We finished our first full week of school, Monday - Friday. It was a terrific week. Parent-Night was on Tuesday and it went very well. Now we can get to the business of teaching! You know all that work that had to be completed for the bulletin boards... But it was all worth it.
The boys enjoyed beginning centers. We started slowly with very simple centers and they rotate through all three in one 45 minute period. The sight words "I" and "can" were introduced. It is fun to be word "detectives" and find them in all of our books.
Friday, we made simple lift the flap book. The boys wrote "I can" on the front of each flap and then illustrated something they "can" do on the inside. Of course, the majority of the pictures were action sport shots.
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| I can ... play in my yard. |
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| I can... "build stuff," "play baseball," "Swim underwater with my eyes open!" |
The best was an illustration one boy did based on a connection to a book I had read earlier in the week. It was a big book that goes with our reading series. "Animals in the Park, an ABC Book."
I joined many bloggers and read "In Pictures and in Words" this summer. Click here, to see earlier post with more info about this terrific book. That has really influenced the way I read now. There is much more conversation about the illustrations and the choices or decisions made by the illustrator, as I read to my class.
This particular book, "Animals in the Park" is about animal statues that come alive and having some fun in the park at night. As we are reading, we notice there are 3 stars in the sky... and then one page has 4. I ask the class, "Are you thinking what I am thinking? You know how the stars come out slowly at night. Maybe as I turn the page there will be more stars and then more stars... Let's see." Sadly, that does not happen. The rest of the pages all have only 3 stars in the sky. So fine. We take a little time to talk about making predictions... and sometimes they don't happen that way.
I joined many bloggers and read "In Pictures and in Words" this summer. Click here, to see earlier post with more info about this terrific book. That has really influenced the way I read now. There is much more conversation about the illustrations and the choices or decisions made by the illustrator, as I read to my class.
This particular book, "Animals in the Park" is about animal statues that come alive and having some fun in the park at night. As we are reading, we notice there are 3 stars in the sky... and then one page has 4. I ask the class, "Are you thinking what I am thinking? You know how the stars come out slowly at night. Maybe as I turn the page there will be more stars and then more stars... Let's see." Sadly, that does not happen. The rest of the pages all have only 3 stars in the sky. So fine. We take a little time to talk about making predictions... and sometimes they don't happen that way.
Well, one of the students did a picture on his first flap with 2 birds in the sky. He was very excited to share it with me and for me to notice the birds... The 2nd flap had 3 birds in the sky. And yes! The last flap showed him playing soccer with 4 birds in the sky! Love it! I, of course, was so proud of him. "This reminds me of a book we read this week!" He says, "I know!" And we talked about the connection we had made... Priceless! It actually made my week! I was so excited I forgot to get a picture of it. That's ok. I will never forget it!
