I wrote a post last month about Social Emotional Learning in the Early Years that started with “It. Is. Everything.” It’s so foundational that I am revisiting this now to share some more resources and ideas I have been using.
Tourbillon d’émotions
Last week we read Tourbillon d’émotions (The Way I Feel) with my students. We practiced the vocabulary and I invited students to share examples of times they have experienced various feelings. We also made faces using items in our individual loose parts bags such as buttons, popsicle sticks, and Q-Tips to show various emotions.
We made emotional faces using various loose parts from our individual loose parts bags.
Later last week we read Thelma la licorne(Thelma the Unicorn) and talked about how the characters felt during different parts of the story.
This year I printed the black & white outline versions of Mme Andrea’s emotion vocabulary cards to create some vocabulary colouring books for students.
Our names are important. They are part of our identities and our stories. They are generally one of the first words we learn to say, read, and write.
Mon nom est Tonnerre
Last week I read the book Mon nom est Tonnerre (“Thunder Boy Jr.” in English) with my class. After having a conversation about why our names are important, we each decorated the first letter in our name and put them up on our alphabet wall using this great freebie from Mme Caroline.
As I wrote in my earlier post about self-portraits, they are one of my favourite things about teaching Kindergarten. I love seeing them throughout the year, and as I learned March-June of this year, it works for remote learning as well as in-person.
I like printing them individually to put up on the wall and then into a scrapbook, but I have also seen people print then all at once into a book – whatever works for your class!
This week we did the Mat Man guided drawing from the Handwriting Without Tears and danced to the song Tête, épaules, genoux, orteils. I slowed it down to half-speed in the YouTube settings to make it easier as we’re first practicing.
What self-portrait activities do you enjoy doing with your class?
I am an avid collector of teach-shirts (or I guess you could call them teaching shirts). Since I have been asked a few times where I order them from, I wanted to put together this post for anyone interested. These are some of my favourites because they are comfy, fun, and provide some good reminders.
Andoveco French Shirts
I love Andrea’s French teacher shirt designs so much that I have three of them on t-shirts:
This shirt is so soft, and better yet it is an important reminder to keep doing things with my whole heart when I can’t predict the outcome. This summer I was lucky enough to win a VIP ticket for Relit 2020 from Laurie McIntosh that included this shirt in a box of goodies. Check out my blog post about Relit here.
Zen Lion Design Coffee, Teach, Sleep, Repeat Shirt
Teaching, coffee, and leopard print are some of my favourite things, so I was thrilled when I came across this cute shirt. I ordered mine as a t-shirt.
PicklesDesignShop Ça va bien aller Shirt
I treated myself to this beauty as a back-to-school gift, and I am looking forward to wearing it.
School Shirts
I have a t-shirt, hoodie, and long sleeve with my school name on it. I like to keep one at school in case I need an extra layer, want to add a bit of school spirit, get juice on my shirt from helping with a fruit cup, etc.
On the first day of Kindergarten, along with getting to know each other, where the bathrooms are, handwashing, safety guidelines, a first day self-portrait and photo, and time to play, I also like to read a story and have students make a handprint keepsake.
On Saturday I had the amazing opportunity to take part in Relit 2020, organized by Dr. Jody Carrington‘s team. I learned so much, and it was such a great way to recharge and get pumped up before officially getting back to work this week. I won a Very VIP ticket, so I want to say thanks again to Laurie McIntosh and Dr. Jody Carrington for everything!
Thanks for the Bring Your Brave Relit 2020 goodies – I absolutely love this shirt!My setup for the day – thanks for lending me your desk Jesse!
Bring Your Brave by Dr. Jody Carrington
I shared my sketchnotes and some of the quotes that resonated with me on my Twitter (@Madame_I_Am) before sharing them here today.
Bring YOUR brave – it's different for each of us. Whatever you've got is what we need. 💖 #bringyourbrave#relit2020
You've given me so much to reflect on in my continued learning of how to do better from my places of privilege. Thank you. Looking forward to continuing to follow and learn from you.#relit#relit2020#bringyourbrave
I am so glad that I take part in it, learn from the speakers alongside some new and renewed online educator friends, and I am so looking forward to Stay Lit in January 2021!
One of the powerful strategies that was mentioned in the Instagram conversation was showcasing learners’ DNA (Dreams, Needs & Abilities) and keeping these in mind as we are planning. Laurie discusses DNA on this great blog post. Rebecca wrote this lovely post on getting to know your learners.
Rebecca & Trevor’s book, Inquiry Mindset, is full of great inspiration and ideas around how to find out and explore students’ curiosities. Some of my favourite ideas included:
Celebrations of learning (making museums, galleries, movies, etc.)
I found these experiments to be a very helpful addition to our learning about colours at the beginning of grade 1 this past year. My students LOVED the experiments and they led to so many great questions.
It’s in our conversations, our classroom setup, our read-alouds, and the activities we do, and it is a key lens to look through as we plan for learning. Here is a sketchnote from a professional development session I attended (virtually) in early May that shows some important examples and ideas of how social emotional learning can happen and be supported:
Sketchnote from a professional development session on social emotional learning in the early years
Emotional Regulation Resources by Dr. Jody Carrington
I highly recommend seeking out any of Dr. Jody Carrington’s fabulous work to learn more about the importance of emotional regulation, and how we can model and support it:
I sign up for her workshops and speaking events every chance I get. My first time hearing her speak was at the beginning of my first year teaching in Alberta, and it was what I needed to hear and keep on hearing.
I was absolutely thrilled to win a ticket to her RELIT 2020 event from a giveaway by the wonderful Laurie MacIntosh. The theme is Bring Your Brave, and that is such an important message – now and always. Thank you so much to Dr. Jody & Laurie for the ticket and the Bring Your Brave goodies that will serve as lovely reminders for me!
Laurie is writing a book called Teachers These Days with Dr. Jody Carrington and I can’t wait to read it!
Sketchnote from The Mental Health of Kids These Days workshop by Dr. Jody Carrington.
I love to learn from and connect with new teacher friends, so a few weeks ago I took in some of the sessions from the Bilingual Educators Virtual Summit 2020. Unfortunately that week I ended up with a migraine, and I did not catch nearly as many sessions as I had originally hoped. I was also watching sessions from the Play First Summit which was happening on the same days, and you can find my sketchnotes from those sessions in this blog post.
Encouraging Bilingualism at Home through Family Connection and Book-Inspired Activities
Sketchnote from the session on encouraging bilingualism at home through family connection and book-inspired activities by Laura Fiore of @inspobilingue.
Yoga in Primary French Immersion
Sketchnote from the session on yoga with primary French Immersion students by Mariah of @aplayfulpurpose.
Have you taken advantage of any free online learning lately?
This week I have been watching sessions from the Play First Summit that was organized by Fairy Dust Teaching and Teacher Tom. I enjoyed listening to the sessions, creating sketchnotes and then sharing those out with a community of people from all over the world in the conference Facebook group. People from that global community shared with me that my notes helped them to access and revisit these ideas, which was a really lovely feeling.
Professional Development Session Sketchnotes
Using the Life Experiences of Children in the Classroom with Lynnette Arthur
Sketchnote from the session “Using the Life Experiences of Children in the Classroom” with Lynnette Arthur. Check out her page “Reggio Children Inspired”!Some key reflection questions from Lynnette Arthur: Where are my biases? What do I hope will happen? What are the steps, obstacles, and resources?
Life-Derived Learning in Challenging Times by John Yiannoudis
Sketchnote from the session “Life-Derived Learning in Challenging Times” by John Yiannoudis.
Original Learning in Early Childhood by Suzanne Axelsson
Sketchnote from the session “Original Learning in Early Childhood” by Suzanne Axelsson.
A New (And Better!) Normal by “Teacher Tom” Hobson
Sketchnote from the session “A New (And Better!) Normal” by ‘Teacher Tom’ Hobson.“The only legitimate use of power is to empower.” –Teacher Tom
How Come We’re So Afraid For Our Kids? By Lenore Skenazy
Sketchnote from the session “How Come We’re So Afraid For Our Kids?” By Lenore Skenazy.
Stop Stealing Childhood in the Name of Education by Maggie Dent
Sketchnote from the “Stop Stealing Childhood in the Name of Education” session by Maggie Dent.
Play, Freedom, and Trusting Children by Kisha Reid
Sketchnote from the “Play, Freedom, and Trusting Children” session by Kisha Reid.
The Power in Children’s Problem Solving and Independence by Janet Lansbury
Sketchnote about “The Power in Children’s Problem Solving and Independence” session by Janet Lansbury
Documentation to Share, Connect, and Reflect by Wendy Lee
Sketchnote from “Documentation to Share, Connect, and Reflect” by Wendy Lee
Re-opening Trauma Informed Practice by Dr. Mine Conkbayir
Sketchnote about “Re-opening Trauma Informed Practice” by Dr. Mine Conkbayir
How To Sketchnote
One of the questions I got a few times was about the tools I use to create my sketchnotes. The physical tools I use are my iPad and a Ciscle stylus. Recently I started using the SketchBook app on my iPad, and I have been liking the variety of pens available. When I started creating sketchnotes, I used the Paper app.
I learned to sketchnote mostly by looking at other people’s sketchnotes online. I find it easier, more fun, and more likely to share & review my learning this way. Sylvia Duckworth’s Sketchnote Fever is a good resource if you are interested in learning more.
Sketchnoting is about capturing your ideas and doodles on a topic, so it can be done on paper or digital platforms. So if you are starting your sketchnote journey: write what you hear, draw what you feel, and show the connections as you process them.
Do you sketchnote? Did you watch any of the Play First Summit 2020 sessions?
P.S. I will be taking a break from my regular blog & education-gram posts this week while I spend time with my family. My next post will be Thursday, August 6th and I will share my sketchnotes from the Billingual Educators Virtual Summit.
