More than 200 kindergarten teachers attend conference here

Kindergarten teachers from across the state sang songs, did silly dances, shared teaching strategies and learned at the 11th annual North Dakota Kindergarten Association Conference Saturday at Louis L'Amour Elementary School, Jamestown.

Approximately 240 of North Dakota's 500 kindergarten teachers attended the conference, themed "Kindergarten Rocks," many of them turning up in groups with their colleagues.

"We wanted to have our own time to basically get together and share ideas. We gear (information) to just kindergarteners," said Lori Roberts, one of the co-chairs of the conference.

Roberts, co-chair Heather Rohr and the seven other kindergarten teachers in Jamestown were responsible for organizing the conference, which comes to Jamestown every five years.

The keynote speaker was musician Jack Hartmann, who creates educational music for children that can be used in the classroom. Hartmann shared songs and teaching methods, many of which connected curriculum with physical activity.

"You know, you've got to be silly with the kids. You can't be inhibited with kindergarteners," Hartmann said, preparing to lead the crowd in "Dancin' 2's."

The song teaches children to count to 100 by twos while they perform different dances, from disco to the twist to the chicken dance.

"Our kids are in real bad shape. They're in bad shape physically," Hartmann said, attributing the childhood obesity epidemic to children spending too much time sitting. "There's a lot of reasons why. You as teachers do the best you can. You don't have to be Mr. Universe, but you do have to have what? Enthusiasm!"

Hartmann cited studies showing kids in better physical shape did better in school, and urged the teachers to get their kids moving more. Then he led the group in a song teaching children how to count to 100 by fives, pairing the counting with exercises.

Later, the Jamestown kindergarten teachers took the stage, wearing silly hats and props, to do the "Silly Rock Star Song" for the audience.

The song is a progressive memory song in which characters -- a rapper, an astronaut, a chicken, an Egyptian princess and others -- join a rock star in singing, one by one. Kindergarteners can learn the elements of character and storytelling from the song.

"You're the most important thing to the kids -- your smile, your attention," Hartmann told the teachers. "But sometimes I like a prop."

He took out a hat shaped like a dog's head and led the crowd in singing about a hound dog's vowel sounds -- the short vowel sounds in "wag," "beg," "dig," "flop" and "jump."

"Jack Hartmann is amazing," said Ashley Fiflet, a conference attendee who teaches kindergarten in Fairmount, N.D. "It's so much fun to get all the ideas -- to get kids up and moving, and they learn that way but they don't realize it."

Brenda Lee, a kindergarten teacher from New Town, N.D., said she appreciated the ideas she was gleaning from Hartmann, because she liked to do a lot of music and singing in her classroom.

"It's very uplifting, and it's wonderful to be around colleagues that share the same love of children and learning," said Debi Ahman, an NDKA board member, who teaches in Bismarck. "We need this as an uplifting energizer for the rest of the year."

After the morning keynote address, the teachers split into smaller groups for breakout sessions on a variety of topics, including smart technologies in the classroom, a writer's workshop for kindergarten, handwriting without tears and strategies for improving reading comprehension.

Afternoon breakout session topics included using food to teach math, teaching strategies for autism spectrum disorders and tips for new kindergarten teachers.

The conference also featured the "Idea Room," where participants brought handouts and project ideas to share with other teachers.

"We're a young organization, but we've got a lot of energy, and we're fun," Roberts said.

"I hope they take away new ideas," Rohr added. "Kindergarten teachers are one of the best grade levels for sharing ideas."

Sun reporter Kari Lucin can be reached at 701-952-8453 or by email at klucin@jamestownsun.com