The rumble of the impending earthquake has been growing
steadily louder over the past week. Finally, the world started to shake in
earnest as my son turned to me this evening and asked, “Mom, are there only
about four weeks left of school this year?”
Yep, our district finishes around this time in May. That
means we have about one month left. Although we had snow less than two weeks
ago, spring has finally arrived, and summer is just around the corner. (Today’s
80-degree weather and day off from school definitely add to the feeling.)
State testing begins this week for us, and even though
everyone is tired, I know from past experience that the kids will be anything
but mellow after those final scantron forms have been submitted.
Nope. Instead, they’ll be wired. They will be DONE with
school. Oh, their bodies will still be there, but their minds will be outside,
in the sunshine. All the teachers out there know exactly what I mean. J
So just when teachers can smell the upcoming summer break,
just when we start feeling like we just want to lay down and let the kids run
all over us, (like one of those tired mama tigers with their playful cubs
crawling all over them at the zoo) it’s time to step up our game, infuse some
creativity, and involve the kids’ hands as well as their brains.
One of the ways I would like to accomplish some classroom
FUN while still keeping in mind the almighty standards, involves having the
kids create a lap book about what they learned this year. I’m also hoping to
keep them busy, of course. :D
It’s not just that, though. I really need a quick snapshot
of what they’ve learned and what they’ll remember from our classroom. Even
more, I want THEM to know, and to remember years from now, what they learned in
fourth grade.
I’m not talking about what percentile they’ve reached, or
what quartile gains they’ve made. I want to know how they’ve grown as little
PEOPLE, and I hope to find out whatever small influence I’ve had in that
growth. After all, that’s why I became a teacher. J
(If you want to take a closer look at this project, you can find it here: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/End-of-the-School-Year-Memories-Detective-Theme-Lap-Book-1212716
How do you plan to spend the last month with your students? I would love to hear about it! Please tell me your plans in the comments! Thanks!
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