to try to comfort our children??? Hmmm, it really makes you think doesn't it... No wonder I have 20 pounds to loose! No wonder...

Lions, and Tigers, and Bears Oh My!

2009-11-08T13:39:00.000-06:00

Thursday I was having the most interesting conversation with several of my preschool friends. One of them noticed and eagle flying over head when we were outside on the playground. He was anxious for me to see it. This sparked much story telling from my little friends about what eagles like to eat and do and such.

One friend said, "Miss Kelly my dad hunts eagles."

I said, "Oh sweetie I don't think he hunts eagles, maybe he hunts another kind of bird, because it is against the law to shoot an eagle."

He got a very concerned look on his face and after some thought he said, "No he hunts geese."

"Oh, sure." I replied. "Yes, geese are good to hunt."

He looked relieved! Then he added, "he also hunts bears."

"He does?" I asked.

Then a new conversation started amongst the small crowd that had congregated near the swings. "Miss Kelly!" shouted one of my small friends. "My dad hunts bears too," she excitedly informed me. "He also shot a lion." She said.

"A lion?" "Where did he shoot a lion at?" I asked with curiosity.

"Oh, I don't know..." she replied. “I was in bed." Too funny!

Beware of the Knock Knock Joke (It's a Guaranteed Chain Reaction)

2009-10-29T21:24:00.001-05:00

One thing most veteran, ok even newbie preschool teachers know, is to beware of the dreaded Knock Knock Joke. Why? You might ask. Well in preschool one Knock Knock Joke always sets off a chain reaction in preschoolers that will have you running for the door... (or more likely looking around the room for a really good distraction just to make it stop!)

What am I talking about? Well if you have ever told a preschool aged child a Knock Knock Joke you would know. They figure out rather quickly that Knock Knock Jokes can make people laugh. So then they try to tell one. Usually they start with the same one you just told them. Then they laugh like it was the first time they heard it. And this is where I caution you BEWARE! Because if you laugh (even if you just laugh because you are laughing at how hard they are laughing) you will set off the chain reaction! Then it goes on. They try to make up their own joke, which usually contains 90% of the orignal joke you told them but has some kind of nonsense punch line. You might laugh again (a courtesy laugh no doubt), or you just think they are cute. But then it gets worse. They make up another joke. "Knock Knock." "Who's there?" you ask. And again parts of the original joke are recycled and more gibberish is added. They laugh and laugh again and don't really care if you join them. Then again! "Knock Knock" ... You might say, "Let’s stop now." But it won’t matter. That just acts as a catalyst and increases the intensity and persistence to which they try to tell more jokes that increasingly make no sense what so ever. By now you are wishing you had never told them the joke in the first place. Soon the jokes are not even filled with real words but become streams of nonsense words followed by fits of laughter. You might again request the joking to be over. Your futile attempts will only bring about more outrageousness from the young comedian! Now they will resort to "potty talk" to try to keep you engaged and get your attention. "Knock Knock" (They won’t even wait for you to say who is there.) "Mr. Poo Poo Head!" and screams of laughter will erupt without even offering a punch line… because well, Mr. Poo Poo Head is just funny all by itself. Heaven forbid you accidentally laugh again and start the whole process anew.
So what brought on this observation you might be wondering?
Well today one of the preschoolers surprised me with a Knock Knock Joke that actually made sense. I am sure she heard it from someone, but it surprised me that she actually remembered it correctly. But then again she is a pretty sharp little girl.

Are you ready for this?

Knock Knock

Who’s there?

Iwana Witch.

Iwana Witch who?

I wanna Witch you a Happy Halloween!

I dare you to tell it to a preschooler you know!!!!

Kelly

Do you sleep here? And other good questions.

2009-10-28T16:32:00.000-05:00

Every year I get asked by at least one student, "Miss Kelly where is your bed?" Or, "Do you sleep here?" One of the perks of this job is the free humor! Four and five year olds really come up with some interesting thoughts. Sometimes I just can't help but laugh when I contemplate what must have been going through their heads in order to generate some of the questions and comments they make.

One of my little friends said to me today, "Miss Kelly I know you don't live here because you don't have a bed in your room. And you don't have any pillows, so it would not feel good to sleep here." I had to laugh. I have no idea what brought this thought on from this little guy. Surely it sparked a thought in one of my other friend’s minds though, because she turned to me then and said, "Miss Kelly I live in Big Lake." And before I could even begin to wonder why she thought to inform me of this she quickly added, "In case you ever want to come visit me." LOL! Too sweet!

Super sweet kids are another perk on the job in early childhood. Yes, we have our challenging kids BELIEVE ME! But most of them are just so sweet and love school. It sure can make your day when someone (even if they are only four) says something to you like, "Miss Kelly you are my best friend!" Thanks "G" you are mine too! : )

when theory becomes reality

2009-10-26T23:22:00.000-05:00

I love it when theory becomes reality... There are a lot of theories that influence the how, why, and what we teach in early childhood. It is so reassuring when you actually get the chance to see the fruit of your labors and experience first hand (or second hand in this case) how what you are doing is working and really benefiting the children you teach. Here is an example from the other day...

Last week one of the activities we offered to our students was apple stamping using cut up apples and those big stamp pads from Lakeshore. One of my more reserved students often chooses to observe the other children as they participate in different activities. (A common trait for some children) He intently watched the kids trying out the new apple stamping activity. I invited him a couple of times to try it with them and he declined.

In early childhood we talk a lot about repetition and offering children repeated exposure to things. There are numerous reasons for doing this, one of them being to entice those children who may be more reserved at trying new things.

My education assistant shared with me today (I had not witnessed this myself), that our little friend was one of the first children to go to the art table to try the apple stamps when they were put out again for the kids for the second time in a row. She commented on how much he enjoyed the activity and how proud he was of his picture. I couldn't be more pleased! I love it when things work how they are supposed to!

If you are interested in more Apple Themed activities like the one I described above, check out my website...

http://www.2care2teach4kids.com/

Visit the Preschool Room and click on the Themes link! Or click here on Apple Theme!

Also, use our easy Learning Center Observation Record sheet found in our Center Management section of the Teacher's Desk @ www.2care2teach4kids.com . Track where your students are working during self directed learning times! There are lots of forms you can download for FREE from this section of my website!

Enjoy,

What did you land on? (A Dumb Question!)

2009-10-24T14:27:00.005-05:00

The other day one of my students fell off the monkey bars on the playground.

I quickly went to his aid and saw that he was crying and rubbing his hip.
Worried that he might have really hurt himself (I immediately think the worst...broken bones!)

I asked him "What did you land on?"

To which (with a look in his eye that begged- Are you kidding me Miss Kelly can't you see?) he angrily replied, "The Ground!"

Season Two

2009-10-24T13:49:00.006-05:00

This is year two at my current teaching job and I love it even more this time around. The kids are great, the parents are appreciative, and co-workers are fun and easy to get along with... My biggest concern right now is how do I help parent's to understand that if their child qualifies for services from our local special education co-op that this is a good thing...I know it is hard to hear, when your child is struggling to succeed in some way at school or has some other issues. I have experienced it myself, so I can appreciated how parents feel. The good news is that when children receive intervention services early they are so much more likely to not need services later. They have a chance to overcome their struggles sooner without it impacting their learning in a negative way.Families need to know that the special education system is very different now from when they grew up. There are many negative stereo-types out there that are just not true. Today's special education system strives to put parents in charge and assists parents in planning how to help their children succeed. Most children are mainstreamed into typical classrooms and their peers are generally not aware they are receiving any special help. (This is certainly the case in my classes!) If they are aware, teachers now days do a wonderful job of teaching empathy and the understanding that we all learn differently. (Differentiated teaching is a strategy with a huge impact in how teachers approach lesson planning for all students today.) When children require additional help in school to be successful, it does not mean there’s anything "wrong" with their child! It simply means they may need a little extra help to succeed at the same level as their peers. And thank goodness, there are services available to families to ensure that all children are receiving an equal education in our public schools!

2007-03-04T19:55:00.000-06:00

I am reading a great book written by inspirational early childhood teacher, Bev Bos called Before the Basics. Reading her words relieves me. Much of what she says I often think but seldom witness. It is good to know that I am not the only person in the world who thinks this way.

A couple of quotes...

"Could it ever be called wasteful if it nourishes the creative spirit and soul of a child?"

"Remember what Dr. Jane M. Healy says, "The child's brain has the innate wisdom to tell the child what it needs to do during this sensitive time in its development." One of our jobs is to avoid distracting them."

"If you plan for a decade, plant trees,
If you plan for a century, work with children."

"Children were not made to wait in lines." - neither were adults I think, who likes it?

"Children must be allowed to use too much."
-Bev Bos

on emotions... "I Hate Cheerios"

2006-09-22T20:34:00.000-05:00

Okay I noticed that I called this blog "reflections" but I really fill it up with mindless jibber jabber... well I caution you before you read on, this is not mindless jibber jabber and there is a good chance you may read something that you don't agree with, ... that is okay...

I have been thinking a lot about emotions and more specifically children and their emotions. I have had a number of conversations and I have read many things about children and emotions in the recent past and throughout my years as a parent. Recent events have made me even more aware of this issue.

Here are some of my thoughts...
- Many times I think we as adults, teachers, and parents have a hard time dealing with or even understanding our own emotions (especially emotions we might consider negative) that we often struggle in dealing with these same emotions in children.
emotions that quickly come to mind...hate, anger, fear, sadness

-I think that because of the negative associations we make with these feelings and our own lack of understanding and inability to deal with them, we tend to want to "Spare" children from feeling these intense and powerful emotions.

-attempting to spare children from experiencing emotions whether positive or negative, I believe is a mistake.

-I think when we do not acknowledge children's emotions, and especially when dealing with strong negative emotions, we are sending them mixed messages about how to deal with their emotions.

-We all have a right to feel what ever it is we are feeling, how we act on those feelings is important. Obviously we have to act in ways that are appropriate and socially acceptable.
*This is the key to why we need to look at how we deal with emotions... we need to help children understand them and then teach them how to deal with them appropriately when they don't know how to do that! (all these recent school shootings remind me of what a poor job we are doing of this in our society, I realize there is more at play here than just an issue of emotions... but I believe emotions play a big part of the issue.)

-Children, just like adults have the right to be mad, sad, scared, etc.

-We have to learn to not deny their feelings just because it bothers us to hear them cry, hear them yell, see them in fear, or because strong emotions make us uncomfortable. etc.

-We have to acknowledge what they are feeling and help them make appropriate choices for how to deal with those emotions. Sometimes that means acknowledge they are sad and letting them cry, or more specifically not trying to "fix it" (i.e. offering food, treats, distractions) but just talk with them about what is bothering them with out judgment or an agenda of our own.

-Have you ever said to a child ... there is nothing to be afraid of, don't be sad, that's nothing to cry about, why are you so mad what is the big deal, stop your yelling.... ? Why?

-When we let kids have their feelings and let them know it is okay to be mad, sad, scared,etc. they are usually better able to work through it and move on. When we deny their feelings, not only do they not have the opportunity to work though it but now they have to deal with the frustration of us trying to control their feelings and us not caring about how they really feel. *Combine this with other issues such as the oppression of women (after reviewing all the school shootings has any one noticed that they are almost always male shooters and they often choose female victims?), bullying, the over exemplified ideas of what it means to "be a man", and the constant desensitizing of children to violence, and we can begin to understand why we have kids who at 13, 14, and 15 are going off the deep end and shooting other kids in their schools.

One conversation I had not too long ago has really stuck with me and keeps bringing me back to this topic (and keeps reminding me there is so much more I need to learn about it it) had to do with a small phrase we were questioning using in a drama in our Sunday morning children's ministry.

The phrase was this: "I hate Cherrios." -for real that was it.
The question we reflected on was should we change "hate" to dislike?
The premise was that it is a strong word and we don't want kids to think it is okay to throw the word hate around casually. A very good point.
The more we talked about it we decided that it should stay "hate" because we believe children have the ability to process feelings and begin to understand them, to deny this is condescending on our part.
If they don't have the understanding and ability to process strong words and emotions like hate then we need to dialog with them in order to help them develop those skills.
By not doing this, and saying "dislike" instead, we are simply contributing to their in ability to deal with the strong emotions that we know they will feel at some time in their life, whether we want to acknowledge it or not.

*Too bad more adults (myself included) don't critically reflect further on just these sorts of interactions with children, how much better off we all would be if we did.

PreK for all

2006-03-14T16:36:00.000-06:00

Back to school. I am looking for idea for a proposal paper I have to write. I really wanted to do my paper asking for states to fund "pre K for all" which is a movement that is advocating for just this type of education action. Any way I found info that documents some of the different ways states are funding this initiative. Here in MN we do not have state funded voluntary preschool for all children (ie. free preschool like kindergarten). We have Head Start and various ECFE programs funded through Learning Readiness as well as special education funded programs but not a state funded preK for all children type program, even head start and most ECFE programs have a fee although it is usually based on a sliding scale. In some states however, there are these state funded preK for all programs and some are funded by State Lottery monies, and or "sin" tax monies. In two states the funding for these state funded preK programs are supported entirely by these sort of taxes and there is no money used from the states general fund. They have unbeleivably large amounts of money that they use for thier preK programs. So this got me to thinking... Is this good or bad? There are a few different points of view for this argument. Just curious what other people might think? If you use this kind of funding, are you saying you advocate for people to gamble, drink, or smoke? Or are you just saying people will do it any way so why not get the money and use it for something good? I am not sure, I have not thought about it long enough yet. It sounds like one of those double edge sword things. I do believe that preK should be funded and be offered to all families, but how to pay for it? That is the hard question, especially when education funding is in such dire straits right now... Hmm. Just my little reflection for the day.

2006-01-17T00:51:00.000-06:00

Thought for the Day:
If it weren't for the last minute nothing would get done.

reflections of an early childhood teacher

The Joy of Oobleck! Integrated Learning at its Best!

Promoting Physical Activity/Set the Foundation- Meeting Dan Gartrell

Apple Basket Counting Activity ~ Free Printable

Fall Fun~ A Slide Show

Wishes really do come true!

Brown Bear Brown Bear Patterning

Brown Bear Brown Bear~ A Free Take Home Activity

New Newsletter Templates

Science Explorers

Take-A-Break~ Free Printable Cue Sheet

"Just make an arrow...." - Kids are so SMART!

Hand Washing Resources - Printable

Free Activity~All About Me!

Alphabet Block Match - Thanks Target Dollar Spot!

More SmartBoard Activities

Uppercase Alphabet Tracing Cards

New Smartboard Activities

More "Getting to Know You" fun!

Classroom Mascots

Looking 4 a Song

Literacy Beginnings - A Book Study

New Learning Area (Interest Area) Signs!

"Whooo" Comes to Preschool?

Free! Camping Kids Newsletter Templates & Class Forms

Year-At-A-Glance- A monthly planning form

Teachers Pay Teachers

Color & Shape SMARTBoard Lesson

Getting Organized- New Art Bin Supply Labels!

Woodland Welcome

New Button

Dollar Spot *CRAZY*

New Programmable Lesson Plans

About Me

Smart Board, Smartboard

Hello Winter

Halloween Funny

"Miss Kelly I Puked in my Bed!"

Just when you think you have heard it all!

McDonalds can Fix it.. No wonder...

Lions, and Tigers, and Bears Oh My!

Beware of the Knock Knock Joke (It's a Guaranteed Chain Reaction)

Do you sleep here? And other good questions.

when theory becomes reality

What did you land on? (A Dumb Question!)

Season Two

on emotions... "I Hate Cheerios"

PreK for all

Dollar Spot CRAZY