Sign Language and "Recharging the Batteries"

A wonderful aspect of working in Winnetka is that the students bring so much to the curriculum.  As teachers, we are encouraged to honor each child's experiences and interests.  Recently, a few students have taken an interest in sign language.  As a teacher I have very little experience with this, but it didn't take long before the entire class was intrigued by this concept of communicating with your hands.  The resource teacher next door had two books and a very nice set of cards that explained everything from nouns to verbs to adjectives in sign language.  We broke up into groups and for about 15 minutes worked together to learn new signs.  I also discovered that it is a pretty strong classroom management strategy when I start signing to get their attention.  The students instantly stop talking and pay attention, trying to figure out what I'm "saying."

This was also a great chance to remind students about earning bonus miles, if they'd like to study sign language deeper.  Having students learn something for the pure joy of learning is my ultimate goal, but I've found that by offering bonus miles they take their learning to a deeper and more organized level.

Thursdays can be long as the students do not get breaks for specials, such as art or KW.  As a teacher I'm very aware of when the class energy level or attention span is low.  This happens for a variety of reasons, but when I recognize this it's time to recharge the batteries by getting some fresh air.  4th grade recess takes place in the afternoon and KW is supposed to give them their "release" in the morning.  On Thursdays, however, we don't have KW in the morning so we go outside for 10-15 minutes after writing instruction to recharge.  I cannot tell you how much of a difference this makes to finish the morning strong.  Sacrificing 10 minutes of in-class time guarantees I'll have them for the next 45-50 minutes locked in.  It amazes me that so many schools in the country are trying to get rid of recess for more in-class time.  While I don't think recess should replace instructional time by any means, I don't see the purpose in trying to teach students who are in obvious need of a break and anything you try to teach them goes in one ear and out the other.

Welcome to Mr. Peterson's Blog!

Hello to all,

I'm entering the world of blogging as a way to let the outside world into my classroom, including a detailed description of classroom activities, my approach to teaching and why I select certain activities for the students.   My goal is to paint a clear picture of what happens here at school so parents are better informed about what goes on in their child's life.  I will not be using student names or pictures of students.

I will try to update two or three times a week, maybe more, maybe less, time permitting.  If you click subscribe on the right-hand side you can receive an alert every time I make a new post.

Yesterday in science we started our study of seeds and plants.  We discussed the purpose of a hypothesis and made an educated guess about the number of seeds found in each string bean.  I passed out string beans to each student pair and they dissected it looking for seeds.  We created a graph based on the different amount of seeds in each bean.  Students love science and they were very attentive during the whole process.