Franklin County Whole Child

I'm Not.

2011-07-26T11:02:00.006-04:00

Did you ever admire the traits of a friend while, dismissing your own good qualities? "I'm Not." by Pam Smallcomb is the perfect reminder that we all have something to contribute to a relationship. I'm sure you can think of one friend who is almost perfect. You know the ones who always are doing the things we wish we could do or whose hair is always in place. The character in this story has just such a friend. Evelyn is so good at so many things. She is not ordinary, she is a little mysterious, and she is a snappy dresser. The one thing Evelyn needs is a best friend. Our character in the story soon realizes there are many things she can do that Evelyn cannot and most importantly she knows she can be Evelyn's best friend.

"I'm Not." is full of many endearing and humorous illustrations, but the thing I like best is that some of the characteristics that are envied may not always be positive. Evelyn gets in trouble at school by making a statue of the principal from bubble gum. Her friend ignores the negative and notes that Evelyn is a good artist. Friends do that sometimes, focusing on the positive in a friend rather than criticizing. I think this opens the way for some thoughtful discussions.

Both my 3 year old and 7 year old grandson enjoyed this story. I'm sure the youngest did not get all of the meaning, but he laughed at the pictures and asked for it to be read again. When I changed Evelyn's name to the name of his brother, he almost immediately asked if the other character was Noble, his brother's best friend. This told me that he understood the relationship of the characters. Because there is so much to see in the pictures, it is best shared one on one or in small groups.

A valuable follow up activity would be to pair children with others and have make their own book. It would be a great way for a new group of 1st graders to get to know each other. Take some time each day to make a page with a new friend. They would all learn positive things about classmates and themselves. For younger children you might want to concentrate on each child's positive attributes. You could also do it in relationship with a parent. "Mommy is a great reader. I'm not." You could talk about how things change and that they too will be a great reader one day. They may even discover some things they are great at, which grown-ups aren't. That is always fun for kids!

No One But You

2011-06-22T06:12:00.004-04:00

Two new books, No One But You by Douglas Wood and illustrated by P.J. Lynch and What's Special About Me, Mama? by Kristina Evans and illustrated by Javaka Steptoe are beautiful books which help children understand their own uniqueness.

Just as the child in What's Special About Me, Mama? I remember wondering what people meant when they said someone was special. The mother in the story first replies to the child's question, that it is the child's eyes, but the child notes his eyes are just like her eyes. The story goes on this way until the mother tells the child that he is loved more than anybody in the whole wild world by her.

No One But You starts by encouraging children to experience life for themselves, stating that some of the best things cannot be taught, but must discovered. It is almost impossible to convey how the ocean feels and sounds without the experience of walking along the shore. As you continue to read, you begin see that the the book also celebrates and identifies each person's "specialness" in the distinctiveness of our experiences. Just as no one else is reading this blog, at this exact moment, in the same place with the same past experiences, no child experiences events in quite the same way. I will never forget the experience of standing beside the huge redwood trees in California and the sense of awe which overcame me. While many others may have experienced a similar feeling, our experiences are slightly different, because of who we are and where we have been. This is a main message that comes through in this beautifully illustrated picture book.

I truly think this is the best children's book I have ever read, that helps children understand what makes each person so unique and special. While many of the pictures are of younger children, this book is appropriate for children from older 3s through 12.

After reading this book, children might want to draw or talk about some of their memories. It would be a good introduction for encouraging self reflection or starting a diary. Children may want to focus, as the book does, on the discoveries made in nature, but they could also decide to write about the people they meet each day and reflect on those influences.

Younger children can make discovery journals simply by drawing a picture of something they discovered that day. This would be a great start to help them build a habit of appreciating the small everyday, wonders in the world. In our fast paced, technology world, even small children need reminders to stop and smell the roses.

Wearing Glasses

2011-06-22T05:24:00.004-04:00

I still remember getting my first pair of glasses. Finding out your eyes don't work quite as well as others is sometimes the first time you realize you are just a little different. As a teacher, children often ask me why I wear glasses. When I explain that my eyes don't work as well as they could, the children automatically assume that I can't see at all without my glasses.

Floyd Stokes has written the book, My Glasses, to help children understand more about glasses. The simple text makes it an easy read aloud for younger children, but there are some facts scattered throughout that will help hold the attention of children through first grade.

Reading My Glasses will help children feel good about wearing glasses. Hopefully it will help others understand and accept differences in their friends, as they learn more about glasses. After a discussion of how a person with glasses is still the same as before getting glasses, children could each design and model a pair of paper or chenille stem glasses. Applause and appreciation for the "new looks" could be expressed, giving everyone get a self esteem boost. An alternative suggestion is to make a college of faces of people wearing glasses.

It is Just a Picture Book

2011-05-15T06:01:00.003-04:00

I went to a library conference last weekend and was so excited to discover another adult who loves children's books as much as I do. When people ask me my favorite books, my mind automatically goes to picture books for children. So much can be said in the pictures and few words of these short books.

Yoko's Show and Tell by Rosemary Wells certainly fits that category. Children familiar with, and new to Yoko stories will be able to relate to the emotions in this story. Yoko receives a doll from her grandmother and then, ignoring her mother’s words takes it to school for Show and Tell. The antique Japanese doll is all but ruined. In this story Yoko goes through emotions of elation, fear, regret, sadness and more. It’s hard to imagine a child who will not emotionally related to this story in some way.

The follow ups to reading this book are numerous. Children can tell their own stories of a time when they experienced the emotions in the book. They could make emotion posters or create class books about how to help others who feel sad. Some teachers may want focus on problem solving with children as they discuss the bullies who mistreat Yoko’s prized possession.Others may have classes who need to learn to identify emotions in others. These teachers could take photos of children in their class expressing different emotions and use them in a matching game. Adults might also help children learn about others by spending some time discovering words others use for their grandparents. At the front of the book there is information on Japanese Boy’s Day and Girl’s Day celebrations. This would be a wonderful book to include in any discussion of celebrations. It can sometimes be challenging to teach children about other countries without doing falling into using stereotypes, but books such as the Yoko books place that learning in context. Last but not least, it is a great book to teach about the concept of a story, there is a problem and a solution, and a clear beginning, middle, and end.

Let's Try Something New!

2011-05-15T05:57:00.002-04:00

While some children can’t wait to try new things, others shy away. In both cases learning about the situation beforehand makes children more confident. New experiences, even those to which we look forward can be a scary. For some children that fear keeps them from even trying, for others it sets in right in the middle of the experience.

Little Critter Sleeps Over by Mercer Mayer gives adults a good opportunity to casually introduce and discuss new experiences. It is a short fun book, but packed with lots of learning opportunities, even for those not going on a sleepover anytime soon. After reading the story, children could draw pictures of their own house and Kidwrite about what kinds of things they do for fun. Sharing these in small groups will give children a comfortable topic to share, while teaching others about the differences and similarities in homes. Teachers may want to extend this to a “sleepover” day when children wear their sleep clothes and bring a stuffed animal. Others teachers may find that inviting another class for a “play date” or “tea party” is the perfect learning activity for their group to practice manners and learning about others. Role playing situations move l earning from an auditory experience to a kinesthetic one.

Two Feel Good Stories

2011-01-02T17:56:00.002-05:00

Bernice recently shared two stories which I call feel good books. The first is And I Love You by Ruth Krauss and Steven Kellogg. As the inside cover states, the book, "celebrates the loves between a parent and a child." The verse is simple and it would be fun to continue the pattern of the book and think of other examples of big things which love little things. This would be a great bedtime story, but would also be a wonderful story for caregivers to read before nap time.

The other book Bernice shared has a little suspense to it. In Anita Lobel's book Nina Lost and Found, a house cat slips out the door to explore the world. As she does, day becomes night and what seemed so pleasant is now frightening. When Nina hears her owners calling she overcomes her fears and runs as quickly as she can back to her home.

Most children like a little suspense in stories and enjoy the sense of relief when things turn out ok. I think it must help them build a sense of security and help them get through small insecure times in their life. The more examples we have of things turning out okay, the more positive our attitudes will be.

Over the holidays, my grandson told me there are yellow feelings and black feelings. He went on to explain, if you have those positive yellow feelings, things often turn out better for you. I asked how he knew this. He told me there were signs about it in his school. Sounds like they ware trying to build positive outlooks. For me, I just like knowing that Nina survived her adventure and made it back home safely.

What's That Sound?

2011-01-02T17:17:00.001-05:00

If you are like me, you sometimes worry about all the things that might happen. Occasionally I even worried about things before I even know what I am really worrying about. If you take time to listen to children, you will find out that some of them do the same thing. A little boy once told me an elaborate plan about what he would do should he be left behind in the classroom. I know he was just trying to find a way to deal with his fear. I was glad he shared his worry with me. I explained all the safeguards teachers use to make sure that doesn’t happen.

Author Norbert Landa and illustrator Tim Warnes might say that this little guy was making a monster out of a mouse. In The Great Monster Hunt, Duck hears a noise coming from under his bed. He is so afraid; he can’t even look to see what is making the sound. His does tell his friend Pig about the problem, but instead of investigating Pig goes to get help from Bear. Unfortunately, as Pig tells bear about the problem, the sound coming from the bed is exaggerated. This sequence of events continues through a number of animals until the sound is not a tiny one, but a great bog one. The animals are sure there must be a monster under the bed. They come up with a plan to help Duck, but in the end they realize they made a monster out of a mouse.

I think teachers need to take more time to listen to children and discover the things that worry them. Small groups of children seem to work best for this kind of discussion. Some children won’t speak until they have heard others share their thoughts, but large groups are often too intimidating for quieter children. I think it also helps for adults to talk about things which worry them and to discuss how they handle their fears. Reading The Great Monster Hunt would be a good conclusion to such a discussion. It could help children to see that it is better to first find out if there really is something to worry about.

I'm Best

2010-10-10T14:33:00.002-04:00

It is always a challenge to find the right balance, between helping a child feel good about him or herself and having him or her feel better than others. Two books that broach this topic are I’m the Best by Lucy Cousins and I’m Number One by Michael Rosen and Bob Graham. While both books send the same message, I‘m the Best is less wordy and more to the point. We all want children to feel good out themselves, but not at the expense of others. It seems there is always one child in a class who feels a little too empowered or becomes a little too bossy. Point out to the bossy child that you like that they share their ideas and organize play, but that they also need to listen to others ideas. Plan some cooperative games and place some cooperative toys in the classroom. You could have children make cooperative pictures or draw each other with child. Try having the children give each other compliments and make books about all the good things about every child in the room. Having a class full of children with positive self-esteem is something I wish for all of us.

2010-10-10T13:12:00.002-04:00

I love reading new children's books! You can find a book on just about any topic. Bernice recently shared a few that would be appropriate for parents to read to their children. You might want to recommend the first book to anyone expecting a child. "There's Going To Be a Baby" by John Burningham and Helen Oxenbury would help children understand what it means when they are told a new baby is on the way. The book takes the older child's perspective and answers some of the many questions that come up. I especially like that as the mom talks about what the baby might do in the future, the child imagines how a baby might look as a doctor or an artist. The real value is the the way the book addresses the feelings a child might have, but ends on a positive note. Reading and rereading the book will help children with the long wait and help them look forward to being a big brother or sister.

"Growing Strong" by Christina Goodlings and Masumi Furukawa is a book to help children learn about taking care of themselves. The book is divided into short sections which discuss everything from being healthy and fit to accepting ones self. Hearing these messages at a young age help children develop good health habits which will start them off right for a healthy lifestyle. It is never too soon to teach your child how to take care of him or herself and don't forget children will learn best by watching what adults do.

Saving Money

2010-10-02T18:00:00.003-04:00

I was very pleased to see the new book, Just Saving My Money by Mercer Mayer. Bernice, at the Franklin County Library System, sent me the book for this blog. At first, you may wonder what a book about money has to do with social emotional skills but saving money is the ability to delay gratification. It has to do with impulse control and we all know how important that can be. As pleased as I was about the social- emotional aspect, I was excited to find an age appropriate book which addresses PA Early Learning Standard 6.5 -Work and Earnings. I haven't found too many that are appropriate for preschool children, but this one fits the bill.

There are many ways to use this book in the classroom. Some teachers like to give reward points, tokens, or hearts to the class for good behavior. This book would be perfect for a discussion of what kind of reward the children would like to have when they reach the goal or target. It would also go along with a class saving pennies for a community project. Your class might want to save their pennies to donate book to the local library, buy a gift for the cafeteria workers, or the residents of a local nursing home. Of course, you could just use the book to teach about money and banks. Even though children will only to able to have a beginning understanding, a field trip to a local bank could be a good learning experience. With ATMs and direct deposits, many children may never have been inside a bank.

Push Button

2010-08-14T06:52:00.003-04:00

We can always count on Aliki to write quality literature. In her new book, Push Button, the Push Button Kid spends his time pushing the many buttons in his world, but then his finger gets sore and he turns to books. As he reads, his creativity comes to life and he decides to do some of the things he read about. The book will come to life and capture children's interest when you get the children involved in making the sounds and doing the actions.

Children love to push buttons and see what happens. It is part of investigating the world, but it is only one part. The book helps children extend what is read and put it into action.

In the classroom, there are a number of ways to use the book to teach social emotional skills, depending on your objective. Sometimes I have children who can't seem to settle into an activity. They go from center to center touching this or that, but never really engage in play. This would be a good teaching tool, to help them make a plan of what they would like to do at center time. I would ask children to pick an activity they would like to try and then help them become engaged in the activity, possibly with another child. Sometimes children don't know how to play together. If an adult identifies another child who wants to do a similar activity, the children have a better chance at successful interaction. At circle time, I might note that billy wants to build in blocks. I would ask him what he plans to build and then ask if others wanted to do the same. When the children arrive at the block center, they have a common goal.

I might also use the book to encourage children who seem stuck in one activity to use the ideas from the book, to try out something new.

At other times, I might just use the book to help the children see the wonder of themselves and all the things they can do and the sounds they can make!

Enjoy!

I Can Be Anything

2010-08-11T17:05:00.002-04:00

If you are like me, you are probably thinking that this is another book about all the careers a child can choose, when he or she grows up. I Can Be Anything by Jerry Spinelli and illustrated by Jimmy Liao is much more relevant to a young child's life. Some of the choices in this beautifully illustrated book are dandelion blower and puppy dog holder. Children will build a positive self concept as they come up with ideas about all the things they can be an do. In the end, the important message is that we don't have to choose to be just one thing, we can do anything. Short, simple, easy to understand, and should be a part of every classroom!

All Dolled Up

2010-08-11T16:31:00.002-04:00

Brownie and Pearl Get Dolled Up is a story by Cynthia Rylant with pictures by Brian Biggs. This fun book is all about a little girl and her pup, who dress up, just for the fun of it. Most of us feel better when we dress up in our fancy clothes. It is a great way to spend a some time when you and the children are stuck indoors-of course it is fun to go outside and show your fancy clothes too.

While my first thought, was that this is a "girl" book, there is no reason boys couldn't relate and have fun dressing up too. In most cultures, there are special times when dressing up is the norm, but there may be some families one parent or the other may not dress up very much, so this is a great topic to discuss. Why do adults dress up and where do they go? What does dressing up look like? How do you feel when you dress up?

Pretending is such an important activity for children. I often bring up the topic of of "dressing up" when I discuss celebrations. I provide lots of different fancy outfits and encourage them to try them on. This helps them understand and act familiar situations. Pretending to leave the kids for the evening is a great social-emotional experience which helps children deal with separation. Extend it even more and help your children plan a tea party for another classroom. Encourage everyone to dress up and don't forget to discuss that people are sometimes a little nervous or excited when they have special dress up events. Another idea is to set up a photography studio in the pretend center and let children pretend they are going to have their picture taken. So many rich social-emotional and language learning opportunities. Use your own ideas, but don't forget to start with the book, Brownie and Pearl Get Dolled Up.

"Max and the Dumb Flower Picture"

2010-07-19T06:42:00.002-04:00

This delightful book was created from a manuscript and drawings by Martha Alexander, with the help of James Rumford. It should be required reading for every early childhood teacher. Children will enjoy it too. The story is about a boy who wants to make his own picture, rather that using the coloring sheet given by his teacher. The book clearly sends the message that when each of us uses our own ideas and creativity, the results are amazing. It is also a good reminder that there is often more than one right way to do things and to appreciate the talents of others.

Even though the little boy in the story does run away from the classroom, which is not a positive model, it can also be used as a teaching tool for children to use words to say what they want.

By encouraging even young children to make their own pictures, they can learn to appreciate their own work, as well as the work of others.

"Maybe a Bear Ate It!"

2010-07-19T06:39:00.000-04:00

My two year old grandson loves this book and so do I. This short simple book by Robie H. Harris and Michael Emberley is a story about losing a favorite book, imagining the worst, coming to your senses, looking for it, and eventually finding it. This series of events happens to me about once a day and I've learned to handle it, but when a child loses a prized possession, it may seem the world is ending. Read the story with 2-5 year olds, laugh together and teach a simple lesson about looking before you panic!

Looking Like Me

2010-04-18T07:13:00.005-04:00

Looking Like Me by Walter Dean Myers and illustrated by Christopher Myers is a great book which will promote self esteem and build respect for others. In this book, which is more poetry than prose, we learn about a young black boy, who is looking for his identity. The boy in this story finds that he is a son, a brother, a talker, a dancer, a city kid and more. Children will quickly catch on to the rhythm of the words which will help to grab their attention and keep them interested.

This book is especially appealing because it has something for 3 year olds and up. Younger children will learn about relationships and that they can have more than one identity, while older ones will begin to see than what is apparent at first impression. The story encourages children to find out more about themselves and others. Help each child create journal about themselves. Children can add to these as their identities and relationships change. You just may start a life long habit of appreciating themselves.

Sharing

2010-04-18T06:20:00.003-04:00

Should you make another child share? As I write that sentence, I realize what a silly phase it is to say, "make a child share." You can seldom make a child share. You can take a toy from him or her which teaches that it is OK to take things from others or you can prod, coax, and distract them until they give in to the request. Neither of which promotes the concept we want to teach. So take a moment and define what sharing means to you. Should children be made to share? Would you like it, if you had just started to build an elaborate building and someone told you to share? Do you share your favorite pen?

As a child, I remember hiding some of my prized possessions when certain children would come to visit. Why? I knew they tended to break toys and if I wanted to have my things for another day, I couldn't let these individuals, see them. Was my mother wrong to allow this? I don't think so.

While I don't have the answer to the sharing question, Bernice and the Franklin County Library System has provided us with a great book to encourage sharing. Mine, All Mine! by Claire Hawcock and Chiara Pasqualotto is the story a little squirrel who doesn't want to share his snowflake. Children will love the raised snowflakes in the book. Anyone who has trouble sharing will relate to Little squirrel's dilemma of keeping the snowflake to himself or playing with others. Use this story to get children talking about sharing. Sometimes we spend so much time creating rules, settling problems, we forget to see what thoughts the children have on the topic.

The Story Blanket

2010-03-14T18:59:00.002-04:00

The Story Blanket may be one of my new favorites. It is too long and may be a little abstract for the youngest children, but older children will begin to understand how the people of the town care for each other. Babba Zarrah, the main character has a story blanket which she unravels little by little to make gifts for the people of the village. When all of her yarn is gone and she no longer has a blanket the people of the town find a way to give back to Babba and this circular story begins again.

There are several underlining directions you could go with this story. You may want to talk about how the people of town care for each other and give of them selves. You could also focus on the concept of working together. Children may want to find someone they can help by each of them giving just a little of themselves. Each child may want to donate a square of cloth and make a quilt for someone.

I also like that Babba Zarrah, says, "Every question has an answer." This attitude of "I can find a solution to the problem" is so important for building resilient children.

You might want to follow up with a reading of Joseph Had a Little Overcoat, in which the main character makes various pieces of clothing from an old overcoat. Children could discuss similarities of the two stories.

Momma Loves Her Little Son

2010-03-14T18:40:00.002-04:00

John Carter Cash created this story based on words his mother sang to him as a child. Mary Burckhardt illustrated this beautiful book about a mother's love for her son. The more I learn the better I understand that one of the powerful elements of reading a book is the relationship building aspect. This book is perfect for building that relationship. Children who hear this book read will certainly associate a positive feeling with reading and books.

This is a great story to read anytime of the day, but especially at bedtime. During or after the story imagine all the things you and your child could do together or ways to express your love for each other. You may even make your own book to illustrate your love.

While a little wordy for a newborn, this book could be a great gift for someone with a new baby. How wonderful to grow up hearing the message of this book repeated over and over as a child grows.

All of Me

2010-01-02T20:42:00.004-05:00

All of Me, a Book of Thanks, by Molly Bang is another book with great illustrations and a book which will help children build self awareness and an appreciation of themselves and their bodies. A great book to use with an All About Me theme, you could easily have children follow up with a book about themselves. Take time to make a page or two each day. You could work on this for two weeks or so, especially if take time to provide different art materials for illustrations.

The back of the book even has a section on how the book was made. I like this because, as the children hear you read the text about creating books, the children will learn about being more intentional in their work. The author talks about using red crayons. Use that to have the children think about what color (s) they will use, before starting to draw. Teaching children to stop and think before taking action is a skill that has many applications.

How Do Dinosaurs Say I Love You?

2010-01-02T20:34:00.003-05:00

Most adults who read to children are familar with the work of Jane Yolen and Mark Teague, but How Do Dinosaurs Say I Love You? may well be my favorite. The dinosaurs in the story do some common child behaviors, but the simple message is that they are still loved. It is a great book for every child to hear. For a follow up, give each child a great big hug! If you want to do someething more, have the children make a book of how they say they love people.

Quiet Bunny

2010-01-02T20:05:00.002-05:00

Quiet Bunny by Lisa McCue would be worth picking up, if only for the beautiful illustrations. But there is much more to it, as a small rabbit tries to find his voice. He listens to the other animals and tries to makes sounds as they do. Eventually he discovers how he too can join in the with the "night sound" song. The story conveys the advantages of being still and listening, as well as the the value and uniqueness of individuals. It is a feel good story with a pleasing ending.

After reading the story have children talk about the things they can do. Drawing self portraits would also be a good follow up. It might also be valuable to have the children go outdoors and simply be quiet, using their senses to observe the environment. Many children need to be taught to slow down and observe. It just doesn't come naturally to them, but they may find pleasure and comfort in the experience. Just as many adults find sitting quietly in the outdoors or listening to a water feature refreshing, with practice some children may learn to use this as a calming technique.

While the text is a little long for the youngest children, the story line is perfect for them and could easily be shorten. Helping these young children pretend to be a quiet bunny, even if only for a few minutes, is worth the time and it just might be the quiet break you need too!

Lessons from the Best Teachers

2010-01-01T14:38:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year!

Since starting my new position, I have not kept up with my writing, as I had hoped I would. If all works out, I will be sharing some good new books with you soon. What I have been able to do is gain an even greater respect for all of you who are in the classroom day after day dealing with the challenging behaviors of the children in your class. What a great learning experience this has been. While I spend some days observing, I spend other days working with teachers and children.

So what have the best teachers taught me?

Have realistic expectations. Think about the child’s previous environment and his current home environment. My grandson, who is days from being 2, spent much of the holiday with me. His daily routine is so different from the routines in our classrooms. He has one on one attention almost all day long. He is almost constantly engaged with an adult or his brother. Someone always responds to his words, always cheers his successes and helps him when things don’t work out quite right. He takes as long as he wants to eat and if he is hungry an hour later, he gets more food. He goes from toy to toy and we accept that as being ok. We expect him to get a little grouchy when he is tired and plan accordingly. And yes, he is only two, but some of the children in our classrooms are only three and their needs are not that different.

Have positive expectations. Don’t underestimate the children and don’t expect the worst from them. Give children many chances to show what they can do. Find ways to help them be successful. Remember success breeds success.

Engage the children. Don’t worry about all the things you think you need to teach. It will not matter if the children in your class don’t know the days of the week It is much better that they are all engaged in the activity or the story. When children are engaged they are learning about more than just the topic. They are learning how to function appropriately in a group. When they are not engaged they are learning about getting attention from the teacher for their “misbehavior.” They are learning to associate a negative feeling with school and group times. Again, successful, correct behaviors will build more positive behaviors.

Pick your priorities and along with that say what you mean and mean what you say. Figure out what is important to you and then if you say it, follow through, otherwise your words becoming meaningless. Take time to see that the child does as you ask.

So give yourself a pat on the back, the job you have is far from easy. You need to be constantly aware, constantly thinking ahead, and always positive. You are remarkable individuals whose work is so very important.

Take Good Care of Your Teeth

2009-10-17T14:35:00.002-04:00

Part of social-emotional growth is having a good self concept. Part of that positive image comes from taking care of yourself. While this is easy for some children, others tend to have little interest in brushing teeth and combing hair. While browsing the library shelves, I noticed a book about tooth care that was very different from what you ordinarily find. In this book, children learn facts about taking care of their teeth from various animals. For example, a shark reminds kids to take time brushing. On the same page we learn about how many teeth a shark has in a lifetime. Snail reminds children about healthy eating and I learned that snails have teeth, a lot of them. While not the book for every child, it just might appeal to those children who like animals, facts and informational books.

I also like that the book has local roots, at least for folks in central Pennsylvania. The author, Floyd Stokes and illustrator, Mikell Worley live in the area. Many of the children may have seen Mr. Stokes, sometimes known as SuperReader, preform at a local library or school.

Who's Out There?

2009-10-14T08:56:00.002-04:00

I see all the great ideas Kay is posting. I know you are reading and absorbing them. I hope we are helping you. Please add your own comments and ideas, so we can chat about them. If you have suggestions about what to include on this weblog or website, please let us know in a comment.

Thank you.

Books for Adults and Children

2009-10-11T15:01:00.002-04:00

Our classrooms are using a new behavioral assessment this year. The big difference I see between this one and others which I have used, is that it looks at the positive attributes more than the negative ones. We all know that resilient children can survive through challenging situations, but what makes one child able to do this and another not? The new program we are using asks teachers to look at these strengths in a child. One of these strengths is initiative. I couldn't help but think of this when I read the book, Bad Boys Get Henpecked by Margie Palatni and Henry Cole. Willy and Wally, the wolves, sure have plenty of initiative as they work to gain the trust of Mrs. Hen, all in the hopes of delicious chicken dinner. I'm not sure about the lesson for children in this book, but I do think adults could do well to think about the strengths of the wolves in the story. They are able to come up with a plan to get a dinner by becoming handymen and working in the hen house. They are also hard workers as they do laundry, mop, vacuum, and more. As a teacher or parent it is good to find a way to recognize positive attributes and put them to work for good. So I urge you to check out this funny book, but more importantly to look at the strengths of your most challenging children. Yes, they may be persistent or demanding, but that may be just the skill that keeps them working at figuring out a math problem or applying for jobs. They may be constantly on the go, but that may be the characteristic which allows them to work a full time job and go to college as an adult. Take time to see how to appreciate and direct the those challenging behaviors!

Another book that would be just as good to read with adults as the children is Hurry Up and Slow Down by Layn Marlow Tortoise likes to take his time through the day and Hare is always telling him to, "Hurry up!" That is until bedtime when the Hare is ready to slow down and listen to the bedtime story, but Tortoise just wants to get through the story. Children can learn to appreciate others who move at different speeds, but it is the adults who often need to step back and see how they rush children through the day and don't always take time to enjoy being with the children. So I remind you, just as Hare reminds Tortoise, "Hurry up and slow down! We need to take our time Tortoise. We need to look at the pictures!"

Finding Friends

2009-10-03T17:15:00.002-04:00

Wouldn't it be wonderful, if it was easy for every child to make friends? Some children are so good at finding friends, they don't understand how it feels to want a friend. One Brown Bunny by Marion Dane Bauer and illustrated by Ivan Bates is a good way to start a conversation and build an awareness about how it feels to want a friend and how to approach others with whom you would like to be friends. This short counting book is about one bunny going from place to place asking others to come and play. Before reading ask the children to start thinking about how it feels to want something and not be able to have it. Build some empathy for the bunny and then at the end you can work to build empathy for those who ask to play, but are not included. Use the story to also help teach words people use when they want to play with others. Some children just don't know what words to say. With some creative use of props you could have your class act out the story, which ends with everyone coming to be bunny's friend. Take time to teach the skills children need to make friends. Quietly recognize children when they include others in play.
For more information on the topic, read Vivian Paley's book, "You Can't Say, You Can't Play." It was written a number of years ago, but is still full of valuable insights.

Katy Did It

2009-10-02T19:37:00.002-04:00

I could not resist using the title of this book for the title of this blog entree. Katy may have done it, but I sure have been behind on my postings. Bernice has been great about sending me some great new books, so read on!

Katy Did It by Lorianne Siomades is the story of a katydid whose hopping always gets her in trouble,until one day when she saves the day! A good story to help each child see that the things we do, can be used for the good of others. After reading the story, encourage children think about the things they like to do and how they can use that ability to help others. The child who talks all the time, might be able to use that talent to help a new classmate. The child who stays awake at nap, might be able to use that extra energy to work on a special project to help the teacher or another child. The child who loves to show how tough he or she is, can use that strength to help others. As teachers it is our job, to put a child's attributes to good use. All of us make mistakes along the way, so be sure to let children know they aren't the only ones who unintentionally cause a problem or two. How sad it can be to see a child's enthusiasm extinguished Help children find ways to be appreciate themselves and their abilities!

Peep is the story of a little chick, who is afraid to use his abilities. This short simple story by Maria Van Lishout is about taking a risk. Little Peep is afraid to take a leap. You might want to read this story before introducing a new experience, in which you know some children will be hesitant to participate. It might be best to read in a small group with those who are not risk takers! See if you can get them to talk about something they want to do. Have the children draw themselves doing those things. Have them talk about how it might feel. Getting some background info from parents could help you know what kinds of things the children fear doing. Overcoming fears takes time, but this book could be a small start.

I still have a number of good social emotional books sitting beside the computer, so there should be another post soon!

Have a great school year!

New Books!

2009-08-23T16:10:00.002-04:00

I was so please to see some new books on my local library shelves. With all the problems caused by the economy, I thought it might be awhile until I found some new books to write about. The treasures I found quickly made me want to start writing again.

First there was We are Extremely Very Good Recyclers written by Bridget Hurst, with characters created by Lauren Child. I often shy away from books with a TV connection, but not this time. The message about recycling is way too important. If you like Charlie and Lola, you'll like this book.

Murphy's Three Homes by Jan Levinson Gilman and illustrated by Kathy O'Malley is a story for children in foster care. It is the story of a dog who has had several homes. Murphy experiences many of the same feelings that children in foster care my have.

It is Time for School with Tallulah is by by Nancy Wolff. I am not quite sure who the intended audience might have been,. While I found that some of the text and pictures looked like what you see in primary or elementary school, most of the book appeared to be preschool. In any case the concept behind the book is great. Talluah is a very kind teacher and children will enjoy the pictures and simply having a conversation about what will happen when they go to school.

I may not write as often as last year, but I will be sure to share any good, new, social-emotional books I find.

Have a great school year!

Data Driven Instruction

2009-07-18T15:17:00.002-04:00

I just returned from the Governor's Institute and wanted to share a little of what we learned. The main topic was data driven instruction. Maybe not the most exciting title, but the when teachers collect information about what children know, plan and teach accordingly, then assess and analyze before teaching again, the result are amazing. Differentiating instruction is a way of teaching I believe in. Children have such a wide difference in knowledge and abilities, I cannot imagine teaching all children the same way.

What kinds of information should teachers collect? You want to find out what the child knows so you don't teach too far below or above his understanding. You also want to learn the child's approach to work. Is the child slow to start or does he jump in impulsively? Does he like to talk things over with others or figure things out himself? You also want to observe to see if the child is having trouble seeing or hearing.

How do we collect information about children? Quite often it is through observation. It may be a written record such as an anecdotal record or a running record. Some teachers find checklists work best for certain skills such as physical activities. The collection of work samples is also popular, but collection is not enough. Teachers need a way to quantify the work. Rubrics are one way to do that.

What do you do with the information once it has been collected? As I said earlier, use the information to make decisions about how best to teach the child. You can also use it to help parents have a better understanding of the child's knowledge and set learning goals for the next step. We also learned that it is important to share info with a child about what they did. In that way the child can see what he has accomplished and know what he has to work on next. If a child is not having success, the information you gathered can be used as evidence for the need for a referral or special services.

If you have questions about what I wrote, want more information about some of the terms I used, or specific methods to use when collecting info, drop a note in the comment section.

Elephant and Piggie Books

2009-07-10T06:39:00.002-04:00

It took me awhile to be a fan of Mo Williams, but now I know it is worth my time to check out whatever he writes. Actually it is often the drawings that make his books so good, but now I am rambling. Today, I am writing about his series of books about two friends. The Elephant and Piggie Books tittles include: My Friend is Sad, I Am Invited to a Party, I Love My New Toy!, and I Will Surprise My Friend!, as well as a number of others. While the books have limited text and can be read by beginning readers, in my mind, they are best when shared with others. My 5 year old grandson, an independent reader found the books interesting from cover to cover. I read four with him and then he read a fifth on his own. He told me about it and then asked me to read it with him.

All of the books can easily spur discussions on social emotional situations involving the two friends. They are funny yet many convey the important message that friends are more important than material things. Take time to check them out!

If you want to learn more about Mo Williams and his books, check out his website at http://www.mowillems.com There is info for parents, teachers, and children. Enjoy!

Friends, Working Together

2009-06-16T07:39:00.004-04:00

Being a friend is a difficult concept for children to understand. Appreciating each others strengths is often equally hard. Tiny and Hercules by Amy Schwartz is a collection of very short stories about two friends, a mouse and an elephant. The fact that they are so different works out for the best, as they use their differing abilities to help each other.

After reading the story have the children relate times when they helped a friend. See if they can create a group story about friends. Over the next few days observe as they children play and photo or report to them times when you saw friends working together. A visual reminder of how to play together is a great reinforcing positive interactions.

It is also worthwhile for each child to see that he or she has something to contribute to a friendship. Help children to value what they can do and then they may be able to better value another child's contribution. Take time to praise specific actions. Children need to hear exactly what action you are pointing out. Say, "I liked that you passed the box to Bill. That way you can both have fun with the toys." This tells what you are acknowledging and why. Later point out how Bill helps his friend. Children who learn early in life to work together will have a much better chance for success and happiness.

Empowerment

2009-06-16T07:10:00.002-04:00

It is never to early to help children understand that they can make a difference and to stand up for what they feel is important. Ballyhoo Bay by Judy Sierra and illustrated by Derek Anderson is just the book to plant that seed into the minds of children. The story is told in rhyme and has lots of fun pictures for children to examine. It starts out with Mira Bella planning a special art event at the beach. But just before the big day, signs go up announcing the beach is to be developed with parking lots and penthouses. Mira Bella and her friends don't let this setback stop them. They attend a meeting and convince the town council to keep the beach as it is. This may sound like a hefty topic for young children, but the author keeps the text simple enough to be understood my most preschoolers.

This would be a great book to read when the children discover a problem in their environment. Maybe the lunch area is too crowded, or there is too much trash on the playground, or they need a crosswalk in front of the school. Whatever the problem, help the children advocate for a change. If the children don't have a problem tell them about an issue that is important to children such as cutbacks in preschool or library funding and go from there. Our local library has coloring sheets for children to color and mail to local legislators. The coloring sheets advocate library funding. You could help the children make a DVD or write stories about the issue.

Even if you don't have a cause, I like the book because children can see that sometimes even the best plans don't work out, there are disappointments, and you have to figure out a new plan rather than give up.

Family Vacation

2009-06-08T10:14:00.002-04:00

Take time to read The Bunnies' Trip (2008) by Lezlie Evans and illustrated by Kay Chorao and it might just save a headache or two as the family starts out on a trip. My son should have read it to my grandson before he sent him off to pack for a visit a grandmas. While the children in this story packed a garden hose, horn, and weights, in his suitcase was a mismatched set of pjs, a large green elephant, and an assortment of other small items. Forgotten were the glasses, toothbrush, underwear, flip flops, swim trunks, and shirts. As anyone who has traveled with children might suspect, the children in this story also complain of being tired and annoy each other.

We all do better when we know what to expect. Taking time to discuss the important things to pack, things to do and to keep us comfortable while traveling, and what to expect when arriving at the destination will pay off for both the children and adults. If you are teaching in a preschool environment, help the children prepare lists of things you might take on a trip. Not only will it help children fell more comfortable, list making is a good cognitive skill that helps children with organization and categorizing.

There is usually a lot of excitement about a family trip, parents need to take time to check in with how the children are feeling about the trip. Do they have any apprehensions? Do they have what they need to sleep comfortably in a new environment? Do they know what they can do if they become scared when meeting unfamiliar people? Children who have a chance to prepare for any new experience will be most likely have more positive behaviors.

Wherever you go this summer, have a wonderful trip!

Be a Good Citizen

2009-06-05T12:05:00.003-04:00

Part of having good social-emotional skills is being a good citizen. It builds self esteem and confidence to know you are doing your part for the good of the community. One of the simplest, but most concrete things children can do is to help with recycling and generally take care of the environment. There are two news books will help you teach the children in your lives how they can help "save the world."
The first book is George Saves the World by Lunchtime. It is by Jo Readman and Ley Honor Roberts. The book is in storybook format, but also included some informational inserts. Michael Recycle, by Ellie Bethel and illustrated by Alexandra Colombo is a written in rhyme and is not quite as wordy. Use them both together and the children should be enthusiastic about recycling! Make sure to give them some practical hands on activities to so they can see they do have the ability to help. Better yet them them brainstorm and come up with things they would like to do. Get families involved and you might just feel that together you making a difference in your community.

Don't Forget to Sing

2009-05-20T17:58:00.004-04:00

Singing is good to build children's literacy skills, but did you ever think about how important it is to a child's social-emotional development? We've probably all used music to comfort an infant, but older children can find comfort in songs and can use them to relieve their own stress. They also become confident when they know songs and can join in and sing with others. I believe singing can be build relationships, both between adults and other children. So take time to teach the children in your life some of the traditional songs you enjoyed.

If you are at a loss for songs to sing, there are many good books at the library. The children in my class enjoyed the book and song, "There Once was a Man Named Micheal Finnegan" by Mary Ann Hoberman this year. They also enjoyed Miss Mary Mack by the same author. There are many other books based on a songs such as "On Top of Spaghetti" by Paul Brett Johnson, "The Lady with the Alligator Purse" by Nadine Bernard Westcot, "Five Little Ducks" by Raffi, and "The Wheels on the Bus" by Annie Kubler.

Here are a few song titles you might have forgotten about:

Cat Goes Fiddle-i-fee
The Ants Go Marching
Bingo
Baby Bumble Bee
This Old Man
The Little Skunk's Hole
S-M-I-L-E
Ten in Bed
Bear Went Over the Mountain
It's Raining, It's Pouring
The More We Get Together
She'll Be Coming Round the Mountain
Skidamarink
I'm a Little Teapot

If you need lyrics, try:

www.kiddles.com/lyrics/index/html or http://bussongs.com/

"Ruby in Her Own Time" and "D.W. The Big Boss"

2009-05-17T11:16:00.007-04:00

Some of us just take a little longer to master different skills. Ruby in Her Own Time" by Jonathan Emmett and Rebecca Harry is the reassuring story of a duck named Ruby, who takes her time learning to eat and swim.
Spring is the perfect time to read this story. Children are outside playing with others. Some of them are learning to hit a ball, ride a bike. and others will soon be learning to swim. Not everyone will be good at these things and Ruby in Her Own Time will help 4 and 5 year be a little more accepting of themselves as they work to learn a new skill.
In the classroom, children can discuss the things they want to learn to do. Some of the older students may be able to share stories of how they learned those same skills. Children need to hear that it takes practice to master a skill and that others had trouble learning too. Knowing that your best friend fell off her bike before learning to ride may be just what is needed to give you the confidence to keep trying.
On the other hand, if you know a child who is just a tad over confident and likes to tell others how things should be done, you might want to read, D.W. The Big Boss by Marc Brown. Family members don't like having D.W. boss them around and D.W. soon learns that bossing them does not work in her favor. It is often a fine line between being helpful and being bossy and children don't always realize the difference. Come up with a few scenarios for the children to act out. Let them decide if the person is bossy or helpful. While they may not be able to agree on one right answer, it might just get them thinking.

Big Book of Fears

2009-05-16T18:55:00.006-04:00

I'm sitting at home, alone on Saturday evening, but don't feel sorry for me because I am having a wonderful time reading a selection of new children's books. I just finished Emily Gravett's Big Book of Fears. If you enjoy unique books full of creative, fun illustrations, you need to check out this book. The book is designed as a "journal" to help an artist mouse overcome his many fears. Before sharing the story with children, read it yourself. Help children to understand that the mouse got the book to help him get over his fears. Show them where the mouse has been chewing on the book and let them know, the mouse has added entries in the book about his fears. Younger preschoolers will not be able to appreciate all this book has to offer, but many primary school children could spend thirty minutes or more just examining the illustrations, especially if they have an enthusiastic adult close by. I've been through it three times and each time discover something new.
After my first reading, I knew the illustrations were brilliant, but I wondered if it would really help children deal with their fears. After all fear is a strong emotion which often doesn't respond to logic. While it is hard to find one book that meets the needs of all children, there is a segment of children who want to know how things work and will be please to find out that there is a scientific name for their fears, including the fear of monsters. It will give them a sense of control to be able to identify their feelings and write down their fears as the mouse did. As children record their fears and some possible solutions, they can reflect on the fears and better understand them. I've often heard that gifted children sometimes have more worries, because they have a deeper understanding of things to worry about. This is a perfect book for those children.
Even if you don't have a fearful child in your life, read this book anyway. Enjoy it as a beautiful work of creativity.

Spring Fever

2009-05-10T07:43:00.007-04:00

Are the children in your life a little more out of control than usual? Many people say it is Spring Fever. There are plenty of reasons children might be a little less focused this time of year. One of the most obvious choices is allergies. Allergies can make people feel irritable, sleepy, and have lack of attention. There is also the thought that the increased amount of light affects behavior. Birds know it is time to mate because of increased light, maybe someone we know it is time to come out from hibernation, eat, and socialize. No scientific evidence for that last part, but it is definitely true for my group, this year! Even if you don’t believe that theory, it could be that children are getting less sleep; often with more daylight, a lot of us stay up just a little later. Whatever it is, we need to help the children get through it and keep them focused on learning.

By spring, my class is ready for me to use the kind of humor in the book, Piggy Monday by Suzanne Bloom. In this story, the children go “hog wild” and forget all the lessons about manners that they learned earlier in the year and they turn into pigs! The Pig Lady comes and reminds the class of the things they need to do and the children all return to their former, well behaved selves. The most critical folks might be insulted that the whole class and teacher becomes swine, but children love the humor and are able to extract the message that goes with it.

Some days it seems as if the children in my class never stop talking. I haven't had a chance to use it, but I think “My Mouth is a Volcano” by Judy Cook sounds perfect.. The boy in this story has so many thoughts and as he tries to hold them in, they all erupt. This book is empathetic to the boy, but also teaches about interrupting. The story goes right along with our kindergarten visit, when Mrs. Shank told the group that sometimes you just have to think the words and not say them all. I’ve been using her message, quite a bit lately.

A few other tips:

Maintain consistency by sticking to your routine as much as possible and by following through on your expectations.

Add more movement into the day. When Mrs. Shank counted with her class, they stood up on every tenth number.

Encourage parents to help children get more sleep. Remind them of the research about the connection between lack of sleep and behavior problems.

Remember that allergies and their medications may influence attention. Use your best attention grabbing activities. Have the children work on projects that reflect their interests. Provide novel activities. Find out what motivates your children and provide that as a goal or reward. Work more in small groups.

Group work also gives more children opportunities to talk, just be sure to give them clear guidelines and responsibilities. Learning is a social activity so put that aspect to good use.

Have children write and draw about the things they want to tell others. After they do this, give them an opportunity to share their work with others. They get to think about what is on their mind and share it. You get to have them working on fine motor, literacy, and language skills.

Take time to slow down. I know, I feel the end of year push to do all the things we didn't get done and to teach the untaught lessons, so the children must feel it too. Slow down the pace as you and the children take time to appreciate the moment.

Last Day of School

2009-05-02T07:21:00.002-04:00

For many children the end of school is fast approaching. Even if you have several more weeks of school left, it is not too early to begin discussing the changes which will be happening. Children have a difficulty understanding the concept of time which makes these changes even harder. Many children don't understand that they don't go straight from preschool to kindergarten. Here are a few tips to help children adjust to the change:

Create a calendar or some other way to count down the days of school. You might make a chain with 30 links, and remove a link each day.
Take time to help children review what they have done over the year and how they have grown. Help them see that they are ready to move on. Get out the photos from the first day and help children see how they have grown. If possible help them make a scrap book/photo album of the year.
Ask parents to help by discussing with their children what will happen when school is over.
Provide an opportunity for parents to exchange phone numbers or plan a summer play date or get together for the children.
Teachers and other adults should let the children know what they will be doing when the children are not in school.
Let the children help prepare the room for the end of the year. They can help take down artwork, gather belongings, and wipe off shelves.
Have the children make a book for the next group of children.
Visit the kindergarten where your children will be attending, if possible or ask someone from the school to visit. If neither of these is possible, take photos of the school, so children have some sort of idea of what to expect.
Take time to talk about the changes and ask the children what they want to know about kindergarten or the coming changes. Do this more than once as the first discussion may spark more concerns.
Try to maintain normalcy in the classroom routine right up to the last day. Do not pack up too much too early. Some children will be upset to see things in the room disappear.
Make sure the last days are positive, so that the children leave school with a good feeling. That feeling may be the one thing they remember most about school.
Give the children things to do in the days after school is over. Our children have sign in books. I will give these to the children and encourage them to continue signing in each day at home. Giving them a book will encourage reading. Having the local librarian get children excited about the library's summer reading program will give children something for which to look forward. This is especially true, if your class has developed a good relationship with the local children's librarian.
Read books about the last day of school or saying goodbye. I have read Goodnight Moon to the children and had the children say goodbye to the things in the room. Here are a few other books to try:

Last Day Blues by Julie Danneberg
When It's the Last Day of School by Maribeth Boelts
No More Pencils, No More Books, No More Teacher's Dirty Looks! by Diane Degroat
Barker Twins: Last Day of School by Tomie de Paola, Ann Marie Harris
Miss Malarkey Doesn't Live in Room 10 by Judy Finchler
Kindergarten Rocks! by Katie Davis

The Other Two

2009-04-18T16:59:00.005-04:00

The other two books Bernice sent were Sourpuss and Sweetie Pie, by Norton Juster and Chris Raschka and Hug a Bug by Eileen Spinelli.

Sourpuss and Sweetie Pie is the story of a little girl who is sometimes quite pleasant and other times more of a grouch. The girl's moods quickly change and she sometimes seems not to know who she is. Children who struggle to control emotions will be relived to know that changing moods happen to others.This book presents a positive way to talk about a difficult topic. It is obvious that the girl in the story is loved and that is probably the best place to start. Let the child know you love her and then discuss things the child can do when she is feeling grouchy. It may even be appropriate for adults to talk about times when they behaved less well than they should have and steps they will take to remain calm. Role modeling and thinking out loud are powerful teaching tools. Children are such imitators at this age, that they are quick to act as adults do.
As nice as this book is for children, I think it would be a great read for parents and grandparents. They too need to know that it is not only their child who has times when he or she is not so nice. This book can help caregivers have a better understand of normal child development and would be a great conversation started of what to do to help the child and themselves get through those grouchy moods.

The other book, Hug a Bug is simply a warm fuzzy book. You might want to read it in conjunction with Sourpuss and Sweetie Pie and discuss how good a hug can make you feel. It would be easy to make a class book of who each child thinks gives the best hugs. If you want a lesson to go with this book, talk about appropriate hugs and touching. The main character in the book does not limit her hugs to family and close friends, so you could discuss who we hug and that some people don't want hugs. For myself, I think I would simply use it as feel good book to end the school day or to read at bedtime.

New Books!!

2009-04-18T16:19:00.003-04:00

As much as I love old favorites, I can get pretty excited about a new book and Bernice just sent me four nice ones. The first Jibberwillies at Night by Rachel Vail and illustrated by Yumi Heo arrived last week. I decided the best way to find out if children would like it, was by reading it to my class. I started out by asking them what they were afraid of. They had plenty to say and did a good job listening to each other. By the middle of the book, I knew Bernice had picked a great one, because you could have heard a pin drop. At the end, they asked for it again. We followed up, by talking about things that help us feel better when we are afraid. I didn't do anything special, but it made me realize how seldom we take time to talk about being afraid. In the middle of the night, we can insist until dawn that monsters are not real, but just as we have a hard time reasoning when we are angry, being told there are no monsters, when we are scared, just doesn't work. The time to talk about these things is when we are all calm and rested. In the middle of the night, I go with the mom in this story, simply get a bucket, gather up those Jibberwillies and throw them out the window!

The other new book, I will share today is Twelve Terrible Things by Marty Kelley. As soon as you open the book, there is a warning which states that the book is full of terrible things and not to continue if you if don't want to see them. I have no doubt that the majority of the children will begging for the page to be turned. The illustrations are so wonderful that, there is little need for the few words of text describing the terrible things. Children will enjoy creating their own lists or pictures of terrible things and commiserating with others about which things are the most terrible. As I wrote that last sentence, I wondered if you can really enjoy commiserating, but most of us do just that and some how it makes us feel better to know we are not alone in our problems. Books like this will help children learn to take those everyday problems in stride.

One of Those Days

2009-04-10T06:58:00.002-04:00

One of Those Days (2006) by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Rebecca Doughty immediately made me think of Judith Viorst’s book, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (1972). Each page tells of a different kind of bad day, such as one when everyone is telling you no. The promise at the end of the book is that tomorrow we get to start over with a new day.

If you read this book to a group of children, it should quickly start a discussion of what makes a bad day and let children know that others often feel the same way and have bad days, too.Hearing others talk about how they got over that "bad day feeling" would help teach others coping skills. Children may want to draw a picture of their bad days and it would be easy to make a bad day class book. If you are a parent at home or working individually with a child, you could help him make his own book. As I write that, I am wondering do we want to record the bad days, but when we do, we validate the child’s feelings and later can look back and see that we were able to move forward. If a child draws his disappointment at not getting to go to the park because it is going to rain, but is able to overcome the disappointment and do something else, it will make it easier to overcome the next disappointment. It would increase the usefulness to take time to draw a picture of the good things too- even if the good stuff doesn’t happen until the next day. As the child looks back he might say, “We didn’t go to the park, but we measured the rain and got a whole cup full. We made rain paintings and cookies with the babysitter.” A book like this could help build a positive outlook, a sort of make lemonade out of lemons book.

Some children may have fun with a "bad picture" picture. We all know a few perfectionists and those children might have a good time making a bad picture. I've seen children get upset when their drawing doesn't turn out the way they want, so turn it around and have them make the worst picture they can. Some of those worst pictures ever, might turn out to be some great art. It could turn a stressful day into a fun day!

School Success

2009-04-05T14:17:00.002-04:00

Research is now showing that engagement and persistence are among the various things that will determine school success. The more I think about it, I have to agree. A child will be much more likely to learn letters, if they can engage and persist in the task. A child will have a larger vocabulary, if they can be engaged in learning. So while alphabet knowledge is important, engagement and persistence comes first. Saying that is easy and possibly obvious to you, but how do we do it? How do we engage those children who cannot focus? How do we get those children who give up or switch tasks almost as soon as they begin, to persist?

I have come to believe that one way to help children learn to concentrate and focus is to provide them with routines. I believe that routines help children organize their minds and be less scattered in their thinking. Eliminating distractions can help too. Maybe not all the distractions because that is not the way the real world works, but major distractions. Turn off the TV when reading to children. Give children one thing to do at a time. Just because we adults are always trying to multitask, we shouldn't demand this of our children.

Teaching persistence will also help with engagement. When a child knows how to persist, he or she does not need to go on to something else when the task has some difficulty. Teach persistence through memory games, hidden picture searches, mazes, and recalling events of the day. Read to your child everyday, but as time goes on read longer and longer books. I know several 5 year olds, whose parents did this. These 5 year olds are happy to sit and listen to their parents read chapter books to them. Most importantly learn about the child and figure out how to encourage the child to continue, push them to keep trying by telling them you know they can do it. Don't be so quick to jump in and help. Help them handle minor upsets and go on. No I'm not suggesting you push children to do things they can't. We don't want them to fail, but keep in mind the old saying that success breeds success.

Sometimes one of the best things is to talk to children about the topic. Here are a few books to help start the conversation:

Tightrope Poppy and the High-Wire Pig by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen
Apple Batter byDeborah Turney Zagwyn
Pearl's New Skates by Holly Keller
Amandina by Sergio Ruzzier
I Am Really, Really Concentrating ( Charlie and Lola) by Lauren Child

Cooperation

2009-04-03T19:05:00.004-04:00

I think we could all agree that cooperation is an important social emotional skill. Even children who go on to become great leaders need to be able to cooperate with others. There are a number of good books which teach about cooperation, but Little Red Hen may be my favorite. I like the newer version Little Red Hen Makes Pizza by Philomen Sturges and Amy Walrod. It follows the traditional story line but in the end this hen allows the others to share in the pizza.

There are many good follow up activities to illustrate how cooperation pays off for everyone. Of course making a class pizza seems a natural activity, but you could make other recipes, if you don't have the facilities to make a pizza. In the past I had the children make a cooperative sandwich. We took a small sub roll and supplied a selection of items to place inside. The children had to figure out a way to make a sandwich which suited them both. You could have the children build a tower together or draw a picture together using one sheet of paper. You might consider pairing up children, especially in new situations and have them look out for each other or do a job such as moving a box together. I've often thought it would be good to do the jobs on the job chart in pairs. If you can, provide toys, activities, or games that work better when children cooperate. Toys like rocking boats are meant for use by two or more. If you are feeling more ambitious, plan a group party or project to carry out as a group. This would be even better if families were a part of the effort.

Every now and then a child will say that the teachers are not the boss, I try to tell her that quite often when we are asking the children to do this or that, it is for the benefit of all of us. I might use the example that if a teacher asks a child to walk, it is so all of the children can be safe. Take advantage of spur of the moment opportunities to address the topic.

Probably one of the most important things you can do is to model the skill you want the children to learn. Just as children learn language by hearing others speak, they learn social emotional skills by seeing them demonstrated. Children are constantly watching the adults in their lives. Make sure that they see you working together with the other adults ( and children) in your home or workplace. Sometimes I think you need to over emphasize these examples to make sure the point comes through to those children who find it more difficult to pick up on such clues.

If you would like to share your ideas about cooperation, please write them in the comment section.

Social Emotional Intelligence

2009-04-01T16:59:00.002-04:00

How fortunate I was to be able to attend the Early Learning Forum in Harrisburg today. Dr. Pam Schiller was the speaker and if you ever have the opportunity to hear her speak, please do so. It will change how you look at the earliest years of a child's life. As Dr. Schiller spoke about the positive impact a few minutes of interaction made in the brains of neglected Romanian children, many of us had tears in our eyes. I thought I understood the Windows of Opportunity as they related to learning. I knew that young children can learn language better than older ones, but I never realized just how important those windows are on social emotional learning. I did not know about mirror neurons or realize just how important it is that the youngest of children see others displaying empathy. Dr. Schiller was so inspiring that I wanted to call my co-teacher and give her strategies to implement immediately. If I had called, I would have told her to be sure to instill confidence in the children by giving real praise for effort, by taking time to be fully engaged with each child if only for a moment, to demonstrate empathy and caring to the extreme, and much much more.
Dr. Schiller suggested some books we can use to build on her "Seven Key Ingredients of School Success." I hope to share some of these ingredients, the books that go with them, and ideas of how to use them during upcoming blogs. Right now? I need to reflect on how I can make my own classroom better using the information shared by Dr. Schiller.

No Matter What

2009-03-28T17:17:00.002-04:00

I delight in great picture books and I found another one, sure to become a favorite. No Matter What by Emma Dodd is a very short, sweet, and comforting story of a parent's love for a child. Although this is a book of few words, the message is clear: It does not matter what you do, you are loved. It is perfect for the youngest preschooler, but should appeal to older ones as well. I think it would even be a great gift for a baby shower. If you want to use the book in your classroom, consider using it to help children describe all the ways they can be or feel. Create a book or poster with the prompt, "Our teachers (or appropriate caregiver) love us when we are.."

I Want Those Shoes!

2009-03-28T16:21:00.002-04:00

I've got a couple of children in my classroom who regularly show me what new thing they got this week and tell me what they are going to buy the next time they go to the store. Each time they do, I cringe inside. I hate that 3, 4, and 5 year olds already feel they need to have everything they see on TV. You can imagine my delight to find Those Shoes, a book about a child whose grandmother says "We don't have any room for want, just need." The boy in this story wants shoes like the other boys in his class, but his grandmother knows he needs winter boots more. She helps him find a pair of "those shoes" at the thrift shop, but they are too small. The boys buys them, with his own money, but in the end gives them to another child who also longs to have the special shoes.
With so many families struggling financially, this book is perfect to help children begin to understand that sometimes, you have to do without. Those Shoes (2007) is written by Maribeth Boelts and illustrated by Noah Jones. Before reading the story, talk to the children about the difference between wanting and needing something. Discuss things they would like to have. After reading the story, you might list things people need and things people want. Depending on the ages of the children, you might want to set up a play store and give each child some money to spend. You might want to discuss ways to earn money and help children make piggy banks to save money. You might also want to have a day for families to trade gently used clothing. This can help teach children to recycle their things rather than throw them away. Even if most children have not felt the effects of the economy, it would be valuable for them to learn that not everyone is as fortunate.
I've always thought it was important for young children to learn about these things, but the topic may be more timely than ever.

Don’t Forget the Fun

2009-03-22T15:07:00.001-04:00

I know these economic times bring significant stress to many families, but I want to encourage you to remember the fun. When adults are stressed it is often reflected in the children. One of the best antidotes for everyone is having fun as a family. Let me be very clear, I’m not talking about going out and buying a new toy! I’m talking about simply spending time with the children, not working on homework, not watching TV, not playing a video game, but simply spending time with children and talking with them. In a perfect world, this would be doing something the child wants, but I know that is hard for many adults. In reality, most kids will be happy just spending time with you, even if they don’t get to pick the activity. Maybe you can build a sand box, clean out the attic, play a board game, blow bubbles, read a big pile of books, make a homemade pizza, or take a walk together. When my husband was laid off work and I was pregnant with our second child, we probably did the dumbest thing there was to do. We packed up our tent and took our son on a trip to Yellowstone. We went as inexpensively as possible. But the point is we spent a lot of time together with him. It was a relation building activity and a memory maker. With higher gas prices, this might not be possible now, but if you happen to have some extra time on your hands, find a way to do something fun with your children. You’ll be glad you did!

A Different Kind of Picture Book- Helping Children Deal with Anger

2009-03-22T14:54:00.002-04:00

Are you a parent who is struggling with a way to get your child’s anger under control? Or perhaps you know a child whose parent might benefit from help on the topic. If so, you may want to take a look at Josh’s Smiley Faces by Gina Ditta-Donahue and illustrated by Anne Catharine Blake. This book is written specifically to help parents teach their children about controlling anger. When you first look at the book, it looks like any other picture book. It is the story of a boy who gets angry, but the twist comes quickly when the mom in the story tells him the consequences of his actions and then comes up with a plan of how to help him remember to use words when angry.

The last three pages of the book include notes to parents about controlling anger and how to implement the same Smiley Face Program at home.The Smiley Face Program is a way to reward children when they use words. After earning a predetermined number of smiley faces, the child gets a special treat. The treat was also decided beforehand so there are no surprises and the child knows what he or she is working towards.

The book is available in through the Franklin County Library System.

Let's Pretend

2009-03-14T11:00:00.002-04:00

I'm taking my class to Florida this week. Just the two teachers and 18 three, four, and five year olds. We will be leaving by airplane on Tuesday morning. While we are there, we hope to get some beach time, go to the horse races, ride a boat and a dolphin, find shells, and see an alligator. We are all quite excited and the best thing is the trip will cost us nothing. You see, we are pretending. We've convinced just about everyone. We've even had a few parents ask,"Just where are you going on this field trip?" I can't wait until the director finds out- she told me to limit field trips due to the cost of gasoline.

You might be wondering why should we bother. A trip to Florida, even an imaginary one is a lot of work. Yes, it is, but it is also well worth the effort. Did you ever notice that the children who are the most socially emotionally competent are often the great at pretend play? I have no scientific study to show you, but many times it works out that way. Did you ever see a shy child who loves to pretend with an imaginary friend? My guess is she is practicing for the real world. Children learn a lot about how the world works during pretend play. They learn how to interact with others, what to expect from others, how to proceed through daily activities. They can practice emotions in a safe environment. When we leave for Florida, we will be able to wave good bye to home knowing that at the end of the day, we will be back in our own beds. The children will be able to safely experience what it might be like to stay in a motel or tent. They can listen as others talk about going in the water, playing in the sand, and waiting for a turn to play golf. It is not only the social emotional skills, the opportunities for learning in all areas are enormous. Vocabulary building, understanding the purpose of reading and writing, and using using math skills are only a few of our objectives for this trip.

I've noticed that some of our children don't get as much pretend play as others. These are the children who need it most. Vivian Paley said we need to find a way to pull all the children into the life of the class. When you do a class experience such as this, it is easy to pull them in. They will get on the imaginary plane and be served food by the stewardess. We can coax these children along and they may receive even more of the benefits than those who are already good at pretend play.

Of course you don't have to go clear to Florida to have a class pretend experience, some years we go on a camping trip. Later this year, we will put on a circus. Just the other week, we invited another class to a tea party. And parents can do the same thing at home. Capitalize on your child's interest by taking a trip to the moon, back in time to see the dinosaurs, or to the farm.

So don't wait for the weather to provide a cure for cabin fever, provide your own imaginary diversion. Meanwhile watch your mailbox. There should be a lot of postcards from Florida in the mail next week.

How to Heal a Broken Wing

2009-03-07T05:26:00.002-05:00

How to Heal a Broken Wing is a new book by Bob Graham. It is the simple story of a boy noticing and then caring for an injured bird. The words are few and the author uses the pictures to tell the story. He makes us stay a little longer on each page as we look from picture to picture to see the what is happening. In our busy world, full of worries about germs, I'm not sure people actually help injured birds anymore. It is for that and other reasons, I think this book is very important. The book helps the us all slow down and absorb the message of compassion. We need to take time to be sure this message is heard because young children are certainly bombarded with other messages. Children as young as 4 and 5 are playing video games filled with violence. Just the other day, a boy was proudly telling me that he "shot my mom's legs off and then I shot her in the head." Reading this book won't turn the world around, but for just a moment, it will at least give our students another perspective..

You may not be able to follow up in the classroom setting by caring for an injured bird, but there are many other ways to help children develop caring and compassion.

Take photos of children in your classroom being kind and caring. Photos are a powerful way to visually remind children of the behaviors we want to reinforce.

Sing songs or say a poem or pledge about caring. Music cares a message that stays with us for many years.

Create a kindness tree or wall and when someone does something especially kind post it. I've even had parents help with this by sending in things that happened at home. I know some experts say that the specific child should not be recognized only the action, but I can see benefits of either way. Just make sure everyone gets recognized!

Plan a project to help others or the environment. Collect pennies for a cause and then purchase and give the items to the person or organization. Write letters to someone who is sick. Plant flowers or a tree at the local library or playground. My friend started a garden at her school. She told me how amazing it was to watch them learn to care for the things they had planted and make sure others did not walk on or destroy the plants.

Have a kindness helper. This may sound silly to you, but I did this for years in my classroom and it was one of the most popular jobs. The kindness person was to watch for kind acts and then at the appointed time, he or she would come to the front of the group and tell us about the kindness he or she saw. We used a play microphone to make the time more special. I think we also used a badge or a special hat too. Others were also invited to also tell of kind acts. Then before the kindness person sat down, he or she had to pull a question from the special box and tell us what we should do. The questions revolved around what to do if someone fell and was hurt, if someone had a toy you wanted, how to help someone with and problem and so on. We cheered loudly for the answer and continued the discussion about the topic as long as I thought was appropriate.

I encourage you to share your ideas about how to spread an attitude of caring and compassion in the comment section.

Book Resource

2009-03-03T19:59:00.003-05:00

I wanted to share a wonderful resource for anyone who wants to find a children's book on a certain topic. It is called NoveList K-8 Plus and you access it over the Internet, through your local library. I find it by going to the Lilian S. Besore Library website. I click on Power Library. I am then asked to put in my library card number. Once I do that a wealth of resources appears. The one I use most is NoveList K-8 Plus. If you want to find a book about being afraid, type in" afraid" and a whole list of books on that topic appears. In the advance search you can limit your search to books by grade level, fiction or non fiction, author, Lexile reading level, and other options.

I typed in ADHD and searched for books for younger children. A book Booming Bella by Carol Ann Williams came up as one of three options. It looks like a great book and with just a click, I was able to find out which libraries in Pennsylvania have it in their collection.

If you are not part of the Franklin County Library System, ask your local librarian how you can find this great resource. Give it a try. I think you will like it as much as I do.

Ballerino Nate

2009-03-03T16:55:00.002-05:00

Ballerino Nate is by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley with pictures by R. W. Alley. Nate loves ballet, but his brother discourages him. He tells Nate that only girls can be ballerinas. He says that if Nate takes ballet class, he will have to wear pink shoes and a dress. Still Nate is very determined and he goes to ballet class. It is full of girls, but no one makes him wear pink shoes and a dress. Later his mom takes him to a real ballet and Nate gets to see men dancing in the show.

Even children as young as three and four are starting to figure out what it means to be a boy or a girl. Books like this will help them avoid stereotypes that could hamper their willingness to try new activities or that might cause them to make fun of children that they see as different.

After reading this book, it would be fun for all the children to try out some ballet or other dance moves. If there is a dance school in your area, see if a man would come in and show the children some easy dance steps.

Hippo Goes Bananas

2009-03-01T20:44:00.003-05:00

When we were first married, my husband and I occasionally argued because he thought he knew what I wanted. I should have had this book to help him understand that things may not always be the way they appear. In the book Hippo Goes Bananas by Marjorie Dennis Murray, poor Hippo has a terrible toothache and starts tearing down the trees in the jungle. The other animals assume he is”going bananas” and then think he must be too hot. They take action to help him, but is it really what he needs? This fun story will help children begin to understand that there may be something more behind the actions of a person. Children would probably enjoy taking turns pretending to be Hippo and the other animals who could ask, “Is there something wrong?” and, “How can I help?” They could even act out an alternative ending to the story now that they have asked the questions and listened to Hippo’s answer.

Being a Grandparent and a Parent

2009-02-28T11:20:00.000-05:00

I've been meeting more and more grandparents who are taking on the role of parents. I've also been learning what a big job this is. While grandparents often have lots of wisdom that younger parents don't have, it does not mean the job is without much stress. Quite frequently, when grandchildren go to live with grandparents, it is because of some type of problem in the parent's home, so the children are already at a disadvantage. Grandparents must deal with their own health problems and limitations. Some of them may be taking care of their own parents or still have older teenagers in the home. If a young child is living with a teen who is having some behavior issues, the young child often picks up on those behaviors. This only touches the surface of many of the problems which can arise.

It makes me want to go hide my head under a pillow when I think of everything these folks are dealing with. As usual I have no answers, but if you are a neighbor of friend of one of these individuals, offer to give them a break and help out in anyway you can. If you are a grandparent serving as a parent, below are a few tips which just might help.

Find a support system. Some communities have grandparent support groups. Have a friend or neighbor, you can call for help.

Take a parenting class. I know you know quite a bit about raising children, but times have changed. There is new information about what is appropriate for kids. You might be surprised that some of the things you worried about just aren't important.

Attend library programs aimed at helping teach young children and parents about literacy. There is a lot you can do to get your child ready for kindergarten. You might even ask the library to start a special program just for grandparents.

There are also new dangers that we never thought of with our own kids so take advantage of other community programs. In our area Rep. Rock is having a Family Day which will feature expert information on topics of interest, including: Child Car Seat Inspections/Installations;Child Fingerprinting for ID purposes; Crime Solvers, featuring McGruff the Crime Dog; Bicycle Rodeo (bring helmet); and Franklin County Drug and Alcohol Specialist. It will be held on Saturday, March 14, 2009 from 8:00 a.m. to noon at the Greencastle-Antrim Middle School.

Look for resources on the Internet. Here are a few sites to get you started:

http://www.aarp.org/families/grandparents/raising_grandchild

http://ohioline.osu.edu/ss-fact/0157.html

http://www.grandparenting.org

Whatever you do, take time to take care of yourself. Take time to do the things you like to do. If the job becomes too much or you begin to feel resentful, get some professional help. You cannot help your grandchildren if you are constantly stressed about your situation. Get help early.

If you have some tips to help grandparents, know of resources, or simply would like to talk about the topic, please feel free to leave a comment.

More about Friends

2009-02-26T06:24:00.005-05:00

Friends can be a complicated issue for many preschoolers. At times it can be hard for some children to make friends. Some children threaten to not be a friend if things don’t go their way. Other preschoolers have difficulty understanding that you can have more than one friend. Being a new child in school can be especially difficult for some children. The following books may help children in your class build their understanding of being a friend and accepting new friends..
Chester’s Way by Kevin Henkes is the story of two friends who do not want to play with the new girl in the neighborhood. One day the new girl rescues the boys from some older boys. From that point on, the boys are glad to have her around. After reading this book, help the children recall the things Chester and Wilson enjoyed together and if Lily could have played with them. Discuss things the children in the class like to do with friends. You might want to plan some special projects which groups of three could do.
The New Friend by Charlotte Zolotow (1968) is the story of two friends who do everything together until one day, one of the girls gets a new friend, The girl who is left out tells us how sad she is. There is not happy ending which leaves it open for children to suggest solutions to her problem. Great to use in small groups or individually to help children deal with the problem of losing a friend or build empathy for others.
The New Girl by Jacqui Robbins (2006) is the story of a new girl in class. One of the class members volunteers to be the new girl’s friend but this is not as easy as we might expect. The teacher in the story talks about making the new girl feel “at home.” This could be a great book to use when you know there will be a new child entering the class. The children could discuss/draw how they could make a new child feel “at home.” They might also make some other special preparation for the new girl. Children could help the teacher place new name tags, help find a spot for her belongings or even make posters welcoming the child.
Best, Best Friends by Margaret Chodos-Irvine is a short simple story of two girls who are best friends until one gets mad at the other. This story is good for helping children understand that friends can get mad and still remain friends. Let children talk about times they got mad at their friends and then help them find ways they can make up with them. Children know they get mad, but may not be sure of what to do next. Help them brainstorm ideas of things to do when one friend is mad.
Other books about friendship include:
Loudmouth George and the New Neighbors by Nancy Carlson (1983)

Earl’s Too Cool for Me by Leah Komaiko (1988)

Friends

2009-02-22T19:10:00.002-05:00

Enemy Pie and Recess Queen are books which encourage children to try being nice to others who they think they don’t like. Each teacher will have to decide if these books are appropriate for his or her class. Recess Queen (2002) by Alexis O’Neill and Laura Huliska-Beith is the story of a class bully and how she is befriended by a new girl. Mean Jean is used to bossing the other children around, but Katie Sue doesn’t know about Mean Jean’s reputation. When Katie Sue invites Mean Jean to jump rope with her, she changes how others see Mean Jean.

In Enemy Pie (2002), by Derek Munson. a boy tells his dad he doesn’t like the new boy in the neighborhood. Dad suggests an Enemy Pie. Part of the Enemy Pie plan is to be nice to the new boy, so that he will eat the pie. While playing together, the two boys find they like each other. Turns out the Enemy Pie was really a Friendship Pie.

There are many threes and young fours who may not get the meaning of these books, but for older preschool and kindergarten children they are just right to start a discussion about getting to know others before deciding to you don’t like someone. Teachers might want to share a personal story about friendships with people they thought they wouldn’t like. You may even want to make Friendship Cookies with the class. Find out what kinds of things the children think would make a good Friendship Cookie. If the recipe is simple enough, you could make it each time you have a new child join your class.

For younger, as well as older children, the book Friends by Rob Lewis is more direct. Oscar doesn’t think any of the other rabbits would make good friends, but once he tried doing things they liked to do, he found they were all good friends and happy to do what he wanted to do- go swimming. A good book to open a discussion about how to make friends. Children could come up with some ideas of things friends might want to do together. They might also want to make a drawing of the things they like to do such as play outside, build with blocks. If you graph or chart this, children may find there are many others who like to do the same thing as they do.p>

Don't Forget!

2009-02-14T13:05:00.003-05:00

Did you ever forget something important? Sure you did. It happens to all of us, adults as well as children. An new book about a boy named Oscar, will help children see that others also make mistakes. Knowing they aren't the only ones in this situation, helps perfectionists, be more accepting of their errors and feel better about themselves. In the case of Oscar, he forgets to deliver the notes about the town picnic because of his daydreaming. He finds a way to fix the problem and everyone has a great time. Oscar is the main character in the story, Super Oscar by Oscar DeLaHoya. I like this book for a number of reasons: It has both Spanish and English text. The author has a page at the back of the book encouraging children to exercise like Oscar. The story opens the door to conversations about ways to fix problems and that we all make mistakes. The children may be surprised to know that teachers make mistakes too, so be sure to share some of yours. If appropriate, you might discuss solutions to mistakes which have happened in the classroom. You might talk about spilling a drink or taking a possession of a classmate in error. If your children enjoy class made books consider making a forgetting book where children draw add write about a time they forgot something. It could be even more fun to talk about times when an adult forgot something important to the child. The idea that mistakes are not intentional is often a difficult concept for children.

Inservice on Bullying

2009-02-08T07:34:00.003-05:00

Lee Ann shared this information about bullying in schools. I thought some of you might also be interested and so I am passing it on to you.

The Pennsylvania Department of Education, Bureau of Special Education is sponsoring a teleconference on Tackling Bullying in Today's Schools

When:
March 20, 2009
Location:
PaTTAN-Pittsburgh
PaTTAN-Harrisburg
PaTTAN-King of Prussia
Various downlink sites across the state

Time:
1:00 - 3:00 pm

Description:
In today's school climate, bullying has moved outside the classroom and the playground into cyberspace. With all students at risk, learn about the social and educational impact of bullying and the programs and policies in place to combat them.

Presenter:
Ted Feinberg, Former Assistant Executive Director, National Association of School Psychologists
Target Audience:
Special educators, regular educators, administrators, guidance counselors, parents, and others interested in learning about cyberbullying.

You may register directly on-line by visiting www.pattan.net and entering the Registration On-line page.

General Registration Information and Questions:
Kristen Olszyk at 412-826-6848 or kolszyk@pattan.net

Kisses and Hugs

2009-02-08T06:49:00.003-05:00

This is the time of year, many of us like to read some books about love. Bernice sent a delightful book called Mama's Kisses, by Jane Yolen and illustrated by Daniel Baxter, which would be appropriate not only now, but anytime of the year. If you have ever thrown a kiss to someone, you will most likely enjoy this story. More importantly, so will the receiver of kisses. And, if you have been the thrower of many kisses you have probably been told at least once that the kiss missed. This book solves the mystery of what happens to the missed kisses. Read this book, not for the educational value, but for relationship building. If you want to do a follow up activity, you can have the children draw a picture of where they think those missing kisses go.

Another love story which I often pull out at this time of year is Eve Bunting's The Valentine Bears. The story is best read in small groups or individually since the pencil drawn pictures are full of detail, but little color. I like the story because Mr. and Mrs. Bear demonstrate what a loving, caring relationship looks like.

There are so many good books available about love, I'm sure you have your favorites, still if you want to try out a different one, check out the ones below.

The simple almost wordless book, Hug by Jez Alborough will appeal to the youngest children, but also entice older preschoolers.

The Giant Hug by Sandra Horning and Valeri Gorbachev is the story of a hug which is passed from person to person.

Loving by by Ann Morris and Ken Heyman, shows the way parents around the world express their love for their children.

Taking a Bath with the Dog

2009-02-08T06:39:00.002-05:00

Taking a Bath with the Dog and Other Things that Make Me Happy, by Scott Menchin, is a new book I found at Besore Library. This book was just begging me to take it off the shelf and I am so glad I did. The story line is very simple. A little girl is unhappy. She asks others what makes them happy and by the end of the story, she knows what makes her happy too. There is a subtle message that when one person is happy, you can influence the way others feel too.
I would use this book to discuss how we can turn around sad feelings. I might send children off to find out what makes the people and pets in their family happy or we could just make our own book of happiness.

Importance of Routine and Clear Expectations

2009-02-01T11:46:00.003-05:00

This week, experiences with two friends reminded me just how important knowing what is expected and following a routine is to some people. While some adults embrace change, many have difficulty with it. I probably fit somewhere in between. I like variety and some change. I can be impulsive and drop everything, if a more interesting offer comes along. My one friend has made it very clear that if she has not had it planned for some time, it is not going to happen. I could call tell her that we could have dinner with the president if we left now, and she would turn me down without a second thought. In many ways she is like another friend who has difficulty if she is not sure of expectations. Working in a situation, in which expectations are not clear, will cause her to simply spin her wheels. I'm sure both of these friends would become physically ill should they be placed in uncertainty for a length of time.

I imagine that by now, you have figured out where I am going with this. Just as many adults need routine and clear expectations, so do children. Maybe even more so than adults. At a recent meeting about behavior problems, it was pointed out to me that children who live in uncertainty often appear to be ADHD. Their behaviors are a reflection of the lifestyle they are living.

As I reflected about my friends, I could see just how difficult these situations would be for children. Just as my friend felt she had no idea of what to do and no control over the changes, children must feel the same way. Just as my other friend finds security and control in a routine, so must children. It is easy for me to understand some of the attitudes children might develop from living with uncertainty for a years. I imagine it could range from withdrawal to "I'm going to do what I want to do since I don't understand what I am suppose to do."

As caregivers and teachers, it is so important to have a routine and prepare children for changes in that routine. It is equally important that we tell children our expectations. And quite often that telling is not enough, we need to show them, let them practice it, and test it. We need to be there to help them when they are not successful, just as we would want our mentors to help us when we do not understand the changes they are asking u to make.

Social Emotional Needs of Special Needs Children

2009-01-28T08:34:00.003-05:00

As is often the case, I have more questions than answers on the topic of social emotional needs of children with an exceptionality. I could learn and write about this topic for the rest of the year and still only glaze the surface. I want to make the effort to bring it up because it is so important. It is important to the child with the need just as it is to the children who are interacting ( or as is often the case, not interacting) with the child. It fits in with the topic of diversity because part of diversity is helping children learn about and accept others. If children can be accepting of children with an exceptionality, it will be easy to transfer those skills to people who speak another language, look different, or have different customs.

I used to think that preschoolers were pretty accepting and they often are, but not always. As time goes on they can loose interest in the child whose speech is not understandable, or decide not to play with the child whose hyperactivity disrupts their play. I've seen children, who otherwise have exceptional social skills refuse to hold the hand of a child who has a slight deformity. Is it because of the deformity, because the child's lack of speech skills or the behavior of the child in class? Probably a little of each. And the action of other children affects the way the child with the special need feels about him or herself.

Social emotional assistance should always be considered when we are determining the needs of a young child with a a special need. It is important to find ways for the child with articulation difficulties to communicate with others. So often teachers are told to teach children to use their words when there is a conflict, but when a child is physically unable to do this, the advise often sounds something like this, "It will get better when the child's speech catches up." That cannot be an acceptable answer. We've got to find a way to make an effort to teach the group sign language, use picture cards or whatever is necessary to help that child be a part of the group. Leann taught us at the Governor's Institute to use social stories and I think that is a valuable start. There are a number of websites which can give you more information on using social stories with children but I think the following is one of the best: http://www.vanderbilt.edu/csefel/practicalstrategies.html
Marisa Macy, assistant professor of special education, at Penn State suggests teachers use the strategy of embedding social-emotional instruction throughout the day. If you would like to learn more about her work, you can go to: http://www.ed.psu.edu/educ/news/news-items-folder/embedding

Here are a few books which may help your class be more accepting of differences in others:

Zoom! by Robert Munsch

Susan Laughs Jeanne Willis

Leo the Late Bloomer Robert Kraus

Friends at School by Rochelle Bunnett

We Can Do It, by Laura Dwight
My Friend Isabelle (Hardcover) by Eliza Woloson

As I said when I started, I have a lot more questions than answers. Please share your thoughts and help me and others help all the children in our lives increase their social emotional skills.

Gun Play-Looking for Answers

2009-01-17T07:33:00.003-05:00

I am struggling with what to do about gun play in my classroom. I know the standard answers are, "We don't play with guns, in our school." or "Guns are not toys." I think the issue is a bit more complex. It could be that my vision is clouded by the fact that as a young girl, I pretended to be Annie Oakley, a sharp shooter in the Wild West Show. No one, who knows me now, would suspect I used to wear a holster with two guns and a cowboy hat. Times have changed, but children still have an interest in pretending with guns.

Right now the gun play in my class is not all "bad guy" play. It is related to family members being in the military and families in which adults hunt for food. When a child has a parent serving in the Army, he often wants to role model that parent. I allow other children to role model their parents, but am I to say to this child that he cannot? As a country, we recognize and praise those who are serving in the military, but children in the classroom are told it is not ok to play soldier. This sends a very conflicting message. I allow other negative topics such as house fires and doctors who have patients that die, but not gun play. Am I giving more power to the gun play because of my stance?

I feel that teaching the children that soldiers do much more than shoot guns is part of the solution, but that is not enough. I'm "thinking out loud" as I write this, but maybe it would be positive to have a class meeting on the topic of guns and soldiers. I sometimes avoid these topics, wishing not to worry children who have not been exposed to such topics. How silly of me, when several of the boys are spending as much time as possible figuring out how to get away with gun play. "It is just a bubble machine gun." "It's not a gun, just a water shooter." It could be that recognizing the child and his dad's job might be the best way to handle the situation. We could talk about our respect for those serving in the military, but at the same time point out that none of the children in the room are enemies. Some children might express their feelings and as a group we might be able to work through these things. The child who wants to emulate his dad would feel proud and and yet at the same time he could hear why others ( the teachers) did not want gun play in the room. We could talk about the end of goal of soldiers is to bring peace. It might not solve the problem, but it could give me insight into what he and the other children are feeling. It could be a starting place.

Please share your thoughts on this topic. I need all the wisdom you have to offer!

Appreciating Differences-Non-Fiction Books

2009-01-10T12:01:00.002-05:00

Probably my favorite non-fiction book, for helping children learn about other, is Children Just Like Me by Anabel Kindersley and Barnabas Kindersley. The authors traveled around the world learning about children and then putting bits and pieces of their life in the book. This isn’t a book you would read all in one day, but you could take a month and meet a new child each day. Children will see photos of other children their age and learn about their families, what they like to eat, their school and their pets. There is no stereotyping as there is in so many books, just real children from all kinds of families and backgrounds. Children can then make drawings of themselves and what they like. Display these in the room, so they can discover similarities and differences within their own class.

I also like the Around the World series of books, most by Ann Morris and Ken Heyman. They include Bread, Bread, Bread, Houses and Homes, Shoes, Shoes, Shoes, Play, Families, Tools, On the Go, and Loving. These simple books show clear photos and are appropriate for the youngest preschoolers. After reading one of these, the children can share info about themselves. With the book Bread, Bread, Bread, it would be good to have various breads available for the children to try. Part of social emotional growth is being open to trying new things.

Appreciating Differences

2009-01-10T08:52:00.003-05:00

As children grow, they begin to notice that not everyone is just like themselves. It is important to help them to learn about others. I will start the month with 2 fiction books which help with the topic and then add some nonfiction which are also appropriate for young children.

The Jellybeans and the Big Dance by Laura Numeroff and Nate Evans, illustrated by Lynn Munsinger (2007) is a great story to help children appreciate the differences in others and build a sense of community. The main character, Emily, is disappointed to find that the other girls in her new dance class are very different from what she expected. In the end though, it is the differences which makes for a happy ending. After reading and discussing this book, plan a project in which the children can share their talents. You might plan a special day, a show or make a class garden. No matter what you do, make sure the children each contribute their special abilities. If you want a simpler project ask children to bring ingredients for a recipe such as bread or cookies. Discuss how all the ingredients work together to make a delicious treat. Another simple activity would be to talk about how each child contributes to the classroom or how family members contribute to the family. Thank you to Bernice for recommending the book. If you have a good story to build social emotional skills, please share it with us.

Elmer by David McKee. Elmer is a brightly colored elephant who wishes to plain gray, just like the others elephants. The story shows Elmer’s effort to fit in, but in the end, he realizes the elephants like him just the way he is. After reading this story, I usually give the children a large elephant ( sometimes finger paint paper, other times construction paper) to decorate or paint. Each child is encouraged to use his own ideas to create an elephant, but children could also work together on one elephant. We then admire all the elephants and appreciate them and their creators. This is a great way to teach about differences and also build a sense of community.

Happy Birthday!

2008-12-29T06:28:00.003-05:00

My grandson's birthday reminded me how important it is to included books as we celebrate important milestones in a child's life. While we think of birthdays as a fun time, there can be lots of stress for children- not getting what they want, sharing their toys, and just the excitement of the day. If you want to help your child/children understand the celebration or just want a book to help celebrate try some of these:

Froggie Bakes a Cake by Jonathan Lumber - Froggie and his dad plan a celebration of mom's birthday.

It's My Birthday by Pat Hutchins -The main charachter in this story doesn't want to share.

Happy Birthday, Jamela! by Niki Daly- Jamela is disappointed with the shoes she gets for her birthday.
Happy Birthday, Dear Duck by Eve Bunting with illustrations by Jan Brett. The desert animals plan a special birthday for Duck.

Birthday Monsters by Sandra Boynton is a a fun book that both you and your child will enjoy.

Birthday Bugs by David Carter is another just for fun birthday book.

For older preschoolers:
Some Birthday! by Patricia Polacco. In Some Birthday!, the little girl thinks everyone has forgotten her birthday, but is treated to a special party in the end.

Happy Birthday to You, You Belong in a Zoo by Diane DeGroat- Gilbert is invited to a party, but decides to give a frying pan for a present.

Holidays and Books

2008-12-14T13:47:00.002-05:00

It is that time of the year, when the one thing on mind of many children is the holidays. Sometimes it is hard to get them to refocus on learning. In my class we talk about all kinds of celebrations- not just the winter holidays. We start out by discussing the celebrations the children already know about and then I tell them about a few others. This year one of the children is expecting a new sibling soon, so that we be part of our discussion. I try to look for books that talk about giving, rather than getting. While most of them are older books, I think they still have a social emotional value and can be tied into the holidays.

The Mitten Tree by Candance Christiansen and illustrated by Elaine Greenstein is the story of a elderly lady who wishes the children would take time to visit. She notices that one of them has no mittens and so she makes him a pair and hangs them on a nearby tree. Over time she makes more and more mittens for the children. The story is lends itself to the topic of lonely older people or to helping those less fortunate. After reading this story you might have the children make gifts for people at a local retirement home or you could create a tree to collect mittens for those who don't have any.

Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present by Charlotte Zolotow and illustrated by Maurice Sendak is the story of a little girl looking for a present for her mother. I usually read this story then ask the children to think about someone they love and would like to give a present. At times, I have simply had the children draw or cut out a picture of the item, but recently I have been setting up a store in which the children may shop for others. I think it is so important for us to encourage children to look outside themselves. My store has items which others donate to me. Nothing with a lot of value, but the children have a great time, selecting, purchasing ( with play money I provide), wrapping, often hiding, and finally giving the gift. The activity teaches math skills, literacy skills, builds self esteem, fine motor skills, and encourages children to follow through on the multi-step task. We have the store open for at least a full week, so the children really begin to understand what we are doing.

Children continue to love the story of The Little Engine That Could. There are many versions, but they all encourage children to keep trying. Have children think of something they couldn't do, but now can. Ask them to draw a picture of it and hang them on a bulletin board with the title, We Thought We Could and We Did It. You might even put each picture in the car of a train.

A favorite Christmas story of mine is Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree by Robert Barry. While I read the old version, I'm pretty sure there is a more modern one out now. Mr. Willowby gets his tree, but it is too big, so he cuts off the top and throws it out. The top is found by another, but it is too big and the top is cut off and thrown out. The story continues in this pattern. Children enjoy seeing that all creatures who have a tree from the top of the one large tree. I like to do a math related activity about sequencing of size after this story, but it also provides a time for us to talk about the different ways people celebrate.

Other books about celebrations, which you might not be as familiar, include Parade by Donald Crews, The Dress I'll Wear to the Party by Shirley Neitzel, Light the Candle, Bang the Drum by Ann Morris. I often include books about music, since that is a part of many celebrations.

Have fun with the children this holiday season!

We Want You for Our American Album!

2008-12-13T13:40:00.005-05:00

Our American Album book discussion tote project, funded primarily by a grant from the Institute for Museum and Library Services, is progressing. 1 tote, Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse is already in circulation. 19 more are in processing. Each tote contains 10 copies of a book, a discussion guide, and either an audiovisual version of the book or a magnifying glass for readers with visual disabilities. We have many more titles to get ready for the circuation.

The second phase of this project is recruit teens to videorecord the personal stories of local residents about events in history and their own lives.

If you know a person with stories to tell or if you are a teen who would like to be a videographer, please contact me at bdcrouse@fclspa.org. We need you. Our goal is to complete most of the project by early May.

New Books

2008-11-30T14:40:00.002-05:00

Bernice kindly sent me a few new books that deal with social emotional issues. Until we were looking for them, I never realized just how many great, social emotional themed, picture books are there for use to use as resources.

Nobody Here but Me ( 2008) is by Judith Viorst and illustrated by Christine Davenier. Many of you will remember Judith Viorst from her book, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. Her new book is about a little boy who wants some attention, but everyone is just too busy for him. While he waits for dad to get off the computer and mom to hang up the phone, he makes plenty of messes, hides from everyone, and finally goes to bed. I think this would be a good books for teachers to read during a parent meeting as well as to children. The books reminds us all how difficult it is to wait for a parent. After reading the book to children talk about things to do while waiting. Find some magazines and help the children make a collage of things to do while waiting.

The Day Leo Said I Hate You by Robie H. Harris and illustrated by Molly Bang. Leo's mom kept saying, "No." She wouldn't let him dance on the table, put beans in the fishbowl, or even squeeze toothpaste down the toilet. Before long Leo said those, powerful and dreaded words, "I hate you." Leo's mom tells Leo that saying that makes people feel really bad. A good story for a parent to read one on one or even for a teacher to read to the group when talking about expressing feeling appropriately. Short simple and easy to read to even those children with a short attention span.

If you liked Audrey Penn's story, The Kissing Hand, you may want to also read her new book, Chester Raccoon and the Big, Bad Bully (2008). The book is illustrated by Barbara L. Gibson. In this story Chester's mom helps him and his friends change the bully badger into a friend.

Just for Fun

2008-11-18T19:45:00.002-05:00

A big thank you to Marilyn for sending out this link. It is a fun reminder of the many things our mom said to us and we say to children every day. Makes you understand why experts say to act more and talk less! Take a break from your busy day and visit the link. The smile that comes to your face will be good for you and the children in your care

http://blogs.northlandchurch.net/2008/08/11/the-mom-song/

Shy Children

2008-11-15T09:16:00.002-05:00

Shy Charles, by Rosemary Wells, is the story of a very shy mouse. He overcomes his shyness when someone needs his help. This story may help shy children realize that others feel shy too. Maybe some of the children will share about times when they felt shy. It is amazing how much children relate to and can learn from the experiences of other children. You might want to start by telling about a time when you felt very shy and what you did. Discuss that it is ok for people to watch what is going, or ask questions about what they should do. Be sensitive not to attract too much attention to a very shy child as that may make the problem worse.

Here are just a few more ideas to help a shy child.

Set up several play areas in your classroom where two children can play.
Provide opportunities for children to work in pairs for projects.
Find ways to match socially competent children with the shy child. If these children become friends it will build the esteem and skills of the shy child. Sometimes it may be better to pair two shy children together, so one child does not overwhelm the other. Learn to know the child, so can provide the appropriate pairing.
Find ways to allow shy children to contribute without speaking.
Find the talents of the shy child and and use them to build confidence.
Develop a strong relationship with the shy child.
Give the shy child a job to do. Start with low risk jobs such as picking up something you drop, closing a door, and then move to "harder" jobs.
If the child is hesitant to talk to you directly, use puppets.
Prepare all children for new events, visitors, or field trips. Provide extra support beforehand by allowing the child to be near you or another adult. Make sure he knows to come to you if he is starting to be afraid.
Do direct teaching of social skills. Teach what to do in various social situation. Demonstrate what to do if someone takes your crayon or pushes in front of you. Watch to make sure the shy child does not become a victim of aggressive children.
Observe and document behaviors. If necessary, refer the child for evaluation of a special need or social emotional support. Don't hesitate to ask for professional help. If your child already has an IEP or support plan, reread it for more information which may help you address the needs of the child.

When Adults Get Angry

2008-11-09T11:47:00.003-05:00

It happens, we all get angry. Dealing with children on a daily basis brings many rewards, but is also has frustrations. What can we do, so that we can better handle our anger and best be role models to children? I'm by no means an expert, but I have learned a few things through the years. Most of these ideas are good for parents as well as teachers.
Maybe some of them will work for you when the children are getting the best of you.

When you feel yourself getting louder and louder make an effort to talk as quietly as you can. Whispering in a child’s ear will get his attention and de-escalate the situation.
If you keep talking and no one is listening, just be quiet. Silence often gets more attention that noise.
Take turns with a difficult child. If you feel yourself getting out of control, ask another adult to take over for awhile. I remember as a child I hated to have my hair washed and combed out. On day a neighbor came over and took me to her house and washed my hair and brushed out the tangles. What a treat that must have been for my mom as well as myself.
Don’t take the situation personally. We all do this. We think children are just trying to make us mad, but take a step back and pretend it is someone else’s child. Depersonalize the situation. While you are doing that, take a breath and replay the conflict in your mind. It might just give you a little smile to see yourself arguing with a child as if you are both 5.. You might also discover the thing just isn’t worth fighting about. Whatever has been done, help yourself and the child move forward, by finding a solution or cleaning up the mess. Think more about teaching positive behaviors, not punishing the negative ones.
Find a way to remind yourself to calm down. I used to keep a small poem on my bulletin board. It simply said, "I will not kick, I will not hit, I will not scream, I am the teacher." While I wasn’t kicking and hitting children, it did serve to remind me that I was the adult. I needed to be a role model to the children.
If you are going somewhere and feel that the children are out of control, and you are too, stop and take the children back to a safe place. If you are at the grocery store, go back out to the car or go home. If you are going on a walk and no one is listening, go back inside and regroup. Discuss what needs to be done and try again.
Laugh, say something funny or do something silly. It may be just what is needed to calm negative feelings. This doesn’t mean that you ignore the situation, just that you distract both yourself and the child until you can think more clearly.
If anger is happening daily, talk to someone, so that you can relieve some of the stress and figure out new ways to handle the situation.

Share your ideas on handling anger and frustration.

Normalizing Divorce

2008-11-02T08:11:00.007-05:00

Fred Stays with Me ( 2007) by Nancy Coffelt and illustrated by Tricia Tusa is a delightful, simple story about a little girl and her dog. She sometimes stays with her mom and sometimes with her dad, but she always has her dog with her. Neither mom or dad necessarily want a trouble making dog at their house, but they find a way to make it work. While I enjoyed this book, I wondered if children of divorce would and I think they would. It helps children understand that they are not alone in living in two houses and hopefully most of them have a constant with them. While it may not be a real live dog, it could be a favorite blanket or a stuffed animal. There is no judging, no feeling bad about the situation, this is just a funny, comforting story about a what has become a normal lifestyle. Divorced children will be able to feel good as they hear a story about another child living in a similar situation.

When Children Worry

2008-11-02T06:55:00.003-05:00

Every now and then you find a child who worries about what could happen. She may worry about tornadoes, germs, and things in the night. Some children will voice these worries, while others do not speak of them. I'm not talking about those children who are living in dangerous situations or who have immediate concerns such as death of a parent. That is a topic much too difficult for me to address. But for those children who do have concerns that are serious to them, but not necessarily an immediate risk, there is much teachers and parents can do to help alleviate those concerns.

Adults need to acknowledge the child's concerns. Take time to reassure the child that you will help them and comfort them. If possible, help them do something about the concern. If they are concerned about weather emergencies, teach them what to do in case of an emergency. Sometimes worries come from children hearing the news on television or during adult conversations. Parents need to be aware of what kinds of adult information children are hearing and try to limit exposure.

Here are a few book related ideas to help children feel less anxious:

Felix the Worrier (2003) by Rosemary Wells and Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes are good books to get the children talking about the things that worry them. After reading these, make a class Worry Book. Children can draw about things that worry them. The teacher may start a discussion on worry by talking about her own worries. She may worry children will be get hurt if they are engaging in unsafe behaviors or whatever the current social emotional issue is at the time. Children can then help figure out things the class can do, about this concern. Teachers could do this with their children's worries. You may want to incorporate this as part of class meetings, asking children if there is anything worrying them and then working on that issue. My one caution is that you may have a few children who start to worry about things, that had never occurred to them before, so tread carefully.

If these books are read at the end of the year, they can be used to discuss worries about going to a new school. Teachers could ask the class to contribute to a book designed to help new children not be so worried about coming to preschool the next year. Another twist would be to ask children to talk about things they used to worry about, but has been resolved. So often when you help others conquer their fears, you can ease some of your own.

Silly Billy by Anthony Browne
Billy’s worries keep him up at night until his grandma gives him some worry dolls. A great story with a multi-cultural touch. This is one book I will definitely use in my classroom. It accepts the fact that children do worry about things and gives them a safe way to handle it. I like how the illustrations show Billy’s feelings.- wish he was just a little tougher looking, but both boys and girls will relate to Billy. After discussing things children worry about, give the children a chance to make their own worry dolls or if you have the time make or have a parent make dolls for the children. The children can whisper their worries to the dolls. Dolls can be made from the old fashion straight clothes pins, permanent marker, and a little yarn.

Parents could use this idea at home or they could make a worry box. Write down the child's worries, discuss what to do about the worry, and put note in a specially decorated box. This way you are acknowledging your child's concerns. It may not solve the problem, but it does show your child that you are taking time to hear their worries.

Since I started out talking about Kevin Henkes, I should mention his book, A Good Day. In this book, some unfortunate events happen to the animals at the start of the story, but by the end of the book, the bad day has turned into a good day. I think many children need to hear this theme over and over to help them gain a more positive outlook and to feel a sense of hope that things will get better. I wish I had this book when my grandson was pouting to me this summer that this bad thing or that was going to happen. He needed to hear that one disappointment didn’t necessarily mean the whole day would go wrong. If you have this book handy, you could pull it out whenever there is a class disappointment such as rain on a picnic day and then discuss ways to turn that event into something positive. If you want a humorous book along the same theme, you might want to try That’s Good! That’s Bad! By Margery Cuyler.

Share your ideas about how help children handle their worries.

Clean Up Time or Is It Pick Up and Put Away?

2008-10-19T19:46:00.004-04:00

I don’t know about your class, but last year when I asked my group to clean up, they got out the brooms and started sweeping the floor. They also cleared the table by wiping everything to the floor. It was then I decided I needed to be more explicit in my directions. Clean Up Time was quickly renamed Pick Up and Put Away Time. So often, we just assume children know what we mean when we give instructions. This year, I am using the book Max Cleans Up to help teach what I mean about "cleaning up." In this humorous book by Rosemary Wells, Ruby works to pick up toys and put them away, but Max stuffs an assortment of objects, including gooey substances, ants, and a little sand into his pocket. Afterwards, we will discuss where an assortment of our classroom objects belong.We may make cooperative pictures to hang in the room and remind us to put things where they belong. We may even sing a few verses of "Time to put the toys, away, toys, away, toys away. Time to put the toys away. Everybody help." I should probably also take time to teach the meaning of the word everybody. I'm always amazed at the number of children who don't realize I mean them, when I say everyone or everybody. It never fails that after I tell everybody to go, one child will still be sitting there and ask, "Me?" Children can't be expected to behave in a certain way, if we as adults are not clear in our directions.

Parent Teacher Conferences

2008-10-13T13:31:00.002-04:00

It is about that time, parents are anxious to know how their children are doing in school and teachers are beginning to have a good understanding about the skills of the children. If teachers are to create partnership with parents, it is important to put yourself in the parent's place. Parents want to hear the good news and need to hear the bad. If parents are to develop good relationships with teachers, they need to listen with an open mind and be willing to share what they know about their child.

Here are a few hints to make conferences more successful.

Talk about the child's strengths. No one wants to be bombarded with negatives. Plus it gives a more complete picture of the child.
Don't get into the blame game. Start from the here and now.
Teachers need to be prepared. Observe the child, document what you see, gather work samples, and prepare paperwork beforehand. Share specific examples of what you have seen, not general comments about how the child never listens. Take time to think of resources and solutions to offer, if there is a problem you need to discuss.
Parents, take a few minutes before the conference to observe your child, consider goals you have for your child. Talk to your child to see if he or she wants you to talk to the teacher about something. Make a list of questions.
Allow enough time to have a full conversation about the child.
Listen to each other. Make sure both parties have time to talk.
Ask questions to clarify, especially when you don't agree.
If you find what is being discussed, upsetting, take a break and ask if you can come back, in a few days, to talk again, once you have had time to consider what has been said.
Set goals for the child, so you both are working toward the same end.
Come up with a plan both teachers and parents can agree to use. If one person can't do it or doesn't like it, admit that up front.
If you disagree about a behavior being a problem, remember it must be a problem for the person to bring it up. It might not be a problem for you, in your situation, but it is in the other situation. Find out why the behavior is a problem.
Set a time for follow up, if needed.
End on a positive note.

Who's Afraid? Books to Help

2008-10-05T06:57:00.003-04:00

There’s a Nightmare in My Closet by Mercer Mayer is just one of many books that can help children talk about and overcome some of their fears. A favorite in my classroom is The Big Green Monster.

After reading a story, I like to encourage the children to talk about their fears. If my focus is monsters, we usually spend time creating monsters in the art center. I find the children especially like to make monster puppets. It gives them even more opportunities to play with monsters and in doing so they can feel more comfortable and less afraid. We often expand this activity and make up stories about our monsters. We tell what they like to eat and where they like to hide and what scares our monsters. Sometimes we make individual stories and other times we make class stories, depending upon the needs of the class. If appropriate, it would add to the learning by having the children act out the stories.

When talking about general fears, you might want to involve the parents. Send home a note asking parents to fill in the blanks. "When I was little I used to be afraid of__________, but now I____. " You can read these to the class. Think how comforting it could be to know that when Tommy’s police officer dad was a little boy, he was afraid of spiders, but now he loves to look at their webs in the morning dew. I think the best part about sharing general fears is the words of wisdom and actions that can come from the other children.. When classmates see petite Beth picking up worms, they begin to see that worms might not be as tough as they originally thought. Take time to learn about children’s fears and then you can find ways to lessen them.

Other books to help with fears:

Bump in the Night by Edward Hemingway (2008) Story of a little boy who, at bedtime hears a noise in the closet.He imagines the worst, but it is only his puppy.

Francis the Scaredy Cat by Ed Boxall (2002) Francis the cat, is afraid of the dark and what must be out there in the night. One night, Francis becomes worried that a monster in the dark has captured his friend Ben. Francis overcomes his fear to go rescue Ben.

The Scaredy Cats by Barbara Bottner, illustrated by Victoria Chess (2003)
This family of cats is scared of everything, so they do nothing. Read the story to find out what Baby Scaredy Cat has to say.

Shadows Are About by Ann Whitford Paul, illustrated by Mark Graham (1992) A simple look at how shadows are everywhere, but only when there is light. A good story to help children understand the same thing that may scare them at night is there in the daytime also.

Helping Those Who Don't Fit In

2008-09-30T19:00:00.003-04:00

Earlier this year, I wrote about helping children include others in their play. It all seemed so easy then. Teachers just make it clear that children can't tell others they can't play. I know it is the right way, but when the child who wants to play is annoying and disrupts the play, it sometimes doesn't seem fair to the other children who are engaging in sustained, imaginative play.
As I write this, I am trying to think of solutions for the teacher who brought me this problem. I know we have to teach the "outsider" better skills, but that won't happen over night. Meanwhile, unless the teacher is right there to guide the play, those children who might move onto more advanced play miss out on the opportunity. Staff can try to involve the child in play with others, but again they are spending the majority of their time working on the skills of this one child, while possibly not giving the support to others who need it. The alternative is not a consideration. Teachers can't condone the children excluding, nor can teachers insist the children include and not be there for support. Playing with one child is sometimes easier than playing in a group, so maybe helping this child develop a friendship with one other child would help. Not a perfect solution, but maybe one to try for at least part of center time. If the teacher looks for this child's strengths and has him/her use them, to help other children, it could increase the possibility that others will see him/her in a more positive way. The adults need to make sure the other children see, that adults like this child and thus build the child's social value.
Thank you for being my sounding board on this problem. If you have insight to share, just post it in the comment section.

Language and Social Skills

2008-09-25T19:09:00.002-04:00

After attending the Governor's Institute, one of my goals was to teach the children in my class, what to do in various situations. This week we've been talking about anger. We've read several good books on the topic. We talked about what makes us angry and we've discussed using words to talk about problems. Today I sat down with each child and asked him what he does when he is angry. I often rephrased, asking, "How do you make yourself happy?" I was amazed at the insight some of the children had. I was also reminded of the difficulty some children have with language, especially those wh questions and there I was using both what and when. Unfortunately, it is those same children who sometimes have difficulty with behaviors. This could be because they don't understand what is being said or they can't express themselves as well and be understood by others. I have a wonderful speech therapist, who comes to my room every week, but speech and language problems are seldom quickly resolved. Meanwhile the children's self esteem decreases, others begin to label them as problems, they may be less accepted by classmates. I need look at each of these children and determine the best way to teach them the skills they need. Some may need more repetition, others may need to learn to use gestures, still other may need more more visuals such as picture charts. In any case, I know that to be effective, my teaching methods need to reach all the children. We think nothing of individualizing academic skills, but it is just as important to individualize when teaching social skills.
Share your ideas on how to help children who have speech. language and processing delays build social emotional skills.

Teacher Burnout

2008-09-24T16:51:00.003-04:00

It probably doesn't take much thought to figure out how teacher burnout affects the social-emotional skills of children. A teacher who is feeling burnt out is less engaged with the children, does not make the extra effort to improve the skills of children, does not empower and help children believe in themselves, and generally is more self focused than child focused. So what can we do to help teachers avoid burnout?
Suggestions that I have read include:

Clarify what is expected of you.
Ask for help. This is especially important if problem behaviors are causing the stress. I found this quote on another blog and thought it was quite true, "When a child's behavior is unmanageable and teachers are not supported in finding special help and assessment for the child, learning opportunities for all are diminished. It is also agonizing and extremely stressful." http://teacherswithburnout.blogspot.com/2008/01/stressed-teachers-cant-be-expected-to.html
Talk to other teachers. The simple act of sharing your feelings can often help. Other teachers may be able to help you problem solve some matters and relieve some of the stress.
Try to maintain communication with administrators. Unfortunately some administrators impose rules, procedures, or requirements without consulting those who must carry them out. Voice your concerns. Teachers who feel they have no control over what is being required or strongly disagree with what is expected can quickly develop burnout. http://www.ericdigests.org/2004-1/burnout.htm
Take time off from work, use your sick days, and take that time to recharge yourself. Teachers need to take care of themselves, if they are to take care of others.
If coworkers are dragging you down, ask for a team building meeting or a transfer.
Take a class to gain fresh ideas.
Make a firm decision to keep work at work and eliminate taking the job home. You will never fell refreshed if you carry the stress home with you.
Exercise or do some other enjoyable activity.
Find some way to bring more humor into your life.

Remember, it is easier to prevent burnout than it is to recover from the results. Children deserve the best teachers we can give them, so take care of yourself!

Two New Books

2008-09-20T13:15:00.004-04:00

Where’s My Mom? By Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler
This is the story of a lost monkey and the butterfly who works to reunite him with his mother. The title alone will provide an opportunity to discuss what to do if a child gets lost, and the twist at the end helps children see that not all children look like their parents. It would be natural to follow the story with an activity to help children learn the name of their parents. I like to do this by talking about what I call the parent and then also calling the children by the name of the primary care giver. Aside from the social-emotional value, the book has quite a bit of opportunity to build critical thinking and language skills. Children can be asked to consider how things are alike and different, how you can distinguish one animal from another. You might extend this to have children attempt to describe their primary care giver. If children are developmental ready, graphs could be made about various characteristics of children or parents.

I’m Bad! by Kate and Jim McMullan While I really enjoyed the I Stink and I’m Dirty books by the same authors, I almost decided not to write about this book, after my first read. I thought it just encouraged bad behavior and might be disliked by some of the children especially the girls. I decided to see what others had to say and all I found were glowing reviews. They pointed out that the story shows that even the toughest of the tough guys needs mom and even the toughest creatures don’t always get their way. All of this reminded me that I need to read books that will appeal to the tough guys in my class. As much as I might think the children would benefit from a book, such as Making Friends by Fred Rodgers, if the tough guys tune me out, they gain nothing from it. So use your best big, loud, bad voice as you enthusiastically read, I’m Bad!, it just might get the attention of the child who needs it most.

Dr. Steven Tobias

2008-09-17T18:01:00.003-04:00

During the Thursday session, of The Governor's Institute on Early Learning, Dr. Steven Tobias, from the Center for Child and Family Development in New Jersey, impressed upon us the importance of social skills and encouraged us to look at how what adults do influences these skills. He made us all laugh when he suggested we "Shoot the lead buffalo." No, he wasn’t suggesting we all get out our guns, but simply pointing out that if we can improve the behavior of the ringleader we can improve the behavior of the whole class.

A few of the many other ideas which I took back from his lecture were:
When a child has a tantrum or is upset about something, empathize with the child because nagging and reasoning won’t work.
Negative feedback often leads to more problems.
It is very important for parents to have fun with their children.
In today’s busy society, parents spend less than an hour actually being with their children.
Success is 80% emotional intelligence.
Children who are insecure have trouble with delay of gratification.
When teaching children a new skill, tell them why the skill is important and how it will help them get what they want.
Use natural and logical consequences to avoid battles. If the adult needs to enforce the consequence they should do it with empathy and not anger.

You can learn more by reading the book, Emotionally Intelligent Parenting: Raising a Responsible, Self-Disciplined and Socially Skilled Child, coauthored by Dr. Tobias, Maurice Elias, and Brian Friedlander. It was published in January 1999.

Dr. Janet Patti

2008-09-15T20:53:00.001-04:00

Dr. Janet Patti, who is a founding member of the Leadership Team of the Collaborative for Academic Social Emotional Learning and a professor of Education Administration and Supervision Program at Hunter College, spoke to us during the Wednesday session of the Governor’s Institute for Early Learning. Her topic was Creating Caring and Safe Communities of Learning. She discussed building learning communities in Schools, but her focus was on the importance of Emotional Intelligence Theory and ways teachers can build emotional intelligence and social skills in children. She made us aware of the dramatic impact early childhood teachers can make on a child’s future. I found the statistics about the effects of using social emotional programs in schools significant. Research shows that 44%of the children will have better test scores and there will be a 30% reduction in disruptive and aggressive behaviors. It is easy to see how these go hand in hand. Teachers who need to spend less time handling disruptive behaviors can spend more time teaching which benefit all children. And on the other side, if children are not engaged in disruptive behaviors, they are more likely to be engaged in learning. Teachers have a responsibility to make sure all children feel included and safe in the classroom.
Dr. Patti encouraged teachers to reflect on how a teacher who is adept at teaching social -emotional skills teaches. She suggested that teachers need to examine themselves to determine how they would like their classrooms to look and how they themselves would like to teach.
Just as it is important for teachers to look at themselves and their own feelings, they need to help students learn about their own feelings. Teachers need to teach children how to problem solve. I thought I was doing this well, but after hearing her talk, I realized that just because one child come up with a solution or compromise, I need to make sure that solution also works for all children involved. For instance, after one child tries to take a toy from another, the child who is the taker may problem solve that the two can play with the toy together. I often forget to ask the victim, if that is ok. Maybe that child had other plans or would like to finish and then give the toy to the first child. Helping victims stand up for themselves is just as important as curbing aggressive behaviors.
For more information visit the CASEL website. It has a wealth of information to help teachers from Pre-K to high school. www.casel.org

Dr. Amy McCart

2008-09-11T03:31:00.002-04:00

I think all of us at the Governor’s Institute, enjoyed hearing from Dr. Amy McCart, a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Kansas. She took research theory and put it in everyday practical terms, adding lots of humor and real life examples in her presentation.
Dr. McCart urged us to approach behavior issues in the same manner as we do academic issues. When a child has problems learning an academic skill, good teachers analyze what the problem might be and they re-teach the skill. If we take time to reflect on behavior issues, and then teach the skill the child needs to be successful, many behavior problems should be reduced.
One way we can reflect on behavior problems is to use the ABCs. First, look at what happened before the behavior, the A, or antecedent. This might be Billy walked in the room and saw Sally playing with his favorite toy. Next, look at what happened, or the (B) behavior. This might be that Billy went in the corner and cried. Then, look at the (C) consequence. This might be that Billy gets attention from adults or it might be that Sally feels sorry from him and gives him the toy. The consequence is sometimes hard to determine, but it is not necessarily a "punishment" handed down by a teacher. Dr. McCart also suggested there might be a setting event, which possibly happened earlier in the day. This could be that Billy was tired or hungry or maybe he had a fight with his brother before coming to school. If it is possible to address the setting event, the negative behavior may be eliminated or reduced. After gathering the above information, try to determine the goal of the behavior. The goal is something the child wanted to obtain or escape. At times a behavior may have more than one function. In this case, we may decide that Billy wanted the toy, but maybe he also wanted our attention or wanted help in getting the toy. Without additional information, it appears that Billy does not have the language, self confidence, and/or social skills, to obtain his goal of adult attention/help or having a turn with the toy. If we look at this as an academic issue, we can see that Billy needs to be taught what to do when he wants something. Teaching him how to get help or how to ask for a turn will decrease the behavior and build his pro-social skills.

Dr. McCart made many other excellent points:

If a teacher is has more than 3-5 children with problems, the teacher should look at changing what she is doing. As we all know, each group of children is different. Possibly the current class needs more movement or more structure.
Teachers should look at their most hectic time and work to teach the children what to do at that time. For me this is right before lunch. Staff are busy trying to get lunches ready, some children are passing out tableware, others need to have an activity to do while waiting, and still others may be washing hands to get ready for lunch. I need to think through exactly how things should happen and then teach that procedure to the children.
Teachers should model more and talk less. In my lunch scenario above, I can tell the children to place one plate at every chair, but taking time to show them is more effective.

3 New Books

2008-09-07T11:24:00.004-04:00

Bernice shared three new library books with me this week. She was right, they are really cute and right on target for helping children learn social-emotional skills. The first one I read, was Yoko Writes Her Name by Rosemary Wells. Yoko is very pleased to be able to write her name in Japanese, but the other children make fun of her scribbling. Yoko worries about this, but before long the other children come to appreciate Yoko’s secret language. This book will help children learn about and respect other’s cultures. The book shows numbers and several words in Japanese. Children who are already able to write numbers may want to try the Japanese writing. If you are fortunate to know another language or have a parent or child who does, they can teach some words from that language. It might be a good time to add a CD with other languages to your listening center. Using music and songs from various cultures would also build appreciation. Don’t forget to include some sign language in your teaching. As our community becomes more diverse, it is important to help children accept and appreciate others.

Gorgonzola by Margie Palatini and illustrated by Tim Bowers is the story of a stinky dinosaur. This funny story will help children understand the importance of personal hygiene. Use caution, if you have a child in your class who has a noticeable problem as it could be embarrassing, but for most classroom, this book will be an attention getting introduction on how to take care of one self. You can act out taking a bath or shower, make a class book about personal care, or put dolls, soap, wash clothes, toothbrushes in the water table and let the children clean the dolls. If you have plastic dinos, it would be fun to wash those, too. Providing real life activities reinforces the child’s learning.

As a child, I would have been attracted to the book, Mail Harry to the Moon by Robie H. Harris and illustrated by Michael Emberly. Just as the boy in this story, I felt life was perfect before my baby brother came along. In the end, the boy comes to appreciate his baby brother, just as I have mine! No matter how hard parents may try to prepare children for the birth of a new baby, some children still have a difficult time adjusting to sharing their parents. This book opens to the door for a class to discuss the good (and bad) things about having a sibling. After hearing this story, I wouldn’t be surprised to see children acting out the role of big sister or brother in the pretend center. Pretending is a good way for children to work out their feelings, so be sure to support this kind of imaginative play. You may be able to help them problem solve what to do when parents are busy with the new baby by joining in the play and taking the role of the big brother.

Socially, Emotionally Healthy Children

2008-09-05T18:36:00.004-04:00

One of the main speakers at the Governor's Institute was Dr. M. Ann Levett. She is the Executive Director of the School Development Program at the Child Study Center at Yale University. She spoke to us on Restoring the Spirit to Preschool Education: Recognizing the Value of Social and Emotional Development. Dr. Levett reviewed factors in the social and emotional development of young children and the adult's role in the development of healthy children. We all see the increasing pressure for academic success at an early age, but as Willard Hartup ( 1992) found, "The single best childhood predictor of adult adaptation is not IQ, school grades, or classroom behavior. Rather it is the adequacy with which the child gets along with other children." Hartup also found that, "unless children achieve minimal social competence by age six, they have a high probability of being at risk throughout life."
Dr. Levett suggested that we can identify socially, emotionally healthy children by the following abilities:

separate from family members without extreme stress
form an attachment with an adult at school
conform to routines without too much difficulty or stress
involve themselves in play
have an aware of their own and other's feelings

She went on to suggest that adults can help promote positive social-emotional skills in children by:

building confidence
helping students learn to like themselves as well as others
modeling the desired behaviors
assisting children to build positive relationships with other children
developing a sense of being valued, in children
praising appropriate behaviors
offering children choice, thereby giving them some control over their life
providing opportunities to cooperate, interact and problem solve conflicts with others
encouraging children to be generous
helping children understand others by taking on the role of others
promoting healthy behaviors

Dr. Levett had us question the consequences of focusing on the cognitive development of preschool children, when research points to the importance of social, emotional skills. years, the local kindergarten teachers have told me basically the same message; if a child comes to school with strong social-emotional skills, they will be ready to learn academic skills. Take a few minutes to reflect on how you can help develop socially, emotionally healthy children.

To learn more about Dr. Levett's work go to http://www.schooldevelopmentprogram.org/index.html

Helping Children By Helping Parents

2008-09-03T06:13:00.003-04:00

I truly believe that one of the best was to teach children pro-social skills is to help parents handle behavior issues, but lately I've been wondering about this. What makes one parent better able to handle behavior problems? As I look around my neighborhood, I am amazed how some parents just seem to know the right thing to do. I don't remember being that competent at their age. Of course I have my own ideas and I'm sure there is no one right answer, but I'm interested in what others think. Once we know what makes one parent better able to handle problems, we can teach those skills to other parents. So what do you think? I recently had one parent tell me, she felt she was a better parent because she learned from the mistakes made by her own mother. Sometimes, I think it has more to do with how a parent feels about him or herself. If a parent is feeling competent and capable, he or she is better able to be consistent. But, I also know some people who feel pretty competent, but I wouldn't want to imitate their methods. So join in the discussion and comment on what skills, traits, experiences, or competencies do you need to be better able to handle behavior issues?

CART Kits

2008-09-01T06:54:00.002-04:00

In Franklin County, we are lucky to have CART kits. These kits were a Chambersburg District Library project. There are sets in McConnellsburg and Waynesboro, as well as at Coyle. The idea originally came from Pittsburgh libraries so they may be available at other libraries. These kits are collections of books, on a specific topic.

Kit number 40 is devoted to the topic of feelings. Books included in this kit are:

Will You Come Back for Me? by Ann Tompert and illustrated by Robin Kramer. This is the story of a little girl, Suki, who is unsure about starting school. As she pretends to take her bear to school and drop him off, she expresses her own concerns about being left at school. If this is a problem for your child or children in the classroom, it might be helpful for you to provide the props for him or her to role play the experience of a parent leaving a child at school. Either way the book is a good discussion started of how it feels when a parent leaves a child in a new place.
Feelings by Aliki is probably better read one on one or at least to children with a good understanding of books. The book is wonderful at helping children understand what others might be feelings in different circumstances.
The Hating Book by Charlotte Zolotow, illustrated by Ben Shecter. Two little girls have a misunderstanding and the one expresses negative thoughts about the girl. Things are finally resolved when the mom suggests she talk to her friend. A good story to help children see how misunderstandings can happen. The misunderstanding in this story is about what one person thought the other said about her. When I was a Girl Scout, we used to play a game in which the first person would whisper something to the next and the message would go around the circle. Most often by the time the message got to the last person, it was very different. Try this with your class and help them see, if you want to know what someone said, you need to ask that person.
The Saddest Time by Morma Simon pictures by Jacqueline Rodgers This is a book I hope you never need to use. It is divided into sections and talks about different people dying. There is one short section about a child dying and the classmate's reaction. The class draws pictures for the child’s parents.
Other books in this kit are:
The Knight Who was Afraid of the Dark by Barbara Shook Hazen,
Weird Parents by Audrey Wood
Let’s Be Enemies by Janice May Udry
Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney
I Was So Mad by Mercer Mayer

Remember Your Ps.

2008-08-30T06:35:00.003-04:00

When I was growing up, children were often reminded to remember their Ps and Qs. It was a way to remind children to remember their manners and say please and thank you. As teachers, we need to remember our Ps. To get off on a good foot, remember to be present, positive and predictable.
Be Present. Be there when the children are; from the moment they walk in the door until they go home. It is so easy to become distracted by phone calls, visitors, and other distractions, but to be successful with the children, you need to be there for them. Even the best teachers and child care professionals can’t be everywhere at once and will miss some things now and then, but do your best to keep out extraneous distractions
Be Positive. We all know what a difference it is to be with someone who is positive throughout the day. It is even more important for children. Role model a positive, can do attitude so children will have a positive outlook and better self-esteem.
Be Predictable. Children will learn to trust when teachers are predictable in routines, guidance, and in what they say. Of course, there is lots of room for innovative ideas, teachable moments, and a change of pace, but when the school year is starting out children need predictability. They need it most at stressful and hectic times. They need to know the day’s routine, when it will be time to go home, where to find what they need, and what will happen if they demonstrate mistaken behavior. Once children know what to expect, they will be better able to handle the changes that must come.

Have a great school year!!

Communicate, Communicate, Communicate

2008-08-23T07:37:00.002-04:00

During our recent pre-service, I surveyed the staff on the best way to start the school year off right. The number one answer from the staff was to communicate with the other people with whom you work. I have to agree. We need to build positive relationships between staff members first. We must take the time to talk and most importantly to listen to each other. Even as we do this, we are teaching ( modeling) for the children how to behave in a pro-social manner. We also need to know that we are working on common goals and working together and not against each other. We cannot be consistent and follow routines, if the one staff member is not aware of what the other is doing.
Communication with parents is equally important. If we truly want to help children succeed, we need to help parents be the best they can be and let them help us to be our best. We need to listen to their knowledge, needs, and concerns. Children who observe teachers and parents building positive relationships will be quicker to trust their teachers.
And finally, we must communicate with the children. We must listen to what they have to say and respect their feelings. If we are to build a positive relationship with the children, we need to take time to get to know them and to let them know a little about us. Relationships are a two way street, so allow the children to care about you and help you.
While registering children for our Health Fair, one little boy came up to the table, immediately turned down my offer of a sticker, and said very seriously, "I’m mad." He responded a little more to each of my questions and comments, telling me he didn’t like this school. I don’t know if he was afraid he might not like the school or simply was fearful of not knowing what to expect, but by taking time to let him express his feelings, reassure him that we were happy he was here, he became more comfortable and he left the table with a more positive attitude.
Take the time to communicate. It just might make a difference in someone's day.

Getting Your Child Ready for School

2008-08-16T16:16:00.002-04:00

It won’t be long until school starts. Time for mom or dad to put on a brave face and assure his or her child things will be just fine. It doesn’t matter if your child is starting preschool or kindergarten, there is still time to help your child gain some valuable skills. Work on building your child’s confidence by teaching independence, and problem solving skills. Some children may not know what to do if they have a problem, so build those skills. Talk to your child about what he can do if he wants help or needs to use the bathroom. Discuss how it looks when you are listening to the teacher. Teach him to put his eyes on the teacher, use his ears to hear, sit still, keeping hand to self and to sit without talking when the teacher is teaching the group.
Increase your child's independence by making sure he can handle self help skills such as dressing and toileting himself. Let him practice buckling belts, fastening shoes, snapping snaps, and buttoning buttons. If you know other children who will be in your son or daughter’s class, it might help to have a playdate before school starts. It always helps to go through new situations with a friend.
Be sure to attend any orientations to help you and your child learn about his or her new school. When people know what to expect, they feel more comfortable. The same thing is true for children. The more you know about what is happening in school, the more you can help your child.
Children who demonstrate confidence, independence, and problem solving skills are generally well liked and successful in school. When children can take care of small day to day matters, they gain confidence to tackle the harder tasks and are less likely to have problems with bullies.

If you have other tips for parents, about ways to help young children have a successful first week of school, please share them in the comment section.

If you live in the Greencastle- Antrim area, you can sign up for Ready, Set, Kindergarten!—A Special storytime for children entering kindergarten (10:00-11:00 a.m.) on Wednesday, August 20 at Besore Library.

Pictures Books and Feelings

2008-08-13T06:23:00.002-04:00

This month my focus has been on books to help children express and handle feelings.

On Monday When It Rained (1989) by Cherryl Kachenmeister
Credit goes to Andrea, at Besore Library for finding this great book for me. It is a simple story of how a young boy feels through the week. The clear, black and white photos illustrate the various expressions of the main character. They remind me of those in the Second Step Curriculum. This book will give you a straight forward way to discuss emotions and how they change. If you have a camera handy, ask the children to tell you about times they felt different emotions. If you can’t afford an individual book for each child, make a class book. Go through the week and chronicle the feelings of the group, as the occur. "On Monday, we surprised Miss Lisa with a birthday party." "On Tuesday, we were sad that Eli's dog was sick." On Wednesday, we were disappointed that it rained at recess." On Thursday, we were happy that.." Of course, children can always illustrate such a book. Another good extension would be to have the children start and keep a feelings journal. One of my past classes had some success with this. We added a simple rebus vocabulary list at the back, to encourage independent writing.

Grumpy Bird by Jeremy Tankard
Grumpy Bird wakes up grumpy. He doesn’t even feel like flying, so he starts to walk. As he passes friends, they join him in his walk. By the end of story they are all having fun together and Grumpy Bird isn’t so grumpy any more. A simple story of how negative feelings can change.
Children may enjoy making pictures of Grumpy Bird and Happy Bird.
You might make a class list of things that make people grumpy and things they can do when they feel grumpy. If you involve parents in your curriculum, your impact will be greater. Have the children create a Grumpy Bird to take home. Encourage them to share the story with parents. Ask parents to come up with a family plan of things family members can do when one or more is feeling grumpy. Ideas could included, reading stories, going for a walk, taking a nap together, watching a family movie, or making cookies. As a parent, I would much rather have a child come to me and tell me he needs a little extra attention because he is grumpy than to have to deal with the consequences of arguing with a grumpy child for hours.

I visited Kennedy-Kruger Center, yesterday, and was listening to a doctor talk about the needs of kids with ADHD. She talked about having plans and routines for them. This correlates well with an article I read about the value of having a plan of what to do before the emotion happens. When a child feels out of control, a place to go or a practiced habit for recovery might be just the remedy that works for the child and the adult.

Teaching Self Regulation to Preschoolers

2008-08-09T13:27:00.003-04:00

I’ve been doing a little research for an upcoming training. I thought I understood the importance of a teaching social emotional skills, but it really hit home when I read why we need to help young children learn self regulation. In the article, Promoting Children’s Social and Emotional Development Through Preschool Education (Preschool Policy Brief March 2005, National Institute for Early Education Research) by Judi Boyd, W. Steven Barnett, Elena Bodrova, Deborah J. Leong, and Deanna Gomby, the authors write "if preschoolers do not practice self-regulation enough, the related brain areas will not be fully developed" I find that statement so powerful. Adults must teach children how to self regulate behavior or the ability to do so may not fully develop. As preschool teachers, we have a tremendous opportunity ( and responsibility) to teach skills which can make a positive difference in the lives of the children in our classrooms.
I hope to effectively share this information with the parents in my classroom. Parents need to understand if they do not take the time to teach skills to their preschooler, they are more likely to have to deal with self regulation issues in the future.

You can learn more about this topic at: http://nieer.org/resources/policyreports/report7.pdf

Picture Books and Feelings

2008-08-03T13:01:00.005-04:00

For awhile, I thought I might not find enough good picture books about feelings to share, but that hasn't been a problem. There are so many, I will post one or two at a time throughout the month. I'm including both of these in my lesson plans.

How Are You Peeling? Food with Moods By Saxton Freymann and Joost Elffers
Children seem to love this book, but I would guess their focus is on the illustrations rather than the words. That’s ok because the feelings are clearly illustrated, even though they are made from food. It is a good book to attract children who need a little extra to draw them in at story time. Showing the pictures and discussing them before reading the story, may be the best way to introduce it. You may even find it valuable to draw a smiley face ( and other iconic faces) and discussing what feeling the icon represents. Afterwards, children may want to play a game, much like charades, in which a child makes a face and others guess how he or she is feeling. You may want to share the book with parents and encourage them to work with children to make faces on food. This could be a great extension for families which celebrate Halloween.

Angry Dragon by Thierry Robberecht is the story of a very angry boy who says he turns into a dragon when he gets angry. The little boy expresses his feelings as he goes from becoming angry to again being calm and able to allow his parents to comfort him. Phille Goosens illustrates the boy's feelings in a clear way. After reading the story, children will probably want to discuss how they feel when they become angry. I think the real value in the story is in helping children see they are not the only ones who have strong , hard to control feelings. Teachers may want to discuss appropriate ways to handle anger. In small groups, children could draw how they feel when angry and then how they feel when calm.

Exclude or Include?

2008-08-01T08:19:00.003-04:00

Does every child in your classroom feel safe and included?
I always thought that I was doing a good job on this topic until I read "A Matter of Trust" by Carollee Howes and Sharon Ritchie. They write about a girls’ relational aggression being difficult for teachers to see because it is so much a part of our culture. They go on to discuss that teachers may feel they should not intervene as children work things out for themselves or they try to change the outsider to be more acceptable to the others. They conclude that a child who feels left out or bullied does not feel safe and by now we all know the problems which can come from that. When I think back to some of the scenarios that have happened in my classroom, I’m sure I have allowed some of these types of behaviors to occur. I too, have worked to make the outsider be more acceptable to the group, when maybe I should have been working to make the group more accepting to others. I know I did some excluding myself as a child when I had a club house and decided who could and could not be a part of it. ( mostly my friend’s little sisters were not allowed.)
Howes and Ritchie make an important point in saying, if children are expected to include all others, the teacher has a responsibility to see that she is not excluding children- from circle, from activities, from recess.
Do I have the answers? Certainly not, but it is food for thought, lots of thought. If you want to learn more about including, read Vivian Paley’s "You Can’t Say You Can’t Play" or maybe even re-read it. I read it when it was first published in 1992, and again a few years ago. I’ll probably go back for a third read.
Do you agree with Howes and Ritchie? Should children always have to include others? What if the other child is being mean and disrupting the play? Please join in the discussion of this topic by posting your comments.

When Sophie Gets Angry

2008-07-29T08:03:00.003-04:00

One of my favorite books about anger is When Sophie Gets Angry- Really, Really Angry.. by Molly Bang. It is the story of a little girl with an explosive temper, but luckily Sophie is able to calm down after taking a walk. Before reading the story ask the children to think of a time when they were really angry. Afterwards point out how Sophie was able to calm down. Make sure the children understand the word calm. Depending on the needs of the children, discuss things the children do when really angry (not everyone yells as Sophie did), what things are ok and which are not, and ways to calm down after being angry. Encourage the children to find a place in the room where they may go when they are really angry. They can name the spot and might even want to put some fun/calming items close by. Others should know to let the angry child alone. If your class is able they could each make a book or picture about when they get angry. Or make a group book about calming actions, When We Get Angry, We Can...... The more you read it, the more automatic it will be for the children to recall these calming activities when they need them.

Pro-Social Books for Boys

2008-07-29T07:02:00.002-04:00

Emotions and the actions that go with them can be so strong, it is no wonder that children notice and imitate how adults handle their feelings. So it should not be a surprise that we find little boys imitating how the men in their lives handle anger and fear. If those experiences have included seeing the main male role figures act in an aggressive manner, little boys will do the same. It is what they have been taught to do.
I’m not saying that every child who hits, has a negative role model at home. I know first hand that some children simply lash out at others even though they have not been exposed to aggression. Those children seem to be flooded with strong emotions and just don’t know what else to do.
No matter the cause, it is clear why helping children learn how to handle feelings can be an essential and difficult task for teachers of young children.
With the help of Bernice and the local library staff, I’ve been able to find many books which can help build social emotional skills in children, but books which show boys using positive ways to deal with problems, anger, and fear are harder to find. If you know of any good read alouds, that show males positively handling these issues, please share them.