Reflections of Chapter 3 of The Daily 5


 I am starting to get excited about how I am going to set up my classroom this year! I was talking to a friend of mine who teaches second grade and she was telling me how much she LOVES the Daily 5. I asked her if they were using it in kindergarten and she said "Yes, but kindergarten was the last to get on board because our teachers did not think that their students could do it." She told me that their kinder teachers love Daily 5, though,  and plan to continue it. One area that her kinder teachers REALLY had to work on though, was stamina and finding Good-fit books. She told me that as kindergarten teachers we will probably have to do some adaptation and A LOT more practice than the older kids!

So, here are my reflections on Chapter 3 of the Daily 5. Click on the image to take you to Live, Love, Laugh Everyday in Kindergarten for other reflections and some nice Daily 5 freebies!

ESTABLISHING A GATHERING PLACE
We have always had a gathering place in my classroom and it has always been our colorful rug that I call "the carpet." Not too original of an idea, though! So I need to come up with something with more jazz, I guess! At our gathering place, I have my Promethean board, a large white board, an easel, and the books that we are reading for our thematic unit. Our carpet area is where we learn as a group and I agree with the Sisters that classrooms need a place like this!

GOOD-FIT BOOKS
I think this will be challenge at the beginning of the year, but with practice, I think most of my students will get it. I love the idea of using shoes to illustrate good fit and I plan to do this the first week of school. I PICK is an interesting concept that will need some work. I think my kinder kiddos will be able to:
1. I choose a book.
2. Purpose - Why do I want to read it? I think most kinders come to school knowing what kinds of books they like to read. Will they be able to give purpose? I think so. Mainly they are deciding if they want to read the book for learning or for fun.
3.  Interest - When I was first thinking about this, I didn't think that my students would have any trouble at picking out a book that they are interested in. But then I began to think about those kiddos who want someone else to make a decision for them, so I think this will take some time to teach, too!
4.  Comprehend - Am I comprehending what I am reading? Of course, most kinders come to school not being able to read, so I do not think this will work right away. 
5. Knowledge - Know the words - Well....... this will take some time, but we can begin the process of searching for words that we know - maybe this will start earlier than in previous years??
I need to redo my classroom library set up. I think it is too complicated and therefore will make it hard to choose books.

SETTING UP BOOK BOXES
This will be challenging at the beginning of the year. We do an informal assessment of our kiddos in May so maybe I can use the results of this assessment to begin book box set-up. I was also thinking that when we have our "Drop in and Meet the Teacher" morning, I might ask my students their interests then. I need to do some thinking and research on this! But since most of my students are not reading, I think that I will just pick some fun picture books and fill the book boxes that way. I also do not think that I am going to set up book boxes right away. Instead I am going to give my students some "explore time" to look through our classroom library books for a few days.

ANCHOR CHARTS
I am going to have to figure out a place to permanently display my charts. I do not have a lot of wall space. I have always used charts, but usually have only current ones displayed. I want to continue my word wall, but I might have to redesign this as well to make room for my Daily 5 charts. I will probably make a lot of my charts standard size (8 1/2 x 11) and not use large chart paper.

SHORT INTERVALS OF REPEATED PRACTICE
Oh yes, yes, and double yes! Practice at the beginning of the year is the key to making the whole year run smoothly! I already do this and plan to continue it. My challenge will be to stay out of the way while they are practicing! I like the idea of bringing the kids back to the carpet after practicing and discussing what worked and what did not.

SIGNALS AND CHECK-IN
When I was visiting my brother who lives in San Francisco, we stopped into a music store. As I was browsing, I found a chime that makes a beautiful sound. I bought it thinking that this would be a nice sound for transitions. I used it for awhile, but stopped it because the sound just did not seem to make enough of an impression on my students. Instead I have been using a buzzer which is LOUD and obnoxious! I would really like to try the chime again as a a signal. Part of the Daily 5 routine is quiet transitions, so maybe I will be incorporate this lovely sound into our day!

CHECK -IN
I like the idea of kids checking in and being reflective on their own behavior. Again, this is going to take practice and time before they understand what is proper and improper behavior.

CORRECT MODEL/INCORRECT MODEL
Asking kids to model both correct and incorrect behavior has always worked for me, so I am pretty certain this will work when we are learning proper routine for our Daily 5 schedule.

Next week - The Daily 5 in Action! Can't wait!





3 comments

  1. I am having the same thoghts on the book boxes. I teach pre-k so there is just no need to look for books that they can read. I want them to explore the books and find their interets. As long as they have a book in their hands I will be happy. They just need the get the proper handling skills first.

    ReplyDelete
  2. That is why this book study with other pre-K and Kinder teachers is so beneficial! Adaptation is the key to making any program work and it has been so inspirational reading what other teachers are thinking and doing. It is also so nice to hear that other teachers think the same way as I do! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love this post! I also love the idea of book boxes and haven't done that yet. I can't wait to read more on your blog once school starts back up, it's so nice to have another Catholic kindergarten teacher to follow!!! Enjoy the rest of your summer!

    Lauren C
    www.kinder-friends.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete