We have 12 boys and 8 girls. Each child stands before the class and tells us how they feel today and why. They also discuss our new letter, the sound of the letter and a word that begins with that sound. Topics vary from how they feel about the new fallen snow to what they did over the weekend. Calendar is one of the most valuable teaching experiences of the day.
Children count, spell, think, listen, discuss, read and share.
Everything from A to Z occurs at this time. Workstations make up a large portion of the day as the children move freely from one learning situation to another, working individually, with partners or in a small group, depending on the workstation requirements. These workstations become the testing grounds for new skills our children practice, experiment, share and learn. Backpack learning is loads of fun as children take home animal character backpacks filled with learning activities to do at home with their families. In 1996 my class sent its first travel buddy overseas.