Thanks & Giving

                                                        *Image from decor8blog.com

Just a quick post to give Thanks and celebrate some giving.  As I think about the things I am thankful for, my family, their good health, and my job quickly spring to mind.  This year has been a year of change, but I am learning and growing, and my family has never been happier. #worthit

Now, for the giving.  I was fortunate to be a delegate for my school counseling region at the NC School Counselor's Conference a couple of weeks ago. Remember my post?! It was a great opportunity to connect with other school counselors and school counselor educators across the state. 

I am especially grateful to Dr. Meghan Walter, UNC Chapel Hill school counselor educator, for sharing this awesome PowToon video that her graduate students made about the role of the school counselor.  Thanks to Breanna Herring, Briana Woody, Ashley Bennetone, Michaela Avila, Judith Smith, and Simone Diggs for creating this great resource.  My co-counselor and I used it last week at a brown bag lunch for parents at my school.  It was perfect! If you are looking for a resource to share with administrators, parents, or other school counselors, check it out!  

Enjoy another Dollar Days at Life on the Fly School Counselor TPT store through Friday afternoon...new items are just $1. Also, stay tuned for a TPT sale on November 30th and December 1st. TPT will be bringing smiles to lots of educators! #TpTCyberSmile

Happy Counseling & Happy Thanksgiving! ~ Angela

Plickers...Things That Make You Go HMMMMM............

                       

      TPT Life on the Fly Store Black Friday Sale---Get Ready!!

 

Apparently I have been living under a rock because I had never heard of Plickers until last week when one of my lovely colleagues forwarded me an article about it. So, I feel like it is my duty to write about them just in case there are other poor school counselors like me who need to see the light.  Plickers are one of those technology tools that make me go HMMM.....First, because I don't really understand how they work;  Second, because I think the person who invented them is BRILLIANT;  Third, because I bet the people who sell the ultra-expensive clicker systems are probably pretty annoyed right now; Fourth, because they are going to totally revolutionize my classroom guidance lessons.

You see, I have talked in numerous blog posts about my data collection methods for pre and post tests in classroom guidance lessons. You may remember seeing something that looked like this when I talked about character trait lessons (right). 

I dutifully collect my pre and post numbers in EVERY class whatever the multiple question may be.  Typically, I ask students to put their heads down and raise their hand for the one answer choice they think is correct.  It has always worked fairly well although I frequently have to remind students about voting ONLY ONE TIME, keeping their eyes closed so they don't peek at others' votes, and raising their hands high so I can get an accurate count.  And then came Plickers......

If you go to their website there isn't a TON of information so I want to let you know how I set up this incredible tool for my lessons.  Disclaimer: You WILL NEED a smart device to use Plickers (iPhone, iPad, iPod, etc.)

1. Create a FREE account on Plickers.com.
2. Go to the "Library" tab and type in the question you want to ask your students. You can have up to four multiple choice answers or make it a True/False question.
3. Underneath your question click "Add to Plan" and choose if you want to use the Demo class or add a new class.  (I kept it under Demo class the first time, but I plan on creating a class for each grade level I work with and adding specific questions to that grade level to keep it more organized.)
4. Click on the "Cards" tab and print out your Plicker cards. I chose to print the 40 card large font version since I will be using these with Kindergarten students as well as older students. I will use the SAME cards for each lesson.
5. Download the FREE Plicker App on your smart device.
6. In the app, click on the class where you saved the information so that you can see your question.  Then, press the CAMERA icon. 

At this point, you need to be in a classroom asking your question. Students will look at their unique Plicker code and decide if they think the correct answer is A, B, C, or D (I only had A-C answer choices for my second grade lesson so they ignored the D option).  Whatever answer they want to choose should be AT THE TOP of their Plicker code when they hold it up for you to scan (In the Plicker code at the top of this post, they would be choosing answer D).

Before you start scanning the students' answers, you can pull up the Plicker website on a Smartboard or LCD projector and click on "Live View." This view allows the students to see their answers being taken by your smart device as you walk around the room and scan the Plickers (right- Student View). If you only taught one class/one grade level you could also assign names to each Plicker card to assess who needed reteaching or remediation if that student picked the incorrect answer.  For my purposes, that would be way too time intensive so I just note who still doesn't have the right answer in my post test and check in with them later. Typically it is 2 kids MAX. 

The best part is revealing how the students did after you have scanned all the cards.  Click on the Graph View to see a chart like the one below.  If it's the pretest, you can discuss the results with students and have them predict how many students will have the correct answer AFTER the lesson.  Remember to make sure you are really emphasizing the correct answer and giving clear instruction so they have a chance to meet that goal!

So, there is my brief overview of Plickers.  Leave a comment if you think you can use this tool at your school! I would love to hear what you think.  Also, on a side note, I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. I am truly thankful to have this blog to connect with all of you each day. 

Happy Turkey Day and Happy Counseling!  
~ Angela

Academics are Aca-Awesome!

 

                                                                 *Image from Pinterest- etc-alltherest.blogspot.com

Can you believe we are already one nine weeks down for the 2014-2015 school year?! AND, we all know how quickly the weeks fly during the holiday season.  With that in mind, I am really increasing the intensity of my academic interventions this school year.  My fabulous co-counselor, Nicole, and I came up with two academic SMART goals for our comprehensive school counseling program this year in addition to our attendance and behavior goals.  If you are not using the ASCA Smart Goal worksheet to create program goals, check out this previous post and access info from my ABCs of the ASCA National Model presentation.  Links to many of the ASCA forms and examples can be found in it.

Our first overall program goal written in SMART goal format aims to increase EOG scores among third, fourth, and fifth grade students. Each year, I do homework clubs in the spring, which then transitions into EOG small groups for students who missed the passing EOG scale score by 1 or 2 points in Reading or Math. Most educators call them the "bubble kids."  We focus on coping with test anxiety, multiple choice strategies, test preparation habits, and goal setting for the upcoming EOGs.  However, this year I really wanted to include our K-2 students, too, when addressing academic success.  This year's goal, in general, is to decrease the number of K-2 students that come before the retention committee in June.  We have Closing the Gap Action Plans as well as other initiatives designed to meet this goal.  Here are a few of the interventions:

11.  Reading Readiness Book Clubs:  Typically my book clubs address primarily social/emotional issues with reading improvement as a pleasant side effect, but this year I am specifically targeting "bubble" second graders who are a level or two below their MCLASS benchmarks in reading fluency and comprehension.  I am starting with two second grade groups, a boy group and a girl group.  We will be reading the book The One and Only Stuey Lewis:  Other Stories from Second Grade.  I really loved this book when I previewed it because the main character, Stuey Lewis, provides a great model for young readers who lack confidence. Stuey is self-conscious about reading, hates being around "good readers," and needs lots of encouragement from his teacher at the beginning of the story. I  am predicting that  my students will be able to relate to him and will be able to do some vicarious learning as they see him persevere and totally change his attitude about school. I will also be emphasizing a growth mind-set by discussing Stuey and facilitating confidence building activities as we practice reading.

If you have read about my book clubs before, you know I always give the students "jobs" to give them a sense of ownership in the book club. This time,  I have added a WORD MASTER job so we can include vocabulary or word work while we read.  Anytime a student sees a word they don't recognize, they will smash this buzzer (left).  We will then add the word to our list, look up the meaning, and draw a picture to help us remember our new vocabulary word.  Pretty fun, huh?!

The best part of the book club is that I have definitely upped the "WOW" factor by getting new Kindle Fires for the students to use.  I requested six Kindle Fires and cases in a recent Donor's Choose Grant and had it fulfilled in about 24 hours!  If you haven't tried out Donor's Choose yet, you really should give it a try.  The key is promoting your project on Facebook, Twitter, email, and any other social media outlets you use.  I also plan on having popcorn parties, reading camp-outs, and other fun activities during the Stuey Lewis book clubs so I can avoid having these weekly lunches be another dreaded work time. Check out my 24-page Stuey Lewis Book Club Activity Pack here and get started on your own!

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2.  Report Card Conferences: I am holding report card conferences with all of my RtI students and others I am concerned about following report cards going home last week. I have always had informal meetings with students about report cards, but this year I am using a specific, standard form with my students to help me stay organized.  Find it on TPT here.

3.  Retention Groups:  2014-2015 is the first year I have conducted retention groups with K-2 students.  I am working with second grade students who were retained and Nicole is working with first grade students. I will be sharing more about the structure of these groups in an upcoming post. 

I would love to hear about any academic interventions you are excited about this year.  Leave a comment!  ALSO, the first person to correctly identify the movie this blog post title is referencing will receive a free item of their choice from my Life on the Fly TPT Store....good luck!

Enjoy and Happy Counseling! ~  Angela

Are You READY?!!!

Rejuvenated.  Recharged.  READY to work hard to make my school the best it can be! That's always how I feel after returning home from the always fantastic NCSCA Conference.  This year was no different, and I wanted to share my highlights with you (in no particular order).

1.  Presenting my session "Help! I'm in the Specialist Rotation.....Now What?!".  I loved every minute of my 70 minute presentation to elementary counselors from all over NC.  My attendees asked great questions, were enthusiastic about the ideas I shared to help school counselors survive being specialists, and even stayed after my session was over to talk to me further. They ALSO indulged me and acted out my behavior management intro, "Body Basics",  that I use with my students (action shot to the right).  Several people asked about the Body Basics wording and you will find a video with the words and hand motions in this previous post.  As promised, my PowerPoint handout is available electronically to those who attended my session and all my other blog readers out there.  I think you will especially like the links at the end of the presentation to video clips, songs, and other multimedia resources that I frequently use in my classroom lessons to engage students.

2.  The Keynote from Dr. Carolyn Stone on Ethical and Legal Issues:  Let's be real, ethical and legal issues don't quicken my pulse or evoke any type of passionate response from me, but somehow Dr. Stone makes it FUN! She was witty, passionate, extremely knowledgeable, and an entertaining speaker.  It was a great chance to brush up on recent cases affecting school counselors, and the moral of the story is that you MUST ALWAYS consult when sticky situation arise in your school building.


3.  Roll-call:  I love roll call.  You get a sense of "oneness" with hundreds of other school counselors while they proudly represent their regional districts.  Capital region (my region) brought some noise with Tamara Gray, but I loved Tim Hardin's southwest region shout out and the TURN DOWN FOR WHAT?! finale from Dena Parson from the Central Region.

4. Mr. Kip Jones:  This TN school counselor is a man after my own heart.  His session was one of the best I have attended in my years at NCSCA simply because you can see how much he enjoys his job and the way he builds relationships with kids on their level.  Between his school raps, iMovie videos with characters in costume, and self-made books, I had lots of note taking to do during his session, and I left feeling ultra excited about incorporating his ideas in my school counseling program.  You can check out a trailer for his newest book The Power of Self- D below.



5.  Diane Senn:  I don't really need to say anything else, do I?! Diane Senn has been a go-to resource for me since I was in graduate school.  Every list of "must have" resources I share with new counselors or my PLC contains several of her books.  I am proud to say we can now claim her as a North Carolina counselor!  She also shared a fantastic resource packet with attendees at her session, which included tons of free activities from her publications.  I already downloaded the FREE Fluid app she shared to use in anxiety small groups or with students who need a calm-down strategy,

So, here's the real question, what do we do to harness all this enthusiasm into concrete actions to take once we return to school on Monday? It's all too easy to hear these great ideas at conference, feel overwhelmed once you return to school with voicemails and emails galore, and never implement any of the ideas that made you feel excited in the first place.  Sound familiar? Yeah, me too! So, I decided to CHUNK my conference notes this year (what's good for RtI/MTSS is good for me!).  I realistically reflected on what I already have going on at my school and committed to implementing a few ideas in the next couple of months, other ideas by the end of the year, and several ideas next year or further into the future.

I feel good about my plan and hope you will also harness your excitement from the NCSCA conference to prioritize the ideas you liked best.  After all, we already know the answer to this blog post title, ARE YOU READY?!!!  Of course you're ready! You just need to get organized, create a plan, and get going!

Good Luck and Happy Counseling! ~ Angela

I'm Groovy Poovey.....What's Your Hook?

Think back to your school days.  What was memorable? Did you have a spirited PE teacher who taught you how to juggle and ride the unicycle? (I did!)  Did you have a teacher who never wore the same outfit twice the whole year and had pictures of Elvis everywhere? (I did!) Did you have science teacher who did fun experiments and let you bring in exploding volcanoes? (yep, me again!)

The point is, sometimes we need a little excitement, quirkiness, or a "hook" to get our students' attention and help them "get" the objectives we are trying to teach.  Although it has been a LONG time since I had those aforementioned teachers, I still remember them and what they taught me because they got my attention, which is sometimes half the battle with our students.  As a school counselor, I am continually trying to engage my students and give them a prop, hand motion, or saying that will help them connect with what I am teaching and commit it to memory.

My first "hook" is my Groovy Poovey nickname. I use it because #1:  It helps students say my name correctly instead of calling me all kinds of crazy things and #2:  They never forget it and can always tell you the name of their school counselor.  Helpful, right?!!

Here is a sampling of some of my other "hooks" and when I use them.  What are yours?
 Enjoy and Happy Counseling! ~Angela
                                                                          

LEFT: Using a Hula Hoop to illustrate the Hula Hoop Space for my Kindergarten students in Good Touch/Bad Touch lessons.

RIGHT:  Modeling a career I would like as an E! fashion reporter on the red carpet for "Career Dress Up" Day during Red Ribbon Week.  We have better things to do than drugs! This event went along with my career lessons in the classroom.

LEFT:  My co-counselor and I starting our "Camp Counselor" introduction to the school counselor lessons at the beginning of the year.  Read more about that lesson here.









BELOW:  Dressed up as "Judge Poovey" for Fairness character trait lessons in the classroom.  Read more about that lesson here.

Making a List and Checking it Twice

To say things are busy at my school right now is an understatement. It is hard for me to make it down the hallway without a student asking me when I am going to see them or a teacher relaying a concern about a child.  Sound familiar?! I am also running a lot of small groups simultaneously, and I'm trying to stay organized with so many balls in the air at one time......because that's what school counselors do!

The small groups that I am running are "School Success Groups", and I am using the Stephen Covey 7 Habits to organize our meetings (more on this topic in a later post).  However, I really want daily face time with these students to ensure they are meeting their goals for doing homework, being PROACTIVE and in charge of their behavior, and maintaining "Sunny Thoughts"  when frustration arises.  I can tell that morning meetings with these students get their days started off on the right tone.

So, I followed Santa's lead and have created a check-in sheet to use with my school success students as well as other students that can benefit from frequent check-ins.  I downloaded some free borders from the 3AM Teacher on TPT here.  I chose my favorite and then inserted a table with the headings of Student Name, Days of the Week, and Comments. I started out with 10 rows but could have definitely made 15 or 20, as evidenced by my writings in the margins...ha!

I pasted my sheet on cardstock and laminated it for repeated use.  I write the initials of the students I need to check in with each morning, give them a check mark if they stop in, and a star if they did their homework. I also write any comments about issues I need to remember. At the end of the week, I take a picture of the chart with my Ipad for documentation purposes, and I erase all of the stars and checks.  The lamination really keeps it flexible because as I end current groups or start working with different students, I will simply replace old initials with new ones and continue the cycle.

What I love best is that I feel like my 30 minutes of morning duty time is so much more productive and focused now. The majority of the students are coming each day, and they like it as much as I do!

Also, it's working!!!! A lot of the kids are doing homework more consistently now than they were a month ago, and  I truly believe the accountability piece of knowing I am going to ask them EVERY morning is making a difference.

How are you staying organized in this busy time leading up to the holidays? I would love to hear!
Happy Counseling! ~Angela

Balloon, Balloon: Don't Let the Balloon Touch the Ground

I had to use that title for my post because it was one of my most favorite childhood games growing up, and I loved to play it with my sister. I find it completely fantastic that I have been able to incorporate it into my J-O-B. Here's part two of my Ordinary Objects Post - Balloons!

I use balloons in lots of ways at school, many of which I am sure you also use.  Here's a rundown of my favorite uses.

1.  Individual Counseling/Classroom Guidance with students focused on coping with anger, anxiety, or other unpleasant feelings. 

A balloon is extremely powerful in illustrating how feelings can build if you don't use strategies to calm down and release the "not so good" feelings in healthy ways.  I usually let students brainstorm the triggers that have upset them in the current situation or in the past. As they share the triggers with me, I inflate the balloon each time until it is about to pop.  We relate those pent up feelings to exploding in the classroom and making bad choices.  Then, as we discuss, draw, and practice strategies that could help students calm down, I release the air a little at a time until the balloon is completely empty.

 I have also used this idea in a classroom guidance lesson on anger management.  I incorporated the superhero Incredible Hulk and found this You Tube video.  Every time the Hulk growled, I inflated the balloon. Every time he turned back into Bruce Banner (the normal version of himself), I released some air.  It was a great "hook" to introduce the topic of controlling your anger.

2. Skill practice for appropriate social skills, self-regulation, and any other replacement behavior practice a student may need.

We have all seen the icebreaker or conversation starter balls that you can buy through educational companies or on Amazon.com. They are a great resource and can really help you get to know a student or prompt them to start talking about important issues. I decided to create the "do-it-yourself" version and save $20 with a balloon.  I made the balloon pictured to the right for a student who was having a hard time staying in her space and keeping her hands to herself.  I had already done a lesson about your "Hula Hoop Space"  with the entire class so this balloon activity provided her with extra practice to reinforce the skills. I drew lines to divide up the balloon and then listed actions such as "Show Your Hula Hoop Space", "Practice a Good Touch", "Ask Someone to Move Over", and "Sit Criss Cross in your Hula Hoop Space" on the balloon. We would hit the balloon back and forth a few times and when I said STOP, she would practice whatever skill her hand was on.  The other advantage to the DIY version is you can have specific skill practice for a wide range of issues rather than one generic ball.


3.  Teamwork activities in classroom guidance or small group counseling.

I am currently running a "7 Habits of Highly Effective Students"  School Success Group.  Habit #4 is THINK WIN- WIN.  I am using balloons to practice the idea of teamwork and helping everyone around you be successful.  My plan is to take my group into the gym and give them the challenge of moving the balloon from one end of the gym to the other.  The group will earn one point for completing the task and additional points each time every member of the group touches the balloon.  Following the exercise, we will discuss how teammates helped each other get the balloon, how they communicated, and their feelings on whether they liked completing the activity as a team or would rather have completed it independently. 

You could also incorporate one or more balloons in a classroom guidance lesson on teamwork and pass multiple balloons around the room at a time.


How do you use balloons as a school counselor? Please share and.....Happy Counseling! ~ Angela

Ordinary Objects

Two ordinary objects have become permanent fixtures in my office lately:  Balloons and clothes baskets

I wanted to share a few quick ways you can use these inexpensive items, which 99% of us already have at our houses, in your counseling office.  My first post will focus on clothes baskets.

Clothes Baskets:
1.  Goal Setting:  I am doing a "7 Habits of Happy/Highly Effective Kids" small group right now, and I absolutely LOVED the goal setting lesson I did with my students using clothes baskets.  It was an idea I adapted from a Goal Setting presentation at last year's NCSCA Conference (wish I could remember the speaker's name to give credit! Email me if you recognize this activity).

I took my students into the gym during the PE teachers' lunch break.  I had them all stand on one side of the gym and gave them each a frog (you could use a stress ball, rubber ball, etc.).  In the first round, I had them cover their eyes and try to get the frog in their basket. I placed three baskets out for five students so they would have more space for their throwing.  We related this action to going through the school year without an idea or vision for where you are going.

During the second round, I took all three baskets and placed them on the opposite side of the gym, about 30 feet away from the students.  We related this basket "attempt" to choosing goals that are too hard.  In the third round, the baskets were placed right in front of their feet. The students immediately knew that this round showed the goal was too easy.  In the fourth round, the baskets were placed about 10 feet way to signify an appropriate, challenging goal. Most of the students made the basket by their second attempt, but a few took three or four tries. Finally, I held one of the baskets in the fifth round and "assisted" them by moving the basket as they made their toss. We related this round to teachers, parents, and school counselors who will support students in reaching their goals, which can make things easier. 

 

2. Icebreaker Time:  Kids LOVE to try and toss my frogs in the clothes basket when we meet for individual counseling, especially kids that have a hard time sitting still or feel uncomfortable with traditional "talking" at a table.  I find they open up and are much more relaxed if we start talking while playing the frog toss game.  Sometimes we will even take turns and switch once we have gotten a certain number of frogs in the basket.

At first, I was just putting the basket on the other side of my office so I could take shots with my students, but then I got the bright idea of hanging it on a hook that has randomly been on the back of my office door since I moved to my school.  I now call the game Hook Ball.  The new basket placement also frees up floor space in my pretty small office...truly a win-win! Check it out:

3.Skill Practice Motivation:  I met with a student last week who needed to work on prosocial skills (hands to self, talking nicely, working appropriately in centers).  I wanted to make our skill practice more fun, so we turned it into a game.  Each time she got two frogs in the basket, we would stop, model, and practice one of the skills we were working on.  After she practiced, she got to take more shots.  It definitely made our session more enjoyable, and we still talked about her classroom progress while she was playing.

Do you have any other uses for clothes baskets? I would love to hear!  
Happy Counseling ~ Angela

Career Week

Last week was our Career Week, and I was so pleased with our student participation.  On Monday, I showed a video of my friend, Jason Houston, who is an Air Force pilot.  He answered a few questions about his job, connecting school subjects and higher education to the career of a pilot.  On Tuesday, I showed a similar video of a staff member’s husband who is a nurse. I always enjoy showing  nontraditional careers for both genders, and it was great to show a male nurse.  I also started asking trivia questions about our staff members’ previous career paths.  The answers could be found on a “Career Path” bulletin board that I created especially for Career Week. It was fun to see the kids reading about their teachers’ and other staff members’ careers and learning about what the adults wanted to be when they were in elementary school.

On Wednesday, we had Career Dress-Up Day.  I saw a lot of community helpers — doctors, veterinarians, teachers, police officers, as well as business people, lawyers, artists, rock stars, scientists, and engineers.  The students showed a lot of enthusiasm with their costumes, and even those who didn’t dress up were exposed to career ideas just by being at school…truly a win-win situation.  On Thursday, I added a new event for this year’s Career Week — a door decorating contest. I used the motto “College and Career Ready”, and  teachers  voluntarily participated in decorating their doors with their alma mater or favorite school.  I was overwhelmed to have 40 staff members (teachers and teacher assistants) participate in the contest, especially during a month with report cards, lots of standardized testing, and teacher-parent conferences.  What a great bunch of staff members we have! It was amazing to see the kids talking about the different schools.  I decorated my door with UNC-Chapel Hill memorabilia, including a picture of me in my graduation outfit and attached my actual graduation cap with tassel to the door. I can’t tell you how many children asked me about the picture or commented on the fact that I was a Tarheel.  I could tell s few students even had lightbulb moments while discussing the different degrees I had gotten in order to be a school counselor.

Our final event on Friday was a Career Day for Kindergarten and fifth grade students. Each event lasted about two hours  and highlighted a few different careers.  All of the speakers were fabulous!   The fifth grade students loved seeing science experiments and a live snake, exploring a bucket truck from Progress Energy, hearing about work at the Geek squad, and seeing hair styling tools, among many other careers.  The Kindergarten students especially loved the the tools used by a policeman and a veterinary movie. They also  learned about the jobs of principal and scientists.  It was really invigorating to see students excited about future careers and understanding how school could help them reach their career goals.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

I just finished an October Respect unit with my second graders that was one of the most fun units I have ever created. I decided to create four lessons that linked Respect to behaviors throughout the school:  on the bus, in the classroom, in the cafeteria, in the hallways, etc. What I enjoyed most about the unit was the integration of the second grade curriculum (reading/writing) with the ASCA competencies I was covering.
In my first lesson, I was able to use a short story that described a student’s first day on the bus.  We identified story elements such as the main characters and if the story was fiction/nonfiction while also reflecting on the character traits shown in the story and how we felt reading it. In another lesson I used a poem called “The Goops” to highlight bad manners.  As a class, we discussed imagery and the students visualized what they read in the poem.  We also emphasized rhyming words as students took turns reading different lines of the poem.

Another activity as part of the unit was creating a placemat that students could keep.  I found a great template on parents. com that showed a formal place setting, and the students wrote respectful cafeteria behaviors around the border of the placemat.  Before sending the placemates home with the students, we used them in a “Manners Lunch” that I had organized for the students.  I was able to get a local restaurant to donate pasta for all of my second graders, and I supplemented with brownies and bread.  I have never seen students so excited about macaroni and cheese! Many of the students even dressed up for the event and some parents attended without any prompting from us.

When the students entered the cafeteria, they brought their placemats to the cafeteria table, which was covered with a tablecloth.  Plates, utensils, and napkins were located at the end of the table.  The students were responsible for setting their own place setting on top of the placemat template.  Then, they went through the food line and were served lunch as they used polite words.  All the students waited for their classmates to be seated at the individual tables before beginning to eat.  It was a delight to see them putting napkins in their laps, chewing with their mouths closed, and keeping elbows off the table.

The best part is that the final lesson of the unit is focused on teaching the classes the five parts of a letter so that we can write thank you notes to the restaurant that so generously donated the pasta.  Pictures of the event will accompany the letters so that we can show our community the great things we are doing at our school!  I really found the entire experience valuable and hope the experience is something our second graders will remember fondly from their elementary years.