Wendy is not only one of my best friends, but she is one of the most passionate and hard-working educators I know. I’ve known her for nearly two decades, and I can’t believe I didn’t pick her brain on one of the topics closest to her heart until now! Now, you all get to hear her perspective and learn from her experience as a special education teacher. Whether you are a teacher or a parent, there’s a lot we can learn about this population and how to love and serve them better!
We decided to go with a question-and-answer style for this post, where I posed the questions. I know she put a lot of thought and time into sharing this information with you and I believe you will benefit SO MUCH from reading it! Please leave your encouraging comments below and share what you learned! ~JoEllen
Inclusive Education
A guest post by Wendy L-C
Please tell us about why you decided to go into special education
I knew I wanted to be a teacher from the time I was in high school. Back, then, I thought I would be an elementary school classroom teacher. During my senior year of high school, I volunteered at a class geared towards kids with Down syndrome. I fell in love with those kids! It was my first experience interacting with children with disabilities and it helped me to see that in so many ways, people with disabilities are just like the rest of us. They, too, need love, respect, meaningful relationships, and a good education. Then, in my time at Cal, I took some classes on Disability Studies. I started to learn more about the social justice aspects of inclusive education and how, as recently as the early 1970s, people with disabilities were often stuck in institutions and denied enrollment in public schools. Since the passage of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), children with disabilities are now educated in our public school system. I felt called to be the best teacher I could be for students with disabilities. I wanted to help find ways to facilitate students with disabilities participating in their general education classes, help them reach their academic and social potential, and be full members of a school community. I have stayed in this field because I feel that it has really allowed me to think about and teach each of my students as individuals.
What is inclusion all about? Why do it?
Inclusion in a very general sense is when children and people with disabilities are full members of our society. In the education context, inclusion means that all students with and without disabilities are full, valued members of the class and larger school community. Students with disabilities participate in the general curriculum and in class/school-wide activities alongside their non-disabled peers. Services and supports are given to students with disabilities in the general education setting so that these students can access the general curriculum and make progress towards their Individualized Education Plan (IEP) goals.
Hello Readers! It is my pleasure to introduce my friend Rosalie Yu, a good friend and fellow educator! Rosalie worked at a childcare center for multiple years, then taught 4th-6th grade before moving on to her Project Specialist role that has turned into her current Curriculum Support Specialist position, where she spends a lot of time coaching teachers. She absolutely loves organizing closets/styling wardrobes, photography, and cooking, and also tries to host a meal for a friend at least once a week in her home! You can see more of her work here at www.blushingroseinc.com.
I have always appreciated and admired Rosalie’s heart to love, serve, and mentor others. It’s been wonderful to see her grow as a wife and mother, and to see how she is applying her skills as an educator to her parenting. She has an amazing eye for beauty, which shows in her photography, home design, fashion, and most of all her appreciation for people. I’ve learned a lot from her over the years, and I am so glad she can share some of her wisdom with us today!
—————–
Celebrating Every Win
A guest post by Rosalie Yu
I’ve known JoEllen since we met at church camp back in high school, but little did we know how our paths would cross time and time again after that. Years later, we found ourselves in the same teaching program when we were pursuing our teaching credential; with her being one cohort ahead of me she always provided sound advice and encouragement. She made things sound less daunting and always gave practical tips. Clearly, her blog has extended her helpful reach to many others. In fact, one of the most memorable things JoEllen did for me was send me a care package during my first week as a teacher. I have never forgotten that gesture of kindness and how meaningful it was. We both ended up marrying gentlemen from the camp we met years ago and went from teaching to becoming wives and mothers. It’s an honor to have been asked to write a guest piece for her blog. In the meantime, I’ll be sharing an important lesson I’ve learned over the years that has worked for my 20-month-old son.
I started working with kids in middle school. I knew I wanted to become a teacher since I was five and in all my years of working with children, I have learned many important lessons, with one that stands out the most. When asked by others what piece of advice I could give to a new teacher or a new mom, I would say it’s to celebrate every win.
We all encounter students, people we’re coaching, teammates, and children who haven’t mastered their craft. It could really be anything, even as simple as learning to cook scrambled eggs for the first time. There are many techniques to everything we’ve learned to do in life, but the thing that I’ve seen over and over as a determining factor in achieving success is the importance of building self-efficacy. We all know that “practice makes perfect” yet the journey to perfection is just as influential in the end result. Teaching children to root for themselves begins with us rooting for them.
Hello Readers! This week, I have a special guest post for you from Ann-Marie, a dear friend and co-worker at the school where I used to work! This all started when I went back to the school to visit with my daughter one morning, and happily bumped into her in the hallway. After catching up a bit, she began sharing passionately about her observations and some frustrations she’d encountered with students who were consumed with technology. I found it fascinating, and asked her to write more about it to share with you, readers! ~JoEllen
How Has Technology Affected Children at School? A Teacher’s Perspective
A Guest post by Ann-Marie
I have been teaching kindergarten for a little over ten years now. I’d give you a specific number, but you start to lose count after a while. I don’t know if I’d call myself a veteran, but I’ve been around the block for quite some time now. A few months back I was asked to write this guest blog post and here I am. Have I ever done anything like this? No. By any means would I call myself an expert? No. Am I parent? No. But I am a woman who has spent a lifetime around children. I babysat, I nannied infant twins for 2 years in college and am a proud “auntie” of two beautiful young ladies in middle and high school. I only tell you this so you know that I know children.
How technology addiction manifested itself at school
The first time I really noticed anything was about five years ago. For the first time in my teaching career I had a new crop of kids that didn’t seem to have the ability to discuss books. Granted I have traditionally taught in schools with a high percentage of English language learners (aka “English as a Second Language”), but it wasn’t just the non-English speakers having difficulty. I would read a book like Goldilocks and the Three Bears and ask questions like, “How do you think baby bear is feeling when his food is gone…when his chair is broken? How do you think Goldilocks feels when she wakes up?” Questions I had asked over and over again for years, but something was different. Instead of a room full of five year olds eagerly raising their hands or shouting out answers, they mostly just sat there. A handful of children wanted to answer, but for the most part I received blank stares. It was the beginning of the school year. I thought…they could be shy…they could be nervous. I came up with a whole host of reasons why this was happening. As I got to know my class in the next month or two and during parent conferences, a common thread appeared: electronics. At the time it was mostly video games and TV.
I had the pleasure of working with Rachel for several years at the same school. Although she taught fifth grade and I was in fourth, I learned a lot from her (including line tag!) and frequently went to her for teaching ideas and advice. As a teacher, I appreciated how she was always meticulous and thoughtful about everything. She did everything with purpose and integrity. As friends, we bonded over our shared love of iced coffee and I especially loved how she was always so unapologetically true to her personal convictions and beliefs.
She is one of the most intentional parents I know, and is often one of the first people I think of when I find myself in a parenting jam. She’s a few years ahead of me on this parenting gig, and when I face mommy problems (“Someone is bullying my child!” or “My child is so clingy I can’t even cook dinner!”) I trust that she will have a well thought-out response to my dilemma. Given my respect for her as both a teacher and a mother, I am delighted that she agreed to write this post on “How Teaching Has Impacted My Parenting.” I know I picked up some great ideas from it, and I’m sure you will, too! -JoEllen
How Teaching Has Influenced My Parenting
A guest post by Rachel K.
Before I became a mom, I was a teacher. And the desire to teach my children and to set them up for success was there even before they officially made their entrance in to this world. I swear I purchased Hooked on Phonics even before my first son was born. And I remember crying (on more than one occasion) because I became overwhelmed just thinking about all of the things I was responsible for teaching them. However, as the weeks stretched into months and the months into years, I began to settle in to routines and put to use best practices from my own classroom. Yes. You read that right. Just like my life experiences shaped who I was (and how I was) as an educator, my life in the classroom helped to make me in to a better mom.
When I consider what to post on my blog, I am always thinking of you, my readers. Though I post on a variety of topics, I think most of you are here for the education-related ones. So I ask myself several questions:
- What unique perspective can I offer as a (former) teacher?
- If I were a parent in a non-education field, what are things I could benefit from hearing from someone who was immersed in elementary education?
- What are some things I learned as a teacher that I will apply as a parent?
I had always wanted to be a stay at home mom (SAHM), and purposely chose a career before that stage in life that would help me do an even better job of SAHM-ing. Teaching seemed like the natural choice, since I would gain experience working with, shaping, teaching, and caring for children. I know this isn’t an option for everyone, or an appealing idea for everyone, but I am so thankful for the choices I made. Teaching for eight years really gave me insight on how to train children well, gave me experience to read and understand them better, and taught me how to teach better. I know every parent wants the best for their child, and one of the goals of my blog is to try to share my “insider experience” as a teacher with my parent friends so they can benefit from the experience that I’ve gained over these years.
When I sit and think about what kind of information I’d like to share with you, I often find myself thinking of my colleagues and other teacher friends. I wonder what they would want to share with other teachers and parents if they had a platform to speak up and share on. Sometimes when I write, I wonder what Hanna would think of my post, or how Ann-Marie might respond, or if Rachel would have any input. I wonder what they would say if they had a blog, and what kind of topics they would find worth sharing.
…So I asked them!
And you know what? They have things to say, yes they do. Most teachers don’t teach just because they need a job. They teach because they are passionate about children and learning and growth. They teach because they are compassionate people and want to make the world a better place. So I have invited some of my respected teacher friends to share something they are passionate about. The topics vary greatly, from special needs issues to technology to everyday parenting. I find them all fascinating, and think you will, too!
Encourage open-ended play and fun with these simple craft sticks and some velcro! I made these for one of my daughter’s busy boxes and I’m pretty sure that as she gets older, she’ll enjoy creating all sorts of fun shapes from it. In addition to simply playing with it, I already have some geometry lessons planned, from teaching basic shapes to regular shapes to congruent shapes to understanding the nuances between the different types of quadrilaterals… all using these sticks! Okay, that may be a few years out, but exploring through play at this early age can only help!
They are great for exploring polygons, enjoying color, and working on fine motor skills with the sticking and un-sticking. Even my husband got into it for a little while, and I’m sure visiting friends will get a kick out of building shapes with these fun little sticks (kind of how they love to find new ways to play with this
A while back, I made five busy boxes for my toddler. One for each weekday:
The boxes are basically clear plastic shoe boxes that have a special set of activities and toys to keep her occupied while she quietly sits on a blanket (aka Blanket Time. If you’ve never tried it, you must. It’s awesome). This allows me to go and DO THINGS. Like lie on the couch and try really hard not to close my eyes. Or cook dinner. Or write something up to share with you here on my blog, like how to keep a toddler busy so I can go write about how I kept her busy. As a bonus, many of the activities help her get some fine motor skill practice, or are otherwise helpful for some aspect of her development. Yay!
So far, she only really seems to love the Monday and Tuesday boxes, so I find myself going back to those even on W, Th, and F. Lately, I’ve only been using them 1-2x a week, so that works out for now, but once baby boy comes, I think I’ll have to up my busy box game to buy some more downtime! For now, I’m glad I have at least two winners. I already shared the Tuesday box with you. It’s a simple upcycled oatmeal container that I punched holes into. She can sit there for nearly thirty minutes pushing pipe cleaners in and out!
The Monday busy box I’m sharing today is actually a very similar concept, but with craft pom poms instead of pipe cleaners. 
It’s a hit with my daughter. I especially like how small and portable this one is, and have brought it along for blanket time on-the-go. Just a few weeks ago, we were at a dinner meeting and she was able to quietly play with this toy for a long time before moving onto something else! Other kids enjoyed pushing the pom poms in, too, so it’s easy and inexpensive entertainment for little kids (not just toddlers), too!
She walked up to me, hands cupped and eyes bright, “Yes, please!”
“Here ya go,” I said, pouring in a handful of Goldfish.
“Thank you!” she chirped, and scampered off to recess.
The next student approached, hands cupped in a similar fashion. I repeated my action, giving him a dose of orange salty goodness.
“Thank you!” he smiled, as he sauntered off stuffing his mouth full of crackers.
One by one, all the students who wanted crackers at recess approached with the customary outstretched hands, and each one offered up a cheerful “Thank you!” as soon as I poured the crackers in.
It never got old. Day in and day out, I heard these two simple words of appreciation from dozens of children, and it never got old. Polite children are always refreshing. And, I’ve found, they are also more grateful. They exude a more positive attitude, and they grow to be more kind to others. Common courtesy is an essential skill that needs to be taught.
Whew! Summer is over, and with that comes the end of my summer series on Reading Strategies for Children! Yep, this is the last one in that series. Not gonna lie, I was ready to call it quits multiple times throughout the summer. Not only do these posts force me to dig into my brain and try to sound like I know what I’m talking about… but I also lost a lot of subscribers in the process :(. I guess that’s what happens when you don’t follow the bloggy rules and write about lots of different topics (like education AND parenting AND food AND marriage) rather than focusing on just one topic.
Anyway, thanks for sticking with me, even if you don’t have kids and/or aren’t interested in this series! It means a lot to me that you’re still here and you’re reading :D. This series is the kind of resource I would have loved to share with parents when I was still in the classroom, so at least I can do that now! Please let me know if you’ve found it helpful!
Now, onto the last reading strategy: summarizing and synthesizing!
Reading Strategy: Summarize
This may be the reading strategy that you feel most comfortable with. While you may not have heard about “text-to-text connections” much in your elementary school days, I’m fairly certain all of us are familiar with the idea of summaries from our own schooling. Whether it was reading a book and summarizing it for a book report, or reading summaries at the end of textbook chapters, summaries were and are a basic part of producing and consuming text. However, writing a good summary requires a lot more skill than we might think.
I used to think summaries were simple work… until I started teaching. Students would turn in summaries that were not really summaries at all. Sometimes, the summary felt longer than reading the actual text that they were supposed to summarize! Somewhere in their schooling, students picked up the idea that “the more you write, the better.” So I students would proudly hand in their 1.5 to 2 page “summaries” of a one page story we had just read. It would be filled with detail and sometimes even dialogue- excellent for story-writing, but not for a summary!
Other students would hand in something short that just listed a few random events that took place. It was as if they just pulled out details they remembered and threw them down into print. There was no distinction between key events and minor details– as long as they wrote down something they remembered from the text, they were happy to call it a summary.
Of course, neither of these reflected good thinking skills in terms of summarizing information. Here is one way you can try to help your child grow in the area of summarizing more effectively.
Hey Teachers! Back to school night and parent conferences are coming up, and wouldn’t it be GREAT if you could share some information with parents on how to help their children grow in their reading this year? I mean, if only there were some simple, ready-made resource online that could give parents a good overview of what you’re really doing in your classroom with reading, and offer them detailed and practical tips on how to support that learning at home… that would be just LOVELY. Right???
HERE YOU GOOOO!!
http://www.cuppacocoa.com/how-to-get-the-most-out-of-reading-time-with-your-child/
I made this for you!!! And I made it for all the parents of growing readers out there, so I really hope it gets some use. Parents, likewise please feel free to share with your classroom teachers. You know, something along the lines of, “I came across this really helpful website and learned about how to help my child develop their reading strategies! I thought other parents might appreciate this resource too, so I wanted to share it with you in case you wanted to pass it along!” :D.
Please feel free to link this on your classroom websites, in newsletters home, or just send ’em over to www.cuppacocoa.com for general awesome reads ;).
Although today’s post focuses on the specific reading strategy of determining importance, regular readers will know I’ve got a whole series going on that shares what the Reader’s Workshop, guided reading, and the reading strategies are all about. Please take a look-see and explore what’s available! Scroll to the bottom for more links.
Reading Strategy: Determine Importance
Onto today’s topic. Determining importance means the reader should be able to filter through text and find the important information to determine key ideas or themes. A lot of times, this is applied to informational text, like a textbook. Readers use all of their reading strategies together to try to figure out what the author is trying to communicate, key in on what they have learned, and hone in on the main points. In stories and other fiction texts, it’s more about figuring out the main points in the story and letting go of mere details. Here’s one way to teach it.
Meet JoEllen
Subscribe via Email
Top Posts & Pages
Categories
