Teacher Talk Tuesday

I wish every new teacher good luck and lots of special memories as time goes by. A few bits of advice...

1. My first master teacher said the best thing she could pass on to me is to be organized. I've discovered how important this is over the last 12 years!
2. Be flexible! Things like schedules are always changing, assemblies come up, children are children, so if you can't flex and adjust it will be difficult.
3. Make friends with your custodian! Your custodian can be invaluable so be nice to him/her and you can find that you have help when you need it.
4. Try to establish good relationships with parents. I've had a few really difficult students over the years but good parent support and a willingness to work together made all the difference.
5. Read the book Thiry-Two Third Graders and One Class Bunny. It's hilarious! In a kind and funny way the teacher portrays the reality of the classroom that I've found isn't shared in credential programs. I laughed all the way through the book!

Most of all, find a way to enjoy the kids, your job, and your colleagues even in challenging times. This is a hard job so it's nice to have fun too.
Best of luck,
Chrissy

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Meet the Teacher Monday!

I'm so glad to be back to my blog. These last few days have been so busy. School starts Wednesday and we had prof. development all day today. Anyway, I'm glad to be part of the Blog Hoppin' fun!


Back to Meet the Teacher Monday... a little about me...


1. I am married to a wonderful guy and together we have three "children"- two cats and a rabbit. They are our babies. We love to travel and spend time with friends.


2. Some of my favorite things to do are reading, spending time with family and friends, gardening... and teaching!


3. I did not want to be a teacher originally. I wanted to work in a zoo. I said that at my first job interview and the principal laughed and said that I was achieved that goal in a way. I started as a biology major but quickly decided it wasn't for me. I'd been working with kids in 4-H for so long that once I thought of it, teaching seemed a natural way to go.


4. I used to think my only addiction was to Dr. Pepper, but blogging is taking over.

Have a great start to you year! Hope you link up to at

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I need help.

I need some help... I recently saw someone's blog that had great iron-on transfers for t-shirts. There was a series of them that said Kindergarten Rocks, First Grade Rocks, etc and had a star with the words. Does anyone know whose blog they were on? I should have bookmarked it but didn't.. story of my life. Anyway, if you know who made them, I'd love to know because "First Grade Rocks!" Thanks!

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I'm Getting There

Oh boy, it's been a crazy time around here. My husband had shoulder surgery last Thursday so I tried to get most of my classroom done before that in case he needed me to be home. His surgery occupied my thoughts for the last few weeks as neither of us have ever had surgery and didn't know what to expect. He went back to the doc today and is doing great so that's nice to hear. About three weeks ago our sweet 1 1/2 year old kitty went into renal failure and was hospitalized for 48 hours with IV's. He has had several tests and vet appointments since then and is doing better to. So tomorrow and Friday I'll go back to school and decorate the door, bulletin boards, and a few other things. I can't wait to post photos of things I've done. Hopefully I can do that tomorrow. Till then, have a great day with your class or your prep depending on whether your back to teaching or not!

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Simply Second Resources is having a linky party about the three things you're going to focus on this year. It's hard to choose only three, but I really need to keep my goals reasonable so here are my 3 focus areas:

1. Implementing Daily 5! I am excited about it and have a picture in my head of how it will work out. We'll see...
2. Math Work Stations. Can you tell I did some professional reading this summer? My school is in Program Improvement due to those lovely test scores so we have to have 1 hour of math instruction plus 20 minutes of math intervention. Math Work Stations seems like a terrific way to have intervention time with my little strugglers.
3. Not over-planning! A year or two ago I started leaving Friday open in my lesson plans as I always had enough left from the week once we got to Friday. I'm planning less to do each day as I always could fill extra time if I was lucky enough to have it.

What are you focusing on this year? You can join the party by clicking this button...



I've never joined a linky party before. I'm really becoming a TBA!

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New Blog

Okay, nothing starts the day off right like a 7:30 a.m. call from my principal saying my classroom was broken into last night. It turns out that they only took a few things from my desk- nothing critical. I consider myself very lucky.
On a better note, have you seen the first grade collaboration blog First Grade Connections ? I am following it and looking forward to what develops. Take care all! (May your classroom not be broken into.)

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Daily 5 Word Work Ideas

I'm really excited about launching the Daily 5 this year! I've been reading a lot of blogs from people who are experienced at it and others like me who are just starting. I'm jealous of those of you who have a partner to work with- I'm figuring it out on my own. But I found Christina Bainbridge's blog at Mrs. Bainbridge's Class and she has terrific word work ideas I know I'll incorporate. You might want to check it out too. Have a good start to your week, especially if your kiddos are showing up. I have until the 24th when my kiddos arrive. Happy blogging!

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In Defense of Teachers

Wow... I just watched a video clip of the actor Matt Damon defending teachers that bust their ___ every day. Caitlin posted it at Learning Ahoy Learning Ahoy
It's nice to hear those opinions when we're hit so often with the negative. Have a good day everybody!

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