Polar Express Fun

I We had an awesome day today! I did Erica Bohrer's Freebie Polar Express activities. The kids totally loved it. We all wore our pajamas and ate candy and popcorn and watched the movie.

It was a great day to do the end of the unit math assessment since they weren't tired from other things going on. They did really well.

Which leads me to something great that happened today. My principal does this sight word test with each child every September/January/June.  Then she gives us a score that tells us how they did. I have been thinking my kids were doing amazing, but wanted her to see that too. Since she is rarely never not able to get to my classroom very much, I didn't think she really got how totally great they are this year.

Anyway, she did the test early on my room for some reason and her results came back today. Not one of my kids was below average anymore. Instead my lowest was more in the high-average range. I could tell she was impressed. I mean she just said, "I was surprised by how M did." But, I heard, "WOW! You are doing such a great job!" I have to listen this way to avoid low self-esteem.

Finally, she did add that the most important thing she learned from my kids was that they were able to really talk about how they learn and plan to grow in their reading. They used terminology like sight words and word wall and reading levels! I couldn't have coached them better. I LOVE them.

The Observation

I had a great day. Her room was clean and organized. The kids clearly knew exactly what they were supposed to do at every part of the day. She circumvented behavior issues by keeping them on their toes and quietly asking them to analyze how they were working. I loved how she taught, but, I'm happy to say, that I love the way I teach even more after I saw her room. I obviously know what works for my personality and teaching rhythm.

I felt good about what I learned and great about how I teach.

I took a few pictures of some of the stuff I learned. The most important one being that she tracks and posts the standards that each child is working towards. I am totally going to implement this.

I don't know if you can see this, but she posts every standard that is on the report card. Underneath these is a grid of student's names. As each child proves he/she knows the standard, she puts a check mark by that child's name. When they get three check marks, they color their name block in. Can you see how some are colored in? I chatted with some of the students in her class. They could explain the system to me quite well.

This is what I have been missing. I needed to refine what I was teaching based on what standards were required for the First Grade (and maybe in certain circumstances Kindergarten or Second Grade).

I taught her something too. She was so clear on how to share the math standards, but when it came to reading, she was confused. She told the kids they had to be at certain DRA levels, but I said, "well, it can be more clear than that." If you look at how the text changes and teach them this, they can see how to move up the levels. They can take ownership. So I left her with something I use...Levelled Reader Features. She was so happy and I was so happy. We were both, well, so happy. This was good.

It was better than any professional development I've ever attended and. just. what. I. needed. Renewed faith in what I do and who I am.

Observing in Other Classrooms

I'm super psyched because my district is paying for my sub tomorrow. I'm going to observe a first grade teacher at another school. She is really good at individualizing her kids' learning. I've heard that she has standards up all over her classroom and the kids can do different things to prove they know the material and move past it. I also hear she is dynamic and organized.

I really need to see this in action. I don't want to implement something I can't be consistent about. I'm really the kind of person who loves to make systems better all the time. I haven't been observed very much this year--well, only once. I really need to hear an observer tell me what they see in my room and give me suggestions.

I'm bringing my camera and notebook. I can't wait!!

Effort

It's hard to be a teacher and I have to admit that at 43 sometimes I wonder if I really want a "new" career. I've been talking about it with my husband because it weighs on my mind heavily. I love being a teacher, but I LOVED being in non-profit too. I was really good at it. I was where you are supposed to be when you are in our 40s after a long "career" of working hard at the same thing. So, I wonder if being a teacher (a first year teacher at that) is a good choice for me. It feels so not noble to say that and I'm not saying I'm planning to go anywhere or do anything, but I'm sitting in the feeling right now. I have so many ideas and I want to plan them and nurture them and be who I am supposed to be.

This is heavy. I know. I am just thinking. I do that.

Merci

Thank you so much to Christine at Taming My Flock of Firsties and Beth Ann at Hopping into First Grade who both (!) awarded me the Liebster Award.

The goal of the award is to spotlight up-and-coming blogs with less than 200 followers. The rules are:

1. Copy and paste the award on your blog. 

2. Thank the giver and link back to them. 

3. Reveal your top picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog. 

4. Hope that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers!!

Here are the sites I am passing this award on to.
Our Camp Read A Lot
Criss Cross Applesauce in First Grade
First Grade Magic
First Grade Found Me

Teaching Writing

I've read tons and tons of books about reading and teaching reading. I have a lot of books in my rolodex that will keep kids loving books and learning from them. So I guess it's no surprise that my students are moving up the reading ladder quite quickly. Today, in fact, a couple of them started asking me how to move up DRA levels. As in, I'm a 12 and I really want to read 14s, how do I get there? So I sat down with them and explained the difference between the two levels and what you needed to know in order to do just that. It's exciting to me that the kids are taking responsibility for their own achievement. They want to do well and are willing to find out how to do that. It also forces me to be very specific about how and why they are learning so that I can explain in terms 6 year olds understand.

But, I can't stop worrying about my writing program, or lack thereof. We really have no formal writing program in our district. We have the report card standards, but they are quite interpretable. Am I teaching them what they need to know. Can I just get them excited about writing and hope it happens? No, I know that won't work. So I am on the hunt for a way to teach writing that makes me feel as good and clear as my reading program does.

As an aside--Sometimes I think I need to have the kind of blog which helps teachers get more stuff to do. But, truth is, I don't like having lots of STUFF to do. I like reading and writing and doing math. I like finding out what the kids know and want to know and figuring out how to get them there. I am not that great about creating new things like some other bloggers are. I need to recognize this about myself. I am more of a thinker and less of a creator. I think my kids learn a lot from having a teacher who loves to think things through and when I add other teachers' amazing creations from my blog searches, I think they get the best of both worlds.... but, I doubt I'll ever have thousands of followers.

Read to Self Books

I do my own version of the Daily 5. It's more like the Daily 4 in that we always do Write to Self, Read to Self, Read to Buddy, and Word Work. We only sometimes do Listen to Reading. I just don't have enough of a station for that and it gets annoying for me the kids who are waiting.

Every day the kids have snack at 10am and then at about 10:15, they begin to look for books to read for Read to Self. Stop...re-read what I just wrote and remember that this is my first year teaching First Grade. I know, it's obvious. I am letting (16) 6 and 7 year olds choose new books EVERY single day. Even while it's happening I know it's ridiculous and I just can't stop and take the time to figure out how to do it differently. I have seen how other teachers do it, having one box per kid and they can only get new books every Monday. The problem is that I don't have that many books because I (have I said this before) just started teaching First Grade. I love how excited they are to share books with each other and I can't imagine holding that excitement for a week while they wait for the next shopping day.

I must rethink the process, but I need to really work out what it will look like before I can implement it. I hate testing things out and changing them. First Graders need predictable consistent learning time.

Catching my breath

I have so much going on right now that I can't think about what to post. I need to be through Unit 4 in Math by Christmas according to last year's pacing chart. We didn't get one for this year, but I can figure it out. I'm good like that. Our math program is crazy very busy. I have so many worksheets to give them that I panic and feel like we spend our whole math time filling in boxes.

Also, even though my kids are reading at way higher levels than most first grades, I panic again and feel like I don't teach enough phonics. I have no program really, so it's kind of hard to know what I should teach and in what order. So I just pick random things and keep track and the kids seem to really get it. Their favorite part is finding words that follow the new rule they are learning. This week it's long o vs. short o. I can't wait to see one of my kids read the word boat and then look up at me knowingly like he's really cracked the code.

Also--I just found this awesome free unit by Erica Bohrer for The Polar Express. I was going to do this anyway and this made it easier and more fun. Plus, parents will think I'm super teacher even though I just downloaded and printed it.

Literacy is Freedom

“Literacy is inseparable from opportunity, and opportunity is inseparable from freedom. The freedom promised by literacy is both freedom from – from ignorance, oppression, poverty – and freedom to – to do new things, to make choices, to learn.” - Koichiro Matsuura

To say that I value literacy is a gross understatement. Reading is my life. So it is no surprise that the kids in my home and in my classroom are obsessed with it. Yes, in some ways it is that simple. If you love something and you are a grownup and you are around children...they will love it too. So try not to love bad things.

Grade ONEderful giveaway!

Grade ONEderful is having a $25 giveaway for having over 100 followers. Go join in the fun. Maybe you'll be the lucky one!

Observation

So, I got observed today. My Principal is very tiny, teeny tiny really. Just a wisp of a thing. So when she came into my very loud and busy room, I didn't notice. Until suddenly she called one of my kids over and there she was...tap tap tapping on her iPad.

Yikes! 

I whipped around to look at my Focus board. I knew this was going to happen; I totally meant to put this month's targets up already!

We were doing this activity where the kids had to write Aa at the top of their page and then find and list 5 words they can read and spell. If they were finished, I'd move on to another letter. This way I could push some kids along and let others stay right under A. We've been practicing our core words that they have to spell by the end of the year. They are all on our Word Wall, but, well, apparently they don't remember why they are there. Though I tell them

every

single

day. (Sometimes two or three times a day. Really.)

So the Principal calls over kids one by one and I can hear her asking why they are doing this activity, but I can't hear their answers and it's driving me crazy. Then I realize that I have to slow myself down because I talk too fast anyway and now I feel like I don't even really have a lesson plan and things are spinning out of control. I throw a few things in about our Code of Cooperation and our Parking lot...tools we have to use district-wide and hope they act like they have any idea what I'm talking about.

It turned out okay. She thinks I'm "dynamic" and "exciting" and a good classroom manager. She tells me that I really walk my talk because I'm organized and read a lot and seem so excited about learning. So that's good, but man am I tired.