She is Malala!

Yesterday I showed the ABC News 20/20 Special on Malala, which first aired a few weeks ago. My 5th graders were definitely interested in her life's story. I asked them to consider a few questions as they watched. Some of the "notes" they took, ended up being three or four pages of vivid details from the documentary. We then turned this into a very traditional writing assignment under the guise of that "other" writing genre known as the constructed response. Doing that however, did not prove to be a difficult task for them. Most wanted to write about her!

Here's the link:

http://watchabc.go.com/2020/SH559026/VDKA0_h4z0gfdp/2020-1011-unbreakable-one-girl-changing-the-world

Skyping in Science class!

Today was great! We "skyped" and "hung out" on Google (Google Hangout) with entomology Ph.D candidates at Penn State! This was the first time I had ever attempted something like this and it was fun! My 5th graders asked many excellent questions and the Penn State students were very gracious and wonderful! I can say for sure that there are future scientists that are sitting in my classroom at John B. Kelly Elementary School!

Social Media and The Classroom

I'm not sure how other teachers use social media to teach or to communicate with families, but here's how I use social media:

Twitter for homework and announcements
www.twitter.com/Flemming105










Instagram for examples of projects, student work, or just funny scenes from the classroom! (Note, no student pictures without parental consent)
www.instagram.com/myclassroom105

Science Fun!!!

I've taught every major subject but science! This is my first year taking on that challenge! So far we've delved into entomology and my students, other colleagues, and students of other grades have caught the entomological fever! It is very exciting so see other children come up and say, "Mr. Flemming, I saw a bug in the hallway" or "Mr. Flemming, I saw a daddy-long legs in my house!"

Recently, my students caught a praying mantis in the school yard, bagged it and brought it in from recess. We took it to the classroom, took a couple of pictures, and all made our way back to the yard to set Major (that's what we named him) free! Check out some pics on our class instagram site (www.instagram.com/myclassroom105).

It is equally exciting to collaborate with other colleagues as they come across "bug" articles or video clips and share them with me!

Even though, we've moved on to cytology, we're weaving in and out of entomology as the children come across interesting finds (both living, dead, and otherwise). As recently as yesterday a kid found a dead ant in the classroom and is anxious to look at it under the microscopes I purchased for the class.

This is fun! I want my ELA back, but at the same time, I'm making the most of science by making it experiential!!

The Classroom...

Here's a link to my first ever article in a magazine of any type! I appreciate Forest of the Rain for giving me that chance. I love writing and I write frequently, but never have I done this before. I hope you enjoy my take on "The Classroom"

Click the link...

http://content.yudu.com/Library/A2hcmw/2013FallEditionLivin/resources/index.htm?referrerUrl=http%3A%2F%2Ffree.yudu.com%2Fitem%2Fdetails%2F1358914%2F2013-Fall-Edition-Living-Education-eMagazine-Vol.-VII

Can THEY do this?

In my head, in front of the class, on the spot....I'd like to see politicians do this type of thinking in front of 30 5th graders, all while maintaining order, answering the class phone, and looking at a kid trying to sneak a snack!!!

"Okay, that lesson on the old East-West trade routes and the Turks' capture of Constantinople went better than I thought! The kids were engaged. We had a bit of fun while learning! I acted a complete nut just now, but it was for the good!! Thank God for Google Earth and this SMART board that my principal a few years ago purchased when there seemed to be a little bit of excess! I wanted to do a 45-minute/45-minute split of Social Studies and Science. So since this lesson went well, the kids were engaged and I can tell they are learning based on the use of slates and dry erase marker responses, I'll just keep going with this. At the '30 minutes' left mark of the Science/Social Studies block, I'll abbreviate what I was going to do and hit a major point or two, since I already planned to extend the Science block this Thursday and Friday anyway. I'll explain the entomology research project to them, take questions, then end the class. I'll put off the reading of this mini-article on predators until tomorrow."

"Okay, everybody, here's the question I want you to answer on your slates, what types of goods were..."

Being a black boy isn't a disease!

Dear World,

Being a black boy is not a disease that needs to be diagnosed, x-rayed, poked, prodded, studied, and drugged up! Since when did being a boy become an ailment, and particularly being a black boy??

I am SICK and TIRED of boys who look just like me being diagnosed with ADD, ADHD, ODD, ABCD, this D, that D and the other D!!! With those diagnoses, comes the medicine, the IEPs, the behavioral this and behavioral that; the stigma, the treatment, the preconceived notions and ultimately the ire of society!

It's no wonder prisons are stuffed with kids and men who look like me! It's no mystery why these guys are being killed on the streets in higher percentages than others! They are literally out of their minds, druggies since five!!

I'm not a conspiracy theorist (except when it comes to Governor Corbett and the funding of Philadelphia's public schools), I just can't help but notice what seem to be disproportionate numbers!

Make no mistake, I do not condone boys using this as an excuse for stupidity! You act dumb, dumb stuff will come, point blank! But as a society we can do our part and not assume that because a five-year-old boy runs around the school that something is wrong with him! Regain order, yes! But we need to think long and hard before we "treat"!!

Is something really the matter with him, or does he spend hours on end in our classrooms then goes home to the same amount of space for several more hours with many more people? Is he the product of a less than ideal pregnancy and would more "skittles" really help? Let's ask ourselves these and other questions before that prescription or IEP is written, because once written...

First, do no harm!

Yours truly,
Me