I love the phrase ‘classroom family’! I use it in my teaching vocabulary daily. How can we be a strong classroom family? Is this how our classroom family takes care of our materials? If we are a classroom family, does that mean we exclude anyone? If the noise is this loud, how are we taking care of each other, like a classroom family. The kids we teach are with us for 6 hours daily. That is a lot of time to teach curriculum but it is also a lot of time to teach manners, expectations, character, and values. How? This happens through your daily interactions, teacher modelling and creating a strong classroom culture by stating that this is your classroom family. As you discover each students strengths and what makes them unique and celebrate that uniqueness, your students begin to understand the importance and value of each group member.
A project that can get your classroom closer is an All About Me project that focuses on getting to know each other better. Your students get an opportunity to open up and share many of their favorite things. Sharing information about their family or what they want to be when they grow up. Sharing their favorite toy or song as you take the time to dance together as a class while listening to it. Later their poster is put on a bulletin board outside the classroom and now the school community has an opportunity to celebrate and get to know that child. Sharing the poster, helps the child gain confidence, build on communication and leadership skills, critical thinking and gain personal satisfaction on a job well done. How does it benefit the audience? First off, they get to know their peer better. The audience also develops stronger listening skills, develops respect and learns to think of insightful questions or a compliment that they would like to share with their peer. The project encourage students to work together to develop vital communication and collaboration skills.
After each child presents their poster, 3 questions can be asked and 3 compliments can be given. It is important for your students to learn the difference between a statement/compliment and a question. It takes some practice but the kids catch on fast. In my class, we end the presentation by offering a cheer to the student and then a round of applause. This is our class cheer. The teacher says, “three cheers for _______”. And everyone says together “hip, hip, hooray” three times!
“Three cheers for Zayne!” “Hip, hip hooray!. Hip hip hooray! Hip hip hooray!”
Our All About Me package includes posters designed for your bulletin board to celebrate the creations your students have made and shared with their peers. Once their posters are displayed, the school community will have the opportunity to get to know your students better and celebrate their achievements even more. The provided posters can be utilized to decorate a bulletin board or classroom wall. Additionally, you will find two sample letters that can be sent home to parents, offering a detailed explanation of the “All About Me” project. Examples are also included to provide inspiration for students on how to design their own “All About Me” posters. Posters and examples feature both American and Canadian spellings. This project encourages each child to develop into a caring, open-minded, and effective communicator—key traits that nurture our children into becoming responsible global citizens.
My students always look forward to this activity. The school community looks forward to this activity. It is amazing to celebrate each child in your classroom.
