The Journey Begins

Here are the newest additions to my classroom. Don't they make you want to begin a journey? This last week I searched several used stores and ebay for suitcases just like these to use as props and activities. I was watching several on ebay but I hated the thought of spending $30 - $50 for one. I was about ready to give up when I spotted these two sitting at a Goodwill store. I couldn't make up my mind and, after several minutes of opening and closing each one, I decided that they needed to stay together. They are a perfect, stackable pair. A few travel stickers will add the right amount of intrigue to capture the imaginations of my students.

It looks as though they have spent some time waiting in an attic or down in a basement, but in their prime, I can imagine that they took many journeys. Trips in the trunk of a car traveling down route 66, in the cargo hold of an old prop plane, maybe on an ocean liner excursion to Europe.

I wonder where they will take us this year...

 - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone which is a very advanced skill! ;-)

A Chance to Use Your Imagination! Take the Journey With Me!

I have started a page (link to the right) where I will be working on my "Journey" classroom theme. I've started some idea lists. Please feel free to comment on that page if you have other ideas that you think you can use. Thanks!

Road Trip! (teacher style!)

Shortly after my last post I came down with a bad case of allergic bronchitis. It has taken me several weeks to get my energy back. I'm so glad to be feeling better! Now I'm ready to start planning for August.

A month ago I was so tired and sick that I couldn't think, let alone plan for next year. For a few weeks I couldn't bring myself to even talk about next year. Fortunately, I'm feeling much better. I allowed myself most of the month of June to relax and think about anything but school. I feel relaxed and reenergized; ready to get started with my plans.

June activities (with bronchitis)

• Closet in new room cleaned out and organized with the help of a good friend
• Room packed and closed up for summer
• Old office cleaned and closed
• Interviewing and hiring of another 2nd grade teacher for our team
• 2nd grade team meeting
• A week of vacation

July: Road trip!
Today, our 2nd grade team took a road trip to Overland Park, Kansas to buy out, I mean visit some teacher stores. The drive up and back allowed for some nice discussion time. It was definitely a fun team-building activity. Setting up a new room after 10 years out of the classroom isn't cheap! I spent a larger chunk of money than I'm used to. I'm hoping to use these things for a few years!

Our Teacher Treasures by the end of the day!

I Got Caught!

My principal caught me on Friday. She happened to see me as she walked down the hall.While the current occupants of my future room were out, I was measuring and creating my floor plan.  She laughed when she saw me stepping off the distance between walls and marking my grid but she knows I can't keep myself from future planning. Later I borrowed a tape measure from a custodian and discovered I'd done a really good job of estimating! I was off by less than a foot! The inset is the beginning of my floor plan. Do you think it will be difficult for me to fill all those cabinets?

Now I know!

The last few weeks have been exhausting! After deciding to go back to the classroom, I waited for several weeks for the news as to where and what grade. It was hard to wait but I'm excited for the news I received this morning. Next year, I will be teaching 2nd grade at the same school I am currently working at as an Instructional Coach! I will be joining a great team that has already welcomed me aboard and I'm stepping into the place of a retiring teacher who has taught for 37 years. Now my teacher brain that seeks to make plans can work without hesitation!

My next steps:

• Rewrite my belief statements
• Begin planning zones and room arrangement
• Spend time in the curriculum and pacing guides to become more familiar with them

In the next few weeks I will be reflecting on the last 10 years and planning for the next. You can read my thoughts right here and even respond to them. I'll take any input I can get!

Letting Go

The Coaches' Office/PD room - My home away from home for the last 4 years.

     Now it feels real. I am leaving this office at the end of the month and will come back to a classroom next fall. Most of these boxes are filled with books; children's and teacher's books. I'm really not used to the office looking this way. My book characters have been taken off of the cabinet tops and stored in a plastic bag. Will I have a space for them next year? I hope so. The table is big enough for 8-10 teachers to sit around. I've used that conference table for 10 years; a witness to countless hours of conversation with collegues, passionate debates, laughter and yes, some tears. I'll be trading it and the adult-size chairs for a table with seating for smaller people next year.
    Seeing the room this way helps losen my grip on the past. If I don't let go, I can't grasp on to next year.

I think I found my twin! I didn't write this but I could have!

Putting the Nerdy Teacher Back in the Classroom - Let Project Based Learning Begin

Sep20

The most wonderful thing happened to me this year – I lost my job.  After several years in full time tech integration, budget cuts landed me back into the classroom.  Isn’t that a strange twist of fate?  Yes, I was a bit bent out of shape at first, but quickly (and I mean in just a few days) realized how amazing it would be to take all the training I’ve been doing with teachers and directly give it to the students we’re trying to impact.  What would it be like to actually run my own 21^st century classroom?  What tools would I need?  What projects would I want to run?...

more at:

http://mrssmoke.onsugar.com/Putting-Nerdy-Teacher-Back-Classroom---Let-Project-Based-Learning-Begin-5147479