Looping

My lovely daughter mentioned to me the other day that her district supports looping.  I have been investigating this educational practice that has been around for a long time.  Looping involves keeping groups of students together for two or more years with the same teacher.  Rudolf Steiner, an Austrian educator and philosopher living in Germany in the early 1900s, believed a long-term relationship with a teacher was more beneficial to children.  He founded the Waldorf Schools in Germany, where teachers stayed with the same children for eight years.  Looping is still practiced in Germany today in grades one through four.  Looping is also practiced in thousands of classrooms in the United States.  I am very familiar with Montessori education which practices looping as well.
In reviewing the research, I found an excerpt from Eric Jensen's book, Teaching with Poverty in Mind.  He mentions research that shows looping to be beneficial to children of poverty.  Looping is correlated to increased math and reading performance, emotional stability, better conflict resolution, stronger bonds among stakeholders, higher attendance rates, and fewer referrals to special education.  I look forward to reading his book.
I also found a great article that summarizes looping here.
What are your thoughts on looping?  I would love to hear from you!

Midsummer's Eve Giveaway Hop

Hosted by I'm a Reader, Not a Writer from June 21st-June 24th.
Ready...Set...Go!  The Giveaway has begun!  I am giving away a $10.00 Amazon Gift Card!


To enter just comment!
Rules:
One entry per email address
Must leave name and email address where gift card can be delivered
Must comment with your favorite children's book
Winner announced Saturday, June 25th

To see all of the blogs participating in this hop go here! 
Thanks for stopping by!

Friends' Great Giveaway!

Summer is a great time for giveaways!  My friends Little Miss Kindergarten and Mrs. Simspson's Kindergarten are having a wonderful giveaway with their friends.  Go to this page and find 7 ways to enter!  They will give prizes in amounts of $15.00-$25.00!  You can get great ideas and make friends at the same time!

"A true friend is is someone who thinks you are a good egg, even though he knows that you are slightly cracked."
                                                                        Bernard Meltzer
 ....enough said! :)

Simply Sinful Muffin Goodness!

Today was my first day off from school!  I decided to make these beauties to celebrate the beginning of summer vacation.

They are wonderful! You can find the recipe at this King Arthur Flour link.  The only change that I made was to the filling.  My filling was just brown sugar cinnamon and raisins.  My glaze was powdered sugar, vanilla bean paste and milk.
Hope you try them! Yum!

Giveaway!

Summer is a great time for blog giveaways.  Here is one you will want to enter.  Head over to "Welcome to Kinderglynn" and enter!

A Giveaway Galore (are you sure you have room for all this?)

Ok, are you sure you have enough room on your computer for all these fantastic things? Anna from Crazy for First Grade, Melissa from Mrs. Freshwater's Class, Erica from Erica Bohrer's First Grade, Michelle Oakes from Fabulous in First, Amanda from One Extra Degree, Cara from The First Grade Parade and myself, Kinderglynn have teamed up to offer you ALL these fabulous units and games! This is HUGE!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

My Garden

I just love having a garden!  This year we have squash, tomatoes, leeks, okra, corn, peppers, eggplant, and herbs.  And flowers...

Here are a few gardening books that children will enjoy!