I have to admit I am not a huge fan of Wood's book.  I found myself sitting down to read it many times and unable to stay focused.  His book is not my book of choice.  Not because of his content, but because I need a book that allows the left brain and right brain to work together.  I love how Hakim's book is vibrant and bold.  The neat facts and variety of visual aides allow me to stay focused and enjoy what I am reading.   She is my kind of author!!  (I need to stress the word MY... as we all have different learning styles.)

The article I chose to read was the Good and Bad Words from Joy Hakim's book (pages 178-182).  I have always been intrigued by the Constitution.  I feel like I learned (and remembered) so much from Hakim's writing.  The first piece that stuck out to me was a box that compared the Constitution to the Declaration of Independence. Hakim wrote that they are not the same things. The Declaration of Independence states goals and the Constitution states what can be done of the government.  Simple and well said. 

Hakim goes on to state that she felt the Founders were practical men.  They were thinking about the future and not just the present time ( I agree).  She went on to state how "We the People" were not all treated equally or fairly, but it was probably the best practical way they knew at that time.   Some issues had to be tiptoed around (ex. slavery), even if the Founders did not agree.  The "We the People" has always pushed our country to become equals and gradually encourage change.  She ended this thought with a simple question of what would you do if you were a delegate?

Wood's writing about the Constitution was "just the facts".  His writing did not allow me to feel what the Founders and people during that time period were feeling.  I got the basic information about the Constitution and a few other interesting facts, such as the influences of religious believes of the people during that time.

I'm excited to for our week long adventure!!!  Safe travels!!

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! 

I love reading blogs!

Over the past two years I have become a follower of many kindergarten blogs.  Bloggers like Deanna Jump, Mrs. Jump's Class, inspire me to continue to work hard for my students.  The authors of the various blogs I follow have a passion and love of teaching that is very contagious!  I could spend hours (which I do) getting ideas for my own classroom. 
Along with reading other teachers' blogs, I would love to eventually create a blog for other teacher's to follow.  If you asked me a few years ago what my favorite subject I taught was, I would have said math.  I would have to say know that I love to teach writing because of the collaboration with bloggers.  I have had a blast this year teaching the various genres of writing to my kindergarten students with the help of graphic organizers, fiction, and nonfiction texts.
A few weeks ago I stumbled across a blog post written by a name named Ben Johnson.  He wrote about the importance of collaboration and avoiding something called "teaching isolation".  He stated that teachers "tend to stick to themselves. This could be because of self-consciousness or embarrassment, but the attitude of professional privacy is not conducive to professional development (Johnson)."   He later states that professional development depends on teacher collaboration.  I would agree 100% on that!   I see blogging as another form of much needed teacher collaboration.
So here is to blogging together on this fun journey! I hope we can all learn from each other, be open minded, have fun, and make learning exciting for our kids.

Johnson, B. (2011). Making the Most Out of Teacher Collaboration. Edutopia. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/teacher-collaboration-strategies-ben-johnson