First day

It was the best first day of school ever! My kids are precious and so sweet. They respond so well to positive reinforcement and love to give hugs. They have already caught on to the quiet thumb rule and were using it when we went on our specials tour! 

The other half of the class comes tomorrow and then everyone will be there on Friday :)

My night has consisted of dyeing rice for my ball sight word discovery bottles and coloring some new voice level posters. My best friend came over to help and also ended up cutting out a few more sets of baseball words and top banana cards. I have the best best friend in the world! 

What you see in this picture is only half of what we did tonight, which is only half of what will eventually get done!

Meet the Teacher

We had Meet Your Teacher this afternoon at school.  All 17 of my new Smarties and their families showed up, some excited, some nervous, and many shy.  (Side note: can we just talk about how excited I am to only have 17 students?  Last year I started with 23.  This is going to be a nice change!)

Some students (and families) didn't believe I was their teacher- they thought I looked too young!  The struggle is real when you're 24 and look 16.

Hallway bulletin board- considering leaving it up all year and attaching smaller suitcases to clothespins to hang student work throughout the year!

Best moment of the day? 

When a little boy, whom I hadn't even met yet, walked in and came straight over to give me a huge hug!

Or maybe the best moment was when a little girl whom I hadn't even met yet (are you noticing a theme here?), gave me a beautiful picture she'd colored before coming to Meet the Teacher.

Or it could have been that so many of my students from the past 2 years went out of their way to come in and share a smile and a hug.

Loved this idea-- magnetic letters inside a flower jar!

I'm positive this will be the best year yet.  My first year was so rough I wasn't sure teaching was the right job for me.  My second year was significantly better, and I'm genuinely excited and ready for this year to begin.  I can't wait to see what kinds of gains my students will make in all areas of their lives, not just academically!

A hallway bulletin board created by one of my teammates!  So creative!

Blessings

Going to try to remember to post 3 positive things that happen most every day.

Today I thoroughly enjoyed my last day of summer:

1. The weather was absolutely perfect for a motorcycle ride with my friend, Will!

2. I finished reading Love and Logic.

3. Most importantly for today, I got to have dinner and hang out with my cousin who lives in Michigan and whom I only see once every few years. We used to spend entire summers together when we were kids, so it's always a good time when I can see her again!

Goals for the year

Well, today's the last day of my summer, and I'm thinking about the upcoming year.  There are several things I am changing up in my classroom!

Management: I'm doing it... I'm chucking the chart (Gasp)! I've been reading several blogs that encourage teachers to get rid of behavior tracking charts because they're a tool that creates fear and shame, regardless of how positive they're meant to be.  Thanks to Matt Gomez and Miss Night, I'm going to be brave and get rid of the system, and move toward a principles approach. (Check out Chuck the Chart for more information). I've been reading Love and Logic and will be using that approach this year.   

Math: Some of my fellow team members and I participated in a Kathy Richardson Accessing Math Concepts workshop this week, and I am so thrilled that I get to implement her strategies in my classroom!  We are participating in a grant that funds our work, and I can already see a difference in my perspective on how children learn early number concepts. This is going to be so beneficial for kindergarten, first, and second graders at my school. We're also going to be doing Number Talks, which I've heard about over the past few years, but have never actually done. Again, something that will be very beneficial!  

Writing workshop: have a share time more often! So many times my writers get so involved in the process of wiring that we run out of time to share our work. We need to do better about that this year. 

Reading: continuing LLI! Woo hoo!  Also, "teacher directed reading" I want to push my team to do close reads that are kindergarten appropriate based on NC standards and the 4 C's of the 21st century skills- communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creativity! Tara West (Little Minds at Work) has a great post all about close reading in kindergarten!!

Sight words: I bought Marsha Mcguire's Ball Words Sight Words Mastery System- and I'm really hoping it will motivate my kiddos to learn their sight words.  

Back to school nightmares

Back to school? Already? It feels like summer just began, but our first (official) workday is next Friday and the nightmares have begun. You know what I'm talking about. The crazy, never-would-happen-in-real-life, out of control situations that could only happen in the darkest corners of a teacher's mind. 

My most recent nightmare involved my principal requiring kindergarten graduation to be on the 3rd day of school. In the nightmare his reasoning was that parents don't care when graduation is, as long as they get to see their children perform. So, my fellow teachers and I were scrambling to guide our smarties in pulling off a graduation ceremony! Since it was a nightmare, I'll leave it up to you to imagine how the ceremony went. 

Thank goodness that was nowhere close to reality! 

Have you had your first teacher nightmare yet for this school year?

#kinderblog14 Challenge, week 2: Letters to the Editor

This week's challenge has been, well, challenging!  I had a hard time even coming up with a topic to write about, partially because I tend to keep it to myself if I disagree with something.  So, this was a good challenge to nudge me out of my comfort zone.

I have seen several pins on Pinterest lately about data walls and how motivating they are for students.  When students see their peers progressing, they also want to progress, at least, that's what the OPs (original posters) say.  

I'm sorry, but I have a real problem with data walls.

First of all, let's be clear that posting names with test scores is illegal (thanks to FERPA).   Data from assessments are private student records that are only for the teacher, student, and parent to know.  No student should have any access to another student's records.

Additionally, as teachers, we know that every child is different and learns at a different pace, in a different way, at a different time.  Knowing this, why would you post a sticker/post-it note, etc. that shows exactly where each child is on the continuum of learning for a particular standard?  That does not create a safe learning environment for that child; it creates an environment in which the student feels shame and humiliation.   You may argue that no names are posted; students are represented by a certain color, number, or symbol, but it wouldn't be hard to figure out which one belonged to whom.  Even in elementary school, when my teachers assigned our classes numbers, we were all quick to figure out who was number 1, 2, etc.  Even if there was some foolproof method to ensure that no one was able to figure it all out, students would still be constantly comparing to see where they measure up.  Students who are in the low performing range experience humiliation and a downward plunge in self-esteem when they see their scores publicly compared to their peers.  

I don't know about you, but I'm devoted to fostering a positive community in my classroom where students feel safe to learn and fail.  Failure and making mistakes is part of the learning process- let's let students feel free to do that in our classrooms!  

Thankfully, data walls are not a huge focus at my school.  Does your administration require data walls at your school?  How do you handle that?  

#kinderblog14 challenge Week 1: Personal Learning Networks

Happy summer!  My summer is ending the week after next when I start teaching JumpStart, which is a 2 week program for incoming kindergartners who may be a little hesitant to start school.  We're hoping to make the transition easier for these students and parents by inviting the students to spend 3 hours each morning in a kindergarten classroom, giving them a chance to learn the rules and routines before they actually begin the year!

Like all teachers, I've been using the summer as a chance to continue my professional development- I'm enrolled in an online graduate program for Instructional Technology (one year down, one more to go!).  One of my current classes is called "Utilizing Networking and Communications Technologies for Learning" and my current assignment is about developing my PLN (Personal Learning Network). For the past couple of years, I've been okay to stalk blogs and gather insight from other teacher-bloggers, but now I'm finding that it's time to jump in and really become a participant myself.  I've been sitting back and watching #edchat on Twitter, but now it's time to add my own tweets to the mix.  I found #kinderchat and am participating in the #kinderblog14 challenge.

For school this year I have a few technology-related goals: one of them is to get a Twitter account started for my class so that we can begin becoming responsible digital citizens.  We are going to continue blogging and connecting with other classrooms around the world as well as with our own community.  I also want my students to become comfortable with the art of digital storytelling.  

So, here I am, blogging world!  What suggestions do you have for a kindergarten teacher to continue developing her personal learning network?  I've expressed my goals.  What are your's?  

Happy Book Character Dress Up Day!!

Pinkalicious, Fancy Nancy, and A Bad Case of the Stripes

Today at our school, we celebrated "Book Character Dress Up Day" as a fundraiser for Eblen Charities.  All the kindergarten and first grade students lined up in the hallway, and we went on a parade to see everyone's outfits.  You can see myself and some of my AMAZING team members in this picture :)

It's been a crazy long time since I last posted, but that's because I just now finally feel like I can come up to breathe.  These past couple of months have been overwhelming, exhausting, and defeating.  However, I'm finally getting into the groove of things and can truly say that I am enjoying my job.  My kiddos are mostly wonderful, and my teammates...OMG what would I do without them?!

Everyone told me the first year would be the hardest, and I definitely believed them, but I still wasn't prepared for this level of difficulty!  I'm taking it one day at a time, and am hoping to delve back into the blogging world now!

First Day review

Okay, so honestly speaking, my first day was a little rough.  I thought I had enough plans for procedures and routines, but found out very quickly I was wrong.  Good thing only half the class came today... I can do better with it tomorrow.  You should see my before and after lesson plans for the first day... I really should retype them now because I wrote notes all over them as I reflected on each part of the day.  I'll put them in a file and save it for next year.  :)

I've heard from a few kindergarten teachers that you just have to make it through the first six weeks, because those are the toughest.  If you can conquer them, then you'll be just fine.  

Meanwhile, I feel so blessed to have an amazing network of teacher friends ranging from first years that I graduated with, the teachers from where I student taught (my cooperating teacher and I have become really good friends and I'm soooo thankful to have her... It was very weird teaching without her there today though!).  The teachers and assistants (and janitor!) on my hallway at my current school are also incredibly amazing, constantly encouraging me, genuinely wanting to know how I'm doing, bringing me all kinds of kindergarten materials, helping plan lessons, and sharing ideas.  It's not often that I feel like I truly BELONG somewhere, but I really do feel like I belong at my school, and that means more to me than words can say.

I'll leave you with a little anecdote my TA posted on facebook earlier this evening... It's always good to remember the positives (and cute moments of each day!)-----

"Today after lunch our kids had rest time. Our counselor came in to introduce herself and talk some about what her job was as a counselor. When she finished talking one of our little boys asked, "can we go back to bed now?" I had to share...made us smile. Gotta love Kindergarten :)"

First Day of School!

Yesterday we had Meet the Teacher, and I got to meet my precious kinders and their parents. 2 and a half hours went by in a flash!

So that means today is the first day of school!! Just thought I'd share this link... because I am feeling about how Nemo feels today :)

First Day of School-Finding Nemo

Pictures of my classroom...FINALLY!

Library

Another library view... love that cute little monkey!  I need to finish labeling my baskets.

My teacher shelf area in lieu of a desk.

Circle Time area

Math center and front of the room.  Love those 10 frames!

Owl themed calendar!   Months and yesterdaytoday/tomorrow labels from http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Owl-Theme-Calendar-Set 

Cubbies and word wall area.  Writing center also.

Our welcome sign.

Thank you Pinterest!  I adapted this idea from http://primarypalette.blogspot.com/2010/08/back-to-school-classroom-decorations.html

Also, in case you couldn't tell by now.. I obviously changed my idea on what theme to go with.  I feel like you need to have a bold and vibrant personality to have a jungle theme.  I'm more quiet and reserved, so I think owls are perfect for my style... I might be a little obsessed at this point :)

This is where my schedule and class list will hang in the hallway.  I also made a QR code (again, thank you Pinterest)  with my contact info for Meet the Teacher.  Idea from: http://mrsmanalli.blogspot.com/search/label/parent%20contact

My professional library shelf, a mail sorter I got at a yard sale for $3 (I'm proud of that buy!) and my assistants desk.  Closet in the background.

Back of the room... art center, bulletin board for displaying student work.  I'm thinking of titling the board something like "App-solutely Awesome Work" with Appalachian logos for the As... Yeah, I'm proud of my alma mater :)

Kitchen center with sand/bean table behind it.

Another classroom library view

View from my assistant's desk.  You can see my small group table and teacher shelf behind it. 

Clip chart.  "Keeping the Promise" refers to our school's promise... "we are a family of learners.  We respect and care about each other.  This is who we are, even when no one is watching."

View from the backdoor of the room.  

Block center.  Love that carpet.  Thanks TJ Maxx!

This will be my lunch choice board.  I made those magnets!  Thank you Pinterest. 

Another Pinterest project: Sight word chants. Idea from  http://littlekinderwarriors.blogspot.com/2012/06/sight-word-chants-freebie.html#comment-form  and http://growingkinders.blogspot.com/2011/06/sight-words-and-chants.html

Closer view of the Sight Word Chants sticks.  Idea from  http://littlekinderwarriors.blogspot.com/2012/06/sight-word-chants-freebie.html#comment-form  and http://growingkinders.blogspot.com/2011/06/sight-words-and-chants.html

View of classroom from calendar area.  

Postcards I'm sending to my kiddos :)

After working on it for a month and a half, my classroom finally looks almost exactly the way I want it to!!  Yay!  Today was our first official teacher work day... I worked from 7:40 til 5:30 this afternoon, brought work home and finished up around 8.  It's been a lonnnnng day but I was so excited that I had to post pictures and blog about it :)

Tomorrow the entire staff will work, and I'll finally get to meet my assistant face to face!  I've heard so many great things about her, and I'm positive we're going to make a great team!

Wednesday is Meet the Teacher Day... I talked to most of the parents on the phone today to let them know which day their sweet kiddos start school (we stagger enrollment in my county: half the kinders come one day, then the other half comes the next and the first half stays home).

And then of course, the big day is Thursday!  Ahh!  I can't believe this moment I've waited for for so many years is about to arrive!

It's not looking like I'm going to be an avid blogger...

...and I'm okay with that!  I'll update as I have time, but I just haven't had much time lately.

I've been busy busy busy with cleaning and organizing (and re-organizing) my classroom.  I finally feel like it's almost how I want it :)  Pictures are coming soon.  My owl theme is super cute!

I've spent these last 3 days in new teacher orientation and felt like I really learned a lot and it was worthwhile!  Tomorrow, I get to sit in a county meeting and listen to people talk all day about policies, benefits, and the like.  That may not be quite as interesting, but I get a trade day for it so it's all good!

Friday, the kindergarten team is having professional development to use iPads (eeek! I'm so excited!)

Teacher workdays start Monday, and school starts a week from tomorrow.  I got my class list today...22 kinders... it's going to be a fun year :)

I'm off to continue working on my "Welcome to Kindergarten" packet!

Monday Made It #2

This morning, I went to Michaels without a definite plan (BIG MISTAKE!), knowing that I wanted to do something small for Make it Monday.  In case you weren't aware, Michaels is really jumping on the teacher train this year and has a good variety of teacher supplies, many with a Dr. Seuss theme (so if you're doing that for your theme, you might want to head there!)  They also have a ton of jungle animal things, perfect for me since that's my classroom theme :)

After wandering aimlessly around the store, I thought about how I have a ton of stickers, and no where really to put them.  Sorry, I know it's not exactly the best thing I could have come up with, but I'm feeling rather yucky today so that's what I went with!

Sticker Box materials:

Pencil Box (cardboard)
Mod Podge and brush
Scissors
Scrapbook Paper
Whatever you want to decorate with!

Work space

Completed Project

  

Don't you just love that little lion? He's precious!

And, an added bonus to this post:  A patriotic cheesecake I made for the 4th of July.  It was super easy to make and super delicious but my family couldn't finish it. 

Patriotic Cheesecake - Thanks Pinterest!

Happy Monday! 

Productivity, My First Blog Award, and Some Questions

This little lady has been so productive recently that I haven't had time to sit down and write another post.  

Yesterday, I took my pup for a walk when we woke up.  We checked out the apartments where we'll soon be living (yay for independence!)  and I let her run all around the dog park 'til she was tuckered out.  After dropping her back at home, I got my oil changed and headed over to my grandma's old house, where I've been storing the teaching supplies I've built up over the years. I loaded my car with as much as poor little Franklin could handle and took it over to my classroom(!).   (And of course I took my teacher toolbox with me!!)

I also decided to organize all the notes and handouts I've accumulated at various professional development sessions in the past few years.  Now I have a notebook with 6 sections (will probably gain more as time goes on) totally dedicated to all that I've learned just in professional development sessions.  

Now for the fun news!  Lara over at Organized Teaching Addict has graciously given my blog its very first award, the Versatile Blogger Award!  Thanks Lara!  What an encouragement to someone who has just stuck her feet in the blogging world!

Here are the rules for award winners....

1. Thank the blogger who nominated you.

2. Include a link to their site.

3. Include the award image in your post.

4. Give 7 random facts about yourself.

5. Nominate 15 other bloggers for the award. --Sorry I'm breaking the rules, I'm only doing 4 right now! 

6. When nominating, include a link to their site.

7. Let the other bloggers know they've been nominated.

Here are my 7 Random Facts :)

1. My dog is considered a rescue dog, but I think she's the one who rescued me!  God sent us to each other at just the right time. 

2.  I'm ridiculously allergic to horses, which makes me sad because I really enjoy horseback riding.

3. My grandpa is part of a hiking club and I go with them every so often... It's a club full of retired people, but sometimes I have a hard time keeping up with their pace!

4. I will be teaching at the "rival" elementary school of where I student taught.  My heart is torn!

5. My dream is to one day own a motorcycle.

6. I could be a good cook...if I could just remember to lay out the meat... several hours in advance instead of right when I want to fix the meal!

7.  I like snowboarding, but am in no way good at it!  Same with singing... my students will just have to put up with it or sing louder than me :)

And my nominations are.....

1. I Love My Classroom
2. 4th Grade Frolics
3. Surviving the First Year
4. Kindertrips

Questions from the newbie blogger:: 

How do you post awards on your blog?

How do you insert files into your blog?

Monday Made It!

So, I saw this "teacher toolbox" on Pinterest a few months ago and pinned it, knowing that I would have time over the summer to actually do it.  I saw it again on some teaching blogs that I stalk and decided that today would be the big day!  I'm linking up with Tara from 4th Grade Frolicks (you should definitely check out her blog!)... she is hosting "Monday Made It." :)

Click here to go to 4th Grade Frolicks!

Anyway, on with the post!  My classroom is going to be jungle themed, so I decided to paint my toolbox green.  I quickly discovered that HEY, acrylic paint doesn't work so well on plastic!  It was too late to fix it though, so I ended up brushing in diagonal strokes and the effect is actually pretty neat!  I used a sponge to put a little bit of gold paint over the green and added some glitter paint to seal the deal.  I also painted the borders blue, then sprayed Mod Podge acrylic sealer over the entire box so that little fingers won't smudge it up! :)

I used Elizabeth's (Fun in Room 4B - Another blog you should definitely check out!) template to make the labels and printed them on scrapbook paper.
Here are a few pictures of the finished product!

Celebration Times!

I'm so blessed and excited to announce that I will officially be a kindergarten teacher for the 2012-2013 school year, in the county that was my number one choice.  I'm spending the summer reading lots of books -

    -- just to name a few...

I'm also spending wayyyy too much time on Pinterest finding activities for my new babies, as well as looking for ways to organize my classroom..   Yesterday, I headed over to the school for a couple of hours with my best friend in tow to begin arranging furniture.  I think I spent more time absorbing the fact that this is my classroom than actually moving tables and centers around.  That's okay, I have another month to get ready before orientation and professional development meetings begin.

First day back!

After possibly the most eventful spring break ever (a trip to the beach, finally seeing The Hunger Games, a job interview, 2 trips to the emergency room, and a lot of spring cleaning), I was ready to get back to school today and see my kiddos.  Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling all that great today-making it a rough day for teaching.  Thank goodness I have the best cooperating teacher ever who helped me out and took over Teacher Directed Reading for me.  I know I won't have that luxury when I'm the classroom teacher, but I sure appreciated it for today!

I'm doing a little bit of informal research on how other teachers use data to drive their instruction - as this is a Big Thing with the Common Core.  In my research, I came across the point that "Standards are the minimum."  That's something I definitely agree with, and it defines my instruction.  Most of my students are meeting the standards, which is good, but they are capable of going beyond that, and it's important for me to keep challenging them to do more than simply meet the standards.

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/using-student-data-inform-teaching-rebecca-alber

Saturday night fever

Well, it's a Saturday night, and guess what I'm doing?

Working on my Impact Project, of course!  Thankfully, it's the last weekend I'll have to spend on it!  :)

Graduation is only 28 days away:  I can make it.


As of right now, I've applied for 12 jobs around the state (I haven't informed my mom that the majority of those opportunities are 6 hours away from home - I'll let her know once I secure an interview).  I'm really hoping that the Teaching Fellows name is as strong an influence on principal's decisions as I've been hearing that it is.  It's crazy that I've been going back and forth for the past 2 years on what I'm going to do post-graduation: stay home or move away.  And I still don't have an answer.  I'll find out in the Lord's timing though, I suppose.

Sometimes I feel like my life is one big awkward moment

Well, I had my interview this morning and I'm not sure that I really impressed the principal.  I think I'm a blabbering fool who can't get whole sentences out in most situations, but when I'm teaching, I feel confidence that I usually lack otherwise.  I just wish that could shine through when I'm interviewing.  Here's to hoping that it went better than I believe it did, and that I'll have more chances to redeem myself with more interviews at other schools!

Questions to continue practicing...
What question haven't I asked you that you would like to answer?

How do you use technology professionally? (Not with students, but professionally).

• Does Pinterest count?! (joking...kinda)

I gotta study up on some more specific ELL strategies and interventions.  I know some, but as soon as the question was asked it's like my brain kinda went blank.  The principal mentioned SIOP, which is something we touched on in Block 1, looks like it's time to dig deeper and find out more!  http://www.cal.org/siop/resources/index.html

Now, before I forget, there were a few stories I wanted to list, because I never want to forget them!

One morning, a student entered the classroom excitedly announcing that he had some concentration pills (aka medicine for ADHD).  We were excited for this student and to see how it would affect his learning and behavior.  Later on that day, another student was acting up and talking back to the teachers, and my CT had asked him to stop being silly and listen. Without skipping a beat, student one chimes in, "Dude, you just need some concentration pills!  They will help you so much, and then you'll be able to listen and stop acting silly!  I have some at home; I can bring them to you tomorrow!"  Needless to say, we emailed his mama and let her know to keep those pills locked up!

A completely unrelated story that happened that same day:  We had a class pet guinea pig named Rocky, who was actually a student's pet that she chose to share with the class.  Unfortunately, Rocky was old and died one weekend.  When we came back to school and found him, we contacted the student's mother, who happens to be a vet, and the mother came to pick up Rocky's body.  She promised us that she would come back later in the week and give a memorial service for the kids to say goodbye to Rocky.  The day she came back, she led a serious discussion about Rocky's death, what happens to people and animals when they die (bodies are cleaned, may be frozen so they don't rot right away).  The kids' comments were all very sweet and heartfelt.  One child asked if we were going to bury Rocky at school, and the mom responded that no, they were going to bury him at home with the family over the weekend.  Without missing a beat, the child who owned Rocky exclaims, "Yeah, and Rocky is in the freezer right now, and Daddy doesn't even know!!"

There's never a dull moment with first graders :)

Trapped!

It's the second day of my spring break, and I'm trapped inside my best friend's apartment with no food and no transportation...woo hoo!  More time to work on my Impact project and continue prepping for my interview on Friday (and check out teacher blogs, one of my favorite things to do!)