As a
teacher, I often think back in my life to when I was the same age as my
students. What was I doing? How did I learn? What did I enjoy? How can I replicate this in my classroom?
I have very
fond memories from my elementary years.
I remember exploring in the woods with all of the neighborhoods until
the sun went down. We would always find
cattails or frogs to bring back home. I
remember creating forts out of every blanket in the house with my brothers. We would have to twist and turn the furniture
to get it just right to hold the blanket in the perfect position. I remember playing school with my best
friends. I, of course, always had to be
the teacher.
Kids are
growing up in a different way today. While
this can seem vastly different than my childhood, the foundation is really the
same. Kids are exploring, creating, and
dreaming big. Those three things are
such an important aspect of childhood.
When
students are given the time to explore, they discover so many new things. My favorite time to let kids explore during
class is at science time. We study
weather. This can be a really tricky
concept for five and six year old kids.
How can it be sunny outside and cold at the same time? Why doesn’t it rain every time it is
cloudy? If we can’t see the wind, how do
we know it is there? I spend time
teaching my class about the tools we use to measure weather. The students get to create their own wind
flag and go outside and figure out what wind is and how a flag can show us that
it is windy. Students get to take a
thermometer outside and see what happens to the temperature in the middle of
winter with the sun shining. My kids
learn so much and start teaching one another when they are given the chance to
explore.
My students
are encouraged to create. Students have
had opportunity to code, film, build, paint, and more in my classroom. They have created paths for robots to take
using different coding techniques. They
have designed structures that would keep a little pig safe if the big bad wolf
were to come knocking. Through
creating, they are able to teach their peers.
They make mistakes and keep working until they find a way to fix it.
My students
are encouraged to dream, and to dream BIG.
We recently used the Green Screen to compose a piece based off of the
book “Oh, The Places You’ll Go”.
Students shared what they want to be when they grow up as they flew
across a page of the Dr. Seuss book. I
have students in my class who want to be doctors, paleontologists, mommies,
electrical engineers, policemen, and more.
When time allows, we pull out blocks, Legos, Lincoln logs, iPads, baby
dolls, animals and paint and allow kids the freedom to explore these paths. I was in awe when an aspiring engineer
created a catapult out of Lincoln Logs. My
kids are encouraged to follow their dreams, no matter what that may be.
Kids,
regardless of when they were born, learn in the same ways. They learn through exploration, through
creating, and through dreaming big. My
hope is that my students leave my room at the end of the year inspired and not
afraid of taking risks. We are only a
kid once, and I want my students to make the most of it.
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| This is me in Kindergarten! Fun Fact: I teach at the same school that I attended as a Kinder Student! |
