Am I Even Still Alive? Allowed to Use this Blog?

SOOOOOOOoooooo.....
It's been a MINute since I posted.
I really hate outside obligations when I'm teaching subjects that strain me, and most do. So blogger took a major backseat. But since I last wrote, I have moved from 2nd grade reading to 3rd grade math, spent 3 years there and that was WAY enough...
I hate tested grade levels, I mean, not the age or demeanor of the kids, but to have the school's rep rest on your shoulders and to have every grade and comment scrutinized to make sure that what you say, is TRUly true about that student, because you must know KNOW their potential to pass or fail way in advance of the BIG ole' test, I mean, it was enough...
Sooooooo, I took ye old Fine Arts Certification test and passed (whoooo, by the seat of my pantays!) and asked for the Music/Art position that was available at my school.
MUUUuuuuuuuch better.
I mean, its still a lot of work, mostly behaviorally, but the "grade and assess like its an obsession" days are over.
I just have to say, my belief in the education system, has reeeeeeaally faltered. I had to grade sOOper accurately, like "how dare she make a B on that assignment, but fail the assessment?!?"
Uhh, I 'ont know? Maybe kids have test anxiety, (where on EARTH would that come from?)
Or maybe I accommodated the H E double hockey sticks out of her in class but she still has to test mostly alone.
Or maybe you won't let me fail her assignments to avoid dealing with her crAAzy momma.
Geez, there's only 500 reasons...
Also, those kids who worked their a$$es off er'day but still couldn't read or do math...
Oh no, no sped help for them, no dyslexia help for them. They just got the short end of the IQ stick and are performing "the best they can." They just had a bad home life for a year so that's why nothing stuck for the other 3 years they were in school...
GRRRRRR, don't EVEN get me started...
I mean, I get myself started, but whatev.
I am WAAAAY happy to be teaching students appreciation and skills in Music and Art, and I feel so much better knowing that even a really struggling child can achieve in my room now.
Now, I just have to figure a way to make things run smoothly when there are 42 little darlings in my room at a time... Oh well, that's another topic!
Happy Teaching!

Full Moon Madness (learning madness, that is!)

What time is it???????!

UNH-UH!!!

Could anyone else tell that there was a full moon this week?

Again, I say Unh-uh.

I was so busy with learning stations, teaching skills, and being evaluated this week that I barely had a moment to sit...

Not to mention the redirecting and correcting going on!

Plus, Saturday STAAR Blitz, re: Saturday School...

WHEW, and it's already Sunday night!

I will load pictures later, but just to re-cap our stations this week:

1: Tutor read Amelia Bedelia and discussed non-literal language, then they did an idiom sort together from TPT. LOVE THIS GAME! Thank you Robin Richie.

Visit ROBIN RICHIE'S store

2: A station I created to cover 3 skills in one (re: not so independent) but it did it's job. The students pick a card with a name and abbreviation on it (ex: dr smith) and they pick a card with a job clue that has to use suffix -er (ex: a person who teaches is a ?) The students had to rewrite the name correctly and write the job. Then create a sentence with both (ex: Dr. Smith loves to teach lessons because he is a great teacher.) I will try to add a cover page and thank you page and make it available on TPT.

3: I read Snowflake Bentley (only most of the pages!) and the students and I discussed what the main idea was and which details from the story supported the main idea. They wrote the main idea on a snowman die-cut and three details onto snowflakes. Then they created a picture using the cut-outs.

 

4: PLATES! Wha? Yes PLATES. I bought some snowflake plates from Walmart (re: Christmas clearance holla!) and put some sticky pockets on them (like postal label holders) then I placed some question cards in them from EDUPress (in love with these, they cover like every skill!) and students read and wrote the room with their journals. These covered just w-type questions (thin questions) but were a good review because my students struggle on finding the answer in the passage.

Visit EDUPRESS

Like these plates, but only WAY cheaper...

 

Try your local party store or Walmart.

 

Weeeeeeell, that was my week, how was yours?

Teach Happy!

THINKING

Yesterday  we had a faculty meeting after school,
That is not such an attention grabber,
but anyway...
We discussed how certain teachers are doing a terrific job, and it is because they are getting the students to think, and really monitor their thinking before they speak.
I didn't feel like my students were struggling with this, or weren't understanding concepts (save for except my most favorite little friend!)
But, you know how you always learn that something is not right when you go to these "things"?
Right?
Well, I have been racking my poor little brain, and I can't think of a quick, fairly easy to teach, activity that would serve to get them to think, draw conclusions, infer, etc...
I already teach these as reading skills, but apparently it is not transferring into all areas (re: onto the tests in third grade.)
So, I am posting hoping someone out there will reply or comment or do their own post on their thinking skill ideas. It would be greatly appreciated.
So, how has your week been?
Teach Happy,

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Organize!

Does anyone else have a *sacred, full of everything, if I lost it, I'd die" flash drive? (or is that just me?) Today is a lazy Saturday, so I decided to organize my flash drive. I have been saving everything on it that I make and find on TPT, so it was overflowing, and in disarray. I thought, "This will be a short project..." That is what I get for thinking! I had so much on there, it has taken me all day and several snacks just to get through it, but I think it will help me when I go to look for units, centers, worksheets, etc. Just look how neat all those folders are!

 I guess this means the day wasn't completely wasted, although, it surely didn't require cute clothes, makeup, a hair-do, or anything making me resemble a normal person!!!

Teach Happy,

WHAAaaaa?

HO-Ly Poop...



The blog I thought was lost was in draft-mode....



Boy I feel like a champ....

OMG...

I seriously just lost an extremely long post...
I will try to retype it. OMG that hurt...

Well, if anyone is actually reading this, KUDOS! I have succeeded in not posting for almost a year, but I have a good excuse, grade level change nightmare (eee, eee, eee Psycho sound inserted here!)
At least that is what I thought when I heard about and was forced to make the unwanted, and I think unwarranted change.
However, it has turned out to be great! (not where I want to be, but still not terrible.)
I got some of my old students back, which helped tremendously because I knew their strengths, and weaknesses in academics and behavior. Plus, I knew their personalities already. Also, I knew many of the other second graders (YES, THAT'S RIGHT, SECOND GRADE) so it helps at recess and other time to be able to call out actual names. (And it catches them off guard ;)
I have been in a time crunch all year, which explains the hiatus, because it seems I have been doing things at the last minute. This is because everything I had previously made and organized, became obsolete with the grade change. However, I am feeling better about it now because I have gotten some much needed rest and time to refill my "teacher tank." (We had to have grades posted by 12/20 this year, so this greatly helped in freeing up Christmas Break.) I have gotten the chance to stalk pinterest and TPT and find some great things, that I might actually get printed and/or laminated!
The best thing I found was this organizational binder set from TPT. It is by Haley O'Connor and it ROCKS, seriously!
I will link it here...



If you purchase this, you will have to be organized!

It cost only $5.50 and with Teks included was a true bargain.

I ran to the office supply store to print it off at an outrageous printing fee, when I could've waited to print at school, but it was that good!

I am going to link her store too, because I am sure there are other amazing buys to be had!

Haley O'Connor

I also bought Teks "I can" statement posters and strips, so that I could hang the posters in the classroom and use the strips to organize files and figure out what the heck I am teaching in each CSCOPE...

OOPS! I mean Texas Resource System unit. What a terrible error to make, TRS is nothing like CSCOPE.

(#sarcasm)

Well anyway, the posters are awesome...



 

 

I will link the store that sells these because there are too many flavors to choose from!

 

 

It is called Teachin' Little Texans.

 

 

And as for these strips, I printed them 2 pages per sheet to put in my planning binder so that I could tab each of the Teks I am meant to cover in each ELAR and Social Studies unit...

 

P.S. Did I forget to mention that our school is now departmentalized, and I now have the joy of only teaching ELAR and Social Studies to 40 children?!?

Oh, I must have been so overjoyed that I blocked it from my memory...

(#sarcasmkills)

 

Well, "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are right?"

 

I am seriously scared this post will get lost again if I press any buttons...

 

I did okay on the redo, not as funny as the first try, but you will just have to trust me on that!

 

P.P.S. I am forced (ahem... I mean) awarded the privilege of doing Saxon Phonics. To make them less boring to teach (the lessons, not the students :) I have made Powerpoint (the newest Microsoft version) slideshows for each lesson. I did not include the history lesson about the Celts and Anglo-Saxons and what-not (super boring) but the majority of the rest of the lesson is included. It makes them easier to follow and a bit shorter. I did not do a slideshow for the assessment days either (days that end in 5 or 0.) However, that being said, would anyone be interested in buying these from TPT? They have a fair amount of work put into them and have many animations that keep the students attention. (If you have watched a Saxon Phonics lesson being taught, even on youTube, you will see a fair amount of yawning, and leaning, and laying down of heads... Take that as you will.) If you or someone you know has to... I mean gets to teach Saxon Phonics, and would be interested in purchasing these if available let me know by comment or email.

 

Well, I guess that does it for now...

 

Oh, one more thing, my new year's resolution is to stay up to date and informed on the bajillion websites I belong to and stalk,

What's yours?