Learning on holiday

Recently my family went on a holiday to Geraldton for a family members wedding. My children had to have 2 days off school as we stayed for an extra long weekend. I don't normally take my children out of school for holidays but did so on this occasion.  While in Geraldton we visited the museum and looked at the Leonardo Divinci exhibit. The kids had lots of fun working Divinci's machines and seeing how things work. I was surprised at how much my daughter could tell me about Leonardo Divinci. We also visited the old hospital, police  station and the HMAS Sydney 2 memorial.

I'm a firm believer that although you are in holiday there are always learning opportunities to be found. The kids learnt a lot about history and what life was like in early Geraldton. Along the way we also collected the gold coins found at many WA tourist locations. Our collection is slowly growing and we now have the proper folder to keep these coins safe.

Easy raffle system for upper primary

I came across this great idea while on my relief teaching travels. The idea is simple and yet so effective. Instead of handing out raffle tickets,  this teacher has divided up a piece of bright wrapping paper into squares. When students show good behaviours they are invited to write their names into one of the squares. Once all the squares are full the wrapping paper is then cut up and placed into a box. A set number of names are drawn out and given a prize. This reward system could last between one week to a whole term depending on how frequently the teacher invites students to write their names. I really like this because it  clearly shows who is being rewarded for positive behaviour. 

PATHS Curriculum

The PATHS (Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies) Curriculum is widely used in Western Australian schools to promote the emotional development of students. This program helps students learn what emotions are, how to identify them and strategies they can use to manage them. It proves students with examples and strategies of how to use self control, how to think before they act and how to express their anger or frustrations. The curriculum is heavily scripted, which can be a good thing as it provides teachers with a fail safe lesson plan and plenty of conversation starters to use with the lesson.

I have used this curriculum in the classroom on several occasions. Recently I was in a year one class and taught a lesson on self control. I read students the story provided in the PATHS curriculum and showed them the accompanying pictures. We then discussed the questions provided with the lesson plan and practiced the "Turtle" movement. (This is a movement mimicking a turtles which promotes self control). Following this the students completed the worksheet, below are examples of student's worksheets that were completed during a PATHS lesson.



I have found this style of explicit teaching very useful especially with the younger students. The program is very scripted and this makes it easier as a relief teacher to come into a class and teach the lesson. I still find there to be plenty of opportunity to adjust the lessons to suit students needs and to include students own experiences.  

For more information about the PATHS Curriculum see the link below.

http://www.channing-bete.com/prevention-programs/paths/paths.html

Storyline Online

I was teaching a half day and the classroom teacher had this up on the Smartboard for the students. They were all really engaged with the story and I couldn't resist asking about this resource. After having a look around the website I think that this is going to be one of my new favourite resources for relief teaching. Two of my favourite stories that are included in this website are "A Bad Case of the Stripes" and "I Need My Monster." There are lots of activities that can be used with these books so this site creates the perfect introduction to the lesson. (Assuming that is, that the classroom you are teaching in has access to the internet.)

Storyline Online

Let's Put a Pin in it.

Almost every time I am in the classroom I am always asked questions which I would like to answer but wither don't have the time to or don't know the answers to. I try to encourage students to ask lots and lots of questions so I get disappointed when I am unable to follow up these more challenging or time reliant questions.

I have seen in some classrooms boards where students are encouraged to write these questions down and then the class can return back to these questions later when there is more time. This reaffirms that every question is valid and deserves to be answered, as well as further encouraging students to ask questions.

Creative Writng

This is a poem my daughter wrote to her best friend. She is in year five. I was impressed and especially like "our friendship can never rust."

Creating QR codes

I have set up an online teaching portfolio so that I can record my journey as a teacher. I was thinking of having a QR code put onto a business card that I can use when I am relief teaching. It didn't quite work but I have designed my new business card so watch this space.

A quick check of completed work.

On a recent day of relief in a year 3/4 class I was asked to spend the afternoon finishing off work that the class had started earlier in the week.

I had the students put a tick next to the activity once they had completed the task. This provided me with an overview of how many students had completed each task.

 

The Animated Movie "9"

I am ashamed to say that I have owned a copy of this movie for a few years before I decided to watch it. This is not the usual type of movie that I would watch. It is animated, so  the kids instantly loved it, but it deals with some very mature themes. There is so much happening in this movie, so many questions it raises and asks of the audience, that it is beneficial to watch it more than once. My children are quite young and were able to take the movie at face value, but as a teacher I instantly though of the possibilities this movie could provide in a classroom setting. Although the movie is only rated PG, I think that it would be aimed at a year 7 level or higher. Questions and ideas raised in the movie include the difference between the mind and the soul, the power a soul has, the existence of heaven and possibility of reincarnation, the extinction of the human race, mankind's love affair with technology, and many more. There are many ways this movie could be used in the classroom. Even as an adult it is a lot to take it. I think the fact that it is presented to the viewer in the animated format allows the viewer to lower their guard, and then be surprised at how thought provoking this film can be. I would be interested to know if any teachers have actually used this film in any of their learning programs.

Behaviour Management

I have been thinking of ways that I can encourage positive behaviour in the classroom without the bribes of lollies or prizes. I started a new board on Pinterest to start collecting ideas for individual and who class rewards. Below are a few of my favourite. Head over to my Pinterest account to see more.

 

Vegie Gardens in Schools

I have seen lots of vegie gardens in schools as well as cooking programs. With the dwindling number of home vegie gardens this gives students the opportunity to experience the science of growing vegetables and experience cooking them and eating them. At my daughters school some students had their first experience eating spinach!!
I have began a Jamie's Garden greenhouse at home and the kids are so excited to watch the sprouts grow. My daughter plans to find a recipe on the internet so that she can eat her home grown basil.
In the classroom the experience of gardening can be extended to include ICT, research and literacy, not to mention mathematics in cooking and science as well.

The REAL reason why children fidget

This is an interesting article which looks at the issue of students fidgeting from a different angle. It suggests that children need to spend more time outside playing rather than sitting down. That children fidget because they need to be making movements rather than passively being involved in activities. Something different to think about.



The REAL reason why children fidget

Fine Tuning Behaviour Management as a Relief Teacher

I found a series of short videos on YouTube by Dr Bill Rogers who is a behaviour management specialist. I have watched a few of these and found this one below to be really interesting. This clip focuses on settling a class at the beginning of the day.





I really liked this short clip and can definitely see how as a relief teacher I could use this on a daily basis to establish control of a class. It made me think about the type of language I use in the classroom and whether or not I use positive language enough when I interact with the class. The aspect of calmness was also interesting. I would like to think of myself as a clam and relaxed teacher but I have been finding this a bit hard to achieve with some of the relief classes I have had recently. Maybe if I consciously started off each day in this positive and calm fashion it would help me set the tone for the day. I think this would also give the class a better perspective of the sort of teacher I aim to be.

A Better Way To Say Sorry

I came across this article about teaching children how to apologise properly rather than just saying sorry. I can see how this would be useful to use in the classroom, or at home with my own children, to teach them why it is important to say sorry and to mean what they say. The structure of the apology also ensures that the child saying sorry actually thinks about what they are saying and why they are saying sorry. I will have to give it a go and see what the results are.

Relief Teaching

Finally I have finished my teaching course and I am able to get out into the big wide world of teaching. I have to admit it is not exactly as I thought it would be. Due to a job shortage I have spent the last six months earning my stripes as a relief teacher. It has been tough work but I have learnt so much. In a way I feel as though a year of relief before I am able to have a classroom of my own will do me a lot of good. I have been able to experience different school, different classroom organisation and teaching styles. I have become more confident at walking into a room and assuming control straight away. I am more confident in my behavioural management techniques and more aware of who I am as a teacher.

Its not all bad, I have had some amazing days as a relief teacher, especially teaching music to pre-primary students. But I can not wait for a classroom of my own. I think that I am really going to appreciate that in a way I could not have before if I had not experienced the life of a relief teacher.

Behaviour Management

These are some of the behaviour management strategies I use in the classroom.

Beat the Teacher

Behaviour Cards. - these are to collect either five or ten stickers, stamps or signatures.

Facebook for Networking

I have recently been using Facebook as more than just a social tool. I have found a number of excellent teaching pages that offer great ideas that can be used in the classroom. One page, Relief Teaching Ideas, provided a link to History programs that are aligned to the Australian Curriculum and organized by year groups. Each program outlines the outcomes and objectives for each year, skeletal structures for lesson planning and related literacy for further investigations. I was really impressed with this resources and will definitely be putting it into my teaching resources for later use in the classroom. Links to pages like this on Facebook also provides access to specials and quality teaching resources that I would not have found otherwise. And there is also the bonus of these pages being focused on Australian education, not American, which can be hard to find on the net.
Having seen what Facebook can offer me at a professional level I am keen to explore this further and build up my network of resources. Hopefully I will be able to post a list of links to Facebook for teaching resources in the coming weeks. Stay tuned....