Connecting the Dots

I am attending the annual NAEYC Conference in Anaheim. I always enjoy this conference because it is wonderful to see such a large group of people come together to learn what are the best practices when working with young children. One of my favorite stories is The Dot by Peter Reynolds. Vashti, the young girl in the story, learns how a simple dot can lead you on a creative and exciting journey. I feel the same way when I attend conferences. I have been attending workshops and trainings for over 30 years and you might think that I have heard everything by now. It is just the opposite. I think I am just beginning to really 'get it' about working with young children. I made a goal early on that I would make a strong effort to learn at least one new thing at every conference that would make me a better teacher. That goal has helped me develop better teaching skills as an early childhood educator and now as an adult educator teaching students to work with young children.
One example of this happened to me years ago when my school district sent me to a math workshop at Boise State University. Most of the workshops were labeled K-3 and did not have much content for me as a kindergarten teacher. However, I did learn to make little journal books at that conference. I used those books continually in my teaching from that point on and they became a major tool for teaching children to think and be creative. For me that long 3-day workshops was work every minute and dollar spent. It made me a better teacher by teaching me about a very useful tool. Those of you attending conferences and workshops should make a goal to find something that will profoundly improve your teaching and learning.

7 Connecting Habits of a Lead Teacher

In our classroom management course this week we were talking about setting up classrooms that avoid punishment (punitive discipline). I had the opportunity to review the works of one of my favorite researchers, William Glasser. He was a great educational thinker and often stated that we will not improve schools unless we provide curriculum that is attractive to students, use nonpunitive discipline and emphasize quality in all aspects of teaching and learning. The portions of his research that had the most impact on me over the years are his standards for separating 'boss' teachers from 'lead' teachers.
Boss teachers rely on what Glasser calls the 7 Deadly Habits: criticizing, blaming, complaining, nagging, threatening, punishing, and rewarding students to control them. I think we are all familiar with teachers that fall into this category.
Rather than falling into the rut of being a 'boss' teacher, Glasser suggests that we become, 'lead' teachers. A lead teacher relies on the 7 Connecting Habits: caring, listening, supporting, contributing, encouraging, trusting, and befriending. The most successful classrooms are the ones led by lead teachers.
I have told my student teachers that if they start using one of the deadly habits, combat the temptation with one of the connecting habits. Our goal is to be lead teachers and provide a nurturing atmosphere for the students.

Fall Colors

I'm always jealous of people who live in climates that are more mild during the winter (I don't enjoy cold much any more). However, one of the things I love about our climate is the wonderful colors that we see during the autumn. Since we are surrounded by mountains, it is a lovely site to see. We live at the base of a mountain and it is amazing to watch it change daily. I remember all of the fall activities that I did in the classroom using those leaves.

• Gluing leaves on pictures to represent the autumn


• Placing larger leaves under thin paper and doing leaf rubbings with the side of a peeled crayon


• Having the children replicate the colors of the leaves by color mixing


• Laminating leaves for use in the science center


• Looking at the leaves under a magnifying glass or microscope


• Leaf glitter (finely crumbled leaves glued on projects)

I remember when another teacher told me about leaf glitter. I laughed thinking it was a weak idea. Then I watched what happened when I crumbled leaves and allowed the children to use the crumbs just like they would use glitter. They were thrilled and we had to continually make more! Who knew such a simple idea would be such a hit. The biggest plus was that it was so much easier to clean up than regular glitter.

Those of you who are surrounded by the colors of autumn and work with young children, make the most of this time of year. For those of you who live where leaves don't do much changing, I'm sorry. You can give me a rough time during the winter when you are having a picnic.

The Finish Line

I ran my first half-marathon on Saturday. I just have one thing to say, "13 miles is a long way!" I try to avoid driving 13 miles. My daughter-in-law encouraged me to run the race with her and it was fun to have company. At times during the race I felt like I could conquer the world. At other times I felt every year I have passed on the age calendar. As I was running, I thought about how close running a race is to actual life. At times you can run with others who will encourage you along the way. There are other times when you need to go it alone (my daughter-in-law and I parted company after 6 miles). The most important factor, however, is to keep going so that you make it to the finish line.

We early childhood educators are doing just that for young children. We should be helping children become resilient and strong enough to sometimes 'go it alone.' If we teach them well, they will not only succeed during their alone times, but may help others along the way. My daughter-in-law helped me get started on Saturday so that I could stick to the task and make it to the finish line on my own.

Classroom Management

I was instructing my student teachers this week about setting up a classroom to avoid negative behaviors. I often use information learned from the Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning (CSEFEL) at Vanderbilt University. I mentioned in earlier posts that I was trained by the center when we were working on social and emotional strategies in Head Start. We saw a marked increase in the ability of teachers to curtail negative behavior in the classroom, when they used the strategies suggested by CSEFEL's research.

This past week we were talking about classroom setup and how important it is to have a well thought-out schedule and a concrete way for children to know what is expected during the day. I love having a schedule in the room (horizontal and visual for PreK-2), but I also mentioned the success I had using a 'Center Board,' similar to the commercial one you see above. Children in classrooms which are set up in centers can identify what centers are open and available for the day. I've seen a form of this used in upper grades, as well, showing the children visually what activities/assignments they need to work on for the day.

I think a center or assignment board, coupled with a solid posted daily schedule helps children feel stable in the setting. Stable children do not exhibit negative behaviors as often as children who don't know what is going to happen next (CSEFEL, 2006).

A Ballerina Mouse

My granddaughter wanted to be a ballerina mouse for Halloween last fall. That theme carried over into her summer plans for a wonderful birthday. And why not? Why shouldn't children still have the opportunity to dream and pretend that life is full of wonderful surprises.

I worry sometimes that children are not encouraged to build an imagination and dream about possibilities. I was sharing with students recently how I used to hurry home from school to play in the hills around our small-town home. I remember making mud pies, building a tree house, playing with the dog and many other things. I didn't even consider watching television or going from one planned practice to another. It is wonderful that we have so many opportunities and options for children in 2010. However, I worry that imagination and creativity is in jeopardy. We need to make sure that children still are encouraged to explore and create their own adventures.

So, Audrey wanted to be a ballerina mouse. No one told her that there was no such thing or that she couldn't pull it off. She WAS a ballerina mouse. It was a great birthday. I wonder what she will come up with for Halloween this fall. It is sure to be good.

Developmentally Appropriate Fine Motor Skills

Wouldn't you know that I forgot the most important part of the discussion during my last entry about the triangular crayons. The most important part of that issue is not the crayon staying on the table, it is how the shape of the crayon will help young children develop fine motor skills.

During my 30+ years working in classrooms as a teacher and supervisor, I am continually reminded that we push young children into a corner with many activities that we plan and materials that we use. Early in my years of teaching kindergarten I re-discovered a monumental truth taught to me many years ago. Back in the 'olden days' my first grade teacher had it right. She insisted that we use large 'horse-leg' pencils during that first year of school (we didn't do much during the six-week summer preschool they called kindergarten back in the day). Mrs. Conklin seemed to know that our fine-motor skills were still in development. In keeping with that thinking as a teacher, I began using large-size crayons and pencils for the first half of the kindergarten year. Come January, I would slowly transition the children to standard-size instruments.

All I know is that my children consistently wrote, drew, painted and did everything better by the end of that school year. I felt it was one of my contributions to recognizing there are developmental stages to fine motor skills. Can young children write with regular pencils and crayons? Sure. But, I have observed children having difficulty with fine motor control. A child in that situation is encouraged practice. Perhaps instead of encouraging practice the adult should give the child more appropriate materials to use for her developmental level.

Now, these new triangular crayons and pencils can serve the same purpose. They give a slightly larger surface area and great angles for children to develop those skills.

Mrs. Conklin would be happy.