Robbing Peter to pay Paul....

I have a confession.... I cannot fit everything I want to do into first grade into my day/week/month.  There.  I said it.  I think I said it for all of us.  I was at a professional development meeting on play today (one that I, personally, did not feel I needed because I have an early childhood endorsement and taught kindergarten).  So, trying to make the best out of it- I got a great book (sidebar!)- I went in with an open mind. 

I listened to my co-workers in the district discuss how they wanted to incorporate play into their day (all first grade teachers).  They were stuck.  Many said that they could get it in a few times a week, but that was all they had time for it.  My 6 year-old heart hurt for them.  The 6 year-old inside of me wanted to scream, "Let me run and be joyful!  Let me be creative and make a mess!  Let me experiment with new materials, toys and ideas!  I want to talk loudly with my friends about our play!"  The teacher in me said, "I totally get it- there is a lot of curriculum to cover.  I have assessments that are required (some twice- long story) and academic interventions to do with them.  Sometimes, I feel we have a target on our backs... we can't let anything slide or do any subject at a shallow level.  The expectation is so high at times for our little ones."

Then, my own voice came out, "I serve the WHOLE child, not just the cognitive portion.  I have a duty to do what is best for them.  This is my charge and what parents trust me to do."  This can be a scary thing.  I even found myself admitting it to my peers out loud.  I do not do all of the science or social studies that I could be doing (according to the curriculum- I focus on the state benchmarks for the necessities).  The room was pretty silent.  The presenter called it the "elephant in the room".  How do we do it all?  It's simple... we don't.  I've come to realize in the last few months that the academic portion of my focus is reading, writing and math foundations.  The rest is integrated into the other areas.  The rest of the child MUST be looked at and honored.  I thought I spoke too soon, when my principal stood up and reinforced my commitment and focus.  (Phew!  I'm not in trouble when I go in to school tomorrow!  She is very much aware and supportive of how I teach and run my room.)

In early childhood/ kindergarten rooms, it is very obvious that the teachers are trying to take in account the whole child when creating the learning experience (social, cognitive, physical, and emotional).  This cannot end once they get to first grade (and beyond for that matter!).  I am not perfect- I freely admit it.  I am trying my best to learn everything I can about my little people and what they need.  

So yes, I take them outside every day for another 20 minutes (on top of the lunchtime recess).  I make it work.  When the weather gets too ugly, I'll switch to 2 days inside play and only 3 days outside.  I also have integrated a sense of playfulness into our learning stations for math and literacy.  They are playing games related to our content and learning cooperatively (think self-regulation and social skills).  Is it my ideal?  No.  I wish I had more.  Maybe once I am more experienced at this level, I will find a way.  In the meantime.  I'm not sacrificing the little bit that I have to make a canned holiday craft or an extra science unit (said with respect towards my teaching partner who is an awesome science teacher!).  Here is a sample schedule for a typical week.  I tend to alternate science and social studies (or blend it into something else- like reading non-fiction during a read aloud time).  I will also post it on my TeachersPayTeachers account (free), so it can be downloaded if you like the format. (Please ignore the thumbnail pictures- I did something weird, but the file looks like below).

 

Anyway, I've spent enough time on my soapbox for one night.  I'm off to bed to rest for another day in First Grade :)

Stability ball chairs

For the past 3 years, my students have been sitting on yoga balls, instead of chairs.  I got rid of all of the chairs in my room except for by our computer stations.  Why would I make this move?  What are the benefits?

In my second year of teaching kindergarten, I had a class of 18 boys and 6 girls.  Yikes!  They were a BUSY bunch and I needed to incorporate even more movement into our day.  That was also the year that I has a student with ASD in my room.  I attended many special education trainings and professional development on movement in the classroom (also the topic of my Master's thesis).  I met a teacher in our county that has been using yoga balls in her room for chairs and had incorporated yoga breaks throughout her day.  This was it- a light bulb went on!  This was my solution.  Unfortunately, I couldn't secure funds in time to benefit my class that year, however the special education department gave me a grant to purchase a class set, based on my research.  I studied the work of Eric Jensen along with many others.  Through his research, I also found the support for recess and movement breaks benefiting learning and achievement.  Here are links to some research references and a Jensen article that is user friendly (for us non-brain scientists!).

Reference list for Play & Movement (download file - the Google view looks weird, but the file is good)

Jensen article link

Recess document link

There are 3 main purposes for using the ball chairs and incorporating movement into the classroom:

1. Movement increases blood flow to the brain, which is better for brain function (and learning!).
2. Movement helps children "get the wiggles out" which aides their natural need to move.  This helps them focus by expending the excess energy they build up throughout the day.
3. Sitting on a stability ball supports and builds their core mucles.  Pediatritians are finding that children in the last 10 years are suffering from poor core strength due to the pratices that are used while they are infants and small children (swings, back to sleep, car seats/ carriers, strollers, activity rings).  They are not developing the same strength as previous generations.  This also helps develop large motor muscles, which support small motor muscles (think writing and hand strength).

The following year, I introduced them to my kindergartners right away, beginning with a safety lesson and creating a list of procedures.  Here is the list we made this year with first graders this year  (similar each year- not by chance!).

The changes in my classroom were noticeable within the month!  They had more stamina during work times and their negative behaviors were reduced (getting up, playing around, etc.).  I have recieved so much positive feedback from students and parents.  I also get parent requests for my class because they believe in the theory and want this for their child. 

 

My current 1st grade room- one of the rare times
that the balls are neat! Front of the room.

The back of our room.

At night, we put the ball on the table using clear frisbees. 
These are my old tables.

In my old room, a shot of student working at

                                       literacy stations.

There are a few drawbacks... I cannot use chair pockets for storage, guest teachers get sea sick when teaching a room off bouncing kids, and the balls seem to escape out our door at times.  Other than that- I LOVE them.  I wouldn't give them up unless I was forced to :) 

Here is a news report done on our classroomtwo years ago:

Fox 2 News Report on Kindergarten Class  

Let me know if you have tried similar alternative seating solutions!