There was a buzz at the lockers this morning as some students who had already come into the room returned to share what they had discovered.   I’m sure your children will come home with lots of stories about our school day.

Today, Room 24, conducted lessons as though we were in a traditional classroom.   Our desks were arranged in rows, we all did the same thing at the same time, had the same lessons and read the same story.   All students took bathroom breaks at the same time and went to the drinking fountain at the same time.   After our short break we went outside and the kids ran the track and then we came back in for the rest of our morning lessons.

This morning’s lessons consisted of reviewing our mathematical operations, number forms, reading the real story of Dracula, vocabulary riddles and the children had individual reading time with either NPR or Steck Vaughn.

Some of the children expressed their LOVE for the traditional school day and some expressed their utter distain for the traditional school day.   Most enjoyed the silent work time and order in the classroom and commented that they were better able to concentrate without distractions.

One thing I learned from the experience is, though it is certainly much easier to have every student doing the same thing at the same time, it is not an environment that works for every child.  It became quite apparent who could have been moving much more quickly through the lesson and who needed time beyond that which was available for a particular activity.  Following the child is nearly impossible in a traditional setting and I’m so thankful that I am teaching in a Montessori school where that is the expectation.  While not an easy thing to do with 24 different bodies having 24 different brains with about 240 unique needs, it certainly does work best for the children.

The thing that brought us to the traditional school day were behaviors, related to the freedom that our environment provides.  With all things, there are no absolutes.  Some students make wise choices everyday, some students make wise choices most of the time, and some students need help making wise choices.  With this experience, I hope the students gain an appreciation for the freedom we have in our classroom and an understanding that if the freedom is not used wisely, it will be taken away.

I know that it was quite a surprise for everyone when they walked into the classroom today, but I hope it was a valuable experience as well.

Cheers!

In our classroom we have expectations that must first be met in order to qualify for snack.  Please understand that this is not to withhold snack from your child, but to provide a motivator in order to get basic work done.  If your child is one who relies on this mid-morning mini meal to get through the day, talk with them about remaining productive.   The requirements vary slightly from day to day, but always include bringing their planner and having it signed, completing their DWL, and completing the morning writing practice (when present).   If your child is missing one of these requirements, they will not be allowed to participate in snack.

Here we are the last week of September, nearing the end of normalization, and the students are beginning to settle into a nice morning work cycle.  The goal, of course, is an uninterrupted 3 hour work cycle, and while we aren’t there quite yet, the students are steadily improving their work habits.    As part of the 3 hour work cycle, we have a math and language warm-up worksheet.  Though I’m not a big fan of filling out worksheets, this is important in preparing our students for the kind of language they will encounter on the state exams this spring.  The daily math and language work is also an invaluable tool that I use to assist me in planning what lessons they need.  We have begun checking these for accuracy and they will be returned,weekly, to correct their mistakes.   Please take some time to look over these with your children, it will give you a better idea of their strengths and weaknesses and enable you to share a bit of their school day with them.

In the last blog post I mentioned the importance of practicing math facts with your children at home.  Our fifth grade students have begun making their own multiplication flash cards and you should see these coming home with them nightly.  Please take a few minutes to go over these with your students.  Our 4th level students will begin making these this week and the 6th level students will do them as needed.   In addition to math fact practice, spelling words do come home with your students in their planners.   The students get their words Monday, practice on Tuesday and Wednesday through a variety of activities that they choose for themselves and we have a test on Thursdays.   It is important that you practice with them at home or even on the drive to school.  The ability to spell well will help your children reach their writing goals.

We have had several discussions in our class about what excellence looks like.   Beginning Monday, we will be focusing on handwriting excellence.  If the students do not do their best to write well, they will be asked to rewrite the work and turn it in again.  Though Ms. Kari and I realize this may result in some frustration, please  know it isn’t meant to frustrate your children.  We set the bar high in our classroom and we know what your children are capable of achieving when excellence is expected.

Thank you for supporting our efforts to ensure your children are always striving to perform at their highest levels.

Cheers.