2nd Grade Anger

2nd Grade is discussing what happens when you get angry.  We read this fantastic book, by Julia Cook, and then we did an experiment with vinegar, warm water and baking soda.  Ask your 2nd grader what happened in the experiment, and why the boy in the book is called "soda pop head."

Kindergarten Personal Space

Ask your Kindergartner about personal space!  We read this FANTASTIC book together about personal space and why it's important.  We then did a fun activity to practice our personal space.  Ask your Kindergartner what activity we did, and about personal space :)

3rd Grade Self Esteem

3rd Grade is discussing self esteem.  Self esteem is how you feel about yourself.  We read this book together and talk about the importance of having good thoughts.  We also discuss how it's easy to think negative thoughts (which is what the monster represents in the book) and how to change those thoughts around.  Ask your 3rd grader about self esteem!

2nd Grade Conflict Resolution

2nd Grade is learning about steps to help solve problems, using the DEBUG method.  DEBUG is strategies to help when a conflict arises.  We read through a powerpoint together about a little girl who is struggling with her cousin bothering her.  The girl goes through all of the steps to try and solve the problem by herself but ends up needing help from an adult.  

The steps are:

1. Ignore

2. Walk away

3. Use kind words

4. Use firm words

5. Ask for help

We talk about the difference between kind and firm words and practice.  The kids are left with an easy way to remember how to solve problems on their own.  We also discuss how to ignore, if you cannot move away.  We talk about using "blinders."  Ask your 2nd grader how they use their blinders!

3rd Grade Conflict Resolution

3rd Grade is discussing how to effectively solve problems.  We talk about this STAR process.  We role play some examples and work through some real life problems that have happened.  I emphasize the importance of stopping and thinking before acting.  I go into detail about why this is important and relate it back to the brain.  When you are having big emotions, it's hard to make a good decision which is why people react and regret later.  It's important to stop and think to slow the brain down to help make better decisions.

4th Grade Coping Unit

4th Grade is starting a unit on coping.  We talk about the definition of coping and how it applies to us.  Coping is dealing with difficult things in an ok way.  I start the lesson by giving a volunteer a rock and asking him/her to change the rock.  After watching him/her throw it down, stomp on it, scratch it, etc. they start to realize they cannot change the rock.  I then give another volunteer some playdoh and ask him/her to change it.  Of course it is easily changed.  I relate this experiment back to our coping definition and expand- sometimes in life, problems happen.  These problems can be easy to deal with or not; they can be in our control or not.  The problems that are easy for us to deal with and we can change I label as "clay problems."  The problems that are not easy to deal with and we cannot change I label as "rock problems."  We discuss about the rock problems- we cannot do anything about it, and so we must cope.  We talk about problems we must cope with.  I ask the kids to reflect on their experiences- what in their life has been a rock problem and what has been a clay problem.  We will continue to coping next lesson!

5th Grade Decision Making Unit

5th Grade is starting a new unit about decision making.  We start the unit talking about the types of decisions there are to be made.  There are 3 types- I decisions, We decisions and They decisions.  We talk about each of these and I have them give me examples of each.  I decisions are those that they can make on their own.  We decisions are those that they are involved in making.  They decisions are those that others make for us, we do not have a choice in what it is.  We talk about how "they" decisions are harder to accept because someone else is telling us what to do.  We talk about how everyone has "they" decisions they have to accept- kids and adults, and I give examples.  We then turn our discussion about how the decisions they are making right now might effect their ability to make good "I" decisions in the future.  The adults are watching to see if they can handle making good decisions, if so- they are given the opportunity to make more "I" decisions as they get older.  This is a fun discussion for me to watch- the kids start to understand that as they get older, they will get more chances to be more independent, but that all depends on their ability to make good choices now.  We will continue our discussion about decision making next time we get together.

1st Grade Feelings

1st Grade is working through this book.  We are learning new feeling words, and expanding our vocabulary.  The kids identify what feelings the know- happy, sad, mad, scared, etc.  We then go into other feelings such as frustrated, angry, zany, brave, courageous, delightful, impatient, etc.  It's fun to watch their reactions when I teach them what these feelings are.  They seem to have experienced them, but do not know the name to the feeling.  After reading the book, we play feelings charades.  It is a fun time!

3rd grade friendship lesson

3rd grade is discussing what a good friend is.  We read this book together, by the amazing author Julia Cook.  In this book, the brown crayon feels that he is not as good as the other crayons, and that he does not have a lot to offer.  He soon discovers what he needs to do and starts to feel better.  This book discusses many important friendship qualities that are for making and keeping friends.  Each crayon had a different quality.  The kids reflect and discuss what qualities they are good at, and what qualities they need to work on, to be a better friend.

5th Grade Problem Solving

5th grade is discussing problem solving.  We discuss the 4 step process together and talk about the importance of stopping before acting.  We talk about thinking about what the choices could be, and what they are, what they could do and what they should do, and lastly, what their action is going to be.  We then discuss what act means- the physical part of the process- what you actually do.  Review is very important to think about.  I tell the kids to review the whole process a day later- what happened, what their action was, what they could have done, should have done, and what they plan to do next time this problem occurs.  We then go through a few situations and they problem solve together using this model.

2nd Grade Tattling Lesson

2nd graders have been discussing tattling vs. reporting.  This is an important lesson to follow after bullying to make sure the kids know what the difference is, and why reporting is so important.  We read the book above and discuss what happens with the pigs in the story.  We then discuss what the 3 rules are for reporting and when it's appropriate to let an adult know: 1. someone is hurt 2. someone is in danger (includes bullying) 3. property is being damaged.  We role play and discuss different situations to help the kids apply our newly discovered knowledge!

Kindergarten bullying lesson

The Kindergartners have been working with the bug puppets (pictured below) in the curriculum "Stand Up Against Bullies!" They have been working on strategies to help with bullying.  We have talked about ignoring, walking away, avoiding and using an "I message."  An "I message" consists of 3 parts- I feel_____  When you____  I would like _______.  

Ask your kindergartner about the bugs and how they're doing in bug school :)

4th Grade I'm in Charge

4th grade will be talking about safety at home during this lesson.  We will view the I'm in Charge DVD made by the Assistance League of Kansas City.  Included in the DVD are safety things to consider while at home, specifically- at home alone.  The kids get to bring home a book with all of the information in it, from the DVD.  Please review this booklet with your child- it includes very important information, even if your child is not staying home alone, yet.

Rude, Mean or Bullying Article

In talking with kids, we sometimes have a hard time determining if a behavior is rude, mean or bullying.  In my experience, people are very quick to determine the behavior is bullying but it may be just rude or mean.  Bullying is a very big deal and has lots of consequences associated with it.   Please see the article I have linked below to help you understand the difference between the 3, and help our kids understand the difference.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/passive-aggressive-diaries/201211/is-it-rude-is-it-mean-or-is-it-bullying

Safe Touch Lessons

In the month of October, we will be reviewing our Safe Touch lessons in all grades.  We will be discussing the steps to be safe, which are as follows: 1. Say No   2. Get away  3.  Tell a trusted adult.  We will be discussing what safe touch (one that makes you feel good, like a hug from a family member) is and what bad touch is (one that makes you feel uncomfortable, confused or makes the "uh oh" voice go off in your head).  

These lessons will be presented in a developmentally and non threatening environment.  You have the right to opt out of the lessons, as Parents.

Please contact Ms. Paul if you have any questions!

3rd Grade Bullying Strategies

    



The 3rd graders are talking about how to deal effectively with bullying.  They are taught strategies and also how to report when there is a concern.  We read the book Simons Hook and talked about when bullies try to "hook" you- what will your reaction be?  Will you bite the hook, or choose a strategy to stop the bullying and then report the concern?  Ask your 3rd grader about what strategies they learned.

1st/2nd Grade Split Bullying Lesson

The students in our 1st/2nd grade split learned about bullying with the book The Juice Box Bully. They talked about what bullying is and what to do about it.  They shared with a neighbor what they would do if they were in the story and Pete was bullying them.  Ask your student about Pete, and why he was a bully in the story.

2nd Grade Bullying Strategies

The 2nd graders were reminded of what bullying is.  They discussed strategies of how to handle bullying in this lesson.  They came up with the following strategies- walk away, ignore, say "please stop," and most importantly- report to an adult.  We discussed how to report to an adult, and why it is so important.  Ask your 2nd grader about Marlene!

5th grade bullying strategies

HA HA SO

5th grade is working on strategies of how to deal effectively and appropriately with bullying.  I have given them the acronym HA HA SO, with each letter being a strategy. 

H- help

A- assert yourself

H- humor

A- avoid

S- self talk (positive)

O- own it

These are all strategies to defuse the situation and get away as quickly as possible.  I have informed them all the importance of reporting these incidences so the adults can help when needed.  They have several ways they can report.  Ask your 5th grader if they remember the strategies :)

Kindergarten bullying lesson!

In Kindergarten, we are discussing what bullying is, and what we can do about it.  The kids are introduced to several bug puppets.  They "pretend" to go to bug school.  The grasshopper puppet is the teacher of bug school.  Ask your kindergartner who is the bully at bug school and what he is doing to be a bully.  The ant and bee are the other kids in bug school.  We have so much fun!

1st Grade Bullying Lesson

Ask your 1st grader about the Band Aid Chicken.  The Band Aid Chicken is a puppet and a book we read about bullying.  The Band Aid Chicken was being bullied in the chicken yard.  He worked up enough courage to stand up to the other chickens and make the bullying stop.  Ask your 1st grader why the Band Aid Chicken needed to have band aids all over his head.

Anger management resource!

Hey everyone!

This article is a great resource for how to manage anger in children.  Enjoy!!

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2016/03/02/anger-management-for-kids_n_9359438.html

2nd Grade Bullying Lesson

2nd Graders are working on the definition of bullying, strategies to handle bullying and what to do if you see bullying.  We are talking about the types of bullying, and the different roles in a bullying situation.  Ask your 2nd grader about the book we read called Bully Beans by Julia Cook.  Ask your child about the bully in the story, and how the other students handled her behavior.  Ask them about the beans the kids in the book ate, and how they helped the characters.  It's a great book!

3rd grade bullying lesson

Our 3rd grade is working through the book The Bully Blockers Club.  They are learning what bullying is and what to do about it- if you are a bystander or a victim.  Ask your 3rd grader what Lotty went through (Lotty is a character in the book), and how she made her situation better.

4th grade bullying

The 4th grade is working through the book Just Kidding by Trudy Ludwig.  We are discussing what bullying is using the acronym RIP and how it is different from teasing.  Bullying is repeated, intentional and power seeking.  We discussed how teasing can turn into bullying and how careful we need to be with our words, as they could turn into verbal and emotional bullying.

5th grade bullying lesson

During a 5th grade lesson today, we discussed the book Say Something by Peggy Moss.  We talked about what bullying is, and what to do about it.  The book is about the importance of doing something, when you see something happen.  It's about saying something instead of watching it and waiting for someone else to do something about it.
I left them with the quote "if you think you're too small to have an impact, try going to bed with a mosquito in the room."- Anita Roddick
NO ONE is too small or unable to have a positive impact.  It only takes 1 person!

7 ways to help kids manage intense feelings

Here's a great resource for managing intense feelings.  This article discusses ways to help a child through feelings in an effective way!  Enjoy!
http://kidlutions.blogspot.pt/2012/01/7-skillful-ways-to-help-kids-manage.html

Welcome to the first blog post of the 2017-2018 school year!  I am so excited to be here and to be doing what I have the privilege to do, everyday!  I enjoy working with the kiddos, parents and staff at Linden West.  You will find resources on my blog, pictures and information about my classes as we go through the year.  Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!  816.321.5879  Ashley.paul@nkcschools.org