Actually, I want to talk about rainy and windy days, but "rainy days and Mondays" just sounds so much better.
I was talking with a co-worker last Monday and she was very concerned that her students were very distracted that morning. She was worried that she was doing something wrong that morning and was doing a self-check to see if she seemed crabby or something. I kind of chuckled, pointed to the window, and asked her if she hadn't looked outside yet. It was pouring down rain.
I live in Northern California. For those who don't know about the weather around here, we pretty much haven't seen rain since about March. We get quite a bit of rain from about November through March, but VERY little throughout the rest of the year. (A warm rain is a foreign concept to most of my students.)
So....this was our first rain of the season. People who have worked with children for a while know how weather changes impact children. For us on Monday, not only was it a rainy day, but it was the first one for a long time. No wonder our kids were a little "off".
Since my co-worker had never heard about a connection between children and weather, I decided to do a little research. Researchers have found a correlation between changes in temperature and humidity and children's behavior. Although this just confirmed what I already believed to be true, it was nice to know that it wasn't just my imagination.
So what do we do with this? I suppose the biggest take-away I have is that, while I understand that I need to have solid lesson plans so that I know what I am trying to accomplish with my students on any given day, I also need to have the flexibility that, when the weather changes, my plans can change as needed. I need to be aware of how children are impacted by weather changes and manage the day with that in mind.
Keep your umbrellas handy and watch out for puddles!
I was talking with a co-worker last Monday and she was very concerned that her students were very distracted that morning. She was worried that she was doing something wrong that morning and was doing a self-check to see if she seemed crabby or something. I kind of chuckled, pointed to the window, and asked her if she hadn't looked outside yet. It was pouring down rain.
I live in Northern California. For those who don't know about the weather around here, we pretty much haven't seen rain since about March. We get quite a bit of rain from about November through March, but VERY little throughout the rest of the year. (A warm rain is a foreign concept to most of my students.)
So....this was our first rain of the season. People who have worked with children for a while know how weather changes impact children. For us on Monday, not only was it a rainy day, but it was the first one for a long time. No wonder our kids were a little "off".
Since my co-worker had never heard about a connection between children and weather, I decided to do a little research. Researchers have found a correlation between changes in temperature and humidity and children's behavior. Although this just confirmed what I already believed to be true, it was nice to know that it wasn't just my imagination.
So what do we do with this? I suppose the biggest take-away I have is that, while I understand that I need to have solid lesson plans so that I know what I am trying to accomplish with my students on any given day, I also need to have the flexibility that, when the weather changes, my plans can change as needed. I need to be aware of how children are impacted by weather changes and manage the day with that in mind.
Keep your umbrellas handy and watch out for puddles!
Misty
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