Tuesday Thoughts

Hello internet, I hope you are doing well.  I feel like today was a very long and very short day all at once.  Let's get the bookkeeping out of the way, and then we'll discuss why.

Homework: Dreambox (math), Read 20 minutes, Monday and Tuesday section of Science Review sheet, and Words Menu.  Also, my Edmodo account is active and I believe all students have joined my online class.  There is a words assignment on the words menu for Edmodo.  Just post that to the page or send it to me in a message.  Thanks!

So, back to the thoughts from the day.  Why do Tuesdays seem to rush by and take forever all at the same time?  Well, part of that is that during the kids resource, my planning period is devoted to a fifth grade team meeting.  I love this time.  Really, I do.  Today's meeting felt very productive and we are ready for next week.

That being said, the meetings do cut into the time that I would be taking care of other things.  Getting the room ready for reading groups, making copies, responding to emails.  Therefore, I do many of these things in the mornings before school or after school once the kids have gone home.  Not complaining, because the day really does go by quickly, it just feels like it's dragging at the same time.

I'm working on our newsletter for October also.  Should have that completed in the next day or two and will be ready to send out on the first of the month.  YAY!

Well, time to be productive in other realms of life, it's bedtime in Mrs. Kelly's house, so off to send those tiny humans to dreamland.

~Mrs. Kelly

Looking into next week

Oh dear friends, it has been a busy couple of weeks for Mrs. Kelly.  I'm going to let you all in on a little secret.  When I got this job I had another job (have to pay the bills right?) and up until this Thursday, I was still working that other job.  Let me tell you, 60 hours a week is NOT my idea of fun.  Because of this some things slipped through the cracks.  Mostly this blog, sorry all, but it was last on my priority list.  School, my kids, my husband, other job, and the house were on the top of that list.

Luckily for me, that will no longer be a problem!  While I will miss my coworkers, I am so happy to finally be starting this new chapter in my life full force.

So, onto my plans for the next week!

Monday: Back to school night!!!

I can't wait!

Parents: Please come out, you'll get to know some more about me, my expectations for the year, and some other nifty stuff.

Science this week: MATTER! I love science, have I mentioned that?  It's the most hands on subject I teach, and it's amazing.  We have some cool stuff in the works for science this year (more you'll learn about during Back to School Night, so be there or be square) and I can't wait!  Back to matter, well, matter is anything that has mass and takes up space.  So. Just. About. EVERYTHING! We will be having fun with this, I'm sure.  Students and Parents, once I get better with Edmodo, I will be posting videos, sound clips, slideshows, and so on to help bring science home.

Math: We are finishing up patterns (numerical and geometrical) this week.  I feel better about this week than last week.  The kids seem more into this (it's much easier to do and make this in hands on visual ways than prime and composite) and I feel like we are enjoying and learning more.  I'm thinking we will test on this on Tuesday, but maybe Wednesday.  We did lose a day due to county pretesting, but man, are we going to have to catch up after this!  I hate being behind on pacing, but it's better than having all of the kids lost and confused.

Reading:  We are continuing our character study through a series by reading Howliday Inn, the second in the Bunnicula series.  Please encourage your students to read at home, read to them, have them read aloud and silently.  

Writing: We are going to focus on creating longer pieces with more vivid vocabulary.  Encourage your students to add details when they verbally tell a story.  Get them used to trying out new words.  I am also going to spend time on parts of speech and editing their work.

Word Study: This week starts our differentiated word study groups.  Students have words menus glued to the front of their word study notebooks.  My Edmodo account has been started and students have accessed my class.  I will have spelling challenges for them their also.

Also, I am going to assign the job of photojournalist this week.  One of my students will be in charge of taking pictures of what we do through the day so I can post them here.  I hope to make this a much more exciting blog now that I have the time.  

Looking ahead: watch out for a blog post about DreamBox.  I will be discussing this during Back to School Night, but will put the information here as well.

I can't wait to see all of your lovely, smiling faces on Monday!

~Mrs. Kelly

So over the rain...

We've had 6 days of school so far.  We've spent 3 of those days inside during recess due to rain.  I feel so bad for my kids.  I have some puzzles and today I stopped by the dollar store on my way home to pick up a few little games but that's no substitute for going outside.  You can only play so many games of four corners or heads up 7 up before they become boring.  Keep your fingers crossed for sunshine tomorrow.

In other news, I was excited to use my lunch-crock today and had left over lasagna.  If you don't personally know me, then you have yet to experience my crock pot obsession.  I love them! They are great for anything.  Breakfast, dinner, appetizers, and with the invention of the lunch-crock, hot lunches everyday!  I love mine so much I bought a second when they went on clearance at my grocery store.  Why I'm going on about my lunch I don't know, but just in case you cared.

Homework today:  Read 20 minutes, state identification worksheet, DreamBox (I'll post more about DreamBox later once I have all of my information in front of me.), and word study menu.

One day soon I'll download my pictures of the room from the iPad and will show them off.  Until then, I do apologize for the boring pages and posts.

Thanks!
~Mrs. Kelly

p.s.  If anyone can think of some ways to spend indoor recess, I'd love the ideas!

Week Two has Commenced

Hello hello world!  We have jumped full force into week two of school and it is AWESOME!  I adore my class, have I mentioned that yet?  Well I do.  That being said, let's get down to business.

What we're doing this week:

Word Study: Short vowels, there is a homework guide glued into each students word study notebook (I'll attach that tomorrow, it's on the other computer).  All students have the same sort this week.  I will have groups made up by next week or the week after and we will have differentiated lists.

Reading: We are working on character traits and growth across a series.  I will be reading some books from the Bunnicula series to the kids over the next couple of weeks while we discuss how a character can grow and change over time.  Other aspects of reading comprehension will be practiced as well, but our man focus is characterization.

Math: My math class (remember, we switch for math!) is working on prime and composite numbers this week.  Today we introduced the concept and talked about the factors of numbers (the numbers you multiply together to get a product.  For example the factors of 8 are 1,2,4,8 because 1x8=8, 2x4=8)

Social Studies: Geography.  Last week we focused on the world, this week we are narrowing our focus to North America and the United States.  We have talked about the eight different regions of the U.S. and will be focusing on state locations within those regions throughout the rest of the week.

Writing: We are working on a personal prompt writing "What Do You Hope to Accomplish this Year? How?"

Keep your fingers crossed for better weather, it was raining today so we had inside recess.  I hate it when we have to do that, I feel like the kids are cooped up all day, they deserve that time to use up some of that energy.  Think clear sky-ed thoughts!

~Mrs. Kelly

First Day of School!

Good evening friends!  Mrs. Kelly is happy to announce that (in her opinion) the first day of school was a success!  I have a great group of kids and I feel like we're really going to enjoy working together this year.

For my parents,
   Homework: read for 20 minutes, and fill out any paperwork that came home.

I had hoped to put up pictures of my room today, that was the plan at least, but I left my iPad at school and it has all of the pictures.  Oh well, longer post tomorrow then!

I want to send a big THANK YOU out to my students, parents, and amazing co-workers.  I'm looking forward to my first full time year, and you are all an integral part of it.

~Mrs. Kelly

Open House...

I wanted a better post up before today.  I've been working on my room all week, and Open House is today.  My hopes were to have a long detailed post with pictures of what my room was, is, and hopefully will be. Life got in the way.  Finishing up at my old job this week as well as starting my new job has taken some time away.  Bad news? I don't have pictures loaded up yet.  Good news? Things are smooth sailing so far! I have to state again how wonderful everyone at this school is.  They are all so helpful and I am so blessed to be a part of this community.  Hopefully pictures will come up this weekend and I'll be able to give a detailed look into my room.  School starts on Tuesday!

Mrs. Kelly

New Job!

That's right ladies and gentlemen, Mrs. Kelly starts a new job on Monday! Phone rang on Tuesday while I was on vacation six hours away from home for an interview on Wednesday morning.  You better believe I was in the car that night leaving my husband and children with hubby's family and driving back home.

I've had interviews before.  Those interviews led to a long term sub position but nothing permanent had happened.  I've walked into unfamiliar buildings before, stomach full of butterflies and my mind racing. Sat uncomfortably at a table with new faces who's job was to judge me and my potential ability, and left knowing that I didn't have a job.

This time was incredibly different.  I walked into a building and felt at ease from the start.  Met with a principal, A.P., and a fifth grade team leader who all gave off a welcoming vibe.  Believe it or not, I enjoyed the interview!  I liked talking to these women, I felt like this was a place where I belonged.  The best part was they felt that way too!  As I began the six hour drive back to my family my phone rang again.  As I pulled over to check my voice mail, it rang again.  HR left a message and another school had called asking if I wanted to come in for an interview.  Not even two hours after leaving the best interview ever I was getting a call saying that I got the job!

Teacher work week starts on Monday.  I have a job, in a school, with my own classroom.  I'll be teaching fifth grade in what I think is a pretty darn good school, with some people who (in my one short meeting) I have decided are amazing.  I can't wait.  I have spent the weekend scouring Pinterest and trying to mentally design my room.  I will be posting pics along the way with my progress.  Once school starts I will update more often, sometimes with quick posts just to let my students and their parents know about homework or due dates, other times there will be longer detailed posts.

See you next time internet!

Mrs. Kelly

Applications, applications, and more applications

There is something about filling out job applications.  It's like you're baring your soul to these (to you essentially faceless) people and seeing what they will do to it.

Don't get me wrong, there's a thrill about hitting that SUBMIT button.  It's exciting, you wonder if this will be the one.  I love it.  I'm positive each and every time, that this will be the one that equals a new job for the fall.

Then there's no phone call.

No return email.

Just blank, stark nothingness.

I'm still positive.  This year is more promising than last.  I have a better resume, more experience. Now it's just waiting for the job where I will be the right fit.  

If I'm not the right person for a particular job then I don't want it.  That's the thing about this career that I've chosen, it's important.  In just about any other industry you can go to work and not love it.  You can go in day after day and hate your coworkers.  You go, punch your time sheet, zone out while you're there, and then you go home where you don't have to think about it until the next morning.

Teachers can't do that.  This job is all encompassing.  You have to have a passion for it.  Is everyday the best day? Probably not.  At some point you will come home and cry over it.  You will have days where the kids are mean, you will have days where you just want to call in sick and sit on your couch in sweat pants eating cake frosting out of the container.  

BUT

 

unlike other jobs, you CAN'T DO THAT!  You have to be there for your students.  Sometimes you might be the only positive they have in a day.  You might be the person that inspires them to do something amazing.  You might teach the person who will one day cure cancer!  

That's why when I fill out a plethora of applications I stay positive.  So what if I wasn't the person school XYZ needed, that just means another person is who they needed to inspire their students.  I get it.  That just means my students are still out there waiting for me.  It's all about fit.  Not every pair of jeans can be your favorite.  Not all people are chocolate ice cream people, I'd rather sit down with a bag of Doritos than a tub of Rocky Road any day.  

Soon, I will be a school's Doritos when everyone else is Rocky Road.

Until then.  I fill out applications almost daily.  It's terrifying and awesome all at the same time :)

Summer and Interview Prep

Hello Internet! As summer begins to wind down (though I hear it's over in parts of the country) Mrs. Kelly is getting ready for the new school year and interview season.

 Things on my prep list are:

• STEM projects for students in varying grade levels
• Small group literacy attack plans (and lesson plans)
• Behavior management plans
• Examples of parent contact sheets
• Interview Shoes (my previous dress shoes are no longer useful )
• Took care of this! Yay for shoes in giant sizes :)

I have been scouring the web and previous materials I have to come up with a great interview plan. For STEM, I remembered a WebQuest that I created for third grade science, although I do have to go through and update it for new SOL material, and double check spelling and grammar.

I also have an online collection of kindergarten math resources. These line up with the Virginia Math Standards of Learning.  If nothing else, these resources will show that I'm not scared to put material out there and make it available to parents and students for their convenience.  

That leaves parent contact, behavior management, and small group literacy.  The good news is that the county in which I am applying has small group plans for all teachers to follow, so that part of the interview should go smoothly.  I've been working with their planning and format for a year and a half now, so it is familiar to me and I see many benefits to it.  I also feel confident in my beliefs and practices when it comes to classroom management.  

I prefer to work with students to foster an environment where students become responsible for themselves.  I don't like to single a student out for misbehavior, and I don't like to be taken off topic to deal with these situations.  What has worked the best for me is to allow opportunities for students to earn "free time" and to use non-verbal correction.  If students work well and complete their work efficiently (and correctly), I let them earn a quick round of SimonSays or a game of four corners at the end of the day.  You'd be surprised how the reminder of those five minute breaks can quickly turn a classroom around.  I also provide students with opportunities to be leaders in the classroom.  If I give everyone a job, then a simple reminder of how misbehavior can cause them to lose their jobs can turn them around.  My favorite tools, however, are some stop signs that I found online.  

They are great!  You don't have to say anything, and I am surprised at how quickly students get this concept.  If a student isn't displaying acceptable behavior, I simply place the stop sign on their desk and leave it there until I notice a change in their actions.  Since I circulate throughout the room as I teach, this is easy to do without all of the students noticing.  I have even stuck them to the board when I need to whole class to change what they are doing.  IT'S AMAZING! 

Parent contact is the last thing I have to talk about.  I need to find a cute template for a weekly newsletter.  Like the blog (which is a form of parent contact!), it will have what we are up to for the week, what the homework will be for the week, and I'd like some cool quotes on it.  Maybe a feature student or a parent shout out section.  If anyone finds anything awesome (with a green/blue theme) let me know.  I'm going to try and work on something and link it up here, but I'm not the most creative person.  We shall see.  

I also like Remind101 because parents can receive notification via text message from the teacher.  I have used it before for homework, field trip reminders, and just about anything you can think of.  You can create different contact groups and send different messages to each group.  So if ten sets of parents want to know the homework, but they all want an update on field trips, or other reminders then it can be customized.  It's pretty amazing.  I haven't had any complaints from parents yet.  

Well, I think that's it.  I'm going to get ready for my vacation next week, that may or may not be cut off for interviews and training.  If anyone thinks of something I may be missing leave me a note!  

“Why fit in when you were born to stand out?” 
― Dr. Seuss

*I do not own anything to which I have linked.  If you notice something has not been given proper credit, please let me know and I will link it in as well*

I am going to get better at this

Hello again world! Miss me?  I missed you too!

It has been a busy summer for Mrs. Kelly. For starters I have been teaching summer school again (YAY!) for post third grade students.  I love the school I'm working with, I have subbed there in the past and it is where I student taught.  It's a great place, and I hope that someday a full time spot will open up there and I'll be the right fit for it. Keep your fingers crossed ladies and gentlemen.

Back to the important stuff, what are the kids learning?

Short answer, EVERYTHING! Long answer, ALL OF EVERYTHING!

OK, not really, but we are doing a lot.  We have practiced persuasive arguments and essays, we keep a journal, and have worked on writing to specific audiences in the form friendly letters.  Last week we put on a performance to show off our oral presentation skills and our ability to read with voice.  We learn a new word or random fact everyday and practice our reading strategies daily as we read through The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo.  That book is a bit of a push for them, but I'm reading to them and the comprehension piece is coming together for the group.

My kids are shining when it comes to math.  They rocked our week on 3D geometry and were invited into another class to show off our skills.  While we were there, they also had the chance to show off their multiplication abilities.  Yesterday we started two digit by two digit multiplication problems.  Last year they were able to do two digit by one digit, and while 2x2 isn't part of the curriculum until fourth grade, I figured why not push them.  A few were nervous at first, but once they saw how we set it up the same way, just with a second row of boxes, they were stars!

I was so proud of my kids when they were able to teach that concept to the other class.  We have also worked on thinking logically and problem solving.

My favorite part about my math block is the end of the day.  I have the students break up and play math-centric games that relate to either basic fact skills they need to master, or games about the concepts we have been working on.  I love this because I see them working together, and helping each other.  I see kids who are strong in certain areas rush to help and teach others that are behind them.  No judgement, no name calling, just kids working together to enjoy what they consider to be free time.  I circulate through the room and pull kids or groups to work on areas in which I feel they need some reinforcement and the others practice basic skills that will make them better mathematicians.

Only two days left before summer school ends, then it's a month of hoping and waiting for interviews.  I feel better about this year, and later on I'll explain why.

Next time: My interview bag and general game plan.

I said we'd be seeing each other sooner

Hello again friends!

I've been working to come up with some portfolio ideas since yesterday, well longer than that really, but we'll call it yesterday.  I've got some cute things that I'm working on.  I'll try to post pictures later, but I found everything on Pinterest.  Join me there and follow the pins back to where they came from.  I pin a lot, I have just gotten an account to go with the blog, so it's not full yet, but soon!

My plans in substitute land this week are as follows.  Music teacher Wednesday (super excited about this one! Haven't spent too much time as a resource teacher-not where I'm licensed and no experience, but I think it will be fun!), then third grade on Thursday and Friday.  Different classes, and I've been in both of these rooms before so that will help.  The kids are always more responsive when they know you.  Makes for an easier day.  Excited to try some new ideas for behavior management too.  This school has a pretty cut and dry management plan, but where I can use new ideas I do.

Keeping my eyes out still for full time positions.  As I said yesterday, I've got 18 applications in total right now, 17 schools in one county, and one in to another county (one you apply to each school individually and the other to the county as a whole) and I'm watching 3 other close districts to see how that goes.  I'm optimistic for this year, and on that note I'm going to leave you with the words of my favorite philosopher

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who'll decide where to go...” ― Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You'll Go!

It's been too long my friends

Long (long) time no see!  It's been a busy couple of months in Mrs. Kelly's world.

For starters, I spent a thirteen week stint long term subbing a TERRIFIC fifth grade class!  It was great.  By the time I left only 3 of my 24 students weren't reading on grade level (that meant that 7 moved up!) and the others I know will get there by the end of the year!  Amazing progress my friends!

Now I'm back to plain Jane day by day subbing.  I love that too, but for other reasons.  It's great to see and experience how different schools within the same system can be.  Yes, standards are all the same, but the population is different.  It gives me a great chance to practice and try out different classroom management techniques.

I've found that (for the most part) not only does keeping the kid's minds busy make for a more efficient classroom, but keeping their bodies going does as well.  If I get the kids up and moving for about 30-60 seconds each hour, they spend the next 59 or so minutes focused and on task.  It is incredible what a quick game of Simon Says does for a group of Third Graders. I'm also working on different types of non-verbal management.  It's a lot easier for that one kid to distract the others if you let them get you distracted as well.  I found some cute little stop-signs online, and have made a batch and can't wait to try them out!  Katie over at Rock & Teach has a template, and it's amazing!  The only thing I did different was to glue them onto red card stock before laminating (still need to get that part done) but I felt like it might make them more sturdy.  You'll love it, I promise.  If you've tried this method before let me know how your experience was.

Now, let's talk a little bit about what's going on right now in Mrs. Kelly's world.

Interview season is approaching!  As of now I have 18 job applications out (yikes! That's a lot) and hopefully casting the net wide will equal some interviews.  I feel like I'm in a much better place than I was last year at this time.  For starters, not only do I have a degree and a license (which I was waiting on last year), but I also have experience teaching Summer School and substitute teaching.  Remember, 13 of those substitute weeks were long term, so I was responsible for my own lesson planning and EVERYTHING!  See, better place that last year.

If you have any interview advice, what types of samples to bring, how to make myself stand out, ANYTHING let me know!  I was told that my interviews went well last year, I was just lacking in the experience department.

The past week has also been a great time to revisit my good friend Pinterest.  Between there, Craigslist, Freecycle, and Thrift stores I should be able to get some pretty good stuff together for my (being positive here!) classroom.  I'm getting some great decor and management ideas.  If you have any suggestions, I'm happy to take them!  Best part of being a teacher is being able to learn new things everyday!  Ok, you can do that anyway, but now it's "professional development" or something ;)


Wow, this was longer than I had planned on, but it's been a while.  I'm going to try and keep the updates a little shorter and more often and will be adding more pictures also (Sorry! I know it's boring to just read, but I'm on the old desktop and it doesn't do a great job storing photos anymore).

Thanks!

Mrs. K.