Tag Archives: teaching young children

Peace Poetry with Preschoolers

Posted on December 20, 2015 by Jennie

Some years ago my class spent time under a Peace Portal we made on top of our classroom loft.  It was constructed with four columns of carpeting tubes painted in black and decorated in a way that children wanted.  The … Continue reading →

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Reading Aloud; A Source of Making Cuban Cigars

Posted on December 5, 2015 by Jennie

Reading aloud never gets old.  It weathers time and generations.  It makes a marked difference.  Children who are read aloud to are typically one grade year ahead of their peers.  They have ‘the right stuff’, because all those words they … Continue reading →

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What’s Important; Remember Robert Fulghum?

Posted on November 30, 2015 by Jennie

A few years after I got my feet wet teaching, I read Robert Fulghum’s book, “All I Really Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten“.  That had a profound influence on my career.  His opening essay seemed to take all … Continue reading →

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Death and Dying, and Chapter Reading

Posted on October 29, 2015 by Jennie

I finished reading our first chapter book of the school year, Charlotte’s Web.  Children were engrossed in this book because it is a story about the heart, and my most important job is educating the heart.  As such, they began … Continue reading →

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Singing a Peace Song

Posted on October 13, 2015 by Jennie

Singing and music with children is transforming.  It happens every time; as soon as I pull out the autoharp or ‘song jar’ I have a classroom of children who are craving the experience of music and singing.  I’m not a … Continue reading →

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Writing to an Author

Posted on October 8, 2015 by Jennie

I write and I read.  When I read something that knocks my socks off, I write to the author.  This doesn’t happen often.  Perhaps that’s because it takes quite a lot to knock my socks off.  Yet when I do … Continue reading →

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Jennie and Milly the Quilter

Posted on October 4, 2015 by Jennie

I had dinner with Milly the quilter tonight.  She has been such an important part of my classroom over the years.  Her quilts are works of art, and when she quilts with children somehow she creates a magic connection that … Continue reading →

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Marinating Vocabulary

Posted on September 30, 2015 by Jennie

‘Marinating Vocabulary’.  I heard Pam Allyn, a guru on reading and reading-aloud, speak those words last week.  They hit me like a stone.  Each time I read aloud from a chapter book those words do far more than go into … Continue reading →

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Why Do I Write Picture Stories and Read Chapter Books?

Posted on September 20, 2015 by Jennie

My first project of the school year is writing picture stories with the children.  Language is critical to learning in all academic areas, so its only natural that creating picture stories is an excellent tool for teachers. Its a fun … Continue reading →

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Dear Teachers, Joy is the Magic Word

Posted on September 7, 2015 by Jennie

Dear Teachers, As you start your new school year there is one word that will get you through the uncertainty and the worry.  It’s the same word that is the heart of educating.  That word is ‘joy’.  No, it’s not … Continue reading →

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