My Classroom Economy

My first career was in banking and I truly loved the fast-paced craziness that came along with the financial industry, however once I started having children my passion for that industry went away. That is one of the many ways I ventured over into the education world, my kids! 

I hear people talk all the time about how teachers are not teaching kids "real world" situations and that kids are not prepared for the "real world" when they leave high school because teachers are not teaching them what they need to know to be a functioning adult in society. (Talk about a lot of pressure). So in my research of how to become the most effective teacher I can be I stumbled across a website...

https://www.myclassroomeconomy.org

Can I just squeal now with the excitement I have for this program?! Talk about a dream come true for me, this program not only combines my love for the financial industry but also my love of teaching into one program and... it is FREE!!!! Why are more teachers not using this in their classrooms? It is FREE and amazing and it ties in with the Learning Standards for our state and it is FREE and the learning possibilities are unlimited and it is FREE and it will give kids a sense of ownership to their actions and responsibilities in the classroom and it is FREE.

I am tickled pink that I have found this website, I am tickled pink that they also offer a FREE kit for those schools with limited resources (and mine does). I signed up for the free kit on a Wednesday and I had it on Friday, completely FREE (they even paid the shipping and handling). All of the copies are there to get us started. 

I am so impressed with this company that I have told everyone I know about it!!! If you are looking at or thinking about implementing an economy program in your classroom then My Classroom Economy program is the way to go. It is broken into grade levels so it does not matter if you teach kindergarten or 12th grade, they have a program in place. All you have to do is put the effort in to get it started and then sit back and watch those light bulbs come on when your students make the connections with their own money!!!!

The Giver by Lois Lowry

 I just finished reading 'The Giver' by Lois Lowry. This is the second time I have read this book, the first being several years ago during my Children's Literature Methods class. I remember the first time I read it that I ended the book and was a little shocked at the ending and a little confused. This time the ending made way more sense to me so I am not sure if I just skipped too many parts in the first read. I approached this reading through the eyes of a fifth grade student and at this point I can see that this book might be a little confusing for some students. I can also see with the concept of "release" which ends up being murder and in one situation suicide that this topic might bring up mixed feelings for some students, especially if you have a student who has experienced the loss of a family member.

I think I will hold off using this book as a read-aloud until I talk to the other 5th grade teachers about their feelings for the book. It is a really good book but with my inexperience with the emotions of 5th grade students I think it is best for me to wait to make a decision on this book.

This is a really good book but does touch on a very sensitive topic such as murder of children and older adults. They call it "release". In the book when they talk about release it is in a very positive tone, speaking about ceremonies and the reader gets the feeling that it is a joyous occasion. It isn't until the main character, Jonas, is allowed to watch the procedures his father goes through with the  release of a healthy twin male (who was chosen to be released based only on the fact that he was born a twin and that he weighted a few ounces less than his brother). The child is "released" by an injection of a mediation into the soft part of his head. It is then described that the child cries and then flaps his arms and then goes limp. The dead baby is then wrapped up, put in a box, and then put in a door that is described as a trash shoot that you find at a school. The person who "released" the child (Jonas' father) then waves bye to the child with a smile on his face and goes about his day.

I am not sure about you but that is a very hard image to have in your head as an adult let alone a 5th grade student that might not understand or have experienced death, or worse one that has experienced death and might feel that calling it "released" is making it sound like it is a good thing. 

I am slowly starting to think this book is a bad idea for 5th graders. I will post back as soon as I talk to the other teachers in my building. I was hoping this might be a good book since there is a movie coming out this fall but... we will see. www.loislowry.com

It feels like forever....

It really does feel like forever since I last posted. It has been a wild and crazy summer and I just got completely and totally overwhelmed with trying to get books labeled and things gathered up for my classroom and also baseball season and our oldest having weights and conditioning, football camp and a social life. WOWzer... I can finally start slowing down a tad bit and breath!

I actually sat down yesterday and read a book 'Rules' by Cynthia Lord. http://www.cynthialord.com/index.html

As I was reading this book I kept thinking to myself, "Why hasn't someone recommended this book to me before now?" This book is AMAZING!!! It gave me a different perspective that I really hadn't thought about and it is a must read!

This will be a must Read- Aloud to my 5th graders this year. 

Her website even has an option for teachers and when you click on it there is tons of information to help you with class discussions on her books...and it is FREE!!!!!!!!! 

The character lessons that this book will teach and the discussions we can have!!! I haven't read a book that has gotten me this excited in a really long time. I will be on the hunt for more of her books!

My next read is 'The Giver' by Lois Lowry. I read this book several years ago while going through my Children's Literature Methods class but thought I should revisit it since is being made into a movie this year and will also be a great Read-Aloud.