Positive Fridays - Week of January 6th, 2014

Happy New Year to those that missed my New Year's post!  Happy Friday as well.  I am so excited to be back with my amazing Kindergarten students.

This was a busy week of working hard on reviewing our rules and procedures, but I also made sure they had time to go to their reading centers, learn new skills like addition, and play a fun game!

• I am thrilled to have had my full class 2 of the 4 days and only missing 1 the other 2 days this week!  
• We played a fun game of Quiz, Quiz Trade using letters.  Each child had a letter card and they had to find a new partner each time the music stopped and quiz them on the letter and the sound.  I had another amazing teacher stop in to help me make it run absolutely smoothly.  She had some great ideas and I was able to get them all engaged!
• I gave each student a white board.  They thought it was crazy when I passed out a sock with it.  Well the sock had their dry erase marker in it and that way there were no fights over colors, they got what they got.  I was also able to have them use the sock as an eraser!  I called out words and they wrote the beginning sound.  It was a great formative assessment.  My students did an amazing job!
• My morning 3rd grade helpers continue to do a super job.  They are always so polite and eager to jump in and help.
• I had 3rd/4th graders from next door one morning due to the cold weather, they sat in my room so quietly waiting for the bell.  I didn't even tell them to be quiet, they just did!
• At the end of the day on Thursday, the wonderful teacher who helped me earlier came in with my amazing assistant principal and set up a cart with my ladybug (document camera), Mobi (they got this to work for me!), and laptop.  That way I can move the cart around and be closer to the whole class and not have to sit way down or bend way down to reach the laptop or the ladybug!  These ladies have helped make teaching even easier!  I will also be able to get to students quickly to stop problems that may come up in nonverbal ways like walking by them, hand on shoulder, hand on table, etc.  I am looking forward to starting it on Monday, Friday I had off due to the dentist.  That was no fun!

Ok now it is your turn!  Tell me how was your winter break?  How was it coming back to school with your kids?  Any positives you care to share?  I LOVE reading them!  If you teach Pre-K to 2 do you do any collaborative learning or fun things on white boards?  Share them with me!

Thanks for hoppin' by Hopkins' Hoppin' Happenings.  Keep on smiling!