Lesson's you can't "plan" for

My favorite kind of lessons are those lessons that you don't plan for.  Not just that you don't plan for them,  but that you CAN'T plan for them.

I had one of those lessons this week.

Now,  before I tell you the story of the unplanned lesson.  I must tell you something about me.  I am TERRIFIED of snakes.  And, my children know this.  They learn it around the time that we do letter bag S because "EVERYONE" and I mean "EVERYONE"  (not really but it sure feels like it) puts a snake in their S bag.  So, in class I "play" up my fear and we talk about what to do when we are afraid and how to handle ourselves.  Because I am at a Catholic school we talk about how God helps us when we are afraid.  It does not take our fear away,  but he will comfort us when we are afraid.  AND, knowing that there is going to be a plastic snake in the bag I can usually keep it together in front of the kids.  

It is the last week of school.  We are starting to put things away and pack things for summer.  I have pulled a tote out of the closet to put away a few games.  And what do I find when I open the tote.  4 plastic snakes.  That I KNOW are in the tote because I am the one that put them there.  Do you think it helped me in the "moment"?  Not one little bit.  I screamed and jumped and dropped the box on the ground.  And then when my ENTIRE class who had been working so well up until I disturbed them began looking at me and asking what was wrong I immediately began laughing all the while hyperventilating and shaking because I had scared myself with my own SNAKES!!!

 

So while I took a few moments to collect myself.  My lovelies decided that I needed signs on my tote to remind myself that there were snakes inside the box.  

 

The entire class, 24 lovelies, took it upon them selves to write me signs that say "BEWARE of SNAKES".  

Are they not just the most wonderful things you have ever seen?

I just could not have planned a better writing assessment.  And, I am sure that when they went home and told the story to their parents it was a story for sure. :) 

Expanding on play

 I love when my kids take hold of their learning.  I know this is my classroom blog but my own kids this summer have really helped remind me of the importance of really listening to kids and expanding upon their play.  Last week we painted b/c I was trying to show my colleges how I assessed habitats.  We have a drying rack at the house (the front door).  B came running up to me this week asking for tape.  I don't just let this three year old loose with tape.  I know I should but we are at home and he makes a  mess. 

" I need it to make my art "osem" (museum) store."  So I gave him tape.  He taped 4 pictures on his bedroom door.   Then he came running back in the living room.  "You have to come to my store."  Now here is where the listening part comes in.  If I listen for opportunities I can expand my kids play into so much more.
"B, I would love to come but I don't have an invitation."
He ran to his room to get busy.  He made the C's on the top of the first page. 
"Here's you invitation."
"Oh, thank you so much.  But I don't know how to get there."
He grabbed the paper out of my hand and returned to his crayons.  He drew map. His map was a DORA kind of map where you had to go around things and jump over things.  While I was working on getting to his bedroom, his sister came sneaking in to see what we were playing.

 She wants to come.  He runs off and makes a second invitation and map.  So when she joins she decides she wants to buy the picture instead of just look at it.  In comes math and money work.  We broke out the pennies.  She bought the dinosaur picture for 16 cents and then had 4 cents over to buy the sunset page. 

We worked on counting and recounting money.  We played this for three days before we were finished.  I only lost about 60 cents in the process.

It is so easy to expand on play but just making a statement.  I could have easily have went straight to his room with the oral invite  but had I done that I would have "lost" all this great learning!