MB's Multi 1-2 News!
Edition 1 September-November 2018-2019
Finally Time for a SMORE!!!
Responsive Classroom
Responsive Classroom
The Responsive Classroom approach to teaching is comprised of a set of well-designed practices intended to create safe, joyful, and engaging classroom and school communities. The emphasis is on helping students develop their academic, social, and emotional skills in a learning environment that is developmentally responsive to their strengths and needs.
Many of the staff members received training at a one day Responsive Classroom training in August. The WES staff has already had the chance to implement the responsive classroom routines and techniques which work best in each of their classroom settings. We have also had the chance to share some knowledge and ideas during one of our PLG Early Release Wednesday staff meetings. Work and implementation will continue all year long. Mrs. Langelier and I meet each week and design how the Responsive Classroom will be implemented and worked with in our Multi 1-2 settings.
In our classroom we have brainstormed and built our rules and responsibilities which we refer to everyday, and are posted simply for everyone to refer to:
Be Kind~ Be Safe~ Be Responsible~ Be Respectful
One of our favorite Responsive Classroom activities is Morning Greeting. We do this right after the daily agenda has been reviewed. We have learned about a dozen ways to greet each other and positively begin each day as a team. The other day Isla made us each a small note and passed them to us for our morning greeting. Two of our favorites are the dice roll and knock knock greetings.
We also have learned about transitioning smoothly from one activity to the next by playing "Be Still As a Rock". This one helps us stop, look, and listen to the person speaking, follow directions, and to not waste any of our precious time together. Our record for being still and focused on the speaker's instructions for transition is 1 min and 18 secs.!!!!
We also have worked with a game called Mouse Trap to build cooperation and teamwork skills.
Some of the activities are content based and help us work on particular content skills, as well as skills which help in all areas, such as asking questions. One of our favs is "What's My Number?".
Morning Greeting!!!
A Chance For Everyone to Say Hello.
A Time to Learn Something New About Every Member of our Class!
Mouse Trap~Team Building
Preparing For a Year of Learning
Math Notebooks
Daily 5 Structure and Routines
Read to Self, Read with Someone, Listen to Someone Read, Work on Writing, and Word Work. The students discussed, modeled, and practiced : Getting started right away~reading, listening, writing, or working with words the whole time~using a zero or EEKK- elbow to elbow knee to knee voice~ignoring distractions~staying in one spot~building their own personal stamina~and persevering. Since the students have shown their independence in all of these important literacy structures, they now choose one to work at each day during Daily 5 CAFE time at the end of our school day. They alternate reading and writing choices. MB and Volunteers meet with individuals to listen to them read one of their Good Fit Book choices. They also choose three words, with adult guidance, from their writing to include in their personal dictionaries.
The students record for read to self is over 35 mins! So proud of all of their hard work. Ending our busy action packed days with Daily 5 is actually pretty magical!
The Right Way
The Wrong Way
The Right Way
CAFE Lessons
Our First STWEAM Topic- BUGS
CAFE
We dug deeper and learned about INSECTS especially Honey Bees!
Accuracy Strategy Work
The Strategy Focus and mentor Texts are displayed by our Windows behind the Teepee
Chunk Letters and Sounds
STWEAM
Closing Circle
Mary Beth Clason
aka
MB!
MB's Multi Age 1-2 Classroom
Email: mclason@wocsd.org
Website: www.mbsmultiage1-2.com
Location: Wells Elementary School, Sanford Road, Wells, ME, USA
Phone: 207-646-5953 . 4128