Taunting Tuesday - The bullies, mean peers and rude friends and how to deal with them

Bullies, bullying and bully policies have all become buzz words that draw attention from just about
everyone. However, I can't remember learning too much about this issue during my four year degree. Stumbling out into the wilderness of the playground, I refuse to go uneducated and so I set about finding materials worthy of reading and reflection to increase my learning in this all-important mine-field of an issue.

It started during the holidays with a Huffington Post article on three bullying important terms, bullying, meanness and rudeness. This made me stop and think about how easily confused and misused these terms are. Too often parents or students will throw these three terms around interchangeably, leaving the teacher with a conflict of interests between one parent saying their child was bullied and another parent saying their child is unintentionally rude. Sounds to me like a potential differentiation for newsletters, parent-teacher meetings, assemblies, etc. After all, the first action in my behaviour management plan (after stopping any immediate threat or danger) is to clearly define the issue. 

It seems to me that all three should be prioritised and addressed totally differently, once identified. If I were to state in a vague way my approach to all three, it is basically this:

1. Understand the issue, concerns and underlying causes (talk it out with every party involved if possible).
2. Discuss with the 'victim' how they are affected by the situation and what they feel could correct the situation and/or restore the relationship, trust, feelings of security, etc.
3. Discuss with the 'offender' how the underlying causes can be reduced (as much as possible) by the 'offender' and plan together how the teachers, staff and/or parents could help. If consequences are to be put in place, I would also discuss this with the student, ensuring they understood why they were being punished and why the type of punishment was chosen (E.g. "You are not allowed to visit the kinders any more because they don't feel safe when you do").
4. Explain to the 'offender' what they did wrong and why it is wrong, walking them through giving a real apology.
5. If a recurring issue with multiple 'offenders' or misunderstandings, discuss the issue with the class, school and/or school community.
6. Update necessary stakeholders (principal, colleague teachers, parents, etc). While stating this last, it is likely that these conversations will be taking part throughout the process, depending on how long the process is.

The above is a basic view of my behaviour management plan for dealing with issues which are major, either because they are recurring in nature or cause students to become upset and needing reconciliation. For more minor issues, such as a student forgetting a classroom procedure, warnings tend to be sufficient.

More specifically, here is how I would consider reacting depending on what the case involves:

• Bulling: I do not consider this acceptable and immediate consequences will be put in place as soon as I hear of it. Stakeholders including parents and principal will be involved. The offender will be monitored for a period of time and supported to overcome this behaviour as necessary. During this process, victims will be supported as much as necessary and possible to regain any loss of self-esteem, trust, or security.
• Meanness: As this is not repeated behaviour and the child feels regret, I would not make such a big deal out of this. I may mention it casually to a parent or ask colleagues to be aware of the situation, but beyond a sincere apology and action plan developed with the child, I would probably punish the child (if the situation calls for punishment, I would probably label it 'bullying').
• Rudeness: As this is merely a slip-up as a result of misunderstanding or lack of social skills, I would not usually 'frown upon' the situation, but deal with it as a molehill to prevent a mountain situation being formed. I would equip the 'offender' with any lacking social skills to prevent recurring situations if necessary and possible. Otherwise, we would discuss what the problem was and what the effect was in order to allow the student to understand and apologise appropriately. In this situation, I would also have a discussion with the 'victim' to explain the misunderstanding and the lack of bad intention the 'offender' had.

But let's not forget that prevention is the BEST part of the behaviour management plan. So here's how I hope to prevent recurrences or even first time incidences of these behaviours in my classrooms:

• Social classes - I prefer to do these regularly to support my students in a range of areas, including how to form relationships and treat others with respect in the classroom and beyond. These are great for dealing with recurring rudeness or anticipating common issues and dealing with them early.
• Share stories - This can be integrated with news sharing, literacy, drama, history, visual art and probably more curriculum areas. Sharing a story, or asking students to imagine a situation and resolve it, provides students with opportunities to reflect upon such issues and apply learning to their own lives.
• Take advantage of National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence - I'm sure there would be a ridiculous amount of possibilities for this. The Australian Government has even published a website for teachers, parents and students addressing bullying.

A brief post, but a huge issue which the media loves, so here are some more resources:

• Bullying Statistics - Why Do People Bully? - Here is a few possibilities for the reasons behind bullying which could be considered when attempting to prevent these behaviours.
• Western Education and Library Board - A Framework for Your Written Antibullying Policy - This is a template with examples to help you get started. If releasing such a document to parents, there is no reason you can't attach similar documents for meanness and rudeness as well, to allow them to see the difference.
• Bullying No More - Anti Bullying Poster Idea - I like these posters because they are not really explicitly about bullying, but they make specific points that can be used to address bullying, meanness and rudeness.

Do you have any experiences with students who have been bullied or are bullies? How about parents who misunderstand the differences and varying importance of bullying, meanness and rudeness? What are your approaches or resources for this attention-drawing topic?

Holidays! Bring on term two! (After I enjoy my short break though please)

While I had planned on continuing blogging during my holidays, I think it's time to own up. I plan on gathering my resources and continuing engaging in personalised professional development through other social media, but the blog is taking a little break. Life is still busy and I have projects gathering around my ears. Though readers be warned, I shall be back with a vengeance at the commencement of term two. In the meantime, enjoy your holidays and please feel free to connect with me via Twitter, Google+, or Pinterest. Hoping you also find the time to catch up on work, projects, and relax!

How do you believe holidays should be spent?

Wording Wednesday - Planning a day around reporting skills

How many of your students read the newspaper? My bet is, not too many. I remember often being expected by teachers to be a fan of the news, though I am still not sure why. Is it because it is current, local, informative or what? I will openly confess that I still don't read the news. However, I have always loved those reports on certain shows which are known as 'interest articles.' As a child, I used to fight about bed-time because I had sat through over 45 minutes of news to watch that one report that interested me.

Writing or recording interesting reports to draw in young people is certainly a skill. How many of your students will graduate with it? As I continue to gather and create resources for my relief folder, I plan on sharing them here, hence the second freebie in a row now. Today's little freebie is a rough outline from which to form a plan for a lesson, day or even a couple of days running, all based around article writing. Students can involve a wide range of subjects, engage in topic of interest to them, and create a class news presentation, paper, magazine, blog or YouTube channel (these can be private last I checked). This could be done as individuals, partners, or small groups and could end up being published in some form or link to a social action unit. The options are huge so it can be used across a range of grades and adjusted to fit an appropriate time frame.

So here is at least a day of reporting.

Want some resources to compliment this idea and aid in the more detailed planning? Well I happen to have found some I like:

• This form for peer reviews from Classroom Teacher Resources.
• TPT- A Peer Edit Guide to Write Right - While I would not buy this one for the ages I tend to work with, I love the five questions mentioned in the description and can see these being effective on a peer feedback form for opinion and news writing.
• Online Chart Tool - A free online tool for creating bar charts, line charts, pie charts, scatter plots, bar line graphs and more.
• ABC - Behind the News - An online news website designed with children in mind to introduce them to news reports.

Do you see yourself using such a theme in the classroom? How? Do you have any handy resources to add to the list?

Trial Tuesday - 31 math challenges for students

Time for a freebie! This is a short post today, but when you see the freebie, I hope you'll excuse me. This one has taken a bit of time. Be warned that I do use the term 'challenges' somewhat loosely as
some are repetitive games and others activities which allow you to incorporate your own challenges. However, most do allow for students to think creatively and problem solve if properly introduced. Why exactly I chose 31, I'm not sure now I think about it, as there is 31 days in a month, but not 31 school days. Whatever the case, these challenges would provide challenges for more than 31 days as it is, as some will be a 'once off' challenge to solve, and others are challenges students can practice and improve at over time or teachers can adapt for a variety of skills. There are some which will be familiar and are widely known, others have been linked to specific websites, and others I have obtained from unknown sources or created myself, so if any of the ideas are unclear or need clarification, please comment and let me know! Now without further ado, here is 31 math challenges.

What maths challenges have you done in the past with your students? Could you add a game or challenge to the list which has been missed? There are many out there which work on specific maths skills which couldn't have fit in this list, so comment away.

Freedom Friday - Expression through open-ended Easter arts

Looking back over Easter arts I have done or led in the past, I realise they all have something in common - they don't leave much room for real creativity or expression. Just last year I had students decorate egg templates using chalk and tape resist. This technique was new for the students and looked cute but didn't leave much room for experimenting. The tape was laid, they coloured each block in a solid colour using the wet chalk, and waited for it to dry in order to remove the tape. The result was an entire wall filled with pretty colourful eggs, all of which looked almost identical. How often do we engage students in art and crafts which looks nice on the wall but allows little room for actual designing, creative thinking and a variety of results? Upon searching for open-ended Easter arts and crafts, my results were incredibly limited. In fact, Google could show the results on less than a single page. So I wondered, how hard is this people? Commence the brainstorming!

I have created a list of ideas for open-ended Easter arts which will allow students to create pieces which may have commonalities, but allow for a wider range of responses than we usually see. Do note that for ease, I have made most of them 'create,' but you can consider different mediums such as painting, collage, etc. This was simply because I want to leave this option also open-ended for you (and you could even give students some choice between 2-3 mediums, setting up small groups, allowing for greater variety in results).

• Create a picture of a hidden egg or eggs in whichever scene they like. This allows their scenes to be as varied as their imagination allows, and the eggs can be hidden or even camouflaged as hard as they like. I can imagine they would have fun trying to find all the eggs in other pictures if displayed too. (I can't help but think this would be an awesome collage activity.)
• Create an Easter scene without including eggs, chocolate or bunnies. This could be interpreted two ways, what would Easter be like without those things and how can we communicate Easter in other ways. (For religious schools, this challenge will help students focus on other meanings of Easter beyond the chocolate as well).

Large stone statues, or moai,
of Easter Island.

• Design or map what you imagine it would be like in a place called 'Easter Island'. After completing the activity, introduce children to the fact that Easter Island actually exists. You could follow up with research, a book, or time exploring Easter Island with Google maps. Concluding this learning, they could redesign their map or print off a real map to place next to their original design and compare their imagination and the reality. This could again be used to play a spot the difference and discuss assumptions made because of the name of a place (do they know about Greenland and Iceland?)
• Show one body part and what it looks like on Easter (along with possibly some small scene). Students may need some help to think about this. What do their mouths do? Get covered in chocolate? What do their eyes do? Could they show a reflection in the eyes or glasses of what they might be seeing? What different things do their hands do? Are they likely to be painting eggs, collecting eggs from hiding places, holding a huge collection of eggs, holding the messy hand of a younger child, or praying? Perhaps they could show feet running right past a hidden egg. The options here are again limited only by the imagination.
• Create an abstract design showing how Easter feels using carefully chosen colours and lines. To

  

  Bright colours, 'excited' lines and
  a circle of 'love' is used to express
  Easter feelings very simply here.

  combine this idea with the religious significance, you could ask them to create two designs, with one representing the feelings associated with the crucifixion and the other representing the resurrection. This may result in more similar results than some of the other activities here, but it allows them to carefully consider communication and specific design elements. If you so desire, you could use this design on an egg template, chocolate wrapper, or even Easter card.
• Create a poster advertising your favourite chocolate for Easter or communicating what Easter means to you. Have a look at advertisments before letting them loose in order to encourage creative thinking. They could keep it simple and draw the chocolate with a "The best option for Easter" or design a scene of cleverly hidden chocolates with a child searching eagerly and a line saying "worth searching for" or the reflection of the chocolate shown in big eyes, etc. Communicating what Easter means for them could also yield different results, especially if you encourage them to think beyond simply chocolates. This could be presented as a form of both expressing themselves and communicating to others in order to remind others that it isn't just about the chocolate (sorry for all you chocolate lovers out there, but I have talked about chocolate so much I don't think I can cope with much more).
• Collage a shape using words which could be associated with Easter, how it feels, what it means and words that could be said on Easter morning.
• Show a dream of the perfect Easter. Challenge them to think about the repercussions of receiving a chocolate egg as big as a house. It would probably melt before it was finished and make them quite sick as well as leaving no room in the yard for a little egg hunt. My family used to celebrate Easter with gifts instead of chocolate and this was perfect for me. I still have some of those gifts now and they remind me that Easter for me is not all about the chocolate. In fact, I remember getting one of them while camping with friends and family and the chocolate really didn't matter at all, so perhaps where they are and who they are with could even be the focus.
• Communicate 'new life.' Whether you are religious and thinking of the crucifixion, or not and

  

  Two popular ideas representing
  'new life.'

  thinking of spring (in some lucky parts of the world), eggs, bunnies and baby animals, these words are significant to the symbolism of Easter. Such a focus again allows for a range of responses that may not usually be seen in Easter arts.
• Create a visual representation of a quote. Find an abstract quote about Easter and have them communicate a similar idea visually, without the use of words. For example, "Easter is very important to me, it's a second chance." - Reba McEntire, or "Easter says you can put truth in a grave, but it won't stay there." - Clarence W. Hall, or "It is the hour to rend thy chains, The blossom time of souls." - Katherine Lee Bates. Google will soon give you more results. Encourage the students to think figuratively as well as literally in order to provide more possibilities.
• Design or create the ultimate Easter basket. Encourage them to write a list of requirements before starting. What is important for them? Should it be colourful, shaped like a rabbit, soft, and easy to carry? Is it preferable to be strong, large, close-able, lockable and come with an inbuilt 'chocolate detector' attached to a robotic arm? If they have a robotic arm, is it automatic or controlled and is it a thief? Don't forget you have boys in your class and their creative responses should also be accepted and encouraged.

This concludes my list and brainstorming for now. Can anyone else add to my list? Have you found an open-ended project that Google didn't show me? How do you feel about open-ended vs. closed art projects for special occasions like Easter?

Theorizing Thursday - Considering the possibilities of augmented reality

Virtual reality is a familiar idea to many of us, at least in theory, thanks to the great attention it has received in both television and movies. However, augmented reality is new to me. I ran across it during my 'pd via twitter' last week and it got me excited. Apparently it has been rising in popularity in conversations about technology. Just in case you are also new to the idea, let me introduce the idea to you quickly. Augmented reality is basically a combination of the virtual and real world, where the virtual world can be pasted over the real world and viewed digitally.

In my experimentation with free iPhone apps, I have been able to take upload photo, text, and video for use. I can then take a photo of my environment and paste my item over the top. After saving this, I can then move my phone around the room to view the various items I have pasted. Such creative apps include Aurasma and Glyphics and could be viewed as a form of 'virtual graffiti.' I have also downloaded a few apps which already have set items. These involve finding a compatible item (often labelled) or printing a sheet from the app for use. For example, there are apps which will recognise a set picture book and allow you to view the pictures as an animation and others will scan compatible movie posters and allow you to see an animation of one of the characters.

Moving on to classroom applications gets me really excited! Imagine having:

• art displayed on the walls outside the classroom which the parents can scan to see a video of their child creating the piece and describing their thinking.
• walking into a classroom as a relief teacher and telling the kids you have redecorated the walls with invisible resources for the day.
• class announcements attached to the class sign on the door.
• attaching video assistance for homework assignments.
• sending students on a virtual treasure hunt.
• being able to view virtual historic pictures overlapping real modern scenes.

Furthermore, presenting students with augmented reality allows them to glimpse into a possible reality for them and consider the implications. I would love to have a brainstorming session with a group of students and see what possibilities they could see for this technology. For the time being though, here is the list created from research, along with a melding of my brain and the stolen thoughts from an ICT-minded husband:

• glasses for police which identify wanted persons passing by, police records, and other vital information immediately.
• virtual advertising adding another layer when a shop front, business card or poster is viewed.
• guidance for repair work, such as step-by-step instructions for mechanical repairs.
• interactive books which include zooming abilities, videos, and 3-D models.
• interactive postcards, similar to picture book idea above.
• experimentation with designs before spending money on real resources.
• online profiles attached to individuals and accessible to the public (even if basic info).
• augmented reality tours through tourist attractions, museums, etc.
• GPS systems for variety of travel methods
• identifying plants, providing information about appropriate care and links to more info

We could probably go on, but you get the general idea - there is a lot of possible ideas. By the time some of our students graduate, some of these things could be a normal part of life. We could fight against it, as we have against certain other new technologies, such as the self-checkout when they first invaded supermarkets. Otherwise, get on board and encourage your students to think creatively and prepare for their possible futures.

Passionate to keep up-to-date? Google is your best friend, but saving you the trip, you can get started here:

• iTeach - Aurasma: a quick focus on Aurasma and the classroom.
• Edudemic - How to start using augmented reality in the classroom: provides a handy break down of two popular, free apps for augmented reality.
• Pinterest - Tina Wahlert - Augmented reality in the classroom: a whole pinterest board with links to information and ideas.

How new is this idea for you? How do you feel about moving into an even more ICT-reliant world as times go on? Do you have more inspirational ideas for us or a favourite form of augmented reality?

Wonderful Wednesday - When the paperwork is finally approved

Today I am keeping it to a short update as I will be busy with putting together the last few details needed to prepare me for casual work.

This morning I was sitting and indulging in a few too many episodes of Bones when I noticed the little number on my phone indicating I had three unread emails. Oh the joys to discover I have finally been approved for casual work after three months of paperwork! By now I have become quite friendly with certain staff at one school in particular and my hopes are riding high. As such, my blog posts will be changing up a little as I become more organised. You can be expecting to see insights and reflections on organisation, open-ended resources and plans, a CRT creation list and more coming soon. However, this will wait a little while as I am planning on writing about augmented reality tomorrow which has got me far too excited and inspired.

Please excuse me while I go do another dance in celebration. Finally, work is possible!

Tricky Tuesday - Bringing humour into the classroom

Today, rather than share new ideas for bringing humour into the classroom, I'm going to share some short personal stories of successful pranks and light-hearted fun.

I was awake until past 1am last night and totally forgot about April Fool's until I woke up at 6:10am. Before I was even dating my husband, we had huge prank wars. I smothered butter on his car and put polystyrene balls in his air con. He stole my car, hid it, and locked the doors, forcing me to crawl through the boot. I had a friend take sneaky photos of the two of us for weeks and placed them in a room of his house like a 'stalker wall.' But the first April Fools Day of being married and I had nothing planned. He was in a rush to get off to work, so I couldn't be too cruel. As a result, he ended up with his cornflakes tasting like peppermint and nothing but peppermint. Too easy, but the laughs I got watching him process that first unexpected taste was great. If wanting to pull a prank on the staff there's no reason why you can't just bring morning tea to share and add an unexpected flavour or hide something in it. When our prank war was slowing down, I actually baked him a cupcake with a note inside it. In a cake, there's no reason you can't hollow it out and place a larger object or nothing at all.

I believe that humour is an essential part of life. Sure, not everyone would see the funny side of their car being stolen or completely messed up, but laughter is a medicine. While on the car topic, I'll jump to high school memories. There is always at least one class clown. One boy in particular would show up wearing an odd combination of both sports uniform and normal uniform as sports day was rescheduled and he didn't know which uniform to wear. On another day, he brought a jar of vegemite to school. He then proceeded to rub vegemite under the door handle of the principal's car, as well as a few classroom handles. The outdoor ed teacher was the first to come in our classroom with a black hand. He simply walked in and raised his hand and the class erupted with laughter. He took the joke in the good spirit it was intended. However, when the principal discovered the vegemite on his car, the clown was sentenced to washing every staff car during his lunch hour. This event actually helped inspire my own pranks on my husband's car. Many people have had a good laugh hearing the squeal he emitted upon discovering the vegemite smeared on his hand (it was videoed and placed on facebook along with a humorous threat for revenge).

I still remember my two favourite teachers in primary school due to their sense of humour. My grade 5/6 teacher loved telling embarrassing stories. I remember her 'getting to know us' by asking us for our embarrassing stories. Those brave enough spoke up and I can't remember any of those stories. I don't think I will ever forget hearing my teacher then confess her story though! She was wearing a pair of pants that were a little too tight. Then she dropped something... Bending down to pick it up, she heard that dreadful sound: her pants had ripped in front of the whole class. Her response? She stood up and laughed about it!

My grade 3/4 teacher was a prankster all year long. He was known as 'the ghost' in my little brothers class as he was constantly pranking them and never caught. Once, he snuck into their classroom, which was next door, during the lunch hour, and set an alarm on the computers. Their silent reading time was interrupted that day by the Richmond Tigers footy club song. In our class, his humour was sometimes more subtle. We were studying something in science (he is the only teacher I remember who made science enjoyable for me!) and he asked us a question. He gave two options for answers and asked us to stand depending on what we thought the answer was. The whole class stood by the first option. One lone boy stood for the second. When asked to explain his answer, he replied, "I don't know why, but the other answer seemed too obvious." Our teacher got a kick out of this, and it turned out the joke was on us as the entire class, except that one student, had chosen the wrong answer.

Jumping forward a few years into college, we had a math teacher known as 'the dragon' due to her no-nonsense views. However, she was always late to class. Yesterday, I was reading a prank where the teacher says the students are running the class for the day while she sits back to see what happens. In our case, she was late to class and we just took over the class. One of the louder students stood at the front of the class, told us to open our books and had us begin solving the questions on the board. To her credit, when our teacher walked in, she walked to the back of the class and took an empty seat and played student. However, the student concluded the problem and went to move on before it was finished. Our teacher then raised her hand, being a polite student, to point out that the problem wasn't yet finished. It was after that she took back her whiteboard marker and rightful position. I dream of the day when my students are out to a specialist class and I can walk into a colleague's classroom and take over. "Oh, there's a parent wanting to see you at the office. Your class looks to know what they are doing. I can watch them for you." "Oh, there wasn't any one there to see you? How strange."

So there's my few stories with little ideas for the staff room, the class next door, your own students, and your favourite colleague. April 1st is the perfect excuse, but with laughter being a good medicine, there's no reason you can't do it at unexpected times and become the memorable teacher.

Want some more ideas on how to inject some humour into the classroom? Here you go:

• Sunny Days in Second Grade - April Fool's Day Classroom Fun: Send your class on a search for 'the elusive lirpaloof bird' and get some photos of them all waving carrots in the air.
• New Teachers - How to Use Humour As a Tool in the Classroom: Reasons why we should utilise humour and humour we should be wary of.
• Hub Pages - Teachers Rule: Top Ten Pranks To Pull On Students: Some of these may be best suited for older students or specific circumstances, but there's some gems.

As a final disclaimer, don't forget to pick your targets carefully (to avoid washing every car in the staff parking lot at least) and remember respect. Some students and colleagues wouldn't find these amusing. Others are practically asking for it. Any other epic ideas out there to help us let our hair out every now and then, get a giggle and release some tension?