Sunday, February 12, 2012
Pictures!
Alright keeping this short and sweet, but I did want to share a few photos! My sister has reminded me that I still haven't posted the 'Love Monster' photos. So I will upload those now! :) I am also sharing a picture of my valentines. I think they turned out pretty cute! Even though they do not contain any candy, I think the kids will still love them! I am getting busier and busier with adding on new content areas and trying to stay ahead on lesson planning. I have a small group and large group seminar this week and I have signed up for staff treat on Wednesday. I will be making my mom's famous 'black bean and corn salsa'....hope to do it justice! :) Sorry for the short post tonight, I will hopefully post more this week. I've had a wonderful but busy weekend and need to continue prepping for tomorrow!
Thursday, February 09, 2012
Gingerbread Man
You would NOT believe what happened today!!!! Our class has been 'studying' gingerbread books for a few weeks now we have read several different gingerbread books with another classroom. Yesterday, we decided to make our very own gingerbread man to eat as a snack. So today, we decorated the gingerbread man but...shucks time for recess. We took a few precautions by closing and locking the door. When we came back....You guessed it...HE WAS GONE!!!! There was frosting on the door handle, frosting on the desks, and sprinkles and candy all over the floor! The kids ate it up; absolutely loved it. We are now on the search for our lost gingerbread man. Tomorrow we are going to brainstorm ideas of how to find him, writing an announcement, making wanted posters etc. It was so fun to see the kids excitement and of course a fun, creative way to get students to love reading and writing! :)
Secondly, I placed my first book order tonight! My coop. teacher is generous enough to allow me to take over the book order process. It is great to have the chance to have this responsibility to see how the process works, understand the 'behind the scenes' time and work of a book order and of course the benefits!!!! With this order, I was able to get $20 in free books with teacher coupons and I earned 1047 bonus points to spend toward free books!!!! :)
Overall, today was a great day I did a fun writing activity using shaving cream and the kids loved it...got a little messy of course but sometimes messy is fun! I'm looking forward to the weekend as I hope to catch back up and hopefully try to get ahead on some planning and organization!
Night! :)
Secondly, I placed my first book order tonight! My coop. teacher is generous enough to allow me to take over the book order process. It is great to have the chance to have this responsibility to see how the process works, understand the 'behind the scenes' time and work of a book order and of course the benefits!!!! With this order, I was able to get $20 in free books with teacher coupons and I earned 1047 bonus points to spend toward free books!!!! :)
Overall, today was a great day I did a fun writing activity using shaving cream and the kids loved it...got a little messy of course but sometimes messy is fun! I'm looking forward to the weekend as I hope to catch back up and hopefully try to get ahead on some planning and organization!
Night! :)
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
1st Observation (Math)
First, Let's play catch up...
Yesterday, I had a super busy day. I taught a lot, which was awesome! I had morning calendar, word wall, read aloud and math! The math lesson was definitely a learning experience. I had asked my students to take out a blue, green, orange and red crayon. Not fully understanding the first grade mind at this point, I did not realize the task that lay ahead. Soon I had Mrs. Bolwerk, Mrs. Bolwerk is this blue or purple; Mrs. Bolwerk I only have red violet; Mrs. Bolwerk what does this say? Me: Forest Green; Student: Aww man, I don't think I have a green; Me: Forest green is green, that will be just fine! After ten minutes of determining crayon colors the lesson could begin....I found this entire situation quite comical, it proved to be a great learning experience for me to understand the mind of a first grader and how literally they took my instructions. After school, I stayed late to copy all of the word study sheets for the next 5 weeks. We have two groups so it was a lot of copying. With some organization, half a box of paperclips, and some quality time in the copy room, I have all my word study lists set for the rest of my placement! After that, I met my coop. teacher at Mc Donald's for my school's Family Night. We mostly just mingled around and reminded people to mention the school before ordering! It was a great opportunity to meet some parents and show my support to the school and community! I had a great time! :)
Today...
Today I had my first university supervisor observation. I was welcomed to school with a 'good luck' card and gift from my coop. teacher....too cute! (Picture Below) :) I had my supervisor observe during a math lesson. Overall, I thought the lesson went well; I am very pleased with how the lesson turned out. My students understood the lesson and met my objective! :) After school we had our first all staff meeting; it was actually kind of fun to sit in on! After the meeting, I talked with the principal for a few minutes asking about the teacher in-service, and about coming in to observe a few lessons! I am happy I got the chance to make a connection with her again today! I feel like I am truly blessed with my placement and I feel totally welcomed by all teachers and staff in the building. I continue to build relationships within the 1st grade team and throughout the building! Soaking in everything I can during this time and trying to make the most of every opportunity; so far I just LOVE STUDENT TEACHING!!!! :)
Yesterday, I had a super busy day. I taught a lot, which was awesome! I had morning calendar, word wall, read aloud and math! The math lesson was definitely a learning experience. I had asked my students to take out a blue, green, orange and red crayon. Not fully understanding the first grade mind at this point, I did not realize the task that lay ahead. Soon I had Mrs. Bolwerk, Mrs. Bolwerk is this blue or purple; Mrs. Bolwerk I only have red violet; Mrs. Bolwerk what does this say? Me: Forest Green; Student: Aww man, I don't think I have a green; Me: Forest green is green, that will be just fine! After ten minutes of determining crayon colors the lesson could begin....I found this entire situation quite comical, it proved to be a great learning experience for me to understand the mind of a first grader and how literally they took my instructions. After school, I stayed late to copy all of the word study sheets for the next 5 weeks. We have two groups so it was a lot of copying. With some organization, half a box of paperclips, and some quality time in the copy room, I have all my word study lists set for the rest of my placement! After that, I met my coop. teacher at Mc Donald's for my school's Family Night. We mostly just mingled around and reminded people to mention the school before ordering! It was a great opportunity to meet some parents and show my support to the school and community! I had a great time! :)
Today...
Today I had my first university supervisor observation. I was welcomed to school with a 'good luck' card and gift from my coop. teacher....too cute! (Picture Below) :) I had my supervisor observe during a math lesson. Overall, I thought the lesson went well; I am very pleased with how the lesson turned out. My students understood the lesson and met my objective! :) After school we had our first all staff meeting; it was actually kind of fun to sit in on! After the meeting, I talked with the principal for a few minutes asking about the teacher in-service, and about coming in to observe a few lessons! I am happy I got the chance to make a connection with her again today! I feel like I am truly blessed with my placement and I feel totally welcomed by all teachers and staff in the building. I continue to build relationships within the 1st grade team and throughout the building! Soaking in everything I can during this time and trying to make the most of every opportunity; so far I just LOVE STUDENT TEACHING!!!! :)
 |
| 'Good Luck' Gift from Coop. Teacher :) |
Monday, February 06, 2012
1st Math Lesson
I had a Wonderful Day Today!!! :) I had my first 'real lesson' and it went very well, if I do say so myself. I felt like the kids were pretty engaged and most of the kids were keeping up and understanding the lesson. After the lesson, I talked with my coop. teacher; she also thought the lesson went well. Her only suggestion was that I wait for attention longer towards the end of the lesson. The math lessons are a long time for first graders to sit and learn towards the end. They get a little distracted and she just said that I did a great job in the beginning with attention but towards the end I could have waited longer or tried harder to get everyones attention before continuing. I agreed! However, I am extremely pleased with how my first lesson went and am happy to continue taking on more and more responsibilities in the classroom!
This afternoon, we made our MONSTER BAGS! I found the idea on pinterest and put my own spin on it. The kids LOVED it! The monsters turned out super cute and the project actually went pretty smooth...much better than the crowns ;) I forgot to get pictures but I will take some tomorrow and post pics then...they are just too cute! :)
This afternoon, we made our MONSTER BAGS! I found the idea on pinterest and put my own spin on it. The kids LOVED it! The monsters turned out super cute and the project actually went pretty smooth...much better than the crowns ;) I forgot to get pictures but I will take some tomorrow and post pics then...they are just too cute! :)
Sunday, February 05, 2012
Week 3
Wow! I can NOT believe it is already week 3!!!! Seems like time is flying already. This week, I take over all of the morning routines and procedures...checking agendas, lunch count, attendance, calendar and morning math routines. I also continue with the interactive read aloud, word wall, transitions, and then I will be adding math as well. I'm excited to take over math, but a little nervous. I have some math experience from my clinical placement; however, teaching 4th grade math verse teaching 1st grade math is a little different. First graders are still learning EVERYTHING and almost every concept is new to them so I'm slightly nervous to make sure everyone is understanding the material while also making sure I get everything covered. This just means, a little more practice with differentiation and flexibility. I'm up for the challenge and excited to post on how my lessons go this week!
Tomorrow we will also be making our Valentine's Mailboxes. We are making 'monster bags' compliments of pinterest. They are super cute little monsters made out of lunch bags for students to put their valentine's in! :)
Overall, I have a busy week this week with taking over more responsibilities, morning bus duty, a 1st and 2nd team meeting, an all staff meeting, McDonald's Family Night, my 1st observation, a small group meeting and a SST meeting...Hoping for a successful week filled with new insights and lots of learning! :)
Tomorrow we will also be making our Valentine's Mailboxes. We are making 'monster bags' compliments of pinterest. They are super cute little monsters made out of lunch bags for students to put their valentine's in! :)
Overall, I have a busy week this week with taking over more responsibilities, morning bus duty, a 1st and 2nd team meeting, an all staff meeting, McDonald's Family Night, my 1st observation, a small group meeting and a SST meeting...Hoping for a successful week filled with new insights and lots of learning! :)
Thursday, February 02, 2012
Post-it Note :)
Today was a typical day...I just wanted to share a post-it note I received, definitely made me smile! :)
 |
| I especially love the spelling; he sounded it out perfectly! :) |
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Crowns...
Hmmmm...Today was "one of those days" I wouldn't say it was a bad day, but just not a great day. To begin, today was the 100th day of school. I wore my crown out to greet the students and said "HAPPY 100TH DAY!!!!" The kids loved it! and couldn't wait to make their own crowns....we began our Intervention time this morning for the first day. It is a new district wide 'program' that splits students into groups by their reading level and gives them 20/25 minutes a day of individualized instruction based on their needs for their level and how they can grow as readers! It is really neat and I am glad I am able to see the process begin and take shape!
Then, we began making the crowns...here is where the day begins to be 'just one of those days'...If you saw the picture, the students are supposed to add 100 strips of paper to their crowns to resemble 100 days. Well, sometimes a person forgets the organizational skills and abilities of a 6 or 7 year old child. Let's just say there is probably not one kid who actually has 100 'strips' on their crown...kids lost count, couldn't count to 100, mixed their piles, dropped strips, got sick of gluing all the strips individually etc. It was semi chaotic but all in all a great learning experience. I have to admit I was glad the students had to leave for art I was able to reflect and 'cool off' from the said catastrophe. I talked with my coop. teacher and she said that projects can be chaotic but the students enjoy them. We then discussed things I could have done differently such as more modeling and perhaps providing some sort of graphic organizer for the students to put their 10 piles. Such as a paper with 10 squares that they could have put their piles of ten onto to help keep them organized and know what count they were on. GREAT IDEA! I have to admit I was extremely frustrated and upset with myself on how this project was turning out. Regardless, the students came back from art and we finished up the crowns and it turned out great. The students loved their crowns and felt extra special wearing them around school today! On a side note, I would like to add a funny comment I said not thinking today to a student...one student was not very far on their strips and falling a little behind. She said to me "I'm never gonna finish" so I said to this student..."A little less talking, a little more stripping" (hahaha) of course not thinking the meaning; both my teacher and myself laughed no big deal of course they didn't get it just a little funny for the adults in the room!
For the most part, the day went up from there. The kids LOVED the cupcakes (of course) and seeing the frosting on their face, hands, arms, foreheads etc. was cute and worth the effort! I ended the day with a meeting which was a great experience for me to sit in and be a part of. As for tonight, I will be working on math lessons and enjoying some dairy queen in hopes to end on a positive note! :)
Then, we began making the crowns...here is where the day begins to be 'just one of those days'...If you saw the picture, the students are supposed to add 100 strips of paper to their crowns to resemble 100 days. Well, sometimes a person forgets the organizational skills and abilities of a 6 or 7 year old child. Let's just say there is probably not one kid who actually has 100 'strips' on their crown...kids lost count, couldn't count to 100, mixed their piles, dropped strips, got sick of gluing all the strips individually etc. It was semi chaotic but all in all a great learning experience. I have to admit I was glad the students had to leave for art I was able to reflect and 'cool off' from the said catastrophe. I talked with my coop. teacher and she said that projects can be chaotic but the students enjoy them. We then discussed things I could have done differently such as more modeling and perhaps providing some sort of graphic organizer for the students to put their 10 piles. Such as a paper with 10 squares that they could have put their piles of ten onto to help keep them organized and know what count they were on. GREAT IDEA! I have to admit I was extremely frustrated and upset with myself on how this project was turning out. Regardless, the students came back from art and we finished up the crowns and it turned out great. The students loved their crowns and felt extra special wearing them around school today! On a side note, I would like to add a funny comment I said not thinking today to a student...one student was not very far on their strips and falling a little behind. She said to me "I'm never gonna finish" so I said to this student..."A little less talking, a little more stripping" (hahaha) of course not thinking the meaning; both my teacher and myself laughed no big deal of course they didn't get it just a little funny for the adults in the room!
For the most part, the day went up from there. The kids LOVED the cupcakes (of course) and seeing the frosting on their face, hands, arms, foreheads etc. was cute and worth the effort! I ended the day with a meeting which was a great experience for me to sit in and be a part of. As for tonight, I will be working on math lessons and enjoying some dairy queen in hopes to end on a positive note! :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
