In Russia Fairy Tale, Lessons Plan YOU
I did some substituting yesterday. Fourth graders. I've worked with preschoolers so long that nine year olds seem like hulking brutes. Especially the girls. And loud! Geez Louise, they sit in little clusters, two feet away from each other, tops! And they bellow back and forth at each other. It's like Beowulf and Leonidas being studybuddies.
And the teacher left NO plans. None. We looked and looked and found NOTHING. So I had to trust 24 kids to tell me what the least thing they worked on was. I tried to stay on schedule at least a little bit. We talked about ecosystems and food chains and niches in the environment. One of the boys produced a four-inch stack of Pokemon cards and did his best to make a food chain with them. I saw some potential in it, so I let him try. He didn't get too far before pandemonium broke out over the cards, so we had to move on.
When they were at their loudest, I gave up trying to talk over them and started drawing a house on the board. "WHAT IS THAT?" the children roared. "A HOUSE??" I added chicken feet and they yelled about that for a minute. The ring of circles didn't mean much until I added little skull faces around the house and that got a few more of their attention. The fence of bones had them talking, but softer, almost at a normal volume.
Then, I asked if any of them had ever heard of Baba Yaga. They had not, but they had to repeat the name a few times, in various levels of outrage or disbelief. ("Baba Yaga??" "Baba Yaga!" "Baba Yaga??") So I told them the story of Vasilisa the Beautiful. It was the most quiet that class was the whole day, listening to the three tasks and the threat of being eaten. It only lasted as long as the story did, but I appreciate that that story works as well on bigger kids as it does the little guys.
And the teacher left NO plans. None. We looked and looked and found NOTHING. So I had to trust 24 kids to tell me what the least thing they worked on was. I tried to stay on schedule at least a little bit. We talked about ecosystems and food chains and niches in the environment. One of the boys produced a four-inch stack of Pokemon cards and did his best to make a food chain with them. I saw some potential in it, so I let him try. He didn't get too far before pandemonium broke out over the cards, so we had to move on.
When they were at their loudest, I gave up trying to talk over them and started drawing a house on the board. "WHAT IS THAT?" the children roared. "A HOUSE??" I added chicken feet and they yelled about that for a minute. The ring of circles didn't mean much until I added little skull faces around the house and that got a few more of their attention. The fence of bones had them talking, but softer, almost at a normal volume.
Then, I asked if any of them had ever heard of Baba Yaga. They had not, but they had to repeat the name a few times, in various levels of outrage or disbelief. ("Baba Yaga??" "Baba Yaga!" "Baba Yaga??") So I told them the story of Vasilisa the Beautiful. It was the most quiet that class was the whole day, listening to the three tasks and the threat of being eaten. It only lasted as long as the story did, but I appreciate that that story works as well on bigger kids as it does the little guys.