I Have Begun!

     I know it is hard to believe with classes for most everyone else at our school having started nearly a month ago that I have had classes now for a total of 2 weeks.  Honestly though, it has given me time to test, work out problems and get ready.  So I am not complaining - it is just different.  I felt a little lost there for awhile watching classrooms get started.  It was a bit hard.  Not now though.  I am so in love with what I am doing.  It continues to be a struggle to plan and get things organized for my groups, but even that was a bit easier this week.  A bit.
     There are so many great programs out there.  I have looked at what our school has and tried to to work out some sort of formula for planning for each grade.  I may have it.  I may change my mind again.
     I love my groups.  I am, of course, most comfortable with second and third considering my teaching background.  I love the fourth grade because they were my third graders last year.  And there is fifth, kindergarten, and first.  Uh.  I really like the fifth grade group and hold out the hope they will become my favorites, but right now I am involved in a show of "who's boss".  Not great, but it will develop.  They are really great kids one on one, but a bit testy as a whole.  I love the kindergarten and first, but they are not my comfort zone.  I don't know how to best serve them and I want to give them everything they need to get started.  That challenges me so much.
     Every afternoon I have car duty.  I haven't had to do that before when I was in the classroom.  I knew I would hate it.  I don't. I actually love it.  I get to send the kiddos off with a smile and some love.  It is hot out on the sidewalk for about 40 minutes so cooler weather will make this even better.
     I also have morning duty every few weeks.  That involves standing on the sidewalk in the early morning light (or at times dark) and saying hello and telling kiddos not to run.  Sounds like it could be really dull, doesn't it?  It isn't.  I stand there and think about my day.  Say a prayer for my school and the little ones.  I watch the parents and their interactions with their children as they drop them off.  Sometimes they are so loving and act like they will really miss them.  Then there are a few - fortunately just a few - that get out of the car with the parent still yelling or fussing.  They lower their heads and walk toward the door.  That is when I try the most to smile and tell them how happy I am to see them.  And I mean it.  This past week I have also been treated to the sound and sight of a wonderful V of geese about the same time each morning.  Awesome.  I feel God's blessing me personally with those geese.  Stay in formation, fly with me and we will succeed.  I wish I had a picture.
     I do have a few pictures of my room.  It isn't flashy or really crowded, but I like it so much.  Just another blessing this year has given me.

Oh I love those cabinets!

A place to read quietly

CAFE reading

A few tables and my corner of the room

     Thank you for dropping by to visit.  I hope to get a bit more regular on posting on this blog.  But planning takes up a lot of my time now (and the art work on my other blog).  Have a great week.

Adventure - Day one

        While I am so sad to see summer gone - it is official as of 6:00 yesterday morning, I was so excited to see all my friends at school.  I work with an absolutely awesome group.  We are a staff that really feels like family most of the time.  Yes family doesn't always see eye to eye, but they are family.  Our administration provided breakfast for everyone then we took a short "being there" field trip.  Our entire faculty loaded onto a school bus ( a really nice air conditioned one) and went for a ride around the school zone.  I was very surprised at what area our zone covered.  Amazing.  It was also fun to see where our kiddos live.  It would have been fun to see them outside playing, but hey, I would be sleeping late if I could.
       I then had time to tackle my room.  Remember I moved rooms this year.  I had been in the old room for about 12 years, so I had a "few" things to locate.  Thought you might like to see my room as I walked into it yesterday morning.

     The absolute best thing about this room and what I love the most is all those cupboards.  Oh my!  It is almost as good as being in the art room with my own closet - almost.  I refer to my room as Siberia because it is so far away from the office and my old room, but I really am very fond of it already.  I spent the day shoving and moving all this stuff that you see.  I have decided that next summer, I am going to move my furniture in my home around once or twice a week just to get ready for the task at hand the first day of school, maybe then I won't be so sore!  I could hardly move last night.
     My room looks pretty good right now.  No boards are up, but they are all planned.  I hope to do that tomorrow - as today looks pretty meeting intensive.  I am sitting here in the early morning quiet, almost no one in the building and thinking about the days to come.  I hope for such a wonderful year.  I am so excited and really don't want anything to crowd out that feeling.  I know there will be hurdles.  I am prayerfully prepared for them.  I am looking forward to seeing the faces of my kids from last year.  I think that is the hardest thing right now, not having a group of my own to walk in and bond with.  Serving so many children, I hope for that connection.
      Have a great day and thanks for dropping by.  I will show you pictures of the room when it is finished. 

Summer is fading . . .

    Oh the title is all too true.  I feel my blissful summer fading away all too fast.  It has been a very relaxing and enjoyable summer.  I have filled my days with crafting, drawing (tangling) and home projects.  In between all of that I have read all I can get my hands on about teaching reading.  Okay, I know I have taught reading forever, but this year I am going to go deeper than ever before.
     This is my last full week of vacation with next week beginning our in-service time.  We have four wonderful days this year.  Seriously.  I am very excited about having four days to get ready for my kiddos.  Last year I think we had one or two.  Not fun.
     I plan on posting some pictures of my room as it develops and keep you informed on some of my classroom projects.  Right now this picture comes from my tablet and is not all school related.  Ah well.  I have discovered a fantastic painting program for my android tablet - Artflow.  I love being able to "paint" without pulling out all my messy supplies. 

      I've still got a lot to get ready for school.  I need to get some things cut for bulletin boards and such.  I can't really plan - at least not detailed - because I don't know who or what grades I will be working with.  That feels a bit strange because I am the sort who would have been planning all summer.  I enjoy lesson planning.  It is one of those things about teaching that I think is fun.  Strange, huh?
    I hope your summer is going great and I would love for you to join me on this reading adventure.  It is going to be new and exciting for me, but I am so looking forward to it!!

Finishing Up The Book Whisperer

"The reality is that you cannot inspire others to do what you are not inspired to do yourself."

     One of the nicest teachers I have ever worked with told me once she did not read much to her class.  She didn't read at all personally outside of class.  I went into a sort of shock.  How can we not be readers?  Okay, I know people don't have a lot of time with families and all.  I understand that.  I guess I have such a love of reading - a passion for books, that I simply can't understand anyone not enjoying it.
    This past year on the last day of school, I told my class we were going to do some packing because I was indeed going to be moving rooms and changing jobs.  The first question was "Are you going to fourth with us?"  That would be sweet, but no.  So I told them I was going to not be in a regular classroom, but doing something I had a passion for.  Then I asked them to guess.  They know their teacher.  The first guess was art.  Sadly, no.  The second guess was reading books.  As I said they know me. 
     I plan to do as much read aloud as I can work in.  One of her suggestions was to read the book and have students follow along in their copies.  That would work.  I also use the doc camera to read books to children.  Using that I can point out words, punctuation and it allows a better view of the pictures if there are any.
     I thought it was amusing when she talked about how we would watch much less TV if we had to take a test at the end of the programs.  Yuck!  AR programs and worksheets are great.  Sometimes.  Talking about what you have read, demonstrating an understanding by discussions are better.  After all, people who read as adults participate in discussions not tests.  What always used to really bother me was how AR (accelerated reader) was such a huge push in my school.  Students shied away from books if they were not on their level and they couldn't take a test.  We teachers did this to them.  If I tell my class they have to have "X" number of points by Friday or whenever, I force them into only looking at the points.  Trust me, I am not pointing fingers at other teachers.  Oh no.  I ran the most organized AR system in my room you could want.  And hated it.  Children couldn't grab a fun (lower level) book because it looked good or interested them.  They couldn't grab a harder book and struggle with it a bit because they thought it looked good.  They were locked in a spot until they could test higher. 
     Until our awesome librarian fixed this!  Go RH!  She came up with a huge list of options to do a book reflection.  They could, if they chose, take an AR test.  They also could choose from this list.  The list reflected all sorts of learning styles - reports, pictures, writing songs, acting things out, you name it.  And this allowed children to read what they wanted.  She has a wonderful system to encourage them to read and be held accountable. 
     There are so many more things in this book that I really identified with and will put to practice.  If you work with children and reading, it is a must read.  Maybe even if you don't.  Now I need to order Teach Like A Pirate by Dave Burgess.  It looks like a really good read.  That is, when I get through with the stack of library books I have by my bed. 
     Pretty soon (all too soon), I will be sharing with you my journey into this reading classroom.  Drop back by to see some pictures of my room!

Back at it! Chapters 4 and 5

        One of the things discussed in Chapter 4 of The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller was setting up a reading notebook.  In the past while in the classroom, I always used reading notebooks - to some varying degrees of success.  I am not sure what I need or want to do as a resource teacher.  They will probably have notebooks in their regular classroom so I don't want to overload them.  However some type of accountability is needed.  I sort of go back and forth at how I want to use this.  I do want to have a reading requirement.  Miller uses a requirement of 40 books.  I will have grades 2 - 5.  I am thinking of having 25 for second and going up by 5 each grade.  That may not be doable at all.  I have no idea what my students are like or capable of.  I do want it to be a challenge.  I like how she talks about not . . . "punishing" them for not making their goal, but simply celebrating their success whatever it may have been.  That I really like.
     She begins to probe in chapter 5 by asking, "what does reading mean to you?"  Just today, I went to our local library and checked out a stack of books.  I read constantly.  I read professional material.  I love mysteries and science fiction and most anything else.  I have always been a reader, more at home with books (and my art work) than with most people. 
     Two types of readers (teachers) are discussed.  Efferent readers/teachers.  They are the ones who see reading as way to acquire knowledge and more skills to be mastered.  The other group, aesthetic readers, are the ones who see reading as an emotional and intellectual journey.  One sees reading as a gift, the other as a goal.  I think to be successful next year I am going to have to "marry" the two together.  My future students are going to be in need of heavy skill work - we've got to "catch up", but I also want them to come away from this upcoming year as seeing reading as a gift, a passion.
     Thank you for dropping by.  I think my art blog has spoiled me with my followers and comments.  I come over here and feel a bit lonely.  So, if you would like to leave me some sunshine, I would love it.  Have a grand week!   

Heaven Help Me version2

     I am trying to get both my blogs changed over to bloglovin.  I am not very computer smart, but thanks to a wonderful website and great instructions, hopefully this will work.  We will see.


Follow my blog with Bloglovin

I am beginning to need a break from technology though!   

Chapter three - The Book Whisperer

     The cornerstone!  I love it!  Miller says that reading is not an add-on to class, it is the cornerstone.  It feeds everything you do in class.  Teachers must make this become a daily habit. 

"No matter how long students spend engaged in direct reading instruction, without time to apply what they learn in the context of real reading events, student will never build capacity as readers. . . Students need time to read and time to be readers."

     My problem early on in my career was that I thought for our reading segment of the day, every second had to be filled - I planned centers, I made worksheets, I taught lengthy lessons.  Did we read?  I am ashamed to say not so much.  I did not provide them time for what was important - to use what we learned.  Apparently in my innocence, I thought if I taught the lessons, they would run home and use them.  Oh my.  Nowadays, I still have lessons and yes there is that occasional skill sheet, but the majority of our time is spent reading.  As they silently read, I go around and will sit down beside them (floor or wherever) and tap them on the shoulder.  This is our signal for them to start reading quietly out loud.  That way we can talk about their reading and I get a chance to hear them read.  When I leave, they go back to silence.  It is a system that has worked for me.
     I love the ideas Miller gives us for carving out time to allow for reading.  When they go to places where they have to stand in line - like picture day - they take a book.  They immediately pull out a book whenever their class is interrupted (phone or visitor).  Also, cutting out the "morning work" and making that a reading time.  That I love!  Saves paper.  Saves time we would spend going over it.  Encourages quiet reading.  Super!  Perhaps if there are things you have been doing for morning drills, you could cut them to one or two days a week.  Or embed those things into lesson (which we probably do anyway).
    This past year I was so blessed with a group that fell in love with books and reading, they would beg for extra time to read.  When they finished work, those books came out.  I know it isn't always so, but like I said, I felt blessed. 
     She talks about creating a reading environment.  While we all would like a cozy space for students to read, it isn't always possible.  And, as she said, a beanbag doesn't make a child become a better reader.  As I think about my room this year, I have lots of awesome plans.  I also know some of them will be impossible.  I want a couch.  I need more pillows.  You know how it is.  We want a warm and inviting space for our kiddos.  I may or may not have those things.  I will have a reading "attitude" in my room and that will take care of all of the other desires.
    Thank you for stopping in.  I would love to hear your thoughts.  Have a great week!