Post 2

This week we got another new student in our classroom, and one of our friends moved to a new school. Our new student has a harder time sitting still and not rocking on his seat, so he got a new seat that allows him to balance and sway a little bit. With the new chair, his concentration increased and he was able to learn more that way.

We also got to do our first read aloud this week. I read a book called "The Leaving Morning" by Angela Johnson. I was able to relate this book to my students because it talked about some of the feelings the characters were going through about packing up and moving to a new house, and with our new students in the classroom we could relate well. We ever got to brainstorm different ways to make our new friends feel welcomed in our classroom. I was nervous about reading my story in front of the class at first, but it helped to practice because I knew what I was going to ask once I started reading and everything went smoothly. We were able to schedule when my next read aloud will be and now I have an idea what to expect.

For part of our activities in the class, our CT uses his smartboard, and because the screen doesn't register the kindergarteners' tiny fingers very well, he uses a tenner ball. When I first saw this I was very surprised because I wouldn't have ever thought to try this idea. It works very well for the students and when it's someone else's turn they just pass the ball off.

I've really become to understand the importance of routine and how much more smoothly the end of the week can run compared to the beginning because I know what works and what doesn't so I can fix what I need to in order to make stations run more smoothly and quicker. I'm excited to see what next week has in store and what new tricks and tips I will get to learn.