I am blessed to work and learn with 18 curious and energetic five- and six-year-old children in a public school in a small town in the Northeast.
These children have a natural desire to learn about and explore the world around them.
Their enthusiasm for school, learning, and life is downright contagious! We spend our time together as readers, writers, mathematicians, scientists, thinkers, collaborators, and friends. We are lucky to be a part of a caring, innovative school community, and families are actively involved in supporting their children's school engagement and success.
My Project
In kindergarten, we spend much of our time learning about our emotions and appropriate ways to manage them. This year, especially, it will be very important that my kindergartners have a safe, quiet space to identify and regulate their feelings. This "cozy cube," which is enclosed on some sides and has a soft cushioned surface to sit on, will be a place where students can go if they are feeling overwhelmed and need to practice strategies to calm themselves down. I will have tools available to them to self-regulate while they are in the cozy cube, which will then allow them to return to the group to continue their day.
Social emotional learning is just as important, if not more important, than academics for these young students.
With the challenges we are all facing in the world today, and the fact that many students are just returning to a school setting after months of isolating at home with their families, my students need to trust that my classroom is a safe place for them to be who they are and feel all the emotions that they might feel. I am hopeful that providing this self-regulation area in our classroom will make my students feel at ease and will help them to feel ready to learn while they are with me.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Johnson and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
