A Reflection on a WONDERful 2017 School Year

It has been such a WONDERful school year so far! As I reread through my previous Wonder post, it's great to reflect on the year. Not sure if I'm alone on this, but I always come into a new school year super ambitious. Then reality sets in a little bit, and time tends to slip away. I made a "bucket list" of goals, and I didn't complete each piece yet, but it's exciting to see what new ideas have come up, and what adjustments I have made. Here was my bucket list:

My Bucket List:

• Wonder: Certified Kind Classroom Challenge
• Precept Picker
• Mystery Meet Ups
• Classroom Community Service
• Engineering Design Project
• Incorporate Related Nonfiction Text
• Kindness Ambassador

I'm going to start by sharing some of the unplanned twists and turns I took this school year. After hearing discussions from students and learning so much from the NCTE conference, I did some new activities that really helped build community. 

Unplanned Excitement!

Wonder Themed Halloween Costume!

Remember in my last post when I said I only got to dress up as a Wonder themed Halloween costume once?? Well, yet again I fudged the rules! Our theme this year was Emojis....so I DIYed my own Emoji...The kids (and families) loved it! 

A post shared by Lauren Salsinger (@diaryofa21stcenturyteacher) on Oct 31, 2017 at 2:25pm PDT

Wonder Family Movie Night

OK, talk about HIGHLIGHT of the school year so far!! I invited families from my class this year and last to join us for a movie night at a theater nearby. The turnout was incredible! I booked one whole theater (the biggest one) for the class, and it was completely filled. The class was SO excited to be there, and it was so special to have the families see how special the story is, too. AMC made it incredibly easy to plan, too. I literally just booked the room. They waived the fee, and parents paid when they got to the theater!

A post shared by Lauren Salsinger (@diaryofa21stcenturyteacher) on Dec 1, 2017 at 7:11pm PST

Wonder Debates

I have to say, seeing students do this was a proud teacher moment. When I was in a grad school class a couple years ago, I saw this video showing Pinwheel Discussions. I immediately thought that it would be interesting to try something like this with Wonder. The whole idea of it really captivated me, but I had a hard time figuring out how to get fourth graders to do something this rigorous.

It's different from a book club, and in my opinion, more powerful. 

Here's what I did:

• GOAL: STUDENTS lead a discussion to debate/share higher level thinking about the text: (ie. how their characters would respond in different situations, themes, etc) 
• They have to empathize with the characters,  infer & provide evidence to support their thinking, build on others' ideas, respectfully communicate with one another
• Students were assigned a role: Discussion Director or Character (Auggie, Mrs. Pullman, or Via)
• Discussion Directors had to generate and ask questions to keep the conversation going. They worked as facilitators, ensuring each student gets a voice and that each student is providing evidence to support their thinking. 
• Characters had to become experts on a certain perspective. They had to do research beforehand, analyzing character traits and providing evidence to support thinking. 

What do I LOVE about this activity? 

• Students ran the show. Literally, I just facilitated. 
• It required students to think on their feet! 
• It gave students a voice! 
• They felt accountable. Each student took their role incredibly seriously! 
• Students were ENGAGED!! Every. Single. Student. BEGGED me to do the activity again, and had ideas of what they wanted to debate.

I'm SO sad I don't have any pictures or videos of this. I was observed for this lesson, so I didn't want to be recording the whole time. Not to toot my own horn, but my principal really loved the lesson, too.

COMMENT BELOW IF YOU'D LIKE TO HEAR MORE ABOUT HOW I IMPLEMENTED THIS, MORE ABOUT WHAT THEY DISCUSSED, AND WHAT I PLAN TO DO NEXT WITH DEBATES! 

"What's Your Story" Themed Literacy

With our Personal Narrative unit, I kind of had a "What's Your Story" theme to it (again, THANK YOU to my Advanced Learning Facilitator for helping my students with this so much). We watched a TED Talk, inferred from pictures from Humans of New York, and Skyped with a real-life Auggie! The whole idea is that everyone has a story that should be heard. Naturally humans tend to "write stories" for others, but that can lead to judgement and misunderstanding. Through this we discussed the power of sharing our stories, our perspectives, and taking risks when writing. The discussion we had, and the content of the stories was really incredible. I will absolutely be doing this again! 

COMMENT BELOW IF YOU'D LIKE TO HEAR MORE ABOUT HOW I IMPLEMENTED THIS!

Bucket List Reflection

Wonder: Certified Kind Classroom Challenge

The class has really enjoyed the different components of this. We designed shirts, and have been doing the kindness jar since day 1! Unfortunately we didn't win any of the contests yet, but it has been fun to be a part of such a special community.

Precept Picker

This has been a meaningful part of our weekly class meetings. What I love most about this is that it is a subtle way to give all students a voice. I love seeing what each student picks each week. If students finish early or if there's ever any down time, classmates get to post responses to the quotes. I look forward to seeing how their responses grow over the course of the year.

A post shared by Lauren Salsinger (@diaryofa21stcenturyteacher) on Nov 15, 2017 at 7:08pm PST

Wonder Mystery Meet Up

If you read my last post, one of my goals was to start doing mystery meet ups. So far we have connected with classrooms in 6 different states! Students are really eager to take on this challenge, and I love seeing how they work together! We've made so much growth with communication since our first Mystery Meet Up!

A post shared by Lauren Salsinger (@diaryofa21stcenturyteacher) on Sep 7, 2017 at 8:43pm PDT

Classroom Community Service

I have not yet dabbled in this piece. Again, I struggle with asking families for money. Does anyone have any suggestions? I DID get this idea from the Facebook Wonder group:

For our Kindness Wonder Jar, instead of using marbles for each act of kindness, we use pennies. When we fill the jar with pennies, we pick an organization to donate to!

Engineering Design Project & Incorporate Related Nonfiction Text

After collaborating with our school's Advanced Learning Facilitator, she made some good points about students designing for the engineering design project...Their designs will probably be more thoughtful if they build their background knowledge on peoples' differences. I plan to do the design project at the end of the year now, and have been building their background knowledge throughout the year. I did an "empathy" themed guided reading week where students did activities that helped them empathize with people who have differences. We then read Nonfiction articles about adaptive technology. Here's a collaborative anchor chart we made. Does anyone have any other resources to help students empathize?  

A post shared by Lauren Salsinger (@diaryofa21stcenturyteacher) on Nov 29, 2017 at 5:43pm PST

Kindness Ambassador

I'd love to improve with this. Right now our school is doing a kindness challenge, so the kindness ambassadors have been the ones to remind the class of the weekly kindness challenge. They also keep an eye out for students who haven't been recognized for being "Wonderful" and write Wonderful Student cards for them (see previous post). Does anyone have any other ideas of ways to utilize kindness ambassadors best?

On a Different Note...

I'm working on some new TPT products. I made some Valentines (or really anytime "greeting cards")  for students. More to come, but here's a start!

 Valentine Variety Pack - Style 1

Valentines that are Out of This World! 

TPT Bucket List: 

• MORE Valentine styles
• Wonder Brag Tags

Any Requests?? Comment below!

Looking Forward To...

• Reading my students' Wonder chapters!! They're due this week, and they were SO excited to get creative with this project!! 
• Engineering Project
• More debating!!!  

Quick Way to Make Your Classroom Cute -- Download Quote Printables!

Can't stop the summer classroom crafting? Go to my Teachers Pay Teachers store to download these book quote printables! They make your classroom colorful, and get your students thinking. I have found that these quotes start great discussions and really compliment read alouds.

* Please note -- the Wonder Quote Printables are found in a different area of my store *

Click here to download!

Click here to download!

Click here to download!

Click here to download! 

Click here to download!

If you have any book or quote requests, let me know! I'd be happy to add some more! 

Favorite Children's/Young Adult's Novels of 2013

Every year I try to read as many children's books as I can. Between grading papers, professional reading for school book studies, graduate school work...and wanting to have a life...I don't get to read as many books as I'd like. Here are a few of my favorites that I read this year, which I highly recommend.

Wonder by R.J. Palacio. I'm sure it's a huge surprise that this is one of my favorites. August Pullman was born with a facial deformity that, up until now, has prevented him from going to a mainstream school. Starting 5th grade at Beecher Prep, he wants nothing more than to be treated as an ordinary kid—but his new classmates can’t get past Auggie’s extraordinary face. These perspectives converge in a portrait of one community’s struggle with empathy, compassion, and acceptance.

I chose to read this book after Wonder because I heard it was similar. I loved reading Out of my Mind as well. Melody is not like most people. She cannot walk or talk, but she has a photographic memory; she can remember every detail of everything she has ever experienced. She is smarter than most of the adults who try to diagnose her and smarter than her classmates in her integrated classroom—the very same classmates who dismiss her as mentally challenged, because she cannot tell them otherwise. But Melody refuses to be defined by cerebral palsy. And she’s determined to let everyone know it…somehow.

This book goes along with our Social Studies curriculum, and I do it as a read aloud with the class. I didn't realize I was so into Historical Fiction until after reading this book. The class LOVED it! Twelve-year-old Samuel Collier is a lowly commoner on the streets of London. So when he becomes the page of Captain John Smith and boards the Susan Constant, bound for the New World, he can’t believe his good fortune. He’s heard that gold washes ashore with every tide. But beginning with the stormy journey and his first contact with the native people, he realizes that the New World is nothing like he imagined. The lush Virginia shore where they establish the colony of James Town is both beautiful and forbidding, and it’s hard to know who’s a friend or foe. As he learns the language of the Algonquian Indians and observes Captain Smith’s wise diplomacy, Samuel begins to see that he can be whomever he wants to be in this new land.

I kept hearing great things about this book. When I finally had the chance to read it, I couldn't put it down. It's an adorable story. Ivan is an easygoing gorilla. Living at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, he has grown accustomed to humans watching him through the glass walls of his domain. He rarely misses his life in the jungle. In fact, he hardly ever thinks about it at all.Instead, Ivan thinks about TV shows he’s seen and about his friends Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But mostly Ivan thinks about art and how to capture the taste of a mango or the sound of leaves with color and a well-placed line. Then he meets Ruby, a baby elephant taken from her family, and she makes Ivan see their home—and his own art—through new eyes. When Ruby arrives, change comes with her, and it’s up to Ivan to make it a change for the better. Katherine Applegate blends humor and poignancy to create Ivan’s unforgettable first-person narration in a story of friendship, art, and hope.

I was not excited to read this book. This goes with our writing curriculum, and the first chapter was rough to get through, but the rest of the story was adorable.  Shirley Temple Wong sails from China to America with a heart full of dreams.Her new home is Brooklyn, New York. America is indeed a land full of wonders, but Shirley doesn't know any English, so it's hard to make friends. Then a miracle-baseball-happens. It is 1947, and Jackie Robinson, star of the Brooklyn Dodgers, is everyone's hero. Jackie Robinson is proving that a black man, the grandson of a slave, can make a difference in America and for Shirley as well, on the ball field and off, America becomes the land of opportunity.

I was having Hunger Games withdrawals this year, and I heard Divergent was really similar. Since I'm from Chicago, I figured it would be really cool to read. Fun fact -- the author of this book went to my high school! Although it's a great book, I wouldn't recommend it to my fourth graders, even the ones who can read more challenging books. How could I not read it? In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

A student recommended this book to me. Another tear jerker. I read it in one night. Features seven narrators, each with a unique story, and each with a different perspective on what makes their teacher so special. It’s the start of fifth grade for seven kids at Snow Hill School. There’s . . . Jessica, the new girl, smart and perceptive, who’s having a hard time fitting in; Alexia, a bully, your friend one second, your enemy the next; Peter, class prankster and troublemaker; Luke, the brain; Danielle, who never stands up for herself; shy Anna, whose home situation makes her an outcast; and Jeffrey, who hates school. Only Mr. Terupt, their new and energetic teacher, seems to know how to deal with them all. He makes the classroom a fun place, even if he doesn’t let them get away with much . . . until the snowy winter day when an accident changes everything—and everyone.





New Year's Resolution To-Read List: 

Let me know if you have any recommendations! 

Wonder Woman!

I hope everyone survived Halloween! This year the staff decided our theme would be Super Heroes. I wasn't very inspired by the theme originally, but after brainstorming with some coworkers, I came up with a costume that my students got a kick out of, and I wanted to be sure to share!

I am coming across as the most Wonder-Obsessed teacher on the face of the earth, but my class loves the story, so I'm really running with it this year!

I'm posing in front of my "WONDERful" student bulletin board outside the classroom! Although it kind of looks like I have a black eye, I still think it turned out pretty well. Any chance I can sneak in how cool reading is, I take it! :) 

I loved seeing the other costumes of our staff, too! Everyone got really creative, and I especially enjoyed Super Janitor (top right). 

Preparing for a WONDERful Year!

Wonder by R. J. Palacio 

August (Auggie) Pullman was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to a mainstream school—until now. He's about to start 5th grade at Beecher Prep, and if you've ever been the new kid then you know how hard that can be. The thing is Auggie's just an ordinary kid, with an extraordinary face. But can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, despite appearances?




Over the summer I read Wonder by R.J. Palacio, and LOVED it. Loved might even be an understatement. I obsessed over it, and told everyone who would listen about what a great book it was. Needless to say, I decided to incorporate the story into my classroom this year. 

My crafty self started with some classroom decor (to get the students excited and thinking about the book early on).  The large middle canvas is what the book cover looks like, and the other canvases are quotes that I pulled out from the book.

 Turns out my grand plan worked! When I introduced that Wonder was going to be the first read aloud of the year, I heard shrieks around the room, "That's the book on the wall up there!" "I heard about that book!" "My sister told me to read that book!" Wow, I didn't even have to talk this book up, it already had a great reputation. Instead of giving a brief introduction to the book, I did a lesson that I had always wanted to do. 

This lesson really did make an impact on many of the students, and some of their comments and discussion gave me the chills! After the great discussion I began reading the book. A few days (and a couple chapters) later, I felt that the students were engaged in the story enough to begin the positive reinforcement plan! 

The WONDERful positive reinforcement plan is a way for students to recognize when their peers are doing something right. This has been a great addition to my class this year. Students make stronger connections to the book and are more mindful about their choices. This plan strongly encourages "Choosing Kind" and "Building Monuments." Check out my Teachers Pay Teachers store to find out more about the plan! 

I have also created a fourth grade Common Core Close Reading activity to go along with the book. I plan to introduce precepts as well. I believe these activities can be used in other grades, too. Hopefully there are more to come! These two activities go along with the quotes I incorporated in my paintings as well as my behavior plan. 

Click here to purchase this from my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

Click here to purchase this from my Teachers Pay Teachers store. 

I look forward to implementing these activities in my classroom, and I'm curious to see how they work in yours! Please comment with any questions or ideas! Have a WONDERful day!