Keeping Our Stamina Up!

     How are we keeping our young readers engaged in reading during the holiday season?  That is a great question!  Jingle bells are ringing, and our little ones notice every flake of snow that falls from the sky.  Winter is here, and they know it!  Keeping them focussed on books can be a challenge during the month of December.  But, we have a few tricks up our sleeves!

     The students in KWEDA got some new places to read this week.  Laundry baskets!  As silly as it seems, the kids LOVE sitting in these new spots.  It is amazing what a new location can do to motivate a reader!

     There are some great books being read around the building, too.  From read alouds, to shared reading, to the books they are checking out from the library, great books are everywhere.  Kindergarten is working on various versions of the Gingerbread Man.  3rd grade is reading The Polar Express and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.   5th grade is reading The Birchbark House.  The kids can't help but focus when reading great titles like those!

     Finally, a little challenge never hurts.  We are having a Character Trait Challenge for the whole school, sponsored by the 1st and 2nd grade Accelerated Learning students.  Classes can win a Wii party by completing a google form about helpful characters, or by collecting Coins for Character for the City of Berwyn.  

Our Character Trait Challenge Video

Our Helpful Character Trait Google Form

    We have a lot of reading left to do in the next few weeks!  Let's enjoy the season with some great books!

Halloween Book Characters

     How do Hiawatha teachers celebrate Halloween?  With a good book!  :)
  
     We had quite a few literacy themed Halloween costumes this year!  The 5th grade team all dressed up as Macbeth and the 3 witches, which happens to be their current read aloud.  Mrs. Hayes was the tree in Chicka Chicka Book Boom.  Miss Falls and Miss Izzi went with Piggie and Gerald today.  Some of the 3rd grade teachers chose book character detectives, like Nate the Great and Cam Jansen, while one chose to represent Harry Potter.  We even had a student dressed as Harry Potter reading one of the Harry Potter book today.  I am not even sure which of the Potter series it was, because he wouldn't even look up from his book when I took his picture.  Talk about engagement!!!

     I hope you had a nice, safe Halloween.  Perhaps you can end this cold and rainy night reading a Halloween book as a family! 

Cool Tools

     This year, as part of our PBIS Program, we are having the students teach the Cool Tools each week.  We started with 5th grade, and they have had the opportunity to make signs and create presentations for  all the classrooms at Hiawatha.  They went into the classrooms in small groups or teams and helped model the positive behaviors that we should have at Hiawatha.  

  

     What they don't even realize is, that while they are teaching the Cool Tools, they are also becoming better readers and writers!  Writing their posters and scripts, rereading their writing, practicing speaking out loud to whole groups...  Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening.  Literacy is abundant in these activities!  

     5th grade, you are doing a great job as role models and student leaders!  We can't wait to see what the rest of the grades do during their weeks.  :)

Building Stamina is Hard Work!

     All through Hiawatha, reading stamina is starting to build.  From Kindergarten all the way to 5th Grade, the students have been defining stamina and the things that good readers do.  They have started to pick their own books, place themselves around the room, and begin to really READ after a long summer vacation.
     The first thing we work on every year is building stamina.  Stamina simply means how long we can stay focussed and read our books independently.  If we can teach the students to read books at their level independently, then the teachers can teach small groups and have individual conferences while the rest of the class is building up their reading level by reading books of their choice and level.
     The common thought in kids' minds, as well as the teachers' minds, is that building stamina is hard work.  Some days, it comes easy and everyone reads and is engaged without much thought.  The next day, with the change in temperature, a day without book shopping, a different time of day, etc. stamina might drop.  The good news is, that it will come back!  Our kids remember that they are in control of their own reading.  They are the ones who will make themselves readers.  They are in control of their own learning.  What a powerful message to send!
     If your child does not read at home every night, I highly suggest that you have them practice building stamina at home.  Let them pick out a book(s), find a comfy spot, and time them.  See how long they can stay engaged in the book(s)!  As soon as they stop reading, start watching someone else, or try and tell you something, stop the timer.  Celebrate how long they could control their reading!  Challenge them to get a minute longer the next time.  This will remind them that no matter where they are, they have the power to make themselves independent readers!!!

(Thank you, 2FLAL, for your stamina anchor chart.)

Kindergarten is Here!

     Our last blog post was about the 5th graders, so it seems fitting that today we focus on kindergarten.   You will soon see that, even though they seem to be the little ones at Hiawatha, they are already doing big things.

     Today was only the 3rd day of school for our little guys.  They are adjusting to being away from their moms and being at school all day, some for the very first time.  Add to that the 100+ heat, and you would think that they might have a hard time adjusting to going to school.  Worry no more!  These young ones are already READERS.

     I walked into their rooms today, and saw them already practicing their stamina and reading around the room.  Walking into KWEDA and seeing every one of those little 5/6 year olds holding a book and reading independently (even if it was reading the pictures- one of the 3 ways to read a book) was just amazing.  Mrs. Surma's room already started their stamina graph, and Mrs. Carrera's class was already buddy reading with 3rd grade.  Yep, we have readers.  Adorable little readers, at that!  

   

Ready to Change the World

     School is back in session!  This week at Hiawatha, we have started to see the students return to learning routines.  Summer is so long, but somehow the year starts and it is like they never left.  The classrooms are filled with students who are ready to read and write!  I was particularly struck by this display outside of Miss Sabri's room.   It was only the 2nd day of school, and these 5th graders have already decided that they are ready to change the world.   One of my favorite quotes of all time was staring at me, ready to start the new year.

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world."

I think our Hiawathans are ready to be the change.  Let's get the future started!

Welcome Back!

A new year is about to start, and we are ready!  The libraries are unpacked, the bulletin boards are up, and all that is missing are the children!  We cannot wait to meet our 2013-14 students.

In the meantime, what was your child's favorite book this summer?  Leave us a comment and let us know.

We are ready to start reading and writing, right from the start.  See you all on Monday the 19th!