Joy Hakim's Book

I am very impressed by Joy Hakim's book, A History of US: From Colonies to Country.  I immediately became interested in each chapter through her unique writing style.  Her usage of commentary in parenthesis, pictures, orientation of text boxes, and interesting facts kept me engaged from the very beginning.  She has a way of making the revolutionary figures feel vibrant and alive with her descriptions.  Hakim created a descriptive story that made me, the reader, create a mental picture of the events.    I appreciate this because  I work with my kindergarten students on using our "marvelous mental images" when we read (and write for an audience). 

A few facts that I learned about our country during this time period included:

During the Convention (the ratification of the Constitution) they sat with the windows closed so that no one would hear what they were doing.  Some of the delegates almost fainted from the heat.  ( I'm impressed by how dedicated these men were for our FREEDOM!)

In the mid 1700's farmers had an abundance of apples.  The local women would meet to core and slice the apples.  Once they were sliced, they were laid out on wooden slats and covered with bees, wasps, and sucking flies.  (Yumm!!)

In 1770 Quakers prohibited slave ownership. 

One of the "Firebrands" we may remember is Thomas Paine.  Thomas spoke his mind and encouraged others to do the same.  

Left Brain/Right Brain Learning

Over the years the terms "Brain Based Learning" and "Left Brain and Right Brain Learning" have been buzz words at inservices and college/graduate level courses.    Although this is not a new topic to me, I am constantly learning new ways to use brain based learning strategies in my classroom.  

While reading the assigned articles I immediately became interested in the articles that focused on helping students use both their left and right brain to their fullest potential.  The articles The Left Brain Dominant Child and Learning and Right Brain Dominant Learners gave great examples to help left brained (logical/sequential learners) and right brained (creative learners) become more comfortable with assignments that may be out of their preferred learning style.  The article suggested helping your left brained students feel comfortable with creative assignments through modeling and talking through these types of projects.  It also suggested giving your right brained students opportunities to work alone to tap into their left brain.

It only takes me a few weeks with my kindergarteners to see the different styles of learning in my classroom.  I feel that by teaching with different brain based teaching strategies (movement activities, songs and rhymes, and various graphic organizers) that I have a more engaged and interactive classroom. This is a win-win situation for all!