BlogsAcademicsEnglishPre-K to 8AdmissionPrimary Grades
Super Spellers: My Day in First Grade
May 2, 2013 11:05 AM
By DeLean Brandon - FF/S
I cannot believe what I saw today.
I surprised Rachel Harrison’s first-grade class with a visit today and from the moment I walked into her classroom, I was impressed. The students were enthralled in discussions about sentence corrections. They were sitting around Mrs. Harrison correcting sentences with all kinds of errors, including grammatical and spelling mistakes.
Besides rewriting the sentences and making corrections, they were eager to participate verbally by giving their opinions and answers. One student told me that learning about quotation marks was his favorite subject in grammar. He also enjoyed making the macaroni quotation chart that was proudly displayed in her classroom.
Mrs. Harrison then redirected them to the class spelling bee. Each student stood in line quietly yet anxiously awaiting his or her turn. After calling out words with the phonics they were studying, she went on to a more difficult group of words. She asked them to spell different countries and their capitals (some of which I did not even know! ) One of them was Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. I was amazed with their ability to sound out these words.
Mrs. Harrison lovingly consoled those who missed their word by telling them that she loves them and asking them to rewrite the misspelled word several times. Once the group was narrowed down to the Elite 8, she gave them a reward of joining her for lunch. The students were ecstatic! Imagine that -- students EXCITED to sit by their teacher at lunch. The first- and second-place students were then able to call their parents to tell them their big news.
At snack time, I asked several students what they liked best about Darlington. Some of the responses included, “I like fractions the best” or “I love Spanish.” Another said, "Math is my favorite subject.” It is clear to me that here at Darlington, even our youngest students love to learn. It got me wondering whether students at other schools would have the same responses.
If you are interested in visiting first grade or any other grade level at Darlington, please contact me anytime. I'm always looking for a great excuse to get into the classroom!
I surprised Rachel Harrison’s first-grade class with a visit today and from the moment I walked into her classroom, I was impressed. The students were enthralled in discussions about sentence corrections. They were sitting around Mrs. Harrison correcting sentences with all kinds of errors, including grammatical and spelling mistakes.
Besides rewriting the sentences and making corrections, they were eager to participate verbally by giving their opinions and answers. One student told me that learning about quotation marks was his favorite subject in grammar. He also enjoyed making the macaroni quotation chart that was proudly displayed in her classroom.
Mrs. Harrison then redirected them to the class spelling bee. Each student stood in line quietly yet anxiously awaiting his or her turn. After calling out words with the phonics they were studying, she went on to a more difficult group of words. She asked them to spell different countries and their capitals (some of which I did not even know! ) One of them was Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. I was amazed with their ability to sound out these words.
Mrs. Harrison lovingly consoled those who missed their word by telling them that she loves them and asking them to rewrite the misspelled word several times. Once the group was narrowed down to the Elite 8, she gave them a reward of joining her for lunch. The students were ecstatic! Imagine that -- students EXCITED to sit by their teacher at lunch. The first- and second-place students were then able to call their parents to tell them their big news.
At snack time, I asked several students what they liked best about Darlington. Some of the responses included, “I like fractions the best” or “I love Spanish.” Another said, "Math is my favorite subject.” It is clear to me that here at Darlington, even our youngest students love to learn. It got me wondering whether students at other schools would have the same responses.
If you are interested in visiting first grade or any other grade level at Darlington, please contact me anytime. I'm always looking for a great excuse to get into the classroom!
