Small...I mean BIG victories!

I can't believe it's been three months since I have blogged. I have spent some time thinking about what to blog about, because after all, I better make it good since it's been so long since I shared my thoughts and celebrations in my classroom!

After some thought, I've decided to share the small...I mean BIG victories that are currently happening in my class.

This year has been challenging and I know that there is always a reason behind why things happen the way they do and why I was "given" my class.

It takes determination, creativity, and time to reach every child. However, that is my job, so all year I have been on a mission...which by the way would not be possible without the special education teacher to whom I co-teach with daily.

In two words, I can tell you what has created the successes in my class this year...differentiated instruction, across the board. That means, small group, small group, small group instruction! Oh, and all of my kids get small group instruction, not just kids needing remediation. I'll come back to this on a later post.

If you are a regular reader of my blog, you know that I teach math in small groups. I do this so that every child will get what he/she needs. I spent the first several months of school holding my breath, hoping that what we were doing was working. Several weeks ago, I realized its impact when I was grading the math tests. One struggling math student scored a 100% on his math test. I wanted to shout from the roof how excited I was. I decided that may be a little inappropriate, so I just called his mom instead. :-) As I began to grade the rest of the math tests, I was so pleased with the scores of my struggling learners (and my non-struggling learners).

I had a moment...a moment when I knew that we were successful. Success is important in any job, but because this type of success involved 8 and 9 year olds, it was even more thrilling!

So, differentiated instruction is not just for struggling learners. In fact, that would be so unfair if I only differentiated for struggling learners. In January, I instituted an additional responsibility in school...computerized written response based on a read aloud or chapter book we are reading. (They respond to their reading all the time, so this is just one more way) They have to answer one post per week (they only get the opportunity 2 or 3 days per week to answer). I make a big deal out of this new responsibility and the importance of written response. I relate it to their lives, because I believe that unless they can connect to what is being learned, it will be meaningless. I mentioned that if they wanted, they could complete posts at home, but it certainly was not required.

One by one, kids started doing extra work, completing 3 or 4 posts per week. What makes an 8 or 9 year old want to do extra work!? Again, I had a moment. We look at the posts as a class and discuss what makes a good post. Doing this challenges the kids to make their responses better than the last. I had one girl say to me, "Mrs. Neft, I answered a post at home and I tried really hard to make it even better than my last one. I love the drive she has. This type of differentiation has almost been created by the kids, with me being the cheerleader. Cool.

I know I was born to teach. I know that the challenges I face this year will only make me stronger.

So, some may see these as small victories, but I see them as big victories. And, this is perfect evidence to support my educational philosophy that all kids can learn, they just learn differently.

Everyday, my students help me become the best teacher possible. Thank you to those little people who experience such big victories each and every day.

Acceptance

Every year, I work really hard to cultivate a classroom environment centered around respect and acceptance. Yesterday, I realized that what I was doing was working.

Yesterday was 80's day at my school. After our Morning Meeting, I decided to play "Vogue" for fun. The next thing I noticed was that my kids arranged themselves in a circle to have a dance-off. I had no part in this, besides video taping my students.  What I observed during this was wonderful. They cheered each other on, helped organize the circle, laughed, and just had a lot of fun.

I think adults could really learn a lot from these kids.They demonstrated what it looks like to accept others, regardless of the differences present. In fact, diversity is embraced and acknowledged in my class, by my kids.

Take a few minutes and watch this heart-warming video!

YOU MATTER!

"You matter" might look like two words put together. You might think, "yea, okay...I matter." However, it's so much more than this.

Before I get into this blog post, I want to thank Angela Maiers for inspiring this post. She doesn't know me and I don't know her per se, but that's why the Internet is beautiful.

What makes an exceptional teacher is the connection he/she has with his/her students. Without a connection, it doesn't really matter what is taught.

What makes a good person, is not the talent, job, money, or possessions one has. What makes a good person is someone who recognizes the people who matter, who thank those who help him/her, who knows that other people matter and acknowledges them. It's someone who not only works hard and passionately, but recognizes others who do the same.

My students matter. They matter to me, to each other, and to people around them. How else could their confidence grow? How else could they truly be successful? Mattering is the easy part. Students and all of the human race need to be recognized, something that we often do not think about.

In a class of 23 students, each student matters differently. It's recognizing a student who is working with a student needing help, without me asking. It's acknowledging a student who struggles with remembering what is learned day-to-day, when he/she connects to something learned the day before, to a current read-aloud.  It's taking the time and recognizing those students.  It's modeling this behavior constantly. It's understanding that recognition is the key to success.

"YOU MATTER" is my behavior system in class. There are no prizes or extrinsic rewards. When recognized, students get a token to put in our class bag and a stamp on their hand to show their parents. Tokens are pulled to help with classroom responsibilities. 

I wouldn't be the teacher I am today without certain people in my life. They know who they are, because I've told them that...they matter. And, thank you to those incredible professionals who have recognized me, because... I know that I matter.

Responsiveness

Is that even a word? Oh well. I am all about the Responsive Classroom this year. I have always been an "affective teacher," as you probably know if you follow my blog. This year, I am learning even more about the components of a Responsive Classroom.

A Responsive Classroom:
1. Values each individual in the classroom. That means teachers, staff members, and students.
2. Has Morning Meeting every day.
3. Uses language such as: " I notice that half of the students are making a smooth transition. I'm waiting for the other half," as to not single anyone out.
4. Takes the time to build the classroom community.
5. Has class meetings when needed.
6. Is built around mutual respect.

Having a Responsive Classroom is not as simple as reading the book and doing the activities. It takes passion, desire, and time. It may not be perfect right away. It may never be perfect. But, with that passion, desire, and time, I can guarantee you will be pretty impressed by the results.

This year, I am continuing to incorporate Character Education Lessons into my Responsive Classroom. The combination of the two is essential to create my close-to-ideal classroom.

Take a brief look at the greeting portion of my Morning Meeting. My kids love it!

Productivity!

Hello Blogosphere! It's been too long since I've blogged, but I swear, I have good excuses! I went on two vacations (plus two weekend trips), took two classes, and tutored. This has been by far, my most productive summer...hence the title of this post.

Productivity also describes how the beginning of the school year has been and will continue to be for me. I reorganized all my closets at school. This was no easy feat. They are very deep and much of the stuff all the way in the back was from the teacher who used to be in my room. (Little embarrassed that I didn't deal with this a teeny bit sooner, but I'm moving on) What matters is, now my closets are organized with current material. Very productive.

Tomorrow is our first building in-service, where the morning's focus will be on Morning Meeting. Any Morning Meeting fans out there? I have been doing Morning Meeting since I began teaching and the impact it has had on my students has been large. This year, I will make more changes and update what I've been doing, which does provide me with excitement. Seriously.

So, stay tuned...

Happy New School Year!