Look What I Did!

Ah, the "Look What I Did" board. It's one of my favorite things that I've ever done in my classroom, but no one that comes into my classroom ever seems to notice it. Except, that is, for the kids.

When I was observing another class for my credential work, I saw that a teacher had a board that was for students' accomplishments. The students' best writing samples for the week were hung on the board, so each child could see their best work. They weren't all from the same assignment, but they were all quality examples. I loved the idea, but wondered how some of my non-writers (or tracers, or "copy from a model-ers") would feel about the work that was displayed there.

So I added my own take on it, and created the "Look What I Did" board. It's basically just a huge, bright bulletin board that holds a hodge-podge assortment of work samples and feats, from all different subjects, assignments, and work types.

Look At All That Extraordinary Work!

The gist of the board is that anytime someone does anything out of the ordinary, whether it is a particularly good art project, doing more writing than was required, or mastering a new skill, their work (or a note about what they did) is added to the board. The students get to pick where their work goes on the board, and we all cheer and make a big deal about it. Seriously, the kids will do ANYTHING to get their work up on their board. And the look on their face when their work is chosen for the board- it's priceless. The kids never know what I'm looking for, and they know I won't put anything up there that isn't spectacular. So when something gets picked, they know it means they did something incredible that day, something to be proud of.

What I love about the board is that kids can be honored for their accomplishments, no matter what level they're at. Take a look at the close-up below to see what I mean...

I mean, in one place we can celebrate a student writing their first sentence, a rare moment of silence and hard work, a student mastering digraphs, an exceptional chicken (I mean, cutest thing ever. Right?), and a coloring and cutting activity from a student who rarely completes assignments. It's the perfect analogy for my class- all these different, weird little talents and successes happening in one happy little place. I love it, and the kids do too!