Days 15 & 16

We are extremely excited to celebrate the hard work and growth mindset of the students this week!  Yesterday in our assembly, we discussed the value of teamwork when facing challenges.  We connected all of the "Olympic" rings that the students earned over the course of the program and were able to make a chain that encircles the entire gym!  It's amazing to see how much we can do when we connect with each other!

To add to the excitement, we are having our annual Summer Scholastic Book Fair this week.  The gym has been transformed!

Each class will be visiting our book fair this week so that students can choose just-right books to continue their summer reading after the program ends Friday.  These books are provided to ESA students courtesy of the Captain, Glenridge, and Meramec PTOs.  We will be open to the public Wednesday after school, if families would like to purchase books.  All sales are buy-one-get-one free.
Summer reading is crucial to preventing summer learning loss.  Here is the clip we watched from Dav Pilkey in our assembly yesterday:

We are hopeful that students can find some fun, just-right reading at our book fair and continue daily reading throughout July and August.

Day 15

One of the great ways student can build their mindset is through exploration and creativity.  Our fourth grade teachers gave their class this opportunity by having some "Makerspace" time in their classroom.  What is a Makerspace?  Glad you asked:

This week they used Bloxels, which is a video game creation platform for kids.  The students create scenes on a physical board and then try them out on the iPad Minis. Things don't always work the way they imagine, which is where the problem solving and mindset come into play.  Then in math and reading classes, teachers refer to Makerspace time when students struggle and remind them about how flexibility and persistence were integral to that work just like in our everyday school work.  Here are some fourth graders using Bloxels during their Makerspace time.:

Have fun, be creative, explore, and enjoy a great weekend!

Day 14

We often say to our students, "Reading is thinking."  It's true.  Consider all of the thinking that happens when you read:

• visualizing the setting
• predicting what might happen next
• evaluating character traits
• making connections with the events of a story
• wondering about the meaning of a word

and the list goes on.

Encouraging this thinking as you read with your child is easy to do.  Talk about the story together.  Sometimes we also write about our thinking when we are reading to help us remember important ideas or maybe because we are reading a textbook with valuable information that we will need.  At school, we jot notes to ourselves on sticky-notes and place them in our books.  This helps us when we talk about our reading with our peers and teachers.  Here are some students in action:

Day 13

You may have noticed on your child's ESA newsletter that teachers are recommending math games you can play with your child at home.  We are often inundated by information pointing to the  importance reading with our children, but are unsure of what daily practices will support them as budding mathematicians.  Look no further than games!  

Playing math games can accomplish the following (from Why Play Math Games? by Kitty Rutherford, NCTM 2015):

• encouraging strategic thinking so students develop a wide variety of strategies for problem solving
• increasing computational fluency
• opportunities for practicing skills
• developing comfort with numbers and using number systems
• building relationships with your children with time spent playing together

Lastly, a major benefit of playing math games with your child is celebrating a love of mathematics!  You can read more about how crucial this is in this article: Instill a Love of Math.

For ideas about games to play with your children, check out the ESA newsletter that is mailed to your home, ask your child, or ask their teacher.  Have fun playing together!  I'll leave you with some of our second graders playing Subtraction Bowling:

Day 12

Today we're featuring some students using non-fiction reading skills.  Non-fiction can be a fun genre for summer.  Students can read biographies of inspiring people, learn how to do something they've always wanted to try, or dig deeper into a passion they've developed.

Today, some of our students were reading an Origami book with one of our reading teachers and used what they learned to create their own Origami.  Talk about persistence!

Students in our English Language class were writing stories this morning and using another type of non-fiction: reference books.  This morning's lesson was on synonyms and they used the thesaurus to look up synonyms of words they were using in their writing.  Here they are working on their stories:

What non-fiction are you reading this summer?

Day 11

Today in our assembly, we focused on another aspect of having a growth mindset: gratitude.  First, we learned a little about what gratitude is and why it's good for our brains by watching the following video, "The Amazing Effects of Gratitude."

Then we practiced having gratitude by learning a routine I use in my classroom called a "Gratitude Circle."  When you have a Gratitude Circle, everyone thinks of one specific and recent thing for which they are grateful (this morning I'm grateful my husband cleaned our bathrooms yesterday), then everyone stands in a circle, each person shares their gratitude as you go around the circle one by one, and we always finish with a "Power Clap."  You'll have you ask your child how that works.  :)

Here are some of our Gratitude Circles in action:

What are you grateful for today?

Days 9 & 10

Today marks the halfway point of our summer academy, and the students are all so engaged in meaningful learning.  For example, today in our assembly we heard stories from four students willing to share their mindset stories.

The first came from a first grader who was working with her reading specialist on the word "do."  She mentioned that "do" is her favorite word.  When asked why, she responded, "because you can DO anything!"  The students in the audience were able to identify her optimistic mindset.  Aren't challenges easier to handle when you remind yourself you can do anything?

The second story we heard came from a second grader who encountered a disappointing schedule change earlier in the week.  Instead of allowing this change to destroy his opportunity to make the most of his day, he used it to his advantage and worked productively on his reading and math with success.  The kids pointed out his flexibility and resilience right away.  He was beaming!

The final story came from two of our third graders.  They read a book about Helen Keller and created a character map for her.  They realized that Helen Keller really showed a growth mindset in her life, so their map was organized with bubbles for each of the five mindsets we've been studying (optimism, persistence, flexibility, resilience, empathy) and details from the story that fit these traits.  The students in the audience commented on the girls' flexibility in thinking!  

We can't wait to hear about all of the growth and successes we make next week!  We hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!  

Day 8

One of the greatest resources we have during our summer academy is our full-time counselor, Mr. Henderson.  During the school year, Mr. Henderson serves the Meramec Elementary community, and we are extremely lucky to have him with us during the summer.  In his role as counselor, Mr. Henderson is there for students who might be having a rough moment and need someone with which to talk.  He also teaches lessons in the classrooms connected with the themes introduced during our assemblies.

Today he visited the 5th graders to discuss a special school in Chicago called Urban Prep Academy.  He showed the students this clip:

In debriefing the video, students discussed the mindsets in relationship to the video and themselves.  They picked up on the teachers having empathy for the students because of the long hours they work to help them learn.  The class also discussed the flexibility of the students at Urban Prep to be able work so diligently from the time they entered the school and grow to be prepared for college by graduation.

One of our fifth graders reflected, "What surprised me was that you had to go to school everyday, and you have to keep trying and trying even if you are from a tough neighborhood.  You don't ever want to give up.  You have to work hard if you want to go to college."

The conversation closed with the class comparing their experience here at Elementary Summer Academy with what the students might experience at Urban Prep.  They commented on the realization that the teachers are here to help them and that, as students, they can definitely show persistence and optimism in their learning for the half day they are at Glenridge this summer.  What a great example of a mindset for learning!

Day 7

Last week I shared a little about how we plan for our mathematics instruction here at Elementary Summer Academy.  Today I'd like to share about literacy.  We have so many components that come together when preparing for our literacy instruction.  Like math, we take time before the school year ends to meet with the Instructional Coordinators and Literacy Coaches from each building so that we can learn about each student enrolled for the academy.  We take into consideration several things: the Scholastic Reading Inventory, individualized reading assessments, writing samples, and what supports have been put in place for each child during the school year for their literacy.  All of this information was compiled and delivered to each student's teacher before our program began.

Our teachers and reading specialists have collaborated to design the best instruction for your growing reader this summer.  Students read and write throughout their time during academy through read-aloud, partner reading, writing stories, reading on the computer, listening to audio-books while they read a book, conferring with a teacher, and responding to what they've read.  Just check out all the fun:

Reading with a teacher.

Listening to an audio-book.

Reading on a computer.

Reading independently.

Responding to reading.

Word sorts.

Snap word memory game.

Writing a story.

Reading on the computer.

Sharing stories we wrote with friends.

Sharing more stories we wrote with friends.

Day 6

In today's assembly, we continued our study on mindset by learning about the power of positive self talk.  Self talk is a normal part of each of our days.  When I'm in rush hour traffic, for example, I might say to myself (in my mind or out loud), "Oh great, now I'm never going to get home."  That is a perfect example of negative self talk.  This naturally occurs when we encounter challenge or disappointment.  But, when we have a growth mindset, we can reframe our self talk to improve our outlook for success.  Let's return to my rush hour traffic example.  Instead of muttering about how I'll never get home, which isn't even true, I could say something like, "Hm, it looks like today's commute might take longer than usual.  This will give me a chance to listen to more music or hear more stories on the radio."  Now I've turned my negative experience on its head and decided to make it a positive one.  This is not always easy, especially when facing huge obstacles or heart-breaking circumstances.  That is why we practice, so that each time we transform our self talk in a positive way, it becomes more and more of a habit in our thinking.

Here's a quick video we watched during our assembly to illustrate the power of positive self talk and how it can impact our self confidence:

You can talk about this with your child at home when you encounter moments when self talk can make a difference in how you might perceive a situation.  Practice options for positive self talk to replace the negative self talk habit.

Day 5

Can you believe it's already been an entire week?  We are so impressed with all of the students and the way they have jumped into their learning at the academy this summer.  Just today, I was having lunch with some third grade friends who shared how they used resilience when they were having trouble reading and didn't want to continue.  After having a hard time, though, they bounced back and turned it around to keep working at their reading.  Hearing their stories is definitely the best part of my day.

Today we had an assembly and were able to hear the stories of some of our academy leaders.  They carried the torch and shared how they persisted this summer in writing, had flexibility when coding, and had optimism when trying something new.

These stories help us remember how important it is to practice using these mindsets everyday.  They help us learn and have more joy in school and out of school.

We can't wait to celebrate more on Monday!  Have a fantastic weekend!

Day 4

Today as I was walking around, I captured some moments of math throughout the building.  Teachers have used information from each child's NWEA and End of Year Math In Focus assessments to plan instruction to meet the learning needs of our students this summer.  During math class students will work in small groups or one-on-one with a teacher, play math games reinforcing skills, and practice math on computers through Khan Academy or Greg Tang, etc.

Measuring Height in 1st Grade

Place Value Game in 3rd Grade

Using the Computer in 2nd Grade

Studying Coin Amounts in 1st Grade

Studying Coin Amounts in 1st Grade

Studying Coin Amounts in 1st Grade

Teachers will be sharing ways that your child can continue to practice in our weekly newsletters.  You can also ask your child to teach you to play a game they learned at academy.  

Days 2 & 3

Building our community of learners is crucial to us at Elementary Summer Academy.  This summer's focus on growth mindset is being celebrated through our connection with the Olympics.  We have attached the stances to each of the Olympic Rings:

Each time we see someone exhibiting these mindsets, we recognize them by writing their name on a colored strip of paper corresponding with the stance.  For example, I noticed one of the students showed flexibility and empathy on the playground yesterday on the soccer field.  She was playing goalie when one of the other students got tripped up in the game, hurting his shin.  He wasn't sure he wanted to keep playing soccer when she offered to trade positions with him so he could stay in the game while resting his sore leg a bit.  I put her name on a black strip and red strip of paper.  We form these strips of paper into rings and hang them in the gym.  Over the course of the program, our Olympic Mindset rings will accumulate and cover the walls as a reminder of our growing!

When we meet together in our assembly, we will recognize each other by sharing mindset stories.  You can share mindset stories with your children at home, too.  Ask them about the day and point out moments when you hear them using one of these stances in their thoughts and actions.  I'm sure you have stories of your own that you can also share with your child.  This is a great way to bring our attention to the importance of mindset in our day.

Day 1

My apologies for our day 1 post a day later.  We were so wrapped up in trying to kick off the program with a smooth start that time slipped right by us!  

Yesterday's program was started off with an assembly where we were reminded that we can learn anything:

We also introduced our Elementary Summer Academy (ESA) team commitments: we give our best effort and we do the right thing, even when no one is watching.  We are drawing inspiration from the Summer Olympic Games in Rio this year for our community building and study of growth mindset.  Specifically, we are finding examples of: optimism, persistence, flexibility, resilience, and empathy.  To do this, we are learning about real people who showed these mindsets when handling challenges.  In yesterday's assembly we watched this inspiring story:

The students identified the following mindsets after watching the video: optimism, persistence, flexibility, resilience, and empathy.  It was inspiring to hear them explain their observations of Derek Redmond's mindset in the '92 Olympic Games.  

We are looking forward to hear the mindset stories of our students this summer as they carry the torch for learning at ESA! 

Welcome!

We are so excited to be kicking off this year's academy on Monday!  This week, Mr. Hutson and I have been hard at work preparing for our program to begin next week.  We were joined by our dedicated staff and volunteers Thursday and Friday.  I give you the amazing adults that will be leading our community of learners this summer:

Classroom Teachers and Paraprofessionals

Reading Specialists and Special School District Teachers

Our focus this summer will be "Olympic Mindset."  Think about what mindset means to you.  Think about what you know of the Olympics and the Olympians that compete in the games, their stories, their challenges, and triumphs.  We will reveal more next week when we start together in our first assembly in the Glenridge gym.

Mr. Hutson carrying the Olympic torch!

In the meantime, here's a fun, brief history of the Olympics courtesy of Ted-Ed:

We can't wait to see you Monday!