Favorite Stuffed Animal Day

Our school has been participating in Global Read Aloud along with other schools across the country and around the world. Global Read Aloud's (GRA) mission is to have "one book to connect the world. One book to read aloud." Mrs. Baker, our Digital Learning Specialist, has been coordinating this successful event from gathering books, to incorporating technology, to getting school staff members involved in classroom activities. The author and illustrator study for this 6 week event is Lauren Castillo.

Last Wednesday, Mrs. Baker read the book Twenty Yawns by Jane Smiley and illustrated by Lauren Castillo to my class. In this book, the girl, Lucy, falls asleep as her mom reads a bedtime story after a fun-filled family day. She later wakes up in a dark room where everything looks mysterious. After tucking her stuffed animals into bed next to her, Lucy is able to finally get back to sleep. 

 
Mrs. Baker invited our school nurse, Mrs. Marshall, in to discuss calming strategies with the class for times when students feel nervous or have a hard time falling asleep. Students learned the 4-7-8 breath. They breathe in for 4 counts, hold their breath for 7 counts, and then slowly breathe out for 8 counts. Children also liked the ideas of thinking of a happy place, finding a quiet spot and laying down on their backs, and listening to calming music with their eyes closed. 

On Thursday, each student brought in their own favorite stuffed animal and thought about what they enjoy doing with their cuddly friends. With the help of Mrs. Baker, everyone was able to make their stuffed animal talk using the iPad app Chatterpix. I then added all the videos into iMovie to make one class movie.

The children loved having their special friends join them at school.  A special thank you to Mrs. Baker for planning and organizing this great event!