A topic on the teachers.net mailring just a while back was about the use of cute gimmicks in the Four Blocks classroom to get the attention of kids and to make learning fun for them---not to mention fun for you! I want to share a few of the ideas that I've gathered along the way and some of the great ideas that were shared by others on the mailring.
Sometimes it's as simple as gathering rocks! This idea comes from Lori Pratt...
"This is a gimmick that my kids love. I have a 'Retelling Rock' (actually I have 5 or 6 for small groups to use). It is just a plain old rock, and the person who is holding the rock does a retelling of the story. When they have said a few things, they pass it on. The rule is that no one but the holder of the rock is allowed to talk, and they can't repeat anything that was said before them. They love this. Today during indoor recess, some of my girls were using the rock to retell the stories they had read in SSR (too funny :-)!"
Lori has another idea, too...
"I have magnifying glasses that my kids can use when reading non-fiction books to get 'up close' looks at captions, diagrams, etc. Makes them feel very 'scientific' I think!"
Expanding on Lori's idea, if magnifying glasses are too expensive or if you want to make your own, this can easily be done. Take some construction paper and cut out the shape of a magnifying glass (might look more like a small hand mirror with a handle). Completely cut and punch out the part that would be the glass. You may want to make several of these---maybe even one per child. Take all of your magnifying glasses to the laminator and send them through. After they're laminated, trim only around the outside of the shape. The laminating film will become the "glass" that kids will look through as they study features of the book. These glasses can also be used during Guided Reading when a purpose is set and you ask kids to "investigate" text in various ways, or during the Self-Selected Reading Conference when you ask a child to find the "evidence" about when or where the story took place, etc.
Gkathazen (Sorry! I'm unsure of a name other than the email prefix!) transforms gardening gloves into something magical for the classroom...
"A successful gadget for my classroom is the pointed finger to use for reading the word wall or the room in general. It is so easy to make and the kids LOVE using it to practice reading all the words in the room. All you need is a pair of gardening gloves (plain or fancy), a dowel, pillow stuffing, glue gun, and a piece of ribbon. Simply fill the glove with pillow stuffing. Stick dowel up to the end of the pointer finger. Use a glue gun to close the wrist of the glove onto dowel. Tie ribbon around the wrist. Fold and glue the thumb and three fingers down toward the palm of glove so that just the pointer finger sticks out. There you go! I made a bunch of these last summer and presented one to all the new teachers at my school. They loved them!"
Another use of the common, inexpensive garden glove is an idea that I got while in San Antonio, Texas, a couple of years ago.
This idea is a way that garden gloves can become 3-D graphic organizers! Take one cloth garden glove (get the plain ones rather than those with patterns or designs). Using permanent markers in different colors, write on the back of the glove, "Give the Story a Hand." On the inside down the fingers, write one of these on each finger, "Events", "Characters", "Setting", "Problem", and "Solution." In the palm of the glove, draw a heart. Above the heart, write "Main Idea" and in the heart write "theme" since that's what's at the heart of the text. The teacher can use these as we use the beach ball to review the basic elements of what the class has read. Also, if you make several of them for your class, each of the "teachers" in your playschool groups can use them to help their small group review the literary elements of the story. These would make great "teacher-friend" or new teacher gifts, too!
Sylvia Ford creates a little magic in the classroom with her assortment of "magic reading sticks"!
Magic reading sticks can be made in an infinite number of ways. Use the chopsticks from your Chinese meal---your unused chopsticks, that is! Dip the ends of the sticks in glitter. You can also use tongue depressors or popsicle sticks dipped in glitter, or packs of multi-colored tongue depressors (different colors for different purposes). These are given to students as purposes are set during Guided Reading Block. An example might be, "You and your partner read and when you come to something in the text that you can picture in your mind, your magic reading stick should stop. That's when you and your partner should stop and share what you see." There are unlimited ways to use these. Kids love it!
Be on the lookout for a microphone this summer that can make your sharing time more successful during Self-Selected Reading, during Writing Blocks and at other appropriate times when students are talking to their classmates. Those voices often tend to be too weak to be heard and that's when the "audience" gets fidgety and inattentive. Placing a microphone in the presenters' hands---even if the mic doesn't amplify---seems to cause the students naturally to project louder. You can get "echo mics" at dollar stores. Or, if you want to make more of an investment, you can purchase a small, inexpensive amplifier system for around $15.00. Your sharing time will only be successful and meaningful if students can hear and respond to what is being shared. Head to your nearest dollar store!
Be sure to refer to the earlier articles about Story Bits (also known now as Souvenirs). After my original article long ago, many teachers pitched in with appropriate bits for a myriad of titles. You've got lots of time if you start right now to gather those bits for special stories next year.
Okay! You may have noticed that this article is entitled "Part I" and that's for a reason! We want to continue to share lots of ideas this summer for gimmicks and gadgets that you can make and purchase to make your Four Blocks classroom more fun in the coming year. You won't want to wait till August to start gathering your materials. Do it little by little now, and when August rolls around, you'll be ready to go!
Enjoy your summer, and read lots of good books! See you back here soon!
Training Opportunities:
Below are seminars (some 1 day and some 2 day ones) that I have coming up in the future. Please know that I have a small group of really excellent folks who work along with me, too. We do site-based work in schools and districts at your request. For their services, you can simply call 843-549-2684 and speak with Cathy Bell or visit her website at www.ergsc.com. We offer various types of staff development: classroom demonstrations, on-site presentations, classroom observations and feedback, and exploring 4-Blocks in more depth, among other offerings.
My seminar presentations:
Indianapolis, IN June 20-21 ERG (Grades 1-3 Intro.)
Milwaukee, WI July 10 SDR
Grand Rapids, MI July 11 SDR
Philadelphia, PA July 16 SDR
Boston, MA July 17 SDR
Newark, NJ July 23 SDR
Dayton, OH August 2 ERG (Grades 1-3 Intro.)
Dayton, OH August 3 ERG (Grades 1-3 Beyond the Basics)
Dayton, OH August 9 ERG (Grades 4-6 Intro.)**
Dayton, OH August 10 ERG (Grades 4-6 Beyond the Basics)
Charleston, SC September 22-23 ERG (Conference/Block Party-Southern Style!)
Kansas City, MO October 25 SDR
Denver, CO October 26 SDR
Lansing, MI November 13 SDR
Springfield, IL November 14 SDR
Silver Springs, MD November 29 SDR
Hartford, CT November 30 SDR
For ERG workshops on 4-Blocks and Building Blocks, call 843-549-2684 or go to www.ergsc.com. For SDR workshops, call 800-678-8908.
Hope to see you at a workshop soon!
**Seminar Note: If you attend a seminar titled, Introduction to Four Blocks, Grades 4-6, please know that "Introduction" at upper grades still means that basics will be covered---not just the adaptations. For upper grade teachers who've had no Four Blocks training, they need---and appreciate---those basics.
Personal Journal:
This week I had a new experience---a police escort out of town after my workshop in Madisonville, Kentucky! Thanks to host Cyndi Boggs, whose husband was my escort in an attempt to get me to a neighboring airport on time for my flight. It worked! Today I worked with a group in Elmira, NY. Hey! It's not supposed to be so hot in upstate NY this time of year! Thanks to Wanda (who got only 5 hours of sleep for meeting me at the airport), Betty for her taxi service to the school and back to the airport, and to Jenny Supple and Pat Monahan for hosting my visit. Some of the Dixie Chicks will be going back to help them get Building Blocks and upper and lower grades' Four Blocks up and running. Exciting things will happen at Riverside next year!
A big "HOORAY!!!" for the teams from the third cycle of the Indiana Statewide Four Blocks Training! They had their graduation ceremony this Monday night and all of them graduated with honors! What a fun celebration they had with the Dixie Chicks---Sylvia F., Sylvia L., DeLinda, and Susan!! I hope you'll all stay in touch to let us know the progress your kids will make next year! Thanks for all of your hard work throughout the training this year!
News from home---I'M GOING TO BE A GRANDMOTHER AGAIN!!!! The second one is due in December, and I can hardly wait! As much as I love the first one, I wonder how I'll have enough love to go around, but...it'll happen, I'm sure! I know I'll love the next equally as much! More news from home---my middle child, Beth, arrived home from her long stay in Chicago. It's so good to have her home. What do those of you do who have children who live far away from you? I hope mine will settle close by!
Looking forward to seeing "the new kids on the blocks" next week in Indianapolis as we have a two-day seminar to get you started for the new school year!
Hope many of you will start making plans to join us in beautiful Charleston, SC, September 22-23 for a Four Blocks conference. Many experienced Four Blocks teachers and consultants will be on hand for sessions of all descriptions---technology and 4-Blocks, conferencing skills, grading/assessment, etc. DeLinda is busy planning the "block party night" that will be a part of the conference. This one is going to be FUN (and, of course, educational!). Sign up as soon as possible since registration will be limited! See www.ergsc.com for details.