High School English Bulletin Board

Note: A further explanation of this bulletin board is on the language arts classroom, and more ideas for this board are there!

It seems the older the students, the less likely a teacher is to decorate a classroom, or at least change bulletin boards. True, students often focus on more personal issues the older they get, and a high school bulletin board may not be the top of the list. One way I combat this (student interest and my gumption to change those boards!) is by creating a board that students help make.

I've used student work before, as well as their brainstorming ideas, like on note cards or post-it-notes. This year I decided to make a literary term board:

Simple, and easy for students to add examples.

As we cover literary terms, I want students to see literary terms in their everyday lives, in everyday readings and advertisements. Our school gets the newspaper daily, and I often have them scan the pages finding a few examples. I also encourage them to find examples on the Internet. 'Allusion' seems to be the easiest found example, but they will find more along the way:

Allusions: The Catcher in the Rye and Fahrenheit 451. 

I think the students also like the breaks in class to find examples. I've thought about making a "grammar mistake" bulletin board, but I need to think that one through a bit more...

The Hunger Games

Hello Blog Readers!

I apologize that it has been four months since I posted. My teaching job this year is quite challenging, and I have focused most of my time on teaching. (I know you will all understand).

One of the challenges has been creating a unit for The Hunger Games Trilogy.  I love the books, and so do my students. I am trying to incorporate many language arts' aspects into the book and tap into the excitement my students have for it. One way I am doing this is by studying sentence structure, and grammar from Collins' writing. I am putting together a large grammar unit, but until I get it finalized and posted on Teachers Pay Teachers, here is the link for my free activity:

Enjoy!

Financial Friday: A Pack of Construction Paper

 A pack of construction paper can create many, many learning opportunities.

My local Big Lots always has nice pads of construction paper for $1. This one dollar always provides endless projects and hours of learning. Ty and Za create art and presents, and even decorate for the holidays.

Last year we made a Christmas paper chain and practiced sorting, counting, and sharing.

This year's paper chain for the playroom.

We are taking our Christmas decorations down, which includes cleaning up the kids' playroom. Za wanted to cut the strips of paper and while I knew this would be messy, I knew I should let her because it is great practice with the scissors.

Za's cutting project.

Sure enough, she started cutting and playing with the little pieces. Then she added them to bowls in her pretend kitchen.

Her homemade salad. Next time, we'll add "mushrooms" and "onions" too.

Viola! A "salad." I never thought to turn used construction paper into pretend food, but it is an idea we'll have to use again. Stretching the pad of construction paper even farther? - an easy Financial Friday project, almost free.

Sub Plans

My children were both sick the other day, so I had to call into work at my new job for the first time. Luckily, I live close enough to this job that I am able to run up to my classroom and set up plans. They look so tidy:

I think it is also a nice summary of what I am teaching, from left to right:
(my red grade-book)
American Literature
British Literature
That Was Then, This Is Now
Killing Mr. Griffin 
Anne Frank

I also did my sub plans differently than in previous years. At this school (it is tiny - we have 5 teachers total) the teachers take turn covering the classes. I wrote directions on a piece of paper - one  piece of paper per class. It worked well and I hope it was less confusing than a long set of directions would be.

The Chocolate War: Review Day

I recently finished teaching The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier. (This was my first time teaching it. I found it to be fabulous young adult literature, with strong anti-bullying themes. My students also liked it).

For fun on review day, this is what greeted my students:

Chocolates in "Trinity" boxes as well as homemade brownies. A sweet treat, for my sweet seniors.

Learning Is Everywhere, Especially With Mom's Stuff

Learning Is Everywhere!

Just ask my Ty. While I painstakingly decorated our banister for Christmas, Ty took several cable ties (more than pictured) and began turning them into numbers. He proudly exclaimed, "mom! numbers!" He made 1's, and several 6's and 9's. I think the ties are really difficult to bend, so he didn't make many other numbers, aside from a few really large 4's.

The number 1's and 4's really caused no problem, but I had many cable ties ruined from the 6's and the 9's (pictured).

I ran out of ties and had to substitute with tape (which will probably fall) but it is darn hard to get mad at a kid for ruining your supplies in the name of learning. I always try to show him that learning is everywhere, and if this is the result, I'll take it. 

Happy Holiday Season everyone! Sorry for the spotty posting. I have been very busy teaching full-time. I shall get back to blogging once I catch my breath, even if that means June.

Brain-Based Learning: Guideline Nine

This is it! The final guideline under Dr. Sousa's "daily planning, general guidelines." When I started this series, I wondered if each guideline differed enough to warrant nine separate posts. I think they do.

The final guideline:

Each brain is unique.

Ahh, clearly the obvious. Obviously the simple truth all teachers and parents know. Each child and his/her brain is unique.

Everyone brings unique perspectives and different experiences to each lesson, making each response unique. The other day I posted on Facebook a cartoon about fairy tales. Everyone chimed in, but it turns out that the way everyone interpreted the cartoon largely depended on each experience of growing up with these cartoons - old Halloween costumes, their parents' reactions, etc. (Even adults forget this fact that tons of experiences form an outlook). It is overwhelming to think that students and children have so many different experiences.

Each brain is unique, and every building will be unique as well.

That is the "nurture" part that contributes to each brain being unique. I feel like science is now impressing facts in education, that leads to the idea - what about the physical part of each brain? How is each brain unique, physically - perhaps "nature"?

It could begin in-utero, when brains begin to form. The research is strong on what happens to early brains. Zero to Three covers everything from abuse to general experiences form the physical aspects of the brain. What food the parents feed the child contributes to brain development as well.

How do we separate the nurture and nature aspects of the brain? I think this is what brain-based learning is telling parents and teachers - they cannot be separated. Everything influences children's brains.

Which leads us to a challenging, scary, and important fact: if each brain is unique, each learning pattern is unique. As a parent, as a teacher, that makes my eyebrows go up. Rarely do I teach a lesson and feel I reached every student. I keep trying, being patient, explaining different ways - am I alone here?

I fear that I leave this brain-based learning series with more questions than answers. Each brain is unique, which is wonderful and what makes each student special. It also makes teaching and reaching each student that much more important. That is a tough order.

So, does brain-based learning impress you, or does it overwhelm you? What do you think now that we have covered it all?

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