What does the classroom sound like? Part II

Part Two: Dance Party - Reward Playlist

I use the Whole Brain Thinking Scoreboard to motivate students as a whole group throughout the day. If students have more points on the smile side of the scoreboard, I host a 60-180 second dance party right before dismissal!

We work hard to stay on task throughout the day and earn that party, so I better be sure to pack some tunes to get them moving! Before we start, I always congratulate them for awesome behavior and make sure they realize how not every class earns a dance party! Then, we go over the rules.

Dance Party Rules:

1. Be smart! No crazy dance moves that might hurt you or someone else!

2. Keep your hands to yourself! 

3. Have FUN! You earned this party.

I often just start a Conga-style line (doing the hustle move instead of putting hands on each other's shoulders!) If there is enough room and I can find a meter stick, I have two volunteers hold it up and the Conga-line turns into a Limbo line.

Artist: The Jackson 5

Song: ABC

The Jackson brothers can cheer anyone up! This is one of my favorite songs and children of all ages seem to know the lyrics. It's a really fun way to end the day and reward an awesome group of students. 

Artist: Will.I.Am, Jamie Foxx, & Anne Hathaway

Song: Hot Wings (I Wanna Party)
Album: Rio Soundtrack

I mentioned in Part I about looking for songs that wouldn't drive me crazy. I am really NOT a fan of Will.I.Am. I'm sorry if you are, but I'm just not into him. This doesn't mean that I won't listen to him for 3 minutes of the day if the kids like it. This one was requested by a student and later a principal told me that I should download it. I bought it from the iTunes store that day. It's a fun upbeat song that many kids like. I must admit that it's pretty fun.

Song: I Like to Move It, Move It
Album: Madagascar Soundtrack

This song has the word "sassy" in the lyrics. I have seen this song used in morning announcements and in school plays. Just wanted to let you know, in case that is a problem for you. Now that I have The Jackson 5, I hardly ever have to use anything else. It's always great to have backups. 

I also love the idea of using songs in different languages, I haven't done this yet but have researched a few that seem fun. What about these? :)

Song: Hanuka Matata (Spanish)

Maybe this one:

Song: It's a Small World (Mandarin Chinese)

Do you use dance parties as motivation for your classroom or child?

Now that you have all of these songs stuck in your head, you might as well start dancing too! I always find a place in the classroom to dance (which is me just raising the roof mostly). This pumps the kids up! They think Ms. McFall is super fun and I thank them for being so awesome and allowing me to join in on their dance party. ;)

Up Next: Get Up, Move On -  Transition Playlist

What does the classroom sound like?

First Up: Thinking Music Playlist

When looking at my future classroom, I have been planning what I want the classroom to look, feel, and sound like.

I love music. I realize that not everyone likes the same music as I do, so this is why I wanted to find something that would motivate and not annoy others! Also, it's important to find music that will work with any age student.

Just a quick note: I always ask students permission before I play any music. When I walk into a classroom, I am not the dictator who forces others to listen to my music. I want everyone to have a say. If it's distracting then what's the point in using it? I haven't had anyone turn me down when asked if they'd like to hear music while they work. I often tell them that brain surgeons, the president, and even teachers use music to help them stay on task! When do I play the music? I pick a time when students are quiet and working hard anyway. I feel that if you put music on when students are rowdy they just get even more pumped up and distracted. 

I currently use these different playlists in the classroom and hope they help you out.

Artist: Brian Eno

Albums: Ambient 1, Music For Airports (My all time FAVORITE!)

Music Style: Ambient

Use: Anytime

Artist: Brian Eno & Harold Budd

Albums: Ambient 2, The Plateaux of Mirror
Music Style: Ambient

Use: Anytime

I had the privilege of being able to hear Brian Eno speak at MoogFest last year.  He talked about many things but his views on how music have different effects on the human brain really caught my attention. Music has the ability to frustrate, motivate, relax, anger, and help people enjoy what they're doing by activating different brain waves. 

I put this music on repeat and it can run for hours as background music! I notice how it really does help students (and teachers) stay focused. 

*Eno's music and artwork is currently being installed in a hospital waiting room in England. This idea came about to help patients, doctors, and family members a chance to escape and just let their brains relax for a moment. How interesting! 

Artist: Rockabye Baby (This company makes lullaby renditions for tons of different artist)

Albums: Elvis, The Beatles, Bjork, Radiohead, The Beach Boys, etc.  (any of the titles are appropriate for the classroom, there are no words only music)

Music Style: Upbeat lullaby 

Use: during group activities, project work, research, working around the room, etc.

I found these when looking for songs that wouldn't drive ME crazy in the classroom (how many times can you hear the same classical song over and over?) Don't get me wrong, I seriously love classical music but Rockabye Baby helps students get moving, while still staying focused. I see students working hard while bobbing their head or tapping their foot. GET THAT ENERGY OUT FRIENDS! The occasional frog sound makes students look up and laugh every once in a while and I LOVE LAUGHTER IN THE CLASSROOM! Some of the albums are more quiet than others but I haven't found one I don't use. 

There's an App for That! 
If you don't want to use music but DO want to use relaxing music in the classroom, why not use an app? I personally use this one, Relax Melodies Oriental (free version for iPhone). I like it because you can mix music with nature sounds.

Might be a fun way to get students involved in the music selection! Take a vote on which sounds to use that day. :)

Also, Brian Eno has a few musical apps that could help students relax through the day. Can we say Brain Break? I do not have these but plan on purchasing them one day. His apps also have an option to just listen to the music instead of playing it.

 _______________________________________________________

I have used other music but this is what I use now. I've seen these albums motivate students and not annoy them (or me).

I find a place for my iPhone up on a shelf and push play.The music also gives the classroom a different feel to it. It turns into a fun, interactive, engaging atmosphere of learning! 

Keep them motivated and engaged in what they're doing!

What music do you use as your "Thinking Music Playlist"?
Have you tried Brian Eno's music? I would love to hear what works for you!

Up Next: Dance Party - Reward Playlist, Get Up, Move On -  Transition Playlist

Taking the "Phone" out of "Smartphone" just makes it Smart!

 I don't know how I could survive a day in the classroom without my iPhone or iPad! I am NOT using my portal device to calling people, texting, or pinning during the day (I save that for after work). In fact, I don't use my smartphone as a phone at all during the day.

Your smartphone has so much to offer!
photo credit: JD Hancock

In the class my smartphone is a/an:

• Music player - I have "thinking music" playlists and "brain break" playlists 

• Timer & clock - Clock app that comes with phone

• Noise monitor - free "Too Loud" app

• AR book looker-upper - free "Accelerated Reader" app

• Easy grader - free "Groovy Grader" app

If you have a smart phone that you are currently using in your classroom, or might be planning on using one, let me share a few simple tips I find useful:

1. Lock Your Phone

If it's going to be used in the classroom, set a lock code on your phone. You could also keep it in an area of the class where students cannot get to it. I would hate for some students to be looking at all the embarrassing photographs I take of my dog. (Side note: do you think students would still have respect for me if they knew how many times I have accidentally taken a picture of my phone's background? What about the floor? Embarrassing!) My solution is simple, I keep my phone in my pocket or carry it around when I'm using it as a Music player.

Here is an example of one of those embarrassing pictures I was talking about. 

Checkout Miss Bettie Pug in her cowboy hat! :)

2. Get a Rugged Case

I am on my 2nd Otterbox already (and have only had a smartphone for less than a year) and they RULE! I got my first one from Sam's Club and the newest one is from Amazon. I got this interesting blue designer case from the Defender Series. It's nice to see Otterbox has cute options too! I have dropped this phone so many times - in the classroom, in parking lots, and at home. I am hard on phones, so this is the perfect pretty rugged case for me and my precious IPhone!

OtterBox Defender Series
From: Amazon

3. Explore New Apps

I have seen many people pinning information about apps that students use in small groups, but what about apps that make the job of the teacher easier? Sign me up, please! There are many of these apps out there, I have downloaded and deleted many of them. I might use them in the future, but as a sub I don't have a use for every single one of them. (Free apps I am using: Brainpop, CommonCore, Groovy Grader, Edmodo, AR, TooLoud, TeacherKit). Create folders to help you sort through your apps. I try to add apps to the Pintrest board as I find them: Classroom - Technology on Pintrest.

4. Use the Mute Button

I'm not saying that I am a smartphone expert, but I do know how annoying it is when someone's phone goes off in a movie - only to realize that it's your phone. The same phone that you thought you had silenced. Turning the volume all the way down does not turn off the noise for reminders you have forgotten about setting. This can be a distraction in class! I don't want to deal with an angry mob of unfocused students, so I just slide the mute button on. I'm not using it as a phone anyway!

5.  Have fun and don't be afraid of using new technology in the classroom!

How do you use your smartphone in the classroom? I'm interested in learning more ways of using BYOT in the classroom. Students are encouraged to bring their own technology to the classroom, this includes smartphones, and tablets. As a sub I see a lot of students reading books on tablets and I say, YIPPY! As long as kids are reading, I think it's an awesome thing.

Thanks for visiting,

Freebie: Mini Field Trip Report!

I got to go on a field trip back in the day when I was a sub. WHAT A FUN DAY TO BE A SUB! I loved interacting with the teachers, parents, and staff at the place we visited. I absolutely love history so it was fun to see the students be immersed in history.

Learning outside the classroom is always fun but what happens when you get back to the classroom? What if the buses are early or late? There is only 15 minutes before the next class or dismissal and the kids are bouncing off the walls. This is what happened after the field trip I attended. I was so thankful that I planned ahead, and the students really enjoyed the activity. Would it be okay to ask them to pull out a piece of paper and write this, of course, but this was so easy. (Sub note:  When I was a sub, I always tried to bring one activity like this with me. Most of the time I didn't have time to use them but it was nice to have them in case.)


Back to the field trip: the buses arrived back to school 20 minutes early. On the bus ride, kids brought books and read. I noticed that their reading brains were ready to bust. So enter, the mini field trip report. I modeled the activity on the board (Sub Note: I sometimes use my phone to look up and share, "I can...," grade level common core standards with students before we start activities.) I think for this grade, we looked at working on punctuation, handwriting, capitalization, and verbs. The teacher in this classroom is an AWESOME teacher! She already had the daily standards on the board, so we used those to guide us. We brainstormed a few key-terms, I turned on some "thinking music," and then they got to work. WOW! Students are awesome aren't they? I was impressed with how focused they were. It was fun to see the pictures they decided to draw.

When they were finished, they could turn it over and write a math word problems using items they saw during the field trip, or write a poem. I modeled these choices when explaining the sheet.

I created this activity to use after a 2nd grade field trip. Do you think you could use it for the grade you teach? I'd love to hear some feedback. This would also be a fun activity for a virtual field trip. I created this document the morning of the field trip in Word using free fonts, so it's nothing fancy. I wanted to put two reports to a page, to save ink, so they are kind of close together. (Yes, I'm cheap). I used scissors to cut five at a time, before the students came into the classroom and this worked great. Not sure if it would work well with a cutting board. (Is that even what they're called?)

This is the only item I have in my TPT store right now. I am planning on uploading and overhauling a few more items (freebies and cheap items) in the next few months, so please follow me if you'd like.

What do you do after field trips? Anything you'd like to see in my TpT store?

Comment below and let me know!

 Thanks!
- Cara

Another Teacher Blog?

So...I know that there are tons of amazing teaching blogs out there already. I get it, who has time to follow another one? Hopefully you do! I am interested in learning, creating, and sharing ideas with you, teachers and non-teachers alike. 

I created, The Classroom of Progress in hopes of hosting a community of learners. Also, this gives me a break when I don’t feel like cutting lamination, grading papers, or creating lessons. WELCOME to this, my first real blog.  

I really hope to become better at blogging so that I can selfishly keep up with my journey in the classroom. All selfishness aside, I hope to motivate myself and others to grow and keep progressing in the classroom! The more the merrier. I hope to keep this blog focused on the use of technology, along with new and different methods for the classroom.This blog; it just might not work out. But...I hope it does! 

Today in class, we read about the history of inventions. Did you know that without failed inventions we would not have Post-It-Notes, Velcro, or Microwaves? Without someone seeing past the failure in these ideas, it would be almost impossible for me to function in the classroom every day. Sometimes experiments turn out differently than we expected, but they still turn out.

How I wish I used Post-It-Notes

Image credit:Larry Wentzel

So here we go. Our experiential run of a new journey. dun, dun, DUN....Blogging. 

Welcome to The Classroom of Progress. I hope you have decided to stick around. There’s no telling how this might turn out. I'm sure it'll be a fun experience no matter what. I hope to eventually start sharing my own TPT freebies and real world giveaways with you. As I get going, I plan to share classroom spotlights with pictures. I always love seeing different themes, classroom setups, lessons, and how each teacher hides their clutter in such small spaces. 

Have you made it this far? Thank goodness, I promise more photographs in the next few posts to come. Sorry for the massive amount of reading required for a first post. If you've stuck around so far, you might as well stay connected. No pressure, but I'd love to see your lovely face in the comment section every once in a while. To follow the blog, click on the banners on the side to join the Facebook community, Pinterest board (my favorite), and Twitter. This way you can keep up with what’s happening around here. Here's to our great big beautiful tomorrow....

Thanks for visiting,

Cara