Photo of Samantha Perrin
Beverly Papove Diverse Learning Needs, General

Kids Love to Dance

I find dancing with students is usually one of the easiest ways to get them moving during DPA. With a good selection of tunes and a variety of ‘dance’ expectations, everybody can get down, whether preteens in grade 6 or really bouncy grade 1s. Not only is it great for DPA – especially during inclement weather – it is also a lot of fun, a nice break from sitting and thinking, and a chance to be creative without being assessed or evaluated.

The benefits of dance are many; it is a great cardio workout, it is an opportunity to physically express a range of emotions in a creative, socially acceptable way, it stimulates the brain and it releases mental and physical tension.  Although dancing in public can make a few students anxious, I have found that if you make dance a regular part of your routine and set a few ground rules, students who are not sure whether they want to participate tend to eventually warm up and feel more comfortable about joining in. It can also be an accessible activity for students with a limited range of motion.

According to the curriculum, “Dance is expressive movement with purpose and form. All dance communication is transmitted through movement – that is, through the body movements and gestures of the dancer” (p. 14 of The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 1-8/The Arts). While I encourage free form and creative movement, I do not want a mosh pit in the classroom.  I rein in that potential chaos by encouraging students to think of dance as having a structure like a song or a poem, with a chorus or verse that is repeated as it tells a story or a message. For grade 3 students, this is easily understood when we dance like animals. I use a book some students made a few years ago called, “Danser comme…” In it are drawings of their favourite animals. When I use the book for DPA, I put on some music and hold up the book for all to see, turning the pages while I move around the classroom in time with the music. Often students begin by communicating an animal through sound, as in drama, rather than through movement, as in dance. It can get pretty noisy on the monkey page. When I remind students to show me that they are a monkey using a series of repeated movements and gestures, then some wonderful creative dance starts to happen. In a similar activity, OPHEA has dance movement cards as part of their Diabetes Awareness Program that are adaptable for any grade and work in the same manner. All you have to do is play some music and hold up the cards to show the dance moves to the students http://www.opheaprograms.net/EJ/pdf/EJ_PAKit_StationCircuitCards_Final_15NV10.pdf .

For music, I like to choose samples from around the world, rather than something from the pop music stations. The truth is, I can never keep up with what is hot and what is not, and at times, pop songs have lyrics which can be distracting. I want the students to be mindful of how their bodies are moving, so it seems to work better when they aren’t too familiar with the music. Lately, I’ve been playing Bangra from the Bend It like Beckham soundtrack; a collection of drum music from Japan and the Congo; Brazilian folk/techno from DJ Dolores; and First Nations electronic dance music from A Tribe Called Red. The students are really inspired by the terrific sounds and rhythms they hear and move freely to the beat.

For the older grades, line dances are easily brought into the classroom. If you can’t create your own line dance, there is a selection of line dances that can be found on YouTube if you need some inspiration. This way, the music and the moves are already done for you. The Cha Cha Slide was very popular a few years back. It is still handy to use and you don’t need a dance degree to teach it because the DJ calls out the moves, just like in a square dance. Sid the Sloth’s Continental Drift (from the film Ice Age) seems to be making the rounds at our school lately and Michael Jackson’s Thriller is always a challenge but a thrill for anyone who dances it.

Whatever resource you use, I encourage you to bring dance regularly into your classroom because it’s good for the brain and the body. And, it’s a lot of fun.

Photo of Tammy Axt
Tammy Axt Classroom Management, Diverse Learning Needs, General, Learning About Your Students

My dad’s name is “Bill”

Over the past couple of months, I have been working with a team of teachers and behavior specialists to help one student in my music class who is struggling with disruptive and oppositional behaviour. Through the process I have learned a couple of things. First, that the situation will not be solved overnight; it takes a lot of thought and time to implement a program in order to witness change. I have also learned that five heads are better than one when trying to instill positive behaviour plans. But ultimately, the biggest thing that I learned only happened this week….

When the student first started to have trouble within my class, my first step was to look in the student’s OSR for evidence of a Behavior Support Plan. I read the plan very closely and I decided to implement the suggestions from the plan. The plan indicated that the student should count backwards from 10 when they became upset. I tried this strategy, but I received no response from the student. The plan also suggested that the student go to a quiet spot in the room when they became upset. I asked the student to move, which they did, but they scribbled all over the floor with markers in their quiet spot. Overall, the Behavior Support Plan didn’t seem to help the student be successful.

Next, I met with the classroom teacher. As a planning time teacher, mirroring the language and behavior management system of their regular classroom can be very effective. It requires a lot of flexibility of the planning time teacher but when situations arise that need intervention, this can be a great place to start. Unfortunately, the classroom teacher was dealing with many of the same behaviors that I was and did not have much advice for me.

Then, I met with my colleague to brainstorm some ideas to help the student in my class. My colleague and I came up with a tracking system to try and figure out if there were some triggers that led to some of the student’s behavior. I went up during the lunch break and just observed the student about 10-15 minutes before they came to me every time I taught them and continued to observe them in my class. Observing them in different settings was incredibly helpful. I could see what happened directly before they came to me. The student struggles greatly with recess and comes inside regularly with issues that have happened outside. I also witnessed the ongoing, major conflict that exists between my student and another student called “Bill” in the classroom.

I know what I need to do now in order to help the student. I need to help them transition from the playground to the classroom to help them in music. I have started going up a few minutes early for this period and touching base with the student before they come to see me. I tell them something positive and initiate a conversation about their life. These three minutes twice a week have really made a difference.

Until this week, the one issue I still didn’t fully understand was why this student hated “Bill” so much. The student never wanted to sit near “Bill”, would never work with them and the mere presence of “Bill” annoyed them. Through one of conversations this week things became a little clearer when the student told me that their father’s name was “Bill”.

Taking the time to listen and get to know our students can really make a difference in building a relationship and thus helping us to manage their behaviour.

Photo of Mike Beetham
Mike Beetham Assessment, Before School Starts, Challenging Topics, Classroom Layouts, General, Learning About Your Students

Divide and Succeed

One of the biggest concerns a teacher is faced with is the number of students they have to work with and thus the needs to be met in their classroom. Amongst that class of students will likely be special need students from both an academic and/or behavioural need, students who work very quickly and students who need extra time to consolidate their learning, students working below grade level, at grade level and above grade level. The class profile has a direct impact on the teacher’s plan of action. A successful strategy that has allowed me to ensure that I have direct, 1:1 contact with every student is a divide and succeed.

What I do is to start with a two week cycle (10) school days. I then look at my class number (I will use 30 for a working example) and divide that group into 5 groups. Thus I will end up with 6 students in each group. Each group will be assigned a conference day. Group 1 will get Mondays, Group 2 will get Tuesdays and so on. I then divide those 6 students into 2 groups of 3. Student A, B and C in Monday’s group will meet with me on week 1. Students D, E and F will meet with me on week 2. That means that during each academic day I have to build in time to meet with 3 students. That is a doable strategy. The end result is that I get to meet 1:1 with each student at least once every two weeks. What occurs during that quality time is up to you. I currently use it to conference on reading, writing and personal check-ins.

As I get more efficient in my conferencing and pinpoint exactly what I want to check up on, assess or discuss I am able to move it to a 1 week cycle where I now meet with 6 students a day. At this point I know my students very well and know which students need more conference time and which students need less time. There are many ways to revise this strategy such as when week 1 is used to conference with all students and week 2 is used for necessary follow-ups or teaching students to lead their own conference. There is no interrupting (unless an emergency) during a conference. The class has built in peer supported strategies when the teacher is in a conference. All of the above require routines that need to be taught to the class. This time serves me so effectively when reporting times arrive as I know so much more about my students.

Shawna Rothgeb-Bird Differentiated Instruction, Diverse Learning Needs, General, Math, Use of Technology

Why I Love Teaching “Unusual” Things

I have a bit of a reputation for being a quirky teacher. My students can often be found in the hallways at school, engaged in some strange new whim that I have managed to tie into the curriculum in some way. There just isn’t enough room in a traditional classroom for my students to really get into their work without feeling cramped or overwhelmed by the proximity of other sutdents.

Up until this year, my classroom was located on the second floor of the school, surrounded by other hard-working classes with students who were much quieter and more studious than my boisterous, exuberant class. I think I know why I was moved to the bottom floor this year, and I can sum it up in one word: ukulele. I’ve talked about teaching ukulele before – about how it benefited me tremendously, because I never have to teach dance any more.

What I didn’t really talk about was how the ukuleles – and other unusual undertakings like them – benefit my students.

First, let me tell you a little bit about some of the more unusual or exciting projects my students have worked on over the last few years:

– Melted crayon art: Using hair dryers, hot glue guns, bristol board, and a lot of patience, my Grade 5s explored physical changes of matter by using wax crayons to create works of art for our annual art show.

– Original musical compositions: Using online musical notation software, my Grade 5s composed original pieces of music to accompany short stories they wrote for French Writing. The following year, I had my Grade 5s use the same software to create pieces of music that represented different fractions. One activity, multiple curriculum connections!

– Board games: In Mathematics, my Grade 4s and 5s created their own versions of the popular board game “Carcassonne” to explore fractions and probability.

– Quilts: For our art show last year, my Grade 4s and 5s designed and created small quilts using sewing machines and donated fabric. The quilts were auctioned off and the proceeds were donated to charity. This project was a part of both our Mathematics and Visual Arts programs.

– Dream homes: I have had Grade 4s and 5s design their “dream home” using a set of parameters (specific area and perimeter, specific rooms they must include, etc.).

– Weblogs: As part of my Language Arts curriculum, I have had my Grade 4s and 5s create personal weblogs (password protected) where they responded to writing prompts, wrote about their lives, and read and responded to peers’ posts.

It has been a phenomenal experience teaching my students to do these things. Some of them are REALLY fun, some of them are REALLY hard, but they have all been beneficial. These projects have allowed my students to explore the curriculum in ways that they wouldn’t have imagined on their own.

You’ll notice that a lot of them have to do with Mathematics – and that’s been a conscious focus on my part. When I ask my students at the beginning of the year what their favourite and least favourite subjects are, the majority of my students list Math as one of their least favourite subject. I try to change that by having them look at Math in a different way. A lot of my students don’t realize, at the beginning of the year, that Math is an integral part of music and graphic design. It’s exciting to watch them discover fractions and patterns in a musical composition, or figure out ratios to make different colours in visual art, or carefully and painstakingly measure out quilt squares to ensure that they will fit within the design they have envisioned. These activities help my students see that Mathematics has more to do with everyday life than just adding up numbers or memorizing multiplication facts. They see why Math is important to learn and how they might actually use it in the future. It is made less abstract by being placed in a real world context.

The blogs, on the other hand, give my students a purpose for their writing that goes beyond “writing in a notebook that only my teacher will see.” Their voices as writers change when they are writing for their peers instead of their teacher. It’s exciting to watch them interact in their second (or third, or fourth…) language through the comments on their weblogs. It’s also a way for them to make connections with other students that they might never have spoken to or sought out before. I have watched new friendships form in our protected online sphere, then watched as those students brought that friendship into the real life classroom. By having them write for one another instead of me, I find that my students are more willing to take risks with their writing and worry less about getting it “perfect.” They have fun. They talk about things they wouldn’t have talked about before. They enjoy writing.

These projects take a lot of forethought and preparation. They are not small undertakings by any means, nor are they particularly easy. There is a learning curve with these kinds of things, and not all students will enjoy all of these activities. It’s worth doing things a little outside the traditional realm of teaching, though. I’ve never seen some of my students laugh as much as they do when they’re making up a ridiculous song on the ukulele about smelly feet. I also never imagined that a group of very athletic, very boyish boys would take quilt design and sewing quite as seriously as some of my students did last year.

The best part, though, is seeing every student in my class find something to be proud of. Sometimes it’s the fact that they got up and performed a song in front of the class, other times it’s the new skill they learned, other times it’s that they actually knew HTML before I taught students how to make weblogs and they were able to jump in and help other students learn. It is really exciting and rewarding to see my students engaged in these activities and taking charge of their learning.

Even if I’m a giant disruption to my colleagues when I take over the foyer of the school with six sewing machines (and 50 students) every Monday morning for two months straight… or when my 25+ students are scattered through the halls of the schools plucking away at the strings of their (mostly out of tune) ukuleles… or when we blow a breaker on one side of the school with all our hair dryers so none of the hallway outlets work.

I am that teacher. My students are those students.

We have a LOT of fun learning.

Shawna Rothgeb-Bird General, Wellness

The Hardest Thing I’ve Done as a Teacher

A month ago, I had to suddenly and somewhat unexpectedly leave my teaching job to go on sick leave. Being pregnant, I knew that at some point this year I would be handing off my class to a stranger, but a big part of me was relying on having lots of notice that it was happening. I imagined a nice, smooth, calm transition where I would be able to give my students ample notice, sit with my replacement and give him or her lots of information on my students and their needs, talk to parents about it…

I definitely did not envision myself standing in front of my class with 20 minutes to the dismissal bell, tearfully telling them that I was sorry, but that I’d be back in the next day to say goodbye but would otherwise not be coming back until after my baby is born.

I had known for a few weeks that being ordered off work was a possibility, but I naively thought that my doctor would give me some kind of nebulous recommendation about going off work and leave the date up to me to decide. Instead, at a routine prenatal appointment on a Monday morning, he wrote me a note that said I would no longer be working as of that day. That day?! I wasn’t ready! My classroom was a disaster, I hadn’t finished marking, I hadn’t even taught things I needed to teach for the Progress Report yet, I hadn’t spoken to my students or their parents, I hadn’t even spoken to my colleagues or, more importantly, my administration!

Stubbornly, I waited until later that day to show the note to my principal and said that I would leave work at the end of the week, on Halloween. She shook her head and pointed to where it said “as of today,” explaining to me that the health of my child was paramount (as was my own) and that my students would be okay. I cried. I argued. I asked if I could please just be at work the next day so that I could get a proper goodbye in. She allowed me to come to work the next day, but not to teach. She had an OT come in for that day, and I spent the day getting things in order for someone to come in suddenly and jump into my class.

I had 20 minutes with my students at the end of the day on that Monday where I could tell them that I would be leaving and that it wasn’t my choice but that it was important for me to be at home and taking care of myself so that my baby and I would be healthy and safe. On the Tuesday, I popped in to see them throughout the day, answered their questions, and managed to get a goodbye in to everyone. They threw together a quick goodbye party for me and made me cry over and over with their kindness and generosity.

I’ve been off work now for four weeks. In that time, I have only been able to visit my class and my students once. This was partially due to time constraints and health, but partially because it’s important to me that they are able to move on and build a rapport with a new teacher.

I’m telling you this story because this experience has taught me several important lessons as a teacher. I’ll try to be concise as I explore them here.

1) Keep your classroom ready. I was fortunate to be of sound mind and healthy enough that I could stay after school those last two days and, with the help of my husband and some very generous colleagues, madly pack up the things I wanted to take home, throw away the things I had been meaning to throw away, and put away everything else in a place that a new teacher could come in and find them. It made me realize that had I gone into preterm labour, or had a major medical emergency of some kind where I could not come in at ALL, my classroom would have been a terrible experience for another teacher. It worked for me, but it didn’t work for anyone else. When I eventually return to work, I’ve learned that I need to keep my classroom in a state of relative readiness at all times so that should anything come up – even if I just need to be away for a day or two – another teacher will feel comfortable walking in and taking over.

2) Your students will be okay. I work hard to build a rapport with my students and I feel like I’m successful in reaching most of them. I am very invested in their success and well-being. It was very hard for me to pass off my class, especially so early in the year, to a teacher I didn’t know. It wasn’t that I didn’t think the new teacher could do a good enough job – it was that I worried about those young souls I left behind and if they would be able to engage with their new teacher. I worried about the ones who needed accommodations and whether they would advocate for themselves in my absence. I don’t deny that the transition was hard for some of my students, just as it is for them to adjust to me as their teacher at the beginning of the school year, and how hard it is for them to adjust to leaving my class at the end of the year. What I learned, however, is that students are flexible. They find things to relate to with their teachers. They find a way to fit a new personality and a new way of doing things into their lives. Will they like every teacher they ever have? No, of course not; to think that would be naive. But they will be okay, their needs will be taken care of, because deep down every teacher (I hope) has their students’ best interests at heart. We all have different styles, but we all want what’s best for our students, and they know that.

3) Crying in front of your students is okay, too. I am fairly certain that my students don’t think less of me because I was an emotional wreck those last two days. They don’t care that you didn’t wear makeup because you knew you were going to cry. They don’t care that you’re flustered and can’t find the right words to say. These things make you human. They make you “normal”. Accessible, in a way.

4) It’s okay to be honest with your students. I didn’t hide anything from them. I told them that my doctor had told me that I had to stop working because it was better for my baby (and me) to be at home resting. I assured them that nothing was wrong, but that this was just to make sure my baby could keep growing as long as possible. They appreciated the honesty. Had I just disappeared or left without giving them any detail, they would have been much more concerned. They were invested in the well being of my child because they cared about me. They were not distressed because I wasn’t distressed, I was just sad to leave.

5) You really, really, really need to disengage when you leave. For the first two weeks after I left work, I thought about it all the time. I cried more. I was upset that things weren’t the way I wanted. I checked my work e-mail constantly and was always texting my colleagues with things I had forgotten. This didn’t really help me “de-stress” the way I was supposed to. I still check my work e-mail once a day, because the official handover hasn’t happened yet and my long-term replacement only starts next week, but once she starts and we’ve had a chance to connect, I plan to reduce my work e-mail perusal to once a week (if that). Trust your colleagues to take care of your students in your absence. It’ll be alright.

I’m finally, four weeks in, embracing my time off. In a way I’m glad that I was sent off work early, because I can only imagine that being as upset as I was about it would have been ever harder if I was going through that while also caring for a newborn. It was very hard to let go and believe that everything would be okay. I still have moments where I think about individual students and how badly I wish I could be there for them, but I’m able to remind myself now that people are looking out for them.

We’ll see how I feel six months from now. 😉

Photo of Samantha Perrin
Beverly Papove Diverse Learning Needs, General, Literacy, Student Ownership

It’s OK to Scrap a Lesson

As teachers, we are obliged to make plans every day for every block we teach.  Planning ahead can make everyone’s life so much easier and it is a necessity for a well-run classroom.

In Teacher’s College, I recall the lesson plans we had to create, in painstaking detail, indicating what our learning objectives were, how we would prepare, motivate , teach, assess and evaluate our students, what materials we would need to make it all happen and how many minutes each activity would take from start to finish.

Because planning is such a big part of our daily lives, it is no wonder we may not feel comfortable scrapping our plans right in the middle of a lesson. I’ve got stories of lessons which were not my best that I’ve suddenly changed so that everyone is happier and more productive, but I’d like to share a recent experience where a student encouraged me to scrap my lesson for something better.

Last week, I read a lovely book to my class called, “Whoever You Are” written by Mem Fox. The story is simple but straightforward and the illustrations by Leslie Staub are magical with vibrant colours and beautiful, clear images. The story reads more like a poem as it reminds us that we are all different in what we may eat, how we dress, where we live, or how we write our languages, but that we all feel joy and pain the same way. It was a perfect book to read during Anti-Bullying week because of its gentle message celebrating cultural diversity.

When I finished reading, I prepared the students for a reader’s reflection by noting some of their comments and opinions on chart paper. Before long, the page was full and it was clear that they had nailed it with comments like, “we are all different AND we are all the same” and “we are all special for different reasons.” I was so happy with their ideas as they began writing in their journals using ideas from our long list.

After about 2 minutes, I interrupted the class, quite excited about an idea I had. I told them that what they had just collaborated on – the long page of comments and insight about the book – could in turn be made into our own book about ‘belonging’. Each student could take a section of the list, write it neatly on a page and make an illustration to go with it. Then we could make a cover, and ‘publish’ it for our school library. The students got excited about the idea while they listened and tried to work in their notebooks.

Then, one of my students asked simply, “Could we make the book now?” It took me a split second to make my decision. The energy started to rise as I made an effort to explain the notion of Carpe Diem (Seize the Day), while searching for the right paper for good copies and the students chose which section of the list they wanted to illustrate. After a brief ‘writers’ meeting’ to discuss criteria for the book, they all got down to work. I have quite a range of abilities and challenges in my Grade 3 class and they are not great at transitions, but on this afternoon, even with this sudden switch in gear, everyone was fully engaged and focussed on their task.

Although the book idea came from me, the idea to scrap my lesson and start working on the book right away came from a student. And he was right.

Photo of Tammy Axt
Tammy Axt Building Inclusion, Differentiated Instruction, Diverse Learning Needs, Equity, General, Planning

Teaching Students who are Hard of Hearing

This is the second year that I have had a couple of students who are hard of hearing in my music classroom. How do you teach someone to sing or play instruments when they can’t hear the sound they are producing? This is the question that I was faced with last year. After some trial and error and a brand new book “Music for Children with Hearing Loss” by Lyn Schraer-Joiner, I am by no means an expert, but I have learned a few things.
First and foremost, the students that I have act just like any other student in my class and want to be treated as such. They do not like to be singled out or have any attention brought to them, so when I make modifications to the program for them I try to be subtle about my changes.

When the two classes come to see me for music, I am very aware of a few things:
1) I only speak when I am facing the students. I do not speak when I am facing down to play an instrument or when my body is turned to the blackboard.
2) I ensure that the students who are hard of hearing are beside a good model for singing songs. This can be a skilled student or myself.
3) When I am speaking one on one with the students who are hard of hearing I lean down to their level. I speak normally and do not overemphasize any words.
4) In all of my other classes, I do not repeat the answers that have been given by students during class discussions as I feel that it diminishes their voice. The exception to this rule is in my classes with my students who are hard of hearing.
5) I bring manipulatives beside my mouth so that the students can focus on my mouth and the manipulative at the same time.
6) Brand new learning for me this year was to place the soprano glockenspiel, xylophone or metallophone on a raised music stand or table as this will make it closer to the chest cavity, which will help the student hear the instrument more clearly.
7) When I do activities where the students have to match the feeling of the music on the piano, I arrange it so my students who are hard of hearing are closer to the piano as the notes get higher.
In a nutshell, after working with my students who are hard of hearing, their singing and instrument playing have really improved over the course of the year or so during which I have taught them. Singing and instrument playing is a skill that all can achieve given the right instructional practices.

Photo of Lisa Taylor
Lisa.Taylor Communication Tools, General, Learning in a Real Life Context, Literacy, Resources, Use of Technology

Using Twitter in the Classroom

Sure, Twitter can be used to find out what Kim Kardashian had for lunch today, but it can also be used to connect classrooms, teachers, and school communities.

Today I am going to talk about connecting with your families and students through Twitter.

Twitter is a powerful tool if used properly. The first step is choosing a “handle” (or name) that isn’t already taken. Remember there is a limit of 140 characters in a tweet, so don’t make your name too long! You might also want to make your name somewhat generic and not directly related to the specific class/school you are at, as that may change next year! Go with something that is specific to you – @TaylorsClass @LearningRules @ClassroomFun @EduFun. Choose something that you can take with you to your next class, your next school, your next experience. It takes a lot of work to build followers and to develop a good collection of people to follow, you don’t want to have to start from scratch each year.

If your goal for this twitter account is just to post stuff to the parents and students in the class, it might be wise to make it a “disposable” account and make it specific to that class and year so you can change it up each year. You might wand a more specific handle: @TaylorGr2_2014 @learning2015 @gr2FI14 – again, be creative!

Once you have settled on a handle, you need to get followers. You don’t necessarily need lots of big name followers for this account – your goal is more to connect your classroom community, possibly connect to other classrooms, share what your class is doing with your school, board, and PLCs. You can do all of this by sharing our handle with those who you think would benefit from seeing the information you are sharing.

Before you tweet, double check the guidelines in your school board around posting student work, names, pictures, etc. Don’t post pics or names of students or their signed work without parent consent.

Even without pics of students, you can still share lots of valuable stuff on your twitter feed. You can tweet text explaining what you are doing, questions that parents might want to ask their kids about what they learned today, agenda messages, reminders, etc…..the list goes on!

Twitter can also be used to connect to famous people. We used to write letters to authors, but now we can tweet them! I have had students write stories in the style of Mo Willems and then we tweeted them to Mo (@MoWillems) and Pigeon (@The_Pigeon) for them to see what we had been working on! We sent Canadian Astronaut Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield) tweets from each of our grade 2 students the day he left space, thanking him for everything he did to educate and inform us while he was up there! Twitter really does make the world a lot smaller!

As a teacher, I have tweeted what my class is doing and it always feels great when parents, other teachers, admin, or anyone really, comments on what we are doing! We often share questions we have, the “I wonder” questions that come out of inquiry – Twitter is an excellent resource for expert knowledge.

If you decide to use Twitter in your classroom, make a point of tweeting at least once a day. Even it if is just to say that everyone is having fun today! I like to print pages that have 140 boxes and teach my kids to write “tweets” about their day and then I will type them in at the end of the period, day, etc. We also post those 140 box sheets on the wall on our “twitter feed” so other classes can see what we are up to!

Twitter seems to be sticking around. We might as well embrace it!

Photo of Samantha Perrin
Beverly Papove Diverse Learning Needs, General, Social Justice

Becoming an Ally in the Classroom

At a recent staff meeting, I was asked to present and discuss the contents of an Indigenous Resource Bundle issued from our school board. The ‘bundle’ consists of about 20 beautiful books written by Indigenous authors and educators. Topics vary from learning about your ABCs and colours in English, French, Inuktitut, Cree and Algonquin, as well as, the residential schools legacy, legends, famous First Nations, Métis and Inuit history makers, and treaties.  I was given 10 minutes to present the books and to offer suggestions on how they may be used in the classroom.  For the amount of material to be discussed and the volume of information contained therein, the time was far too short, especially considering that so many teachers are new to this reality. Because the fact is, although the reality has always been there, it was never taught to Canadian school children until very recently.

Will these resources, beautiful and rich as they are, be used in our school? I am not so sure. Like the substantial LGBTQ book collection the school board presented to us last year, these books will likely be signed out by only a few teachers who remember they are there or who are motivated to include them in their lesson plans because they attended the in-service or because they have a genuine interest and personal connection with the material. This does not mean that teachers don’t care. It does mean that they may not know how to find the time to include this perspective in their lesson plans.

Our lives as teachers are already quite weighed down by new literacy and math initiatives, new curriculum documents, new strategies to increase levels of engagement of our students, etc., and when someone comes along and expects us to teach, on top of all we are doing already, something we have never learned, we feel overwhelmed.  No wonder so many of us ask, ‘If we don’t understand it, how can we help our students to understand it?’

My only suggestion is that you begin by taking a book with an Aboriginal perspective and reading it to your class. Your journey will begin with the students’. You will not be expected to know all the answers to their questions. But you will have empathy and show, by learning and discussing, that you are willing to bridge the enormous gap that was the status quo for so very long. By reading one book with your students and asking what they thought while you were reading it – in my case, 8 year old urban students in 2014 learning about 8 year old Aboriginal students being removed by the government from their families and communities to go to school – you will never look back. Your perspective will change.  It will mean that you will have to bring up the c-word – colonization.  It is OK to tell them that because of colonization, you never learned about treaties or the Seven Grandfathers or residential schools when you were young. It may be a challenge to start such a dialogue, but this is our collective history as Canadians, and as educators, we are beholden to transmit history as accurately as possible, with the help of new curriculum, new resources, and new understanding. As the title of the book so clearly says, ‘We are all Treaty People’, we just may not realize how.

Reading one book may then make it easier to consider contacting the Métis Nation of Ontario, or a local Inuit Centre or First Nations’ Friendship Centre to invite a Métis Senator, or an Inuit or First Nations’ Elder to your class to talk to your students about something you would like to learn more about. Reach out. Ask questions. Read books to your class. Once you do, you become an ally. Becoming an ally, means you become part of a community for a mutually beneficial reason. Indigenous history is intrinsically part of Canadian history. Learning about it will enrich everyone’s lives.

Some titles to consider:

For Primary Students – When I was Eight and Not My Girl by Jordan-Fenton, Christy and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton

For Junior Students – Fatty Legs and Stranger at Home by Jordan-Fenton, Christy and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton

Arctic Stories by Kusugak, Michael Arvaarluk

Shin-Chi’s Canoe by Campbell, Nicola I., with illustrations by Kim LeFave

Shi Shi Ekto by Campbell, Nicola I., with illustrations by Kim LeFave

Rabbit and Bear Paws Series

As Long As The Rivers Flow by Larry Loyie

My Name is Seepeetza by Shirley Sterling

On-line resources:

-Metis Nation of Ontario Education Kit

http://www.metisnation.org/programs/education–training/education/metis-education-kit

-Residential School Legacy Exhibit resource for junior/intermediate students

http://wherearethechildren.ca/en/exhibition/

-Ontario Book Company offering Indigenous educational resources

http://www.goodminds.com/home

Photo of Tammy Axt
Tammy Axt General

Teaching music to students with autism

I teach music to a contained class of students with autism once a week. On a mission to program effectively for these students, I have been consulting with our team of experts and reading some new resources. Two months into school, this is what my period with them looks like:
An important part of helping students with autism is providing structure to their program. There are no surprises in my class. The order of the day is visually presented on the black board. To prepare the schedule, I bought frame holders that were two for a dollar at the dollar store. Next, with the help of an amazing TA at our school who is a Board Maker whiz, I chose some visuals that will indicate what kind of activities we will be completing in class. The schedule is taken down as we go through each activity.

Next, a challenge for some people with autism is sensory experiences. My class starts with the instrument of the day to allow students the chance to hear, feel and touch a new instrument. So far this year, each student has had the chance to experience and explore with a saxophone, baritone and a snare drum in the “musician’s chair”. Students can feel, hear and see the instrument that they are playing and what kind of sound they can create with the instrument. There have been some minor hesitations on the part of a few students, but with some encouragement and support, all of the students have participated.

Next, we do some songs and instruments playing together as a group. My goal for the beginning part of the year has been to find songs that the students will engage in. Some songs that have been successful are “animal actions”, “jumping in the puddles” and “play and stop” with instruments. Trying to play melodies or specific rhythmic patterns hasn’t happened yet, but we will work towards that. I try to listen really closely to the students during this section of the class and follow their interests and skills. For example, when we were playing instruments recently, one student asked if we could make our playing into a parade. “Yes we can,” was my answer.
Then, to build a reward into the structure of the class, the students have a choice activity at the end of the period. They can choose something arts-related. I usually have drama (costumes), art (drawing or 3D building) or music materials (instruments) for the students to access in their own way. It is a great time to interact with the students while they are taking the lead and showing me their interests. (It has been helpful for gathering ideas for our next class.)

Challenges that I have witnessed include that I have an open classroom with no structural space in it. Whereas in their classroom, there are designated areas for certain tasks, my classroom is very open with few distinctive spaces. Also, transitions can be really difficult for some students with autism, and movement between rooms can be stressful. I have tried to pick an activity that is highly engaging to start every class in order to ease the stress of the transition.

Building relationships with parents is important to every student’s success. I have chosen to build the relationship with parents by sending home a book that we have been creating throughout the term. The book contains a section for each instrument we have played and interacted with. In each section it has a picture of the student playing the instrument, the name of the instrument and a listening response completed by the student. Whether it is high, low, loud or quiet. When the book is sent home right before the break, I will include a note explaining my goals for our music program this year.
Finally, I would recommend two resources to help you understand your students with autism. The first place to go to is the Ministry of Ontario’s resource called “Effective Educational Practices for Students with Autism”. This is a great introduction. Also, an amazing new book “Teaching Music to Students with Autism” by Alice M. Hammel has been very helpful in my experience.

Overheard in my Ontario classroom:
Outside my classroom right now there is a large sign that is a countdown to the arrival of the Canadian Opera Company. The first day my students saw the sign there was a lot of excitement as they came into the room. I was so impressed at how culturally mature they were. We started our class and as they were speaking to each other excitedly, I realized something: they didn’t understand that the opera was coming – they thought that Oprah was coming.