This is part of a series of interviews with our scholarship recipients for our 2021 Build A Better Future scholarship sponsored by Honors Graduation. We hope you will find their stories as inspiring as we do! For information on our 2022 program, click here”.
Hannah Storrs with her project “Your Voice Counts” was one of our scholarship winners this year and for good reason! Hannah originally started this project because she wanted to obtain her Girl Scout Gold Award, which focuses on a community project. When considering what she could do her project on, she remembered her love and interest in politics that started when she was only in 4th grade! This is what she based her project around.
Hannah’s goal was to promote unity and understand (and hopefully abolish) voter apathy. She dedicated hours speaking to students in physical classes and on Zoom classes, both at her high school and her dual-enrolled college, Florida State University. On top of speaking with classes, she created an online platform with YouTube and Instagram to help students understand voting, the process, and feel confident they are making good voter decisions.
A few weeks ago I wrote a post on my internal conflict of becoming a substitute teacher this next school year because of the substitute teacher shortage. After a lot of debate and back and forth, I ultimately decided it wasn’t in the cards for me this year, but I will continue to always keep it in the back of my mind.
But let’s talk about this substitute teacher shortage! Why is there such a lack of subs right now (and let’s be honest, always!) Here were a few reasons I could think of:
Concerns about sickness, in general, and specifically during a pandemic. Schools are breeding grounds for germs!
It doesn’t typically come with the benefit of guaranteed hours.
Oftentimes, it doesn’t even come with benefits!
A lack of knowledge that our schools need subs.
The lack of childcare for parents to sub while they still have kids not school-aged yet.
It’s sad that we are dealing with a shortage in an area that could be one of the most important. If a teacher cannot find a sub for their class, it could mean coming into the classroom to teach while incredibly sick, causing more spread of sickness. It could mean overcrowded classrooms while other teachers take on the responsibility of the class. Ultimately, it means scrambling to find a way to keep the kids occupied and safe while the teacher is out, instead of focusing on academics and social skills, like a classroom should be.
Here are a few ways we can support substitute teachers, teachers, and schools in general:
Keep our classrooms and schools as clean and germ-free as possible.
Appreciate our subs! They do not make much money, typically, and do not have benefits from their job.
Spread the word about our lack of substitute teachers that may need extra income or have time to step in and help sub.
Offer childcare for those that have the time to sub, but maybe cannot find proper childcare.
How do you support substitute teachers in your community?
During the 2019-20 school year, all of our eyes were opened a little wider to the school system and how teachers are treated once the buildings shut down and parents were left to fend for their child’s education at home.
Parents were singing praises to teachers all over the nation when they realized how much they needed educators in their daily lives. But not even one year later when the 2020-21 school year started up, those praises quickly turned into backlash in some areas, because schools would still be virtual. It seemed as if the world was in limbo fall of 2020 when the pandemic was still spreading, but everything was partially opening back up again with extra safety precautions.
The struggle came when parents had to go back to work instead of working from home, but some schools were still virtual. They ran into problems where they needed to find someone to stay home with their kids in order for them to be watched over and attend virtual school, but they had to leave for work. Daycares were overrun and babysitters/ nannies were in high demand.
It left us with one big question- Are schools viewed as a daycare for some parents? Is it somewhere moms and dads drop off their kids in the morning, leave for work, and then rely on the bus or the neighborhood carpool to bring them home? Were they that quick to forget how hard homeschooling was during the worldwide shutdown in the spring of 2020?
So how do we as parents get through this 2021-22 school year and still show appreciation for our teachers instead of treating them as a daycare?
Recognize the value in their work and voice this recognition to them.
Ask how you can support them as a teacher and if there are any supplies you can donate to their classrooms.
Regularly check in to see if they need any supplies or help in their classroom throughout the entire year, not just at the beginning.
Volunteer in their classrooms if you have the time.
Show appreciation to them throughout the entire year, not just during teacher appreciation week.
This post is part of a series on The Child Whisperer and using it in the classroom. To see more, head here.
Alright, it’s time to talk about Type Four of the child whisperer! For The Child Whisperer types, it’s important to remember that this is not just personality typing, it’s channeling in on a child’s energy and how they use their energy. Most everyone has all four types in them, but one or two shine through the most in the majority of situations.
Type four is typically known as “The Serious Child” A type four’s primary connection to the world is through intellect and logic.
Words that describe type four: critical thinkers, straightforward, logical, efficient, and thorough.
Tips for teaching a type four:
These students thrive on consistency. They love and need a schedule and can be thrown off when the schedule is changed, especially last minute.
Type fours are big picture thinkers, giving them the ability to look at the finer details to create a better all-over big picture.
Oftentimes these are the kids you are constantly urging to “just have fun” throughout the day and through certain games or activities, but they cannot see it this way. Their mind is on work and getting work done.
They can feel vulnerable when they do not have all of the answers.
Type fours want to know what to expect, how to expect it, and when to expect it. Giving them a heads up of how many minutes they have to read a paragraph of text or how many times they need to write out their spelling words can be a very powerful tool for them to find success in their work.
Do you have a type four child in your classroom? What have you learned through teaching this type of student?
Back to school, here we come! August is within sight and this means everyone is preparing to head back to school, whether that’s preschool, high school, or college.
For me personally, my most nerve-wracking first day of school was my first day of college as a freshman- my very first day walking the sidewalks on campus and navigating the halls of the massive buildings. What if I couldn’t make it across campus in time for my next class? What if I got lost and was late everywhere I was going? I didn’t even think about lunch and I was going to be in class back to back all day! There are so many factors. Let me share with you a few things that I did, and a few that I wished I knew, to hopefully help ease your fears as well.
Download a map of the campus. Back in 2013 when I started college, I actually held a physical map of campus in my hands, but I was also one of the last few on Earth that didn’t own a smartphone. Regardless, they still were not amazing quality, so I was not alone in holding a physical map of campus.
Have the map downloaded to your phone so that when you need to leave the Business building and make it to the Biology building 10 minutes later, you’ll know the best route. You won’t need the map forever! But navigating a new campus (especially if it’s quite large!) can be incredibly helpful. It can also be a good idea to mark where your classes are if you have the ability to draw on the map.
Think about lunchtime. In high school, lunchtime is carved out and the cafeteria is well stocked with food. In college, it’s up to you and only you. Look at your class schedule and decide if you can make a quick trip home for a bite, or if you need to look into options of packing a lunch, or finding a dining hall on campus. It’s hard to sit through classes and learn when you’re hungry!
Wear good shoes. College campuses can be quite large and require a great amount of walking between buildings and classes. Keep this in mind when choosing shoes to wear. Save the fancy kicks for a night out and pull out the tennis shoes for classes. A jacket is also a great clothing item to pack. Some classrooms can be boiling hot, while others are freezing cold. There’s not always a lot of consistency.
Snacks and water bottles. This could depend on the building and teacher protocols, but in the majority of classes, you can snack while you are in class. Keep a good stash in your backpack of good, healthy snacks. And bring a water bottle, especially for those longer classes.
Don’t buy books right away. You can read more tips on college textbooks here. But it’s a good practice to wait until after the first day of class to purchase books. This gives you the chance to attend class first and determine the best route for purchasing your textbook, and knowing if you need it or not.
Be prepared to take notes. In college, typically the first day of class isn’t a “get to know you” and take an easy day. What you can expect is the professor taking a few minutes to go over the syllabus, letting you know what to expect from the class, telling you about resources the T.A.’s might have, and then jumping straight into coursework. So come prepared to take notes and learn.
The syllabus is incredibly important- save it. They are not something to just roll your eyes at and toss in recycling on your way out! They are your roadmap to this class. It should tell you the expectations, rules, and assignments for the semester. These important dates in the syllabus such as deadlines and tests are great information to put into your planner so you know when they are coming up and can prepare.
This post is part of a series on The Child Whisperer and using it in the classroom. To see more, head here.
Alright, it’s time to talk about Type Two of the child whisperer! For The Child Whisperer types, it’s important to remember that this is not just personality typing, it’s channeling in on a child’s energy and how they use their energy. Most everyone has all four types in them, but one or two shine through the most in the majority of situations.
Type two is typically known as “The Sensitive Child.” A type two’s primary connection to the world is through emotion, and their primary need is for their feelings and emotions to be heard as well as feeling a connection to their family and loved ones.
Words that describe type two: emotional, subtle, thoughtful, sensitive.
Tips for teaching a type two:
Create a good, lasting relationship with the student. It will be hard for them to learn from you without a good relationship first.
Two’s need a plan and time to process everything going on around them. They may become anxious when last-minute plans come up or their regular school schedule is changed for the day.
They are your students taking as long as possible on assignments, tests, and readings. They take all of the time possible to internalize what they are doing and the information they are given.
They are also the students that like to ask you step-by-step how to go through processes they are learning. And not only that, but they may ask multiple times!
Type two’s are little emotional chameleons. They easily take on the emotions of others, whether that’s pain, anger, sadness, or happiness, light-hearted, or excitement.
Do you have a type two child in your classroom? What have you learned through teaching this type of student?
A few months back I purchased Busy Toddler’s Playing Preschool book to do preschool with my daughter and a little neighbor friend. I wrote a little about the experience here. After a few months of working through the book, I want to write a review to help you decide if it’s the right decision for you. Before I begin, read more about what Playing Preschool entails here.
Pros:
Lessons are easy to read and organized. Whether you’re an educator or not, there is plenty of information and resources to give you the most success possible.
We had to take a few weeks off while I worked from home, but it was easy to pick back up again and get started. The lessons are evergreen and can be done at any time of the year.
Most of the materials were found at home, but mostly because we’ve been doing toddler based activities for a year now. Even if you don’t have all of the materials at home, it’s a worthwhile investment because they are cheap and useful! I don’t know about you, but we go through a pack of construction paper really fast over here!
Some weeks required more materials such as the cooking unit because we needed a lot of food, but again, nothing crazy expensive and worth the money for the outcome. I went through the supply list of every unit before we got started and made an Amazon Wishlist and shared it with our family members that often like to buy my kid’s gifts so that they would know the books and tools that would be extra useful to us right now!
The activities do not take a lot of time to set up. I don’t think I ever spent more than two minutes gathering supplies and setting up an activity for the lessons. They are quick and practical!
The lessons truly are playing. There are no worksheets to print out! It’s all activities to set up for your preschool to explore numbers and letters. There’s a lot of paint and a lot of play! A method I can get behind!
Cons:
I loved that each unit had a great book list that really worked hand in hand with each day, but we started Playing Preschool the same time quarantine began, meaning our library was closed! Without the resource of the library, it was so hard to find the specific books she recommended. I did my best to find substitutes (although her suggestions truly are the best books to use). I also tried the free trial of Vooks, but not a single book on the list was found there! You can read my Vooks review here.
Another solution I found was to buy a few books on thirftbooks.com, they had great prices and free shipping after a certain amount spent! I couldn’t pass up an opportunity at buying new books! We also searched Kindle on Amazon for any free or cheap purchases. Those books obviously aren’t the same as holding a real book, but it did the job!
The rest I put on my Amazon wishlist for our family members and we received many that way. I also called upon good friends and neighbors to borrow their books. With all efforts combined, I was able to get together all of our books! With access to a public library, this process would not be as difficult as it was for me, but I wanted to share my ideas for others who also may not have access to a library as well.
The final downside is more on me than on the curriculum itself. I would feel like the entire unit was a failure if we skipped a day or even a single activity. I wanted to get everything in to make sure she understood the concepts being taught. In the introduction of Playing Preschool, Susie the creator of the curriculum explicitly says you do not have to do every activity and it does not have to all be done in one sitting. She suggestions spreading it out throughout the day or splitting it up into two sections if accomplishing everything in one sitting is too much for your preschooler. My type-A personality shone through a lot when I saw each activity as a checklist feeling like I needed to mark everything off. You do not need to do this to have success in the program.
Overall, I truly have loved Playing Preschool and use it often with my daughter. Even if we are on a break from doing preschool, I can still pull it out and find one or two activities for her to do while I cook dinner or clean the house. It’s great exposure to letters and numbers. My 2.5-year-old has very little interest in her letters and even after a few weeks of playing preschool she can’t name a single letter or letter sound, but she’s still gaining that exposure and teaching her to have a love for learning and reading. Playing Preschool for the win!
A few of our Playing Preschool experiences!
Have you done the Playing Preschool curriculum? Leave your pros and cons in the comments for others to see!
