5 Ways to Organize Your Teaching on Pinterest

I have a Pinterest account and eagerly pin new, cool things I come across….. but seriously my boards are a mess. Sure, I can find that Colosseum Tour for Kids video link, my favorite tri-corner hat tutorial or the yummy ice cream in a bag recipe when needed. But – hold on - it’s going to take several minutes.

My colleague Bristlecone Backpack is young. She grew up using technology and therefore approaches her account in a totally different way. Check out her Pinterest boards. So pretty…so organized… so easy to find stuff. I’m an old dog. She’s teaching me some new tricks.  I’d like to pass along “Do this, Not That” advice to designing functional teaching-related Pinterest boards.

Do this: Create a board targeted for a specific unit – Not that: create a board for a broad skill

Place pins on the board where you know you’ll use them. It keeps you focused and reduces the total number of boards you work with. We teach the Core Knowledge curriculum so she organizes her boards by domain. Look at her Astronomy board. Point of use. It works.

Do this: Be picky – Not that: Pin indiscriminately because you think “ that looks good”

Check out the links you are considering. This means actually click the link! Does the link work?  Is the idea appropriate for your grade level? Are there photos of the end product? Is the website easy to navigate? Is using the idea or resource something you’d actually do? If you say no to any of the above, pass it over. It creates clutter. Boo on clutter.

Do this: Use the secret boards – Not that: Uh… Don’t use the secret boards…

Bristlecone Backpack told me she collects hairstyle inspiration, memes and recipe ideas like the rest of us. But YOU can’t see it. (She has equally impressive secret boards keeping her private life private.) Her public Pinterest profile is professional and makes it easy for others to use (like me!).

Do this: Unpin stuff you don’t like or use – Not that: Leave it all there, just in case….

Take a few moments to unpin the stuff that you would not use again. It’s slightly clunky, but hover on the pin and click on the pencil symbol. On that page press delete. Don’t keep the junk.

Do this: Bookmark the Pinterest board you are currently using on your school computer – Not that: email yourself links you think you’ll use to your school email (from home).

I would never would pull up my current Pinterest boards on my school computer because of the above referenced jumbled mess. However, if your Pinterest board is school-worthy, bookmark it!  If Pinterest is blocked at your school, talk to your network administrator. Show the Pinterest boards you want to have at your fingertips.

I’d love to hear best Pinterest practices for YOUR boards! Share the love below!

Drawing the Taj Mahal when Learning about India

Integrating elements of world cultures across the curriculum is fun, natural and fairly easy. Teaching an appreciation for different cultures early on will, I believe, have a positive impact in the future. We just finished a unit on India. You can find a list of books I use HERE and a great FREE mini poster to promote cultural appreciation HERE.
A favorite lesson is learning about, then drawing the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal Reading Passage and How to Drawing is engaging for middle elementary students. It has two pieces. First is a reading passage sharing the history of this world treasure presented in two formats. One is ideal for small group instruction and the other is for fluency practice. Some kids read into a whisper phone and others will do it with a partner. Either way this fluency piece promotes smooth, natural reading of a text.
Second, kids get to draw the Taj Mahal with step-by-step instructions. They love the process. I project a photo of the Taj Mahal and post the steps on the whiteboard near by. I model the process using our document camera then let them get started.
The end results show a lot of variety. Some kids add in lots of details, others.... not so much. A couple of kids insisted on using a ruler, which was fine.
I like to do this lesson after we're comfortable with text features. Using vocabulary lifted from the reading passage, kids labeled some of the architectural features - minaret, dome, arch - and eventually added a caption at the bottom. These looked great in the hall.

Drawing the Taj Mahal allows for a different sort of learning experience. It helps us notice and interpret details. It helps us remember stories. Everyone can produce a different end result - and everyone is correct.
If you like the idea of incorporating a literature piece with an art project check out these units as well.
Native American Buffalo "Hide" Craft Project and How To Reading
Famous Immigrant Biographies
Greek God/Goddess Bundle: Mini Biographies, How to Drawings and Crown

Books about India for your Elementary Classroom

A quick look at four books I love when sharing India with elementary students. Not only do these texts share facts and information, they are ideal for teaching literacy concepts in context. All four are good for quick mini lessons!
Look What Came from India
Kids will be familiar with many of the items. Great for making text to self and text to world connections. Also ideal recognizing and discussing text features.
I is for India
Beautiful photographs, many featuring elementary age children. Great for reinforcing main idea and key details.
Ruler of the Courtyard
This realistic fiction includes great word choice and is a good review of story elements. It also integrates nicely with identifying theme.
Same,Same but Different
A story told through pen pal letters, this books is great to highlight the letter writing format and ideal for compare and contrast.

Looking for more elementary lessons on India? Check out India's Taj Mahal - Reading Passage and How to Drawing. Looking for other ways to teach key skills in context? Grammar and Writing Mechanics in Context.
Note: I do not get any financial incentive to promote these books. I use them. I want to share them with you.

Setting Up a Classroom for Cultural Appreciation

Throughout the year I expose my students to a variety of world cultures. I try to give my little guys hands on experiences as much as possible so they'll grasp that there is a whole world waiting for them beyond our little town! What a joy when members of our school and community come to our room to take us on a little tour of their country. Most visitors share elements of their native foods, ideas and traditions. Could this passion project of mine make a global impact in the long run?

Here is how I set up my students to be open to new cultural ideas. First, I prime my kids to be curious. I tell them straight out that they could learn about some habits and beliefs that may seem unusual. My enthusiasm and sense of wonder is authentic and contagious. "Are you ready to learn some really cool things about _____?" Their heads bob up and down. Yes. Yes.
Second, my students are banned from saying "That's weird." Apparently in elementary school anything different is weird.... and I want to meet it head on. Certainly they are not allowed to say it when our guest is present, but it holds true for the follow up discussions as well. A mind is less open, curious and appreciative if something is labeled as weird.
Third, I give them an alternative phrase - "Wow! That's interesting. That's different."
"Today we are going to learn about _______. You'll find there are many things that are different from what you are used to. You may want to think, "That's weird!" but instead, in our classroom we think, "Wow! That's interesting. That's different." Please keep that in mind as we begin our lesson today. I hang this mini chart and point to it during the year. It's free in my store!
Finally, we reflect on the experience. Thinking about new ideas and making connections make concepts stick. We write a thank you letter to the presenter. I use this set. At the beginning of the school year the thank you is modeled and completed as a group. Toward the end there is usual a group that likes to take on the thank you responsibility then shares with the class.
Perhaps this will help you instill cultural appreciation as well.

On a side note: I had to chuckle toward the end of last school year. I wear glasses and one time I took them off. My students had never seen me without them on. "Wow. You look weird." one of my cuties said. Suddenly, another student jumped in. "No she doesn't! She looks different and interesting!" Gotta love that!