Time flies

It's been particularly quiet on here...because in real-world non-cyber life, it's been absolutely hectic! Hard to believe that there are only about 6 more weeks of term to go.

There have been plenty of highlights to choose from, but here are some of the funnest ones that I managed to snap photos of (I need to get better at photographing activities as we do them..): 

My kids tried doing wet felting for the first time (last term) - it was a bit time-consuming, but the children had so much fun. The 'marbled' look was particularly effective. From these pieces that they made, the students created toys and puppets - very cute. 

Thanks to Raw Art, we created some clay 'African'-inspired masks. Again, something the kids adored thanks to the very hands-on nature of the task! This is the second year I've worked with the staff from the Raw Art company, and they were fantastic as always; very explicit, and came with all their own gear to ensure your classroom remains (mostly) clean by the end of the session. 

 With a local expert who came in and did a great talk on growing fruit and veggies yourself, the class planted some snow peas. With much commitment, the kids ensured the seeds were watered each day and they kept a very keen eye on the peas' growth. Much to their joy (and my quiet relief), plenty of the peas sprouted and the kids could take a plant home over the holidays.

Finally, apologies for the bad photography (there was much to do and see on this day) - but this was a quick snap from our trip to a 'Historical Farm' which took the kids back from 2015 all the way to 1889. We have been learning about family life in the past, and this excursion was great! The kids got their own costumes to wear and were wandering the grounds doing 'old-fashioned' activities, learning about the history of the area, and even got new 'old' names! (Some of my kids got named Pearl, Arthur and Mildred, and were asking if their parents had to call them that once they 'returned to 2015'.)

I hope this term is treating you well! :)
missT

What holidays? (+sheetshare)

So, over here it's the school holidays (HUZZAH!).

Time for a trip on a flying car? 

Courtesy of a creative student...who turned the flower into a propeller. Love it. 

Before term ended, I had several questions from class parents about what they should do with their kids over the break to ensure their kids don't lose everything they'd learnt over the term.

Personally, I think holidays should be for resting, recooperation and relaxation. So when I had to field questions about holiday work, I wasn't certain what to say. Sure, there were a couple of kids whose letters and sounds could benefit from consolidation but equally important was the need for the kids to return to school next term, rested, focused and ready.

Here are some suggestions that I'm sure the well-seasoned parents out there already do. These are mostly if you're around home for a 'stay-cation':

• Trips to the library or a bookstore - encourage the kids to look for their own books
• Reading with a relative - get them to listen to books being read; expands their vocabulary
• Journal entries about each day - writing skills
• Gallery visits - general knowledge/inquisitiveness expanded exponentially
• Day trip to the zoo or aquarium - general knowledge
• Going shopping - can be great for developing numerical awareness
• Cooking - great for building numerical awareness in measurement
• Craft project - like a puppet show (papier mache!), or creating your own book
• Gardening
• Sport in the park
• Junk craft - pick up a whole lot of odds and ends and use your imagination!

SHEET SHARE
If you're looking for something a bit more...directed, possibly in the first few weeks back of term, I also have some very basic number fact cards (click to download!) - nothing fancy, but develop their use into a game/competition with a chart and the kids who adore working with numbers (trust me, they do exist...!). Print on cardstock or paper then laminate, and zip lock/box for repeated use.

Happy holidays!

Back and beginning again

So...this has been an extremely quiet corner of the world for the past...year. Oh dear.

A lot has happened in the past year: not least of which was another job move at the end of term 1 in 2014. I can't believe the whirlwind that it was. Come term 2 of last year, I had been appointed a permanent post which meant up and leaving my happy little classroom and setting up anew.

I ended up teaching grade one, and, thankfully, am back on that grade again this year! Here's a snapshot of where I get to play during term:

For the moment, though, happy easter! Hopefully more posting can happen soon. We'll see - hah. 

classroom arranging

Hello! I'm back. Having survived the onslaught of new faces, new information and getting settled in, I thought I'd quickly share with you the transformation that my little withdrawal room has undergone over the past month.

This is what my room was the first time I saw it:

TIP: Make sure you have (at least) one totally shelf-free wall with nothing stacked up against it - and it will make your room seem like you have oodles more space!!

With much excitement and anticipation, I add a little, change a little and rearrange a lot more of my little space each afternoon as part of my 'wind down' from a busy day at school.

Here's what my space looks like now:

The room still has a bit of a way to go, but with a bit of TLC, colour, desk re-arranging and time, I've quickly come to love the little space that is mine. Bit by bit, and as what we do changes, the wall arrangements will keep being altered, but I love that each afternoon, I have many curious little Kindergarten and Year 1s popping their heads into my room to say hello and see what's changed.

It's a pretty fun workspace :)

New year, new job

So, I know it's been a while since I last posted (last year, to be precise) but summer has been one big thing after another - and this week is no exception! You're now reading the blog of a full-time ESL teacher - crazy times, and very unexpected. It still feels very surreal to me, and today, being the first day, was just this whirlwind of names, faces and discovering my own little classroom, tucked into a corner of the Early Stage One building.

I love it.

I'm still getting over the shock of having a job, and then I have this quiet feeling of apprehension as I list off all the bits and pieces that lie ahead - including meeting parents, programming, decorating my own classroom (!) and finally meeting the kiddiwinks who I'll have the privilege of teaching. I only hope I can meet the challenges to come.

So here's to a new year, a new job and, at long last, a new blog post.

Wheee!

Line and colour

This week, I've been helping with set design for our summer mission team. I've been on this team for the past few years and each year, we have a different 'theme' to decorate to.

This year, it's 'art gallery'/'art studio'.

For the studio part, we have oversized paintbrushes, crayons, paint palettes, paint cans, an easel...

For the art gallery itself, I've had fun designing random canvases (on cardboard, lids mostly - it's cheaper and we're on a budget) to hang up on the walls. If you want to use cardboard, just make sure you prime them with white first - otherwise you'll get holes in your painting, particularly if your cardboard is 'shiny'.

Hopefully I'll be able to show you once everything's up and done on mission, but I thought this particular one might be a fun, relatively quick activity with a class:

All it involved was basic experimentation with patterns and shape (I just started with random circles...and then began patterns around it), then acrylic to fill out the colour patterns...and finally, it was all outlined with permanent marker.

TIP: Make sure your paint is completely dry before you outline it - so you end up with a clear outline, instead of just scratch marks.

I rather enjoyed putting this one together - it was really random to begin with, but the more I look at it, the more it grows on me. I wasn't sure how it would look at first, but it's pretty ok now :)

MissT

Watercolour Weaving

Here's a lesson I did as a casual (or 'sub'), when I was meant to be doing weaving with my Stage 3 (year 5/6) class. This was to be a precursor to them actually doing some wool weaving to create a little mat which would eventually be a bookmark.

This was the first lesson, and I had been told what to do, seen a sample from some other stage teachers...but couldn't find any coloured paper. As they say, necessity is the mother of invention - so we went one step further.

And just quietly, it turned out great :)

Here's a couple of snaps of the weaving half-way through. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to get a picture of the completed products, but that's ok: this gives you a general idea.