poetry and puzzles

Today I taught my first whole group lesson. I introduced a specific type of poetry that is primarily description and changed everything up as I went. I can't stand writing lesson plans of much more than an annotated, one-page document. I think too quickly and change too much to have the extra work be worthwhile at all.

Each student contributed one or two ideas relating to one of the following prompts:

What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
What toppings do you like?
How does eating ice cream make you feel?
What does ice cream taste like, look like, smell like, feel like?
With whom and where do you eat ice cream?
Anything else about ice cream you'd like to contribute.

21 students answered and we came up with a chart using the alphaboxes poster and a whiteboard marker. We had more than 50 ideas, ranging from various flavors and toppings, to bowls, cones, ice cream sandwiches and cakes and even "one morning my dad woke me up and we went to go get ice cream." Everything was written and students followed directions well.

By the time each student contributed, it was time for lunch. I closed the lesson by informing students that I would take our ideas and turn it into a poem we could read aloud later in the afternoon.

I typed up the poem and ideas in a format, careful to include everyone's contribution in some way. Before reading aloud, I posted the poem up on the screen for students to look at. I asked for students to raise their hands and tell me if they saw their contribution somewhere in the poem. One student found "cookies and cream" and another found their mention of ice cream being "sticky and tasty."

After this, which acted as a quick, informal reading assessment in a way as well as a check for understanding that they saw the relation between brainstorming ideas and writing a poem, I read the poem aloud.

A boy then raised his hand in dismay. "You didn't include my idea about getting a brainfreeze," he said. I realized that somehow I had overlooked this, and apologized. Instead of moving on, I decided and prompted the student by asking him where we could add in his idea to our existing poem. Thus began a live editing process of about 10 minutes. Students shared new ideas to add as well as changing existing lines. It was really surprising and neat to see a group of second graders be able to self-reflect and improve on their work. This skill and strategy is not practiced anywhere else during the day, so I was not expecting the results I received in such capable abilities to participate.

In fact, most of our day previously had been spent practicing walking the hallways, stopping at each corner, strictly in our line order. Later, we practiced lining up in line order, and being dismissed to our seats in certain order of behavior-reward model. Again, we practiced sitting down in the front for instruction, also in a seating arrangement. It was very odd and a definite adjustment to shift my focus from observing, assisting, and teaching to correcting behavior. We didn't have these rules and orders on Monday when I was there for a full day last, and something happened throughout the week that caused a major shift in rules and procedures to take place starting on Thursday. Today, as Friday, there was still much practice to be done. It was sad to watch the quiet students and those well behaved have to practice again and again because about one third of the class was not doing a proficient job. I really can't stand group mentality and consequences resulting in few misbehavior. I don't know a good way around this, but group consequence when paired with the discouragement of commenting on a peer's demeanor doesn't make sense. If I were a student and were to be held accountable for my peer's behavior, I would think it would be partially my responsibility to keep my peers in line (literally, in some cases). Asking a peer to be quiet in line or to stop doing one action or another is frowned upon, all well-behaved must suffer.

My deepest empathy and sympathies for the few amongst the whole.

Amidst everything of a very long day of repeated directions, a girl raised her hand toward the end of my poetry lesson during the group editing portion (The group editing idea just occurred, it was not part of the lesson plan). I called on her and she said she was excited to go home and write a poem of her own because this lesson was fun and made sense and she wanted to create something.

I inspired someone today. She is seven and that makes a world more of a difference than a lot of other things I could be doing with my life.

Also, we did math puzzles today. The two boys who need extensions in well, everything, were given them first and the more outspoken and extroverted one managed to complete it toward the end of the day. I'm sure the other boy will get an answer eventually as the puzzle is far more about perseverance and creative thinking rather than mathematical skill. Some other students of level I am unaware were interested in what the boys were working on so I took it upon myself to draw puzzles and explain the directions to anyone interested. By the end of the day, I had about eight students of the 21 working on puzzles, trying to make numbers fit together and not touch each other. Twas a delight to see problem solving in progress. I encouraged each student to take the puzzle home and have their parents assist them, because most adults have less patience than a child with these sorts of things.

Just Starting Out...

I'm currently gathering resources and trying to prepare for student teaching in only a few weeks. I will be student teaching second grade part-time with a mentor teacher beginning August 13th and in the spring I will be student teaching full-time in a fifth grade classroom. I am excited for my last year of school and experience before setting out to find my own classroom and teaching opportunities. This blog is to document and reflect on my experiences, post lesson plans and other fun ideas I have or learn about from others.