Tag Archives: teaching young children

Music and Singing; The Little Things Become the Big Things, Especially With Patriotic Songs.

It all started with Jackson.  He’s a music lover in the classroom, and remembers what he hears.  Songs that are meaningful to him are not forgotten and often requested for us to sing.  Yesterday was the culmination of a slow … Continue reading

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Lunch Time Conversation in the Classroom; It’s Important!

I thought you might enjoy a a little verbal window into my classroom at 12:00 PM.  Is it chaos or is it beneficial?  Yes, there is chaos.  The logistics of of getting fifteen children set up for lunch is no … Continue reading

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Giving the Gift of Reading and Friendship

Never underestimate children.  The same goes for those who know what it takes to make a difference with children.  This week both statements came into clear focus when I drove from Massachusetts to West Virginia with a car full of … Continue reading

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Sharing Literacy and Changing Learning

After thirty years of teaching, if someone pinned me down and asked, “Okay, Jennie, what is the most important thing you teach, and what makes the biggest difference?”, I would know the answer, hands-down.  Really.  It is literacy and reading … Continue reading

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My Classroom; It Keeps Getting Better

I’ll never forget the day that it hit me like a ton of bricks: my classroom, the physical space, was dysfunctional.  For decades I had prided myself in understanding children and relating to them in every way.  My fifteen children … Continue reading

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Language, Literacy and Reading Aloud… part 2

People often ask why I chapter read.  After all, many of the children in my classroom are are three-years-old.  When we chapter read, the children don’t have an image from a picture book.  They have to make the pictures in … Continue reading

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Language, Literacy and Reading Aloud… part 1

Chapter reading is one of our treasured moments of the day in the classroom. We bring to life the imagination, the world, and the past. The anticipation of ‘what happens next?’ stirs excitement every day. Children listen and think. They … Continue reading

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Welcome to Jennie’s Blog.

I am excited to share with all of you my insights into teaching young children.    There are so many good things that I have written about, from reading aloud to music, art, ‘traveling’ across the world, eating in our Chinese … Continue reading

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