one s.m.a.r.t. teacherYou likely have a great S.M.A.R.T. rhythm going in your classroom. You may be looking for new and creative ways to incorporate vision activities. Are you struggling to find a place to hang Tactile Trackers or Wagon Wheels in your S.M.A.R.T. space? One S.M.A.R.T. teacher, Molly from Sibley East, found a creative location.
During a S.M.A.R.T. mentoring visit, Molly inquired about hanging visual pursuits below her whiteboard and having students sit while doing the activity. We observed this and found it to be a fantastic option. Not only is it an excellent use of real estate in your classroom, but sitting provides a bigger base of balance while doing this activity, helping to isolate eye movements, potentially giving students an opportunity for better results. Do you have any lower wall space available? We hope you give this a try.
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Supporting your child's reading development at home is likely a high priority. Whether your child(ren) is strong in reading or still progressing, all children benefit from eye movement exercises. To encourage and engage your child in vision activities, try making a few of these mazes. Draw simple outlines on a piece of paper. Add some academic content that is age-appropriate for your child.* Hang the mazes at eye level on the refrigerator with magnets. Encourage your child to cover one eye and trace the maze with their finger slowly. This causes the eye to track the finger from the start of the maze to the end with smooth eye movements. Repeat that step, but cover the other eye this time. Finally, trace it a third time without covering either eye, slowly tracking their finger from start to finish. Here are some academic type ideas for your maze:
In Kasson-Mantorville, students celebrated spring by slapping cards, prompting them to say “green grass.” One pocket contained a large green square, and the other contained a Ziploc bag of green Easter grass, which can be found in local dollar stores, Walmart, or Target. Creeping and crawling are key developmental movements that help to solidify the foundational skills students need for academic success. We love seeing how each school offers variations to these vital activities, keeping students engaged in the movement.
Spring is in the air! We know this time of year is a very busy one for educators. There are so many things happening as we begin to think about what we need to accomplish before closing out the school year. The promise of green grass, blooming flowers, and vibrant rainbows has inspired us to create some vision activities you can print and put into use immediately.
Our springtime Overs and Unders (S.M.A.R.T. PreK) and X and O (S.M.A.R.T. Elementary) are a great way to work on eye movements and can be easily used when slipped into page protectors. They can be used with dry erase markers as a visual motor activity at a center. Remember to have your students cover one eye to trace the first line, cover the other eye to trace the second line, and finally trace the last line without covering either eye. ONE S.M.A.R.T. SCHOOL
The following summer, trainers of the S.M.A.R.T. program went to Delaware to provide training to the entire staff, laying the foundation for a successful implementation. Be sure to “meet” the Delaware team that started it all at the end of this article!
The room utilizes every inch of space for intentional movement. The small classroom space holds ten movement activities for students set out in a side by side winding layout so that students can move constantly. The stations are numbered and labeled with tape large enough for students to identify quickly as they enter the room and are given the number where they start. Laminated Learning Ladders are focused on math content that correlates to the learning standards they are working on. Both sides of the Learning Ladders contain content, making it easy to switch content just by turning the Ladder around after a week. The well used Slap Track got a clever “upgrade” using just a mat and some packing tape. High frequency words were printed out and taped to the mat. As long as you pull up the words and tape at least every two weeks, the words should be adhered to the mat nicely. This makes for an easy wipe down of the mats too! Curious if a S.M.A.R.T. workshop would be just as inspiring to your school? Here’s what the team from JMC had to say… Calling all creative S.M.A.R.T. educators!! Enter a drawing to win S.M.A.R.T. posters! Are you ready to transform an empty classroom into a dynamic S.M.A.R.T. room that boasts intentional movement, happy, active students, and sensory stimulation that impacts academics? Here's your chance to unleash your creativity and contribute ideas that will turn a new space into an active space! John M Clayton Elementary has a busy and thriving S.M.A.R.T. room for their kinder and 1st grade students. They are in the process of stocking a second motor room specifically for second grade and up.
This Sit and Spin provides a gentle, controlled spinning motion that stimulates the vestibular system, which is crucial for balance, coordination, and spatial awareness development.
*It is important to point out that this fun toy should be used in addition to and not in place of Helicopter Spins. The Sit and Spin does not replace the intensity that comes from that CORE activity. We loved seeing Sit and Spins in action recently in a S.M.A.R.T. room we visited. It added fun to the course, which kept students entertained and engaged. We encourage finding a safe space and time of day to incorporate Helicopter Spinning so that vestibular development can be fueled all day long. Last month, we shared a way to infuse a little fun into spelling practice. This month, we would like to add to your homework help bag of tricks by giving you an activity that pairs movement with learning. Take your child’s spelling words and write them in a bit larger print on a sheet of paper. Encourage your child to read the whole word and then spell each individual sound. While they are spelling, add in a movement. Here are some of our favorite suggestions:
The more times the word is spelled, the more inputs or repetitions enter the brain, helping with retention. Movement anchors learning, making an academic task more active and fun! one s.m.a.r.t. teacherIn fond memory of Cindy Sperr, a pioneer S.M.A.R.T. Pre-K educator
A Chance To Grow had the privilege of welcoming Cindy into the S.M.A.R.T. community in 2005 when she participated in the S.M.A.R.T. Pre-K pilot project. Her love of children, understanding of how they learn best, and drive to serve each and every child, caused her to stand out as a S.M.A.R.T. educator. The development and creation of S.M.A.R.T. Pre-K would not have been possible without Cindy and her colleagues' unfailing commitment to our partnership and willingness to open their sites and classrooms, sharing their profound understanding of young children. Cindy was a true leader in this regard.
As her experience in classrooms grew, so did her creativity in implementing S.M.A.R.T. Pre-K. Cindy had the gift of thinking outside of the box, not allowing time, space, or budget hurdles to cause her to drift away from implementing a program she believed benefitted all children. In fact, Cindy’s creative implementation of a vision activity is one of the most replicated S.M.A.R.T. ideas to date. Follow the link here>> to be inspired by this S.M.A.R.T. use of space. We are honored to have her contributions in writing as she is featured in our Pre-K Program Guides as One S.M.A.R.T. Teacher in several activities. Let us join together in celebrating Cindy’s remarkable 25 year journey in Head Start and find inspiration in how many lives she touched. Cindy passed away in December 2023 but her legacy is no doubt etched in the hearts of the children and families she supported. S.M.A.R.T. training taught us that CORE activities are meant to be included daily. Why? We are focusing on developing and enhancing physiological readiness skills. Once readiness skills are in place, children have the necessary tools to become lifelong learners. We want every child to succeed. One of our biggest hurdles is time. To save you some time and encourage you to build in vision activities, here are many winter themed Visual Mazes/Tactile Trackers ready for printing and hanging. A big thank you to Katy, a second grade educator from Janesville, WI for sharing her creations with us. Scroll down for access to this download. Download:
Need additional resources? Check out our November 2023 One S.M.A.R.T. Teacher for ideas on how to use mindfulness mats as a vision material. Do you have a few designs you would like to share? Send them over to mlrc@actg.org and be featured in an upcoming newsletter. |
AuthorSCheryl Smythe Archives
April 2024
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