New Year, New Kids

Recently I saw a great idea from Samantha on NZ Teachers (Primary). She posted about using bags as an introduction activity at the beginning of the year. The students put items into the bags that they then share with the class to help introduce their interests and just tell a little bit about themselves.

I thought that this was a wonderful way to get children talking about who they are, their likes, dislikes etc. I also think it is very important for teachers to bring a bag to school too. Firstly to model what kind of items would be best but also so that the students get to know the teacher too. 

The first term for me is all about getting to know my students but it is also a time for my students to learn about me. The best way to build relationships with your students is through stories. This activity is a fabulous way to bring visual starters for such stories. The items that I would place into the bag are: 

• a dog toy to represent my dog, Bonnie. Children love to hear about her and the mischief that she gets into. Photos of Bonnie in silly situations make great writing prompt for later.
• a pair of baby booties to represent my children. Once again this is a way to invite children into my life. I have a heap of photos of my daughter and with another one, on the way, there will only be more.
• a photo or maybe an old lens cap to represent my love for photography. I think it is important for children to know that we have interests outside of school. Photography is a great passion of mine and this could be a great conversation starter to get the children to share their interests and passions. 
• My last item would be a book. I love to read and it is something that I encourage all my students to do. I have a huge personal library, which I have slowly extended over the years. I always try to engage children in reading by finding out about their interests and linking those to books.

By simply sharing four items with a class I can give a huge insight to who I am, or at least, start the conversation. During this activity, I would encourage the children to ask questions. The more they know about you, the more they begin to understand and relate to you.

Thank you for the brilliant idea, Samantha. What a rich activity this is!

Back to it!

Well, it's official! I'm back in the classroom after taking time off with my little madam. Today was my first day back at school in a class that will be shared between me and a colleague. I will be in the class from Monday until Wednesday, which seems like a perfect compromise for our little family.
I will be in a year 1 class (this is the youngest I have ever taught) and I'm looking forward to the challenges ahead. Starting at a new school is exciting because I have never taught outside of Point View. It is a strange experience not only, start at a new school, but also at a new school. There are so many routines and procedures to get my head around. My first port of call is to establish routines in my classroom. I will be doing things slightly differently to the previous teacher so the children will take some time to adjust. As always my aim is to create independent people so I would like to start putting systems in place where these children can start to take some ownership of their learning and their choices. I believe that even from a young age, children are capable of being independent, we just don't give them enough credit.
So watch this space. I will be bringing more news of my adventures this term.