Oh, The Places You'll Go!

...somewhere other than school!

Dr. Seuss's birthday is this week and our school had spirit week, family reading night, and a visit from the Cat in the Hat planned.  We kicked off the week with an assembly and Cat in the Hat.  Monday was crazy hat day and boy did we see some good ones!  Tuesday was flower power day, Wednesday was mismatch day (and that is always fun to see), but my favorite was going to be Thursday---career day. It's so exciting to see what kids want to be when they grow up.  I wish each of them could write a short something about their future every year and put it in a time capsule until they graduate.  How many would change their minds over and over?  How many would always go back to the first thing they picked?  How many of them would follow their dreams and succeed?  Endless possibilities.  Unfortunately family reading night is postponed until March and now days have invaded our spirit!

                      We did get to have our assembly and the visit from Cat in the Hat himself!

On the upside to snow days, I have been pretty productive with student plans (although the students probably were not as impressed as I).  With the help of colleagues and Google Docs we have been able to share information and create some solid plans for a few of our needy students.  For those who haven't tried Google Docs it is a wonderful resource to share documents that can be easily edited by more than one person.  I haven't mastered it yet, so not quite ready to share the "how to's".  I have attached some of the plans we are currently using as a guide.  Hope they can help you as well.


BIST plan for Success

Student Pyramid Level System

Daily Schedule and Point Sheet

Only 61 days left...I am as excited as the first 61!

After attending PD all day Thursday, I have a renewed sense of excitement.  Yes, some of the PD wasn't the best, but overall the message was good.
I went in on my day off and recreated some new spaces to accommodate the new math curriculum along with a better placement of our calendar math.  Seems like a lot of work for only 61 days left.  BUT I think of it as we only have 61 days left to make an impact on this school year.  The last 61 days should be as strong as the first 61 days.
Here are some pictures of our new spaces.

A new word wall at their level.

A new reading nook with a working listening center and plenty of comfy seating including several pillows not seen.

A complete writing center with all of our Jolly sounds for reference.

Calendar math and number line.

The front of the classroom.  We used to have a large carpet area, but the kids opted for carpet squares (their own space) and a bench (not shown) for alternative seating during mini lessons.

Last, but not least.  Where the magic happens.  Their table space.  They work with partners, in groups, and independently (most independent work can be taken to any space in the room).  Our chair pockets are fantastic (a Donor's Choose project funded)!

Now if we can just get back to school...these long breaks are very hard on me!

De-Clutter and Breathe Again

I spent all day Saturday at school de-cluttering my classroom.  Wow!  I felt a huge sigh of relief when I walked out of the room before heading home.  It's that time of year when we have exhausted all efforts in creating a warm, inviting, nurturing environment for our students to flourish in.  By now I know what's important to them and me!  We started last week like it was the first week of school.  First we took surveys to determine what areas of our classroom was most important, what seating was preferred (I have used tables, desks, slanted writing centers, etc for various seating options this year.), and what subjects were favored.  Our class decided the writing center was most favored, desks were preferred over tables, reading area was valued, and the SMART board was important too!  Then the rearranging began.  Students moved tables, chairs, desks, and other miscellaneous clutter to create the learning environment they craved.  The end result was fantastic!  On Saturday, I went in to finalize some of the minor details (such as needed supplies readily available in each area, new nameplates with first and last names, and a few new accessories), but most importantly I removed ALL of the piles that had gathered from teaching since winter break.  I hope they are just as excited as I am to start the last chapter of this school year.

PS  Now if I can just get the listening center funded, that would be a wonderful surprise for them:)

Balancing Home and School

Sometimes it's hard to equally balance work and home.  It seems some weeks more time is spent at school than home.  But there are a few weeks when more time is spent at home.  How to decide where time should be spent???  That's the million dollar question for a lot of educators.  In the past two years, I have spent more time at home than ever before.  The quality of time at home has improved as well.  For me, I think it has to do with debriefing each day, trusting the team I work with, and most of all knowing that to be a better educator means I need to take care of myself.  That means I need to spend time outside of the classroom with the ones that I love the most.  Don't get me wrong--I LOVE MY STUDENTS, but I love my family too and I need to make sure they know that.  A healthy me is way more beneficial for my family and students.  I hope this helps you find your balance and know that you aren't the only one that struggles with finding a happy medium to school and home.