impressive/ get busy

impressive: The students get stars next to their names for great answers and participating in class. I explained impressive as something that deserves a star, it makes you say, "Wow! Good job!" When students draw ideas and words from previous Units or lessons, that's impressive. A word that is unlimited in terms of how often I can use it.

get busy: Since they already know "busy," that was half the battle. If you aren't doing your work, teacher tells you to "get busy" and start doing your work. Considering we do work in workbooks at least 3 times a day, this phrase is going to be used quite often now that they understand it.

champion/ give up

champion: the winner of everything. We play tons of games, so we are going to have "champions" at least a few times a day. Grammar pattern: "We are the champions!" Yes, I plan on playing the song for them; I forgot to bring it today.

give up: To quit, or stop trying. Never give up... keep trying! Especially if you want to be the champion.

neither/ no kidding!

neither: Today was very pressed for time and both the WOD and POD were basically flops. "Neither" I explained as not wanting to do two things. I taught "both" in contrast (Do you want to eat ice cream or candy? Both!) Trying to squeeze this into about 3 minutes at the end of the day did not provide much time for me to explain it better. Instead of scrapping the whole idea, tomorrow I will ask them things like "Do you want to go to the Police Station or the Hospital?" (places they have learned that they never want to go to).

no kidding!: "Really? That's so cool!" Again, beyond explaining this I had only 30 mins of teaching time left to use this in context while simultaneously teaching a lesson. No immediate success but with all the stories I plan on faking interest in, "No kidding!" is a great way to show enthusiasm.

hilarious/ as sweet as candy

hilarious: VERY funny. It's still easy to take an adjective they know and make it extreme. I use this word a lot sarcastically when they make "jokes." "Teacher John, you are Teacher Wendy and Teacher Wendy is Teacher John!" For them, it doesn't matter how many times they say it, it probably won't ever get old. Hilarious.

as sweet as candy: I was unprepared today with both the WOD and POD; both were thought up on the spot. I explained "as sweet as candy" as somebody who is always very nice and helpful. This was not a very successful POD because I do not use it ever, and consequently, neither will they.

enthusiastic/ calm down

enthusiastic: At all times during the entire year, each kindergarten class is rehearsing for a role-play/show to perform at some point for their parents. I used this word to explain show the difference between reading lines and actually acting excited/sad/surprised. Also, I always have them try to say WODs before I give them the correct pronunciation (for my own amusement and to show them that they can use phonics to figure it out.)

calm down: Stop being crazy. This phrase is now a very important tool in my discipline belt. When I say "calm down," they all stop in their tracks, take a deep breath and pretend they are going to sleep. This worked great with today's WOD: I told them to "be enthusiastic," and they all scream and laugh until I say "calm down," and they stop.

busy/ cut it out

busy: When Teacher is writing on the board, working with a student, or talking to another teacher, he is busy, so don't come up to him and scream in his face. This word is another great success. All I have to do is say "I'm busy" and the student walks away and waits for my attention.

cut it out: very simply "stop whatever you're doing." They already know "obnoxious" and "rude," so if they are being any of those things, "cut it out" will do the trick. I also taught the TPR hand actions (cut= 2 finger scissors, it= index finger point, out= thumb over shoulder)

helpful/ of course

helpful: Very easy one for them. They already know the verb "help," so now they are able to call people that help "helpful." "You are Teacher Helpful."

of course: ObviouslyYES! "Teacher John, may I blow my nose, please?" "Of course!"

impossible/ piece of cake

Phrase of the Day is born!!

impossible: Something you can't do. Grammar pattern: "Can you fly?" "No, that's impossible!"

piece of cake: VERY easy. Grammar pattern: "Can you count to 10?" "Yes, that's a piece of cake." (sidenote- today happened to be the monthly birthday party for the kindergarten and each student got a piece of cake for snack time. How fitting.)

obnoxious

obnoxious: A favorite word of mine. As with many WODs, I'm taking adjectives they already know and taking it to the extreme, i.e. obnoxious = VERY rude. When a student talks without raising their hand, I ask the class "What is he being?" "Obnoxious!!!" Effective singling out.

filthy

filthy: VERY dirty. With a kindergarten class, each day is teeming with opportunities to use this word. "Don't touch me, please. Your hands are...?" Or in conjunction with yesterdays word: "Are your tables spotless or filthy?"