1. Instead of sitting at desks doing worksheets, the students got to spend Math time doing fun and interesting rotations. The first rotation was "Bee Bots". These are robotic math toys that teach the children coding skills. They got to chase each other around a map and have a great time learning as they went. They loved it! The second rotation was a math race. Each child had a timer and a math "racecourse". They had the opportunity to practice their math facts while also having fun and beating their personal best. The last rotation was working on an online math program. The children of course enjoyed this, and it was another way to solidify their math facts. I was impressed at how smoothly the classroom ran while this happened. In just a short time, they were able to work on math without ever touching a worksheet, while having fun, and while getting the information through more than one sensory means.
2. On Friday afternoons, the students get to have reading buddies come in from an upper grade. They can spend their reading time working with an older student whom they admire. They concentrated remarkably well and were visibly excited to be working with these older students. I think it benefited the older children as well. The kids look forward to this reading time, and its certainly more interesting than the silent reading time I remember as a kid.
3. During transitions, the teacher sometimes uses Brain Breaks or Go Noodle. These online resources make it fun for the kids to get some gross motor movement to get some wiggles outs, and prepare themselves for the next activity. She also uses this to "reset" the class, when they seem to be getting a little out of hand. I have seen it work beautifully. The kids are very motivated and engaged.
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