The 2nd and 3rd grades have joined forces for our new PBL project.  Our driving question is "How can we create a mural for the Anchorage airport that will teach tourists about Alaska?" ​The kids were introduced to this project with a surprise field trip to the William...

What really happens during a teacher professional development day? 1.  Teachers play when the kids are away. Every faculty meeting starts off with a game or a greet, as the staff continues to strengthen their collegiality with their peers much in the same way that...

It is impossible to ignore the challenges that society and we as educators are facing on a daily basis.  When I heard of the devastating news like that recently from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, it prompted me to reflect on the importance of a strong...

PNA employs the Responsive Classroom approach for social and emotional learning in our classrooms.  A foundation of this approach is the daily morning meeting. "Morning Meeting is an engaging way to start each day, build a strong sense of community, and set children...

You might have noticed on the daily schedule that we have writing workshop each day.  Have you ever wondered what writing workshop looks like in second grade?  Here's your chance to be the fly on the wall and take a quick peek...

Math this week brought with it some interesting characters...inchworms, footworms and yardworms!  The students have been hearing the sequel of Jack and the Beanstalk titled "Jim and the Beanstalk."  In this story, Jim gets to explore a bit of giant land and finds out...

This new storytelling activity during Morning Meeting has been a big hit with the second graders.  Tell Me a Story is a deck of creative story cards with just pictures. The way we play begins with each student getting 3-4 cards which they can then play in any order...

It's been a busy first week back at school after break.  The second graders have started several new units of study in different areas, but the hands down favorite so far has been the new informational unit in writing workshop. There are several different types of...

There are many reasons why I love working at PNA.  This picture illustrates one of my favorite reasons...everyone has a safe and supportive place to be themselves. This quick snapshot happened at the very end of snack time when we generally play "Beat the Song".  A...

There are different styles of learning and different approaches to teaching.  But one thing seems to remain constant...active student involvement is relational to sustained learning.      "Tell me and I forget, teach me and I remember, involve me and I learn." Last...