Dot Day Fun

Dot Day

One of my favorite weeks of the year is when I get to collaborate with our art teacher for DOT DAY. She brings the students into the library during their art time, and we co-teach the lessons. We like to start off the class with a discussion about where we can find art in the library. Then, especially with kinder students, we talk about what an illustrator does. Since Peter Reynolds is both the author and the illustrator, we don't get into collaboration between the two a lot this week, but later in the year we like to do lessons where we discuss how the author and illustrator collaborate on the story. 

I read the book, THE DOT by Peter Reynolds, to the students. We talk about the lesson from the story, then go to dot stations. 

Start with a dot, then see what you can make. 

Her dot, turned into a strawberry seed. 

Collaborative Dot -- students each received 1/4 of a dot, decorated it,
then got in teams and put the puzzle together to create a dot. 

At this station, students used Buncee.com to create a dot masterpiece. 

At another station, students were given a hand lense and sent on a mission.
They were dot-tectives. 

ISH

Since I saw students during their art time, for some of the students I saw them twice this week. The second time I saw the students, I read the book ISH by Peter Reynolds. We weren't for sure, but the students and I decided that this was the boy at the end of THE DOT that Vashti helps out. 

After reading the story, students made their own -ISH drawings. 

Favorite Picture of the Week

This sweet girl was so excited to find all the PUPPY PLACE books. 

Engineers and Literacy in Art

1st Grade Engineers

This past week, I read THE LITTLE RED FORT by Brenda Maier to the kindergarten classes.

While reading the book, we made a text-to-text connection, then compared this story to THE LITTLE RED HEN. After reading the story, students went to tables with various materials and were given the tasks to build a fort. 

Who knew forts could have wheels. This little one told me his fort would be mobile. 

This sweet face! She is having so much fun. 

Literacy in Art

If your art teacher is amazing like the art teacher I get to collaborate with every day, then give them this idea!! Our art teacher decided this year to make a display of some of her favorite books from the library, all having to do with art. The students can pull the card of a book they would like to have and bring it to the library. We help them find it, they check it out. When they return the book, we return the book to the art room to be displayed again. 

School is Back in Session

This is a late post, as we have been in school for 3 weeks already. I recently was thrown a curveball, and found out that I will be moving up to the middle school that my elementary school feeds into. This was an unexpected opportunity, but an opportunity that I could not turn down. I will be here at the elementary school for 2 more weeks, then I move over to Austin Academy. I am very excited about this new journey.

Back to School Bulletin Boards

I love looking at ideas on Pinterest for bulletin boards at the beginning of the year! The kids love looking at the bulletin boards through the year as well. 

I really like this last year's favorite bulletin board. I found the idea on pinterest over the summer. I looked up the books with the most checkouts and holds from last year, and put them on the bulletin board. The bookmojis are from Buncee. 

The school theme for this year is "Super Learners are Super Leaders", so we did a superhero theme on our other bulletin board. I took grade level team pictures, then asked teachers their favorite books. Do you spot my Tieks? That was my aide's idea, she is brilliant! 

Library Orientation 

The first couple weeks, we focused on library procedures and taking care of our books. The older grade levels played a Kahoot game to review the procedures. They had a ton of fun with this game! 

The younger grades went over taking care of our library books and being responsible. After reading MR. WIGGLES BOOK by Paula M. Craig, the students drew pictures of themselves taking care of their library book.