Creativity

So I have been absent from this blog lately. I have been processing many changes in my school district and limiting my writing to just my classroom blog where I could stay in my comfort zone. All of that began to change for me last Friday during our professional development day. As a staff we took a day long course on creativity that happened to be taught by our own Art teacher. It was a very inspiring day. It made me think a lot about the ways that I currently ask my students to be creative and how I can improve upon that. It was interesting to learn that there is a defined creative process.

The Creative Process

• Observe and analyze
• Generate and select
• Discover and apply
• Revise and refine
• Apply and evaluate

What we ended up noticing and talking a lot about is how this process is basically the same process as the writing process, the problem solving process in math, the scientific method and the inquiry model. It is also similar to the process of using reading strategies that we teach readers who are just beginning to decode text. It is a way to describe many processes. It is all about thinking. I want to use this new knowledge to help my students begin to see at a much deeper level all of the cross-curricular connections. The creative process is a learning process and can be applied in many areas. If they learn the basic process using whatever labels are developmentally appropriate for them, my students will have learned how to learn. For me this is exciting and I can't wait to dig in.

The Creative Process in my Room Now
Currently we use this general process in all academic areas but it seems to stand out the most in our Writer's Workshop, Math Exchanges Workshops, Number Sense Workshops, various apps on our iPads (ShowMe, Tellagami, etc.) and in our Social Studies and Science Expeditions.  I have worked hard to add short times to our days where students can also use this process. One of these is the Build and Create Station. At this station, we rotate through collections of various building toys - blocks, gears, pattern blocks, dominoes, marble towers and a new version that we call a Maker Station. The Maker Station version of the Build and Create Station is when we gather lots and lots of recyclable materials and the students can make anything they want. It has been very popular.

New Challenge

The day ended with a challenge from our principal. She asked us to dive into the creative process ourselves as learners. She asked us to think about our "perfect" classroom and think about what we would see there. She challenged us to take one idea from this thinking and try to implement it using the creative process. She encouraged us to think big and be willing to fail and try again. Her question to us was, "What matters enough to me that I'm willing to fail while trying?" She also asked to let one thing go that is currently on our plate to make room for this new thing. I am now pondering what I will try. I know that I am excited to try something new - I just have to choose one thing. So I would like to throw this question out to you. What would you try? How would you choose? What matters enough to you? I really want to know.

We Are All Experts

Yet another post from my classroom blog that I wanted to share here because it relates to some of the thinking we did during #cyberpd this summer.


We Are All Experts
One of my goals as a teacher is to help each child find the things that they are passionate about and to know their own strengths. To get us started thinking about this we talked about the words “passionate” and “expert” during a recent morning meeting. Then we thought for a couple of days about what our passions and strengths might be. Finally, we created the charts shown here. We use these charts to help us remember that we are all good at something. This helps on those days when something might seem particularly challenging. We also use them to get to know our crew members better. We know who to ask if we need help or have a question about something. We can also use the charts to help us recommend good books that we find to others. They are also great conversation starters and have led to some wonderful sharing. We are all really starting to appreciate our differences and similarities and how these change over time. It is so exciting to me to see the crew really show a deeper understanding of each other and our strengths. Click on the picture to see a larger version of it.

Fall Voyage

I seem to be using posts from my classroom blog here a lot lately. I need to get back to doing more reflective posts, too. In the meantime, here is another post that I had on my classroom blog today.


Our Fall Voyage was a big success and lots of fun for all. Below is a slideshow of photos from our trip. You can either just hit play and watch this slide show or you can use the arrows at the bottom of the pictures to move more quickly or to go backward and forwards. Have your child watch it with you so they can tell you all about each picture. Below the slideshow are some facts, stories, etc. about our trip.


 


Why do we have a Fall Voyage?

We have a Fall Voyage for many reasons.

• We take voyages to push students just a little bit out of their comfort zone. Real learning occurs when you are pushed out of your comfort zone and are challenged to try things you have not done before. For some first graders the biggest challenge is simply being away from home for a night and learning that they can trust other adults and themselves. For others the challenge is being responsible for themselves and their gear instead of counting on mom or dad to keep track of everything. Most are challenged in some way by the activities of the voyage. They must learn to work together, show perseverance when trying to find solutions to challenging problems, push themselves physically, and start to show independence in an age-appropriate manner.
• I love the voyages because I get to see the students in a completely different environment and see other strengths that they have that might not show up in a classroom.
• The voyages are also a great place for the students to practice the character traits that we have been working so hard to learn in class. Students also bring back some of the confidence and new skills that they learned on the trip and are able to apply them to academic learning.
• We also all form tight bonds as a crew and are able to work very well together for the rest of the school year.

What did we do at Camp Elim?

In addition to eating, sleeping, packing, unpacking and taking care of ourselves, we also had time for some learning and some fun. Listed below are the activities we did along with a very short description.


Initiatives (Problem Solving Challenges)
Bag It – This activity had us feeling objects in bags to try to figure out what they were or finding the object we put in the bag without looking. We learned to use other senses rather than simply rely on sight to gather clues and make decisions.

Camouflage Hide and Seek - A unique version of hide and seek that can be played in a wooded area.

Nature Hunt at the Lake - This was a beautiful walk around a lake. We were challenged to really look at, listen to and smell what was around us. We had a list of things to look for and check off as we found them.

Web of Life - During this activity, we learned about how plants and animals depend on each other. We all chose an animal and then made a web (with string) to show how they are all related and what happens to the whole web when one animal is removed.

Recreational Activities

Alphabet Hike - At the beginning of this hike, we were all given a card with a letter of the alphabet on it. During the hike we had to look for things that started with that letter of the alphabet.

Obstacle Course – There were several physical challenges at this station.

Solo Hike – This was a short walk with a stop for a little solo time to reflect on the voyage. The kids chose spots within a set boundary and they sat by themselves just thinking and reflecting about the Voyage.

Chapel Games - There were several fun running and very active games that were played in the large chapel.

Other Items

We had a big campfire with skits and lots of laughter. This was a big hit for most of the crew. I am sure that they will tell you all about the spitting contest between two of the counselors to put out the fire.

The meals were very good. For dinner we had spaghetti, green beans, salad and garlic bread with a cupcake for dessert. For breakfast we had pancakes and sausage. There was also a breakfast bar with fruit, granola, oatmeal and hard boiled eggs. Then for lunch we had pizza, salad and grapes with ice cream bars for dessert.

It really was a wonderful trip. Thanks again to all of the chaperones who gave so generously of their time. Chaperoning is just like parenting or teaching – the toughest job you will ever love.

How We Celebrate Birthdays

The following post was also posted on my classroom blog. I thought it was time for a non-technology post on this blog so I am posting it here, too. I didn't want to give the impression that I am all about technology (if you ask my crew of 1st graders they would say that I am all about reading).


Wow! We have had so much fun with birthday treats this year. We started off with a great treat from Gabriel of two mechanical pencils - a big deal with first graders. Then today we had two birthday treats in one afternoon. Allison brought in goody bags with dry erase crayons, a notebook and a pencil. She has also invited the entire crew to her pool party at the Rec Center. Joseph ended our day with his birthday treat of a science experiment. We "blew" up balloons using the chemical reaction of vinegar and baking soda. The crew absolutely loved it! Each child brought home a balloon and instructions to do the experiment again at home.

I truly love how these treats are healthy and include all of the members of our crew (regardless of allergies and food intolerances). Thanks to those parents who have started us off so well with our birthday celebrations.

Our New Twitter Friends

This post was posted earlier in the week on my classroom blog. I thought it might be of interest to readers of this blog, too.

 We have made some new friends through our crew Twitter account this year and we are already learning so much from them. We are only in the getting to know you stage of our friendship and we hope to learn more and maybe collaborate on some projects in the future.

The first friends we made were Mrs. Price's class from Victoria, Australia. In just a few short days, we have already learned so much about Australia, time zones, weather and more. Below are a few short snippets of our Twitter conversations with them but these are always followed by more discussion and map viewing in our classroom. Enjoy the snippets and feel free to check out our crew Twitter account @MsJillsCrew for more of the conversation. They have sent us more questions tonight that we will answer and discuss tomorrow.

 

 

We have also started conversations with two classes from Ohio, Mrs. Mere's class and Mrs. Frazier's class. Here are the beginnings of those conversations.

 

We can't wait to see what tomorrow will bring.  Be sure to ask your child about this and maybe follow along with us on Twitter.

The Hopes and Dreams of My First Graders

On the first day of school, I asked my crew of students what their hopes and dreams were for the school year. Their thoughts, voices and drawings are in the 30 Hands presentation below. (If you get this post by email, you will need to go directly to the blog to view the presentation.) I will admit to having had a challenging meeting one day at school and I refreshed my attitude by working on this presentation that evening. Listening to my students' voices is like a magic tonic for me.

My Kind of School

School has started for me. Teachers reported back last Thursday and Friday. On Monday and Tuesday we will spend the days hosting Listening Conferences for parents. Students will come on Wednesday. Am I ready? Yes, indeed. I can't wait to get back to it. I love the philosophy of my school as I have mentioned before. To give you an tiny taste of what my school is like, take a look at our new staff t-shirts.

Front of the shirt

Back of the shirt

Close-up of the logo of our school that is on the front of the shirt