You know the commercial, late August - a parent is shopping through Staples (a stationary store) and the song begins...
"It's the most wonderful time of the year..." ♪♪♪
And honestly, it is! Don't get me wrong, I love summer - the time to rest, see friends & family, travel - but I can't control time and September is coming, so I am ready to EMBRACE it and be EXCITED for it.
Here's a little preview into THREE big things I've prepared this week as I get ready for the new school year (which for my school begins on Tuesday, September 3).
1. I've prepared my classroom
I will admit, I'm very lucky to have such a large space. Stuart Shanker, in his book Calm, Alert, and Learning: Classroom Strategies for Self-Regulation writes, "For a number of years, educational programs such as Reggio Emilia have asserted that children concentrate better in a classroom with a reduced number of visual distractors" (p. 12, Shanker). We use this as a guide for the physical set up of the classroom - bulletin boards are painted grey, no clutter, window blinds open for as much natural light as possible and provided calming areas (our cubby area, not seen in this photo, has regular & LED lights to create a calm space to do work or to relax).
I teach a Primary Special Needs class (which only consists of 10 students), so we are able to use the full space by creating different areas for different activities.
Clockwise, starting top left:
1. Our circle time area, with flexible seating options such as wobble chairs, rocking chairs, sit cushions (not pictured) and weighted lizards (not pictured)
2. Free time activities - this shelving unit turns around so it is not visible to students unless it is free time, and consists of fun learning activities such as blocks, board games and puzzles
3. Sensory bins & fine motor activities - can be chosen when needed
4. Supplies bins - we communally share all supplies in the classroom and encourage everyone to take ownership of their environment, putting things back and keeping the area tidy
2. I've prepared myself as an educator
I had a teacher recommend a book to me at the end of last school year, and over the summer I got the opportunity to read it (Transforming the Difficult Child: Shifting the Intense Child to New Patterns of Success - Strengthening All Children on the Inside - The Nurtured Heart Approach). I tweeted about it, and through the power of twitter and the many educators I have connected with through my PLN, I found a training workshop on it that I attended this week!
Both myself and the Education Assistant (who also bought the book! #PSNDreamTeam anyone?) will be implementing this approach in our class with our students this year. I absolutely love the approach, about bringing energy to the positive and building students' portfolios through recognition.
If you're interested in purchasing the book, Amazon has it and it's only around $30. I would highly recommend it for any age group. The workbook is great too, it consists of information on how to practically implement it in your classroom.
3. I've prepared my families (parents/guardians)
Back in June, I mailed home transition books to every family who was new to my class (which this year is 8 out of 10 total students). Transition books consist of photos and captions of their new school, learning environments (such as the classroom, gym, outside play area, etc), teachers (including myself, the EA, the principal, the office administrators, etc).
This week, I finished off that preparation by personally calling each family in my class (regardless of whether they've been my student before or not). I ask how their summer went, how the student is feeling about coming back to school, and answer any questions they may have.
Why?
1. It helps with "first day jitters" - some of my families aren't sure of the van routines, what to send on the first day, can they drive their child to school on day 1? I'm able to answer all those questions.
2. It gives me a sense of how the student is doing - some students may have had a great summer, but some may have gone through life changes, transitions - the more I know, the more I can prepare for them.
3. It builds that positive relationship with the families - I don't want that first phone call home to be about something unexpected their child did. I want as many positive phone calls home as I can, I want to build that parent-teacher relationship right from the start, so that when those hard conversations do need to happen, they know I'm here to support them and their child and I want the best for their kid.
...and bonus, when you're calling a parent whose child you taught last year and have again this year, and you get to hear how excited they are to come back and see you ("She keeps asking, how much time now until I get to see Ms Amber?"), it warms my heart ♡
Those are my top THREE things I've prepared.
To those who have already started back to school, I hope it is all going well!
To those who start next week - HAVE AN AMAZING YEAR!
Shanker, S. 2013, Pearson Canada Inc (Toronto, Ontario, Canada). Calm, Alert, and Learning: Classroom Strategies for Self-Regulation. ISBN: 978-0-13-292713-0
"It's the most wonderful time of the year..." ♪♪♪
And honestly, it is! Don't get me wrong, I love summer - the time to rest, see friends & family, travel - but I can't control time and September is coming, so I am ready to EMBRACE it and be EXCITED for it.
Here's a little preview into THREE big things I've prepared this week as I get ready for the new school year (which for my school begins on Tuesday, September 3).
1. I've prepared my classroom
I will admit, I'm very lucky to have such a large space. Stuart Shanker, in his book Calm, Alert, and Learning: Classroom Strategies for Self-Regulation writes, "For a number of years, educational programs such as Reggio Emilia have asserted that children concentrate better in a classroom with a reduced number of visual distractors" (p. 12, Shanker). We use this as a guide for the physical set up of the classroom - bulletin boards are painted grey, no clutter, window blinds open for as much natural light as possible and provided calming areas (our cubby area, not seen in this photo, has regular & LED lights to create a calm space to do work or to relax).
I teach a Primary Special Needs class (which only consists of 10 students), so we are able to use the full space by creating different areas for different activities.
Clockwise, starting top left:
1. Our circle time area, with flexible seating options such as wobble chairs, rocking chairs, sit cushions (not pictured) and weighted lizards (not pictured)
2. Free time activities - this shelving unit turns around so it is not visible to students unless it is free time, and consists of fun learning activities such as blocks, board games and puzzles
3. Sensory bins & fine motor activities - can be chosen when needed
4. Supplies bins - we communally share all supplies in the classroom and encourage everyone to take ownership of their environment, putting things back and keeping the area tidy
2. I've prepared myself as an educator
I had a teacher recommend a book to me at the end of last school year, and over the summer I got the opportunity to read it (Transforming the Difficult Child: Shifting the Intense Child to New Patterns of Success - Strengthening All Children on the Inside - The Nurtured Heart Approach). I tweeted about it, and through the power of twitter and the many educators I have connected with through my PLN, I found a training workshop on it that I attended this week!
Both myself and the Education Assistant (who also bought the book! #PSNDreamTeam anyone?) will be implementing this approach in our class with our students this year. I absolutely love the approach, about bringing energy to the positive and building students' portfolios through recognition.
If you're interested in purchasing the book, Amazon has it and it's only around $30. I would highly recommend it for any age group. The workbook is great too, it consists of information on how to practically implement it in your classroom.
3. I've prepared my families (parents/guardians)
Back in June, I mailed home transition books to every family who was new to my class (which this year is 8 out of 10 total students). Transition books consist of photos and captions of their new school, learning environments (such as the classroom, gym, outside play area, etc), teachers (including myself, the EA, the principal, the office administrators, etc).
This week, I finished off that preparation by personally calling each family in my class (regardless of whether they've been my student before or not). I ask how their summer went, how the student is feeling about coming back to school, and answer any questions they may have.
Why?
1. It helps with "first day jitters" - some of my families aren't sure of the van routines, what to send on the first day, can they drive their child to school on day 1? I'm able to answer all those questions.
2. It gives me a sense of how the student is doing - some students may have had a great summer, but some may have gone through life changes, transitions - the more I know, the more I can prepare for them.
3. It builds that positive relationship with the families - I don't want that first phone call home to be about something unexpected their child did. I want as many positive phone calls home as I can, I want to build that parent-teacher relationship right from the start, so that when those hard conversations do need to happen, they know I'm here to support them and their child and I want the best for their kid.
...and bonus, when you're calling a parent whose child you taught last year and have again this year, and you get to hear how excited they are to come back and see you ("She keeps asking, how much time now until I get to see Ms Amber?"), it warms my heart ♡
Those are my top THREE things I've prepared.
To those who have already started back to school, I hope it is all going well!
To those who start next week - HAVE AN AMAZING YEAR!
Shanker, S. 2013, Pearson Canada Inc (Toronto, Ontario, Canada). Calm, Alert, and Learning: Classroom Strategies for Self-Regulation. ISBN: 978-0-13-292713-0
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