Open Court Theme:

Grade 1 - Keep Trying

My students make a list, at home, of all things that they say they can't do or have a hard time completing. They bring their lists to school and share the list within their groups. Afterwards, we discuss why some of those things happen. Finally, we put all of the things in a shoebox and go out and BURY it...like a real funeral. We recite a poem about success and then come back to celebrate that the word CAN'T and IT'S HARD have passed on. We have a tombstone that says R.I. P. CAN'T and IT'S HARD. WE WILL NOT MISS YOU and then decorate the board w/balloons and confetti. The kids really internalize it and it's a lot of fun. I suggest you type a letter to the parents and get it approved by the principal.

In addition to the great idea about burying the things that can't be done, one can enrich the students' writing craft along with creating a better sense of the unit by retiring words. All too often in my first graders' writing I see words such as like and good. Try creating jerseys that have the word at the top of the jersey where normally the player's name is and the number with which it was retired, or just the word on the jersey and have a ceremony so that the word has been officially retired and cannot be used.

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