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Play-based learning helps engage elementary students in their education and has cognitive, physical, social, and emotional benefits.

A few years ago, I began shifting to a play-based approach in my kindergarten classroom. Research extolled the physical, cognitive, social, and emotional benefits of play and called to mind Friedrich Froebel's vision of kindergarten as a place where play and learning go hand in hand.

As I made small changes in my classroom, I began to understand that play is a primary and integral mode through which children make sense of the world, and that it is essential to their development and well-being. In addition, it supports skills like collaboration, communication, and creativity. Offering play can feel challenging when mandated programs and standardized tests are requirements of many school districts, but play-based learning is an effective practice for deepening understanding and engaging children. The key is finding a balance between academic expectations and the developmental needs of young students.

Offer Time, Space, and Materials

As I studied children's play, I saw that their bodies and minds were most engaged and focused when they were offered time, space, and meaningful materials to make sense of what they were learning. Teacher-directed activities and transitions are no substitutes for opportunities for exploration, creativity, and socialization.

Using a "choice time" structure like the one outlined in Choice Time: How to Deepen Learning Through Inquiry and Play, PreK-2 affords children opportunities to learn playfully. Making time for play early in the day optimizes learning and helps to balance a classroom schedule. My students have a 30-minute choice time within our literacy block each morning in addition to a 45-minute choice time at the end of the day.

The classroom environment is designed to engage their minds, meet their sensory needs, and offer practice with academic content. Our classroom includes a block center, math center, science center, book nook, dramatic play corner, sensory table, felt board, and art center. Many of the materials in each center can be integrated into more than one center.

With thoughtfully designed centers, children flow from one activity to the next with a sense of purpose. The art center is a place where children can construct all sorts of creations. Pine cones, tree bark, and other natural treasures are piled into the science center with an old overhead projector for light study. Cuisenaire rods, pattern blocks, and counting grids encourage geometric design at the math center. The block center is where children's imaginative worlds come to life.

Creativity and invention stem from some of the simplest materials, and having access to these materials can make the difference in a child's ability to learn.

Other materials are introduced to expand thinking on a certain topic or theme. For example, later in the spring, the sensory table will be filled with soil and the students will begin a scientific study of worms that will eventually lead the students outdoors to the garden.

Use Play to Inform Teaching

I had an initial hesitation surrounding play-based learning because I worried that it would impact my ability to teach district-mandated programs or address required academic standards and assessments. But observing young students as they played gave me new insight on the ways they think and learn. I was able to use that knowledge and address their individual needs more effectively.

Children were more motivated to explore academic standards within their play because it was meaningful to them. After reading Miss Maple's Seeds last fall, the children became fascinated by the knowledge that Eliza Wheeler had created the pictures and story from her imagination. They grew curious about how the book was made. After discussing the book-making process in our circle, a child exclaimed, "We can make books, too!" A few minutes later, a group of children set off to the art center to create books of their own.

The collaborative work of story writing incorporates speaking, listening, and writing standards. Book making has since become a favorite activity, carrying over into other areas of learning.

This winter, a child made a number book and brought it to our math circle to share with the class. Number books quickly became the rage, with each one a little different from the next. One child began a book about groups of 10. A friend offered support by popping up from the table to reference the number grid on the wall. They soon reached 200.

Given time, space, and materials, these children were able to explore mathematical concepts at their ability level while also contributing to other children's understanding. Educational consultant Mike Anderson describes this kind of "self-differentiation" as the place in which learning is "most effective" and "enjoyable"-in other words, their zone of proximal development.

Understand Child Development

Understanding how play supports learning means understanding how children learn. Just as a tree's roots form a foundation on which the tree can thrive, our teaching must have roots in child development in order for children to thrive.

Once my students had experienced play-based learning, they were more focused, motivated, and purposeful. Most important, they were happier. Bringing play-based learning to my classroom created balance, deepened our learning, and defined our classroom community as a place where we could learn and grow together.

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Play-based learning helps engage elementary students in their education and has cognitive, physical, social, and emotional benefits.

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ATL- Lessons

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This diagram was inspired by the blog post, The agile learner in a VUCA world, written by @alohalavina. VUCA is an acronym used to describe volatility , uncertainty , complexity , and . Put simply, we live in a fast-changing world and in such unfamiliar environment, we face unpredictable changes, often are required to make decisions in complex systems, and to take uncertain actions that are outside of our expertise. We need to rethink education and build students' capacity for the VUCA world.

Developing becomes more important than ever through the schooling process. Learners must equipped with skills and strategies that allow them to be thinkers, communicators, risk-takers, inquirers, reflective, caring, open-minded, balanced, principled and knowledgable. If we can truly follow the framework of the IB curriculums and develop a continuum, I am hopeful that we can develop students who strive for understanding, nurture passion in self and others, as well as take actions ethically. ​

Having this big picture in mind, we help students to develop these skills and stretch their learnability. One way to do this is to align the objective (learning target), skill indicator, and strategy. Most importantly, we also need to take an evidence-based approach to monitor their progress and provide cognitive coaching conversation. The process of practicing and developing skills must be deliberate in order for students reach mastery. The use of the strategy must be practiced several times as repetition of learning is the key to mastery. We can relate this teaching approach to the concept of apprenticeship. When teaching approaches to learning skills, think about Mr. Miyagi in the the movie, Karate Kid!

Here are some strategies that can help to build the skills. The skill indicators are merely suggestions by the IB. These skills are not the definitive or exhaustive list of ATL skills. Schools are not required to cover them all. Instead, I think the important point is for schools to consider their own contexts, reflect on their school missions and develop own continuum of approaches to learning skills that can prepare students for the future.

Strategies must be used intentionally and practice deliberately. When choosing the strategy to explicitly teach specific skills, we need to consider our subject specific objectives, the complexity of of summative assessment, desired learning outcomes, and the age appropriateness. This document is named "ATL Smörgåsbord". Just like you are going to a buffet, there is a wide variety of food, and you will take only what you need.

ATL Toolkit by Excited Educator Lenny Dutton: Lenny has created many amazing resources to help teachers teach ATL skills. She inspired me to create the ATL Smörgåsbord and collect explicit teaching strategies. Check out her website for more ideas.

The Art of Learning by Lance King: Lance emphasized the importance of helping students develop approaches to learning skills way before the IB made it a required component. He has shared and collected many amazing resources to support teachers in explicitly teaching ATL skills.

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This diagram was inspired by the blog post, The agile learner in a VUCA world , written by @alohalavina. VUCA is an acronym used to describe volatility , uncertainty , complexity...

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5 ways you could support your child as a PYP parent

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5 ways you could support your child as a PYP parent

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In addition to presenting about BLE design at the AEC Conference 2017 in Nairobi, Stephanie and I had the opportunity to attend a mindfulness workshop by the amazing Robyn Harwood (@rsharwood1). Since this powerful experience, I've begun to explore how teaching mindfulness can impact my community of learners. Here are some of the resources that I was given at the workshop, some of which I've tried in my own classroom, others which I am eager to explore deeper. Enjoy!

Students and teachers can take this quiz to identify strengths to help them with their learning.

A resource we cooked up to get students thinking about their day. Easy to implement now!

3. Mindfulness with Dr. Jon Kabat Zinn

From Professor of Medicine Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, this video is very memorable in helping teachers to grasp mindfulness concepts. "Check your watch, it's now"

4. Action for Happiness

A website for exploring what matters, endorsed by Dalai Lama. Lots of tips and strategies for happier living, including a happiness pledge!

5. Mindful Schools

Take the intro course to get yourself trained and ready to teach mindfulness in your classroom.

6. This Diagram

Great for explaining ways to create space between a problem and your response to the problem.

7. Find Your Anchor

We learned about how you can teach students to "find their anchor" to return to the present moment. Often this can be found by placing a hand on your belly or on your chest during mindful breathing. A good explanation for this can be found here.

8. Why Mindfulness Is a Superpower: An Animation

A Happify video on mindfulness as a superpower (Dan Harris). Great for thinking about mindfulness as something that it is not inherently easy, as some might think, but a lifelong pursuit that you need to work towards.

9. Campfires, Caves, and Watering Holes

These three archetypal learning spaces, originally identified by David Thornburg, has been so beneficial to my class that I will probably do a totally separate write-up on how I've implemented it. I'm a total summer camp person, having worked at camps for 6 years before I became a teacher. Check out this article explaining campfires, caves, and watering holes, and also check out my article (sort of related) on how I turned my class into the Survivor reality show!

10. Flip Your Lid Metaphor

The final resource that I will share here that I have found useful is the Dr. Daniel Siegel Hand Model of the Brain. Just watch below... it is great for explaining to kids how to avoid those animalistic instincts.

Thank you for visiting our website, and we encourage you to share it around and keep coming back. I want to extend a special thank you to Robyn Harwood (@rsharwood1) who was the first collector of these resources, as well as a great facilitator.

Feel free to follow me on Twitter, and join our facebook group, Over-Posting Educators!

- Zach Groshell (@MrZachG)

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10 Great Resources for Teaching Mindfulness

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In addition to presenting about BLE design at the AEC Conference 2017 in Nairobi, Stephanie and I had the opportunity to attend a mindfulness workshop by the amazing Robyn Harwood (@rsharwood1). Since this powerful experience, I've begun to explore how teaching mindfulness can impact my community of learners.

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ATL - Approaches to Learning - The Art of Learning

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changing the world - one child at a time

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from John Spencer

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The world is unpredictable. The corporate ladder is now a maze, which means our students will need to think divergently. In this article, we explore how to integrate divergent thinking into our everyday classroom practices. This is an updated version of an article that was originally created in March 2018.
If you enjoy this blog but you'd like to listen to it on the go, just click on the audio below or subscribe via iTunes/Apple Podcasts (ideal for iOS users) or Google Play and Stitcher (ideal for Android users).

https://spencerauthor.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Divergent-Thinking.mp3

When I was a kid, my twin brother and I loved watching American Gladiators. You remember, Lace, Zap, Blaze, Ice, and all the other characters whose names either sounded like street drugs or onomatopoeia. But over time, we became more and more inspired to create our own American Gladiators show at home. We spent a whole day sketching out our plans for how we would make it happen. Unfortunately, we didn't have the wood, pipes, and padding we needed to make a true gladiator course. We did, however, have a baseball bat, some old puffy slippers, and duct tape, which proved to be perfect for recreating the jousting game. Next, we discussed the ideal location for building a platform. Initially, we decided to use the swingset and then build a foam pit. Unfortunately, we didn't have foam. So, we jotted down ideas until we finally landed on the idea of the bunk bed. We stacked the two box springs and mattresses on the floor and stood on the top bunk of our bed next to a hand-painted American Gladiators sign we had created.

It was epic.

We spent hours playing our game, adding slight variations on it and eventually hacking the rules to make it less and less like American Gladiators and more and more like The Spencer Twin Gladiators. Looking back on it, I'm not sure if we ever asked permission. My parents were never really the helicopter type anyway. And we did have one moment where my brother took a cheap shot and I busted the light bulb on our ceiling fan. Or maybe I was the one who took the cheap shot. My memory is a little fuzzy on the incident.

Although we didn't realize it at the time, something powerful was happening when we invented our American Gladiators game. We were developing divergent thinking skills. It's the same thing that happened when we grabbed whatever random household objects we could find as apart of a competition to see who could come up with the best set of musical instruments. In both cases, we started with a bold idea and a lack of supplies. However, this creative constraint pushed us to "hack" the objects around us until we solved the problem and created something original. At the time, it wasn't a big deal. We were just playing. However, this type of divergent thinking has turned out to be a vital skill that my brother and I both use as adults. Apparently, that's what happens when you try to be Nitro from American Gladiators.

In the past, students could depend on a simple formula. Do well in school, get the right degree from a university, and climb a corporate ladder. That was the formula that worked well for my dad when he was younger. But the ladder is gone and in its place is a maze. Our students will walk into a tumultuous global economy. Automation and artificial intelligence will continue to replace analytical jobs. All of those things will make it harder to climb a ladder. Our students will need to think like entrepreneurs. They will need to be creative thinkers and innovators:
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In the future, students will need to be nimble. They will need to know how to experiment, iterate, and pivot. This is where divergent thinking becomes so critical. Divergent thinking is what allows students to make connections between seemingly random ideas. In the process, they find innovative solutions by looking at things from different angles, often finding inspiration from surprising contexts. Here, students learn how to "hack" items by using them in unexpected ways. They figure out how to mash-up two seemingly unrelated ideas.

If you're curious about divergent thinking, here's a quick sketchnote video:
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As we move further into automation and artificial intelligence, our students will need to think divergently. They may or may not enter the Creative Economy. However, they will all need to think creatively and find unique solutions for complex problems.

We, as educators, can boost divergent thinking for our students by integrating it into our daily practice. The following are specific strategies you can use as you inspire your students to think divergently.

#1: Use multiple types of divergent thinking.

You can use divergent thinking activities as quick warm-ups to activate creativity or as a brain-break in the middle of a more analytical task. These activities take five minutes, tops. In some cases, you might do a visual divergent thinking activity. You can show students a semi-abstract drawing and ask them to generate a list of possible ideas for what that picture might represent. Other times, you might present students with two or three items and then ask them to generate a list of possible things they could make with those items. One of my favorite language-oriented challenges is to ask students to change one letter in a sports team to make something new (so you end up with the Pittsburgh Pilates, the Phoenix Nuns or the L.A. Fakers). So, again, this divergent thinking might be more visual, spatial, or language-based.

If you have 60-90 minutes, you can do a longer divergent thinking challenge. Here's an example:
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If this is something you'd like to try out, you can download it by typing in your email address and clicking the yellow "submit" button. I will also send you a weekly email with free, members-only access to my latest blog posts, videos, podcasts and resources to help you boost creativity and spark innovation in your classroom.

#2: Embrace Creative Constraint

Although you can do divergent thinking exercises, it helps to integrate divergent thinking into the entire PBL process. One of the key areas is through creative constraint.

Divergent thinking thrives in when we are faced with limitations. This is the core idea of creative constraint. When you have fewer resources, you have to find new ways to use the existing resources you have. I remember a time when we went to the beach without any lawn chairs or toys. Our kids started inventing their own games. When they got tired, they created their own "sand chairs" with cup holders. Suddenly, the environment shifted from a location to a design element.

As educators, we can incorporate creative constraint in a few different ways. One option is to limit the time through rapid prototyping. This might involve a quick, timed maker challenge, where they have to move through iterations quickly. Or it might be a timed free write, where students get their words out without doing any planning in advance. When this happens, students grow less risk-averse in their creativity. They also develop creative fluency, where they are able to plan, implement, and revise a creative work quickly and with a sense of agency and control.

Other times, you might limit options or materials. I remember when I did whiteboard videos with students. They had to use the whiteboard and they had to sketch it out. Their end product had to be within 30 seconds. Instead of limiting creativity, these constraints actually pushed students to think divergently. We often hear the term "think inside the box," but divergent thinking says, "think differently about the box." Here's what I mean:
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#3: Incorporate play.

According to a longitudinal study, 90% of kindergartners rank in the "genius" level for divergent thinking. Within five years, the number drops to 50% and has a steep decline afterward. While some of this might be the result of human development, I think there's something else at work. Divergent thinking thrives when people play. It turns out there's a fascinating link between playfulness and divergent thinking. The researchers defined this as "physical, social and cognitive spontaneity; manifest joy; and sense of humor."

I remember last year when we had a huge snow storm and they canceled school. Okay, by a huge snow storm, I actually mean a few inches. This is Western Oregon, after all. Our kids made snow angels and snowmen and snow werewolves and snow ninjas. But eventually, these hours in the snow led to curiosity. My oldest son asked, "What will melt the snow the fastest?" From there, he tested every chemical imaginable and eventually designed his own de-icer. What began as play eventually led to divergent thinking.

This can be tricky in school, where we have tight curriculum maps and limited time. However, when teachers find ways to incorporate play and humor and joy into their curriculum, they create moments when students are able to think divergently. Take humor. It takes no extra time or effort but it's a simple way to model creative risk-taking and divergent thinking. But if you want to spend a little more time, you might do a play-oriented Maker Monday challenge, where you have students solve problems by playing with items to design something new.

#4: Use divergent thinking to get unstuck.

This is a simple idea but it's one of my favorites. Pixar's Rule #9 in their Rules of Storytelling states, "#9: When you're stuck, make a list of what WOULDN'T happen next. Lots of times the material to get you unstuck will show up." By generating a list of "bad ideas," you end up thinking divergently. You come up with random ideas that get you past your initial mental block, which can often lead to innovation. Going back to my American Gladiators story, my brother and I took an inventory of every single item we had that might be used to knock someone down. Our initial bad idea was the baseball bat (way too dangerous) but then we thought about adding pillows and this shifted into fluffy slippers. Divergent thinking was exactly what we needed in order to get unstuck.

You probably notice times in the classroom when students seem to hit a creative wall. They might seem disengaged or even off-task but when you look a little closer, they are scared. Scared of doing things the wrong way. Scared that people won't like their work. Or maybe it's less about fear and more of a general uncertainty and a sense that they can't solve a problem. When you ask them to list "bad ideas," you reduce the fear and help them to turn off the over-analytical mind and just get their ideas out.

#5: Celebrate creative risk-taking.

Our educational system tends to focus on getting the right answer and getting it quickly. But divergent thinking is different. It's all about taking creative risks. Every time you choose to use an object in a different way or connect ideas that seem disconnected, you are taking a creative risk. As the leader of your classroom, you can develop a culture that embraces creative risk-taking. I used to work with a teacher who would ask students to share their "epic fails" with their classmates. Students would say, "I took a creative risk by ________. It didn't work but I learned ________." Then the class would cheer afterward. His students were unafraid and, as a result, they were more likely to think divergently.

But this also requires changes in how we assess. We can't say, "I want you to think divergently," but then use a high-stakes approach to assessment and grading. This will make students risk-averse. Instead, we can take a mastery-based approach where students know they'll have the chance to resubmit their work for a higher grade. When they know that they can revise their work and ultimately create something that is worth putting in a portfolio they see mistakes and revision as a natural part of the creative process. You might even add a survey or self-reflection that asks students to examine whether or not they took creative risks in their projects.

I actually think creative risk-taking is important for us to do in our own practice. When we choose to design projects despite tight curriculum maps, limited time frames, and a lack of adequate technology, we are modeling divergent thinking for our students. Unfortunately, there's no guarantee that this will work. It might work. It could fail. And in a system that focuses on "best practices," this can be tricky. However, this uncertainty is at the heart of innovation.

But when we choose to say, "I'm going to try a different method" or "I'm going to hack the curriculum map," we end up modeling the kind of creative risk-taking we want to see in our students. The thing is, they're watching. They see the constraints we are faced with and they know when we are choosing to be divergent thinkers.

#6: Chase your curiosity.

Dyson vacuum cleaners had a huge creative breakthrough when they studied sawmills. A conference struggling to get people to sessions on time reconfigured their approach after looking at train schedules. An automotive company created a user-friendly console after applying design principals from gaming systems. These are all examples of cross-industry innovation found in a short book called Not Invented Here. And it's an example of how divergent thinking often works. Often when people leave the echo chambers of their own industries or disciplines, they become inspired by seemingly unrelated fields. It's no wonder, for example, that Darwin was a geologist rather than a biologist. He needed an outside perspective to transform the understanding of the origins of life.

This is at the heart of divergent thinking. You apply ideas and approaches from one domain into a seemingly unrelated context. In the process, you develop creative solutions. This feels counterintuitive but in a world where people are becoming specialists in really narrow domains, there is value in being able to ping-pong back and forth between tons of unrelated ideas, skillsets, and approaches. It's hard to predict ahead of time. When Eiji Nakatsu got into bird-watching, he probably didn't realize that he would apply that knowledge to a total redesign of Japan's bullet trains. But his geeky interest in something that initially seemed impractical is exactly the type of divergent thinking they needed for their redesign.

This requires an almost nonsensical curiosity where you geek out on anything that you find fascinating. It's all about chasing your questions and seeing where they lead you. One small example of this is the Wonder Day project:

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If you're interested in getting the Wonder Day project, you can download it by typing in your email address and clicking the yellow "submit" button. I will also send you a weekly email with free, members-only access to my latest blog posts, videos, podcasts and resources to help you boost creativity and spark innovation in your classroom.

#7: Get really bored.

I'm not entirely sure what this means for schools, but here it goes:

In a study conducted by Sandi Mann and Rebekah Cadman, participants had to copy names from a phonebook. It wasn't even a cool phonebook with fantasy names like Dumbledore or Flitwick. It was a standard phonebook that nobody uses anymore. After participants copied the names from the phonebook, they engaged in divergent thinking exercises where they had to come up with multiple uses for an object. This bored group scored higher in divergent thinking than the control group. They later modified this study by having participants read the phone book instead of writing out the names. This group reported higher levels of boredom and proved more successful in the divergent thinking exercise of naming multiple uses for an object.

Similarly, Neil Gaiman begins his writing process by setting aside all distractions and deliberately making himself bore d. Here's how he describes the process:

I think it's about where ideas come from, they come from daydreaming, from drifting, that moment when you're just sitting there... The trouble with these days is that it's really hard to get bored. I have 2.4 million people on Twitter who will entertain me at any moment... it's really hard to get bored. I'm much better at putting my phone away, going for boring walks, actually trying to find the space to get bored in. That's what I've started saying to people who say 'I want to be a writer," I say 'great, get bored.'

As a professor, I have a hard time with boredom. I want my class to be fascinating. I pride myself on keeping things interesting. But what if boredom is actually a gift? Or maybe not a gift. What if it's more like a discipline that you have to cultivate? It's no accident that great ideas happen when you're while you're taking a shower or while you're doing the dishes (note that preferably you shouldn't be doing both of these at the same time). We need boredom in order to make connections between seemingly unrelated ideas.

For what it's worth, I don't want students to be bored in school all the time. However, I think there are ways we can incorporate elements of boredom in order to boost divergent thinking. For example, at the elementary level, we can have moments in a project where the whole class takes a walk. This might sound like a waste of time but there's an interesting Stanford study demonstrating how 30-minute walks increased performance on divergent thinking tasks. Another option might be to create moments when students work for a longer amount of time on a task, completely free of distraction. But it also means there are moments when you push through the boredom of creative work; when you help students engage in deep work and hit a state of creative flow, even when it gets tedious. I'm not advocating for boredom so much as a willingness to develop creative endurance and to voluntarily choose to be undistracted in a culture that is always vying for your attention.

So, there you have it. These are seven ways you can inspire students to think divergently. I'd love to hear your thoughts on these and perhaps even other strategies that I might be missing. Chime in and leave a comment below.

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7 Ways to Inspire Divergent Thinking in the Classroom

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The world is unpredictable. The corporate ladder is now a maze, which means our students will need to think divergently. In this article, we explore how to integrate divergent thinking into our everyday classroom practices. This is an updated version of an article that was originally created in March 2018.

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Resource Hub for the IB Learner Profile Traits

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Explore picture books for the IB Learner Profile traits to use in the classroom, including being balanced, open-minded and reflective.

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Integrating Mindfulness in Your Classroom Curriculum

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Make mindfulness a part of classroom learning by integrating it into curriculum-themed activities through exercises in breathing, sensory experience, guided imagery, and movement.

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PYP: From Principles into Practice, Overview

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PYP: From Principles into Practice, Overview

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Inspired by Caine's Arcade

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GGSLOT777: Situs Judi Slot Gacor Gampang Menang dan Situs Slot88 Terbaik 2024

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GGSLOT777 adalah sebuah situs judi slot gacor gampang menang sekaligus juga situs slot88 yang resmi dan terpercaya di Indonesia tahun 2024.

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Navigating changing times in the Primary Years Programme 

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Navigating changing times in the Primary Years Programme 

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Mindfulness practices to bring into the classroom

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As more and more adults embrace the practice of mindfulness, many of them eventually ask, "Why didn't I learn this when I was a kid?"

There is plenty of evidence available now that demonstrates the value of teaching mindfulness to young people, and many of the benefits of mindfulness are skills and dispositions that are especially helpful in the context of education. Mindfulness practices help children improve their ability to pay attention, by learning to focus on one thing (e.g., breath, sound) while filtering out other stimuli. Mindfulness also provides kids with skills for understanding their emotions and how to work with them.

I'm not sure if there any other skills besides these - paying attention and regulating one's emotions - that are more important for successful human functioning, let alone education!

As teachers and parents, we have many opportunities to introduce young people to these practices. The most fundamental way we do so is through our own attempts to cultivate mindfulness: to be present, to pay attention, and to be aware of our own emotions and responses.

We can also bring these practices into our classrooms, providing students with opportunities to pause, to pay close attention to their experience, and to reflect.
The following are five simple ways you can introduce mindfulness practices into your classroom:
1. Begin with a Mindful Moment

For middle and high school students, the school day is pretty busy! Science to math to history to PE to English to Spanish, punctuated by the crazy state-fair midway chaos known as "passing time." Even in elementary school, kids spend a lot of their day taking in information, responding to the environment, interacting with others, and otherwise just being "ON." We rarely give them a moment to pause, settle their nervous system, and refocus their attention and energy on a new task.

At the beginning of class, or after a transition, you can take a mindful moment: invite kids to close their eyes (if they're comfortable doing so), and take a few deep breaths. They can pay attention to breathing - what does it feel like when they breathe in and out? Or they can notice their thoughts - is their mind really busy or quiet right now?

You can also use the short video below (a great option if you're new to mindfulness or if kids don't want to close their eyes):

2. Practice Mindful Listening

Mindful listening is one of the simplest ways to introduce mindfulness to kids, as it is often easier to focus on something more 'concrete' like sound; the instruction to "notice your breath" can be a bit abstract, especially for elementary students.

You can find a sample lesson on mindful listening here from Mindful Schools. You can find several other ways to teach mindful listening in this post I wrote here.

3. Take a Mindful Break

At the 2015 Education Minnesota conference, a middle school teacher shared the technique she used for mindfulness breaks in her class: at the beginning of each class, one student would get a bell. During that day's lesson, the student would ring the bell when he or she felt the class needed a break (the teacher set the bell-ringing limit at twice during at 50-minute class).

When the student rang the bell, even if the teacher was mid-sentence, class would stop. In silence, everyone would stand up and stretch, and then sit down for 30 seconds or so of mindful breathing. Then the student who rang the bell would prompt students to silently think of something they were grateful for. And then the lesson would proceed.

This practice only takes a minute, and it gives students (and teachers) a much-needed break. Sometimes we are in such a hurry to get through a lesson (I know I've been there!) that we forget to allow a bit of a brain break to allow the information to "land." Putting the students in control allows them to take ownership of the mindfulness practices in class, and it also gives the teacher valuable information about when students' attention is waning.

4. Check in with Your Attention

A variation on the attention break above is to have the teacher announce a short "attention check." You could do this in the middle of a lesson, or during the middle of independent or group work time. Ask students to pause and "check in with their attention." Is their attention here, in class? Was their mind wandering? If so, where had their attention gone?

Emphasize that mind-wandering is completely normal and to be expected - it's what minds do! The important thing is to notice what the mind is doing, and then to understand you now have a choice about where to direct your attention. We can't force kids to pay attention, but the more we practice this "attention check-in," the more skilled they will become at monitoring their own attention and redirecting it when necessary.

5. End with a Mindful Moment

Remember Madeline Hunter and all the talk about lesson "closure"? Many times, "closure" in my classroom consisted of yelling homework reminders at teenagers as they walked out of the room. Probably not what Ms. Hunter had in mind.

Recently, a middle-school teacher at a school I'm working with shared how she has incorporated mindfulness into her lesson closure every day this school year:

At the end of class, she takes 3-5 minutes to have kids close their eyes and focus on their breath. She has them think of what they have learned and what they accomplished. She gives them quiet time to settle their nervous systems before their next class, and then ends with a positive statement about how hard they've worked, how proud she is of them, or how much she cares about them.

She said it's had such a positive impact on her class, and the kids always remind her when it's mindfulness time - if she forgets, they make sure to let her know she "owes" them mindfulness!

And that, my friend, is what they call "closure." 🙂

If you'd like to know more about mindfulness practices for teachers, and how to incorporate mindfulness into your classroom, click the button below to learn more about my NEW course, Mindfulness for Teachers!

Additional Resources for Teaching Mindfulness

Change to Chill - Great website for teens about stress reduction and mindfulness ( see the videos about mindfulness here - my favorite is "What pizza wears gloves?")

Mindfulness Activities and Teaching Resources from MindfulTeachers.org

Teaching Mindfulness to Teens: Five Ways to Get Buy-In

10 Ways to Teach Mindfulness to Kids

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5 Mindfulness Practices to Bring to Your Classroom - Left Brain Buddha

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Mindfulness practices help children improve their ability to pay attention, by learning to focus on one thing (e.g., breath, sound) while filtering out other stimuli. Mindfulness also provides kids with skills for understanding their emotions and how to work with them.

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Day of Play

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Global School Play Day is a an event promoting the importance of unstructured play in schools. Unstructured play helps children develop 21st century skills.

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Learner Identities & Subjects, which includes traditional subject areas such as math & writing.
Sustainable Development Goals, which includes the global goals such as responsible production & consumption.

Nearly every one of my "inspiring inquiry" posts ends with at least one book recommendation. I wanted to revisit some of them, but I realized that I've now written so many inquiry posts that that would take quite a lot of time to click through.

Which brings me to today's post! It will be the first of a few book round-ups from my inquiry posts, starting with the International Baccalaureate PYP posts. The words in bold are the topic of the inquiry post (linked back the original as well). Please feel free to add additional book recommendations to the comments. Happy reading!

Empathy: The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig

Curiosity: Pond by Jim LaMarche; The Antlered Ship by Dashka Slater & The Fan Brothers

Commitment: A Lady Has the Floor: Belva Lockwood Speaks Out for Women's Rights by Kate Hannigan & Alison Jay

Enthusiasm: Fancy Nancy by Robin Preiss Glasser & Jane O'Connor; Sam & Dave Dig a Hole by Jon Klassen & Mac Barnett

Appreciation: Last Stop on Market Street by Matt De La Pena & Christian Robinson; Windows by Julia Denos & E.B. Goodale; How to Write Your Life Story by Ralph Fletcher

Independence: Chopsticks by Amy Krouse Rosenthal & Scott Magoon

Cooperation: Flora & the Peacocks by Molly Idle; Officer Buckle & Gloria by Peggy Rathmann

Integrity: Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett & Jon Klassen; The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs; This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen; Strega Nona by Tomie de Paola

Tolerance: Most People by Michael Lennah & Jennifer E. Morris

Respect: A Boy & A Jaguar by Alan Rabinowitz & Catia Chien; Don't Touch My Hair by Saree Miller

Knowledgeable: If Picasso Painted a Snowman by Amy & Greg Newbold

Caring: Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts & Noah Z. Jones

Principled: Penny & Her Marble by Kevin Henkes; We Found a Hat by Jon Klassen; Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett & Jon Klassen

Risk Taker: I'm Trying to Love Spiders by Bethany Barton; Jubari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall; The Dark by Lemony Snicket & Jon Klassen

Open-Minded: This Is How We Do It by Matt Lamothe; Harold & the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson; Finding Wild by Megan Wagner Lloyd & Abigail Halpin

Inquirer: Claymates by Dev Petty & Lauren Eldridge; Beyond the Pond by Joseph Kuefler

Communicator (& other communication post): The Big Bed by Bunmi Laditan & Tom Knight

Balanced: Moon by Alison Oliver & Cinder Edna by Ellen Jackson & Kevin O'Malley

Thinker: What Do You Do With A __? books by Kobi Yamada

Action: What Do You Do With An Idea? by Kobi Yamada & Be Kind by Pat Zietlow Miller

Social Skills: Do Unto Otters by Laurie Keller; We Found a Hat by Jon Klassen

Self Management Skills: Forever or a Day by Sara Jacoby; The North Star by Peter Reynolds

Where We Live PYP Unit: This House Once by Deborah Freedman

How We Express Ourselves PYP Unit & other unit: The Big Orange Splot by Daniel Manus Pinkwater; Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett & Jon Klassen; Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty & David Roberts

Great job if you made it all the way through this list! It made me so happy making it-nothing like a picture book memory lane. You probably also noticed the many Jon Klassen & Mac Barnett reads - I guess their work is just conducive to inquiry!

featured image: DeathToTheStockPhoto

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Best Inquiry Picture Books: PYP Round-Up

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Learner Identities & Subjects, which includes traditional subject areas such as math & writing. Sustainable Development Goals, which includes the global goals such as responsible production & consumption. Nearly every one of my "inspiring inquiry" posts ends with at least one book recommendation.

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From What Ed Said

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Webinar: Getting Practical with Planning

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Webinar: Getting Practical with Planning

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December 2018

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PYP Webinar: Getting practical with planning

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Picture Books to support the Learner Profile

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I have been collecting children's books for over 20 years. I have organized them in several different ways during that time- by theme, by author, by holiday. You name it, I have tried it. Now that I am teaching the Primary Years Program in an International Baccalaureate school (IB), I have decided to organize much of my collection and new acquisitions by the Learner Profiles as seen below.

I hope this list is a bit more up-to-date than some of the others out there. I am constantly getting new titles and adding to this list so check back often for new titles.

Happy Reading!

Going Places (Peter and Paul Reynolds)

Going Places (Paul and Peter Reynolds)

Going Places (Peter and Paul Reynolds)

Going Places (Peter and Paul Reynolds)

Rosie Revere, Engineer (Andrea Beaty)
© Boy Mama Teacher Mama 2018 All Rights Reserved
Posted in Tagged Children's Books and Activities, IB Primary Years Program |books for the learner profile, ib pyp, ib pyp learner profiles, learner profile books, learner profile picture books, learner profiles

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Picture Books for the IB PYP Learner Profiles

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I have been collecting children's books for over 20 years. I have organized them in several different ways during that time- by theme, by author, by holiday. You name it, I have tried it.

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Kristen Dee

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International School Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

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Caring:
A Chair for My Mother - Vera B. Williams

A sick day for Amos McGee - Philip C. Stead

Abdullah's butterfly - Janine Fraser

Bear - Ellen Miles

Beatrice's Goat - Page McBrier

Beyond the Mango Tree - Amy Browen Zemser

Chicken Sunday - Patricia Polacco

Deepsea whale rescue - Jan Ramage

Do not forget Australia - Sally Murphy

Dustbin Baby - Jacqueline Wilson

Elizabeti's Doll - Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen

Erika's Story - Roberto Innocenti

Frog and Toad are Friends - Arnold Lobel

Hugless Douglas - David Melling

Kensuke-s kingdom - Michael Morpurgo

Kindness - Kimberley Jane Pryor

Koala Lou - Mem Fox

Layla, queen of hearts - Glenda Millard

Love You Forever - Robert Munsch

Madlenka - Peter Sis

Miss Rumpius - Barbara Cooney

Mother to Tigers - George Ella Lyon

Mrs. Katz and Tush - Patricia Polacco

Number the Stars - Lois Lowry

Old Thomas and the Little Fairy - Dominique Demers

Onion Tears - Diana Kidd

Pictures of Hollis Woods - Patricia Reilly Giff

Princess Mia and the magical koala - Vivian French

Rose Blanche - Roberto Innocenti

Ryan and Jimmy: and the well in Africa that brought them together - Herb Shoveller

Sarah, Plain and Tall - Patricia MacLachlan

Silver Packages - Cynthia Rylant

Somewhere today: a book of peace - Shelley Thomas

Square cat - Elizabeth Schoonmaker

Thank You Mr. Falker - Patricia Polacco

The colour of home - Mary Hoffman and Karin Littlewood

The day of Ahmed's secret - Ted Lewin, Florence Parry Heide, Judith Heide Gilliland

The Kissing Hand - Audrey Penn

The legend of the Golden Snail - Graeme Base

The watcher: Jane Goodall's life with the chimps - Jeanette Winter

The Wednesday Surprise - Eve Bunting

The Wicked stepmother helps out - Tony Bradman

The Wump World - Bill Peet

Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge - Mem Fox

1000 times no - Tom Warburton

A Day's Work - Eve Bunting

Animal chatter - Kenna Bourke

Christophe's Story - Nicki Cornwell

Click Clack Moo, Cows that Type - Doreen Cronin

Counting on Frank - Rod Clement

Cracking the code - James Driver

Dear Baby, letter from your big brother - Sarah Sull,ivan

Dear Mrs. LaRue; Letters from the Investigation - Mark Teague

Dear Tooth Fairy - Alan Durant

Diary of a Spider - Doreen Cronin

Diary of a Worm - Doreen Cronin

Did you hear the news? - Allison Lassieur

From cuneiform to computers - Mark McArthur-Christie

Hazel Green - Odo Hirsch

Hooway for Wodney Wat - Helen Lester

Howling Hill - Will Hobbs

I Speak English for my Mom - Muriel Stanek

I will not ever never eat a tomato - Lauren Child

I will not ever never eat a tomato - Lauren Child

I wonder why the telephone rings and other questions about communication - Richard Mead

Marianthe's Story: Painted Words and Spoken Memories - Aliki

Marianthe's Story - Aliki

My brother Charlie - Holly Robinson Peete

Queen of the Universe - Libby Gleeson

Rain May and Captain Daniel - Catherine Bateson

Sitti's Secrets - Naomi Shihab Nye

Sometimes love is under your foot - Colin Thompson

The Bicycle - Colin Thompson

The Colour of Home - Mary Hoffman, illustrated by Karin Littlewood

The Cow that went OINK - Bernard Moot

The Ugly Duckling Returns - Tony Bradman

To the boy in Berlin - Elizabeth Honey

Trumpet of the swan - E.B. White

Voices - Edel Wignell

What the ladybird heard - Julia Donaldson

Where in the World - Simon French
Inquirer:
A Fine Fine School - Sharon Creech

Anancy and the Haunted House - I Keens-Douglas

Aquila - Andrew Norriss

Are You a Horse? - Andy Rash

Are You My Mother? - P.D. Eastman

Around the World - Who's Been Here? - Lindsay Barrett George

Ben & Gracie's Art Adventure: Frederick McCubbin - Mark Wilson

Bridge to Terabithia - Katherine Paterson

Counting on Frank - Rod Clement

Curious George - H.A. Rey

Curious George and the Pizza - Margret Rey

Curious George Visits the Library - Margaret and H.A. Rey

From One to One Hundred - Teri Sloat

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankwieler - E.L. Konigsburg

Goldilocks and the Three Bears - Jan Brett

Hazel Green - Odo Hirsch

How I learned Geography - Uri Shulevitz

How much is a Million? - David Schwartz

How Much, How Many, How Far, How Heavy, How Long, How Tall is 1000? - Helen and Walker Nolan

Hugo The Happy Starfish - One Step at a Time - Suzy Liebermann

In the Snow: Who's Been Here? - Linsday Barrett George

Journey to the river sea - Eva Ibbotson

Journeys - Harry Cory Wright

Jumanji - Chris Van Allsburg

Meteor! - Patricia Polacco

More than Anything Else - Marie Bradby

Mr. Archimedes Bath - Pamela Allen

Odd Boy Out, Young Albert Einstein - Don Brown

Olivia... and the Missing Toy - Ian Falconer

Peg and the Yeti - Kennith Oppel

Sam Goes to School - Mary Labatt

Save the planet: helping endangered animals - Rebecca E. Hirsch

Small Green Snake - Libba Moore Gray

Snowflake Bentley - Jacqueline Briggs Martin

Squirrel and John Miur - Emily Arnold McCully

Starry Messenger - Peter Sis

Stella, Queen of the Snow - Marie-Louise Gay

The Day of Ahmed's Secret - Florence Parry Heide

The Librarian Who Measured the Earth - Kathryn Lasky

The Mitten - Jan Brett

The Mozart Question - Michael Morpurgo

The Name of the Tree - Celia Barker Lottridge

The name of the tree: a Bantu tale - Ian Wallace

The Snowy Day - Ezra Jack Keats

The Subway Mouse- Barbara Reid

The Three Questions - Jon J. Muth

Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam and the Science of Ocean Motion - Loree Griffin Burns

Transformed; How Everyday Things Are Made - Bill Slavin

Verdi - Janell Cannon

What the Animals Were Waiting For - Jonathan London

What's the Matter with Albert? A Story of Albert Einstein - Frieda Wishinsky

Where are you going, Manyoni? - Catherine Stock

Where does Thursday go? Janeen Brian

Why Explore? - Susan Lendroth

Wolf goes to sea - Rob Lewis

Yellow & Pink - William Steig
Knowledgable:
A Grain of Rice - Helena Claire Pittman

Awesome Archaeology - Clive Goddard

Awful art - Michael Cox

Castles and forts - Simon Adams

Chasing Vermeer - Blue Balliett

Click Clack Moo: Cows that Type - Doreen Cronin

Diary of a worm - Doreen Cronin

Encyclopedia of Knowledge - Louise Spilsbury

From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler - E.L. Konigsburg

Hazel Green - Odo Hirsch

Heckedy Peg - Audrey Wood

How much poo does an elephant do? And other fascinating facts! - Mitchell Symons

If the World were a Village - David J. Smith

Knowledge and understanding in art - Robert Clement

Mary Anning and the Sea Dragon - Jeannine Atkins

Me- Jane - Patrick McDonnell

My Great-Aunt Arizona - Gloria Houston

Off to class: incredible and unusual schools around the world - Susan Hughes

Officer Buckle and Gloria - Peggy Rathman

Oh, yuck!: the encyclopedia of everything nasty - Terry Sirrell

One grain of rice: a mathematical folktale - Demi

Only one you - Linda Kranz

Starry Messenger - Peter Sis

That's incredible!: the world's most unbelievable facts & records - Curtis Slepian

The Bee Tree - Patricia Polacco

The boy without a soul - Michael Panckridge

The Incredible book eating boy - Oliver Jeffers

The Librarian Who Measured the Earth - Kathryn Lasky

The Library - Sara Stewart

The library 0 David Small

Tops and Bottoms - Janet Stevens

Toys go out: being the adventures of a knowledgeable stingray, a tough little buffalo, and someone called Plastic - Emily Jenkins

Triffic chocolate - Alan MacDonald

Westlandia - Paul Fleischman

What You Know First - Patricia MacLachlan

Amazing Grace - Mary Hoffman

Black? White! Day? Night! - Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Carmen learns English - Judy Cox

Dr. Xargle's Book of Earthlets - Jeanne Willis

Earth tigerlets as explained by Professor Xargle - Jeanne Willis and Tony Ross

Everybody knows that... goats don't dance! - Ethan Long

Free fall - David Wiesner

Gregory Cool - Caroline Binch

Hana's Year - Carol Talley

Hazel Green - Odo Hirsch

Henry and the Kite Dragon - Bruce Edward Hall

Hooway for Wodney Wat - Helen Lester

How my parents learned to eat - Allen Say

I will never not ever eat a tomato - Lauren Child

Ish - Peter H. Reynolds

Journey to the river sea - Eva Ibbotson

Marty McGuire - Kate Messner

Mrs. Katz and Tush - Patricia Polacco

My librarian is a camel : how books are brought to children around the world - Margriet Ruurs

Nips X1 - Ruth Starke

Odd Velvet - Mary Whitcomb

Old Henry - Joan Blos

Oliver Button is a Sissy - Tomie De Paola

One green apple - Eve Bunting

Only one you - Linda Kranz

Rose meets Mr. Wintergarten - Bob Graham

Rowan and the Keeper of the Crystal - Emily Rodda

Rowan and the Travelers - Emily Rodda

Rowan of Rin - Emily Rodda

Ruby's Wish - Shirin Yim Bridges

Sky color - Peter Reynolds

Stella by the sea - Ruth Starke

Stellaluna - Janell Cannon

Sunday Chutney - Aaron Blabey

Teammates - Peter Golenblock

The A+ Custodian - Louise Borden

The Brand New Kid - Katie Couric

The Camel's Lament - Charles Carryl

The Other Side - Jacqueline Woodson

The Turn-Around Upside-Down Alphabet Book - Lisa Campbell Ernst

To the boy in Berlin - Elizabeth Honey

Watch out for the chicken feet in your soup - Tomie dePaola

When Pigasso Met Mootise - Nina Laden

Where in the world - Simon French

William's Doll - Charlotte Zolotow

Zog - Julia Donaldson
Principled:
A Penny's Worth of Character - Jesse Stuart

Abdullah's butterfly - Janine M. Fraser

Arthur and the True Francine - Marc Brown

Bridge to Terabithia - Katherine Paterson

Dovey Coe - Frances O'Roark Dowell

Farmer Duck- Martin Waddell

First Apple - Ching Yeung Russel

Hazel Green - Odo Hirsch

I like being me - Judy Lalli

Jamaica's Find - Juanita Havill

Liar, liar, pants on fire - Diane De Groat

Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse - Kevin Henkes

Mr. Giant and the beastly baron - Tony Bradman

Not my fault - Leif Kristiansson

Number the Stars - Lois Lowry

Only one you - Linda Kranz

Otto runs for president - Rosemary Wells

Red scarf girl - Ji-li Jiang

Rose Blanche - Ian McEwan

Rose meets Mr. Wintergarten - Bob Graham

Rowan of Rin - Emily Rodda

Sarah, Plain and Tall - Patricia MacLachlan

Self-Discipline - Kimberley Jane Pryor

Snow White and the magic mirror- Tony Bradman

Stella by the sea - Ruth Starke

Taran Wanderer - Lloyd Alexander

The black cauldron - Lloyd Alexander

The Book of Three - Lloyd Alexander

The castle of Llyr - Lloyd Alexander

The Empty Pot - Demi

The Red Poppy - David Hill

The Trip Back Home - Janet Wong

The Wump World - Bill Peet

This is our house - Bob Graham, Michael Rosen

To the boy in Berlin - Elizabeth Honey

We are all born free: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Pictures 0 John Burningham

What makes day and night - Franklyn Branley

When Jesse came across the sea - P.J. Lynch

Reflective:
Banjo bounces back - Lachie Hume

Christmas Tapestry - Patricia Polacco

Elsina's Clouds - Jeanette Winter

Farmer Duck- Martin Waddell

First Apple - Ching Yeung Russel

Flour babies - Anne Fine

Frog is frog - Max Velthuijs

Frog is Frog - Max Velthuis

From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankwiler - E.L. Konigsburg

Grandfather's Journey - Allen Say

Grandfather's Journey - Allen Say

Hitler's daughter - Jackie French

Hitler's Daughter - Jackie French

Kamishabi Man - Allen Say

Last tree in the city - Peter Carnavas

Lone Pine - Susie Brown

Many Moons - James Thurber

Marianthe's Story: Painted Words and Spoken Memories - Aliki

Me- Jane - Patrick McDonnell

Memorial - Shaun Tan, Gary Crew

Michael Rosen's Sad Book - Michael Rosen and Quentin Blake

Mirror = Mira't - Jeannie Baker

Miss Rumphius - Barbara Cooney

Only Opal The Diary of a Young Girl - Barbara Cooney

Queen Nadine - Maryann Kovalski

Red scarf girl: a memoir of the Cultural Revolution - Ji-Li Jiang

Rose Blanche - Ian McEwan

Rowan of Rin - Emily Rodda

Saint in Brown Sandals - Elizabeth-Irene Baitey

Sarah, Plain and Tall - Patricia MacLachlan

Sarah's Questions - Harriet Ziefert

Secrets in the Fire - Henning Mankell

Small acts of amazing courage - Gloria Whelan

Snow White and the magic mirror - Tony Bradman

Stella by the sea - Ruth Starke

Stormy Night - Michele Lemieux

Thank you, world - Alice B. McGinty

The bear with the sword - Davide Cali

The bicycle - Cilin Thompson

The Book of Three - Lloyd Alexander

The Cat Walked Across France - Kate Banks

The cocky who cried dingo - Yvonne Morrison

The day of Ahmed's secret - Ted Lewin, Florence Parry Heide

The incredible book eating boy - Oliver Jeffers

The siege - Mike Johnson

The wicked stepmother helps out - Tony Bradman

There came a soldier - Peggy Mercer

This is our house - Bob Graham

Tiger-tiger, is it true? Four questions to make you smile again - Byron Katie

What you know first - Patricia MacLachlan

When Sophie Gets Angry - really, really angry - Molly Bang

Where in the World - Simon French

Where's Jamela? - Niki Daly

Zen Shorts - Jon J. Muth
Courageous (Risk-Taker):
Rose Meets Mr. Wintergarden - Bob Graham

Number the Stars - Lois Lowry

The House that Kojo Built- N.I. Razak-Soyebi

Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society - Adeline Yen Mah
Thinker:
A Couple of Boys have the Best Week Ever - Marla Frazee

Alexander Graham Bell: an inventive life - Elizabeth MacLeod

Bamboo Girl- Anthony K. Johnson

Baseball Bats for Christmas - Michael Kusuqak

Best Friends for Frances - Russell Hoban

Bridge to Terabithia - Katherine Paterson

Caps for Sale - Esphyr Slobadkina

Catkin - Antonio Barber

Crickwing - Janell Cannon

Dog's Night - Meredith Hooper

Elephants can paint too! - Katya Arnold

Emily's Art - Peter Catalanotto

From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankwiler - E.L. Konigsburg

Galimoto - Lynn Karen

Heckedy Peg - Audrey Wood

Henrietta and the Golden Eggs - Hanna Johansen

I will not ever never eat a tomato - Lauren Child

Ish - Peter Reynolds

It Ain't Gonna Paint No More! - Karen Beaumont

Katie and the Mona Lisa - James Mayhew

Katie Meets the Impressionists - James Mayhew

Kensuke's Kingdom - Michael Morpurgo

Kensuke's Kingdom- Michael Morpurgo

Leonardo and the Flying Boy

Planting the Trees of Kenya The Story of Wangari Maathai - Claire A. Nivola

Rachel. The story of Rachel Carson - Amy Ehrlich

Starry Messenger - Peter Sis

Swimmy - Leo Lionni

The Clay Ladies - Michael Bedard

The Dot - Peter Reynolds

The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq - Jeanette Winter

The Librarian Who Measured the Earth - Kathryn Lasky

The Library - Sarah Stewart

The Naked Lady - Ian Wallace

Voices of Ancient Egypt - Kay Winters

Westlandia - Paul Fleischman

What to do about Alice? - Barbara Kerley

When Jessie Came Across the Sea - Amy Hest

To be continued with updates on:
Balanced:
A Fine, Fine School - Sharon Creech

Bread and Jam for Frances - Russell Hoban

Where in the World - Simon French

Song and Dance Man - Karen Ackerman

Me, all alone, at the end of the world - M.T. Anderson

I like myself - Karen Beaumont

The Village of Round and Square Houses - Ann Grifalconi

One of Each - Mary Ann Hoberman

My Great- Aunt Arizona - Gloria Houston

Cinder Edna - Ellen Jackson

Roxaboxen - Alice McLerran

Ish - Peter Reynolds

Little Pea - Amy Krouse Rosenthal

The Greedy Triangle - Marilyn Burns

The Black Cauldron- The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

The Keeping Quilt - Patricia Polacco

Diamond Life: baseball sights, sounds, and swings by Charles R. Smith, Jr.

Scooters and skateboards - Wendly Sadler

More - I.C. Springman

Shine on, better-finger - John Agard

The three little pigs go camping - Tony Bradman

The pros & cons of being a frog - Sue DeGennaro

Otto runs for president - Rosemary Wells

Recipe for perfect planet pie - Kim Michelle Toft

Tiger-tiger, is it true?: four questions to make you smile again - Byron Katie

Snow White and the magic mirror - Tony Bradman

Stella by the sea - Ruth Starke

Where in the world - Simon French

Habitats and wildlife in danger - Sarah Levete

Only One You - Linda Kranz
Risk-Taker:
A fine, fine school - Sharon Creech

Watch out for the chicken feet in your soup - Tomie dePaola

The Important Book - Margaret Wise Brown

Roller Coaster - Marla Frazee

The Man Who Walked Between the Tower - Mordechai Gerstein

Sheila Rae, the Brave - Kevin Henkes

Mirette on the High Wire - Emily Arnold McCully

Brave Irene - William Steig

Suki's Kimono - Chieri Uegaki

Ira Sleeps Over - Bernard Waber

Courage - Bernard Waber

Amazing Grace - Mary Hoffman

From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankwiler - E.L. Konigsburg

Hooway for Wodney Wat - Helen Lester

Sarah, Plain and Tall - Patricia MacLachlan

There's a Nightmare in my Closet by Mercer Mayer

Dex The Heart of a Hero - Caralyn Buehner

Harry and the Terrible Whatzit - Dick Gackenbach

Ish - Peter H. REynolds

Scaredy Squirrel at the Beach, Scaredy Squirrel at Night - Melanie Watt

The Other Side - Jacqueline Woodson

William's Doll - Charlotte Zolotow

The Brand New Kid - Katie Couric

Cottonball Colin - Tony Ross

Cliffhanger - Jacqueline Wilson

Courage - Mei Wei Bo

Show Falling in the Spring - Moying Li

Goal! - Mina Javaherbin

Queen of the Falls - Chris Van Allsburg

Luka and the Fire of Life - Salman Rushdie

The Great Serum Race: blazing the Iditarod trail - Debbie Miller

The Great Escape: the longest tunnel - Mike Meserole

Sheila Rae The Brave - Kevin Henkes

Pippi Longstocking - Astrid Lindgren

How to steal a dog - Barbara O'Connor

Peak - Roland Smith

Dimity Dumpty - Bob Graham

Gleam and Glow - Eve Bunting

Looking for x - Deborah Ellis

The Snail and the Whale- Julia Donaldson

Ships in the field - Susanne Gervay

Jason Prince - Max Dann

Queen of the Universe - Libby Gleeson

Reading between the lions - Gillian Swordy

If I never forever endeavor - Holly Meade

The plant hunters: true stories of their daring adventures to the far corners of the Earth - Anita Silvey

There come a soldier - Peggy Mercer

Watch out for the chicken feet in your soup - Tomie dePaola

Red Scarf Girl: a memoir of the Cultural Revolution - Ji-li Jiang

Zizzy - Penny Matthews

Emily Brown and the elephant emergency- Cressinda Cowell

The Great Expedition - Peter Carnavas

Christophe's Story - Nicki Cornwell

Number the Stars - Lois Lowry

One smart fish - Christopher Wormell

The firework maker's daughter - Philip Pullman

This is our house - Bob Graham

A fine, fine school - Sharon Creech

Journey to the river sea - Eva Ibbotson

Sarah, plain and tall - Patricia MacLachlan

Taran Wanderer - Lloyd Alexander

Stella by the sea - Ruth Starke

Rowan of Rin - Emily Rodda

From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler - E.L. Konigsburg

Aquila - Andrew Norriss

Hazel Green - Odo Hirsch

Only one you - Linda Kranz

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PYP LEARNER PROFILE BOOKS - Bradbury Library

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Caring: A Chair for My Mother - Vera B. Williams A sick day for Amos McGee - Philip C.

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from Ellen Manson

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Australian International School

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created by Ryan Higbea, learn more here on his blog: https://making-teaching-visible.blogspot.com/2018/11/learner-agency-7-ways.html as well as this post: http://making-teaching-visible.blogspot.com/2019/01/learner-agency.html

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from Edna Jackson

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prior to enhancements, Chris Gasbury

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with supporting google docs from Rob Farmer, Dubai

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Trevor MacKenzie's graphics

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That single question put educator Trevor MacKenzie and a struggling student on an unintended and life-changing journey of inquiry, discovery and meaningful learning. It was a journey that completely reshaped the way MacKenzie leads his classroom.

With the belief that all students deserve a chance to dig into their wonders and curiosities, MacKenzie proposes a scaffolded approach to student-centred learning by identifying the Types of Student Inquiry: Structured, Controlled, Guided and Free Inquiry. Each type requires students take progressively more control over their own learning. This inquiry-based learning model equips students to become lifelong learners by nurturing wonder, curiosity and agency in the classroom.

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Trevor MacKenzie is an award winning English teacher, instructional coach (focusing on inquiry and technology), and graduate student from Victoria, BC, Canada who believes that it is a magical time to be an educator.

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Overlapping Units & Year-Long

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Preparing for the Enhanced PYP: the Learner

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Preparing for the Enhanced PYP: the Learner

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Chris Gadsbury

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from Sonya Terborg

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Earlier this year in April, I was asked by the IBO to create a planner for the PYP. Under the new PYP Enhancements, schools are able to create their own planners. The IB have created a planning document to guide this process - kind of a 'cheat sheet' to ensure your planning is balanced and reflective of the PYP elements. After being asked to do this, I tapped into one of the most valuable resource a school has: its people. Within a very short space of time, I had our principal, math coach, literacy coach, 2 second grade teachers, and a 4th grade teacher ready to help. We met, standing up around a white board table with markers in hand, and we talked. And we listened. At the end of it, I would take our ideas and try and synthesise them into a visual planning tool that both reflected our beliefs about learning and the PYP ethos on learning and planning for learning. And then we'd do it all over again. And again. And again. Until we came up with version six or seven which was submitted to the IB.

The big ideas from this planner:

it is about each individual student

we need to take time to provoke and wonder

we use our observations and conversations to guide next steps

our role is to gently prod and guide kids to their zone of "I don't quite know what I am doing but I know you'll help me learn"

The document is on the PYP Communities page and can be downloaded by schools. I created it on Pages - which I know is not everyone's cup of tea, but it is my tool of choice for projects like these. I still "own" the document and can share it and schools can choose to use it as it is or as a starting point for their own planning journey.

Recently, at the Learning2 Conference in Tokyo, Ben Sheridan shared an L2 Talk titled, "Together We Are Better". And I couldn't agree more with that sentiment.

What could have been a lone endeavor on my part became a collaborative undertaking. I learned a lot about listening, about digging into the intentions behind people's words, about respecting ideas and asking questions to make sure I was understanding what others were trying to say. I am really proud of the work we have done. Is it the best planner ever? Almost 🙂 What it is though, is a reminder to me that we can harness the power within our schools to create great things when we work together.

Last night I recorded a Webinar with Sarah from the IB on the Planning Process. It will be released soon and contains a wealth of information for you if you are planning on embarking on your own planning odyssey. From my perspective, the freedom to do this is a welcome change to the PYP and the learning about learning that occurs as a result is priceless. Give it a go and then share your ideas. I would love to work on Version 67 of this planner we have drafted....but first, Christmas holidays in New Zealand 🙂

A mom, educator, designer, creator. I care about kindness, representation, equality, and making a positive contribution. I began teaching in 1997 in New Zealand and have since taught from G1 through G10 in 4 continents. View all posts by Sonya terBorg

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No need to ask me to send you a copy! Click here and you will Download the pages version of the planner for editing! Earlier this year in April, I was asked by the IBO to create a planner for the P...

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With prompts to help

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Download and print these helpful graphics from Dive into Inquiry to support adopting inquiry and strengthening personalized learning in your classroom. Thanks go to Rebecca Bathurst-Hunt for collaborating on these sketch notes and for bringing my vision to life. Follow her at @rbathursthunt for an inquiry in the kindergarten classroom perspective.

Also head to the Exclusive Content area of our site to download more amazing graphics!

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Download and print these helpful graphics from Dive into Inquiry to support adopting inquiry and strengthening personalized learning in your classroom. Thanks go to Rebecca Bathurst-Hunt for collaborating on these sketch notes and for bringing my vision to life. Follow her at @rbathursthunt for an inquiry in the kindergarten classroom perspective.

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Unofficial Unit Planner with links to planner input help 

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Unofficial Unit Planner with links to planner input help 

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from Michael Hughes

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An example of a year-long inquiry into Who We Are with a shared CI across all grade levels 

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An example of a year-long inquiry into Who We Are with a shared CI across all grade levels 

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From Kirsten Dee, KIS http://bit.ly/2EKIRES

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This is a group for PYP coordinators at candidate or authorised schools to share ideas and to process. In order that the co-ordinators can discuss freely, ask questions and share thoughts, it is...

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Original children books

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Free Children's Books - Stories, ebooks, textbooks, and much more

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Children books for free download or read online, stories and textbooks and more, for entertainment, education, ESL, literacy, and author promotion.

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Unite for Literacy provides free digital access to picture books, narrated in many languages.

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1001 Actvities for Elementary School Age Kids

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Elementary school kids are creative, capable, and so much fun! Sometimes they just need a good idea for how to spend their time...we have tons of fun ideas!

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5 Home Learning Experiences for the Elementary Grades 

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5 Home Learning Experiences for the Elementary Grades 

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Activities that incorporate speaking and listening, reading and writing, math, music, science, art, and drama-and are parent-friendly.

With the announcement of school districts closing across America, most teachers have pivoted to respond to a new reality-face-to-face learning is not currently an option. In the shuffle from traditional schooling to remote learning, many teachers and parents are relying on grade-level or subject-specific packets and online learning. But there are other options.

Although most parents are familiar with the teaching profession, they're not trained as teachers, so the tasks that teachers share will have to be both doable for students and designed to allow parents to play a supporting role.

The following ideas incorporate speaking and listening, reading and writing, social and emotional learning, math, music, science, art, and drama. My hope is that they inspire parents to set up learning experiences and then follow their kids' lead. The truth is, there's no right answer for how to do any of this. There are, instead, many unique and beautiful ways for learning to unfold in this time.
Justine Marie Bruyère
5 Home Learning Experiences

1. Setting up a poetry coffeehouse: A poetry coffeehouse provides an intimate venue for students to read, write, and share poetry. When guiding kids to write poems, it's important to let them know that rhyming isn't necessary and that poems can be about anything. Good poem topics can come from the world around the child.

To hold a poetry coffeehouse at home, every member of the family selects a poem-the Poetry Foundation is a great place to look. (Families can instead do this with short stories if they prefer.) Each member practices reading their poem many times over. Parents can help by modeling for children so they hear the pacing, tone, and emotion of the poem.

In preparation for the show, families can create a sign: "Welcome to the ______ Family Poetry Coffeehouse." To help change the atmosphere, dim the lights and cue up a clip of an audience clapping. Finally, each family member will read their poem aloud-the readings can be streamed live for friends and extended family for a bigger audience.

2. Journaling: Journals, according to Julia Cameron, are companions. Journals are a place for dreams, fears, frustrations, and hopes-a place to reflect on and record regular life. Journals are a portable home for private thought and can be especially therapeutic in troubling times.

With children at home every day, journaling can be a way for children to keep track of the days and how they're feeling. It often helps for parents to journal at the same time, at least at the beginning. So how can parents start? First, they should find a comfortable place to sit and invite their child or children to watch as they think aloud, "I wonder what I will write about. I could write about what I'm going to make for dinner. Or maybe I'll write about what I wish I could make for dinner! Yes, that's what I'll do." Then the parent should start writing. From there, parents should encourage children to find their comfortable spot and begin.

Parents should be reminded that journals are private and should not be read unless children give their permission.

3. Composing a song: Joy, happiness, and well-being can be achieved through singing and making music. Creating a song should be a process-oriented, fun experience for all involved. Studies show that creating music and songs aids motivation and helps learners develop a love for language learning.

When I was a child, my family would write songs on long car trips. We chose familiar tunes and, mile by mile, made our own songs. Sometimes we would write them out, but most of the time, we just sang them over and over until they were memorized. When we reached our destination, we would do a presentation of sorts for the people we were meeting and make the obligatory video recording.

This format can be transferred to the Covid-19 living room, and songs can develop and change throughout the course of a day or week. Through song, kids can explore a variety of themes or topics. Long vowel sounds or consonant blends make for perfect song topics. Songs don't need to be serious-sometimes the funny ones are the best.
Justine Marie Bruyère
4. Putting on a puppet show: Making puppets can be surprisingly appealing in our technologically complex culture. Puppetry invites children and audience members to exercise their imagination, and puppets don't need to be made from a complicated list of materials-using recycled paper and cardboard, children can create really inventive puppets.

For some added fun, parents can prompt children to create characters, plots, and story lines, or to name all of the shapes they use in their puppet creation. And if they've made animal puppets, they can identify the animal's habitat and other details.

5. Composing alternate endings: When students are actively involved in the conception and construction of literacy experiences, they become more aware of the role they play in their own learning. Crafting alternate endings for stories offers opportunities for students to exercise their ability to see the everyday through a new lens.

To start, one person reads a story aloud, stopping at the climax. Then each member of the family can record-in writing, or with audio or video recording-how they think the story should end. Next, everyone comes together to share their endings.

For added fun, students can act out their endings for the family or hold "interviews" with characters from the story to uncover motives and backstory not shared in the original text.

In all of these, following the child's lead should be at the center of this learning. If a child is interested in frogs and toads, search online for poetry about them. If a child is fascinated by insects, make a family of puppet insects or write a song about them.

At the end of this pandemic, the goal is for children to have positive emotions and attitudes toward learning. To ensure that, parents need to show that they value kids' curiosity, individuality, attentiveness, and love of learning.

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5 Home Learning Experiences for the Elementary Grades

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Activities that incorporate speaking and listening, reading and writing, math, music, science, art, and drama-and are parent-friendly. With the announcement of school districts closing across America, most teachers have pivoted to respond to a new reality-face-to-face learning is not currently an option.

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Meditations for Kids

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Your Headspace Mindfulness & Meditation Experts

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We want children to be healthy & happy now & for the rest of their lives. Teach meditation for kids with Headspace, using easy exercises designed for young minds.

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Great brain breaks for primary students!

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"brain breaks" "brain breaks in the classroom" "move and freeze" "brain breaks for preschoolers" "action songs for children" "action songs for kids" "dance s...

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TheLearningStation - Kids Songs and Nursery Rhymes

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Visit us daily for a full serving of learning fun and educational videos for children brimming with active participation. We will be featuring some of our most popular Learning Station songs filled with active participation, nursery rhymes, brain breaks for the classroom, learning videos, camp songs, dance, holiday songs, action songs, and our very popular move and freeze dance songs for children.

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Great brain breaks for primary students!

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"brain breaks" "brain breaks in the classroom" "move and freeze" "brain breaks for preschoolers" "action songs for children" "action songs for kids" "dance s...

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TheLearningStation - Kids Songs and Nursery Rhymes

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Visit us daily for a full serving of learning fun and educational videos for children brimming with active participation. We will be featuring some of our most popular Learning Station songs filled with active participation, nursery rhymes, brain breaks for the classroom, learning videos, camp songs, dance, holiday songs, action songs, and our very popular move and freeze dance songs for children.

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Learner Profile Booklist – Early Years Collection

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Learner Profile Booklist – Early Years Collection

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IB PYP Learner Profile Booklist - Early Years Collection

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This ultimate list of picture books curated by Maggie Hos-McGrane is aimed at fostering the IB PYP Learner Profile Attributes in our young learners!