Thursday night I took my son to the Captain Underpants movie. It was one of the coolest things that I have ever got to do as a father.
I documented the event by taking a few videos. I mashed them together, and I think the result is super fun. Thanks for watching.
It is pretty wild to think that my school year ends Thursday. I’m moving to fifth grade next year, and I can’t help but think about how cool it will be to have some of this year’s students again in a couple of years.
Here are some things I’m going to miss about my class and teaching third grade.
1. Their Smiles
Is there anything as precious as the smiles of a group of third graders? Their love of learning and joy in everything they do will be missed. I hope fifth graders are as happy as third graders.
2. Basketball
Playing basketball with my students during afternoon brain break is one of my favorite parts of the day. It has been wild to see how much better they have gotten this year. I’m sure that by the time they get to fifth grade, they will totally dominate me.
3. Reading Aloud
We have a few chapter left in our class read aloud, and I am going to savor each and every word. Introducing them to characters like Ivan and Ruby (The One and Only Ivan), and Opal (Because of Winn Dixie) makes my heart happy. I hope they continue to find characters that help them grow and make them think.
4. Classroom Meetings
Sitting around the carpet with a bunch of third graders trying to get to know each other and solve the world’s problems is a great way to spend some time. My third graders are thoughtful, caring, and kind. The world needs them.
5. Stuff
I am always amazed by the things third graders bring to school: Legos, fidget spinners, baseball cards, walkie-talkies, and about a billion other things. You never know what they are going to pull out of their backpacks. It was WAY more interesting than any unboxing video you are going to find on YouTube.
6. Anticipation
The excitement my students have about everything is crazy. They remind me a little bit of Will Ferrell in Elf. I have learned a lot from them about celebrating life.
7. Mr. Sharp Mr. Sharp Mr. Sharp
As exhausting as it can be at times, I’m going to miss my students saying my name three times in a row (really fast with lots of excitement) when they want to get my attention. “Mr. Sharp! Mr. Sharp! Mr. Sharp!”
8. Can I…
This year’s class loves to ask me if they can do things.
Can I bring my bearded dragon to school?
Can I give a book talk?
Can I make a comic with my friend?
Can I go get a book from the principal’s office?
Can I have that thing you threw away? I need to build something with it.
Can I have that thing you threw away? I want to take it home.
Can I have that thing you threw away? I just need it.
Can you play _________________ with us?
I hope that they always have teachers that tell them yes.
9. Mr. Sharp you should _____________________________.
My students are great at giving me advice. I suppose you could say that they double as my life coach.
Mr. Sharp you should get a haircut.
Mr. Sharp you should buy this book.
Mr. Sharp you should get us a couch.
Mr. Sharp you should take your kids to ________________ movie.
Mr. Sharp I think your kids would like __________________. You should buy it for them.
Mr. Sharp you should get a class pet.
Mr. Sharp you should give us an extra recess.
10. Everything
I’m going to miss everything about them. My third graders are the bomb. It has been a joy and a privilege to spend the year with them.
I can’t wait to see what I love about teaching fifth grade!
Happy Saturday! I hope everyone is having a great day. Be sure to head over to Mr. Schu’s blog to check out his Saturday video.
It is not every day that a Super Bowl Champion former NFL football player visits school. If what happened yesterday happened when I was a student at Parma Elementary, it would have been the greatest day of my childhood.
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If you missed any of my #BestPartOfMyDay videos, you can catch up in the playlist below.
Yesterday was amazing! My students have had the opportunity to work through three different Breakout challenges this year, and they learned so much each time.
Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel.
If you missed any of my #BestPartOfMyDay videos, you can catch up in the playlist below.
I learn so much from what my students have to say on their end of the year reading surveys. I’m always surprised by what they think of themselves as readers, and which books/authors stuck with them.
Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel.
If you missed any of my #BestPartOfMyDay videos, you can catch up in the playlist below.
Last Friday my students and I made monsters. They did an amazing job creating something out of nothing. It is pretty cool to see what they are capable of when given the opportunity to make something awesome.
Some of their monsters.
I’ve been pretty obsessed with YouTube the last few weeks. I think it is a combination of my love for Gary Vaynerchuck, subscribing to my students’ YouTube channels, and creating more videos myself (You can find my channel here.).
I thought it would be fun to create a list of educators that have awesome YouTube channels. If I’m missing anyone, please leave a link to their station in the comments below, and I’ll be sure to check out their work. My plan is to add to the post as I come across new channels that I think will bring value to my friends.
Trevor is awesome. I love his work, and I think that he is one of the most innovative teachers in Michigan. I’m really looking forward to reading his book The Epic Classroom this summer. Trevor is an amazing writer and by the judge of his last few videos, a pretty talented video editor.
2. One Fab Teacher
My classroom is never organized. I know that I should just accept that that is who I am, but I know that I could be more efficient if I could figure this out. One Fab Teacher’s YouTube pages gives me tons of tips to help me improve the flow of my classroom.
3. Real Rap With The Reynolds
A few weeks ago I was watching an episode of #AskGaryVee when a teacher came on. That made me instantly sit up and pay close attention. I was excited to learn that I wasn’t the only teacher obsessed with Mr. Vaynerchuk’s work. I checked out the Real Rap With The Reynolds YouTube channel and I was impressed. Dude is making some pretty sweet videos.
4. Penny Kittle
My hope is that every English teacher my children have, know Penny Kittle’s work. She has done so much for kids and reading. The only thing that I don’t love about her YouTube channel, is that she doesn’t make more videos.
This video isn’t on Penny’s personal page, but it is probably the one she is most famous for.
6. John Schu
Each Saturday Mr. Schu and I make a “Happy Saturday” video for each other. If you only read the books he talks about in his videos, you’d have a pretty amazing reading year.
Please let me know what channels I’m missing. I’m always looking to find more people that I can learn from.
My Son, Hobbes is two. He is pretty crazy. From the time he wakes up until the time he crashes he only knows one speed: fast. One thing that Hobbes loves to do sitting down is reading. He will often bring my wife and I book after book after book.
A few weeks ago we moved to a new house. In his new rooms sits a bookshelf. I have found out the hard way that he believes that he should get to read each and every book on his bookshelf before bed. For that reason, he now only has 6 books on his bookshelf. The rest of his books are housed in our living room. We read those during the day.
Someday he’ll be able to have more books in his room. I think.
Happy Saturday, friends! Be sure to check out Mr. Schu’s Saturday video.
Last night I finished The Losers Club, and I LOVED it. I talk about it and two other books in today’s video.
Books Featured in Today’s video.
