Be a sticker not a quitter.

The angle was very acute.

This is the prompt for the 100wc this week. However, I have decided to write something else completely!

Be a sticker not a quitter

I have this written in my classroom above the board and it is something I find myself saying over and over again. As a primary school teacher not a day goes past that a child doesn’t find something difficult until that magical light bulb moment when you and they know that they have grasped the concept. It doesn’t matter whether it is being able to spell a word, make a prediction, work out a calculation, interpret a chart, spot the mistake , tie a lace… each and every step along the path to learning is important.

I feel it is vital to give children the confidence to have a go, even if they are not sure if they will be right or not, so that they can experience the pleasure that comes from success. And to learn to cope when things don’t go their way.  It seems that more and more this “stickability” doesn’t come naturally.

So, have I got a solution? I try to have an ethos in my class where every child feels safe and secure to have a go. We make good use of working partners and I have been totally sold on the use of lolly sticks (or similar) to choose children rather than hands up. Even the least confident children in my class will have a go and take part. Now that , in my opinion, is what teaching is all about. Empowering children to have the confidence to ask questions, want to find out more, not be afraid to have their own opinions.

I have been busy trying to organise a project involving all the local schools and have had to write a lot of letters, make a lot of calls and write a lot of emails . But, it is all starting to come together now.  

So, whatever comes with new curriculum proposals, I will keep true to my class mantra. If only the “powers that be” could remember that it’s all about the children, that it’s our job as educators to enthuse, engage, inspire a love of learning. Give them the tools to be able to find out more.

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.” Plutarch.

Amen to that. 

100 words for grown ups week 36

This week's challenge from the talented Julia (http://jfb57.wordpress.com/2012/03/26/100-word-challenge-for-grown-ups-week-36/ )

 has a real twist to it-

"Now for this week’s prompt. As you know I like to be topical so I’m thinking Easter. However, I’m thinking a little outside the box! The prompt is quite simple but the trick this week is to prepare for NEXT week!

I want you to write a piece with

….‘What was the rabbit late for,’ wondered Alice…..

in it. You have 100 words making a total of 108. However, the last 10 words are going to be used to start a piece by someone else next week!! Good eh! The idea isn’t mine – it came from Winchester House School"

I LOVE Lewis Carroll's works- they are so deliciously crazy and use language in a way I could only dream about. I used Jabberwocky to inspire a previous post ( http://mrshalford.blogspot.co.uk/2011/08/100-word-challenge-for-grown-ups-week-7.html ) 

I have tried to write in a similar style for this challenge. Check out the others at: http://www.linkytools.com/wordpress_list.aspx?id=137743&type=basic

Alice returns...

The sun was shining magnificently. You may think this unsurprising, but as it was the middle of the night , Alice knew something tremendous was afoot. It had been so long since last she went.  Her mind filled with memories of grinning cats, pipe-smoking caterpillars,  babies which turned to pigs. Or had it been the other way around? And what about that dear dormouse? And what was  the rabbit late for? wondered Alice. Taking a deep breath she stepped through the looking glass back into a world she knew so well. However, things did not seem to be quite the same...

100 words for grown ups week 35

http://jfb57.wordpress.com/2012/03/19/100-word-challenge-for-grown-ups-week-35/  This is the link to Julia's page with this week's prompt... the red box...
Topical pieces will be a-plenty I'm sure with the budget tomorrow, however, finances not really my thing so I have gone back to my character , Kit (previous pieces about her can be found http://mrshalford.blogspot.co.uk/2011/11/100-words-for-grown-ups-week-21.html and http://mrshalford.blogspot.com/2011/09/100-words-for-grown-ups-week-10.html

Would welcome any comments , critiques welcomed .

Find the rest at: http://www.linkytools.com/wordpress_list.aspx?id=136717&type=basic

An unexpected turn of events

The last mourners had gone. Alone at last, Kit  kicked off her shoes and sank into the comfort of her Grandmother's armchair. Her racing mind was filled with an array of unanswered questions.

 The doorbell’s chime interrupted her thoughts, but she was surprised to find no visitor, just a battered red box on the doorstep.

She carried it inside and placed it on the table. Opening the lid she pushed aside the layers of tissue to reveal a smaller box and a letter with her name written in a hand she instantly recognised.

With trembling hands she began to read,

 "My dearest Kit...

In the picture- Anthony Browne

This week will be my first hosting of a twitter chat. Set up by a group of teachers and educators, #inthepicture aims to celebrate using picture books in the classroom in a variety of ways across the curriculum and age ranges.
Chats take place on Wednesdays from 8 til 9 pm and have covered a range of books so far including "Where the Wild Things are." and "One is a snail."
I have chosen the author and illustrator Anthony Browne  as my focus. http://www.childrenslaureate.org.uk/previous-laureates/anthony-browne/
 I have used a selection of his marvellous books with Y4 and 5 children to stimulate writing in class, as well as to read for pleasure.
http://www.walker.co.uk/contributors/Anthony-Browne-1481.aspx
This site showcases some of his illustrations
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/gallery/2009/jun/08/childrens-laureate-gallery-anthony-browne

One of his more recent projects, the Shape game http://www.childrenslaureate.org.uk/previous-laureates/anthony-browne/shape-game/ looks fascinating and will be one to flag up tomorrow as I haven't used it (yet)

During the discussion I hope to flag up how I have used many of Pie Corbett's talk for writing techniques in my teaching.
http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/news_blogs/email_updates/interviews/pie_corbett and  http://www.cfbt.com/lincs/PDF/Talk%20for%20Writing%20Handout.pdf
One of the English units I teach is stories by the same author, and I would always get frustrated by having to choose sections of books and not having time to share the whole story with the children,  This is one of the strengths of choosing picture books; they are easy to finish with a class thus having the satisfaction of seeing a book through, and provide children with stories that they can use as a basis for their own retelling or continuations regardless of their reading ability.
This is in no way meant to infer that picture books are for the less able reader; Anthony Browne's books have so many meanings and sub plots that they are perfect for developing questioning skills, for inference and deduction,. What is not written is almost more powerful than what is (and in some cases most certainly is e.g. Zoo, Voices in the Park, The Tunnel, Into the Forest... the list goes on)

Here is a list of Anthony Browne books- apologies if I have missed any off the list. I have highlighted ones I have used; just a mere fraction of his work. If there are any omissions please let me know and I will amend.

• Anthony Browne's King Kong: From the Story Conceived by Edgar Wallace & Merian C. Cooper 
• Bear Hunt 
• Changes 
• Gorilla 
• Hansel and Gretel
• I Like Books
• Into the Forest 
• Little Beauty 
• Look What I've Got! 
• Me and You
• My Brother 
• My Dad 
• My Mum 
• Piggybook 
• Silly Billy
• The Animal Fair 
• The Shape Game 
• The Tunnel 
• Things I Like 
• Through the Magic Mirror 
• Voices in the Park 
• Willy and Hugh 
• Willy the Champ 
• Willy the Dreamer 
• Willy the Wizard 
• Zoo 

I'm trying hard to advocate the idea amongst parents that picture books are valuable for older primary pupils. As part of our reading journal work, we encourage the children to read as wide a range of books as possible. Some parents have expressed their views about picture books being inappropriate for "able readers", but a book such as Zoo (Anthony Browne) has such a meaningful subplot (unwritten) which allows it to be interpreted differently by different ages/abilities.
 I have seen some stunning examples of work influenced by picture books and know they are an invaluabe addition to a primary classroom. Very much looking forward to #inthepicture and sharing ideas.