CAVEMAN DRAWINGS TO EMOJI

 

Before there was an alphabet people recorded events with drawings and symbols. Thousands of years later we have embraced pictographs – aka emoji. Emoji originated in Japan and literally means “picture” + “character.” Each character has a specific name and meaning. Many of the symbols are specific to Japanese culture and many are not appropriate for children.

There was an interesting article in the New York Times 4/6/2015 by Tess Felder titled “The Way We Write Today!?!” Although the author states that many people think we are losing the art of writing and spelling because of “digital laziness,” she suggests that people are just sending messages in ever-changing ways. Emojis are an example of a way to express our emotions. Think of it as a new vocabulary to explore in your classroom.

Children are always interested in the adult world and many of them may already be familiar with emoji from playing with their parents’ phones and other devices. Show children some of the emoji symbols and encourage them to tell you what they already know about them. Why do people use the symbols? Download some of the most popular symbols and let children brainstorm what they mean.

Here are two sites that I found helpful for decoding the meanings of the symbols. 

http://www.emoji-cheat-sheet.com/ 

http://emojipedia.org/

If you want a specific symbol try typing “emoji with heart eyes” or whatever you are looking for in your search engine.

You could use these symbols for classroom management. “When I hold up the monkey with his hands over his mouth that means to stop talking and listen to me.”

*Run off several beating hearts and pass them to children who are being kind friends.

*Make a flashcard game with words, math facts, letters, etc. Add a few “upset emojis” (children pretend to cry) and “heart eyes” (children hug themselves).

*Make worksheets or games where children match symbols with the written word.

*Let children create their own symbols or write stories or sentences with the symbols.

Funny thing, it just dawned on me that emoji are very similar to rebus pictograms that we used years ago when teaching children to read. Life is a revolving door for sure!!!

I’m off today for Murfreesboro, TN, and then Dover for the Delaware AEYC Conference, but I’ve got blogs ready for you each day. I hope your week is not only half full, but overflowing!!! 
                         
Isn’t this the cutest thing you’ve ever seen? My friend Janice Vincci sent it to me and it’s a reminder to all of us that the glass is always more than half full!

MY MESSY HOUSE

Several weeks ago I shared an idea that Lorraine Clark gave me called “My Messy House.” I made the game for Kalina when she visited and she LOVED it! She wanted to play it over and over again, and I knew it would be a “winner” with other kids and other skills. 

Thanks to my friend Carolyn Kisloski, I’ve now mastered the “art” of attaching a pdf to my blog. Well, kiss my brain! Now it will be easier for you to take these activities and implement them in your classroom. 
                      
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1SnEagA4jljSDk1Z2ZjUldqSlU/view?usp=sharing

Materials: cardstock or heavy paper, spring clothes pins, string

Directions: Cut clothes out of paper using the attached pattern. Write skills on the clothes and place them on the floor. Tie a string between two chairs to make your clothesline. Children choose a piece of clothing, identify the information, and then hang it up on the clothesline.

This game can be used with the whole class, a small group, or in a learning center. Here are a few skills you could reinforce:

Letters – Write letters on clothes and children can hang them up as they say the letter and make the sound.
*Write uppercase letters and lowercase letters on clothes and children can match them and hang them up.
*Hang letters in alphabetical order.

Numbers – Write numerals on clothes for children to hang up in order.Z
*Write math facts on some clothes and numerals on others for children to match and hang up.

Words – Children can hang up words they can read. Can they make a sentence with their word?
*Hang up words in order to make a sentence.
*Write antonyms or synonyms on words for children to match.

You’ll have a CLEAN HOUSE for sure with these games!

P.S.  If you've still got plastic eggs you don't know what to do with, here's an idea Ms. Setzer sent me.  She sends home an empty egg with each student along with a note asking them to find something to put in the egg and write three clues about it.  They share their clues at school the next day as classmates try to guess what it is.  
Hint!  Parents could write clues for younger children and older students could write their own clues.  Great reading, writing, speaking, and listening activity!!!

ROAD TRIP!

Who’s ready for some summer fun? WOW! You can visit Orlando, Charleston, Indianapolis, Detroit, or Austin and learn at the same time. That’s what I call a win/win!!! 

June 17    Reading, Writing, Math, and More
               Orlando, Florida http://www.sde.com/ReadWriteMath2015/ 
                   
June 18 & 19 College of Charleston Early Childhood Summit
                Crossing the Bridge to Active Learning
                Charleston, SC     http://ecsummit.cofc.edu/ 

June 22 & 23 Dr. Jean’s PreK-1 Summer Camp
               Indianapolis, IN http://www.sde.com/PD-Events/Seminars/1381

July 13 & 14 Dr. Jean’s PreK-1 Summer Camp
               Livonia, MI (Detroit Area)   http://www.sde.com/PD-Events/Seminars/1381

August 6 & 7 Dr. Jean’s PreK-1 Summer Camp
               Austin, TX http://www.sde.com/PD-Events/Seminars/1381

Pack your bags and I'll see you this summer!!

"HANDY" IDEAS

Okeedookee!  This is the last day I'm going to talk about graphic organizers, but I hope you've gleaned a few ways to use them to put "pictures" in your students' brains and to use them instead of a worksheet.  

What child doesn't like to have you trace around their hand?  But did you realize that children's hands could also be used as learning tools?

Hand of Thought 
Children trace around their hand. They put the main idea of the story on the hand with supporting details on the fingers.

Children write the title of the story on the hand with “Who?” “What?” “Where?” “When?” “Why?” on the fingers.

Children write a number on the palm and things that equal that amount on the fingers.

Children write their name in the middle and 5 tasks they need to complete that day.

“Five”ness and “Ten”ness
Trace around children’s hands on cardstock and cut out. Glue the palm to another sheet of paper so the fingers can bend up and down as shown.
*Let younger children use five fingers to count or do finger plays.

*Older children can use two hands for addition and subtraction.

*Do you know how to multiply by nine using fingers?  The fingers on the right will represent tens and the ones on the right will represent ones.
1 x 9 = 9  (Put down left pinky and 9 ones will remain.)
2 x 9 = 18  (Put down second finger on left and you'll have one ten and eight ones.)
3 x 9 = 27  (Put down third finger and you'll have two tens and seven ones.)

VENNS AND TIME LINES

Did you know that John Venn conceived the Venn diagram around 1880 to teach elementary set theory?  The Venn remains a useful tool to compare and contrast in our classrooms today.

Children can compare and contrast themselves with a friend. How are they different and how are they alike?

Children can demonstrate primary and secondary colors with Venns.

How about comparing books or characters with a Venn?

Animals (frogs and toads), plants (palm tree and cactus), or foods (apples and oranges) can be explored with Venns.

Letters (curves, lines, lines and curves) can even be sorted with a Venn diagram.

Time Lines
Time Lines are a visual way for children to recall the sequence in a story.

Time lines can be used to illustrate the life cycle of plants and animals.

Children can record the day’s events with a time line or use a time line to organize tasks that they must accomplish at school.

Time lines can also be used for history lessons or as an autobiography.
(What was I like when I was a baby…what am I like now…what will I be when I am grown.)

Hint for Pre-K teachers!  Model using these graphic organizers with your students.  It will increase their print awareness and be useful (prior knowledge) when used in future grades.

FIT TO A "T"

T-Charts can fit any lesson to a “T.”  Here are a few ways children could do them instead of doing a worksheet:

Fact/Fiction
Singular/Plural
Antonyms
Synonyms
= a number/doesn’t =
Healthy foods/Junky foods
Acceptable behavior/Not acceptable
Friend/Bully
Compound words

NAME YOURSELF DAY

I'd like to interrupt my blogs on graphic organizers today with this special announcement that will make your week a little more fun....

Have you ever wished that you had a different name? Well, according to holidayinsights.com tomorrow, April 9th, is the day we can all change our names. And, wouldn’t your kids get a kick out of changing their first name for the day?

Tell them about it today so they’ll have time to make their decision. (They’ll probably sort through dozens of names before choosing one.) Start tomorrow morning by having each student tell their classmates their new name and explain why they chose it.

Sing this good morning song to the tune of “Good Night, Ladies” using their new name.
Hello, (new name).
Hello, (new name).
Hello, (new name).
We’re glad you’re in our room.

Let them make nametags, necklaces, bracelets, or crowns with their new name. Their new name could also be the catalyst for a story about an adventure they might have. 
                    
And you should probably change your name tomorrow as well. How about Queen ___ or King ____?