Last week, my Social studies students wanted to do something special. So I decided to have them walk around the school. As we began our journey, I was amazed by the wonderful and creative ideas that they had. I liked how detailed they were. They were able to recognize where students should be more cautious. They also mentioned some safety rules in the playground, like the one above. I told them to use their words positively. Instead of saying DON’T KICK THE BALL TOO HARD  we said IF YOU KICK THE BALL TOO HARD YOU WILL HURT YOUR FRIENDS.  They liked the idea that it is much better to use positive words and avoid the DON”T word. We don’t want to give orders after all right? So after they chose what to write we went to Art class and started designing the safety signs. This Wednesday and of course after the principal’s approval we will be hanging them around the school. Safety signs done by my students. They make me so proud

This is what we got so far we will be writing more

As you all know I am a believer in positive energy and self development. I like to inspire students every week with a quote about positivity or inspiration. Usually, every Friday we write the agenda or homework for the upcoming week and when we are done we write a quote on top. When we write it we discuss it as well. The quote above “ If you surround yourself with positive people, you will have positive results.” was last week’s quote. let me show a few quotes that we wrote the past few weeks.

“Only you can control your future.” –Dr. Suess

“Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.”

“Live with passion.”- Anthony Robbins

“Greet the day with love in your heart.”

2012 is my year to shine! We wrote this quote after new year.

Trust me these quotes they will remember forever! Parents of my students read them too and they always tell me they love the quotes that we write on the agenda. Inspire your students and everyone around you!

Our Annual Math Contest is soon and I want my kids to practice mental math and operations regularly to get the hang of it. I decided to put a basket in class that says ‘Solve my Problem” in the basket are math operations subtraction and addition along with problem solving.

Next to the basket I put recycled papers to solve the operations on them instead of white paper and to teach them not to waste paper.

In the photo above I also added Math Windows, some teachers are familiar with them. They are also very good for solving operations. The answer key is in the back and they can put their score on top and of course using recycled paper.

I just want to add that I change the problems and operations every 2 weeks so that students will be provided with variety. Don’t forget to check their answers! This activity is also great for early finishers.

As I was browsing the net until I read this interesting post about pens and pencils. I never thought pencils could be that annoying or dangerous. As I read the whole post I agreed with every word but would do we use instead? That would work only if the school uses technology massively like Ipad for every student etc… Well I thought of sharing it anyway let me know what you think.

According to a recent MSNBC article, 69% of high school currently ban cell phones. But you’d be hard-pressed to find a school anywhere that has enacted a blanket ban on pens and pencils. Here are 10 reasons to reconsider the widespread acceptance of these distracting and potentially dangerous implements.

  1-  Pens and pencils are distracting. The tapping, clicking, flipping and rolling can drive just about any teacher around the bend.

    2- Writing implements are dangerous. I remember when I was a kid my brother attacked me with a pencil so close to my eye that I was almost gonna go blind. I still have the mark by the way. Thanks brother! –Miss Farah

3- Pens can be used to cheat. Katie says: Now that I’m at the head of a classroom instead of behind a desk, I’ve seen some ingenious cheating techniques. One student managed to write an entire history of media studies on the bottom of their shoe. I’ve also found forearms covered with vocabulary words, ankles tattooed with definitions, and hands dyed with smeared blue ink.

  4- They are incredibly messy. Dusty pencil shavings litter the floor in many elementary classrooms and pens filled with liquid ink are just disasters waiting to happen. Have you ever tried to clean a child’s backpack after a pen broke at the bottom of the bag? No amount of scrubbing can get the dye completely out.

   5- Pens and pencils can be used to bully kids. Those notes that pass from hand to hand across the rows of desks are often far more sinister than they appear. Thanks to the ubiquitous use of writing implements in schools, kids have free reign to write and distribute messages that use offensive language and hateful speech. Recent high-profile cases of student bullying are just the latest examples of why we must crack down on these communication tools.

6-Kids will just use them to play games. Hangman, Tic-Tac-Toe, word searches, crosswords, and now the latest craze: Sudoko. How can any student be expected to keep their mind on lessons when there are so many tempting distractions just a pen stroke away?

7-  Fancy pens and pencils will cause jealousy and other problems. Katie says: I remember in fifth grade when the girl who sat across from me came to school with a brand new pack of orange, sparkly pens that wrote in neon ink. Her father had brought them back as a souvenir from a recent trip to Florida. They were the coolest and I wanted them, but they were too expensive for me to just go out and buy. Wouldn’t it be better to nip those kinds of issue in the bud by instituting a widespread ban on pens in schools.

  8-  There are health concerns that can lead to bad habits. Chewing pens and pencils  all that chomping in class had to affect our dental hygiene.

http://blogs.kqed.org

…Faouzi! Faouzi is one of the students who always gets healthy snacks and lots of fruits. I like how the fruits are always so neatly put and how he displays them on his desk getting ready munch Keep it up Faouzi!

Yesterday we had the egg hunt competition at school and our class won by getting the most number of eggs. They were so happy that they requested I mention it on the website!  We won a huge chocolate egg and we sat in class and ate it in one gulp! yummy! Congratulations Grade 2 A, and Happy Easter from Miss Farah and her students.

     My post for today is mainly for teachers to help their students understand what they have to accomplish learning throughout the day. Each morning I write the date, subject, and the objectives for the whole day. Today I had three consecutive periods. One for English, one for Math, and the third one for Science. Of course, I have my daily lesson plan with me and I know what should be covered, but students need to know that too. Students like to know ahead of time what is expected of them. So if you look at the picture above, I mentioned that we have reading with comprehension questions( English), then learning the multiplication of 4 and 9 (Math) and finishing Science workbook pages about “Salt Water Habitat”. Each time we finish a task I put a tick next to it like the photo below.

   Usually in every class you have slow workers and that could put us behind schedule, it’s not because they are low achievers it’s just that they tend to take their time more than others. So to teach them that they have to work at a faster pace I write on the board let’s say they have 15 minutes max to finish the required classwork I write 15 minutes on the board. Every 2 minutes I write on the board how many minutes are left. You can use other ways like signs, clock, bell etc…

What I posted today is part of classroom management. It makes the students’ and your life easier  

    At the beginningof the year, I put up a rising stars bulletin board in the hallway of the elementary department. The idea behind this board is to encourage positive reinforcement in the class, especially low achievers. For example if a student was polite by saying please and thank you he or she can get a rising star or if the student was behaving well, completed classwork on time, raised his/her hand, stood properly in line, cleaned up his/her desk etc… When your student sees that he or she is being appreciated, they will work harder and put more effort.

What is so special about this board is that everyone walking in the hallway can see the bulletin board. When parents are going to the office or picking up their child at the end of the day they will see their child’s name as well.

    Here are some rising stars that some teachers wrote about the students and put them on the board. To make this star it is quite easy. Just go to Microsoft word get the shape of the star. Leave a line for the name then write “is a rising star because” and a few more lines for stating the reason. Put two small lines at the bottom for the grade and section and the other for the date like the photos above. I hope you like it remember this rising star board works best if all the department was working on the same board for everyone to see

100 calories

1 stick
per serving

Sick of trying to get your kids to eat something healthy? Try my method of persuasion involving a stick.

No, I’m not suggesting you beat them.  Try shoving a healthy food onto a stick!

This may sound crazy (or even dangerous), but for a certain age group that can handle sticks this is a fantastic way to trick them into thinking they are getting a treat. Children are much more motivated by the physical appearance of their food than adults. They choose things by sight, perhaps because they don’t have the experiences that adults have had with food.

The best way to serve this snack is to get the kids involved so you don’t have to do any work. Get some barbeque skewers and butter knives and let your children cut up the soft food.

Then give them the sticks and have them design their own snack. Let them pick out the food they want to use from the refrigerator. There are SO many options: olives, lunch meat, bread, fruit, vegetables, cheese – almost anything can be put on a stick!

Your imagination is the only limitation for your fancy stick snack. You can wrap these in plastic wrap and put them in a lunch box. I would cut off the sharp end if you have a child that is a bit feisty at lunch time (you don’t want his best friend to lose an eye).

Taken from: http://www.snack-girl.com/

       I wanted to write you a letter but then I thought to my self that my love to you should be shown to  everyone around the world in a post on my blog.

       I honor you, Mom, with my love and gratitude because of the things that you have taught me in life.  You taught me independence, trust my opinion and always keep an open mind to what I have to say. Because of you, Mom, I have become a person who tries to be nonjudgmental, kind, patient, fair, loving and compassionate.

      I’m sure you’ve watched me walk into situations that you knew were going to hurt, but the thing that lets me know how much you care is that you let me go into them. I only hope that I can pass these same characteristics down to my children, so that they will be as proud of me as I am of you.   I can’t express in words what you give to me without even knowing it. Your doing an amazing job being my mother, and I don’t think I tell you enough.  So today is your one day a year to be spoiled, one little day to focus on you rather then everyone else, when you’ve given every day of your life for the past 28 years to me.

      You are  a remarkable woman and an amazing Mom! You are always seeking to do the right thing. You have  a wonderful sense of humor and you taught us that family is important and that no matter what, we’d always have each other.

       Thank you for always giving of your time, your energy and your devotion. Thank you for always knowing what I need, even when I don’t know it myself. Thank you for taking the time to teach me the important lessons in life. Thank you for being such a blessing. Thank you for being you!

                                    Happy Mother’s Day Mom!

                                                                                                       Your daughter,

                                                                                                          Miss Farah

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