I have been teaching for 8+ years now but this year will be my first year in an all day Kindergarten classroom. Ever since I was offered/accepted this teaching position, I have had nothing but Kindergarten on the brain! I have been gathering ideas all summer via Pinterest (LOVE!) and TeachersPayTeachers (LOVE LOVE!). I have also "googled" and "you-tubed" for great examples/ideas regarding effective learning environments.
Like most teachers - much of the summer was spent on classes and professional development - and there is another week of professional development to come before the first day of school.
Needless to say - I'm on information/idea OVERLOAD!!!
There are about 3,000 things I want to try - but there's a tiny voice in the back of my head saying, "Take it slow - go as you grow". In other words - start with the basics - and then add layers with time, training and increased confidence/competence!
I don't have the fine print/details laid out yet - still ruminating on classroom management, transitions, rules, etc. I do have some ideas I'd like to try right off the bat though - the biggest idea is implementing the Whole Brain Teaching technique - for sure when starting out each day with a review of rules/expectations. I think with time I will gradually be able to incorporate more WBT techniques into lessons/instruction. For now - I will try it as a classroom response/management tool only.
I plan to color code as much as possible, use clothespins for flex grouping as much as possible, have a "Star Student" each week and have classroom jobs for most if not all students each week as well. I also plan to pull together some sort of a service learning project for the kiddos as I believe these experiences are the most meaningful learning experiences one can have.
Like I said - so many ideas - so little time - what to do - what to choose.....
Well - we'll see how well I stick to this blogging thing. I love reading other blogs - but am new to blogging myself. It seems like a great tool for sharing resources and ideas as well as using it for personal reflection. My goal this year is to be very intentional in every aspect of my teaching - down to the tiny details!
This concludes my first ever blog post - yay me! Stay tuned for more adventures of Kindergarten 101! I'm positive it will be a wild ride!
Peace,
Erica
