Someone asked me, "How do you do all of this and have a young family?" I am used to hearing people say, "Do you ever sleep?" Yes, I sleep. In fact, I need at least 8 hours of sleep each night. Rest is important for me to function at full speed as well as for my recovering brain. It's a fair question. When I was a beginning teacher, I would arrive at school early in the morning and stay there until past dinner. Then, most nights I was doing work at home before bed. It would've been really difficult for me to be an excellent teacher if I were just now starting with littles at home (not to say that others who are just starting and have littles at home can't be excellent teachers, just that it would've been hard for ME). But due to that hard (and likely unhealthy) work back then, I have a lot of strategies in my teacher tool kit and many resources to pull from. I also spend an hour each day in the summer working on resources that will help me durin
100% virtual. That's how this school year started for me and we are still there. The foundation of the magic that happens here in room 25 is a strong relationship with my students. I've struggled with how to create that in a totally distant classroom. In a way, this virtual setting has helped me to improve my craft (silver lining!). Here are 5 things I've done to engage, build relationships, and keep the fun in 4th grade.
1. Yard signs and headbands. Before school started, I visited every student's home to introduce myself. I took my rubber mallet and hammered in yard signs and gave each child a Meucci's Crew headband. Then I asked each child 4 questions.
- What is your favorite food?
- What is your favorite movie or tv show?
- How are you feeling about school starting?
- What do you like to do for fun?
While these four questions seem rather surface level, they allowed me a window into each child's personality. I was able to see see how they responded, how they spoke, body language, and level of anxiety/nervousness. Of course I wrote all of their responses down and include their likes into conversations and lessons every chance I get.
2. Shout outs. Who doesn't to hear their name called out in a joyful way? This may seem simple, but it's so important that every child is seen. I greet every child each morning. Then I take attendance, old school by calling out a name, having the student unmute, give some sort of greeting (sillier the better) and I repeat that greeting back to them using the same tone they used. We've gotten into a routine and this process, even with 25 students, only takes 3 minutes. During instruction, I call out names of students who are rocking the lesson and make intentional positive comments to students who have their cameras off (yes, I've given them the choice until I have a reason not to trust their are with me- mutual trust is a big player in our classroom). "I'm so glad you're here, Sarah" means so much to kids.
3. Jam sessions. Every once in a while, I carve out 5 minutes for a jam session. Remember those questions I asked during home visits? Well, I found out I have a large group of Hamilton fans. So, for 5 minutes, at the end of a lesson or when students are on break time, some of us get together and jam out to Hamilton songs (appropriate ones). I've also held jam session for Greatest Showman and Frozen (you guessed it, also class favorites). I'm always finding new ways to use the microphone my sister got me for Christmas last year!
4. Call and response and class cheers. Call and response is something I've always wanted to do more of in my classroom. I've always used the "Class, class class, Yes, yes, yes" call and response, but that loses it's fun factor after the first day or two. This year I've done a new call and response each day as part of my morning meeting. We are having so much fun with it! It's a WAY better technique for bringing students' attention back than saying, "Pay attention" or "Who's with me" over and over.
During our morning meeting, I also instituted a classroom cheer, which is really more of a song. I've seen other teachers on IG do it and I've always wanted to try. The kids love it! Here are my morning meeting slides that have our call and responses as well as our classroom cheer.
5. Tea parties. I normally have a second cup of coffee around our first morning break time. I've invited my class to grab a mug, fill it with their favorite beverage (or water) and we cheers to each other at the end of our break. It's simple, fun, and even better when you put your pinkies in the air and talk with a British accent.
Oh! I guess there are actually 6.
6. Use different voices, characters, accents, and costumes. My students are eager to see, "What will Mrs. Meucci do next?" So far, they enjoy my cowboy, British, French, and diva accents. Super Mario is teaching multiplication next week.
I am so lucky to be able to go to work every day and do something I love. Teaching has never been an 'easy' job, and this year has proven to be exceptionally difficult. To all of my colleagues, friends, and fellow 'future changers' out there, keep fighting the good fight. Our students need us now more than ever. Every. Single. Day. Teachers make a difference. What will your impact be?
You’re rocking this. Because of course you are. ❤️❤️❤️
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