Winter Traditions

Every family has their own special traditions that they celebrate throughout the year. Since our classroom is reflective of a family, and our school like our extended family it is important to also value and share the traditions that occur each year at Elwick School. Traditions are a great way to bring people together and to get re-aligned with the important values of learning and education.  I believe these values to be: community, positive relationships and fun. In many ways if we don't have a sense of community we cannot work as a team and feel comfortable with our learning in a classroom setting. If we do not have positive relationships amongst students and adults there becomes a disconnect with learning and finally if we do not have a little bit of fun we often loose our passion for learning and growth.

This is why all of the winter traditions that occur at Elwick School revolve around these main ideas and they are: The Holiday Feast, Learn to Skate and the Winter Concert.

The Holiday Feast

Every year in December the staff and students, along with a few community members join together in the gym to share a meal together. The meal is prepared by staff and community members and served by the same people. This year our class shared the meal with our grade 4/5 buddies and it was a huge success! We even had a visit from Santa!

The Winter Concert

This year our fabulous music teacher Mrs. C organized a short musical titled "Elflandia" a story of elves meeting humans for our K-3 students. Our class sang the popular and catchy song "Elfie Selfie". Sporting elf hats and festive colours the concert was a huge success for the students and the packed gym of families who came to support them!

Learn to Skate

Every winter students in the Seven Oaks School Division are given the amazing opportunity to learn to skate with trained instructors for a 10-12 week block. The program began including just grade 1 students and has often expanded to allow students up to grade 3 to get on the ice and perfect their skills! Students all come to their first lesson with varying abilities, and often the first class has some tears, some cold bums and rosy cheeks. However we are only 4 lessons in and our class has already improved so much! I am so proud of their dedication and ability to literally get right back up when they are down!

What are your school traditions?

Happy Holidays!

Nicole and Room 6

Exploring Cultural Traditions Part 1...Diwali

One of the teaching goals I had set for myself this year was to have my students learn, understand and share more of their own cultures within our classroom.  I also wanted my students to begin to recognize the many similarities between their own family traditions and cultures and the traditions of their classmates.

These ideas brought us to learn and explore our first cultural celebration of the year beginning on October 31st....Diwali.

Our amazing learning support teacher Miss. Brar took the lead with this, because she personally celebrates Diwali with her family and has celebrated for many generations. She brought in some authentic artifacts such as peacock feathers, ceremonial clothing and many hands on activities for the students to learn from.

Here is a look at what Diwali in room 6 looked like...

First we began with learning about the history of Diwali. It is a traditional fall celebration mainly celebrated in India. During this time people shut off all their lights in their homes and live the week under just candle light. Diwali the word meaning 'Rows of Lights'. Miss. B told us that this was also a time that people set goals and hopes and dreams for the year. Our class set their own goals and hopes, these were called Lakshmi's.

Many of the dreams the students set were about hoping for happiness and for good health for their families.

Next the students learned about ceremonial clothing women and men wore during Diwali.

B.S also celebrates Diwali with his family and truly saw himself as an expert during this time!

Room 6 got a hands on learning experience when creating their own Diya's. They began first with molding the dough into a shape they liked. Then Miss. B baked the dough and finally students were then able to paint and decorate their special Diya's.

 

Finally the class shared a traditional snack of Samosa's. All of the students tried them! Some even enjoyed them!

Many students made connections to their own traditions that they celebrate with their family.

H. C-R said "How they dress up is like how I dress differently when I PowWow dance. Also the Samoa's are kind of like bannock"

                                                                               L.Y. "All of the lights reminds me of Christmas"

Until the next tradition...

Nicole and Room 6

We Snack together, We learn together, AND we travel together!

Each fall I personally get so excited for our first class field trip! A few years ago I discovered this amazing fall field trip just 50 minutes from our school. That place is called Penner's Pumpkins. It is a farm run by the Penner family and it has everything and more that I think a field trip needs. There are opportunities for new learning, hands on experiences, visuals and the ability for children to kinaesthetically take risks and above all play.

A few of the activities for the day were:

-Watching Pig Races

-Learning about Pumpkins and Squashes

-Going on a nature scavenger hunt through the forest

-Learning about chickens and goats

-Playing in/on three different natural wood play areas

-Pumpkin picking and painting

I think the mark of a good field trip is when even the adults are enjoying themselves, and I think I can speak for all of the adults who attended that it definitely was an amazing day!

 So amazing I actually came back two days later with my own son and husband!

Here are some candid images from the day:

Happy Halloween Everyone!

Nicole and Room 6

How we began our Readers Workshop Journey

I view reading as more of a journey then a means to an end. As a child I often struggled with reading and felt that my teachers were always frustrated with me. Thankfully my parents we always amazing, they read to me every night never pressuring me to read. I had countless interventions in school and it took me until grade 8, when I had the MOST AMAZING teacher who saw me and my reading in a whole new way for me to develop my love of reading. And thanks to that teacher reading is one of my passions and a favourite of mine to teach. Thank you to that teacher!!!

In room 6 reading began with an exploration of the books and the book bins that we have in our classroom. Students enjoyed reading stories independently and with a partner. Eventually (after much begging by them!) I felt it was time for each student to have their own special book bin to keep their most treasured books in. And from here our reading journey has taken off!

We have had many great conversations about
                                                      "What do readers do?"
                                                                                                              "Where do readers read?"
"Why do readers read?"              

The students came up with some amazing ideas for all of these questions and all showed such a genuine interest for story.


One thing I found so interesting was how each student finds a different place in the room that is a "Good fit" spot for them. Here were some of their choices...

 As a class we have been working on what it Looks Like, Sounds Like and Feels Like when we Read to Self (RTS) and when we Read with Someone (RWS). Until next time...

                                                                     Happy Reading!!

The Classroom that Snacks together, stays together!

Over the summer when thinking about my classroom their were a few key activities that I wanted to have as apart of each day. One of those traditions being to have a snack that the students are responsible for preparing and serving to each other, family style. I truly believe that a 1,2,3 multi-age classroom can only be successful when the children learn to work together as a group...similar to that of a family. And when we are preparing and serving snack to one another the students have been learning more and more about each other as well as how to work together!

Here are some of the snacks we have prepared and shared thus far:

-Muffins and jam

-Apple slices and WOW butter

-Granola Bars

-Veggies and dip

UP NEXT: Trail Mix

Making Muffins!

Happy Snacking!!

Week 1...

This first week in room 6 has been a busy one, from getting to know our space to learning about each other as people, and as learners! All of the students have been so kind, caring and welcoming to one another. I can already tell it is going to be an amazing year!

Some of the things we having started exploring this week have been:
                 1. Finding good spots in our classroom to read!
                                               

"I liked Reader's Workshop this week" -B.S.
                                                 "I liked reading books" -H.C-R.

We began our exploration of reading by talking about the different book genres that our classroom library has to offer. Students first explored the various book bins in small groups. Then we began our Read to Self time where students choose 3-4 books, found a good spot and started reading!

2. We began to create our classroom alphabet, which will be used daily to help students with both their reading and writing.

3. We started our conversation around our Elwick School Beliefs. Specifically focusing on how we can Take Care of Ourselves. We are learning that in order to be a good friend and student we need to make sure that we take care of our self first.

4. The definite favourite this week has been the time after lunch when the students get to 'Explore Room 6'. During this time  students had a chance to see all that the classroom has to offer, from building, to art, to dramatic play! Many essential skills occur during this time such as: students start to cooperate with one another on various tasks, as well begin to learn what all is in our classroom and how these objects can be used, manipulated and help each student dig deeper into their learning.

"I liked everything at school this week, especially explore room 6" -V.A.

                      "I liked explore room 6 and playing with lego"-S.B.

"I enjoyed doing art during explore room 6" -A.P.

5. Another favourite in the room this week has been the beginning of our journey with our Writer's Notebooks. These are personal journals that the students write in each day. Some days their thoughts come from something that happened at home, or a book we read. The possibilities are endless. Students are also given the choice to either write, draw or do both for each entry. I am very excited to see where these notebooks will take us!

"I liked writers notebook" -B.K.

                    "I enjoyed writing in my writers notebook" -M.P.

"I liked when we got to do writing" -C.E.

I am so pleased and excitied about this year after the first week! Keep checking in to see how our  routines and classroom activities  unfold in the coming months!

Until then...

Nicole

The Classroom Set up

Now many teachers get asked after having two months off:

"Oh man...so you have to go back to work soon...that will be hard with having so much time off"

                  "How are you going to get used to waking up again?"

And my personal favourite and this question is ALWAYS asked with that overly scrunched 'should I even dare ask this questions face'    "Are you ready to go back to work??"

And my answer and the answer of many of my colleagues would be an overwhelming YES! You see the classroom set up time that occurs at the end of August is a highly valued, highly thoughtful, and highly exciting time of year for me. As a teacher I feel strongly that children work best in a classroom that fosters their interests and gives them workspaces that involve choice and variety. For example in my classroom you will see traditional tables with chairs. you will see many carpeted areas with pillows and you will even notice that half the classrooms fluorescent lights are off, and there are many different lamps scattered around the room. The answer to why I create a learning space that looks like this comes largely from the ideas of Loris Malaguzzi who founded the Reggio Emilia approach, who stated that learning happens through peer, adult and environmental interactions (The Third Teacher, 2010). Many school around the world have taken to this approach and have made it their own. This is what I aim to do in my classroom, for students to have the ability to work with each other, their teacher and with their environment.


Here is a view of what my classroom looked like when I arrived mid-August, the floors were freshly waxed, the walls newly painted and all of the furniture in a heap in the middle of the room!

                         

August 2016

Now I am the type of person who loves to make lists and plans for most things in life, especially my teaching. So every summer I take out a blank piece of paper and start to make a map of the classroom I envision to set up in August. This year was no different! A few years ago I had my classroom library in the middle of the room and I really enjoyed having all of the stories, fact books and novels in the middle of the classroom, essentially at its heart. This year I tried this set up again and I am very happy with the results.

Books surrounded by trees and a comfy carpet and pillow area ready to have children on them snuggled up with a good book.

Writing Area

Building Centre

Low Table/Computer/Teacher "area"

You will notice that I do not have a teacher desk, or chair, or specific area. I simply have a small filing cabinet alongside a small bookshelf. The reason for this is simple...I do not need a desk, or chair or specific space. The classroom is just a much my students as it is mine. I work with them at different spaces around the room on the carpet, at a table, basically wherever the student I am working with feels the most comfortable. Therefore I do not need a large space in the room that is mine...the classroom is all of ours!

9 days and counting until we start on our journey together! Until then...

Nicole

A Friendly Welcome and Introduction :)

Hello :)

My name is Nicole Platsko and I am a wife, a mother, a country music lover and I am a teacher. I recently returned back to work in the Spring after being on maternity leave with my son who is now 18 months old. I have been teaching for 5 years and I have had the pleasure to teach grades K-3 during this time. I am returning to work this September to tackle a new challenge (one that I am the most anxious and excited to begin)  teaching a 1, 2, 3 multi-age classroom.

I work at an incredible school, filled with some of the most amazing teachers I know, teachers who challenge my thinking, support my passion and have become some of my closest friends!

Teaching is something I have a deep love and passion for, each year brings new relationships with both students and families as well as new and exciting challenges. I cannot wait to begin this school year and share this journey with my students, families and the greater community!

Nicole