When+I'm+finished...

= When I'm finished with my work I can... =

(Hu, 2009) (Reeves, 2000) (Vanneman, A., Hamilton, L., Anderson, J. B., & Rahman, T, 2009) (Nieto & Bode, 2011) The research that we have read and the discussions we have had in class point to the fact that it is important for students to have choices in their learning. My goal is to provide choice as much as possible in our learning environment. One important choice that students in all classrooms have to make is how to manage their time when they finish an assignment early. The go-to answer for the question, "What can I do when I'm finished?" seems to be "go read a book." While I know how important reading is, I want the students to remain engaged even when they have finished an activity. By giving them some choice in what they can do when they finish as well as how they do it (in groups or by themselves, at their desks or somewhere else in the room, etc) they can learn in their down time when they finish an activity early. (Journal Jar is something that I started doing during student teaching that was a hit with the students. I have a large jar that is full of different journal prompts. Some are silly and some are more serious. I really like the journal jar for several reasons: 1) It gives students something productive to do when they are finished with their assignments that really helps them improve their writing 2) It is a great way for me to get to know the students in my class 3) The students love Journal Jar because they love the surprise of not knowing what they are going to pull out and they feel like they are getting something that is just for them (because when you pull a prompt out of the jar, you are the only one writing about it). They get so excited when I tell them that I have put new things in the journal jar. 4) It mixes up share time. I like that it mixes up share time for three reasons. First, the students aren't sitting and listening to the answers to the same journal prompt over and over again. Second, it gets the students even more excited about Journal Jar because when other students share they start thinking about what they would write if they pulled that prompt out of the jar. Lastly, it gets students who wouldn't usually share to participate in sharing. I don't know how or why that is but I have noticed that when I let students share the Journal Jars that they have written, even the shy students who don't usually talk in front of the class can share. Not every student is going to finish their work at the same rate. While I want students to understand the value of pacing and time management, I don't want students not having enough time to work to be the reason that they don't succeed in my class. The "Just Right" bag is a tool that I really like for reading. Students are able to check out several books from the classroom library. Most of the books need to be on their independent reading level but they also need to choose one or two "challenge books" that are slightly above their current reading level but not so far above that they can't read them. I like Buddy Reading because it gets students talking about the books they are reading. Of course, some students will want to Buddy Read most of the time and some students will want to read alone most of the time so I leave that choice up to the students. See the warm fuzzies page in the navagation bar. Boggle is another "I'm finished" tool that I really like. In the past, for ESL students, I have let them use words from their native language. If the student knows what the word is in English, I have them write that down next to the word, if they do not know the word in English, I ask them to draw a picture of it or describe it. For younger students and special needs students, I lift the restriction that the letters have to be connected in some way when they first start playing. As they understand the game better and get used to it, they start playing by the official rules. I like giving the students the option to do research on their own about a topic that they are interested in, especially when it is something that we have been learning about in class. When students find information on their own, they can share that information with the class. Before students can start using the computers for research we go over the guidelines for responsible computer usage, how to stay safe on the internet and how to determine if a source is reliable or not. When students find information they have to cite their sources so this is a good way for them to practice that while doing something that interests them personally. It is important to note here that there must be a final product to come of the "research" they are doing so that they are held accountable for their time spent. I like Earth Calendar because it gives students a chance to learn something about a culture other than their own. Admittedly, this activity is a part of surface culture but I think that, while students do need more immersion and exposure to deep culture, they also need to be exposed to a little bit of surface culture too.
 * ===Do Journal Jar===
 * Choose a prompt from the jar.
 * Copy the prompt in your Journal and return the prompt to the jar.
 * Try to write at least a page about the prompt you chose. Add details, and be specific in your writing.
 * Be creative and make it your own. You don't have to write a traditional journal entry about your prompt. You could write a story about it, or write a funny poem or song. The possibilities are endless.
 * You may journal with a partner provided you keep your voices at a level one (a true whisper), unless I have told you otherwise.
 * ===School work===
 * If you have work from earlier in the day that you did not get to finish, you should use this time to do so.
 * If you are caught up on your work for this class, you may use this time to correct a previous assignment. Remember, if you are correcting a math assignment, you need to show your work and explain what you did differently this time to solve the problem.
 * ===Read a Book===
 * Read a book from your "Just Right" bag. You may read independently or with a buddy (unless I have told you otherwise). If you choose to read with a buddy you must stay on voice level one (a true whisper).
 * ===Give a warm fuzzy===
 * A "warm fuzzy feeling" is that happy feeling you get when you do something nice for someone else, someone does something nice for you, or you see other people doing nice things for each other. There is no better feeling than a warm fuzzy feeling, so give one to a classmate.
 * Grab a piece of scrap paper from the Warm Fuzzies basket and give one of your classmates a compliment or a word of encouragement. Your warm fuzzy doesn't have to be an entire letter, it might just be a sentence or two.
 * Remember that I read warm fuzzies from time to time to make sure they are being used appropriately so make sure you are using kind words and you aren't sending anything that you wouldn't want your teacher to see.
 * Warm fuzzies aren't just for your friends. Try to think of someone that you have never given a warm fuzzy to, or someone that seems like they are having a rough day and send that person a warm fuzzy. You never know when you are going to be the one having a rough that that could use a pick-me-up in the form of a warm fuzzy.
 * ===Work on Boggle===
 * Take out your Boggle paper and see if you can find more words.
 * If you find something and you aren't sure if it is a word or not, use the dictionary to help you.
 * Remember, the letters have to be touching each other somehow.
 * ===Take another look at something we have been learning about===
 * Do some research about something we have been studying in class. Find information from another perspective. Try to think of all who were involved and take a look at a familiar event from another point of view. For example, during the American Revolution, some people considered themselves Patriots while others considered themselves Loyalists. What was the Revolution like from the point of view of the Loyalists? Slaves? The wealthy? The poor?
 * ==**Work on Earth Calendar**==
 * Click on the link above.
 * Input today's day, month and year and click on the "Show Holidays" button. (As an alternative you can choose a date that is significant to you in some way such as your birthday or the birthday of a family member or loved one.)
 * Choose a holiday from the calendar that you are not already familiar with.
 * Research that holiday and create an 8"X11" presentation about that holiday. Your presentation may take any form and may include whatever pictures and other material may be appropriate but the following information must be present:
 * Date of the holiday
 * Country of Origin
 * Who celebrates this holiday? How do they celebrate it?
 * What is the significance of this holiday? Why is it celebrated?
 * Get your information from more than one reliable source.
 * Example: