20 More Days With Students (Teachers Do Count. All Year Round!)
Newsletter #66
Congratulations—We Are Almost There
As of this posting we are truly in the countdown mode to wrap up the school year. This year, after a lot of different challenges that affected my teaching, I’m doing my best to lean into all the joy I can muster to close out the year.
I like to work on fun, hands-on projects that students love, like creating a store that sells products that students make from paper; they need to market with a commercial, price based on demand, sell with good customer service, and then post reviews of other stores and sellers. This economy project is my favorite of the school year.
Sometimes we create paper airplanes and have different contests to see how far they fly or how accurately they can glide through a hula hoop. Other years we focus on art projects using a variety of media. Once in a while I’ll offer a makers space where students create anything they want with all our leftover science materials. We even create graffiti walls on butcher paper where we can answer fun questions.
No matter what I choose to do at the end of the school year, there is always lots of reminiscing. Sharing memories of favorite moments in a memory book is popular with students. This year, I’m sure it will be a bit bittersweet but I do plan to include a page for them to remember their first grade teacher. I may even use the page from I Miss You Most. I hope it will be a time for them to process a bit more and honor her as well.
In the next 20 school days I will feel every single emotion you can imagine—frazzled, nostalgic, panicked, emotional, proud, frustrated, excited, anxious, sad, impatient, happy, annoyed, guilty, exhausted, overwhelmed, you name it! But like I said at the beginning, I mostly hope to feel joy.
Joy in their cute, expressive faces, in the hilarious things they say, in all their familiar quirks, in their exuberant laughter, and in the bond we will always share after spending a school year growing together.
Book Report: OUR NIPA HUT, A STORY IN THE PHILIPPINES
Written by Rachell Abalos
Illustrated by Gabriela Larios
When I was younger, there was an Asian grocery store that had a play nipa hut inside of it, and every once in a while I got to sit inside of it and pretend to be in the Philippines. So once this book came out, all those childhood memories came back to me. The author Rachell develops a strong sense of setting with her sensory details and many uses of onomatopoeia in her story, which nicely adds interactivity to a read aloud. Coupled with the bright, vibrant detailed artwork by Gabriela, we can both see and feel the plight of the nipa hut as she sheds leaves over time while her strong stilts and flexible bamboo walls withstand the wailing winds of a storm. I appreciate the way the Mendoza family instills in Yelena the importance of gratitude for and care of their nipa hut.
Themes: family, community, gratitude
Discussion Ideas:
How does the illustrator convey the mood of the story through the artwork?
How does Yelena show what she values? Why is it so important to care for the things you have?
Mentor Text For:
onomatopoeia
context clues
personification
cause and effect
sensory description
Link to Teacher Resources: Coloring Sheet
Buy the book!
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Weekly Progress Report
This is a section for “stuff I did” that relates to my writing career. I believe in celebrating all wins, big and small alike.
watched a replay of the Editor Panel from Virtual Agents and Editors Day
watched a webinar replay called A Behind the Scenes Look at Social Media and How You Can Leverage It
attended a Regional Team meeting to discuss future events for SCBWI SF/South
Sending you courage and grace in all you choose to do,
Susan