NTU Follow Up Day 2

Thank you all for your participation, willingness to listen, learn, and collaborate with your peers today.  Here are some highlights from today's session. Each title links to either a website or additional resources.

Random Name Picker

Prodigy

Light Covers

CHAMPS

Classroom Motivators

Genius Hour

Classroom Management Tools

Spelling City

And don't forget your homework...

A New Year...A New YOU!

Last Thursday when I hit my alarm clock for the umpteenth time, I groggily got out of the warmth of my bed and painfully searched my dark room for the clothes I had laid out the night before. Yep, I was a little spoiled to my holiday schedule, but once I was coffee fueled I was ready to face the new year.  When I got to school, it was just like riding a bike.  "Oh Yeah!  I remember how to do this!"  I was so excited to see those smiling faces and couldn't wait to hear about their holiday adventures! My students walked into the classroom a little taller and somehow more grown than I remembered. My heart melted with all the reunion hugs and love.  

As we got our day started, we spent some time as a class talking about our New Year Resolutions.  How were we going to make each day more meaningful?  How were we going to help at home and school?  What do we want to get better at? So as we are sharing out our ideas to write down, one of my students asks, "Mrs. Johnson, what are your New Year Resolutions?"  So I went through a couple of my personal goals like not eating as much bread and cooking better meals for my family, and then I shared that I wanted to be a better teacher.  My kids all giggled and told me exactly what I wanted to hear, "Mrs. Johnson you can't get better."  Oh, but I can!!! That conversation sparked a need for teacher self-reflection.  I went home that afternoon and jotted out my teacher goals (not TTESS related :) that I wanted to improve on.  Once I started reflecting, I journaled lots and lots of ideas.  I became overwhelmed because I quickly realized that I have not mastered the art of teaching.  I decided that I was going to pick my top 3 goals that I wanted to work on this semester.  I wanted to be realistic.  I wanted attainable goals, and I wanted to give myself a time frame.  Now as I am about to share with world my 3 goals, hopefully now their is also a new level of accountability.

1. I want to engage in a weekly random act of kindness that can involve my co-workers, parents, students, or staff.  I want to work harder at putting more positive vibes out in the world.  One of my favorite quotes is, "Think positive and positive things will happen." 

2. I want to find more opportunities for innovation and creativity for my students.  This is year I have been implementing a genius hour into my daily schedule.  I want to work harder at integrating innovation into my curriculum and instruction.

3. Read more: Stacked beside my bed are 15 professional books that I want to read.  I WANT to read them.  So my goal is to make time for me to enjoy this fulfilling opportunity to engage in professional literature and growth.  I will read at least 3 of those books by the end of the school year!

So I have put myself out there and have admitted that I am a work in progress.  I challenge you to take this new year as a time to reflect on your practice.  What attainable goals can you set to make yourself a better teacher?

Resources for Goal Setting:

Goal Setting for Teachers

Great Teachers Have Goals

Defining Your Own Teacher Goals

A Little Reminder...

Tis the Season

With the Thanksgiving break now behind us, we enter into the final weeks before the winter break. During this time of year, students may seem a bit antsy and anxious as they anticipate the holiday season.  That is why it is more important than ever to remain consistent with your routines and structures, and also provide meaningful learning experiences that both you and your students will enjoy and grow from.  As we begin to get busy and frantic during this time of year, it is important to remain cool and collected.  Take time to reflect, relax, and most importantly take care of yourself.  It is very hard to care for so many others when we, ourselves, are not at our best.  Enjoy the holiday season with your students, make many memories, and count your blessings!

 Winter Holiday Resources

Check and Reflect

It is hard to believe that we are already into the month of November!  Fall is finally trickling into the area, the holidays are approaching, and I bet your kids finally feel like YOUR kids.  At this point your routines and procedures are falling into place and you have established the structures that help your classroom run smoothly and with ease.  If things are still not feeling quite right, remember that it is important to establish clear expectations with consistency.  At the same time, if something is not working--be willing to change, adapt, or tweak for the maximum results.  Don't be afraid to revisit and reteach your expectations as often as needed.  Classroom management is the key to creating a learning environment that nurtures and facilitates learning and growth.

Check out these resources:

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Happy Halloween!

Tomorrow, Halloween, will fall on a Monday!!!! EEEK!  Plan ahead and make sure you have plenty of engaging learning opportunities available to help students channel their energy into meaningful learning.  Check out these wonderful fall resources below:

The Teacher's Corner

teach-nology

Education World

Pinterest

NTU Follow Up Day 1

We are so glad that we were able to spend time getting to know each of you today!  Remember that your learning and professional community is a valuable resource and we appreciate your willingness to share your thoughts, ideas, struggles, and successes.  The power is in the conversation!

These are a few of the insights that came from YOU today!


Kayce led a very informative and helpful discussion about ARD's, differentiating between mods and accommodations, and prompted great conversations about data collection in the classroom. Remember Kayce's advice about frequency, duration, and location for behavioral observations. Check out some of the following resources prompted by your thoughts and ideas!
Interval Recording Sheet        Interval Timer     
16 Teacher Hacks for Making Data Collection a Piece of Cake

We loved hearing about your ideas and successes using math stations in the classroom.  Check out this pinterest board for over 1000 ideas and images regarding math stations.
Math Stations

We also had some fabulous ideas that were shared about managing students during small groups, particularly the students who are not in your small group but may interrupt with questions during this time. You shared that you used stop signs, crowns, necklaces, posters (ask three and then me), wands, and lights to give students those nonverbal cues.

Josh also shared some amazing tools and ways to encourage students to engage in appropriate behaviors using CHAMPS, mystery behavior or mystery boards.  Check out these cool resources: Mystery Motivator  Element of Surprise   Free CHAMPS Posters  CHAMPS on Pinterest

And just for fun...