Contribution de Marisol Rosa Shapiro

Description

This warm-up activity supports learning everyone’s names and pronouns,  bringing imagination into the room, becoming observant of the world around us, and learning a bit about how each person in the group feels and expresses their emotions. Students will share their name, pronouns, and describe the way they feel today as a weather system.

instructions

• To get students observing and thinking about different types of weather, invite them to describe what they see outside the window.
• Show printed, laminated images of a variety of weather patterns (e.g., sunshine, a rainbow, a tornado, etc.). If your students are working on building this vocabulary or related vocabulary, incorporate that into your prompts: “What are some words or colors we associate with stormy weather?”
• Model the prompt for students to share their name, pronouns, and the weather pattern that describes how they’re feeling today. Once you’ve modeled, let students know in what order you are sharing. For example, if students are in a circle, let them know if the prompt is moving clockwise or counterclockwise. 
• You or a Classroom Professional should write down everyone’s answers somewhere where they can be seen by the whole group. This will help with the reflection at the end of the activity.
• Réflexion:
  • Once everyone has shared, reflect on a scale of zero to five, how well do you know everyone else’s name in the room. Model the scale, and let them know the range. (Showing a zero means you don’t know anyone’s name; showing a five means you know everyone’s name.)
• Extensions:
  • Notice where students fall on this scale and give some of them the opportunity to share why they picked the number they picked.
  • The group may do this activity a second time. Each participant repeats their name and pronouns and incorporates a gesture or movement with the description of their weather pattern.
  • At the end of the class/day together, you might also revisit these weather patterns to find out whether they are any different than they were at the beginning of class. This can be accomplished, again, via a finger poll. “At the beginning of class today, these were our weather patterns: [Read the list of names and weather patterns out loud]. Using your fingers, show how you feel now.”

Transition vers l'activité

As students arrive at their seats, whatever formation they may be in, take a group breath together or lead them in a stretching activity.

Transition hors de l'activité

Invite students to “ball up” their weather patterns like snowballs made of soft, fluffy snow, and toss or blow them up into the air so that they rain down beautiful, soft snow on everyone’s heads as you count down from 10 to zero.  “When we reach zero, we’re ready to transition to the next activity.”

Aménagement de la salle de classe

Preferably in a circle in an open space. This can also happen at desks, as long as everyone can see everyone else, or on seating spots, with gestures only performed with the upper body.

Supports/Matériaux adaptatifs/Outils

• Present the day’s agenda at the beginning of the class. Once this activity is complete, it can be crossed off the agenda.
• Write the “script” for this activity in big, bold letters on chart paper posted somewhere in the room where everyone can see it. The chart paper should read: “My name is _________. I use ______ pronouns. And today I feel like [a weather pattern].”
• Have on hand a stack of laminated images of weather patterns, with big, bold-lettered descriptions such as “sunny” or “stormy.” Alternatively, these could be projected via Smartboard—perhaps even with animation or video.
• Share with the group that they are using simile and/or metaphor to describe how they feel today. The words simile et metaphor may be added to the group’s word wall or arts vocabulary bank.
• Depending on the group, offer students a minute to think independently, write down, draw, or talk to a partner about how they’re feeling and what their weather pattern might be, before sharing with the whole group.
• Rather than a gesture or movement to represent the weather pattern, students might draw their weather pattern. Point to one of the examples, or offer the sound of their weather pattern—a loud crash for lightning, a whistle for tornado, a chirping bird for a sunny day, etc.
• Instead of a “five alive”–style finger poll on a scale of zero to 5, students may choose to respond verbally, to write or draw the number on a piece of paper, or to share their answer with a neighbor who can amplify any shy or uncomfortable voice.

Rôles possibles pour les professionnels de la classe

• Participate in the activity and share how they’re feeling.
• Write down the students’ responses regarding their weather patterns.
• Alert you if you have mispronounced any of the names or used incorrect pronouns.

Réglages pour l'instruction à distance

Unmute everyone and call on students to participate and take attendance.