100th Day

Today was a great day! Everything went smoothly being the 2nd week of my placement, I am now in charge of Morning procedures including getting the students in the morning, lunch count, attendance and agenda checks; transitions to and from 'specials'; word wall (taught my first lesson today); Interactive Read Aloud and dismissal procedures. I am also still helping out with other lessons as well as continuing to observe guided reading groups and conferences as well as trying a few on my own! Next week, I will add Math and Interactive/Shared Writing to my responsibilities!

Tomorrow is the 100th day of school! I am excited because I have planned a little 'party' if you would like to call it that, to celebrate! In the morning we will be making 100th day crowns to wear around school all day...and yes, of course I will be wearing mine too! :) The crowns have a part that say 'Happy 100th Day of School' and around the edges we will be adding 100 strips of paper...The students will work on counting out groups of tens before glueing them onto their crown! We will also be reading Fancy Nancy 100th Day of School while enjoying a juice box and a 100th day cupcake! The cupcakes turned out pretty well I used pretzel sticks (broke in half) and mini oreos for the numbers! :) (Pictures Below)

Tonight I also made cookie dough brownie bites for Paul's work cook out tomorrow! They turned out nice but are super sweet! I am spending the rest of my evening working on my class valentine's and doing a little non-fiction professional reading to help prepare for the 'All-About' Writing Unit I will be leading! :)

True Happiness

Today was another wonderful day in the first grade! I am still LOVING my placement and I enjoy being in the classroom more and more everyday...Today I had a moment where I was sitting in the room, soaking up the atmosphere and I just couldn't help but smile! I feel so lucky to be where I am in my life, I have a loving family, a supportive husband, and a future career that I am absolutely in love with!!! I couldn't be happier with how things have worked out for me! :)

Today, we had a field trip this morning, it went very well and made the day fly by. This afternoon, I had a chance to make a project with the students it was a Valentine's Day Themed Locker decoration! I found the idea on pinterest (of course) I'm undeniably obsessed! The activity went well, however; I did not plan the hand washing aspect so well...the line got a little long but overall the activity went great, the students enjoyed it and I learned something new!

Tonight I didn't have a whole lot of 'homework' to do, so I was able to spend the evening with my husband...Today is our 8th year anniversary of being together!!! <3 I then spent the night preparing a dessert for his work party on Wednesday for the companies 10 year anniversary and began making cupcakes for the 100th day of school on Wednesday (will post pictures tomorrow)!


Project Pictures (Valentine's Locker Decorations):

Ahead of Schedule

I had such a great weekend!!! I am trying to keep ahead of schedule as long as possible with Student Teaching! I already have two projects ready for Valentine's Day as well as my valentine's idea in mind and three valentines games all set for our party! I also have my idea in mind for our St. Patrick's day decorations...

This weekend I...
-Read all of Mr. Popper's Pengiuns so I am prepared for Interactive Read Aloud
-Read 3 Sections of 'Nonfiction Writing: Procedures and Reports' (Lucy Calkins & Laurie Pessah)
-Made a list of word wall activities for future lessons
-Completed my word wall lesson plans for this week
-Typed up 3 Math lesson plans
-Found a super cute How-To Writing Activity
-Looked into ideas for teaching SS and Science in upcoming weeks
-Ordered fun supplies for future projects
-Created a Reading and Writing Lesson Plan Binder which includes mini lesson graphic organizer sheets

As well as....Had dinner at my parents, went shopping, expanded my classroom library and went to dinner with another couple all while having time to relax on the couch and catch up on TV shows! Now it is time to pack up my bag for tomorrow and make sure I am set for our Field Trip tomorrow!!!

Here's to a successful Week 2! :)

Week One

Week One is over already...I have to say it was nothing short of FANTASTIC!!! I absolutely LOVE my placement and school! My coop. teacher is extremely helpful and definitely making this experience all about me and helping me to learn and grow as much as possible! The entire building staff is extremely welcoming and I have built several connections and relationships with other professionals!

Thursday: I began taking over some of the morning procedures such as checking agendas, lunch count, and attendance. I also took over the Interactive Read Aloud. I have to admit I was a little nervous because my teacher does an amazing job of 'thinking out loud' and having students picture things in their mind and make predictions throughout the reading. This is something I have not had much experience with but I believe I did a great job. I prepared by pre-reading the chapters and making mental notes of times I could interject and have students practice reading skills. I also had my first small group seminar on Thursday evening. The seminar was great, our supervisor invited us to her home and we were treated to an array of snacks! :) It was great to see other student teachers and be able to talk about our first week and experiences! The seminar was extremely helpful in answering questions and planning out expectations and plans for the semester!

Friday: Friday Already!?!?! Friday I continued to do morning routines and the Interactive Read Aloud. I think the read aloud went extremely well today and I am happy with my progress already! My teacher says 'I'm a natural!' :) I held several reading and writing conferences with students and made final preparations for my first Valentine's Locker Decoration Craft which I will be doing with the students on Monday!

I can not believe the first week is already done. I am so happy in my placement and am excited to keep learning and growing from my coop. teacher. I am truly blessed to be a part of such a welcoming school and to be learning from such an amazing first grade teacher! This weekend I am trying to stay ahead of the game and look into ideas for upcoming units and lessons I will be teaching during my placement. I also plan on making my students Valentine's, writing a few math lesson plans, doing some reading in my professional development books, and planning my word work activities for next week! My goal is to keep ahead of schedule as long as possible!


<3 Teaching <3

Busy Busy Busy

It has already been 3 days...and I have been loving every single minute of it! I am so happy with my placement I feel blessed to be in such a wonderful school. Everyone has been extremely welcoming and helpful! I was quickly embraced into the first grade teaching team (6 teachers in total)! The overall staff seems very friendly and eager to strike up conversation! I have been invited to join several teachers for lunch in the lounge or to join them on Fridays when they head out for a quick 'off campus' lunch break.

Day 2: Let's see, on the second day of my placement I continued to observe the main procedures of the classroom. I was able to see reading and writing for the first time as well. With the celebration of Chinese New Year on day one, we did not have time to cover reading and writing in the normal format. My coop. teacher was extremely helpful in explaining her procedure to me. Also, the reading I did before beginning my placement was truly a great help! I had the opportunity to observe a few conferences and strategy groups before trying my own conferences with students. My coop. teacher allows me to work independently and try out conferences without the pressure of her continuous observation. It definitely helps me to feel more relaxed when trying these conferences out for the first time. Day 2 I had a lot of questions about the reading and writing structure and learned a lot of new information about guided reading and writers workshop. I had a meeting after school about an intervention strategy that will begin in our school on Feb. 1st. Basically, the first 25 minutes of every school day ALL the first graders are split into their reading level group and then students move to their specified intervention teachers room. Then, that teacher will work with the selected students to improve on and work on level appropriate material to help the students grow as readers! It is a great opportunity to be a part of something like this. This is the first time the school is doing anything like this and it will be very helpful to have the chance to work with the first grade team on planning and organizing this new strategy.


Day 3: Today, I was mostly all hands on deck. I walked around the room helping out students with whatever help they needed. I was able to do a few reading and writing conferences and work with some of the struggling math students and try to help them understand strategies to find the answer. We are currently working on using our fingers, drawing a picture (sticks and circles) and/or using a math mountain to solve our work problems. I was also introduced to the word wall today and how that is used in our classroom. This was extremely interesting to me, because I will be taking over all the word wall activites next week! Tomorrow, I will be taking over control of some of the morning routines such as lunch choices; lunch count; attendance and interactive read aloud. This is something I am very excited for because it is not your average read aloud. The teacher does not just read a story for fun, rather she reads the story for purpose. While reading, she points out several strategies good readers do while reading. She basically uses a 'think out loud' approach to this and explains to the students her feelings while reading, her predictions, the picture in her mind etc. I am excited to practice this strategy tomorrow and in the future weeks of my placement!

I feel like I have been very busy at home the last few nights with preparing valentine crafts and locker decorations as well as reading some resource books, looking over math lessons and keeping up with University work as well. I am enjoying every minute of this experience and plan to make the most of every opportunity! Tomorrow after school, I have my first meeting with my University Supervisor; I am excited to see the other student teachers and hear how their experience is going. I feel very lucky that I have a great coop. teacher and a well managed classroom to learn in and I feel I will truly benefit immensely from my time in this placement!


“Learn everything you can, anytime you can, from anyone you can - there will always come a time when you will be grateful you did.” -Sarah Caldwell

First Day

The first day has finally come...I had an absolutely wonderful day! I was greeted with a card and care package from my coop. teacher! I got some post its (my favorite), some sticker packs, a bottled water, some snacks, pencils and a resource book! Very nice thought and definitely started my day with a smile. :) Shortly after organizing my new desk, it was time to pick up the kiddos! I was so excited to finally meet all of the students! At first, I was a little nervous as I didn't think the students looked like the pictures I had been studying. However, after only a few minutes I had the names down and could tell one red student from the next! :)

Today, I spent most of the time observing a normal day in first grade! However, I had the chance to do my introduction activities. First, I introduced myself to the class with a flashback of 'Mrs. Bolwerk in 1st grade' my school picture, my favorite story etc. I then showed the students the scrapbook I made and told them it would be available to be looked at further during free times! After my introduction, I took the opportunity to play a little introduction game with my students to practice names and learn a little about them! The kids loved the activity and it was a great way to make a better connection with the students.

My coop. teacher spent some time in China and today was Chinese New Year; therefore, we spent some time today examining some of her Chinese artifacts; reading a few Chinese New Year books and making our own dragon puppets! We then paraded our dragons around the classroom and school to get rid of any bad luck! The kids loved it and were learning in the process...score!

This week, I am spending most of my time observing and getting to know the students. I am extremely excited to see what the rest of the week brings; I had a great first day and I'm happy to see what the next few weeks entail! :)

As for the rest of the night, I have to go rummage the closet for some orange to add to tomorrow's outfit and then I plan to relax and surf Pinterest! :)

E-X-C-I-T-E-D

Ahhhhhh I can NOT wait...in 12 hours I will be waking up and getting ready for my first day as a Student Teacher! I ran around all day today to finish up and make final touches to all my projects and introduction materials. I made a 'Meet Mrs. Bolwerk' scrapbook to show the kids and let them look through. My teacher had made a story about herself in the beginning of the year and the kids ate it up; thought I would put my own spin on the idea! :) I found out its character week at my school this week which presented two challenges; picking out a new first day outfit that was red and also trying to learn student names when they are all wearing the same colored shirts all week...haha...I'm up for the challenge! Ending my night by packing my lunch and my bag so I have nothing holding me back come morning! Can't wait to post tomorrow night with my first update as an official STUDENT TEACHER!

Minnesota

Curled up in the car with my blanket, computer and a skinny turtle mocha from Caribou Coffee; one of my favorite indulgences from MN! :) I’d say it has been a successful two-day trip. We got to go out to dinner with a good friend and enjoy a nice long day of shopping at Ikea and the Mall of America today. It was nice to get away for one last hurrah before I dive into my student teaching placement on Monday. I am extremely excited…I have been quizzing myself on my student’s names all weekend and I still have all day tomorrow to mentally prepare, choose an outfit, and make some final preparations to make sure my first day is an absolute success! I’m pretty relaxed at the moment but I know it will be hard to catch any sleep tomorrow night; therefore I am hoping to catch a nap on the ride home and force myself to bed early tomorrow night! As winter break is coming to a close, I look back and am very pleased with my overall progress and successes with crossing things off my ‘winter break to-do list’. Now I will leave with my ‘Student Teaching First Day Success Material List’…

Student Teaching First Day Success Material List:

•Positive Attitude
•Eagerness to learn from coop. teacher
•Smile :)
•Students names memorized
•Introductory Activity x2
•Cute Outfit
•Nutritious Lunch
•ST Binder
•Notebook and pencils
•Teacher Tote Bag
•School ID Badge
•Fun Read Aloud Book

I think I’m set…now only approx. 36 hours to go! :)

Reading Notes

Hello Everyone! First, I have to comment on my successful baking attempt. The chocolate chip cookie-oreo-brownies were a hit! :) I mean how couldn't they be with that mixture of ingredients! It's a small step in the cooking world, but for me that's truly a milestone! Secondly, I want to comment on the books I have been reading this week. All the books have been very informational and will surely be helpful in my student teaching placement, as well as in my future classroom. I am excited to use this information to help me be a successful literacy teacher. I would like to share a few key points in my reading that stood out to me...

1. Writing Workshop: Set students up for success with a variety of paper choices including folded paper for brochures and informational texts, Lined and formatted paper for letter writing, lined paper with a picture box for descriptive writing etc.

2. Guided Reading: Leads students to independent reading! Small groups; encourage students to read entire text; over time read more challenging books; Main Goal= Have students read for meaning at all times!

3. Word Sorting: 3 Main Types= Sound, Meaning and Pattern; Teacher Directed and Student Directed; Timing- Teacher Instruction 15-20 followed with 10 minutes daily;

Mock Schedule: (1st Grade)
Monday: Picture Sorting
Tuesday: Drawing and Labeling
Wednesday: Cutting and Pasting
Thursday: Word Hunts/ Word Banks
Friday: Games

Activities (Tips):
1. Repetitive writing is not helpful
2. Writing out sentences can be overdone; stick to choosing 5 words and writing 5 sentences NOT one for every word.
3. Instead of alphabetizing...Categorize (sound, pattern, meaning)!
4. Word searches, Hangman and Spelling bees do not help students learn material

Those were just a few snips of my notes from the reading. I hope some of you find something useful from my notes and I encourage all of you to pick up any of the books...all are great resources!

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I have just crossed the Minnesota border and am on my way to Minneapolis for a mini-getaway before beginning my Student TEaching Experience on Monday!!!!!! My husband and I are off to visit a friend who we don't get to see as often as we would like. He was a groomsman in our wedding and shortly after moved to MN :( but hey, we now have an excuse to visit MN and the Mall of America! :) On the car ride, I have been busy reading, planning an introduction activity for my students, and memorizing student names! I am doing pretty well; however, I am nervous that with different hair styles and clothing choices I will struggle...wish me luck! I am extremely excited to begin and can't believe it is only a weekend away! I can't wait to finally begin blogging about my student teaching experience and my professional growth during this learning opportunity! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and to all my fellow student teachers out there...GET READY!!! :)

"Find a Job you LOVE, and you will Never have to work another day in your Life!" -TEACHING :)

The Nerves are Setting In

Alright...only a few days away and the nerves are setting in. Don't get me wrong, I am extremely excited to get back into a classroom and begin my student teaching adventure. However, I am starting to get slightly nervous...nervous of the unknown, expectations, afraid I'm forgetting something, and first impressions.

I am a very organized person and usually ahead of the game on preparation and planning. However, with getting into the classroom to observe the normal day before I have the chance to plan material and lessons is a little unsettling.

Not to be modest, but I do know that I am good at what I do. I love teaching and I honestly feel if your heart is in the right place, the rest comes naturally. I am excited to work with the students and build my confidence and skill level in multiple ways during my experience.

Alright...plan for the rest of the evening...My husband just celebrated his 5 year anniversary at his job...therefore, he asked his 'betty crocker' of a wife to whip something together for him to bring to work. Several problems with this request; mac and cheese, hamburger helper and spaghetti are about as gourmet as this girl gets. Now, if he called up his sister-in-law she could easily whip up a 5 course meal with ease. Therefore, I immediately hit up my new addiction...Pinterest. I found a chocolate chip, oreo, brownie dessert bar. It looked to die for and after eating too much it could probably kill you but if you know my husband, he LOVES his desserts. Therefore, I showed him the picture and away we went to the store. Hopefully tomorrow I'll have good news on the success of this dessert with his co-workers!

Now that the dessert is in the oven I plan to dive into some more of my literacy homework...Tonight's reading entails...

Hope to update tomorrow with results of baking and any new tips I learn from tonights reading! :)

Confidence:
"Always remember you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, smarter than you think and twice as beautiful as you'd ever imagined" -Pinterest

Literacy 'Homework'

Hello everyone!  I received some 'homework' from my coop. teacher to help prepare me for the type of literacy they use in the district.  I found the reading to be extremely beneficial and I learned a lot and picked up quite a few tips that I plan to share with all of you!

Reading Notes: Growing Readers (Kathy Collins)
Guiding Principles:
1.   Readers have time to read just right books everyday
2.   Readers select their own appropriate books
3.   Readers take care of books
4.   Readers respect each others reading time and reading lives
5.   Readers have daily opportunities to talk about their books in genuine ways
6.   Readers don’t just read the words but also understand the story
7.   Readers’ work in the independent reading workshop is replicable outside the classroom

Structure of an Independent Reading Workshop
1. Mini Lesson

a. Connection: connect with previous lesson, current unit, and/or student work
b.Teaching Point: present point verbally and re-state throughout
c. Active Engagement: give students opportunity to practice; plan; and/or talk
d. Link to Ongoing Work: restate teaching point and tell students your expectations for them moving forward
*Extra Tips: limit student talk; keep connection brief (less than 30 seconds); state lesson objective and keep restating; MODEL; use a familiar text; match the active engagement to the teaching point

2. Private Reading Time
a. Begin with students reading independently in their reading spot
b. Students are allowed to talk to students around them for help
c. Expect a quiet buzz (low noise level) in the room
d. Teacher meets with reading groups during this time

3. Mid-Workshop Teaching
a. Students find reading partner (relocate)
b. Expect noise level to raise slightly (teacher should monitor)
c. Teacher meets with reading groups and/or partner groups

*Reading Conference Tips:

• Move to student (do not have student move to you)
• Conference should last approx. 3-5 minutes or less
• During conference: review last conference strategy, listen to reader and jot notes, give the reader a compliment, teach skill/strategy,  practice strategy, tell student to continue to use this new strategy in their reading!

4. Teaching Share Time
a. Use this time as a lesson reinforcement (model good student behavior)
b. Use this time to add on to the lesson (acknowledge good behavior and add on or give another quick tip)
c. Use this time as a mini lesson preview (tell students what is coming next)
d. Use this time to problem solve (behavior management)

I found this text to be extremely informative and it definitely helped me to know what to expect in the classroom.  I hope some of you will take something away from this and learn a new tip or two to try in your classrooms! This is the first post of many that will include reading suggestions and quick tips and suggestions that I learn on my student teaching journey!

Enjoy :)

Success

Alright, overall I'd call today a success first let's take a look at my goals:

Wake up early: debatable :)
Workout: success
Work on 'To Do List': work in progress/success (made some progress)
Watch Ellen: success
Make Dinner: Vegetable Lasagna, Side Salad and Fresh Fruit=success

Today was a successful day, and I hope to continue that success tomorrow by getting some more things crossed of 'the list'.  Keeping today's post short and sweet.  Hope you all had a wonderful day as well!

"Some people dream of success, while others wake up and work hard at it"-pinterest

May tomorrow be a successful day for all! :)

Time Flies

It's almost Wednesday and winter break is winding down...I am extremely excited to get into the classroom in a few short weeks.  I have a bit of light reading to do from my coop. teacher to familiarize myself with the learning strategies used in the classroom.  I also need to get moving on that 'To Do List' I was talking about.  Tomorrow I am hoping for great things, I plan to wake up early, workout, work on a few things on that "never-ending" to do list, sneak in some Ellen and make dinner for the husband!  Hopefully tomorrow evening I can write of my successes of all of the above!

"Teachers who love teaching, Teach children to love learning" -pinterest :)

Night.

To Do List...

Today  I had my Student Teaching Orientation Meeting...It was extremely exciting going and seeing everyone as well as knowing student teaching is approaching quickly!!! :)  However, I feel like my to do list just grew ten-fold.  If you know me at all I am a planner, pretty well organized and usually ahead of the game.  This meeting made me feel a little behind and overwhelmed with all of the tasks we were instructed to complete.  I immediately went home and started working on these items and created a plan of attack to get everything done and done well! :)  I am very excited to student teach and get into a classroom and have the opportunity to learn from the professional teachers in the building.  This excitement is what will keep me going and get me through my seemingly never ending to do list!

Eat. Sleep. Teach. (Titan Teacher) :)

Meet the Teacher

Ahhhh Today was an extremely exciting day; I got to meet both of my cooperating teachers that I will be working with for student teaching!!!!  I couldn't' tell you if I was more nervous or excited to meet my teachers.   I could hardly sleep last night....

First, this morning I met with my 4th term coop. teacher.  I will be working with a 8th grade science teacher and I am extremely excited.  I took a little tour of the 8th grade wing of the school and was introduced to a few of the other team teachers.  Everyone was very welcoming and I feel that this will be a great fit.  I can not wait to get back to middle school!

Secondly, I got to meet my 3rd term coop. teacher.  She was very nice and extremely organized.  I received a little binder and lesson plan packet along with a list and picture of all the students! :)  I will have 21 little first grade minds to mold and sharpen!  I can not wait to work with first graders and expand my confidence with early literacy development with my coop. teacher.

Today was a milestone in my step towards achieving my dream!  I can not wait to get back into the classroom and expand my skills and confidence as a growing teacher!

Heres to starting my Student Teaching Journey!!! :)

Welcome!

Hello Everyone!

Welcome to my blog!  I am new to the blogging world but I am very excited to begin and track my teaching journey and adventures as a homemaker.  This will be a lighthearted and friendly blog that will allow a little insight to my crazy adventures in learning to cook and learning and growing as a professional teacher!