Britney Allen

Exploring Student Interests in the Early Years

Inquiry Mindset & Inquiry Live Last week I listened to a fantastic Inquiry Live conversation on Instagram between Rebecca (@inquiryteacher) and Laurie (@mrsmacskinders). I had to quickly grab the nearest pen and paper (which happened to be my gratitude journal from Dr. Jody Carrington that I was so fortunate to win along with a ticketContinue reading “Exploring Student Interests in the Early Years”

Social Emotional Learning in the Early Years

It. Is. Everything. 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 howContinue reading “Social Emotional Learning in the Early Years”

Bilingual Educators Virtual Summit 2020 Reflection

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 wasContinue reading “Bilingual Educators Virtual Summit 2020 Reflection”

Play First Summit 2020 Sketchnotes

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 communityContinue reading “Play First Summit 2020 Sketchnotes”

5 Questions About Me

What are your hobbies? I love reading (lately that has translated into a love of audiobooks and podcasts), spending time outside, and making art. Recently I have been particularly enjoying making digital drawings for my STEM Puns project. Why did you become a teacher? While I was doing science outreach work in schools and summerContinue reading “5 Questions About Me”

Self-Portraits in the Early Years

One of the first things that I (and many of my colleagues) invite Kindergarten students to do at the beginning of the school year is to draw themselves. These first-day drawings are such a special piece of developmental evidence, and they become even more remarkable when seen alongside subsequent drawings from that school year andContinue reading “Self-Portraits in the Early Years”

Planning Tips for K/1

I hope your summer is off to a lovely, relaxing start! I chose this timing for my K/1 post so that I could compile many things I’ve found helpful this year into this one place and make it available to anyone who might find it helpful moving into summer/fall: Collaboration and connection with colleagues isContinue reading “Planning Tips for K/1”

Favourite Resources for Kindergarten French Immersion

I have been teaching Kindergarten for the past 3 years, and I am excited to be continuing my Kindergarten adventure next year. This past year I was teaching a K/1 combined class, so last week I shared some of my favourite resources for Grade 1 French Immersion. This week I am sharing some of myContinue reading “Favourite Resources for Kindergarten French Immersion”

Favourite Resources for Grade 1 French Immersion

This year I have been teaching a K/1 combined class, which has been a great experience for me overall because of the team I work with. (It was also cool because my first practicum placement as a student-teacher was K/1!) I have learned so much from collaborating with my Grade 1 team members – IContinue reading “Favourite Resources for Grade 1 French Immersion”

Anti-Racism Learning Resources

Here are some authors and their resources that have helped me, as someone with white privilege, in my anti-racism learning recently. Reminders 1. Aim to financially support BIPOC organizations, creators, artists, and businesses wherever possible. 2. Going into their space means you are agreeing to not treat them like Google or demand emotional labour byContinue reading “Anti-Racism Learning Resources”