Being a Part of the Group

School communities are a complex web of personalities, teaching styles, different cultures, old school, new school, friends, frenemies, PHEW I could go on, and on...

So how are we supposed to come together to become a tight-knit happy-go-lucky group?

Great. Flipping. Question.

People amaze me. And I don't mean that in a negative/sarcastic tone. I mean that in a genuine and optimistic way - people amaze me every day.

I am in the people business, little people and big people alike. I love people! I seriously, at my core, love people. I can sit back and appreciate the 20 different little people personalities in my classroom every day. Now - I don't sneeze rainbows - I know they can be tough. Frustrating to the point of tears tough. But I do love them, even when they're challenging. (Especially when they're challenging).

I extend that same love to the big people I work with - the adults and parents. Adults in a school can be the most challenging bunch of people but I do love them, even when they're challenging. (Especially when they're challenging).

Why?

Because it makes work exciting! It makes me think. Every person is a new opportunity to learn something, either about them or about myself. I keep one thing in mind when going to work every, single, day. My mother.

My mom has been a speech pathologist in a public school for nine hundred years. Okay more like 35+ years. Same school! And you know what?! She still loves her job. Her challenging job. And she's still incredible at doing her job. She is patient and a great listener. She is kind and tough at the same time. She takes on all of the work load and doesn't let it phase her.

The most important thing I have learned from my mother is to care. My mom is so involved and supportive of everyone on her team, in her school, and in her community. She listens when people talk. She offers advice when asked for it. She provides solutions to problems and never, ever judges. She keeps it professional but also personal. She has conviction and stands up for what she knows is right. The well-being of kids is her driving force - her compass. She is the example that I follow for how to be a part of  a community, especially a school community.

So I harnessed this mentality to get people involved! Our PTA membership was pretty, ahem, alarmingly, low. I'm the teacher liaison for PTA so I had to sit in our most recent meeting and answer the question: "Kelly, what's up with teachers not being in the PTA??" ummmmmm - I have no idea.

But I did have an idea - it slipped through the cracks. One more check, one more paper to fill out, it is hard to keep track of it all! It's not that people don't care it's that they didn't know why they should care. So I did something radical.

I was honest and open with the staff. Communication people, it's a magical thing.

I wrote a heartfelt letter filling people in on what the PTA is for. It was short, sweet, and sincere. I also included an incentive... of course! Give the people some excitement! I am raffling off a $25 gift card to Target... because, Target. You join PTA today, you get entered in the raffle. You're already in the PTA, you're automatically in the raffle! Simple. Effective. Like - doubled our membership numbers effective.

The best part of the entire learning experience - another teacher coming up to me and saying "You know what, I would have joined just because of your heartfelt letter. Thank you."

Open and honest communication makes for a happy group. Little treats don't hurt either :)

How to Build Relationships with Students

We've all seen her - the teacher with the amazing class. She walks down the hallway casually, maybe even behind her students, while they file down the hall in a neat little line. Not a peep. She asks for their attention and they give it to her, right away, no questions asked. She sits at her group table with 7 kids while the rest work quietly, motivated to complete whatever task they're working on. They love her. They respect her. Sometimes, they're even a little afraid of her. Not because they're actually afraid of her but they're afraid of disappointing her.

Sound familiar?

If it does - you may know a teacher like this.

If it does - you may even be a teacher like this.

If it doesn't - you may be asking yourself, "how do I get that??!" "does that even exist?"

It does. It exists.

Some people are natural-born teachers, others are not. Part of me fervently believes that you either have it - or you don't. The other part is much more prone to be believe that you can learn to become a natural, it depends on your personality. Some people are just comfortable with speaking: call it charisma or natural-speaking ability. This natural speaking is made up of confidence, knowledge of content, and bravado. It can be learned! I believe in the "fake it 'til you make it" mentality. It works! More on that later.

Now back to that teacher. How does she do it? I asked myself this question when I first started substitute teaching. I was shaky and nervous and more afraid of the kids than I even thought I would be. So I watched and studied and learned from the teachers I admired.

Holy crap did I learn.

The one commonality amongst these amazing teachers was simple and true: know your students.

Sounds simple doesn't it? Know the kids you teach. Know them as students, know them as kids, know them as sons and daughters, know them as brothers and sisters, know them as spazzy or funny or annoying or needy or differently abled. Know them to their very core. Know more about them than they even know about themselves. And treat every student like a puzzle that needs to be solved. What makes them tick? What makes them learn? What makes them pissed off and confused? What gets them excited about waking up at 6 AM and being carted off to school for 7 hours?

This truth hit me like a ton of bricks - if you truly know and love your kids they can tell. They feel it. It makes them want to learn for you. They want to please you and they want to make you proud of them. Instilling pride in your kids is the most important thing you will ever do as a teacher on this Earth. So take it seriously.

I think this topic of knowing your students is the most important. So why isn't EVERY professional development at the beginning of the school year focused on teaching teachers HOW to get to know their kids? It should be treated like any other important topic that we discuss. Sidebar: if I have to sit through one more professional development about technology I'm literally going to set fire to my computer.*

I don't teach tablets, I teach children.

I digress - I put together a presentation to be shared amongst teachers about how and why we should get to know our students before we presume to teach them anything. Head on over to my TpT Store to download this presentation. I hope you enjoy and share with another teacher who needs a little reminder of why we do this job every day.

*If anyone asks I love those PD's on technology, got it?

Change is good

More updates, so excited for a fresh new look for Spring!

 

Gave a facelift to some classroom visuals that have been desperately needing it. I also rearranged my desks, it's amazing what a change can do to liven up a classroom. The kids walked in and were immediately excited about what was new and "where do I sit now?" everyone was on their toes today.

Yep, I think a change was just what this girl needed right now.

New Products!

I just discovered a fabulous blogger and designer, have you checked out Gabby's Classrooms? Well you need to.

Right. Now.

She is fabulous! She has beautiful designs and tons of great products at her TpT Store. And they are all very high quality designs. I love it!

So I quickly downloaded her freebie paper and frames and quickly got to work updating my classroom! I am so excited to post pictures soon. I am a whirlwind of frames, backgrounds, and text right now!



So pretty! Thank you Gabby's Classroom for helping me beautify my own! Check out my store to see what's new!

Making School Fun

So I'm constantly torn... be stressed and focus on the things that can make you crazy or take it all in stride and do your best to keep things light, fun, and meaningful. There is a certain amount of stress that comes with any job - honestly, with life in general - but teaching is uniquely stressful. I was feeling super swamped last week, all weekend, and yesterday about aaaalll kinds of fun things. Assessments, running, eating, decorating... I mean really stressed. (Like stress-eat a stack of oreos stressed) and then I talked with my de-escalator. Everyone needs a de-escalator in their life, mine happens to by my best friend, fellow teacher, roomie, and sister - shout out to Jackie! She helps me wind down when I'm spinning and I realized that it's within my control to change my attitude. And so I had FUN at WORK and messed up the whole room like a leprechaun came in.

And the kids. Went. Nuts.

It was great! I let them run around, jig, point, explore, laugh and just be kids. I stopped thinking about the assessment we still have to finish and just let them enjoy St. Patrick's day in our classroom. * The best part of the whole thing is that they were 100% certain it could not have been Miss W because she cannot handle messes! Priceless * My OCD helps me pull off surprises without them suspecting a thing.

It's really important that we, as teachers, step back and remember that they are still children and sometimes we can even let them act like it.

 

Our leprechaun left the kids a "treat under their seats" and a St. Patty's day pencil. Simple and fun!

How I Write Sub Plans

So - a little history lesson: I was a substitute teacher for five years before I got my permanent teaching position. Five wonderfully enriching years (there are a lot of perks!) being a substitute will teach you a lot about teaching. I would consider my time subbing more valuable than any teaching course I could have taken in undergrad. The experience taught me a lot about classroom management, planning, room setup, what works, and what doesn't.

There's a lot that doesn't work.

But after five years of subbing you really get an idea of what sub plans are amazing, helpful, and fabulous! So I have tried to combine all of the things I love (organization, procedures, obvious solutions) and eliminate all of the things that drive me freaking crazy (missing items, vagueness, too much information). I think I have struck the optimal balance and so I would love to share what I have learned with you!

The Basics

• Make it easy to find and understand. If your plans are a loose piece of paper amongst many loose pieces of paper then your substitute will probably overlook them. Don't make it a scavenger hunt, okay?
• Include a schedule for many different types of days: early dismissal, two-hour delay, etc.
• Keep your normal routines in place! It will make things so much easier for everyone.
• Do not rely solely on students to get things done as in: the kids know what to do. This is a great idea in theory but I remember many times as a substitute when I asked the class a question and they stared at me like I was speaking in a foreign language. Not good for anyone.



I recently opted for a binder to house all of my substitute materials but a folder or basket works just fine as well. Just have everything together in some way!

 

I have different sections that you will see in the pictures they are very self-explanatory. If my lessons include worksheets or books I include them in a neat pile next to the binder. I label everything. Not because I don't trust the substitute - on the contrary! My own experience tells me that labeling is a good thing, it works okay? Don't question it.

* Totally just noticing my typo on the page below, and reprinting now... *

In the interest of being helpful I also include a hot pink sticky note marking the section with the actual lesson plan for today.

Here is an example of the first page of one of my sub plans.

My actual plans are broken down my time blocks (not pictured). Keep it simple! I also do not believe in changing up my entire schedule and abandoning routines while I am out. I keep things like I would any other day - just simplified. * If your kids know routines really well then they should be able to function without you for a day! *

Put a couple of simple lesson ideas in the back, just in case! You just never know how much another teacher will get through with your kids. It pays to be prepared!

I hope this was a helpful post about creating plans. If you keep the same format, template, and have materials on hand, then being out of your classroom can be simple and stress-free! Or at least, less stressful :)

So happy!

I just love when another teacher uses and loves my creations! A kindergarten teacher wanted to use my key details materials in her classroom, how cute are they?

 

Grab all of the resources for free over at my TpT Store, enjoy!

Spring is Coming

It finally feels like we've turned the corner and Spring is coming... thank goodness! I love winter but I'm really excited for warmer weather, florals, running outside (half marathon in May anyone?), and getting some sun! But let's focus on one thing at a time.

Like, say, getting back into a routine? I don't know about you - but we have been so disconnected when it comes to school, home, friends, etc. Snow days and sniffles combined make for one serious hiccup in our usual routine. I am a routine following lady, especially at school, so I am seriously craving some sort of rhythm.

You can imagine how excited I was when a student walked in carrying these this morning...

Gorgeous! His mom is a florist and when she does weddings she often sends in the extra blooms... how lucky is that?

So onto the routine... here are some things I prepped and got ready to go for March.

 

 

One of my favorite things I started doing this year was a class newsletter in addition to the grade-wide newsletter. I love being proactive with communication and this system really works for me. I use these lovely templates from Simply Delightful in Second Grade. They are free, editable, and adorable! Totally in love. I cannot say enough good things about being extra communicative and open with families. Communication is the backbone of successful everything.

 

I also changed up our centers...

Sight word games are much more fun with themed erasers and a pot o' gold, don't you think?

 

Found this great book on TpT last year, I love the readability!

 

I also have about 10 different writing activities and a few phonics activities for this month, all found on TpT and all fabulous! I also changed out all of the books for library center in order to keep those learners engaged.

 

How do you change things up for each month?

Hello March!

Had a very successful trip to Party City and Wal-Mart to get things ready for March! Will post pics soon of all the goodies I found, so ready for Spring in the classroom! How do you get things ready for a new month? I love changing things up! Here's my check-list:

• Create monthly class newsletter (I found these fabulous templates from Simply Delightful in Second Grade - I love her style!)
• Collaborate and create grade-wide newsletter
• Change out centers:
• Library - new favorite books that correspond with a theme, for March we are learning about folktales so it works perfectly with folktales from Ireland! Fiona's Luck anyone? Lots of great Irish folktales on that site too. I also have some St. Patrick's Day and Dr. Seuss books of course.
• Writing - new writing prompts, all things Irish! Also I have some fabulous writing prompts from TpT... just search St. Patrick's Day writing. I also include vocabulary word cards to help my kids when creating their fabulous stories.
• Word Study - Pot o' Gold sight word game (I found an actual pot of gold from Party City, cannot wait to use it)
• Pack up February activities and monthly things - change out calendar, month labels, decorations.
• Get morning work, independent work, guided reading plans, intervention plans, etc. organized and cleaned out - ready to go for the new month.

Today's surprise snow day will be filled with cooking and prep for the week, running, coffee, and probably some cooking shows.. my motto for snow days: enjoy the extra time!