For me, the effective classroom starts with building community. I received some grant monies to take these sixth graders on an overnight camping trip at the beginning of the year. The goal was for them to develop a sense of community. Here they are seen finishing up a team building called, Puzzling Tangram. This activity also addresses my goal of having students engage in cross-curricular activities. The giant sized tangram also asked the students to use basic geometry skills.
A Group Contract
In order for student learning to occur, a safe classroom environment needs to be established. One of the first tasks I have students complete is a group contract. See below for the directions for this task and the sidebar for some example products created by students.
The Task
To create a contract which states those things which will help to make this a safe and learning supportive environment - an environment in which personal and needs are most likely to be achieved.
The Procedure
List those behaviors and attitudes that will assist each individual and the other class members in having a positive experience. After the list is developed, create a visual representation or metaphor for the contract.
Arts Across the Curriculum
A guiding principle of my mission is:
Learn by Immersion
Design experiential, interdisciplinary and holistic learning experiences.
One way to do so is to integrate the arts into and across the curriculum. A 2006 study by the National Assembly of State Art Agencies (NASAA) found that students who participate in the arts improve their academic achievement, stay in school longer, participate in more hours of community service and report less boredom in schools. And a 2001 study at the University of Rochester revealed that children who participate in culturally based after-school programs experience an increase in self-esteem, relationship skills and leadership competencies—all necessary ingredients for social and academic achievement. See the full NASAA report below.
Arts Benefit Student Achievement | |
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Cross Curricular Physical Education
I taught K-6 Physical Education for several years. I never had any goals and intention to do so. But seeing the diminishing of PE and recess, and the related skills that these activities inherently add to kids' lives, provided me with the motivation to get my PE endorsement. During my PE classes, I never wanted the kids to become great athletes or sports heroes. In fact, I rarely had them play competitive sports. My goals included having them learn the skills related to teamwork and good sportsmanship. I introduced lots of cross-curricular activities where I would use movement to teach language arts, math, and science. I watched in excited awe for two years as 450 K-6 graders per week participated and played with the joy that is unique to children!
Service Learning
A guiding principle of my mission is:
A Service-Orientation
Expose and teach students about community service with its associated values and rewards.
As stated in my mission as an educator, I believe in the importance of students learning the intrinsic value and reward of community service. Even the youngest of students can participate in these projects. For example, this past year the Kindergarteners through 2nd graders decorated bowls for the local Empty Bowls Project