Kristin Ackerman
May 18, 2012
Do your kids hang on every word you say? Have they lost interest in your dog and pony show? Spring fever is alive and well in my classroom! Every year I am baffled at how quickly my kids seem to check out in the spring....and I live in Florida, the land of eternal summer! How can little Floridians go crazy in spring? They haven't been cooped up all winter or trudged through any snow to get to class. But, nevertheless they are just not that into me anymore!
So this is when I have to get creative. I try to think more like a marketing or sales person when I am planning. My reading charts read more like commercials than traditional charts and I leave notes in the hallway, luring kids to come in and check out what is happening. I am just about to launch a non-fiction unit and our content focus is creatures that live in the ocean. In an effort to reengage my students, I change most of my statements into questions. So instead of titling a chart 'Different Kinds of Non-Fiction' I write 'Want to learn about the different kinds of non-fiction? Look below!' Outside of my classroom, I leave notes above the water fountain and near the bathrooms with messages like 'What weighs 150 tons, can live 80-100 years and eats krill?' or 'Do you know how a seahorse moves? Drop into room 24 to find out!'
As you are planning your final units for the year you might want to try a little marketing to draw your kids in. You just might conquer the side effects of spring fever!