Ode to English Plurals

my mom sent this to me and i thought it was GRAND! 

especially for ELA and English teachers. so fun. 

i am not sure where it is from {if someone knows PLEASE inform me as to where i may give credit!} 

i even shared it with my kids when we were doing plural spelling words, and though parts of it were a little over their heads, they understood the gist of it and laughed at all the right places :) 

{Ode to English Plurals}

We'll begin with a box, and the plural is boxes,
But the plural of ox becomes oxen, not oxes.
One fowl is a goose, but two are called geese,
Yet the plural of moose should never be meese.

You may find a lone mouse or a nest full of mice,
Yet the plural of house is houses, not hice.

If the plural of man is always called men,
Why shouldn't the plural of pan be called pen?
If I speak of my foot and show you my feet,
And I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet?

If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth,
Why shouldn't the plural of booth be called beeth?

Then one may be that, and three would be those,
Yet hat in the plural would never be hose,
And the plural of cat is cats, not cose.
We speak of a brother and also of brethren,

But though we say mother, we never say methren.
Then the masculine pronouns are he, his and him,
But imagine the feminine: she, shis and shim!

Let's face it - English is a crazy language.
There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger;
neither apple nor pine in pineapple.
English muffins weren't invented in England .
We take English for granted, but if we explore its paradoxes,
we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square,
and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.

And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing,
grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham?
Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend..
If you have a bunch of odds and ends and
get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?

If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught?
If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat?
Sometimes I think all the folks who grew up speaking English
should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane.

In what other language do people recite at a play and play at a recital?
We ship by truck but send cargo by ship.
We have noses that run and feet that smell.
We park in a driveway and drive in a parkway.
And how can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same,
while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?

You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language
in which your house can burn up as it burns down,
in which you fill in a form by filling it out,  and
in which an alarm goes off by going on.

And in closing, if our Fathers are Pops, how come we don't call our Mother's MOPS?

Hope everyone has a FANTABULOUS weekend! Get out and ENJOY the weather! 


 Living GREEN FAIRY style for St. Paddy's Day 
{. .. .. and yes, the green garland is for St. Patrick's Day .. it isn't still up from Christmas, though that would be how I roll so I don't blame your questioning thoughts! *haha*}

ugh.

tell me.

does this happen to all of you too??
or are my kiddos supply monsters ... eating, loosing, ripping, tearing, and destroying everything in SIGHT!

the middle one is what is LEFT of my cute, ribbon library passes. they even had cute little tags  . .. . .

 a teacher came in yesterday, surprise written all over her face, and asked, "are those really your library passes?"
no. that is what's left of them. come on! i did not sit around in the summer planning for my room thinking .. .. okay, let me see, i think i will use post-it notes and ghetto looking masking tape for our library passes this year. GEEZ.

had to vent.
over all, this group has been pretty good with supplies and taking care of things but ... . .. . sometimes it is still incomprehensible what kids are capable of destroying! truly.
so . ...
Operation "student proof" is happening tomorrow. ... . who am i kidding. i wouldn't even have a classroom if i did that!{sigh. smile.} ... . . . recode. ..... .. . Operation "create sturdier supplies" . .  .. goodnight!

Author's Purpose, TPT, and new scarf!!

So we have been learning about Author's purpose and I found the most fabulous idea on Juice Boxes and Crayolas. I couldn't wait to use it and actually presented it during my principal's observation. It was amazing! We also learned the hand gestures that Amy created. I HIGHLY recommend them! It was so cute because today, while we were taking the assessment I saw a couple of the kiddos doing them to help them on the quiz ;) GO AMY!

 We filled in the P.I.E chart - then we worked together to identify where different articles belong. The fun ones were those that rode the "line". I also created some note cards - while they are not nearly as creative as everyone's in the blogging world, they did the job and the kids did really good identifying different intro paragraphs during guided reading groups.

Today, we took our Author's Purpose Assessment. I finally got around to making a Teachers Pay Teachers account and am excited to actual share some documents! ... I feel like I must share something on blog world since I have taken and been inspired by so much! So, first up is a freebie - Author's Purpose Assessment :)

... . .. .on a slightly un-school related topic, I got the most fabulous scarf - loving the birds! . .. . . . but since I have worn it to school 3 times already it's becoming school related quickly ;)

Observations, Reading Block, and Such.

So for the last week I have been reviewing all of our reading procedures like a CRAZY woman! You see, my principal shared that he wanted to observe all of us during our 90 minute reading block to see how, what, when, we do things. He stated that it wasn't a formal observation but that he wanted to be more aware of what is happening so he can better support what we are all doing and give better feedback when we have questions. Yes, he is amazing like that. He is so involved, encouraging, and supportive- and I LOVE it.

With that said ... it is still nerve wracking to have ANYONE in your classroom for NINETY MINUTES! Let alone your principal ... and the intimidating notepad.

Our reading block, as required by Michigan law MUST BE 90 minutes {I'm sure many of you have the same thing}. My 90 minute block looks something like this ... . ... .
{Note: these are the times for when I have my partner teacher's kids} 
10:20-10:30 Students do a bellwork activity as I call students over to collect homework
10:35 - 11:05 Daily 4 {my adaptation of the Sisters Daily 5 Centers}
11:010- 11: 30 Reading Mini-lesson/ Activity
11:30 - Status of the Class {Usually takes about 5 minutes}
11:35 - 12:00 Independent Reading time - I do my individual student conferences during this time

At 12:00 we switch gears and begin writing or social studies depending on the week.

Normally, I would not have been freaking out too much over any evaluation. The schedule usually goes like clockwork. However, these last two weeks have been NUTS!
Last Monday - no school {Professional Development}
Last Wednesday - Music and Art field trip
Last Friday - no school {Teacher work day}
This Wednesday - field trip to Hockey game
 .. . . . ... this schedule, while loads of fun, messes with classroom organization,  procedures, and behavior BIG TIME!
. .. ..add to this Tuesday (the day before the Hockey game field trip yesterday) which was a completly HELLISH day ... I had four boys at four separate tables around the room, multiple movings of clips, and both classes in for recess to go over some simple classroom rules. With the field trip in between that day and my observation today, I was a hot mess this morning worrying about today's behavior!

.... .. . ... but BOY did my kids DELIVER! They were AMAZING! All the way through. Ninety minutes of pure teaching BLISS! I cannot tell you how incredibly PROUD I was of them, their behavior, or of how smooth and beautiful our reading block was presented. It was exactly how a good day runs in our room. I feel good. I feel accomplished. These moments of success and pride must be cherished by teachers as to get us by on those days where we question why we ever entered this profession!

and I am cherishing it.

Stole this from Lindsey over at My Life as a Fifth Grade Teacher - it SO made me laugh!

 if only . ... . .. ..

field trips and frustrations.

Wednesday we took a fabulous art and music field trip in Kalamazoo {and yes, for those of your who do not live in Michigan, there really is a Kalamazoo *grin*}

Our first stop was to a Glass Blowing Factory. The kids were absolutely fascinated by it! 8 volunteers were even able to help cut the hot glass. It was really neat!

Our second stop was to the Kalamazoo Symphony. I am always a little nervous about this since it is a whole hour of sitting through orchestra music ... but the kids did GREAT! It did help that we were in the very first row! It was a really neat experience and the kids genuinely enjoyed themselves.

The last stop was to a history and science museum. They had the neatest hands-on activities. I think I may have enjoyed it as much {or more} than the kiddos *smile*

The two "hits" were definitely the news station, the diner {where they got to serve each other} and the general store ... what fun!

 Yes, that is me ...I love dressing up - we had a blast in this room buying and selling, and talking in old fashioned accents ;)

 Coal mining was a hit too ...

 Who can resist a good photo op! 

 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Needless to say, the frustration did not come from the field trip ... since we had such a fantastical time!

The frustration is coming from READING. 

I try very hard to follow reading workshop to the best of my ability. My district gives us a reading basal program {of which I am NOT a big fan of} which I generally only use the leveled readers from for guided reading and such. With that said, I am pretty much on my own to figure out any thing I want to incorporate concerning reading and writing workshop since they do not send us to any workshops. I feel that I have good systems in place with Daily 5, CAFE, mini-lessons, guided reading groups and  independent reading time but I can't seem to mesh them together into one, smooth, effective block. I am struggling with figuring out what, when and where. 

I am curious to know how those of you who have successful reading workshops figure out the following: 

1} Without a text book telling you, how do you figure out what order is the best for teaching strategies/concepts/genres? It is truly just your own judgment? 

2} How do you gauge your time on each section/strategy/genre/ etc.

3} When, during workshop time, do you do the actual activities that go with the strategy or concept (like summarizing or point of view) 

I would LOVE some ideas or perhaps a link to a blog you may have posted concerning one of these areas. 

I have learned SO MUCH from all of you - really I don't think I would be going out of this limb alone if it weren't for all of your amazing ideas and inspirations!

Frogs, frogs, and more frogs!

Currently, my partner teacher is discussing endangered animals and animal adaptations with our kiddos in science. We had a presenter come in and talk about the dangers that are threatening many frogs and making some of the species extinct. Many of the factors point back to humans and things that we do that hurt these cute little creatures. Needless to say, the kids jumped passionately aboard the "save the frogs" wagon and we had a great time researching about them, creating them, and making others aware of their impact.

In science they created created amphibian creatures to scale out of clay.

 In writing, we are working on expository text and so I had them create "Ms. Frizzle" frog reports ... Ms. Frizzle reports are my name for "mini reports." You know the short little blurbs that the students in the Magic School Bus books have on the side of the page - the mini research reports on a very specific part of a large topic?
I show the kids examples of real Magic School Bus reports. Wanda's on pollution. Arnold's on coral reef partnerships. Ralphie's on wind energy. We talk about how even mini reports have a Main Idea, a TS {topic sentence}, supporting details {though they will have less since they are "mini"}, key details that help the support, and a wrap up conclusion sentence.

I had the kids brainstorm something unique and specific that they wondered about frogs ... why their tongues are so long? How they jump? What they eat? Which ones live in Michigan? etc.
we researched them down in the lab .. .. .... .
then we came back and filled in the 4 sections of expository text.
Once they were done with their "Ms. Frizzle Report" paragraph they re-wrote it onto a lily pad.

We also created "Save the Frogs" diamante poems. I had them use Read, Write, Think's diamante poem creator. They LOVED using that! We cut out frog heads and legs and glued them to our poems.

Together with the lilypads, these looked SO cute! The presentor is actually putting on a display concerning Saving Frogs at the public library and asked to display all of our reports and poems. The kiddos were so proud - as they should have been :)

Oh, and of course, we had the kids dress in GREEN :)

Sick.

It was one of those weeks.
Negative.

Nothing is organized.
Everything goes wrong.
The room looks like crap.
My house is a mess.
Laundry hasn't been done in weeks.
My head is about to explode.
I struggle with my guided reading groups.
My classroom is a mess {I despise all my piles}
No one seems to be following or listening to instructions.
I repeat everything twice {or more!}
I can't hang things on our hallway walls {Stupid fire codes}
The kids seem to have forgotten EVERY expectation.
The worst = I keep getting asked dumb questions ... I HATE dumb questions ... especially in February.

     " Where do I get lined paper?" smile. {Teacher's head: "Where you ALWAYS GET LINED PAPER!"}
     " What do I do?" smile. {Teacher's head: "READ THE INSTRUCTIONS!"}
      "Can I go to the bathroom?" - insert I am giving instructions. Shake head. Smile.
         {Teacher's head: "Does it LOOK LIKE A GOOD TIME TO PEE!?!?"}
ugh. What a witch I am.
Feeling bad cause I'm cranky with the kiddos.
Everyone's blog pictures of classrooms, crafts, displays, anchor charts, ETC. make me angry.
Nothing is planned for next week.
I'm Sick.
I want to go to bed.
It is 4:00.

I hate to be such a Debbie Downer, but these weeks happen.

Now that I have vented. And made my job/kids sound terrible.

Let's Rewind <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Positive. {insert sigh and reluctant smile}

A colleague gave me some DayQuil this morning {LIFESAVER}
Everyone in BOTH classes had their homework done {insert choir of angels singing}
EVERYONE WAS HERE TODAY! {insert audible gasp}
No one stayed in from recess {What? You ate lunch in peace??}
"T" improved by 40 words per minute this week! {So proud!}
My kids are THRILLED with my Plymouth/Jamestown settlement research activity
Called every parent and received great appreciation 
Kiddos earned an extra recess today for filling their healthy snack jar
Worked out a great schedule with the Special Ed teacher
LOVE the staff at my school
Morning procedures have been flaw less - nay, relaxing ;)
It snowed a little today! {I miss winter...}
My building is heated {ok, I may be stretching a little far with that one}
I love me kids. Every one of them.

So, I guess I love my job. Even when days like this are as far from perfect as they could possibly be!
Even when everyone's "perfect" blog classrooms make me ill.
God is good.
I am happy {still sick}but hallelujah it is the weekend!

Tag - you're it!

Rules of the Game:

1. Post the rules.

2. Post 12 fun facts about yourself in your blog post.

3. Answer the questions that the tagger has set for you in their post; then create 12 new questions for the people that you tag.

4. Tag 12 people and link them in your post.

5. Let them know that you've tagged them.

 I was tagged by Casey at Cardigans and Curriculum and Linda at Tales of a Fifth Grade Teacher, so here goes the LONGEST post EVA! *grin*

I'm gunna cheat a little on the 12 facts about myself - I just did a post about myself .. check it out!

Casey's Questions:

1. If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go? I would get one of those round trip tickets and travel to each continent - I have been many places that are amazing so I would really just like to "taste" a bunch

2. If you had to live in a city besides your own, what would your top choices be? If I knew this answer I would not be where I am right now ... my husband and I are currently seeking where God wants us to be! I would prefer to stay here in Michigan ... specifically Northern, but we shall see!

3. Do you follow any sports teams? I am a Green Bay Packer Fan through and through, I also cheer for the Chicago White Sox, the Detroit Pistons and the Detroit Redwings, and the Michigan University Wolverines - yes, I do follow sports ;)

4. What is one lesson/topic that you get REALLY excited about teaching? SOCIAL STUDIES!!!! It is the axis with which my room revolves - I also love teaching reading and on good days, writing *grin* Because it's fifth grade I enjoy teaching American history, but I would be thrilled to teach Ancient History as well!

5. If you had to go back and get another degree, what would you pursue? I am currently getting my masters to get a degree in History - particularly European Renaissance - thinking someday of teaching university history ... ?? 

6. What is your favorite dessert, or two? ICE CREAM! Any kind. Any time.

7. If you could re-do any year in your life, which one would you choose and why? My senior year in high school ... I wouldn't have dated, would have spent more time with friends, pushed myself in areas I was scared, smiled more.

8. What do you like on your hamburger? Cheese, lettuce, ketchup, ranch dressing - very plain I know.

9. What is your favorite type of marker or pen? Fine point sharpie, purple gel pens

10. What is your favorite recipe? My grandmother's raspberry and custard tort

11. Do you have a song that makes you cry? What is it? TONS of songs can make me cry! Some happy, some sad ... I am such a sentimental.

12. If you had to go on a reality show what show would you want to be a part of? I do not like reality shows ... never watch them. But, if I HAD to choose one ...Amazing Race. 


Linda's Questions: 

1. Do you have a theme in your classroom? If so, what is it? My theme this year is ROBOTS :) I really had fun with it this year ... but my mind is already heading in next years direction ... I'm thinking Super Hero's - with a twist, focusing on historical hero's and their impact ... 

2. What colors are your classroom? VERY BIGHT COLORS ... neon pink, blue, green, yellow, orange, purple (lots of purple, it's our school color!)

3. How long have you been teaching? this is my second year teaching

4. How long have you been blogging? about a year

5. Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest? Facebook and Pintrest - haven't gotten into Twitter ...

6. What is your favorite subject to teach? SOCIAL STUDIES ... my obsession ;)

7. What is a book you really enjoy reading to your class? Swift Arrow (Native American Book), Snow Treasure (WWII book)

8. Do the other teachers at your school read your blog? A teacher friend of mine emailed it to everyone in the school once and a lot of them checked it out and complimented me on it, but I am not sure if anyone follows it.

9. If you could improve one thing about your teaching what would it be? Guided Reading groups and conferencing during reading workshop time ... I just can't seem to fit it all in!

10. How do you unwind after a stressful day at school? Call my mom on the way home and vent, cuddle with my kitty and hubby, read my Bible/devotional

11. How do you stay positive during the school day? PRAY! and remind myself that I wouldn't want to be actually teaching robots so the rough is just as much part of the job as the smooth.

12. What is your favorite TV show? How I Met your Mother, Big Bang Theory


My Questions:
1. How many students do you have in your class?
2. Do you have a pet?
3. How active is your lifestyle? Do you play any sports or have any outdoor hobbies?
4. What is your most necessary item in your school wardrobe?
5. What is the one thing you MUST HAVE when you leave the house (cannot be your cell phone *wink)
6. Are you/did you watch the Superbowl?
7. Are you close to your extended family?
8. What was your worst lesson/activity that you've taught?
9. What is your favorite book?
10. Do you have a favorite house decoration?
11. Do you collect anything? If so what and why?
12. What does a typical Saturday/Sunday look like?

Here are the 12 people I'm tagging. 

Sorry if you've already been tagged!

A cupcake for the Teacher
A day in the life of Miss Kranz 
Life in 4B
In my classroom: The forest and the trees 
Reading is Thinking
Views from Room 205
Teaching in High Heels
Create.Teach.Share
Confessions from the desk of a future teacher
Clutter Free Classroom
Annecdotes
Keep Calm and Teach On

Age of Exploration Unit Ideas

Age of Exploration:

Here are a few activities we have been doing in our Explorer unit recently ...

I start off this unit with a GREAT lesson from the SS series History Alive. They have you put on underwater music and have the kids pretend to be archaeologists scuba diving and discovering an old "Explorer" wreck. They retrieve these artifacts, log them, and discover what they tell us about the Explorers. We then categorize them like you see above. They kids really get into this lesson!

 At the beginning of the unit I also have the students partner up and share their "explorer schema" with each other. Then we share as a class and discuss together what we think we already know.

My favorite spot in my classroom is my history corner. I get antsy throughout the school year and I love that this little area is constantly changing. Plus, I love how interactive it is - I try and always have "artifacts" that the kids can touch, books that relate to the topic, maps/pictures, clothing/costumes, and as we go, I add their artwork to make it authentic :)

 We are not technically supposed to hang any thing from our ceilings due to fire codes ... but no one has talked to me yet and this makes our room feel so much more "explorer ship-like" ;)

 Compasses the kids made

This is another FUN activity. We learn about how the explorers brought back lots of new tastes from the "New World" Before I have them identify what these "tastes" are we do a "New World Smelling" activity. I have the different food items pre-cut and labeled in numbered dixie cups (take a little prep time the night before) Then the kids get a sheet to record their "smells" and their guesses. I actually made 2 sets so that the kids could all be doing it at the same time - I only had 12 items

 "New World" Tastes:

1. Potato 
2. tomoto 
3. bell peppers
4. tobacco - obviously not in the cups! *lol*
5. vanilla 
6. chocolate 
7. pineapple 
8. blueberries
9. kidney beans 
10. sunflower seeds 
11. pumpkin (not in the cups - out of season)
12. corn
13. peanut butter
14. chili peppers

 In pairs, I have the students read a biography about an explorer. Using this information they have to fill out an "explorer ship" together answering what the their explorers greatest achievement was, his motives for exploration, two facts they found interesting, and their discovery.

I added these to our map - aren't they cute?

 We filled in a map that had famous expedition routes on it

We used our knowledge of explorer styles ships and drew them to go with our explorer newspaper article we will be writing to go with our informational writing this week. 

For more of my posts on Exploration, visit HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE. 

For more fun Explorer lessons by other people, visit the link below! 

My Life: Display Case and a little about ME

     Our art teacher is in charge of the display case in the hallway - usually it contains children's art (it will soon house the kiddos "empty bowls") but recently, all their art work has been hang-able (word??) so she had teacher's from each grade level fill it with things that told a little about themselves. This month it was me and my partner teacher's turn. She has the bottom two shelves, I have the top.

I thought I would use this as a catapult to share a little about myself on here ...make my blog a bit more personal *grin*

• Abraham Lincoln Bust = I am a complete history dork, particularly American history (Civil War) and European Renaissance and Reformation (Henry VIII Tudor dynasty). The dream is to get my maters in it some day *crossing fingeres* 
• Leotard and handstand picture = I am/ want to still be/ was a gymnast. Throughout high school and college I traveled with a team - see my post Cheerleading/Gymnastics to see what we did. I still try and get a handstand or hand to hand in with the hubby any place I can :)
• Owl bag = I love all things owls! Not really the real ones though ... *go figure!* 
• Painting with flowers = I love to paint with arylics - I never have time any more it seems and that makes me sad ...
• Banana Grams = ADORE this game! That and ANY kind of trivia game!
• Big cream flower = I absolutely love BIG flowers in my hair - they make any outfit snazzy! 
• Picture of the hubby and I in Colorado with a BURTON DVD = Snowboarding is our winter sport! We love the slopes! 
• Packers Helmet = Daddy's little girl - I bleed green and gold!
• Michigan Ball = GO BLUE! because this is home :) 
• Chicago White Sox = because Grandma made me a fan :) 
• Detroit Pistons = because of my husband ... never really cared for b-ball before 
• Detroit Red Wings = ^^^^^^^^^^
• Yellow Heel = Heels are my FAV - but sadly I cannot make it in them through a whole school day so they remain hidden in my closet the majority of the time :(
• Scarlet Pimpernel = FAVORITE MOVIE, seriously, if you have never seen this movie - DO IT! (make sure you watch the one with Jane Seymour in it!)
• Tennis Racket = I enjoy playing all sports (except basketball) my racket was the easiest to display ...
• In the pink frame = Dudley - my kitty, our surprise gift from God this winter ... he is slowly melting my heart :)
• Books = "Pride and Prejudice" and "Sense and Sensibility" - Adore Jane Austin, and any historical fiction
• White bird = I love birds! My house is filled with them ... decorative ones that is :)
• Family photo = my family is SO important to me! LOVE THEM! 
• Embroidered Hawaii picture = Kauai is my most favorite place in the whole world! 
• In the green frame = my hunky hubby and I at our friends wedding

Pondering the Practicality of Social Studies ...

        In my classroom, it is my desire to make history truly become something that does not simply come alive (which I do wish!) but become something practical in my students lives. How can social studies and history be practical?? First, history is not the only component in Social Studies ... just like fractions aren't synonymous with Mathematics. Geography, social interactions, stories of heroes, mistakes made in the past, economics, and more are all encompassed in this subject. Good teachers, take all of this into account when they are tackling the teaching of this despised subject. No ... I don't mean they make you memorize all the rivers and landmasses in the United States on top of every general in the Civil War! I mean that they take the economic outcomes, the geographical advantages, the social/cultural/ethnic issues, and help you find out WHY?
Why was it that the Europeans began the "Scientific Revolution" when the Aztecs of Mexico and the Chinese were far more advanced in the areas of navigation and medicine? How do our early, national values help determine what we choose to do currently and in the future? Why do we do many of the things we do? Why do other countries do things that they do? Why are we currently having issues with another nation? How can be we better avoid certain economic, social, and universal downfalls ... look to history.  
People are a product of their culture. Social Studies explains this. Many people today are frustrated with our current government for a myriad of reasons ... check it out - find out why ... then complain, better yet, help change it! Find out why certain people are doing what they are doing or why others have their hands tied. Learn about our economic history,  maybe the headlines in the newspaper will make a bit more sense to you.
Teachers, remember this as you teach our children. It can be one of the most practically applied subjects in our world ... it is the story (past, present, and future) of OURSELVES - we just have to apply it.

• For ideas on how to apply divergent thinking and practical application for social studies assessment see my post "Higher Order Authentic Assessment"
• For ideas on incorporating social studies into reading and writing centers see my post "Center Organization" - toward the bottom of the post

Higher Order Authentic Assessment

    At the beginning of the school year, our superintendent showed us this video on "Changing the educational Paradigm" during our staff welcome ...  Check it out. It is powerful.

While I know that these are simply ideas and theories about where this man feels education should be headed and not things that we can change drastically today ... I DO think that many these thoughts and ideals are vitally important for us as teachers to be be thinking about as we plan and teach within our own classrooms.  For example,  we should be ... taking to heart the idea that students learn better in collaboration, our world is more technologically stimulated than it was even when we were kids, our students need an education to be successful more today than ever before ...
     The part that struck me was the section where he talked about divergent thinking and how it is not the same thing as creativity. This idea that we need to be helping our children find LOTS of POSSIBLE answers to questions they will face in the world around them, not just one original idea, not just facts, not simply the answer to a problem.
     This led me to try and apply this to my own assessments. I even took it a step further and discussed divergent thinking with my students ... sharing with them what it was, it's importance, and how it can help them in their lives - and yes, I drew whiteboard pictures ;)

       I took this to heart by revamping of my Native American Authentic Assessment packet. Originally, my social studies assessments came directly from my social studies textbook/workbooks. The focus was on multiple choice, short answer, and fill in the blank - Lower Level Thinking - facts that were to be memorized and regurgitated for no apparent purpose. I firmly believe that THIS is why so many people LOATHE social studies and history. Instead of focusing on the higher level, intellectually stimulating, reason, story telling, reflectional qualities, and APPLICATION of history, people expect students to enjoy learning often disconnected, random, and FACTS about a time they don't understand and about people who are dead and boring.
- I decided to focus on what I believed were the important parts that I want my students to know about Native Americans ("First People" as we call them). The standard is quite BROAD so it had more play room, making it good for my experimental assessment. 

Standard: Locates and describes major regions, cultures, and communities in Native American life. 

1. I want them to be able to break the stereotypes that tend to warp people's ideas of who these people really were and who they are today.
2. I want them to be able to identify other Indian regions and cultures - not simply the Great Plains with their tepee's and buffalo.
3. I want them to recognize the resources that influenced how they had to adapt and how their environments, religions, social structures, and economies created each culture and their unique characteristics and that we are still influenced by our environments and natural resources today.
4. I want them to THINK about WHY the Hopi wore clothes made out of cotton, not simply memorize that they did. I wanted them to THINK about WHY plains Indians had Tepees and were nomadic in nature while the Northwest Indians built more permanent settlements. Basically to INFER about what the correct answer was, not memorize it and spit it back. THIS is what creates THINKERS - not robots!

I did not have them do this packet all in one sitting. We did a page or two a day and discussed it directly after we completed them. The students put their pencils away and took out markers/pens - if they missed a question they filled it in with the correct answer with their marker or pen (so in my grading I could tell what was authentically theirs). They were not "grading" per say, it was simply practice in case they hadn't understood - reinforcement of the information :)

 I gave them the regions (1) spelling purposes and (2) because I didn't want the focus to be on the memorization process but the application process

I wanted them to be able to "infer" by thinking of the regions and what we had learned about each one to figure out what region wore what. Some students may have memorized which went with which since we had been studying these cultures in depth, but the questions were worded in such a way that should a student have forgotten, by thinking of the different environments, they should have been able to match the clothing to the region.

 The same rationale went into why I wanted them to identify the regional houses.

 The tree was sort of a fun "divergent thinking" activity I threw in. Native Americans found MILLIONS of ways to utilize their natural resources to survive. I asked the students to label all the different things they could do, use, or make with a birch tree. I encouraged them to "think outside of the box!" Here were some "out of the box" answers we came up afterward in our class collaboration. 

Make: (this was the easiest of the three)

Tree house

furniture 

Fort 

paper 

Use: 

Shade 

tire swing 

as camouflage

as an escape route 

Do (with it): 

Burn it

climb it 

chop it down 

Do (more abstract!):  - I had to really prompt some of the kids to finally get this out of them (the truly divergent thinking - but then they did SO WELL!

take a picture of it

draw it

re-plant it

search for it

find it

Using the reading skill "inference" I had the students identify which region they thought this girl/picture was simply by inferring her surroundings, clothing, etc. 

For this page, I wanted them to recognize what natural resources are - they had to list as many things as they could think of the natural resources that could be found in this environment. Based both of the picture, previous discussion, and their own schema.

Obviously, vocabulary is important and it requires memorization techniques. Some things are and that is fine! It just shouldn't be the only focus or assessment for an entire subject.

I feel that the best way to assess social studies is through short essay format - it's importance is not as much about who did what, where or when they did it as much as it is about WHY! By looking at information and sharing your summary of your findings and how it changed your perception - THAT is what social studies is all about! Now I cannot truly use essay format in it's truest sense in 5th grade - a whole assessment like that would overwhelm them. But I did incorporate some small "essay" questions in my stereotype section. I wanted the to identify common, erroneous Native American stereotypes and use their knowledge to break them. 

After one looks into the past and sees the good or bad ways things have developed, it is important then for us to have our students make a connection between it and the here and now. THIS is where the relevance comes into play. We look into the past so we see why we/or others do what we do and also how to prevent certain negative things from happening in the future.

The final assessment was a writing activity. This really summed up their knowledge about what they had learned and liked about this unit/standard. By asking them which Native American region they would have liked to have lived in, it forced them to give reasons based on their knowledge of the Native American regions and cultures.  

To me, these types of assessments give an authentic take on how the child perceives the topic and the depth to which they understood the information presented.

Note: Please be aware that that as a social studies educator, my purpose is to get students excited about learning other cultures as well as their own. I am not perfect in my education of this, though I do try and do a lot of research before teachings cultures and history. Concerning the information presented in my room, I try it make it as authentic as possible from my findings and research but do not claim to be an expert. If there is something that bothers you or have questions on my instruction concerning your culture or any other topic I may teach in my room, please feel free to email me personally to help me gain more understanding. I love learning about others and am always striving to educate my students better.