Sunday, October 26, 2014
All All Those Lutheran School Teachers Out There...
For all of my Lutheran teacher friends who read this blog, this post is just for you! This video/song always makes me laugh, and my kids love to watch it each year! This would be the week (Friday in particular) to show it in your classroom!
Monday, October 20, 2014
Parent/Teacher Conferences
Well, it is that time of year again. The school year is well under-way. First quarter is over, and it is time for parent/teacher conferences. Every teacher LOVES conferences, right? While I do enjoy the opportunity to meet with parents I don't see very often, I would be lying if I said I enjoyed (or even liked) conferences. I can't have a real discussion with parents about their child in only 15 minutes. Of course, I can't really go over because then I will back up everyone else behind me. (Plus, I already have to be at school for more than 12 hours. I really don't want to extend that any longer.)
I have to use the limited time I have the best I can. I came up with a planning sheet that I use to make sure I cover no more than 3 important points with parents. I don't want my parents to get overwhelmed. It is so easy to list problem after problem, but, without opportunity for lots of dialogue during conferences, it winds up sounding like all I want to do is complain about their child, which doesn't help anyone. The sheet I use also helps me make sure that I focus on one important area for change or development. One idea is manageable for parents to work on with you. And, so parents know that I really do enjoy teaching their child, I make sure to include praise. So many parents come into conferences fearful of what the teacher will say. I want to make sure they know I am on their side and like their child (even if it is that one student that drives me nuts every day).
You can get a free copy of my conference planning sheet here. (It's a Google Doc.)
I have to use the limited time I have the best I can. I came up with a planning sheet that I use to make sure I cover no more than 3 important points with parents. I don't want my parents to get overwhelmed. It is so easy to list problem after problem, but, without opportunity for lots of dialogue during conferences, it winds up sounding like all I want to do is complain about their child, which doesn't help anyone. The sheet I use also helps me make sure that I focus on one important area for change or development. One idea is manageable for parents to work on with you. And, so parents know that I really do enjoy teaching their child, I make sure to include praise. So many parents come into conferences fearful of what the teacher will say. I want to make sure they know I am on their side and like their child (even if it is that one student that drives me nuts every day).
You can get a free copy of my conference planning sheet here. (It's a Google Doc.)
I also think that every teacher who has had to deal with parent/teacher conferences should get a reward. So, through Thursday, every item in my Teachers Pay Teachers store is 20% off! Click below to check out my store!
How do you manage conferences? Let me know in the comments!
Saturday, October 11, 2014
Teachers Conference
I spent Thursday and Friday at a teachers conference for Lutheran school teachers in central and southern Illinois. I LOVE conferences. This is the point in the school year where the year is no longer new and exciting. Besides the fact that it gives me a short break from my kiddos, I love learning new things and always come back to school with great ideas and the motivation to keep going. I thought that I would use this blog post to share some of the exciting things I learned with you!
One really helpful sectional was about vision problems and how to recognize them. (When I say vision, I don't mean eyesight. While related, they are not the same.) I also learned the majority of indicators for vision problems and AD/HD are the same. This blew my mind. While the optometrist that led the sectional is local, her website does have some good information: http://www.visionforlifeworks.com/addadhd.html.
Another sectional was led by a senior educator at the St. Louis Science Center about teaching chemical inquiry (even for lower elementary) in the classroom! We did a really fun investigation with ice melt, cabbage juice, vinegar, and baking powder that I know my kids will love and learn from! (Any time you get to change colors, temperature, or make something explode, my kids will love it.) They have great resources here: http://mysteryofmatteroutreach.org.
I also attended fantastic sectionals about developing phonemic awareness (something I work with my first graders on quite frequently) and using number talks in the classroom. While they were great, I don't have any great resources to share with you at the moment. Those were more "you needed to be there" sectionals.
I hope that some of the information I learned has been helpful to you! It has certainly inspired me to get back to my students on Tuesday!
One really helpful sectional was about vision problems and how to recognize them. (When I say vision, I don't mean eyesight. While related, they are not the same.) I also learned the majority of indicators for vision problems and AD/HD are the same. This blew my mind. While the optometrist that led the sectional is local, her website does have some good information: http://www.visionforlifeworks.com/addadhd.html.
Another sectional was led by a senior educator at the St. Louis Science Center about teaching chemical inquiry (even for lower elementary) in the classroom! We did a really fun investigation with ice melt, cabbage juice, vinegar, and baking powder that I know my kids will love and learn from! (Any time you get to change colors, temperature, or make something explode, my kids will love it.) They have great resources here: http://mysteryofmatteroutreach.org.
I also attended fantastic sectionals about developing phonemic awareness (something I work with my first graders on quite frequently) and using number talks in the classroom. While they were great, I don't have any great resources to share with you at the moment. Those were more "you needed to be there" sectionals.
I hope that some of the information I learned has been helpful to you! It has certainly inspired me to get back to my students on Tuesday!
Friday, October 3, 2014
Tricks and Treats Blog Hop
Today I am joining up with Jessica Plemons over at Mrs. Plemon's Kindergarten for a Tricks and Treats blog hop! THe idea is that you can learn classroom "tricks" from myself and many other teachers, as well as get great "treats" from our Teachers Pay Teachers stores.
Let me start off with my trick. Like many teachers, I always have issues with my students moving their desks around all over the place. I often have students that get squashed like sardines. (Because my room is also used for morning devotions and other all-school events, I have to have my desks in rows most of the time.) This summer, I bought some floor tape. It is the same kind of tape that can be put temporarily on a gym floor. It sticks well but comes off easily at the end of the year (or so I've been told). I put down lines on the floor for each row. That way, my students know how far up their desk is supposed to go and I don't get squished at the front of the room!
Okay, here is my treat. For this weekend only, my Sentence Scrambles are on sale! These are great for helping students put together complete sentences and work on parts of speech. You can get these for only $2 here:
Let me start off with my trick. Like many teachers, I always have issues with my students moving their desks around all over the place. I often have students that get squashed like sardines. (Because my room is also used for morning devotions and other all-school events, I have to have my desks in rows most of the time.) This summer, I bought some floor tape. It is the same kind of tape that can be put temporarily on a gym floor. It sticks well but comes off easily at the end of the year (or so I've been told). I put down lines on the floor for each row. That way, my students know how far up their desk is supposed to go and I don't get squished at the front of the room!
Okay, here is my treat. For this weekend only, my Sentence Scrambles are on sale! These are great for helping students put together complete sentences and work on parts of speech. You can get these for only $2 here:
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