After School Talk

The “after school” hour can be a great time to connect with your kids, even on the run to a practice or an activity.  You can always pull up our blog or my Twitter account @kellyharadon for a picture to discuss, or here are 50 “After School Family Conversation Starters” to help you get connected.

1. What made you smile today?
2. Can you tell me an example of kindness you saw/showed? 
3. Was there an example of unkindness? How did you respond?
4. Does everyone have a friend at recess?
5. What was the book about that your teacher read?
6. What’s the word of the week?
7. Did anyone do anything silly to make you laugh?
8. Did anyone cry?
9. What did you do that was creative?
10. What is the most popular game at recess?
11. What was the best thing that happened today?
12. Did you help anyone today?
13. Did you tell anyone “thank you?”
14. Who did you sit with at lunch?
15. What made you laugh?
16. Did you learn something you didn’t understand?
17. Who inspired you today?
18. What was the peak and the pit?
19. What was your least favorite part of the day?
20. Was anyone in your class gone today?
21. Did you ever feel unsafe?
22. What is something you heard that surprised you?
23. What is something you saw that made you think?
24. Who did you play with today?
25. Tell me something you know today that you didn’t know yesterday.
26. What is something that challenged you?
27. How did someone fill your bucket today? Whose bucket did you fill?
28. Did you like your lunch?
29. Rate your day on a scale from 1-10.
30. Did anyone get in trouble today?
31. How were you brave today?
32. What questions did you ask at school today?
33. Tell us your top two things from the day (before you can be excused from the dinner table!). 
34. What are you looking forward to tomorrow?
35. What are you reading?
36. What was the hardest rule to follow today?
37. Teach me something I don’t know.
38. If you could change one thing about your day, what would it be?
39. (For older kids):  Do you feel prepared for your history test?” or, “Is there anything on your mind that you’d like to talk about?” (In my opinion, the key is not only the way a question is phrased, but responding in a supportive way.)
40. Who did you share your snacks with at lunch?
41. What made your teacher smile? What made her frown?
42. What kind of person were you today?
43. What made you feel happy? 
44. What made you feel proud?
45. What made you feel loved?
46. Did you learn any new words today?
47. What do you hope to do before school is out for the year?
48. If you could switch seats with anyone in class, who would it be? And why?
49. What is your least favorite part of the school building? And favorite?
50. If you switched places with your teacher tomorrow, what would you teach the class?

Classroom Community

We are working really hard on creating a safe, respectful, and responsible learning community. This class cares, they know right from wrong, and they love to learn. We created an anchor chart called "expectations for you and me." The students created their own expectations for each other and for the teacher! 

Expectations for YOU (students)	Expectations for ME (teacher)
Use kind words Focus Keep “those” thoughts to yourself Raise hand We Do Not Bully. Period. Hands to self Golden Rule Listen the first time Encourage each other Work together Be honest Admit mistakes Care about yourself and your work Try your best and don't give up!  Be direct, but be fair	Give help when needed Create an environment free of negative conflict Help students problem solve Know when to be hands-off Give hugs Give feedback Use nice words TEACH Keep students safe and active Keep things going and keep things exciting FUN! Be understanding of emotions

WE ALL MATTER! WE DON'T GIVE UP!

Cooperative Learning

Cooperative learning is a successful teaching strategy in which small teams use a variety of learning activities to improve their understanding of a subject. Problem solving and cooperative learning are two important elements of our #futureready skills! We started with partnerships in writing, team building in PE, and working in groups on our first STEM challenges! The STEM challenge was a team building challenge that included some pasta, a marshmallow, string, tape, and scissors. The challenge: to build the tallest free-standing tower in just 18 minutes. It was great to see the teams work together and struggle together. They enjoyed this process. After the challenge, we talked about how we grow through these experiences. We will continue to enjoy the process as we work on the product in 3rd grade!

Scientific Inquiry, Citizen Scientists

Today, we worked on our first scientific inquiry! We explored the question: How do you see yourself as a scientist and what tools do you use?
Check out these scientists working in their flexible seating/learning areas!

Shelfies

Our third graders are growing their reading stamina and have picked their very first book to read. Whether it is a favorite or a new text, they picked this text as their first "Shelfie!" 

First Day Fun!

Our incredible 3rd graders are off to a great start! These world-changers are starting to get comfortable in their new environment. We are working hard on learning 3rd grade expectations! Today, we started to talk about our District 220 3rd grade yearlong theme of "patterns and changes" in Science.The students also enjoyed getting to know their new classmates. Enjoy these pictures of our first day of school!