You never say “Yes” to anything. Ever heard of Grey’s Anatomy? Shonda Rhimes is its critically-acclaimed and award-winning creator and executive producer. Although I’m not a television enthusiast, I was struck by the premise in her secular 2015 book, Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand in the Sun and Be Your Own […]
Yes, Lord- Confirming the Work of Our Hands Read More »
How do authors promote their books effectively? During my thirty years of teaching, I had the privilege of hosting incredible authors in my classroom and school. I believe the ideas I’ve documented from their visits will help us as we plan our own author visits. Sharing stories with children brings challenges. Some authors thrive in
Making the Most of Your Author Visits: Promoting the Big Day Read More »
Remember The Best Christmas Pageant Ever? Author Barbara Robinson penned the antics of the Herdman kids hearing the Christmas story for the first time. One of my favorite memories was watching twenty-two first-graders squeeze closer to her for a photo. As the kids bumped, she laughed. “Wouldn’t this be a great idea for a
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“So, tell me about the new kid,” a kindergarten parent said. “New kid?” I questioned. “You know, Jerry. All we hear lately is Jerry and the cool things he’s doing.” “Jerry Pallotta?” I laughed. “He’s not a new kid. He’s the author we’re studying – the one coming for a school visit.” On his author
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“You just had to be there.” How often things happen that we simply miss. The importance of “being there” happened with my six-year-olds in September of 2007. We had spent several days soaking in Byrd Baylor’s picture book, I’m In Charge of Celebrations. There, Baylor recounted her Southwestern childhood memories, illustrating how she created her
Being There: How to Move From Engaging Literacy to Powerful Life-Changing Experiences Read More »
Kindergarten classroom birthday ideas can be simply magical. Consider the power of a celebration with a bunch of children all focused on one five-year-old. Yet kindergarten birthday celebrations are much more than several dozen cupcakes, balloons, or goodie bags. These days families have a variety of health considerations and dietary expectations, not to mention concerns
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It’s usually one of the first questions I hear: How do you host Writing Workshop – in Kindergarten? And the answer is: We just start. We start making books on the first day of school. Kindergartners (and their parents) are always shocked to discover this fact. During our very first Writing Workshop, why, you can
How To Host An Inspirational Writing Workshop in Kindergarten From Day One Read More »
When creating your kindergarten classroom setup, consider your values as a teacher. What is most important to you? Your philosophy (perhaps as an inquiry-based learning specialist,) your passion for the best books at the beginning of the year, or your desire to showcase available tools for children’s use. Knowing who you are and what you
Four Thrilling Ways to Create Your Amazing Kindergarten Classroom Setup Read More »
Valentine’s day kindergarten ideas come and go. Over 30 years of teaching, I’ve definitely seen them all! During that time, I realized that some Valentine’s Day kindergarten ideas were much more substantive and long-lasting than simply one chaotic day of giving store-bought cards to each other and gobbling as much candy as possible. Even young
Through reflective kindergarten self assessment practices, young children can design and accomplish life-changing student led conferences for their parents. The power of reflecting on our past coupled with creating goals for the future transformed and invigorated my classroom. For more than 20 years, I worked alongside almost 500 youngsters as they uniquely planned for their