Day 16 - You are super!

Today in assemblies, we reminded the students of the challenge we set forth on day one.  Answer this question:  What's your superpower?  One thing that we wanted to teach them is that super is already inside of them, and that their job is to uncover it and let it be revealed in who they are everyday.  Here is a video we watched to help the students understand it from someone who is considered pretty super, by society's standards:

We left them with this thought: be you and be your best self! 

Day 15 - Learning Buddies

Today in our assemblies, we are celebrating the work done by our first grade and fourth grade learning buddies.  These two classes paired up to read and write together throughout the program, discussing everyday superpowers and superheroes.  In teams, they created their own superheroes and shared them with the school today.  Here are the examples of what they shared:

Day 14 - Problem Solvers

I know I wrote about math yesterday, but there is another aspect of our math instruction that is so crucial, I felt it needed its own post.  As teachers, our goal is to teach our students to become confident problem solvers by applying the strategies and skills they are learning in class to new situations and challenges.  One of my favorite strategies is drawing bar models, as seen in this example:

Drawing a bar model is a great way for kids to process a math problem and see it on the paper in a picture to help them understand how to solve it.  
This video clip explains how it works for addition and subtraction problems, but we use this strategy all the way through fifth grade even when we are doing algebra. 
Enjoy!
Bar Modeling for Parents

Day 13 - Do the Math

One major area of focus during summer academy is mathematics instruction and practice.  As a parent myself, I understand how sometimes it can be difficult to figure out what your child is doing in math class based on what he/she reports to you each day.  During the summer, our goal is to look at the needs of each of our learners from their last school year, coupled with what practice we know they will benefit from to prepare for the upcoming school year, and provide them with instruction to meet their needs.  Although we don't assign math homework during the summer, there are little everyday things you can do you help your child with his/her mathematical thinking outside of having them complete the summer math packet.  Here are a few videos targeted on different aspects and levels of math that can give some insight into ways we are teaching math and how you can support your child.

This first video is for our younger mathematicians and building their number sense.  I know it says learning to count, but it goes beyond that into how we teach children to conceptualize numbers beyond counting.
Learning to Count and How You Can Help

The second one I chose is about learning and practicing multiplication facts.  I love how it puts this skill in the context of real-world situations when we are multiplying and dividing, which is helpful when you are just talking math with your child. 
Learning Multiplication Facts and How You Can Help

Lastly, I wanted to feature something that provides you with examples of mental math, because most of us rely on mental math in our daily lives and we rarely sit down and do pencil and paper math with our children outside of homework.  It's best for them to see how math fits in with everyday, and how it isn't just for sitting down and doing 100 multiplication problems.  This clip is longer, but gives lots of great background to how we think mathematically and how we can guide our children's thinking.
What is mental math and why is it important?

Day 12 - Dress the Part

Sometimes feeling super just isn't enough, sometimes you have to dress the part...and there are plenty of students and teachers at Summer Academy doing just that!  There is even a group that plays "superheroes" at recess.  It's nice to walk the halls with Superman, Captain America, and Wonder Woman. 

Day 11 - Never, never, never give up.

To kick off week three, we talked about those moments in superhero stories when it seems like everything is going wrong and you are just sure that the villain is going to prevail.  Somehow, despite all of the obstacles, the hero doesn't give up and, in the end, finds success.  Life is like that a lot of times.  We encounter challenges left and right.  For our students, learning can feel that way, too.  What's important is not that we experience failure, but that that we don't give up in the face of failure.
We watched a clip about "famous failures" to see how this plays out in real life.

 Then we looked at the following graphic and talked about what we do when we meet challenges:

Wonderful ideas like trying again, giving yourself a chance to warm up, and asking for help all came from the students.  Even though we might fail, that doesn't mean we are failures - we don't give up and we know we will succeed. 

Day 10 - Building Webs of Support

We wrapped up week two today!  In our assemblies, we continued on the theme of friendship and supporting one another.  For inspiration we got a pep talk from everyone's favorite kid president:

Then we channeled our inner superheroes to build webs like Spiderman.  These webs, though, required everyone's help to create.  Each class formed a circle and, with just one ball of yarn, created a web of support by passing the yarn to a classmate when they paid him/her a compliment or thanked him/her for something positive.  The finished webs were impressive! 

Have a spectacular weekend and we can't wait to see everyone next week!

Day 9 - Word On the Street

One of the best parts of my job is riding the bus with the students and monitoring them at recess and getting to hear students from all of the different classes talk and play.  Today I happened across some readers sneaking in some pages in transit:

Today I also asked students what their favorite parts of the academy are.  This is what they had to say:

"Reading time is my favorite time because I love books.  Possibly I'm a bookworm." - Taylor

"We are doing part-part-whole in math.  I understand it well." - Londyn

"We are learning ways to focus." - Anthony

"I like when Mrs. Carter is there.  I really love her." - Semaj

"My favorite thing is in math.  We do the SMARTBoard.  Then we get to do it on paper and then we get to play math games for a little while." - Mekayla

Just listening to them speak about their learning, you can hear the confidence in their voices.  What fun it is for me! 

DAY 8 - Summer Super Stars

You probably are already aware of this, but we are surrounded by stars at Summer Academy!  It's hard to keep track of all of the great things they are doing everyday, but we have a system to help us try to recognize our stars.  We ask teachers to recognize students who are following our academy norms (We do our best.  We do the right thing even when no one is watching.) by recording it on gold stars.  For each star a student receives, we write down his/her name on a slip of paper that goes into a bucket.

During assemblies on Mondays and Fridays, we draw two names from the bucket.  The students called get to have a meeting with me to figure out what book they would really like to have and then we go out and get it for them.  Students who are pulled twice will receive a small prize the second time so that we can pull a new name and provide books to as many student stars as possible.  The stars then decorate the walls of the gym where we meet.  You would not believe how many are already there after only 7 full days of academy!  This is just first grade!

 I am sure this year we will hit a new record, thanks to this great group of students! 

Day 7 - Math Superpowers

Today when I was riding the bus mid-day between Summer Academy and SummerQuest with the students, I asked them, "Who is doing amazing things in math that I can come and check out?"  The response was deafening, "Me! Me!  Come see us!  We are awesome in math!"  I happily agreed to visit a couple of classrooms this afternoon to peek in on their math superpowers.
If you have had a student attend Summer Academy in the past, you may have noticed a slight change in math.  This year, we are not having the students do their summer math packets with us at Glenridge.  The reason for this is because the summer math packets were created to give brief review of many concepts taught during the school year.  Our goal at Summer Academy is to provide individualized instruction based on student learning needs, so particular attention is paid to learning and practicing concepts and skills needed to be prepared for the upcoming school year.  Depending on learning needs, students might dwell on one or two particular skills for almost the entire program if that is what they need to succeed.
Of course, that won't be the only math-related activity during the program.  Students have continued doing FASTT-Math on a daily basis on the computers to keep their basic facts fresh.  They are also engaged in problem solving with their classes and small groups to make sure they are applying the skills they have learned.  Students have access to math manipulatives and games, and are making the most of every minute of math with us.
Check it out:

DAY 6 - BUILDING SUMMER FRIENDSHIPS

We hope everyone enjoyed a spectacular weekend!  Today in our assemblies, we talked about how super heroes often work together in teams with friends and how important those friendships are.  We are lucky in the summer to have students from all three elementary schools, so many new friendships can begin and grow.  Working together to support one another is crucial, especially as learners when we face challenges.  Here is the clip we watched this morning that we used to illustrate this idea: 

As we departed to head upstairs to our classrooms, we encouraged all of the students to build friendships and support one another during academy this week and throughout the rest of the summer. 

DAY 5 - SUPER PERSEVERANCE

Week one is in the books and what a spectacular way to kick off the program!  We began today with our assembly and learned about a real person with superpowers: Derrick Coleman.  After hearing his story, students decided his superpower is perseverance.  Check out the clips we watched to learn about him and his superpower:

Lots of volunteers spoke up about superpowers they've discussed in their classrooms as qualities we can all possess even if we face obstacles in our lives.  Even more exciting things have been happening in classrooms.  For example, students are coming together around books for discussion to grow as readers.  Check out this fifth grade book club that formed this week:

 

We also have a great partnership developing between the middle school and elementary school English Language classes.  They have become pen-pals and buddy-learners.  Yesterday, the Wydown class came to visit our Glenridge class.  You can tell they are enjoying this partnership:

 

 Thank you for a wonderful first week!  Have a fabulous weekend and we look forward to week two!

Day 4 - OASIS Volunteers

 Yesterday we shared with you the collaboration we have with Webster University, but that's not the only program we collaborate with during summer academy.  We also have a full crew of OASIS volunteers who come and work with individual students twice a week.  During their time with students, they read, discuss books, and support the work that is happening in the classroom.  They volunteer their time and work extra hard to get to know their students and find ways to get them engaged in learning, and they love celebrating every step of the way.  We are so grateful they are here!  It definitely adds excitement to our Tuesdays and Thursdays! 

Day 3 - Webster University Collaboration

One of the greatest aspects of our academy is all of the adults we have in the program supporting the learning of the students.  A perfect example of this is our partnership with Webster University.  Each summer, certified teachers who are working towards their reading specialist certification, provide one-on-one reading support to our students through their practicum program.  This means that four days a week this summer, we have seven extra reading specialists working at Glenridge during the day with students to grow them as readers.  Our Clayton reading specialists also mentor and support the practicum teachers during the course of the academy.  How fortunate we are to take part in this collaboration!

Day 2 - Book Hero to the Rescue!

Faster than a speeding bullet!  More powerful than a locomotive!  Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound!  Well, maybe not so much with the buildings...
It's Book Hero!  Our very own librarian, Jude Hagene's, alter ego is at Glenridge this summer helping our readers connect with great books.  Book Hero meets with classes and even has personal shopping experiences with individual students to ensure they are matched with books they are excited about reading this summer.  As an added bonus, she even coordinates all of our students' participation in the public library summer reading program and saves the day with all of the prizes they earn for their reading.  She really is a hero! 
Today the library was buzzing with activity as students got to check out for the first time during academy.  If you see your reader sneaking in some time with a good book at home, remind them to log their minutes for the summer reading program. 

Day 1 - Reading Gives You Super Powers!

Today we gathered for the first time as the 2014 Summer Academy.  We discussed qualities that superheroes possess and the code they live by.  We also have a code we follow here: we do our best, and we do the right thing even when no one is watching.  Already we can tell that there are lots of stars in this group of students who are helping classmates, working hard, and being leaders by setting positive examples. 
The challenge was also set for all students to explore the idea of what their superpowers might be.  At the end of our program, we are going to have a celebration and our goal is for everyone to know their superpower by that celebration.   
One important superpower we revealed today is reading, thanks to Dav Pilkey.  Here is what he had to say:

Summer reading is a super power that can yield super results.  Research says that the only summer activity related to improving reading achievement is summer reading. (Heyns 1978)  By reading a few books over the summer, outside of a typical educational setting, summer reading loss can be prevented.  Just reading four to five books during the summer, "was potentially large enough to prevent a decline in summer reading." (Kim 2004)  Participating in the academy will kick off summer reading in a big way. 
Happy reading!

Welcome! What's your superpower?

We are so excited about seeing you next week!  This week, our staff has been hard at work preparing for your arrival.  Just take a look at this heroic bunch!

We can't wait to meet you and learn about your super abilities next week!  If you need anything at all, don't hesitate to email or call us and ask.  We are here to help this summer be full of learning and fun!  We will be updating this blog daily to let you in on all of the great work that is happening at our super school.  Feel free to plug your email address in at the top of this page to receive an email update whenever there is a new post.  
Sincerely, your fearless leaders,