Hi! I have a 1/2 Multiage class in Ohio with 22 students who would love to have penpals! We'd prefer snail-mail, but could quickly accommodate email communication. Let me know if you want to get started! Sandy
On 10/12/07, posted on the penpal board but no replies wrote: > 20 students in 2/3 Multiage would like to have penpals from > another 2/3 Multiage. We are all Americans living overseas.
This is my first year teaching and I have a 1st and 2nd grade split. I got my class after the first nine weeks. I am trying to get organized, see where everyone is at, and figure out what to do! If anyone has ANY advice I'd really appreciate it!
Hi! Has anyone ever taught a kindergarten/first grade combo class? I've taught kindergarten for 6 years, but never first grade, and then this year -- pow! I got a combo class. It's been a challenge so far integrating the two sets of standards and managing class time and prep time. I kinda feel like I'm doing twice the work! Any suggestions? Thank you so much!
This summer my teaching partner and I will take time to look deeper at the two curriculums in order to blend them more authentically next year.
What type of multi-age classroom do you hope to create?
On 5/24/08, nancy wrote: > I'd appreciate any advise - I'll have a K-1 class next year. > > On 10/18/07, Lysa wrote: >> Hi! Has anyone ever taught a kindergarten/first grade >> combo class? I've taught kindergarten for 6 years, but >> never first grade, and then this year -- pow! I got a >> combo class. It's been a challenge so far integrating the >> two sets of standards and managing class time and prep >> time. I kinda feel like I'm doing twice the work! Any >> suggestions? Thank you so much!
Hi! I have a quick question...I have recently taken over our school "Spirit Club" (student council) and with that we are looking for new opportunities to promote social/community awareness throughout our school as well as any fun activities or ideas for school wide participation. Is there anything that your school does that you find particularly fun and or interesting (we plan to do the usual food drive but are looking for anything "new") thanks!
Our Student Council sold 'Jeans-Day' passes (at our school the students wear uniforms) - you could adapt to any style of clothing you want I guess. They also sold cookies, collected Teddy Bears, organized dances, and held poster contests.
I would like to start a one room school. Any advise or should I look for an existing school someplace? Also, I would like to do some observations of one room schools. Thanks for any help you can give.
Hi, I've been teaching 4/5 gifed fulltime for 5 years and this year I'm teaching 3-5 fulltime in one class. Any suggestions on how to plan for math and science skills, and so forth? Any ideas would be welcomed. : ) Thanks, Melissa Florida
So if I were teaching, say, time, I would do it all the same day, while having the first grader tell time to the 1/2 hour, and the 2nd graders time problems on their level. Usually my 1st grader caught on and was doing 2nd grade problems, but if he hadn't, then I just made sure to cover what he needed to know by the 1st grade standards.
For SS/Sci., I did a lot of combining with the ages that were close to each other.
I work in a Montessori school and have a 6 year old who intimidates both his peers and the younger children in my room. He is both verbally and physically abusive. The physical side of it is never violent, more like poking, touching others things, mostly annoying. I need to think of consequences for him when these actions happen. My school does not do rewards and punishment. More along the lines of consequences. Does anyone have any ideas of what I can do? Thank you.
On 12/03/07, Anne wrote: > I work in a Montessori school and have a 6 year old who > intimidates both his peers and the younger children in my > room. He is both verbally and physically abusive. The > physical side of it is never violent, more like poking, > touching others things, mostly annoying. > I need to think of consequences for him when these actions > happen. My school does not do rewards and punishment. > More along the lines of consequences. Does anyone have any > ideas of what I can do? Thank you.
Well, the first thing you should have done is contact the parent. Tell the parent about what the kid is doing. Also tell the parent that bullying is not acceptable. It'd be intersting to see how you handle this situation without wavering on your Montessori paradigm.
When diagnosing these things, it is important to start with basic Montessori philosophy. You might have already run through this, but let's begin there anyway. We can also look at how Montessori deals with difficult children.
Lillard's Book "The Science Behind the Genius" outlines 8 principles of Montessori Education. These all carry over into classroom management. It may be that this child is lacking one of them, which will take observation and expirimenting to find out. (All these are found on page 29 of her book, with a discussion that follows it)
"1) That movement and cognition are closely entwined, and movement can enhance thinking and learning."
When we think about movement in the Montessori environment, we are also thinking about getting rid of unecessary movement in the classroom activities. Watch how this student works with the materials. See if he is sloppy in any way. If he is, help him fix that. Help him organize it in his mind. Often times, when control of the materials begins to happen, physical behaviors start to go away. " If he is doing the red rods, is he carrying them with 2 hands? Is he lining them up in the right spot then adjusting them? When doing a US Map, is he quickly taking the pieces out and putting them back in sloppily, or is he taking his time and really focusing on the material? At 6, he might not take much interest in a lot of the practical life activities to build concentration (he might not want to seriously do bead transferring), so be sure to have activities that can build a Kindergartener's concentration as well - such as washing dishes or tables. Observe him in these and help him to organize everything in its proper sequence.
The painting area is fantastic for this too, as he will need to clean up the easle when he is done.
Walking on the line with a bell (that he should try not to ring) or a glass of full water (that he should try not to spill) will help him focus more as well.
"2) that learning and well-being are improved when people have a sense of control over their lives."
It may be that this child does not have a sense of control in his life. Is there some outside factor you are aware of? You said there were some changes, but they were not that big. Never underestimate how much a change can effect a child. He might not have an outlet for it and he's using school as that outlet.
Does he have a sense of control in the classroom? Is he able to teach younger students something? Ask him to show a 3 year old how to do an activity.
"3) That people learn better when they are interested in what they are learning."
What are his interests? Can you delve even into some of the 6-9 lessons to help him understand a material on a different level? I taught some Kindergarteners, who were really good with math, square roots with the stamp game. They loved it. See if there are new things that can be learned with the materials.
"4) That trying extrinsic rewards to an activity, like money for reading or high grades for tests, negatively impacts motivation to engage in that activity when the reward is withdrawn."
You already mentioned that, so I will not comment any further.
"5) That collaborative arrangements can be very conductive to learning."
I touched on this with the control thing. However, does he have someone else he can work with on things? Who are his friends? Try to give two of them a presentation at the same time on a material and see if they do it together. See if his behavior is differnet during that time than other times.
"6) That learning situation in meaningful contexts is often deeper and richer than learning in abstract contexts."
My big comment here, as related to this situation, is how well he understands the concepts it appears he knows. Does he have a concrete understanding of, say, the number 3952?
Chances are, this isn't the main issue since he has been in Montessori for 3 years and has gone from abstract to concrete.
"7) That particular forms of adult interaction are associated with more optimal child outcomes"
I don't have a lot to add to this right now. I will when I write about how Montessori handles these things.
"8) that order in the environment is beneficial to children."
Make sure you have things in their correct order. Make sure your routine is the same every day. Make sure they have the 3 hour uninterrupted work cycle. Make sure you rotate some new materials about once a month to keep things fresh.
Once you are sure that the environment is within those guidelines, my next suggestion would be to see how Montessori handled children that were not behaving with respect.
"We placed a little table in the corner of a room and there, isolating the child, we made him sit in an armchair where he could see all his companions and gave him all the objects he desired. This isolation always succeeded in calming the child. From his position, he could see all his companions and their way of acting was an object lesson in behavior more effective than words of his teacher could have been. Little by little, he came to realize the advantages of being with the others and to desire to act as they did....
"...whenever I came into the room, I would first go straight to him and address him as if he were an infant. Then I would turn to others and interest myself in their work as if they were men. I do not know what happened within the souls of the isolated children, but certainly their conversations were always true and lasting. They became proud of their work and behavior, and they generally retained a tender affection for their teacher and for me." (Discovery of the Child, page 60-61)
What happens in a free environment when you take away freedom of choice? (Not as a punitive system, but just as a natural cosequence for children that cannot make good choices in their freedom?) The answer is the child wants that choice again. The child wants to be able to move through the room, work with others, and choose for themselves. They do not like being dependant on you to get the work for them...they want to get the work themselves.
The key to this is consistency. If you see him poking others again, you step in right away and move him back to that table. He must at least complete one work before he can join again.
He won't like being watched and he won't like the limit of his freedom. He will make adjustments in time, but Spring of his final year, it may be difficult to see a lasting change.
I want to point out one thing you said, and I hope this was just poorly worded.
"He never was a wonderful child,"
Even if it was poorly worded, be sure to really think about your frustration level with this child. Remember that all the children you have are wonderful children.
My mom gave a talk at a school I was working at last year. She said that you can have (in theory, of course...and just to prove her point) 50 years of teaching where there were no children that caused problems. Everyone comes in, they all hang up their coat on their first day...essentially, it looks like the "Leave it to Beaver" version of Montessori. On your 50th year, you will have that child that is out of control. He doesn't listen to you, he doesn't want to put his work away, he disrupts others while they are working, and you pull your hair out. Remember this, though. That one child is what makes you a good teacher.
I promise if you help this child improve, you will think back as this being one of those students you absolutely adored.
For more information on dealing with difficult children in a Montessori classroom, take a look at this book:
[link removed]
It's called "Children Who Are Not Yet Peaceful" by Donna Goertz, an AMI teacher out of Texas. It takes a different stance at viewing children who are behaving how we would normally expect.
Let me know if I can help in any other way.
Matt
On 12/03/07, Anne wrote: > A few things: > > In a Montessori classroom, children do not have desks and the > freedom to work where ever. I can change that for him though. > > I have had this boy in my class since he was 3. (A montessori > class had 3 to 6 year olds that stay with the same teacher) He > never was a wonderful child, but this spring his behavior > escalated. He became more of a bully instead of just difficult > to work with. I know he has had some changes in his life this > year. Not huge, but still they have affected him. > > At the private school I am at, we don't have access to > counselors and such. And I was told I needed to do something > about this child, so my class could be more peaceful. The > answer to that, I am not sure of. > > Thank you for your help!
our lower el team is in the process of revising our progress reports - an enormous task to be sure. we are not all in concensus about criteria or how to make sure that it represents the first/second/third year students in our classes, frankly it is turning into a bit of a debate. does anyone have advice? any report templates that you'd be willing to share? has anyone else come up with a report from scratch?
Hi! Yes, I made my own progress report a few years ago and tweek it a bit each year. It contains a key that marks students at 3 different levels. Essentially they are: "i do it", "i'm working on it" and "i still need help with this". Academic areas are listed as well as center and work skills. In academic areas, students are marked in making satisfactory progress, gets work done on time and applying effort. Probably organizes materials, works to the best of their ability and is self motivated are my most important items on the skills chart. I also list DRA level and guided reading level attained.
On 12/06/07, cherrylife wrote: > hi all~ > > our lower el team is in the process of revising our > progress reports - an enormous task to be sure. we are not > all in concensus about criteria or how to make sure that it > represents the first/second/third year students in our > classes, frankly it is turning into a > bit of a debate. does anyone have advice? any report > templates that you'd be willing to share? has anyone else > come up with a report from scratch? > > cheers in advance!
I am considering taking a combined 3rd/4th classroom with 16 students. Since this is not really the best combination anyhow, I would like some suggestions and/or resources on how to be successful with this situation. I did do my student teaching in 4th but I've never had any experience with a combined classroom.
How do you handle the lower kids in your class??? Often the older kids in my class are the lower kids as well. Our school has (K/1) (1/2) (2/3) etc. so there is always some overlap and often the older kids are the ones who need more time to develop their skills.
In my 2/3 class the some 3rd graders are always lower. I also have high kids, so my range in curriculum could really go from 1st-4th grade. In any case, I worry about the kids who are always the oldest, because in reading groups and in math, they are almost always in the lower groups as well. This means they are functioning a year behind all the time. I have a girl right now who is doing 2nd grade math and struggling with that as a 3rd grader. I imagine next year she will be in a 3/4 and placed in a 3rd grade math group. In 5th grade she could be in a 4th grade math group? So she will never get 5th grade math??? My groups are homogenous in terms of ability but mixed age. I have 2 third graders doing second grade math, but also have 3 second graders doing the third.
Do we just assume in middle school she will also be remediated? Do you hold all your students to grade level standards or meet them where they are at? I fully believe in meeting where they are at, but if they are always falling short of grade level standards, what do you do?
On the same note, the kids who are always a grade ahead, by fifth grade will have to repeat 5th grade math again, as our school does not have 6th grade... this is a quandry(sp) to be about teaching mixed age classes.
Hi! I have a 1/2 Multiage class in Ohio with 22 students who
would love to have penpals! We'd prefer snail-mail, but
could quickly accommodate email communication. Let me
know if you want to get started! Sandy
On 10/12/07, posted on the penpal board but no replies wrote:
> 20 students in 2/3 Mul...See More