The Flipped Classroom

I know if you are a parent you are thinking huh?  But this is for the parents.  There is a new wave of methods for teaching children in the classroom.  This week we are discussing the flipped classroom.  Mostly when I have read about the concept it has been talked about mostly in the upper grade classrooms.  I am going to continue researching the idea and hopefully implement it this spring with our geometry unit.  The idea of a flipped classroom is that the majority of the lesson is completed at home most often using the internet via website lessons, webquests, videos, blogs or social media.  The students will then come to school for the following class and discuss the lessons and work with the teacher in any area where they may have struggled.

My plan for kindergarten is a family approach.  The lessons for the week will come home the Friday before and the family can work through them together.  Since many of my students do not have regular access to the internet, the majority of the lessons will be paper with additional support added with use from the internet. The lessons will not be difficult but conceptual such as this is a square, let's find examples of squares around our house.  The following day in class we may use squares to build a picture.  Maybe use brown, green, red, yellow, and blue squares to make a picture.  The concept will be taught at home and reinforced in the classroom.

This is a blog about the flipped classroom that I hope you will take time to read.

http://jonbergmann.com/

So tell me what do you think about a flipped classroom in kindergarten?

How can this help you the parent?

I am sure you were thinking to yourself, how is this blog going to help me the parent with my kindergarten kid and this common core business.  It is my intention to turn this blog into a resource for parents.  I would like for parents to come here to search for ideas and activities to support and extend learning in the classroom.  The classroom is changing and what was being done last year is now new and different this year.  Students were once sitting on the carpet being taught and they are now moving about the classroom exploring and learning.  As they once sat and watched the teacher control the mouse on the computer, they are in charge of that mouse and applications.  The world has come to the kindergarten classroom and the students are looking for ways to learn and be active.  This week in my classroom we have explored ABC Mouse, Starfall, and a few Promethean board games.  We have played a new subetizing game in math and explored the listening and pocket chart center.  Kindergarten is a busy and exciting place and we are learning more everyday!

Using a blog in a Kindergarten Classroom

Well here it is the first post of my new blog. WELCOME!
It's here! Common Core is here!  Many school districts across the United States will be implementing the Common Core this school year.  We are hearing new trigger words with the newest one being RIGOR. In my district, we have in been preparing for the Common Core for a few years and kindergarten implemented a new common core lessons for reading and math last year.
So onto the purpose of this blog. I am hoping to use this to aid parents in understanding how the common core has changed learning and the classroom.  I want parents to see how we are adding rigor into our learning and the process we are making in the classroom on a regular basis.