GELDS: SED3.4b

SED3 – The child will begin to demonstrate self-control.

SED3.4b Regulates own emotions and behaviors, and seeks out adult support when needed.

WSO: Attends to tasks and seeks help when encountering a problem. 

Activities: If You're ____ and You Know It.  Replace happy with other emotions for students to exemplify through actions.  For example, if you're mad and you know it stomp your feet.  Talk about what they can do to help regulate those feelings appropriately within the classroom setting.  

My Teacher Can.  This is a language chart.  Place emotion cue cards in a bag.  Students will pass the bag around and pull out one cue from the bag.  They will identify what emotions they are holding and dictate what the teacher can do to help them when they feel that way.  

Books: Pout-pout Fish by: Deborah Diesen

The Pigeon Has Feelings Too! by: Mo Willems

GELDS: CLL8.4d

CLL8 – The child will demonstrate awareness of print concepts.

CLL8.4d Recognizes and reads environmental print.

WSO: Begins to develop knowledge of letters.

Activities: Environmental Print Alphabet Sort.  Laminated placemats with a single letter on each with a box of logos cut out.  Students sort logos to their letter match.  For example, McDonalds would go on an M mat.

Labels.  Labeling everything within your classroom with picture and print.  Items that students use on a frequent basis will begin to look familiar for students to recognize the print instead of simply by picture.

Books: You can make your own from local businesses, make an alphabet environmental print book, and more!

GELDS: MA7.4a

CD-MA7 – The child will use mathematical problem solving, reasoning, estimation and communication.
CD-MA7.4a Estimates using mathematical terms and understands how to check the estimate.
WSO: Uses words and representations to describe mathematical ideas. 

Activities: Guess and Check.  Before you do a measuring activity, have students guess and record their guesses on graph paper.  After measuring, compare their guesses to the actual measurement.

Books: Guess How Much I Love You by: Sam McBratney

GELDS: CR4.4b

CD-CR4 – The child will use dramatic play to express creativity.

CD-CR4.4b Uses dialogue, actions, objects and imagination to tell a creative story.

WSO: Participates in creative movement, dance, and drama.

Activities: Prop Box.  Instead of the theme prop box from your dramatic play area, place a variety of props for a small group of students.  Students can dress up or use items to express a short story as a group.

Outdoor Make-Believe.  Change outdoor play one day by bringing some dramatic play items outdoor for students to utilize their imaginations in the outdoor environment.

Books: Skippyjon Jones by: Judy Schachner
Where the Wild Things Are by: Maurice Sendak
Any of the Molly Lou Melon titles by: Patty Lovell

Linky Party: Kronk

• Kronk:What you are best at in the kitchen?

• 
  
• In the kitchen?  Cooking.  I'm not a fan of dishes really but I'll do the cooking part.
• I've gotten much better in cooking than when I started.  When I started cooking, like really cooking, my daughter was still on breast milk/formula.  That worked out just fine because many of my meals did NOT turn out well.
• My first experience learning what the term "simmer" meant came from when I cooked corned beef for St. Patrick's Day.  Simmer for 8 hours does NOT mean leave it on high.  
• Oh, and there was the time that I thought it would be cool to swap a pound of ground turkey in place of ground beef.  It looked so disgusting while cooking that I couldn't even force myself to eat it.
• But now I know how to cook.  I can make beef tataki, sushi, sauteed chicken, and so much more.  It just took a lot of failing at first but I got there.

NEXT WEEK:  Simba:Something a parent has taught you.

Change of Plans

Late Thursday I had a message asking if I would be interested in life guarding again this summer.

I didn't last summer because of academic things working towards teacher certification but sure.  I know the person that I will be working with is willing to adjust for many things that I had already planned to do with my daughter.

It is very close to summer so the only uncertainty is can I find a certification class.  

So I called the rec department and we lucked out!  There was a class this weekend.  It might mean missing Mother's Day to get this done but I didn't know when I might find another class between now and summer so might as well.  I lucked out because many of the other people who signed up, dropped out.  We busted tail, stayed late, and finished the material in a day.  Yay!  I still got Mother's Day with my family!

Holy wow, some of the changes to procedures and stuff for life guarding.  Then comparing emergency response training of life guarding to the minimal CPR training that I got about a month ago makes sense to me now why my husband and I were never on the same page about emergency care.  

I look forward to another fun summer of life guarding and will probably be posting some tools and such that I implement.  I'm working for a daycare summer camp so I like to keep things structured yet fun.  We free swim, play pool games, and utilize pool toys in the shallow end.  I like to review the pool rules with the kids daily before entering the pool.  I'll be sharing more of that once we get closer to summer.  

On another note: if you are in the middle Georgia area and need a summer job.  I know two places hiring and someone who will certify you if need be.  

Para of the Year

Yesterday was quite a treat for me.

I got up early and excited with my daughter for her field day.  

Hugs, kisses, bus stop, and then off to work for me.

I surprised my teacher with her teacher appreciation door.

You can tell that it was rushed quality work but I think for getting it done in secret while she was out that it looks pretty cool.  I wanted to make a hard hat on her but it was getting late in the day and I was still cutting out letters soooo.....

After that I went through the regular morning routine.  I started walking my students back to the classroom and people I passed were telling me congratulations.  Um, what am I missing?

Didn't you hear the morning announcements Mrs. Pope?  You're the paraprofessional of the year!

What what?  Oh neat!  Keep walking the kids back and get them settled in through their morning routine.

Mrs. Pope, what are you going to do to celebrate?  Um, work.  Yup, going to keep working.

Get in to class with the students and oh, there's the principal.  Must be our last TKEYS observation.  

Oh what?  Flowers?  Cupcakes?  Congratulations?  Oh don't cry, don't cry.  Hugs, wipe those tears away, submit attendance before it's 9:00.  

My parents got me roses and my daughter took me out to eat.  It's a good feeling and I'm happy to have been identified as this title but earning it doesn't mean that I stop doing it.  

Nothing to it but to do it and I'm going to celebrate this with still giving 300% to my work.