I will finish my first year as media specialist at Kingsley Elementary soon. There have been many great memories that will stay in my mind from from this year:
The welcoming students. The Kingsley students were very polite and welcoming. They didn't say "You're doing it wrong, Mrs. Booth", although I am sure they thought that sometimes when I was floundering around trying a new routine or a new lesson. They have been unfailingly kind and helpful. I am a big fan of all Kingsley students, K through 5.
Readers. The Kingsley students constantly challenged me to find them good books to read, then they read them, passed them around to their friends, and talked about them. It was fun to talk books with all the students, from Kindergarten through 5th grade. I hosted a 4th grade Book Club of amazing readers. and I continue to be in awe of their enthusiasm for reading so many different kinds of books, from Fantasy to History to Realistic Fiction.
The successes of a couple of new projects this year. I taught a few new lessons, and out of those few, some worked! I would say the success rate was about 66%, which is normal for new ideas.
The Book Trailers in 4th grade was a big project both for me and for the students, and they came through with flying colors. They never gave up, they kept on asking questions and making sure they were on the right track, and they produced amazing book trailers. I did a Book Trailers part 2 just in the last month, and the quality rose even higher.
Scratch was a new project in 5th grade. Teaching computer programming is something I think is incredibly important for elementary students to be exposed to, but it is challenging for me to do myself, much less to teach. So I was relieved and gratified to have such intrepid learners in the 5th grade to help me explore the new territory of computer programming. They used their programming skills to illustrate word definitions hilariously, and to produce quizzes about a research project.
Finally, I am grateful for the support of the PTO. They bought 28 Chrome books for the students here, and we did a lot with them. There certainly is a lot more to be done, but the parents of Kingsley students are committed to give their children the widest range of experiences possible in elementary school, and I admire that commitment.
The welcoming students. The Kingsley students were very polite and welcoming. They didn't say "You're doing it wrong, Mrs. Booth", although I am sure they thought that sometimes when I was floundering around trying a new routine or a new lesson. They have been unfailingly kind and helpful. I am a big fan of all Kingsley students, K through 5.
Readers. The Kingsley students constantly challenged me to find them good books to read, then they read them, passed them around to their friends, and talked about them. It was fun to talk books with all the students, from Kindergarten through 5th grade. I hosted a 4th grade Book Club of amazing readers. and I continue to be in awe of their enthusiasm for reading so many different kinds of books, from Fantasy to History to Realistic Fiction.
The successes of a couple of new projects this year. I taught a few new lessons, and out of those few, some worked! I would say the success rate was about 66%, which is normal for new ideas.
The Book Trailers in 4th grade was a big project both for me and for the students, and they came through with flying colors. They never gave up, they kept on asking questions and making sure they were on the right track, and they produced amazing book trailers. I did a Book Trailers part 2 just in the last month, and the quality rose even higher.
Scratch was a new project in 5th grade. Teaching computer programming is something I think is incredibly important for elementary students to be exposed to, but it is challenging for me to do myself, much less to teach. So I was relieved and gratified to have such intrepid learners in the 5th grade to help me explore the new territory of computer programming. They used their programming skills to illustrate word definitions hilariously, and to produce quizzes about a research project.
Finally, I am grateful for the support of the PTO. They bought 28 Chrome books for the students here, and we did a lot with them. There certainly is a lot more to be done, but the parents of Kingsley students are committed to give their children the widest range of experiences possible in elementary school, and I admire that commitment.