Informal PJ Day…We needed it!
The last two months have raced and yet I feel like I have not done enough. The last time I posted anything was in January—I haven’t felt inspired. I have felt more like I was trudging through mud and not able to think ahead. Sure, I have had some thoughtful discussions and lessons with my students, but I feel off.
To be fair, we started a week late, then I had covid for two weeks, so it hasn’t been the easiest start to 2022. Missing so much time has made me feel off balance—like I am now racing. I blinked and the term is almost over. My FreshGrade is behind and I am nowhere near where I want to be in numeracy.
I know I am not alone. Every teacher I have talked to feels like they are behind. Like this year is harder than last. Like this year, the kids have more social challenges, which take so much time. Like this year, we are exhausted to the bone and barely making it through the week. In the last two weeks, I have even had a few days of crying in my car before heading in. I have had to give myself a pep talk. That hasn’t happened since before my anxiety diagnosis and medication last year. It has been hard on all of us.
Yesterday was quite a day in my class. Yes, we had a really fun storytelling lesson (more blog posts coming soon) and we played with plasticine to make sedimentary rock (yup, I am hoping to write a post on this as well), but we also had a ridiculous amount of random injuries. Six kids bumped their heads and needed ice, two bent fingernails back to the point of bleeding, and one child got hand sanitizer in both eyes. As a class, we decided to have PJ Day today. We took a break from our units, and played with learning. We needed it.
If you are also feeling overwhelmed and exhausted right now, maybe you need a PJ Day as well. Here is what my class did…
PJ Fun
We read a picture book
I love reading picture books and using them as anchor texts. Since it is Black History Month, I decided to read Meet Viola Desmond, which is an autobiographical picture book. While I was reading, the students had whiteboard markers and they were allowed to draw or write on their tables to share events, emotions, or questions that stuck with them. We took about an hour to read the book, because we kept going off on tangents. We paused to look up facts about Black History Month and answer questions. It was a powerful discussion and followed up nicely on a class discussion about speaking truth to power.
I could have done a loose parts build with this story as well, but I chose to keep it low key. The kids were engaged and enraged as we read Viola’s story.
We played outside
Fresh air is good for all of us. Playing together to build class community is important. We played on the playground a bit before recess and then we were part of a grade group outdoor gym in the afternoon. The kids needed to run, laugh, and exist together.
We completed a building challenge
I challenged the students to figure out which shape was the strongest (square, triangle or circle) with the building materials supplied. I gave each group a few small pieces of card stock and 30 cm of tape. This was supposed to be a mini building challenge before we did a bridge building challenge…The bridge building challenge is now next week.
The students loved playing with scissors, tape, and paper. They loved playing with shapes and figuring out which was strong. I might have given them more tape…and more paper…I might have shown a few how to tape shapes together to increase the strength….the inquiry and joy lasted an hour. I think they would have gone through lunch if I had let them.
One group balanced 55 books on four paper cylinders. The kids were amazed at how strong paper could be. The sound of learning was the most beautiful Friday music. It is what I needed today. It is what my kids needed today.
We had time for silent reading or silent drawing
I gave my students down time today as well. They had time to silent read and draw…or look in the class microscope at slides we had made of chalk before and after a chemical reaction. Time to decompress and enjoy the quiet in the classroom. Time to just exist in our safe space.
Do you need a PJ Day?
You might-even if you don’t have the adorable PJs and stuffed animals. You might need a day to relax and reconnect. Even though you blinked and the term is almost over and you feel like you haven’t done enough…you might need a day like I had today.
In this third school year interrupted by a pandemic, we all need to be kind to ourselves. Educators are worn thin. The students in our classes are worn thin. I don’t want any of us to break—so when I need to, I will have another PJ Day, even if it means pausing the curriculum to play with joy and the Core Competencies.