Assessing Writing Progress

One of my favorite parts of teaching Kindergarten is teaching students how to write. There is nothing like the moment a student brings their paper up to you and it says "mi cat is prte" and you read it to them "oh you wrote--my cat is pretty". Their face lights up and they say "that's what I wrote! How did you know?". For the first time they are able to communicate in writing. 

When students begin Kinder they are at a range of different abilities. Some are just making squiggles. Some are able to sound out words. By the end of the year the goal is that they can write a complete sentence. One of the things I personally work on with my students is word choice-using more descriptive language when they write. 

Now my district was taken over by the state 2 years ago. Our curriculum is very scripted-we are strictly monitored to teach the required slides and they actually have no lessons at all on writing besides handwriting. So I have to sneak in those lessons. Sneak in the mentor texts. Sneak in the journal writing. I am so proud of the progress these kiddos have made this year. I take pictures of their journals from the beginning and the end of the year to share with parents as well. 

Making the World More Beautiful

I know it's a kind of old-fashioned classic. But I have always LOVED the book Miss Rumphius (maybe because I hope to someday retire by the sea). :) 

Thinking literally! :)

Put trees everywhere

Control the ocean and put it everywhere

If I Lived in a Van Gogh Painting

We use the reading program Amplify. It has a unit on Art. We read Vincent and the Sunflowers and discussed the art of Vincent Van Gogh. We analyzed his famous Starry Night painting and then I asked the students to paint their own version just using watercolors. I asked them to write from the perspective of someone who lives inside a Van Gogh painting. How does it feel? Would it be good?

Summer Poems

Nikki Giovanni is one of my favorite poets. Her poem Knoxville, Tennessee:

Knoxville, Tennessee

By Nikki Giovanni

I always like summer

best

you can eat fresh corn

from daddy's garden

and okra

and greens

and cabbage

and lots of

barbecue

and buttermilk

and homemade ice-cream

at the church picnic

and listen to

gospel music

outside

at the church

homecoming

and you go to the mountains with

your grandmother

and go barefooted

and be warm

all the time

not only when you go to bed

and sleep

I asked the students to analyze the imagery in the poem. How she uses the 5 senses to describe what summer means to her. I asked the students to visualize what they see, hear, taste, smell and feel in the summer and then put that into words. Here is what they came up with:

Mother's Day Digital Stories

One of my favorite projects of the year is our Mother's Day Celebration. We invite moms in to view digital stories the students have written. I ask them to think about what they love about their moms, why they are grateful for them. All kids think their mom is pretty--go beyond. Think of a simile or metaphor you can use. Not just "I love my mom" but "I love my mom as much as....".

Poems by My Kinder Students

Poetry is something I LOVE to introduce my young learners to. For many, it's the first time they have heard the word. We read Langston Hughes, Robert Frost, Shel Silverstein and others. We discuss the vocabulary and how poets need to be very succinct with their language. We watch videos of poems being read by people like Amanda Gorman and Maya Angelou. How poetry can actually change the world.

Then they write their own poems. They choose the topic. We brainstorm adjectives and descriptions of that topic. Then we use our 5 senses to describe. When they are done I type them up and make them into a class book. Here are the final products from this year's class.