Author: Kimberly

Posted on by

Twelve Days of Read Alouds

 

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” ~Dr. Seuss

Where do ideas come from? Ideas come from our fund of knowledge. When we have a rich fund, curiosity is tickled. And nothing sparks idea making—writing—like curiosity. Wondering about knowledge, especially new knowledge, and being awed by something freshly learned, well this wonder is inspiring. Wonder enters the scene via the books we read.

This month all of us Blackbirds will be reading aloud a snippet from favorite books. Here is a sneak peak of our selections.

Pages teacher, Miss Julia will read an excerpt from Leo Lionni’s Frederick to start off our Twelve Days of Read Alouds.

 

Where did he come from? Nobody knows. Kim Bredberg, founding partner and owner, will read the beginning of this tale crafted over the course of five nights for the author’s children.

Nothing’s surprising in the North household, not even Sterling’s new pet raccoon. Sara, founder and owner, will read aloud from her childhood favorite.

Who will inherit the Westing fortune? Our exceptional arts and music teacher, Taylor, will read from The Westing Game, a Blackbird & Company favorite from his middle school years!

What will Liesel Meminger encounter as she pages through her stolen books? Miss Lori, resident historian and teacher extraordinaire will read.

Stay tuned to our Instagram and Facebook page to hear all Twelve Days of Read Alouds.

Posted on by

Kandinsky for Fall

When Vasya opened his paint box and began mixing colors, he heard sounds—yes, sounds! As he grew older, he discovered that he was synesthetic—able to hear colors singing and see sounds dancing.  You can learn all about this and more in The Noisy Paintbox by Barb Rosenstock.

Kandinsky is famous for his brightly painted squares and concentric circles and this is just the fodder for a fall greeting card.

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • 1/4″ and 1″ and 2″ hole punch
  • Craft paper (assorted fall colors, blue + natural cardstock for tree trunk)
  • Scissors
  • Glue stick
  • Plain greeting card & envelope

How To:

  • Punch circles in various colors and sizes
  • Draw a leafless tree on the cardstock, cut out
  • Make a blue square to represent sky
  • Use the glue stick to create the collage

Check out our Pinterest, Instagram or our Facebook to watch a little video of our crafting. And, check out Operation Lexicon, Traits of Characters to learn more about Kandinsky, other amazing people, and to explore the wondrous ways a single word can describe a singular person.

Enjoy!

 

~Kimberly

Posted on by

Taming an Idea

One of the weekly activities in our CORE Integrated Literature and Writing is to write a linear recounting the plot of a given section. This activity might seem simple, but it is a simple activity that simultaneously teaches students writing technique and higher order thinking skills.

This student, during Section 1, of My Name is Maria Isabel, captured the essence of the week’s reading perfectly, albeit chaotically. Leaving the ideas in this state would reinforce chaotic communicating. So taking the opportunity to point out errors and asking the student to make a second draft on a separate sheet of paper, would enable the student to learn to polish an idea and participate in the process of writing.

This small activity will teach many obvious writing techniques in one fell swoop:

  • Correcting spelling errors

  • Using an eraser to keep work tidy

  • Keeping capitalization standardized

  • Using end marks properly

  • Ordering ideas in a linear manner

This particular activity offered a really great opportunity to help the student hear how the third idea—a really significant aspect of the plot—was not making sense:

“They went to the prinsubl and weht to class where names weher names assigned.”

Correcting the misspellings would help:

“The went to the principal and went to class where names were names assigned.”

But the student would need to slow into the act of re-reading to actually catch the fact that “names” was in the sentence twice, making the idea awkward to unpack.

Once the student understood that these ideas really mattered, engaging in the work of refinement was not a chore. Th end result is both meaningful and beautiful. This is the art of becoming a confident and competent writer.

 

~Kimberly

Posted on by

Writing an IDEA is Courageous

I imagine this fifth grade student is full of all sorts of interesting ideas.  As I began to read the rough draft, my first thoughts were not the spelling errors or mechanical issues. What caught my attention was this young writer’s ability to describe the scene and create a mood. The function of his passage was working, his form needed the support of the 5-minute conference to elevate his idea—Form follows Function.

What’s wonderful about the weekly writing exercise is that it provides an opportunity for the student to write an idea tied to the weekly reading. This young writer’s lovely memoir paragraph is inspired by Grayson, Lynne Cox’s retelling of a fantastic ocean experience. What’s even more wonderful about the weekly writing exercise is that it provides an opportunity for the student to engage in all the stages of writing—brainstorm an idea, draft the idea, re-read and conference the idea with a teacher, polish the idea. During the 5-Minute Conference, the mid-point in the writing process, students will be engaging in the authentic process of REAL writing.

This weekly activity—re-reading and conferencing with a teacher—will teach many obvious writing techniques in one fell swoop:

  • Correcting spelling errors

  • Spacing well between words and end marks

  • Keeping capitalization standardized

  • Using end marks properly

  • Ordering ideas in a linear manner

This particular 5-minute Conference  offered an opportunity to demonstrate that sometimes the HOOK—that first sentence that draws the reader into the writing, is often found mid paragraph and that the very sentence written sometimes falls best at the end. Demonstrating that rough drafts are like putty, with tremendous potential to be reshaped to elevate the idea.

Sometimes the 5-Minute-Conference is accomplished side-by-side with the student, but other times the teacher might read and make edit marks before sitting with the student to communicate suggestions.

After the 5-Minute Conference, the student makes all the corrections and changes. It is important to note that in the process of making changes and creating a polished draft (the last stage in the writing process), the student is learning to spell, learning to form letters more beautifully, learning to hear the rhythm of words and phrases. As the student engages in the stages of the writing process, the student is becoming a REAL writer.

This student was not bogged down by the many spelling errors, was open to the idea of rearrangement, and the outcome is tremendous. I think Lynne Cox would smile reading this poetic descriptive memoir paragraph inspired by her story.

I remember it the most. I remember the dark cold water crashing on the rocks. One of my favorite memories is me on a sailboat with my dad. He put me on the water with goggles. I looked down in the water and saw a pod of humpback whales beneath me. I want to go back to that water to see the lighthouse. To see the fog far out at sea. I want to swim to the same spot I saw the whales. I want to dive down in the ice water. I want to swim all around the island and to be surrounded by the endless depths of the sea. If I could swim for three hours straight, I would swim off the coast of Kodiak Island.

 

~Kimberly

Posted on by

Writer’s Voice and the Essay

What is. There are. I am. These are passive phrases.

But what about: sister is and heart is? Well, these are passive phrases too!

When writers are constrained two ways—no passive verbs allowed and write an idea through the sense of sight—it’s rare that a passive verb doesn’t appear in the rough draft. Often times they peek in via contractions—what’s, it’s, she’s, the’ve and so on.

When this student opened the “sound” paragraph with,  “We stand in the line eagerly awaiting what’s to come,” my red pen formed a triangle around the culprit. “What’s” is “what is,” after all! There is a list in the student journal to help guide the omission of passive verbs.  Contractions are not listed, but rather, learned quickly!

So, back to that opening sentence. How do we help our students accomplish the task at hand? This was an opportunity to use an important writer’s trick—combine sentences. Voilà!

We stand in line eagerly awaiting as the chatter of the crowd and the thud of footsteps climb in volume.

After reading this refined, combined sentence your ears perk up! Right?

This paragraph is focused on detailing a scene through the sense of sound, and this is the perfect sentence to open the idea!

Introduction to Composition: The Essay, Volume 1 offers an opportunity for students to learn all about essay form and practice constrained writing. Each of the five lessons will explore specific traits of the essay—the thesis statement, topic and subtopics, the magic of three, body paragraphs, and how to open / close effectively. While students will not compose essays in Volume 1, they will engage in weekly writing activities to develop a strong voice. Writing an expanded paragraph through one particular sense without using a passive verb is not an easy task! But students will rise to the occasion and find their footing. At the end of the five lessons, students will be equipped with the tools they need to move into Volume 2 and Volume 3.

 

~Kimberly

Posted on by

Let’s Write a Leaf Haiku

Matsuo Bashō wandered by foot through medieval Japan and kept a diary of his journeys—prose woven with haiku.

There is sublime simplicity in this poet’s observations:

Autumn moonlight—
a worm digs silently
into the chestnut.

Haiku are the little powerhouses of the poetry world! They are a fun challenge involving the best of word play mixed with a little finger counting to get the syllables just right!

Here’s a little lesson to help you get started:

1. Haiku poems consist of a three-line stanza that has a total of 16-18 *syllables written in the following pattern:

Line 1: 5ish syllables
Line 2: 7ish syllables
Line 3: 5ish syllables

*Slight variations in syllabication is appropriate as this helps the poet maintain the “one thought in three lines” rule.

2. Haiku poems like photographs, capture moments in time. The “haiku moment” snaps a scene for the reader to experience.

3. Haiku poems were originally written as introductions to much longer works of poetry and should be written as one thought in three lines.

Ready to write?

A great way to begin haiku is with a short descriptive sentence:

Beautiful old maple tree, your autumn leaves are floating to rest at the foot of your trunk.

Count the syllables—this one has 22 total—about 5 too many!  Next, break your sentence to a lovely little haiku.

Beautiful old maple tree, your autumn leaves are floating to rest at the foot of your trunk. Now the sentence is 19 syllables, ready to break into the three-line haiku:

Beautiful old maple

your autumn leaves are floating

to the foot of your trunk.

 

Here’s another: In autumn leaves of the Silver Maple turn ruddy and breezily fall.

Count the syllables—this one is  17 syllables. Perfect! Break it to haiku:

In autumn, leaves of

Silver Maple turn ruddy

and breezily fall.

 

Go for a walk. What is your neck of the woods like during fall?  Collect some fallen leaves in a basket. Make simple observations. Begin with a sentences and move to haiku of autumn. Write away!

 

~Kimberly

Posted on by

Sharpen Some Pencils

Writing is an art form.

Writing is an art form achieved via a series of steps:

1) It all begins with an IDEA. Without an idea, the writer will simply stare at the blank page.
2) Once there is an idea in the mind of the writer, the PENCIL steps in to translate thoughts to words on the page.
3) When the pencil’s work is complete, the job of the writer is to become a READER. Encourage your students to RE-READ everything they write.
4) Empower students to use the RED PEN as they re-read to REVISE. Teach them to use strong words, to fearlessly re-arrange, to make corrections, and to not be afraid to strike through.
5) Polish the draft, preferably in cursive by hand.

So how does this happen?

THINK Tortoise (not the hare).

Learning to write is a long journey. We know this to be true. And, on this journey, there is NO better technology than the PENCIL.

When it comes to literacy, much of the exceptional work that your students will accomplish is subjective in nature tied to their ideas.  As students read great stories, they make observations. These observations will inspire ideas. Cataloging ideas in writing—pencil on paper—over time builds confidence, develops voice, and promotes perseverance.

The PENCIL enables student writers to engage the brain in multisensory ways. When we write we 1) HEAR the idea stirring in our mind; 2) We SEE the letters and words we are forming; and 3) We engage HAND-EYE coordination.

Here are some ideas to inspire PENCIL work:

Mastering the art of handwriting fosters the ability to concentrate, to contemplate, and to communicate confidently. Download our FREE handwriting worksheets here and here. Cursive is not only a beautiful art form, it is a skill that promotes concentration.

Encourage your students to sharpen some pencils!

More than 15 years ago, my mother-in-law enlisted Liam with the task of sharpening fifteen dozen pencils that she would be taking to an orphanage in Uganda. I appreciate how she organized these perfect child-sized humanitarian activities for my children.

Liam got to work immediately. At one minute per pencil, 180 pencils, the task would take about three hours without a break! The task actually took Liam most of the morning. At one point he came in and asked me if he could use the manual pencil sharpener.

“The electric one might be faster.”

“But it’s clogged.”

“Okay Liam, sure.”

“Thanks Mom.”

***

A couple of hours later Liam came bounding into the kitchen with a pencil stained grin holding the sharpened pencils tucked tidily back into their original packaging.

“Wow Liam, all these sharpened pencils!”

“I hope the children in Uganda are happy when they write!”

I choked back the lump in my throat, “I hope so too Liam. Well done son.”

Later that evening I went into the studio to tidy up, and there it was, a brand new installation—our manual pencil sharpener had somehow been removed from its perch in the pantry and re-attached with screws to our antique Craftsman desk! After a moment of letting the shock settle, I let a little smile crackle. My son set up shop, got the job done, and I must admit, to this day I am super proud.

BIG ideas written beautifully by hand with a PENCIL on paper are a gift!

 

~Kimberly

Posted on by

Bouquet of Red Pens

The first day of fall is just around the corner! It’s Back-to-School season. Likely your students are close to completing their first CORE journal of the year. Now’s the time to offer a lovely bouquet of red pens.

“What’s your big idea?”

The purpose of writing is to communicate an idea. In order to accomplish this goal, students need to develop the skills and confidence that will prepare them to communicate that idea well.

Teach your students early on to read what they write.

Take this a step further. Hand them a red pen!

Before conferencing with your students, encourage them to read their first draft and to indicate mistakes they catch with red marks. Encourage them to look for misspelling, capitalization, and grammatical errors. They might not catch everything, but you’ll certainly be surprised what they will catch. Once they are confident, challenge them to consider word choice, to rearrange phrasing, to strike through redundancy, and to avoid what we writers call waffle!

All writing comes into being through a process:
1. First comes the IDEA. Without an idea, the writer will simply stare at the blank page.
2. Once there is an idea in the mind of the writer, the pencil steps in to translate the idea to words on the page.
3. When the pencil’s work is complete, the job of the writer is to become a reader. Encourage your students to READ everything they write—absolutely everything! It is often best to leave space between the “draft” and the “read” stage.
4. Next, make sure students use the RED pen as they read through the first draft of their idea. Teach them to look for spelling errors, for capitalization errors, and for grammatical errors. Beyond this teach them to use strong words, to fearlessly re-arrange, and to not be afraid to strike through unnecessary words.
5. Lastly, teach them to polish the draft, preferably in cursive.

There is NO substitute for consistently encouraging your children to write their ideas. No matter the level, kindergarten through high school, make sure your students are equipped with a pencil and a red pen. We urge you to courageously coach your students in the process of writing! Teaching your students to engage in the process of constructing ideas—to read what they write and use their very own red pen—will certainly teach them more about writing than hours and hours of deconstructive writing tasks.

Come June, your students will have not only brought shape to significant original ideas, but also learned to enter into the work that makes those ideas shine. More importantly, they will have gained confidence in their ability to communicate. Writing an idea is genius.

 

~Kimberly

Posted on by

Back-to-School with Calendar of Days

Calendar of Days is designed to be the first thing you do to start each day. It’s the special “opening” activity designed to support observation skills, to apply math skills, and much more. For example when counting days, you have the tremendous opportunity to count by 2s, to count by 5s, to even explore place value as the number of days in school grow to groups of ten and beyond. This activity will become a morning tradition as your students count up and count down to summer! And all this is lovely learning is accomplished during gentle start of day conversation.

Each Calendar of Days bundle includes a teacher whiteboard, a student journal,  dry erase markers + eraser, and two thematic books tied to the calendar.

Each day the teacher whiteboard is filled  fill out, leaving room for student interaction, “What’s the weather like today?” Students move on to complete the journal each day, copying the whiteboard when necessary. On day 5 each week, students will create a small journal entry about a favorite day.
Each year, the Calendar of Days bundle includes two read aloud stories connected to days and weeks and months and seasons. During kindergarten, the books introduce the days of the weak and the weather. During first grade, we include two books to help you and your students explore gardening as connected to seasons. In the second grade, two wonderful books about more advanced weather and clouds are sure to inspire! The books are included as a springboard for you the teacher. Make them familiar. Read them often. Extend the new knowledge with creative activities.

Kindergarten

First Grade

Second Grade

Posted on by

Writing New Words

“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—’tis the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” ~Mark Twain

All great writing begins with singular words. Vocabulary development begins in infancy. Babies move from babbling to utilizing whole words during the first year of life. Before entering Kindergarten, they are understanding and using a lexicon of around 5,000 words! As students begin to read, this vocabulary will increase exponentially.

Unfortunately, vocabulary development exercises often become disconnected from purpose. Words are singular, possessing significant specificity.

“I know nothing in the world that has as much power as a word. Sometimes I write one, and I look at it until it begins to shine.” ~Emily Dickinson

Challenging our students to actually use new words in their written ideas will guarantee that these new words are etched into memory. Actively igniting words—reading, speaking, and writing—is the art of communicating.

Over the course of the school year, Operation Lexicon will grow your student’s lexicon. Each week your student is presented with four words ABCeDarian style—four A words, four B words, four C words and so on—from the lexicon of a significant author.  Students will not only explore the words being used in the context of exceptional writing, but will employ the words in new ways. Setting your student on an adventure with words, not just any words, but the words great writers use, will help them understand just what words are worth.

Of course students will be using new words to construct sentences. But, perhaps more importantly, students will construct narrative passages using the new words presented each week. One Crafting a narrative passage can be fiction or non-fiction, or, it can be something in between. Narration is a significant genre of writing where the goal is to tell a story. Story details can unfold in a linear or non-linear manner. Practicing this art form is a significant goal for students throughout all of education. Operation Lexicon provides an ongoing opportunity to practice this work simultaneous to acquiring a rich vocabulary.

Four Words from the Work of E.B. White

inquires, irksome, idyllic, injury

Set the Stage

Offering students a setting to spring from is a great way to begin. Here students were presented with information about pistachio groves and a little bit of pistachio lore. The lesson didn’t take long, just long enough to spark an idea.

Pistachio trees were introduced to the United States in 1854. Did you know most pistachios produced in the US are grown in California? Pistachios need a mild winter chill and healthy warm breezes to thrive. But coastal regions are not ideal. The pistachio is a small tree that begins to produce fruit during the fifth year after planting and only reaches full maturity after fifteen years. April frosts will kill flowers and cool summers won’t promote good kernel development. Favored by the Queen of Sheba, known as the smiling fruit, from the hanging gardens of Babylon, to the Venetian court, these bright green nuts have a rich history.

 

Get Writing

The following 175-word narrative micro-story was inspired by the essence of the above details. Students were encouraged to create a scenario with two characters, real or imagined, connected to a pistachio tree. The lesson concluded like this: “Now, use this information and the four words of E.B. White and begin your story in a world once upon a time, one fine day in fall…

One breezy day in fall, Monarch and Bluebird have an argument in the shelter of a pistachio tree.

Bluebird hungrily inquires, “Hey colorful Monarch! Are you delicious?”

Frightened and fibbing, Monarch replies, “No Bluebird! I’m bitter! My orange and black will mix together and make a most irksome ache in your stomach!” Feeling an ominous chill, Monarch coyly suggests, “Surely this idyllic tree is big enough for us both. Why don’t you take the shady side and I’ll live on the sunny side?”

Bluebird, pausing to decide if the butterfly is telling the truth, finally says, “But your colors are enchanting. I can’t let you go!”

“I’m warning you,” says Monarch. “You will regret eating me!” He flutters farther down the branch, distancing himself from the bird among the toasted foliage.

Bluebird hops closer for a second look. “Perhaps, on closer inspection, those stripes do look dangerous.”

So Monarch flutters, hidden on the sunny side of the tree among the leaves and smiling seeds, safe from injury, while Bluebird sings sweetly on the shady side.

 

~Kimberly