Even though I have about a year left in my graduate program, I am seeing the finish line. I have decided I am going to write a thesis for my final paper. It will be a self-study focusing on my writing instruction for my ELL students. I have my thesis committee members lined up and … Continue reading Thesis Decided
Elementary School
Iowa Culture and Language Conference
Last month I had the opportunity to attend a two-day conference to help me improve my instruction for ELL students. I found the Iowa Culture and Language Conference to be a motivating and eye-opening experience. One of the keynote speakers was Dr. Danny Brassell. He discussed the importance of engaging students through humor and visuals. … Continue reading Iowa Culture and Language Conference
A Realization
As I was sitting on this Sunday evening writing a thank you letter for one of my scholarships, it dawned on me that in a short couple of weeks my life is going to change. I will be starting my first semester working towards getting my masters in Literacy Education at UNI. I will be … Continue reading A Realization
Bye-Bye, Long Hair!
So... Last year, I had a homework system that worked pretty well. Students read and wrote about the book, practiced their word sort, and worked on a few math facts. They did this every night Monday through Thursday each week. Each day the adults in my room would look over their work and give them … Continue reading Bye-Bye, Long Hair!
More Progress Monitoring
My last post discussed the way I monitor the third grade standards overall. In this post I wanted to share with you the progress monitoring tool that I use to track the learning of my students day by day. I have a sheet for each of the three major subjects that I teach (math, … Continue reading More Progress Monitoring
Monitoring the Standards
Like any teacher, I do a lot of progress monitoring. One of the things that I track is the standards that we complete in third grade. In order to do this efficiently, I created excel sheets with all of the third grade standards based on the Common Core and the Iowa Core. I have the … Continue reading Monitoring the Standards
Homework
Last year, I got the idea of what I want my students' homework to look like from my son's kindergarten teacher. I created a homework system for my students. Each student receives a reading bag (numbered so I can reuse year after year), a folder, composition notebook, and homework log. My students do their homework … Continue reading Homework
Crazy Teacher Lady Update
It's been way too long since I've last posted, but I'm going to blame it on being busy teaching and parenting. Between co-teaching third grade, coaching Jr. Lego League, being a team leader, a mom, a wife, and expecting- life has not been dull. To top it off, I have put in my graduate application … Continue reading Crazy Teacher Lady Update
New Year, New and Improved Teacher… I hope!
As I have been prepping the room for the new school year I have been reflecting quite a bit on the last school year. My list of improvements is quite long (I will attach it to the bottom of this post). As a first year teacher I think I did the best that I could, … Continue reading New Year, New and Improved Teacher… I hope!
Before Tour of the Classroom
This is what my classroom started out looking like at the beginning of the year. I really like this set up, but I'm in the process of adjusting the room to better meet the needs of my students. Being a teacher requires a lot of flexibility. I feel like I'm constantly tweaking things, but it's … Continue reading Before Tour of the Classroom
Reading Workshop
As the year continues along I'm feeling more comfortable in my teaching. I feel like I'm getting a handle on all of the subjects, but I think reading workshop time could use a little work. I am struggling to find activities during workshop time that are meaningful and engaging for my … Continue reading Reading Workshop
Inclusion in the Classroom
So, on Monday I had my first Professional Development of the year. I found out that I will have all of the third grade special education students in my room and I will be co-teaching. This PD focused on the various co-teaching approaches. I didn’t get a chance to meet my co-teacher, but I … Continue reading Inclusion in the Classroom