TheApple

Are any of you teachers of a combined classroom in a Christian or public school?  I am currently working on my Graduate article and would like some of your feedback as to how you organize, teach the curriculum, handle parents, etc. to make your classroom successful.  I have begun a group for those who do teach a combined classroom.  I have taught the combined classrooms in both public and private schools and would like your feefback also.  I am grateful for the group of Christian teachers.  We all need to be encouraged, and I am glad to be a part of the group.

Jeannine

I work at a small private school as a first grade teacher, and have just been given a first/second combined class for next school year. Can any of you give me tips on best teaching practices or personal experiences with combined teaching? I would greatly appreciate it.  I have been reading about the combined classroom but I think hearing first hand experiences will help me connect my reading a bit better. Thanks

Another thing you can do this year to help your children get accustomed to the idea of a split class is to allow the kindergarten to come visit your classroom before school is out this year.  I also had a fourth grade student to visit the second grade and talk about what they should expect next year.  He was very positive and left the 2nd grade enthusiastic about moving up to our room next year.   I teach third and fourth grades.  If the kindergarten is in another building, they may feel intimidated by moving out of their comfort zone.  The visit will help them. 

Thanks for your response.  It sounds like you had a very successful year.  I have not found that my fourth grade students have digressed from their level of maturity.  Most of my third grade class has grown to the fourth grade level of maturity.  My few that were immature when they came in are still behind  though.  They have grown, but not greatly.  The third grade class has grown more academically than the fourth grade class. 

I believe the socioeconomic factor does contribute to this difference.  I do not believe that is the case with my students, they had a permanent substitute last year after several different substitute teachers when their teacher became ill.  Though this could not be helped, I feel that it has a bearing on the students' current situation.

I'm glad to find this site! I homeschooled 16 years. Now that my children are in college, I needed a paying job and was answering the phone at the local SMALL Christian school last fall. I was there the day the first/second grade teacher quit her class of 7 children. That was a Friday and I started the next Monday! (I got the job instead of someone else because of my degree, Biology not teaching, and I was available!) It was a VERY busy weekend. The teacher left me 1 week of lesson plans to get me started, for which I'm grateful, but she gave NO advise. I later realized she didn't give advise because she wasn't really teaching, just baby sitting, and not even doing a very good job of that.

I'm a  Christian and the Lord took care of it all. He's lead me along the way, showing me what to change first, then second, and never putting more on me than I could take at one time. The first priority was to get the first graders reading. Then second grade math, then....

I learned to put assignments on the board for the second grade to work on while I taught reading to the first grade. They ALL learned some independence this year. I now have some learning centers titled 'Take it to your seat' which can be done independently when all else is done. The first grade had to work on their seatwork while I did the second grade, and circled things they didn't understand, to ask me later.

I could only teach the class as a whole for the first 30 minutes of the day and the last 1 hour--Bible, Science/History. Any suggestions are appreciated.

The children had to learn to not interupt me when I was working with the other grade. I told them that if their pants weren't on fire, they had to take care of it themselves. :-)  I can only teach Bible, Science and History to the combined class. At this age level, nothing else can be combined. Well, I do combine writing about the same topic, having the older children write more than the younger, but that's not part of our curriculum. That's just how I've been able to include writing in an easy way. I'm in the process of building a word wall of common words used in spelling, so they won't interupt me while I'm teaching the other group, increasing their independence.

I read MANY books aloud to my own children, even into high school, and have read aloud to these chidlren. I'm most proud of the fact that when I first started, they couldn't listen to a book without picture prompts, but within a few months, even the most wiggly boy was sitting still, refusing to draw what I was reading, because he might miss something, and without picture prompts!

Well, it's late. Any suggestions are appreciated. I was glad to hear about the maturity levels you all had experienced in first/second grade classes. I found out the same thing!

Hi Leah,

To do some combined math projects try using Cuisinaire Rods...they work across age levels, and give the students concrete conceptualization of numerical quantity.   Sometimes kids don't understand numbers because they are merely symbols that hold a deeper meaning, they represent a quantity.  Cuisinsaire Rods help children to comprehend this relationship.  

I also do a unit on Symbols.

I'm not certain that I understand what you mean when you say there are certain areas in which you cannot combine the lessons.   In thinking about this, I believe the only area in which you might find difficulty with this is Reading...and even then, there are read-alouds and language arts skill-based projects that are completely combine-able...

I think that 1st/2nd combo is the most natural blending of grade levels, and perhaps the least problematic.

Sounds like you have a positive attitude, if not particularly good guidance, ahem. 

Keep Your Chin Up and Keep At It....you'll see, it'll all come together!

Hi Leah,

Okay.   Do you have a teacher's liscense & certification?   I ask because the "How-Tos" are taught in your teacher training courses. 

However, I'm going to assume you did not go through that process for the sake of this conversation.   And, that's okay because you have experience with teaching in a wholistic manner, and that can carry you through.   (No, it does not sound like you are a "wreck" or anything of the sort.)

Even though working with the Cuisenaire Rods can be a complex matter to understand (it's all about the language), it is not difficult to do, and it works.   Put "cuisenaire rods" into your google search and it will offer you numerous sites to visit...they even give Lesson Plans.   In my school district it took them a while to catch onto 'the rods' so, at first I had to buy my own ~ they were pricey...I hope your school provides them.   The rods are easy and fun.   The kids like them.   Enough said.

I take it that you are teaching at a private school, so the interactive dynamics may be different.  That being said, the district hires you to teach because they believe you know what you are doing.   Principals do not tell you what to do in your classroom.  The district may adopt a plan, the principal may endorse that plan, but, whether or not you use it is generally up to you.  I would advise, for diplomacy reasons, you at least give it a try.  I have learned some wonderful and powerful 'magic' from Units I would not have selected, but turned out to be excellent tools. 

I do not believe in "busy" work either.  But, please keep in mind that much of what might be labled "busy" could also be called "practice" for freshly learned concepts.   Use the workbooks in ways that meet your needs.  Finishing every page is unnecessary if your student has grasped the concept.   It only becomes "busy" work when the child already 'gets' the concept and is just engaged in mindless repetition.

Remember, the goal is to teach the concept, not the book.   Once students 'get it', move them forward ~ or, in your case, use them to help others 'get it'.  If a student is waaay ahead in their grasp of the concept, don't make them tutor others, move them forward... bright kids need to keep increasing their knowledge base or they will become bored (even as a 'tutor') and then you might have classroom management problems because a bored-bright-kid can be a real discipline issue.

To me it sounds like you are doing fine and asking good questions...use the internet as a resource.   There are NUMEROUS websites and Lesson Plans available on-line.  

Many of the gifted kids I taught were home-schooled until my program came along.   Did you know that Home Schooled kids do as well on standardized tests as school-taught ones?   And they usually had 50-80% less instruction time.   You probably already knew that.

~debo

Leah S.,

What are your plans for the next school year?  Will you be teaching a combination class again.  I know with the economy as it is, the enrollment for private schools is decreasing.  That is the situation in my school.  I will be glad to answer any specific questions you may have in order to prepare for next year's class.  Last year's experience has probably already given you ideas about organization strategies.  Where do you live?  I will be doing a presentation at the ACSI Convention in Dallas in November.  The topic is "Survival tips for the Multi-Age Classroom."  Maybe you will be able to attend.  Our teachers usually go each year for professional development. 

One thing I do have my students doing while I work with other groups is READ, READ, READ.  I have a classroom library from which my students select books.  At the beginning of the year, they would only thumb through them, but when I made "Book-It" mandatory, they began to read more.  They even asked to take them home. I just had them sign the book out.  THis year I plan to have a "real" library with cards in each book.  It will be easier to manage that way. 

We begin each morning by reading, the first 20 minutes are spent doing this.  I have a packet for BOok It that I give each student, they must complete the reading response sheets for at least 3 books.  At the end of the month they turn it in for a grade.  My students were not reading until we began this activity. 

Another thing that helped them was a study of mysteries.  THey thoroughly enjoyed these, and begged for more to read.  So on the top of the students daily task list is reading, then usually the review part of their math page for the day, spelling pages, language review pages--in your case since you are using the BJU curriculum the extra practice for language.

We use BJU for language, science, and reading only.  ACSI for BIble and spelling, A Beka math and history.  I do teach each grade level of language to my students.  While one group is working on spelling, I teach the other group.  BJU has set it up so that each chapter is the same in 3rd and 4th grade most of the time.  I teach the basic concept to all of the students, then break off into grade level groups.

Do not underestimate your students.  The higher your expectations, the more they will accomplish.

Jeannine

Leah,

Most of the time the lesson plan websites for teachers are broken down into grade level. Take the concepts demonstrated and correlate your lessons. In language arts, you can google the Fry readability test to see how to range reading material. This is how most literature is ranged for grade appropriateness. You can also go to ARbookfind.com and the books here are ranged for grade level reading. Most states department of ed will send out by request the standards book with curriculum standards students should meet at the grade level.

Leah,

I do hope you can come to the convention.  We didn't get the opportunity to go last year, but I know at least 3 from our school will attend.  There will be some great speakers with great ideas. 

Last year I had a math lab, and plan to do it more often this year.  I break the students into groups, and have different concepts at each table.  I believe I did  Fraction dominos, dice--the students had to multiply what they rolled, geo boards, cards--they had to add to determine the winner between teams, and attribute blocks.  I did have the students write a summary of each game, some of the students gave a brief description, others went into great detail.

I determine the reading level by giving a basic reading inventory the first week of school.  I also go by the reports from their Standardized test scores, as well as feedback from their teacher from last year.  I only had three groups last year.  I plan to have that many this year also, but may change my mind depending on the inventory results. 

I will be teaching 3rd and 4th grade again, the 1st and 2nd grades will be separated this year.

Jeannine