#InstaClassroom: Ali Reykdal

Filed Under: Blog

Washington educators are innovating and creating every day to support their students’ success. In our fifth #InstaClassroom experience – designed to showcase great classrooms in our state – Ali Reykdal showed us how she integrates camping into her 2nd grade classroom to enhance community and learning. Ali teaches at Deer Park Elementary School, about 20 miles north of Spokane. Some might call her an Instagram “Influencer” in the education community, as she is deeply involved and connected with other educators from around the state and country! Give her a follow: @HappyCamperClassroom.

Below are a few highlights from Ali’s #InstaClassroom experience, and click here to watch the Instagram Story she created!

 

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Let’s talk about how students come first! I am a firm believer that building our community comes before anything else. It’s why I create a camping experience and why I love teaching. Here’s a few ways I work to promote a positive culture. . ?1 – Greet students by name each day. I let them choose how to greet me back. Several students have told me this is their favorite part of my classroom, that I say hi every day. . ?2 – Talk to kids (and adults!) when you pass them in hallways or see them outside of the classroom. . ?3 – Get to know them! What do they like to read? What sports do they play? Can you attend an event outside of school to support them?! . These aren’t reinventing the wheel, but sometimes it’s nice to have a reminder that these small actions can have a profound impact.

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Gather around the campfire!

 

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Let’s gather around the campfire and chat about morning meeting! Keeping the community rolling… we always start our day with a meeting to check in, greet each other. I’ll share some more details in stories ?????? Do you use morning meetings in your room? I’m being very intentional about more social emotional learning for my campers!

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This is an awesome demonstration of engaging students in a way that is fun, encourages responsibility, and builds foundational skills!

 

 

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Let’s all P I T C H in ⛺️ One of the ways we keep our classroom smoothly is by having class careers. This is a great way for me to start working on my students exposure to the High School and Beyond plan. . •? I use real careers with similar job expectations to expose students awareness of different occupations. •? Students are paid a salary based on completing their work for the week. •?We do a job application and job interviews that allows them to see the steps involved in applying and keeping a job. •?Our classroom runs like a well-oiled machine because everyone has their responsibility. . How do you develop student awareness of the high school and beyond plan?

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Creating belonging and engaging learning experiences are clearly hallmarks of your teaching. We particularly appreciated hearing about your efforts to support students early in connecting learning to their futures. Thank you again!