One of the best first weeks of school activities is to read aloud to your students. The first week, especially, can be unpredictable in terms of planning and knowing how long everything will take when your students are new to your classroom. Having plenty of picture books ready to go is a great use of time when you find yourself with a few minutes.
Besides being a great use of time, I find reading aloud helps bond our class together as a community. Reading books together and having a chance to discuss them builds verbal skills, reading comprehension, vocabulary, and empathy. Plus it’s just plain fun and relaxing. All kids love it, especially when the teacher is engaged and enthusiastic about the book being read.
Here are some of my favorite beginning of the year picture books. I’ve also included a suggestion for discussion with most of the books. This is not to say that you need to read every one of these books! Pick and choose what might fit you and your class, and what might be available.
NERVES ON FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL:
~First Day Jitters – a classic story for talking about feelings of nervousness at the beginning of the year
~Wemberly Worried – talk about nerves on the first days of school
~The Kissing Hand – a fun book about carrying your family’s love with you everywhere you go. Even upper elementary kids love this book!
HOW WE TREAT EACH OTHER – BUILDING CLASSROOM COMMUNITY:
~The Day You Begin – a great book for highlighting individuality and looking for common ground. You could follow this up with a “find a classmate who . . .” type scavenger hunt
~The Name Jar – talk about the importance of names and the importance of pronouncing each other’s names correctly
~Alma & How She Got Her Name – same discussion as The Name Jar, but this is a newer book and may be one that students have not heard before. This would also fit well with the name origin “Homework” with Chrysanthemum below.
~My Name is Sangoel – talk about the importance of names and the importance of of pronouncing everyone’s names correctly.
~Chrysanthemum – talk about bullying & the importance of names. Optional homework: find out how you were given your name and the meaning of your name if your family knows that information! Then share those stories in class. Please be aware that this could be a difficult activity for some students. Don’t require kids to share if they are uncomfortable.
HOPES, DREAMS & GOALS:
~The Dot – talk about how you might “make a mark” – what are your hopes and dreams, both for this year and for the future?
~Miss Rumphius – talk about how you make the world more beautiful by being a teacher; ask students to talk with each other about some of their goals and dreams
~Ish – talk about believing in yourself & your dreams
~Only One You – talk about individuality and individual gifts
~Giant Steps to Change the World – talk about steps anyone can take to make the world a better place. It uses real-life examples, which is inspiring.
~What Do You Do with an Idea? – talk about the importance of acting on your ideas and turning them into something important
~Salt in His Shoes – talk about setting goals; good book for writing about student goals for the year
~The Bad Seed – talk about how to make positive changes in yourself
~Jabari Jumps – talk about having courage, overcoming fears and giving hard things a try
~Junkyard Wonders – talk about different gifts and supporting each other’s goals
SETTING UP READING WORKSHOP/READING BLOCK:
~Miss Malarkey Leaves No Reader Behind – great book for kicking off independent reading and reading workshop; talk about the importance of finding the right book
~Thank You, Mr. Falker – talk about challenges, bullying, the importance of teachers(!); good book for writing about reading memories & setting reading goals
~A Quiet Place – talk about the importance of reading and of the need for quiet when settling in to read
~Biblioburro & That Book Woman – talk about value of libraries & how lucky we are to have access to books
SETTING UP WRITING WORKSHOP/WRITING BLOCK:
~Author – talk about collecting ideas for writing
~Amelia’s Notebook – talk about keeping a notebook & using writing as a way think through your feelings; a funny book that makes this point without being “teacher-ish”
~Max’s Logbook – similar to the Amelia book, but about a boy who begins writing about science experiments, and moves on to writing about other topics; introduces topic of writing notebooks
Every teacher is nervous on the first day of school. I teach fifth grade, I have been in education for 28 years, and I still get nervous on the first day.
Here are some secrets I’ve learned to help you have the best first day of school ever!
Updated to add: after I posted these tips and thought I had truly included everything, I read a great post by Michael Linsin on his awesome blog Smart Classroom Management. Michael says this about his #1 goal for the first day of school:
My number one goal on the first day of school is that my students love being in my class.
The reason, simply put, is that it makes anything and everything to do with effective teaching and classroom management easier.
Yes! You want your students to go home happy and excited about their first day of school. The tips below are intended to help you do just that.
These tips are focused on upper elementary grades but can easily be adapted for other grades.
1 – Wear something cute and comfortable! You will be on your feet for a good part of the day, so comfortable shoes are a must. I don’t wear dresses every day, but I usually do wear one on the first day. It makes the first day of school feel a bit more special.
2 – Get to school early! You want to be calm and in control when your students arrive.
3 – Keep in mind that the most important things to teach in the first week of school are the following:
*your routines and procedures (which you will need to practice over and over)
*your expectations for academic work and classroom behavior
*the building of classroom community.
Yes, you will begin some academic work as well, but try to do that in the context of establishing those routines and reinforcing your expectations.
4 – It’s important to be flexible! Over-plan for each day, but accept the fact that not everything will get done. It’s okay! If you don’t get to something you had planned to do, decide if it is something you really want or need to do (and then re-schedule it for the next day) or just drop it.
5 – Learn names as quickly as possible! I am assuming that your school does some sort of Meet the Teacher event where you have briefly met most of your students and their families.
If there are students whom you have not yet met, try to get hold of last year’s yearbook and look up pictures of your students. It’s awesome to be able to greet each student at the door on the first day of school and use their name.
If you can’t remember their name or you just don’t know it, it’s fine to introduce yourself and ask them for their name. But get those names and faces connected as soon as you can!
Knowing their names makes your students feel “known” and safe, but also gives you more credibility and builds respect from students.
6 – Until your students have learned and responded to your signal for quiet (more on that below) and perhaps been treated to your “teacher look”, save the more rambunctious activities for later. If you are not 100% sure that you can get students’ attention quickly and get them under control, save the movement activities for another day. Ask me how I know.
7 – At many schools, students will be hauling in lots of school supplies and their first question is going to be, “Where do I put this?”.
So have a plan. Here’s what I do:
*I post the directions on the Smartboard.
*In my classroom, every student has a number. I have chart paper posted with every student’s name and number. I direct them to find their number on the chart, and then find the backpack hook and the cubby with their number.
*In the directions on the board, I have a list of which supplies get stored in their cubby. They can put those supplies away in their numbered cubby.
*For the community supplies (that we will all use during the year), I use index card “tents” labeled with the supply. I put these “tents” on the counter or on a table in front of a bin with one of those supplies inside, if possible.
The directions on the board tell them to put their supplies in the appropriate bin. This is much simpler than it sounds!
*If students continually ask me where to put things after I have given these directions, I just point to the board. They learn pretty quickly that they need to be independent and use their resources! See? You’re already teaching expectations and routines!
8 – Use those classroom numbers to leave sticky notes at seats so students will know where to sit on the first day. Even if you have another seating plan you want to implement, just assign seats for the first day. (Of course, if you prefer to use cute name tags, that is fine too!)
9 – Have something easy and non-threatening for students to do at their seats while you are greeting other students and helping them unpack and get settled.
Here are some suggestions:
*Make a word search with student names using this site.
*Have a blob of Play-doh (either buy it or make it yourself using this recipe) and allow kids to play with it. It is relaxing, it calms nerves and fidgets, and it allows for a few moments of peaceful fun before the day officially begins. You might also ask students to make something that represents something about them and then share their creation as an opening activity.
10 – Teach your students an attention getting signal right away. Some teachers use a call and response type of signal (see The Applicious Teacher post for some great ideas.)
Other teachers use a clap signal where you clap a certain rhythm and then students get quiet and repeat your clapped rhythm. This year I will be using a wireless doorbell! Even if you change this up later on and teach them a different signal, these are quick and easy ways to get student attention on the first day.
11 – Instead of beginning right away with “here are the rules”, start with introducing yourself and telling your students some things about you. The purpose is to help them bond with you as quickly as possible. There are lots of ways you could do this. I make a slide show on Google Slides and incorporate some pictures of my family, my dog, favorite places, things I like to do, etc. I keep this brief but try to make it engaging.
12 – Another fun way to start class is to use a picture book read-aloud. There are tons of great books out there, so use something that YOU love. In a future post, I’ll give you a list of some of my favorite picture books along with some discussion questions you could use with your class for each book. (Updated to add my post of picture books HERE and a comprehensive list of book titles on Teachers Pay Teachers HERE.)
Throughout the first day and the first week, use lots & lots of read-alouds! These come in very handy in the first few days of school when you may have a few minutes here and here. They are a perfect anchor activity to insert when you need something to do. Plus, it bonds you together as a class and kids love it!
13 – Now it’s time to start teaching those procedures and routines. Scholastic has a great article of 30 procedures to teach your students.
14 – Take lots of pictures throughout the first day and the first week! Here is a great idea for a picture frame to use with each student’s individual photo from Jodi at Clutter-Free Classroom. In this blog post, she suggests using one of these pictures on a display bulletin board and sending the other picture home with a handwritten note at the end of the first week.
I love this idea because it helps build good relationships with families from the very beginning. You could also send the picture digitally (if you have email addresses for families), and add a note with the picture. But the handwritten aspect does make it a bit more personal.
I also take a whole class picture on the first day (or during the first week). It’s fun to compare this picture with a picture of the class at the end of the year!
15 – As a first day writing activity, have your students write a letter to introduce themselves to you. Tell them to include information about what they like to do, what they like about school and what they don’t like, and tell anything they want you to know about them. I’ve also seen a tip where you have them do the same activity on the last day of school and compare the answers. That’s a great idea too.
In a future post, I’ll share more ideas for first day and first week activities.
I hope these tips will be helpful to you as you plan for a great school year! Share your suggestions with me!
If you are thinking about ways to build community in your classroom this year, consider implementing class meetings or circles in your daily routine!
Class meetings or classroom circles are sometimes called morning meetings, but they can actually be held any time throughout the school day.
Teachers complain that there is never enough time in the school day (which is true). So it’s easy to think that class meetings or circles are just some “woo-woo” thing we just do not have time to do. But what I have seen is that the investment of time in these classroom routines pays off in more time for learning throughout the year. When students feel “heard” and supported by both their teacher and their classmates, many problems and issues can be averted. Give it a try!
I’ll explain how I use circles in my class and give some tips for how to get started. If you want more in-depth information about the research behind these practices, I suggest reading anything from Responsive Classroom or check out the International Institute for Restorative Practices website.
There is a lot of research out there about the importance of rituals and routines in classrooms. Here is a brief article from Edutopia with more information about this research. The main point is that when classroom rituals, such as meetings/circles, become a routine part of the school day, students have a feeling of security and safety in the classroom.
I love Responsive Classroom’s work. I highly recommend any of their books, but here are a few that explain classroom rituals and meetings:
As I mentioned before, another important reason to do circles is that they are a proactive way to avoid negative discipline situations. When students and teachers are “attached” to each other, there will be fewer classroom disruptions. Circles can be used to solve classroom problems and to help students understand the impact of their actions on other people.
But to begin the classroom routine of circles, keep it fun and keep it positive. Just because something is a routine does not mean it has to be boring! There are lots of ways to change up what you do in class circles. Problem-solving can occur later when needed.
Day 1:
*Gather students in a circle in the meeting area of your class. (If you teach younger students, you might have them sit in a circle on the carpet. If your students are older, you might have them bring a chair and arrange the chairs in a circle.)
*Why a circle? Explain that the purpose is so that all of us can hear and see each other.
*Explain that at this time of the day, we will gather in a circle. You might call it a meeting or just call it a circle. Tell your students that you will do different things in the circle throughout the year, but that the goal is to help us know and understand each other better, and to build friendships within our class. This is NOT a time when we will just sit and listen to the teacher. This is a time when we will talk and share with each other.
*At this point, you might do some fun get-to-know-you ice-breaker activity. Jennifer Gonzalez at Cult of Pedagogy has some great ideas here.
Other fun ice-breakers:
*Have students talk to the person next to them on one side (tell them which side). Learn their name and one thing about them that they want the class to know. Then go around the circle (what we call a “sequential” circle since it involves every person sharing and going in order) and have each student introduce their partner. You could also then reverse the process and have students talk to the person on their other side and introduce them in the same way.
*Pass around a roll of toilet paper and have students take “as many pieces as they need”. Then, for each piece of toilet paper, they have to share one fact about themselves.
At this point, it might be good to get them up and moving.
You could use Jennifer Gonzalez’s concentric circle ice-breaker, or try one of these:
*snake activity – everyone stands in the circle. Choose a student to start, or you could start and model this activity. Person #1 steps into the circle, turns to their left and faces the person beside them. They then give Person #2 a greeting (saying their name) and a “safe gesture” (fist bump, high five, handshake). Person #1 then moves to the next person in the circle and does the same until they have greeted/gestured to each person in the circle. When Person #1 gets back to their place in the circle, Person #2 steps into the circle and does the same thing. Continue until the whole class “snakes” through the circle to greet each other.
*human knot – everyone stands in a circle. Then reach across the circle and grab the hands of two other people. Next, try to unravel the knot without letting go of hands!
*hula hoop body pass – stand in a circle and hold hands. Put a hula hoop on the arm of one student. Their task is to try to pass it through the arms to the next person. Everybody does the same without dropping hands.
End the circle for today with positive reinforcement. You want everyone to have positive feelings about circles and what they will be like this year.
Day 2:
Gather together in a circle again. Have students remind the class of why we sit in a circle.
Today, introduce the use of a “talking tool.” This could be any object — a small ball, a rain stick, a stuffed animal. Explain that when someone is holding the talking tool, no one else is talking (no side conversations, blurting out comments or questions, etc.).
Then do a sequential circle with some non-threatening topic to share such as something that was fun for you this summer or something you are looking forward to this school year. When you introduce these topics, give 30 seconds of think time before asking a student to share and start the circle.
Remind students to keep it short and limit to one sentence. (Otherwise, it can drag on as some students monopolize the time.)
Keep the circle time short and positive!
Day 3:
Gather together in a circle with the talking tool. Review the use of the talking tool with sequential circle using a non-threatening topic such as one of the topics from day 2 (giving 30 seconds of think time first). Other topics might be “the best book I read this summer or last year” or “a good movie I enjoyed”.
Today, start talking about what we need in our classroom for everyone to feel safe and to do their best work. This circle will be a non-sequential circle, in that students may raise their hands to speak. You will toss the talking tool to them. (Another term for this is “popcorn”.) They can then toss the talking tool to another student with a raised hand.
While students share ideas, you could make a list of their ideas on chart paper.
When everyone has shared, try to group the ideas together (with the class’s help) and come up with four or five “norms” or agreements that we will follow in our class this year. When you’re finished, thank the students for their participation and thinking in this process.
End with a another sequential circle on a non-threatening topic such as “what is your favorite subject” or “what is your favorite special”.
(At some later time, make a fresh copy of the norms. You might even want to have your students sign them and you sign them as well.)
Day 4:
Gather in a circle and review the norms. Choose a norm to focus on for today’s circle. Doing this helps provide practice with the norm as needed while meeting in a circle.
Start with a sequential circle and 30 seconds of think time to share something like “what is something you learned this week?” or “what game or activity was your favorite?”.
Remind students of the norms, reinforce good things you see and hear, and redirect any less positive behavior as needed.
End the circle in a positive way by reinforcing the good from the circle today.
Day 5:
Use the usual procedures, but today you will introduce community meeting.
Suggestions for sequential circle warmup: what is something fun you did over the weekend or what is your favorite hobby?
Review norms. Choose one to focus on during today’s circle.
Explain that the purpose of a community circle is to discuss some issue within the classroom that we want to change in some way. Examples might be:
*how to change seating arrangements
*how to set up classroom jobs
*changing displays in the classroom
*sharing appreciation with one another
*discuss questions or concerns about a classroom situation that has recently happened (sometimes called a “responsive” circle)
*talk about procedures for an upcoming event, like a field trip (sometimes called a “proactive” circle).
Choose something to discuss today. If several students have ideas to share, use a sequential circle (allowing students to “pass” if they don’t have something to add) or you could use a non-sequential (popcorn) circle.
End the circle on a positive note by thanking students for their ideas and participation and getting their thumbs up/thumbs down feedback on how they think they did with the norm today.
Day 6:
Use the usual procedures, but today you will introduce academic circles.
When you use an academic circle, you are teaching content but allowing students to reflect on and discuss ideas. You will need to think about discussion questions in advance so that students will discuss whatever learning goal you have for the lesson. Obviously, other discussion could happen as well, but you still want to keep them on track to meet the learning goal for your lesson.
Choose a subject for the circle. You will do whatever lesson you would have done with them at their seats, but you’re in a circle format.
Review norms.
Some examples of academic circle topics and activities:
*Introduce a new unit of study in math, science, or social studies by letting students share what they already know and what they wonder about the topic. Use a sequential circle and make a T-chart of “What We Know” and “What We Wonder”.
*Introduce a new unit of study by just asking for what they know about a topic. Use a sequential circle and allow students to pass if they’re not sure of what they already know.
*Get some sort of class practice or worksheet started together while you’re in the circle. You might need to allow for pencils and clipboards. Have a student read the directions aloud. Allow for questions and allow for students to get started by talking to someone beside them.
*Use a question to stimulate thinking at the beginning of a unit and allow students to discuss. This works well for social studies topics.
*Use a circle for share/reflection time at the end of a lesson. Allow students to discuss what they practiced, what they learned, what was challenging, what they are proud about, etc.
End by reflecting on the use of the norm for today’s circle and thank students for their participation.
Day 7:
Use the usual procedures, but today you will introduce identities, diversity and equity and how that impacts learning.
Form a circle and review norms. Choose one norm to focus on for today.
Start by doing a sequential circle and have students share one thing about themselves or about their family.
Explain that circles will help us learn about each other this year. Learning about who we are is important because learning about who we are impacts how we learn and how we interact with other people. We also build our understanding of the world by hearing others’ perspectives.
There are several great lessons in Sara K. Ahmed’s book Being the Change, but one of my favorite lessons is making identity maps. For this circle, I might make my own identity map in front of students. After I model making my own, I send students back to their seats with paper and markers to make their own identity maps. Then we will return to the circle to share them.
When we share maps, I ask students to share one fact that many people might not know about you. What is one fact that you think might surprise people? What is one fact that you usually do not share much with other people? Why? (If some students are not comfortable sharing their map at this point, don’t press it. Just allow for volunteers.)
Write the following terms on the board:
Identity
Diversity
Equity
Ethnicity
Nationality
Ask students what they know about these terms. Explain that these terms will be discussed all year as we get to know each other and celebrate our diversity throughout the year. Tell students that this helps build a community of compassion and understanding in the classroom.
You might want to explain the difference between “equity” and “equality”. Equity = everyone getting what they need to be successful. Equality = everyone getting the same thing. This article from the Education Trust explains more.
End the circle by asking students to share ways that the class can celebrate diversity and different identities.
You might want to display the identity maps in your classroom. You also might want to put them away for now and revisit them later in the year to see if students have additional words to add.
Day 8:
Use the usual procedures, but today you will use the circle for a restorative scenario..
Form a circle and review norms. Choose one norm to focus on for today.
Discuss with students how circles are not just used for community building or academic reasons. Circles will also be used to resolve situations that may come up in the classroom throughout the year. Have students quickly share some conflict situations that might occur (conflicts at recess, disagreements between students in the classroom, supplies or technology not being used appropriately, etc.)
Create some scenario that you have seen happen in the past or one that students have just suggested. Pose the scenario and give the students think time. Discuss what to do for the scenario. First go around in a sequential circle and have students discuss their feelings about the scenario. Then have students popcorn some solutions for how the problem could be solved. Validate what students share. You might have students talk to each other and add on to each other’s thoughts.
Remind students that they will be working on restorative type circles throughout the year as problems/concerns arise. They need to be respectful of each other during this time as they work through problems as a class.
End the circle by thanking students for their participation and thoughtful input.
WHAT ARE SOME OTHER CIRCLE TOPIC POSSIBILITIES?
Here are some other circle topics that my fifth graders have loved.
1 – Brags & drags about the weekend. Do a sequential circle where everyone can share one brag and one drag about their weekend. (Emphasis on “one”!)
2 – Roses & thorns about the school day. This can be sequential or non-sequential. Students share one good thing that happened for them during the day (a “rose”) and one not-so-good thing that happened or something that was difficult for them today (a “thorn”).
3 – Would You Rather questions. Rachel Lynette at Minds in Bloom has some great questions for different times of the school year.
4 – Three A’s. This works best as a non-sequential circle. Students can share an Appreciation of someone (thanking someone in the class for something), an Apology (they can apologize to someone publicly, but don’t have to say for what), and an A-Ha (something they caught on to or learned today). (I got the idea from this post on Edutopia.)
5 – A great circle to do right before a break or at the end of a quarter – have students stand in a circle. This will be sequential. The first student will talk about the person to their right. They will introduce the person by saying, “This is ______. What I admire most about _______ is _______.” When everyone has shared, you then reverse the circle. Now the first student will talk about the person on their left by saying “One word I think of when I look at _______ is ________.”.
The first time I did this circle I was a little worried that students would be silly or say inappropriate things. So of course I had to remind them of our norms. But I had nothing to worry about. They loved this activity, took it very seriously, and said the most amazing things about each other. It is a powerful way to validate every student’s importance and value to the community.
I hope you will try some of these ideas in your classroom this year. I would love to hear your ideas or suggestions for more circle topics!
Have you ever heard of dialogue journals? When I think about routines that work well in upper elementary grades, dialogue journals are one of my top suggestions. I’ll explain how I use them in my classroom and I hope that it will become a helpful and meaningful routine for you as well.
Quick note — this routine is not just for upper elementary classrooms! I happen to teach fifth grade, but dialogue journals work for any grade.
I started using these journals about 20 years ago and found them to be incredibly informative for me and empowering for my students’ voices. Then I read the book I Wish My Teacher Knew: How One Question Can Change Everything for Our Kids by Kyle Schwartz and it further reinforced the importance of these journals.
When I get my class list, I put every child’s name on the cover. Some teachers like to give kids an opportunity to decorate their covers. Up to you!
Some teachers have asked me if you could do these journals via Edublog or some other tech tool. Yes, you could! I like the handwritten aspect of the journals and it makes it easy to send them home with students at the end of the year. But you should decide what works better for you.
I introduce the journals during the first week of school. I explain them in this way:
“Our school days go by quickly. During the day, I wish I had the time to sit down with every one of you and just have a private talk about whatever you want to talk about. Some days I might have more time for that than others, but I don’t like feeling like I am missing anyone. So this journal is one way that we can ‘talk’ privately.”
GETTING STARTED
Here are the guidelines I give to my students:
*You may write in your journal any time you want.
*I will give you one time a week that is specifically for writing in your journal. (I usually do this on Friday morning for about 10-15 minutes. Just try to find a small block of time that works for you.)
*Date every entry in your journal. That is to help me see when something happened or when something was written.
*Write your journal entry in letter form: start it with “Dear Mrs. Smith,” and end it by signing your name.
*Put your journal back in this crate so I can find it easily when I write back to you.
*Quick warning: journals are private. Your journal is for you and for me to see, no one else. Do not look at anyone else’s journal. That is a serious violation of privacy and there will be severe consequences for doing that. I know you wouldn’t even think of doing that (always assume positive intent on the part of your students!), but I’m reminding you just in case. 🙂
(Just for the record — I have never had students violate privacy. If that becomes an issue, I would suggest keeping the journal crate near your small group instruction table or where it can be more closely monitored.)
WHAT I DO WITH THE JOURNALS:
*I generally read and respond to about five journals per day. That is my goal, although some weeks that just does not happen. I assure my students that I will catch up and they should just keep writing to me. Sometimes I respond to three or four of their journal entries with just one of my own! That’s okay. As long as their concerns or questions are getting a response, it doesn’t matter.
*When I respond, I also write in letter form. If they are not writing in letter form, it models the correct form for them.
*I always sign my letters with “Love, Mrs. Smith.” If you are not comfortable with “love”, use some other word, but I try to use this opportunity to communicate my love and caring for the student.
*If a student has not written in their journal for a week or so, I remind them in my letter that I want to hear from them. I might even ask a couple of specific questions.
*Sometimes the things that students share are more personal or need more of a conversation with me. When that happens, I make a note of it on my to-do list first. Then I respond by letter that we need to have a conversation about it. Depending on what the issue is, I find time as quickly as possible to have that conversation. Sometimes it’s a quick chat. Other times, I need to get other resource help involved (school guidance counselor, etc.).
*I do keep track of student journal writing, but not for a grade. I keep a simple checklist and just put a check mark by their name when the student has written to me and I have responded. That way, I can see if it has been over a week or two and I have not heard from the student in their journal. Make this as easy as possible for yourself!
POSSIBLE JOURNAL PROMPTS TO USE:
*Tell me about this week! What was good? What was not so good?
*What is going well for you at school right now?
*What is not going well for you at school right now?
*What is going well for you outside of school right now?
*What is not going well for you outside of school right now?
*Who are your friends?
*Is there anyone you have trouble getting along with? Why?
*How is reading going for you right now?
*How is writing going for you right now?
*How is math going for you right now?
*How is social studies going for you right now?
*How is science going for you right now?
*What is your favorite special and why?
*What is your least favorite special and why?
*What did you think of . . . (the assembly, the field trip, etc.)
*What are you worried about right now?
*What do you love doing? Why?
*What makes you feel “smart”?
*What do you need from me right now?
*Do you have any suggestions for me?
*What do you want me to know?
These are just examples. I would love to hear any suggestions you have that work for you and your kids!
HOW DIALOGUE JOURNALS BENEFIT MY STUDENTS AND ME:
At the end of the year, my students always report that our dialogue journals are one of their favorite things about our class. They help build relationships between me and my students. They communicate that I really do care what is going on in their lives and that I really do care about what they think and what they have to say.
I learn so much about my students that I might never know otherwise. Some of the information I learn totally changes my perception of the child in a positive way. Some of the information explains some behaviors that I see and helps give me insight into how I can help support the student.
The journals help my students feel safe, that they are seen and known by me.
Give them a try this year! I would love to hear how they work for you.
An important part of self-care is taking some time to enjoy moments that bring you joy and savoring that time. Self-care activities are all about taking care of your physical and mental health.
Some self-care activities can be done alone, but others are best enjoyed along with other people. Summer goes by far too quickly.
Here are some of my favorite joys of summer that I plan to enjoy as much as possible. I hope this gives you some ideas!
*Eat fresh berries
*Eat fresh peaches
*Make strawberry shortcake – try this recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction!
*Make a fruit cobbler (this is a great recipe from Will Cook for Smiles that uses blueberries, but you could substitute any other fruit)
During the past few weeks, I have listened to three different people as they told me about personal situations that are extremely difficult. During each of these conversations, I felt so helpless.
Feeling helpless is really hard for me. As a mom and a teacher, my first instinct is to make suggestions for how to fix things or how to move forward. Sometimes my instinct is even to fix it myself. But in each of these situations, there was very little I could do to fix it. Have you ever felt that way?
“Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.” ~Galatians 6:2
This verse from Galatians kept coming to mind during those conversations. Whenever I hear something over and over or am reminded of something over and over, I believe that God is speaking to me in some way. As I sat there, listening to people I love tell me about life-changing and painful situations, and feeling so helpless, I wondered if I was doing anything to help.
So how can we share each other’s burdens? Here are some of my thoughts. I would love to hear what you think.
1 – Listen. Just be quiet and listen. Let them talk. Let them tell me all about their painful situation without my input about what is going on in my own life. This isn’t about me right now. Just listen and be present for them in this moment.
2 – In addition to listening, I also need to actively listen. Don’t look at my phone. I need to maintain eye contact, nod, lean in toward them, and interrupt only to ask clarifying questions. Let them know that I am 100% focused on them at this moment.
3 – Pray. Simple prayers like, “help me with this”, “tell me what to say”, “be with _____ right now” are fine. Another verse I love:
“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know how we ought to pray, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words.” ~Romans 8:26
4 – Allow them to name their narrative instead of using a narrative that makes me feel more comfortable. I am currently reading Emily P. Freeman’s latest book, The Next Right Thing.
Emily says:
“As people who put their trust in Jesus, sometimes we don’t know what to say when we see someone going through an impossible time. Instead of giving them space to name their own narratives, we rush them into a narrative that makes us feel more comfortable . . . saying phrases like, ‘God is in control’ or ‘Consider it all joy!’ or ‘God works all things together for good.’ He is, it is, and he does. But we are all on our own journey of living into those truths. We would do well to create space for others to walk a little way into that truth and begin to name their own narratives in time. We would do well to give ourselves that same space too.”
So my advice to myself is this: Just listen. Hold a hand or give a hug. Just be present with them in the hard place and reassure them of my love and care.
What else do you do to share others’ burdens? I would love to hear your thoughts.
Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
An important part of self-care is taking some time to enjoy moments that bring you joy and savoring that time. Self-care activities are all about taking care of your physical and mental health.
