MASTERING THE GRIP!

We take for granted sometimes the simple things.  You probably don't remember but at some time, someone had to show you how to hold a pencil!   Kids can have an awkward pencil grip.  Mostly  because they don't know how to position or move their fingers or how to shift the position of their hand so that the weight rests on the little finger.   You probably didn't realize there was so much involved.  I've been teaching the kids the "Duck".   Making a duck with your thumb, pointer and middle finger--then letting the duck eat your pencil.  Placing the pencil in the proper position & biting down.


Now that the position is correct, we have to work on strength.  A lot of the kids are showing minimal strength in those tiny little fingers.  No strength makes writing wobbly & light, so here are some things you can do to build that strength.
  a.  Playing with Clay.   Clay is hard to manipulate and that works to our advantage.  Have the child pinch the clay between the thumb and index fingers, keeping the fingers in a round "O" shape.
  b.  Using a stress ball.  My kids always liked those things anyway.   
  c.  Pinching clothes pins.  Have the them help hang some clothes on the line or just have them place the clothespins on string or a ruler.
  d.  Try using the pencil grippers.  They now make them with the sides curved inward to show you where to put your fingers.


Finally we have to work on keeping their arm and wrist on the table.   Holding your arm and wrist in the air while writing does not allow for any control.    Try it & you'll see exactly what I mean.  If you notice them raising their arm, tell them to pretend we put some glue under it and it's stuck to the table.    I do this a lot with cutting---we pretend their elbow is glued to their side so they don't raise their arm while cutting which then leads to them twisting the scissors up side down.


Holding your pencil!  Something so simple we take for granted knowing how to do!

A TOAST to the FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

It's amazing how we are all ready and anxiously awaiting that first day of school, the kids included.  Today was the start of another amazing school year.   I am truly blessed to always have such wonderful parents and students.   I really believe it's going to be another great year.  

The first day of school is always an emotional one.  Children can be filled with so much anxiety when entering a new place and it's so important as a teacher to calm those fears right away.   This morning was no exception.   I know as a parent it's awful to see your child in tears but kids are so resilient.  Their attention span allows them to change on a dime which really works to a teachers advantage!  Within 5 minutes of class time we went from tears to laughter.   All the kids participated in our Question of the Day, coming up to the board and marking their answer.  We had fun singing and playing the name game.   In story after reading Officer Buckles I got to hear about all of the rules & chores the kids have at their house.   Rules help keep us safe--that was our theme of the day!    We also talked about teamwork.   I always tell my class,  we are team:   we work hard together, play together, laugh & cry together but no matter what WE DO IT TOGETHER!   We built a tower together, 1 brick at a time, 1 student at a time and it never fell down.   That's what happens when you work as a team.   If you instill that concept into those kids from day one, you will have an exciting, fun filled & tear-free year!

I am looking forward to watching these precious little people grow, not only in size but in knowledge!  Here's a toast to the start of something wonderful!