Every Trick in the Book Tip #2

Middle school mentality has surely set in right now if you teach at the elementary level. Watching the kids you've taught way back when they had chubby cheeks and missing teeth grow into sarcastic, eye rolling wanna be teenagers is tough. So here comes tip #2

Tip #2 KEEP IT COOL

Since I am NOT cool, I have to make sure my projects are. Subject matter is very important. With the 5th graders I always do a sneaker project in the spring time. Why? Sneakers are cool. I do my animation unit with the third and fourth graders around this time, simply because comics are cool. Not to mention with both projects I can sneak in observational drawing, sequencing, color theory, and even literacy (check out the action words they wrote with their shoe laces.) I'll post more of their finished products soon, they are all amazing. Oh and on the subject of keeping it cool, make sure you bring in some of your own cool sneakers if you do this project. 5th graders don't always want to take off their shoes (understandably) so this minor detail is important!

Tomorrow's tip will be another way to keep the attitudes when middle school mentality starts to creep in. Spoiler alert. . . "there will be a quiz so I hope you're listening!"