We are Cottontail Rabbits!

We continue to grow as a classroom community and discuss our time together as a school family.

This week we've learned about the uniqueness of our class name.  Did you know, that all Willowwind classrooms are named after prairie animals?  Your child's class, the Cottontail Rabbits, is named by the first Kindergarten class at Willowwind during the 2008-2009 school year.  These students are now our oldest friends as they begin their sixth grade year!  We are proud to be Cottontail Rabbits!  Ask your child what the other classrooms' names are.

To learn more about our Cottontail Rabbit family we read When We're Together, a book about a family of rabbit friends that care for one another with love, respect, and friendship.

We then brainstormed our own list of reasons why it is great to be a Cottontail Rabbit.  Check out the wonderful list below!

It's Great to be a Cottontail Rabbit because...
•  we can go outside and eat lunch.  KK
•  we can go on the Spika.  JZ
•  we watch fun books.  EP
•  we get to play with our friends.  MK
•  I play tag.  KHT
•  we play in Centers.  DB
•  we're sorta cute.  CR

We also read Have you Filled a Bucket Today? where we learned about being Bucket Fillers :) vs. Bucket Dippers :(.

We agreed that a classroom full of Bucket Fillers is a fun place to be.  We talked about different actions and classified them as Bucket Filler actions or Bucket Dipper actions.  The Cottontails loved placing the cards in the correct t-chart column.

Sometimes though, it is hard to get along with every body.  For when these moments of frustration occur, we developed a four step System to help solve problems.  The Four Steps are:

1)  Use an I-Message

Talking about your feelings really helps.  Saying, "I don't like when you tease me.  It hurts my feelings.  Can you please stop?" tells your friend what is bothering you.

2)  Ignore

After all, some people like to bug and pester just for a reaction.

3)  Walk Away

Sometimes space apart from a frustrating friend can be helpful.

4)  Tell a Teacher

If the first three steps just aren't working, ask a teacher for their help in solving your problem together as a team.

These Four steps encourage students to work together positively.  It provides them ownership in their own problems and concerns.  Continue to praise your child for their independence in their developing problem solving skills.

In preparing to practice using the Four Steps we read Peace Week in Miss Fox's Class where Miss Fox's animal friends, too, worked together to keep a peaceful and happy classroom.

We will work hard to be great friends everyday.  To help remind ourselves to be the best we can be, the Cottontails met our "Be Awesome Today" rug

Using the rug helps make a conscience effort at Morning and Afternoon Meeting to tell ourselves, "I'm going to do something {AWESOME} to fill someone's bucket today."