Monday... Monday!

After a good rest this weekend I was ready to get back into the classroom and see what we were going to do today. I still haven't planned any lessons- but on Friday RM asked me to take over some morning work duties so I was excited to really dig in and start working with the kids. Of course RM is MUCH more experienced at getting the kids to talk about their responses and why they answered how they did, but I knew RM would be right there to back me up if I forgot something significant. 
Our morning started with assembly- this went smoother than last week, so obviously we are starting to fall into a routine and the students are getting comfortable with what we are doing. I did some of the morning work review with the kids and it felt great to finally be working with them and practicing some of those skills I have been storing up! 
Last spring when I was in RM's class, something pretty cool happened. I had just finished reading a book called "The Daily 5" by Boushey and Moser. 

I had heard about this concept from a blog that I follow. I picked up the book and read it and thought that it was a great idea. When I went into RMs class in early June, I mentioned this book and asked her if she had ever heard of it. She looked at me surprised and said that she did hear about it and that she was going to be reading the book over the summer (along with the same author's CAFE book) and was going to put this concept into practice in the classroom in the fall. I loved that we were on the same page and that she was going to learn how to initiate this program with me. I was pretty excited about doing this and seeing how it all comes together. Then in August when I came to school for the professional development before school started, I learned that several of the teachers are going to initiate Daily 5 into their classrooms- how exciting!

Today was the day that we began our journey through the Daily 5 concept. The book is very clear on how to introduce it and how to manage the classroom while students are learning about the procedures involved. The first stages are to create a chart while discussing with the class how it should look for them to be reading independently. RM started the process slowly and we went through one "building stamina" practice. I was very happy to see our students successful with their first 3 minute practice. I think with time and practice, we will gain some confidence in leading our students through this program and being successful.