Book Spotlight: Sincerely, Emerson

Have you seen the new book Sincerely, Emerson? This is the perfect read aloud for your classroom. This book tells the true story of Emerson Weber. She loved to write letters. She wrote lots of letters to many different people, but she had never stopped to consider the people who make it all possible until one day. For the first time, she thought about her postman, Doug, and how day after day he came to her house and picked up her letters and passed them on until they were delivered to the person they were for. She realized that she had never officially thanked Doug for his work and decided to do something about it. She wrote Doug a letter, although at the time, she did not even know his name. She decorated that letter and stuck it out in the mailbox to wait for Doug. 

When Doug found her letter, things quickly changed for Emerson. She realized the power of appreciation and how important all the workers around us are. We each have a part, like a network, in our communities and world. 

It is am amazing book that shows the power of being thankful and kindness. It shows how important each person is in connecting our world. I loved it so much I purchased a copy and went to work scouring it for learning I could bring into my classroom. I divided it up into six different categories that I will use for my classroom.

Sincerely, Emerson: Reading Comprehension

Of course reading comprehension can be taught with any book. In this book, I plan to have students use inference skills and well as text evidence to answer questions. Students will also use questioning skills to create their own questions about the story and write them on a cootie catcher (i.e. fortune teller) that they can use to quiz a friend. 

Simply, Emerson: Figurative Language: Idioms

The second skill we will work on using this book is figurative language, specifically idioms. Students will examine an idiom together that is found in the book and will use that as a springboard into looking at other idioms. Last, students will connect back to one of the themes of the book, mail, by looking up idioms that have to do with mail or the postal service.

Simply, Emerson: Non-Fiction Article: Timeline

After that, my students will read a non-fiction article about stamps. In the article, they will discover that long ago people could send mail without a stamp and the person receiving it would pay a small fee for accepting the letter. They will learn about how stamps came to be and also how collectable stamps came on the scene. I will then have my students create a timeline showing the history of stamps. Afterward, they will get a chance to imagine their own stamp and design it. 

Simply, Emerson: Friendly Letters

I want my students to know how to write a friendly letter even though letters are not as commonly used any longer. I feel it is important for them to be able to compose a letter, using standard form. I will talk with my students about the five parts of a friendly letter. We will go over the heading, greeting, body, closing, and signature to figure out what each part is. Students will brainstorm people to whom we could send letters, like Emerson, to show our appreciation. Then I will have each student choose one person, from the community, to write. I will encourage them to write their letter using some of the same ideas that Emerson includes in hers, stories, jokes, questions, etc. We will mail them out and see if we get any responses...which is also very exciting to get. 

Simply, Emerson: Editing Addresses

While reading and learning about mail, we will also focus on the standard that asks students to use proper form when writing an address. I will pass out a large envelope filled with addressed letter sheets. Students will learn about where commas and capitals go. They will then examine each address to make sure it is written correctly.

Simply, Emerson: City Research

To close our study of this book, we will think about the many exciting places that letters travel that we have never been to. Each student will decided on a city that they want to learn more about. I will have students create a travel brochure for the city of their choice. Students will then share in small groups and the brochures will be on display for all students to look at.

It may be surprising that one little book can teach so much, but it can. From social-emotional learning (kindness and thankfulness), to reading comprehension (inference and finding evidence), from studying non-fiction and timelines, to writing letters and editing address, and even learning more about different cities around us. This book has so many different topics that can be brought in, reading, writing, and social studies. It is amazing what one little book can do.

If you would like to save yourself some time and be able to do some or all of these activities, you can click on the picture below to see my resource. But even if you do not snag this resource, I hope you will love this book as much as I did. 

 

 

Book Spotlight: The Lemonade Club

I have a confession. I love books. I mean really, really LOVE them. Love them so much my husband may have told me I need to get rid of some books on more than one occasion. I have books shelves in my classroom and home that are filled to overflowing and I just cannot part with many at all. So with my love of books, I felt it was time to spotlight a book over here every month. I had so much fun with my last book spoghtlight, that I am making it a regular feature on my blog. 

Let's look at the book I chose for this month's spotlight. The book I chose is by Patricia Polacco and is called The Lemonade Club. Let me share what I love about this book.

First, I love Patricia Polacco, the author. Her books are real and challenge your thoughts. They give you lots to consider and put you in the shoes of those who are often looked down upon.

Second, I love that this book features characters who embrace and support one another. It gives my students a view of how to rally around the other students no matter what they are going through. 

Third, this book has such strong characters and I love how the characters who started as a problem changed overtime and began to show support like the others. It shows a great example of empathy. Students need to see themselves in others. 

Fourth, there are great examples of overcoming. The young Marilyn who has cancer overcomes her diagnosis. Of course the bullies overcome their character flaws and turn into cheer leaders, supporting Marilyn though her sickness. Even the teacher rises up to make her dreams a reality while also overcoming her own battle with cancer.

Fifth, this book is beautifully written. Patricia just has a way with words and reading her books always changes something in me. She leaves me better than I was before. I want to pass on books like that to my students. Books that challenge you to be a better version of yourself are so needed.

This is the perfect book to examine characters. Through this book, you can examine how some of the characters change over time. From the classmates, to the teacher, the characters are not the same at the end of the book as they were in the beginning. The characters are strong, but they have moments of weakness. They are interesting and make for the perfect type of characters to closely examine in class. 

This is a great book to use at the beginning of the year (or anytime) because it lends itself to discussions about what makes a great friend. You can see strong examples of good friends as well as some that are not. One fun thing to do with this book is to come up with recipes for friendship. 

Be sure to check out this book. Also, if you are interested in some activities to pair with your study of this book, check out the resource below by clicking on any picture. 

Teacher Self-Care

Let's face it, teaching is one of the hardest jobs you could ever love. Teachers work tirelessly and even though they have a seemingly great schedule, you will regularly find teachers working at home past contract hours, during vacations, and even during summer break. Although teachers generally do love what they do, they also need to take time for self care. Here are five tips for taking care of yourself, in case you have forgotten how to do it.

1. Do something you love. Some people have lots of things they love to do, while some do not have any personal hobbies. It may come as a surprise to people who have many hobbies, but there actually are people who find it hard to figure out hobbies of their own. I remember a coworker of mine who once said when our new staff was getting to know each other and sharing our hobbies, that she felt uneasy thinking about her hobbies because she really didn't have any. She determined to figure it out and she has turned her lack of a hobby into a beautiful one that she now shares with many people. I don't find it hard to have hobbies. But I do find it hard to have time for them all.  

I love to curl up and get lost in a good book. I feel sad when it comes to an end. Photography is another thing I absolutely love. I could spend hours photographing my favorite people or places. Scrapbooking has been a part of my life for many, many years and I just absolutely love it. Saving memories through scrapbooking is so important to me. Travel is something I have always enjoyed as well. Music is also something I love to do. I love to play the piano, I dabbled with the violin a few years back, and I love participating, with my husband in our church praise team. Some other hobbies I enjoy are: crafting, sewing, and of course creating for Teachers Pay Teachers. 

If you have not found your passion yet, it is an absolute must. Think about what brings you peace. What connects you to friends? What brings you joy? Those passions can be turned into something that can help you have some down time and care for yourself.

2. Get away. Unplug. Create a staycation. Go on a real vacation. You chose your level of getting away here. If you really do not have time, maybe you can just unplug for a few hours, a day, or a few days and focus on doing things for yourself, spending time with your kids or spouse. If you all have some time together, but want to stay close to home, a staycation is the perfect choice. During this school year we did a staycation over spring break and went to some local places that were within driving distance. It was perfect for us for this time. I am sure there are little places in and around your town that you pass and have never gone to. Now is your opportunity. You will be getting out of the house and spending time with your family. It does the body good to have a change of scenery every once in a while. If you can swing it, take a vacation to someplace new. We love going on road trips. It also saves a lot of money as opposed to taking a plane. Stopping at sights along the way makes it extra special. We love bringing our tent and roughing it for a few days. It feels great to be in nature and also saves so much money over spending the time in a hotel. 

3. Indulge. Watch that show you love. Eat a special treat you can't resist. Get a mani/pedi. Put some new highlights in your hair. Purchase a new outfit that makes you feel great. Take time to treat yourself to something special.  

4. Complete a project. Don't put it off any longer. Finish the quilt you started sewing 5 years ago. Clean out your closet and donate what you don't use. Paint your room with that can of paint that has been waiting for you. Finishing projects brings fulfillment to your life. It makes a big difference and makes you feel like you accomplished something.

5. Get out in nature. Nature has proven health benefits. Nature soothes your soul like nothing else. Just five minutes surrounded by nature is proven to lower stress levels. Whether it be sitting on your back porch on a cool evening, strolling through the forest, hiking up a mountain, watching the sunset at the beach, or birding, find a way to connect to nature. Whenever I do, I can literally feel the stress of life rolling away from me. It has that much power in my life. 

 Now that you have some ideas for self-care, what are you waiting for? Get out there and spend some time caring for yourself. You will thank yourself for it. 

I Survived Teaching Through a Pandemic!

If you were a teacher this year, you know that teaching through a pandemic was no joke. For me, I started the year by adding in a new grade level, fifth grade. I teach multi-grade so I had grades 3-5. I began with three students online and the rest in person, socially distanced and wearing shields or masks.

Pandemic teaching, added a whole new set of of vocabulary in the classroom. We had lots of, "Put your masks on." "You cannot be at someone else's desk." and "Don't share supplies."

For the online students I was busy saying things like this, "Turn on your screen." "Are you there?" "Can you hear me?" "Mute yourself."

Then there were the masks. Teaching in masks was incredibly hard. When you talked, it would suck into your mouth or stick to it. It made speaking muffled and it was so hard to hear certain students, especially those with soft voices or ESL learners. Mask brackets were helpful. 

Greeting my students changed big time because while I usually give them choices about how to greet me, this year all of the options had to change. We could no longer make physical contact when greeting. No handshakes or hugs. Instead we had options like air hugs or toe taps.

We had photos and artwork with students wearing masks. Each year, I traditionally have students create self portraits and this year was no exception, but this year's self portraits were masked selfies.  Our back to school photos were also masked. 

At recess, we could not play contact sports and for P.E. we could not learn games. We spent a lot of our P.E. time on walking and exercising. 

Throughout the year, we had several times where we all had to quarantine due to someone catching the virus. Then we'd go online and I would teach from home. Then there was the time that I contracted the virus and could not get a negative test for over three weeks. Yeah, that was fun. 

But as always, there was also the good. Connections. Kids needed to connect this year. They were excited to share with me, make pictures for me, find ways to connect with their friends, despite the distance.

Students need me like never before. They were worried about the virus, their family, their parent's jobs, being online, being in person. They needed encouragement, structure, and normalcy.

School was successful. We did not have anyone who had an extreme case of the virus. We taught the curriculum, We learned, despite the craziness of a pandemic. We enjoyed time with each other. 

We found ways to still learn, despite not being able to learn in as many hands-on ways. We still had several room transformations. We played learning games with gloves on. We were able to discuss as a class more.

Teaching during a pandemic taught me about what is important. When things are striped down to the bare necessities out of necessity, you see what is most important and you go with that. It taught me about the resilience of the human spirit. It taught me about the need for connection. It taught me that we are stronger than we know and can endure more than we ever imagine. 

I am thankful for the things I learned in the last year and the end of the previous year. Now I am ready to return to a normal school year. Here's hoping next year can resemble the best things I love about teaching a little more. Let's move on!