GIFTS

Words are Gifts

The Impact of Words

They took their search for their OLWs  for 2026 seriously. I asked them to chat with their parents or come up with a word that they thought would be a guide or goal for each of them throughout the year.

I also gave them four days to think about the word. When I came up with mine, using the combination of three words, I shared it with them. My third graders took this seriously and most of them gave us (the teaching team) their word before Friday.

This year the words are so meaningful and impactful. My students have already been discussing how they will use it. I heard one morning, “…because positive is the word I chose.”

I hope to document their connections and any anecdotal sayings that come up. The Impact of Words, even for nine year olds.

Juliette Awua-Kyerematen's avatar

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Juliette Awua-Kyerematen

7 responses to “The Impact of Words”

  1. Glenda Funk Avatar
    Glenda Funk

    Juliette,

    I love that you had your students choose OLWs. It’s so empowering to get a glimpse into their thinking. 🥰

    Liked by 1 person

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  2. juliemckelly4 Avatar
    juliemckelly4

    Juliette,

    Looking at the visual of the words that your students chose, and thinking about the process you introduced them to in choosing their OLW, your gift of time and partnering with parents yielded powerful OLWs to empower your class this year.

    Liked by 1 person

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  3. sallydonnelly11 Avatar
    sallydonnelly11

    Impressive! Thanks for sharing. OLW has always been personal for me. Yu are nudgung me to try it with kids. Thank you.

    Liked by 1 person

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  4. Erika Avatar
    Erika

    Yay, my students are working on choosing their OLWs this week and will be inspired by your image. I love doing this with my students every year!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  5. Linda&Greg Avatar
    Linda&Greg

    I love that you are doing this with third graders! (I loved teaching that age!) I bet this is a practice that will stick with many of them, especially since it sounds like there will be time in school to play with it.

    Liked by 1 person

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  6. margaretsmn Avatar
    margaretsmn

    When I was teaching, I always asked my students to choose one little word to start the new year. They would write acrostic poems and share them. I miss that joy now that I am retired.

    Liked by 1 person

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  7. Debbie Lynn Avatar
    Debbie Lynn

    What a wonderful idea to teach young kids they have responsibility in their choices, which can be guided by their OLW. 🙂

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About Me

I am an Elementary school teacher , I taught at an International IB School in Accra, Ghana. I am now teaching in Hanoi. Writing is my passion and I try to write daily, at least in my sentence a day journal, to capture all the blessings around me. I write with groups of writers, such as Teach Write and sometimes Ethical ELA. I also encourage my friends to write , so I created a platform to make that possible -Writing Run.

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