These handprint lilies are so beautiful and surprisingly easy to make! They'd make such a thoughtful handmade gift idea for Mother's Day if you make a small bouquet and tie them together with a ribbon. Or you could make a bouquet of handprint Easter lilies if you use white paper. Can Easter lilies be pink? I think they're just white? Either way, they're adorable for spring and they're a wonderful low mess craft to make with the kids! I had such an awesome helper when I made these paper handprint lilies! My spunky 5 year old loves crafts, and she
Our school has used quite a few Character Education programs throughout the years, but sometimes I find myself looking for more practical, concrete ways to help students deal with conflicts. These are not the larger, bullying-type conflicts that we discuss often in the Character Ed programs, these are the daily recess squabbles, the bickering/arguing, and the tattling that can occur throughout the week. With these types of conflict, I don't want to be the constant referee, negotiating both sides in every disagreement. I want to empower my students to choose between a variety of strategies and develop these necessary skills themselves. While looking for some of these online, I was contacted by Kelso's Choice and couldn't believe my luck. This program seemed to be addressing the skills I was looking for in a very kid-friendly, concrete method. I am excited to share this product review in case you are looking for a similar program. Disclaimer: Although Kelso's Choice sent me these items, all opinions are 100% honest and my own, and I never recommend something I wouldn't or haven't used in my own class. Kelso's Nine Choices The main character in this Character Ed program is a cartoon frog named Kelso. He is present in every K-3 lesson, but not in the lessons for grades 4-5, which I appreciate. He demonstrates all of the strategies that students can choose to solve a small (not big) problem. In grades 2-3, there is a wheel with all of the available choices and I absolutely love that visual. There are nine choices and lessons to introduce each one, along with a story from Willow Pond to help students role-play and solve these small problems for the animal characters. While there are nine choices, the program is very explicit that a student should try two and then get an adult if the conflict persists. There is an entire lesson at the beginning about small and big problems to help students differentiate what needs immediate adult intervention versus something they can work together to solve. The program also emphasizes that students are strong enough and smart enough to solve these small problems-- I love how much it is repeated throughout the teacher guide. Large posters accompany the product and I appreciated the ongoing visual. They cover each of the nine choices: Go to another game Talk it out Share and take turns Ignore it Walk away Tell them to (please) stop Apologize Make a deal Wait and cool off As you can see, these are common strategies that many of the students have used before, often in combination with each other. What I was grateful for was the common, explicit instruction around all nine of these to create a system in the classroom, on the playground, in the lunchroom, and beyond. Plus, the explicit instruction can do a world of good for our students who struggle with these choices and social skills. Working together as a class on each of these in a systematic way can let every single student be "in it together" and have a common language and framework to use as a group. Program Materials Included in the Conflict Management set was everything you could ever need to launch this with your classroom. There is a very comprehensive Leader Guide filled with grade-specific lessons, extensions, reproducibles, parent and staff letters, and stories. Lessons are in-depth, but quick, and encourage you to engage in some meaningful conversations with your students. Take a peek at the Table of Contents HERE. A CD helps with making copies for your classroom. Two frog puppets are also included: Kelso and Lily. Since I teach third grade, I offer these up as an option, but not as a requirement. My daughter is in second grade, and she is still loving any and all activities with a puppet, so I'm glad they were included for the K-3 group. Additional cut-out characters can help bring the stories and role-plays to life. There are also some great lessons provided to help use the puppets with your class. Inside the Leader's Guide are the Willow Pond stories, but they are also compiled in a full-color book that would be perfect for your classroom library. The font is large and these stories could even be used as a shared reading opportunity. The provided DVD has an animated Kelso reviewing all of the choices and how they can be used in students' lives. And, most importantly, there are huge posters to display in your classroom, hallway, lunchroom, etc. You can see the difference between the K-3 version and the 4-5 version above. There are five of each and they are BIG at 24x36"! If you are teaching grades 4-5, the authors knew that Kelso the frog would not be as big of a hit with the older grades, and the lessons are adjusted accordingly. There are photos of real kids and much more in-depth scenarios and questions. Even "Share and take turns" has been removed and choices are divided up into verbal and nonverbal. It's a nice jump and will keep kids engaged even if they've been learning these choices since Kindergarten. One of the components to this program that I really love is the inclusion of every staff member and family member in the program. They realize that a lot of these small conflicts arise outside of a structured classroom environment, and this program is designed to work for just those scenarios. Included are reproducibles that the on-duty adult can use to support and/or congratulate those students who used the choices to solve a conflict. There are letters and activities for students to take home to help educate the parents and certificates of achievement for every student as they complete the program. There's even a song they can learn and maybe even sing schoolwide? The authors, Barbara Clark, PhD and Diane Hipp, CPS not only knew what they were doing when it came to conflict resolution, they knew how to implement it into a schoolwide system and make it doable for teachers and staff. There is no extra fluff to dig through, nor are there scripted lessons that kill meaningful learning. The lessons are packed with goodness and could easily give students new experiences with these choices for their entire elementary experience. Overall Thoughts I really like Kelso's Choice Conflict Management program and could see it becoming a part of a successful school's character education collection. It is practical, simple in its use but effective in its strategies, and is a one-stop-shop for an entire elementary school. I can imagine School Counselors loving this program as a way to help give all kids common language and skills about solving small problems in an empowering way. There are plenty of activities to keep this a yearlong and elementary career-long program for students. Especially with its extensions into 4th and 5th grade, I can see how kids of all ages can use these simple, but powerful choices to solve their ever-changing conflicts. With every adult in their daily sphere reiterating these choices, it gives students a solid framework to address small conflicts and feel empowered instead of frustrated. Find more information at: https://kelsoschoice.com. There are free downloads and loads of extra information for you to peruse. There is also information about a 30-day Free Trial, if you think you would like to experiment before you make the schoolwide decision. Have you used Kelso's Choice in your school? I would love to hear about your experiences with it in a schoolwide system!
Get my Forms of Energy and Freebie HERE! Learning about Energy can be FUN and Interactive! Get ready to have your students demonstrate their knowledge about Forms of Energy using this fresh and funky ENERGY FLIP FLAP BOOK®!
Let's take a deeper look at the details in Nammi's room. There is a lot of inspiration! Click to see the beautiful pictures!
Follow this step-by-step lesson plan to teach your students how
Pregnant Sims can do a Ultrasound Examination. More Infos & Download here
The Starry Night (1889) “This morning I saw the countryside from my window a long time before sunrise, with nothing but the morning star, which looked very big,” wrote Van Gogh to his brother Theo,…
If you are wanting to teach kids about countries around the world this is a fun, free printable to teach kids about 18 countries - perfect for preschool, kindergarten, 1st grade, 2nd grade, and 3rd gr
I mean...why WOULDN'T you use cootie catchers in your reading block? It makes perfect sense. Ok - remember last week how I was talking about doing a little spring cleaning with some of my TpT resources? Well, I did a little spring cleaning in my file folders on my computer as well. Yikes. Now THAT'S a bit of a rabbit hole. I got in a little deeper than I wanted to, but I figured I might as well finish the job. I got rid of a lot (a LOT) of cringe worthy products that just didn't make the cut anymore, and I got some major organizing done as well. BUT - you know what I found? THIS >>> It's a reading comprehension cootie catcher that I TOTALLY forgot I made! And since it resurfaced for me - I thought I'd resurface it for you! I'm sure I made it for you guys in the first place, but I can't for the life of me find it anywhere on the blog. There's actually 3 different versions. They have different comprehension questions that can be used with any fictional book. They work great as a quick partner review game. You can download them here! Find any long-lost things in your spring cleaning, lately? Pin and Share this freebie:
Kids will have fun practicing skip counting by 1s-15s with these no prep, Free skip counting worksheets perfect for elementary age kids.
Not sure what to teach the first week of 3rd grade? Here's what we did!
These three icebreakers for teens will make the first class, youth group, or club fun for everyone, even the introverts.
A simple way to teach your students classroom procedures and expectations at the beginning of the school year
I don't know about you, but I am definitely getting excited for spring. There is just so much to look forward to such as warmer weather, being able to go outside for recess again, and working on fun and engaging spring STEM activities with students!
This week is Spring Break for me. I'm sitting at home enjoying this beautiful weather (and so glad winter is o-v-e-r!) and spending time with my kiddos. It's also a bittersweet time for me because really, I know when I return after this week, I only have a few more weeks left. Those few weeks will be greeted with excitement that I will have my summer off here soon but sadness that soon they'll be leaving me. And really, whether I like it or not, I still need to plan for those last few weeks. As I head into area and perimeter for one of the last units of math, I started collecting a ton of fantastic ideas and FREE resources to teach it. Over at my blog you can, not only read up on lots of fantastic ideas but you can also, collect this cute little freebie that I created to go with the collection! This freebie is where students can create their own "Art Area Gallery." Students create pictures and then determine the area of them. You can get this freebie and gather some great ideas and free resources over at my blog with my collection of area and perimeter blog post by some great teachers! Hope to see you soon... and it won't be long before we are enjoying our summer!
Are you looking for some fun STEM activities for 3rd graders? You've come to the right place!
Today, on the blog, I am sharing 15 of my favorite Amazon finds that I use in my classroom.
Hi friends!! I’m super excited to be linking up with Doodle Bugs for Five for Friday. I haven’t done one in a long time!! But I’m not feeling too well […]
Kids will have fun learning about Spain as they color and learn about key things with these FREE printable Spain Coloring Pages for kids of all ages.
A blog about the 4th grade classroom of Mrs. Skowronski
Paper Bag Dramatics: A fun activity for Team Building and Developing Community. Here's an idea that can be used just about anywhere at any time. It encourages groups to solve problems, think creatively, and work as a team.
Too many classroom icebreakers require students to take big social risks with people they barely know. Or they don't really help students get to know each other. Or they are just plain cheesy.
The most important lessons you will ever teach is about diversity and the importance of Celebrating Different Cultures.
Simon and I recently finished reading Charlotte’s Web together (meaning I read a bit of it to him every night before bed). We both really enjoyed it. My older
FUN Solar System Projects for kids of all ages with creative crafts, activities, and experiments to bring the planets and stars to life.
Check out these 7 activities to use with the novel Charlotte's Web including spider web synonyms, how to draw a pig, spider web art, and more.
Learn why one-pagers are one of my go-to activities for breaking down complex topics and texts. Understand what they are, why you and your students will love them, and how to implement them in your ELA classroom. I even have the advice to help you tackle the biggest obstacle you’ll encounter with this activity.
We've begun writing in our third grade classroom and to my delight, my students are way into it! We have set up our writing notebooks and w...
How to teach skip counting in 2nd grade using skip counting games & activities to help students learn to skip count and improve number sense.
These teacher hacks are brilliant ideas for your classroom that'll make your life so much easier this year. Number nine will change your life!
Get your kids psyched about STEM and STEAM with interactive activities they can do at home. They'll be amazed to use science, technology, engineering, art, and math in a setting that feels nothing like school.
Never planned to homeschool, now wouldn't trade it for the world
O'Keeffe's paintings make great inspiration for kids' art projects, so let's check out 10 of the best Georgia O'Keeffe projects for kids!
UPDATED: I fixed the freebie so you should be able to download now! :) As most of y’all know, I LOVE me some science. This is how I introduce science in my classroom. We do
I have to share with you something that I absolutely love: The WOW board! This beautiful piece of poster board was introduced to me by my friend and colleague. I used it throughout the year but found it especially helpful near the end of the school year.
