I am enjoying the last few days left of my Spring Break. For the first time (even including college life) I took a trip during Spring Break. While in college I worked during every single Spring Break (and all of the other breaks for that matter)!! It was incredible to be able to get away and just live. I went with some friends to Memphis for a nice long weekend. We spent time on Beale Street (actually a lot of time), visited the National Civil Rights Museum, had a mini-shopping spree at the mall, and enjoyed some good ol' barbeque and other down-home comfort foods! I definitely wanted to bring some work down with me because I couldn't think of how I would spend so much time without looking at anything from school. But let me tell you, I was sooooo glad I didin't!!! I wasn't Ms. Eagertoteach....I was just a woman enjoying herself on a much needed break! I have truly been loving Spring Break!!
Now, however, I feel the need to transition myself back into the swing of things. I did not submit my lesson plans before break so I need to get prepared for the upcoming week. I have my to-do list all made up...now the task is getting to it.
Is the transition back after Spring Break tough for you? What do you do to ease yourself back into the swing of things??
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Looking Ahead...Kinder Awaits!!
It is official....I will be teaching kindergarten next school year!!! The school at which I am currently teaching is going to be a magnet school next year. As a bilingual teacher, I would be transferred next year to another shcool in the district that will be housing the bilingual program. Since my bilingual certificate if provisional, in 5 more years I would have to go back to school and take 15 hours for my standard certificate. I have loved every minute in bilingual education, but it is not my passion and not where I see myself teaching years down the road.
This opportunity to transition out of bilingual presented itself, but with a caviot...teaching kindergarten! I had sworn for years that I would probably teach just about any grade other than kinder. I was faced with what felt like a true dilemma. However, knowing that I wanted to leave bilingual, I interviewed for the position and was offered the job. On a side note: the interview was one of the most awkward experiences ever...the entire interview team was made up of my colleagues. All of the examples I gave about how I collaborate and other questions regarding instructional practices either directly or indirectly involved every single person on the team!!! I was more nervous about this interview than the one for my current position...I just felt like they would critique me more.
To make a long story a little shorter,I really had to do a lot of thinking on this offer, but I accepted and I am more excited than ever!! I have already made plans for spending tons of time this summer gearing up for the little kiddos I will have next year. I still have some jitters about the entire mental shift that I will have to make in regards to instruction in kinder but I am really looking forward to what lies ahead for next year. My first step to getting to that point is making it through this year!!!
**I would love for you to share your experiences teaching kindergarten and/or any must-have resources/books. I have many blogger friends who are kinder teachers so I will definitely be stalking your blogs for more tips, activities, etc!
This opportunity to transition out of bilingual presented itself, but with a caviot...teaching kindergarten! I had sworn for years that I would probably teach just about any grade other than kinder. I was faced with what felt like a true dilemma. However, knowing that I wanted to leave bilingual, I interviewed for the position and was offered the job. On a side note: the interview was one of the most awkward experiences ever...the entire interview team was made up of my colleagues. All of the examples I gave about how I collaborate and other questions regarding instructional practices either directly or indirectly involved every single person on the team!!! I was more nervous about this interview than the one for my current position...I just felt like they would critique me more.
To make a long story a little shorter,I really had to do a lot of thinking on this offer, but I accepted and I am more excited than ever!! I have already made plans for spending tons of time this summer gearing up for the little kiddos I will have next year. I still have some jitters about the entire mental shift that I will have to make in regards to instruction in kinder but I am really looking forward to what lies ahead for next year. My first step to getting to that point is making it through this year!!!
**I would love for you to share your experiences teaching kindergarten and/or any must-have resources/books. I have many blogger friends who are kinder teachers so I will definitely be stalking your blogs for more tips, activities, etc!
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Let it snow....and sleet, blow, and freeze!!
I enjoyed my SNOW DAY today and gearing up for SNOW DAY #2 tomorrow!! Conditions are HORRIBLE in central Illinois so I'm very happy just about the entire region has decided to put safety first.
This makes 4 snow days so far this winter...I know we'll be spending some extra time in school in June. Oh well, at least it'll be about 70 degrees warmer by then!
This makes 4 snow days so far this winter...I know we'll be spending some extra time in school in June. Oh well, at least it'll be about 70 degrees warmer by then!
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Press ock!!!!!
I have been dying to share this incredibly cute/funny story with all of you! Our district uses the Everyday Math curriculum. For those of you not familiar with EDM, the curriculum incorporates tons of Math games to support student learning. I have a SMARTboard in my room so I make sure that whenever I am introducing an new online game, I use the SMARTboard so that all students can watch and participate instead of working with two students at a time to teach it to them on the computer.
So, the class was divided into two groups. We were playing basketball addition and students had to add up the three numbers appearing on the dice and enter in the sum and press 'ok'. So my kiddos were getting acquainted with touching the numbers and hitting 'ok' many of them would enter the number and wait awkwardly for about 3 seconds before the audience will tell him/her what to press next. One of my students with a severe visual impairment was up at the board and could not find the button to push after entering in the number. After a few seconds everyone else was yelling what sounded like "press ock, press ock". Baffled, I looked at my TA trying to see if he knew what they were talking about. Then I looked back at the board and realized my students were looking at 'ok' and sounding it out...which is why what they said sounded like 'ock'!!!!
I smiled form ear to ear and even chuckled outloud. I then explained to the class that what it actually says is 'ok' but they were not buying it. It also did not help my case much that it was not written like 'okay' or 'o.k.', as I feel it should have been.
When I told this to my non-teacher friends, they did not really see what the big deal was. However, seeing as though my bilingual students are going into their first 4 weeks ever of reading instruction in English, I am sooooo PROUD to see my kiddos applying the appropriate letter sounds to what they are reading!!!
So, the class was divided into two groups. We were playing basketball addition and students had to add up the three numbers appearing on the dice and enter in the sum and press 'ok'. So my kiddos were getting acquainted with touching the numbers and hitting 'ok' many of them would enter the number and wait awkwardly for about 3 seconds before the audience will tell him/her what to press next. One of my students with a severe visual impairment was up at the board and could not find the button to push after entering in the number. After a few seconds everyone else was yelling what sounded like "press ock, press ock". Baffled, I looked at my TA trying to see if he knew what they were talking about. Then I looked back at the board and realized my students were looking at 'ok' and sounding it out...which is why what they said sounded like 'ock'!!!!
I smiled form ear to ear and even chuckled outloud. I then explained to the class that what it actually says is 'ok' but they were not buying it. It also did not help my case much that it was not written like 'okay' or 'o.k.', as I feel it should have been.
When I told this to my non-teacher friends, they did not really see what the big deal was. However, seeing as though my bilingual students are going into their first 4 weeks ever of reading instruction in English, I am sooooo PROUD to see my kiddos applying the appropriate letter sounds to what they are reading!!!
Saturday, January 15, 2011
If we had known....
This has been a dilemma with my kiddos for quite a while, but I cannot seem to figure out how to change it. The problem is that my kids get math homework every night and they are to read for at least 2 minutes and fill out their reading log. About 98% of my students do their Math homework every night, but each morning, I have maybe 4 out 15 kids turn in their Reading log. 14 out 15 of my students are a year below grade level in Reading, so I really push for students to read at home. We have had many a conversation about the fact that reading at home is not optional, just the same as Math homework. I have contacted parents, conferenced with the repeat offenders, but nothing seems to do the trick. I know that the students who do not turn in their Reading Log are generally not reading at home.
This week, I decided to use an incentive to entice the other kiddos to do their Reading homework. On Friday, I looked over my homework check-in list and the students who turned in their homework (both Math and Reading) all week got 2 "No Homework" passes to be used any time within the third quarter. I had only ONE student who was eligible to receive the prize. Might I add that the students were outraged b/c "If we knew we would get a homework pass, we would have done our homeowrk"!! The nerve!!!
Are there any other ideas that you have used with your students to motivate them to do their homework??
This week, I decided to use an incentive to entice the other kiddos to do their Reading homework. On Friday, I looked over my homework check-in list and the students who turned in their homework (both Math and Reading) all week got 2 "No Homework" passes to be used any time within the third quarter. I had only ONE student who was eligible to receive the prize. Might I add that the students were outraged b/c "If we knew we would get a homework pass, we would have done our homeowrk"!! The nerve!!!
Are there any other ideas that you have used with your students to motivate them to do their homework??
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Wish Granted
SNOW DAY!!!!! Some of my fellow teachers have expressed how unhappy they are about this but I am elated!! I NEED this day and I would take an extra day in June over a day in December any day!!!!
What are your opinions about snow days??!!
What are your opinions about snow days??!!
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Positive Behavior Facilitation
I've been gone for way too long!! I honestly have not had the energy to post anything. So many amazing, insane, unbelievable things have happened since my last post. Of course, when I actually sit down to write, all of those events escape my memory!!
A while back, I posted that I was talking a course to be certified in Positive Behavior Facilitation (PBF). This 6-week course was absolutely life changing-for my life both in the classroom and outside of it. The focus of PBF is that we cannot not make anyone change their behaviors, nor can we change it for them. PBF suggests that if we focus on becoming more self-aware about our own beliefs, triggers, and ways of dealing with conflict, we will model and encourage the positive behavior and choices we so desperately want to see in our students.
By looking inward and reflecting on my beliefs, thoughts, and feelings when I interact with others, I was able to realize the contributions I make to situations of conflict. It is so easy to say "Bobby really made me mad!" or "Susie,you are so disrespectful" in the heat of conflict. However, with self-awareness comes the realization that no one can make you mad, but instead something they did triggered something on the inside and made you react that way. PBF would suggest also that in the case of 'Susie', using 'You-messages' (instead of 'I-statements')backs the students against a wall and makes her defensive and more unwilling to resolve the conflict.
The PBF training was incredibly rich and has changed the nature of many of my interactions with my students, especially with my more challenging personalities. By thinking more about what I am bringing to the situation (feelings, beliefs, baggage, etc.) I am better able to set the tone for the interaction rather than reacting to the tone set by the student.
Here is one of the pieces of 'brain food' from PBF that I believe resonates profoundly in my classroom:
-We cannot expect more of our students than we expect of ourselves. We must act the way we expect our students to behave. If we want to work effectively with difficult students, we must be willing to change ourselves. Although we rarely appreciate our most difficult students because of the time they take and the frustration they cause, their presence can lead to growth if we learn from the obstacles they throw in our way.
**Allen Mendler and Richard Curwin (1999)**
A while back, I posted that I was talking a course to be certified in Positive Behavior Facilitation (PBF). This 6-week course was absolutely life changing-for my life both in the classroom and outside of it. The focus of PBF is that we cannot not make anyone change their behaviors, nor can we change it for them. PBF suggests that if we focus on becoming more self-aware about our own beliefs, triggers, and ways of dealing with conflict, we will model and encourage the positive behavior and choices we so desperately want to see in our students.
By looking inward and reflecting on my beliefs, thoughts, and feelings when I interact with others, I was able to realize the contributions I make to situations of conflict. It is so easy to say "Bobby really made me mad!" or "Susie,you are so disrespectful" in the heat of conflict. However, with self-awareness comes the realization that no one can make you mad, but instead something they did triggered something on the inside and made you react that way. PBF would suggest also that in the case of 'Susie', using 'You-messages' (instead of 'I-statements')backs the students against a wall and makes her defensive and more unwilling to resolve the conflict.
The PBF training was incredibly rich and has changed the nature of many of my interactions with my students, especially with my more challenging personalities. By thinking more about what I am bringing to the situation (feelings, beliefs, baggage, etc.) I am better able to set the tone for the interaction rather than reacting to the tone set by the student.
Here is one of the pieces of 'brain food' from PBF that I believe resonates profoundly in my classroom:
-We cannot expect more of our students than we expect of ourselves. We must act the way we expect our students to behave. If we want to work effectively with difficult students, we must be willing to change ourselves. Although we rarely appreciate our most difficult students because of the time they take and the frustration they cause, their presence can lead to growth if we learn from the obstacles they throw in our way.
**Allen Mendler and Richard Curwin (1999)**
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