Rocking the Vote in Nunamakerville!

It's election season in "Nunamakerville."  The students have been busy campaigning, and I am loving the creativity shining through.  Each day the students are given time to campaign "door to door" (i.e., desk to desk) in order to persuade voters that they are the best one of the job.  I love seeing all of the door bells that the kids have made for the candidates to ring when they come to their "doors."  Too cute!

Last week the students campaigned for the following positions: Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Senator, and House of Representatives Member.


Congratulations are in order to:
Governor: Rahul
Lieutenant Governor: Chet
Senator: Brooke
House of Representatives Member: Jack

Speeches were fantastic this year.  Coming off of the "fiscal cliff" several weeks ago, decreasing taxes seemed to be at the forefront of each candidate's platform.  Chet ran on an "increase classroom pay" platform, which might have played a major role in securing his Lieutenant Governor seat.

This week the students are campaigning for Senator (we have 2), Mayor, and Attorney General.  Good luck to all of our fabulous candidates!  I'll let you know once the polls are in next Thursday...

I can remember having trouble memorizing the 3 Branches of Government chart in my social studies textbook when I was a third grader.  Several years ago I thought to myself, "How can I bring this to life?"  Viola!  We created a classroom council and it took on a life of its own.  We talk a lot about each position, how it affects the community's citizens, and checks and balances.  The kids have a deep understanding of government because they live it January through June of each school year.

Once a month we hold a "Town Hall Meeting" where citizens of "Nunamakerville" voice their concerns to their representatives.  (This is a great way to teach the concept of representative government.) After that, the council made up of the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, 2 Senators, House of Representatives Member, Mayor, and Attorney General meet with me during recess once a month.  We work together under the leadership of the Governor to solve classroom problems.

Solutions can be anything from making a new classroom law to forming a new classroom committee.  My favorite solution over the years has been the creation of the "Friendship Committee" to solve a recess isolation issue.  Our class's "Friendship Committee" became so popular that the entire third grade began coming to our committee for friendship connections during recess.  Kids can be so amazing!

Clean It Up! Sincerely, Your Neighborhood President

Well, our class survived the fiscal cliff.  Student taxes increased from $2 a week to $4 a week.  That left students who were not on the Super Star list in the negative after paying taxes and rent....at least for those who are not homeowners.  The kids survived, just as we did.  Next week our class will have its annual elections.  I always love hearing the speeches.  The kids typically promise decreases in taxes.  It's amazing how true to life things become in the classroom.

Today the kids elected HOA/Neighborhood Presidents.  Tyra had the fabulous idea to create neighborhood committees that would clean up litter in the neighborhoods.  I couldn't resist taking it a step further and creating the Neighborhood President position.  I told the kids that the President would need to pick up any litter on the ground in their neighborhoods.  However, the President also had the ability to write a letter to any neighbors in their communities that potentially decreased property value because of messy desks on the inside or top.  They had to give the neighbor a timeline.  After the expiration of the timeline, the classroom contractor could be called to clean up the mess and the home occupant would have to pay the contractor for cleaning up the mess.  So....five minutes after my announcement of this policy, two Neighborhood Presidents had already written letters.

My scanner wasn't the best, so in case you can't read this letter it says:

Dear Neighbor,

Do you know your desk is dirty?  Clean in up or else.
Due Date: 30 Minutes
Thanks,
Your President








This one says:

Dear J,

Your yard is a mess.  I already called the contractor.  You have to get it done by 2:00.














I'll keep you posted on whether or not this strategy works.  I'm willing to try anything at this point!

The Christmas Spirit Brings Charitable Giving...

The Christmas spirit is in the air and my students are feeling quite charitable these days.  Yesterday one of my students skipped 3 pages of a 4 page science test.  My policy on skipping test questions without leaving me a note as to why you skipped them is a fee of $5 per question and mandatory completion of the questions.  That meant that this student now owed $150 and would need to skip recess to complete the test.

This was a student who has a history of throwing major tantrums.  You can see and hear a cloud of "Oh goodness, what's going to happen now?" fall over the faces of other students in the classroom as I told this student that he would need to pay the fee and complete the test.  Surprisingly, the student gave me $13 from his wallet, told me to keep the $50 bonus that he was on track to receive in the afternoon, and wrote himself on the debt board for $87.  He then took his test back without throwing a tantrum and proceeded to complete the test.  He also approached me after completing the test and calmly asked if I had any jobs that he could do in the classroom to help him get out of debt, which of course I did!  It was certainly one of those, "Wow, everything is falling into place!" moments that we have as teachers.

Meanwhile, Greyson (who has one of the biggest hearts I've ever had the pleasure of knowing) had been saving up the money that he had been earning with his new business to move out of "Freeville" and into "The Suburbs."  The next thing I know Greyson is coming to me saying, "What the heck, it's Christmas" with $50 in hand to donate to the student now in debt for his carelessness.  I asked him if this was the money he had planned on using for the big move.  He responded, "Yeah, but my classmate needs it and it's almost Christmas."  WOW!  Now, of course, I had to stop Greyson from giving all of his money to the child in debt.  We had a conversation about the responsible way to give to charity while being able to pay your own bills too.

Although the kids in this class have been dealing with the tantrums thrown by the careless question-skipping student since first grade now, they are finding ways to celebrate the fact that he is beginning to find control within himself.  The classroom community is putting their arms around him.  It is such a beautiful thing to witness.  This child's success is affecting us all.

Here's the scoop on our classroom donations:

Once a week (or more often if you have time to devote) allow students to donate to peers on the debt board. These are the only students that can receive donations, only up to the amount that he/she is in debt. Donations are to be given directly to the teacher, not the individual students. 

Students who receive donations must thank the donor(s) with a formal thank you note. The formality of the thank you note will be based on your students’ ability levels. Students tend to be happy to write a thank you note because they realize just how hard the donor had to work in the classroom for that money. This makes students feel special as both the giver and the receiver. The student who gives money receives an intrinsic happiness and the student who receives the money feels loved by his/her classmates. This builds classroom community and peer respect.

Here's an example of a charity thank you note from last school year:

Your Teacher is ALWAYS Watching!

Greyson recently opened a student store by the name of "Photoman."  The kids are LOVING Greyson's ability to capture fun moments in the classroom with his digital camera.  Photoman's business model is to take pictures of classroom happenings and then "sell" the photos to kids.  Once a student purchases a photo, an email is sent to the child's parent with the picture attached.  It really is a great idea.

Greyson snapped this picture of me just as we were leaving the rug after a read aloud session earlier this week.  He did an amazing job editing.  This morning I showed the students this picture (giving Greyson my 'celebrity endorsement'), and the students responded by saying, "That is creepy.  It looks like you're looking at us."  So, guess what?  I'm definitely printing this picture out and placing it in the classroom.  As I told the kids this morning, I'm always watching, even with there is a substitute in the room!

Greyson also jump-started Aviana's modeling career today.  He took this shot of her eating ice cream she had just purchased at "Ice Cream Galaxy."  The fellas who own Ice Cream Galaxy liked the picture so much that they paid Aviana and Greyson for the rights to the picture. They intend to use the picture to advertise for their store in the classroom.  Aviana, if your modeling career really takes off, don't forget the little people!  You might also want to consider hiring Greyson as your agent!

Tomorrow morning is third grade's annual Books & Bagels.  Greyson mentioned to the class that he would be taking pictures during the event.  He said that the pictures could be purchased as Christmas gifts for parents.  Is this kid a natural entrepreneur or what?  Well, that started a trend.  Now there are "We are OPEN for Books & Bagels" signs decorating desks all over my classroom.  I'm very curious what tomorrow will bring!  Stayed tuned...

Let the Last Minute Christmas Sales Begin....

It's Monday, which in my students' world means.....STORES!  The Christmas sales have begun.  Laniah's store displayed a "Christmas Sale - Everything is $1" sign (pictured here).  Chet and Luke decided to hold a raffle for "Free Ice Cream for Life," which I thought was an extremely clever idea.

Nolen's "Money for Money" store has hit hard times.  As I mentioned in a blog last week, he is using his own money as capital for the loans that he will give to other students.  There's a slight problem....Nolen currently has $1 to his name.  So now he's on a quest to raise capital to be able to actually loan money out.  Capital is always the hard part when building a small business, isn't it?  I suppose it's time for "Money for Money" to seek out an angel investor.

And last for my blogging today, but absolutely not least, I have to share this story:

One of my students told me at lunch on Friday that she made Cs, Ds, and Fs in 2nd grade.  I responded in somewhat of a bewildered state, "You're a really smart kid.  Why did you make those kind of grades when you're making such great grades in 3rd grade?"  Her response..."You inspire me."  If that doesn't make it all worthwhile, what does?

Dress for Success!

This week a couple of my boys have decided to wear their "business shirts and ties."  Not only is it too cute, but it really has created a feeling of professionalism among them.  Dressing professionally seems to have helped my students with focus during lessons and behavior throughout the day.  It even had an effect on their wallets when profits were higher than usual for my "tie wearing fellas" during classroom stores today. (The Super Star reward today was 5 minutes of stores.)

Nolen (pictured) borrowed his tie from his dad.  On the way to lunch today he told me all about the various colors and patterns his father has in his closet.  I had such a wonderful vision of a sweet father/son bonding experience as they looked through Dad's ties together.

As my other Nolan left the classroom today he said, "If my mom washed my black business shirt today then I will wear it tomorrow."  So much for casual Friday...

Need a Good Contractor?

Do you have any students that seem to live in a state of disorganization?  You know the kind, they ask you for multiple copies of things constantly because "they can't find it."  Now, as the teacher, you know that the paper in question is somewhere hidden in the avalanche of papers flowing out from the depths of the student's desk.  Today I made a comment to my student who consistently hosts a desk avalanche.  The comment sounded something like, "It looks like a natural disaster hit your neighborhood" and the rest of the class came up the most amazing idea.  Don't you love it when that happens?

Chris, an amazingly smart little guy (and NOT the desk avalanche creator...if anything he's the extreme opposite), told the class that his uncle "Crazy Jack" is a contractor in New Jersey.  When Hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey "Uncle Crazy Jack" went into action to help rebuild people's homes.  Of course, contractors receive money for the jobs they perform.  So....my brilliant students decided that we should take away a job that we don't use all that often on our employment board and replace it with "Contractor."  The contractor will assess the damage and then state his/her price to clean the natural disaster.  The desk above was assessed at $45 by Chris, our first contractor.  In my opinion he should've required more money, especially since he had to leave the jobsite to catch the bus and will go back to cleaning this natural disaster area in the morning.  Meanwhile, the owner of this desk does not have property insurance, so he will pay the $45 fee to Chris over time.  Welcome to the REAL world!

Here's Chris in action this afternoon:

A note on our class insurance system...

Students can choose to purchase health, property, and/or car insurance. Health insurance benefits students when they need to make a non-emergency trip to the nurse’s office and/or during “Life Happens” scenarios. Property insurance benefits students when a natural disaster hits a neighborhood (i.e. a desk is too messy) and a contractor must be brought in to remedy the situation and/or during “Life Happens” scenarios. Car insurance benefits students during “Life Happens” scenarios.

Insurance costs an upfront fee of $10 per type. If students want to purchase all three types of insurance it will be an upfront fee of $30. Once purchased, there is a deductible of $15 for “Life Happens” scenarios or natural desk disasters and a deductible of $2 for classroom healthcare necessity.