TpT Seller Challenge: Wk 2: Dare to Dream

I've been participating in the TpT Seller Challenge hosted by  Teach Create Motivate, Sparkling in Second Grade, Third in Hollywood, and Peppy Zesty Teacherista. This week's challenge is Dare to Dream. It's all about my hopes and dreams for my TpT store.

Since my store (and blog) is very new, I would just like to "get it off the ground." I'm not particularly looking to become rich, but it would be great if I could make enough to offset the cost of "classroom expenses." That would free up a decent amount of extra cash to travel (and save...hopefully for a wedding!).

I'd also like to make tons of teacher-seller-blogger friends. I really want to expand my circle, hear new ideas, "borrow" practices that work, and collaborate with other educators. I want new friends from all over the US and the world....maybe attend an international teacher-blogger meetup. 


I want to hear all about yours. What are you (TpT) hopes and dreams?

TpT Seller Challenge Week 1: Makeover Madness

The TpT Seller Challenge is just what needed to get motivated! This week's challenge was to makeover an old product. The product I chose was an old one that I'd abandoned about a year ago (EEK!) called Multipli-dition. It's an awesome multiplication as repeated edition activity that I've used in my classroom for the past 3 years with great success. I created a free version of it last summer but never completed my full version. I was inspired to choose this product to revamp after I received a direct message from someone asking about the full version. Without further adieu, here it is....

Head over to my TpT store to have a closer look at it.

In addition to getting motivated with TpT (and blogging), I've been reflecting on this past school year and planning for this upcoming year. I had a lot of ups and downs last year, including my room being turned into a 3/4 split 10 weeks into the year, some exceptionally challenging behaviors, losing a few of my beloved kiddos to moves, watching some of my kiddos grow 1.5-2 years in reading and/or math, watching them grow and mature, and saying goodbye to students that I taught for two years (That was probably the most difficult part of the year! It will ache my heart a little bit to watch someone else teach them. I absolutely adored my "Loop Group.") We have lots of upcoming changes for the next school year. We are using a new reading, vocabulary, and phonics curriculum (Making Meaning and Spiral Up), modifying the math curriculum and instructional practices, and switching to a new system for student goal setting and tracking. Needless to say, I have a TON of work to do this summer and less time to do it because I'm teaching summer school. Oh...did I mention that my partner in crime teacher accepted an administrative position at a different school? It's so bittersweet. I am very happy to see her move up, but I am going to miss all of our shenanigans collaboration. Luckily, I have a great new partner! We seem to be very similar, and I think we're going to work well together.

Have a great Saturday!

The Class Who Loved Words

Happy February! We're in the middle of two short weeks. Please pray for me! Short weeks seem to last twice as long. So two in a row? It's going to feel like a lifetime! This past week will be especially short because there's no school on Friday (PD), and our Festival of Friendship (school dance) and Valentine's Day celebration is Thursday. Basically, I had a 3-day instructional week. Instead of introducing new spelling words and vocabulary for word study, we're going wrap up our current vocabulary unit, and I'm going to introduce several new vocabulary activities. I'm sure they'll be happy to have some new Word Work activities.

Our first Flocabulary unit went relatively well. Some of my ELLs did not do quite as well as I'd like. I met with our head ESOL teacher, and she suggested some modifications to the unit assessment to better support those students. I'm going to provide a word bank for them for their next unit assessment. When possible, I am going to add visuals to vocabulary cards as well. Hopefully, they will do much better.

I am revamping the activities for my Word Work center. In addition to Shades of Meaning, I'm introducing 2 new vocabulary activities over the next 3 weeks. I happened across a wonderful bundle of word work activities for big kids by Chalk and Apples. The activities focus on developing word meanings. It includes 15 activities so far. Since it's pretty late in the year, I've picked 6 activities for my kiddos: Bubble Words, 5 Clues, Vocabulary Sort, Word Break Down, Picture Dictionary, and Link It. I'm introducing Bubble Words and 5 Clues first. Since I want to focus on learning how to do the centers, I am going to use last unit's vocabulary words. That way, they won't be so focused on learning new words and learning new activities. I've plotted on an awesome way to store my vocabulary words for the week. Look for pictures and a brief explanation in my next post.

And without further adieu, a peek into my room.

Happy New Year!

Greetings! To say it's been a loooooooong time is an understatement. Lots of things have happened (holidays, birthday - the big two nine, winter break) but nothing more important than my kidney table arriving a few weeks ago.

It's been so amazing! I'm actually able to sit down with my guided reading/math groups and engage them in a meaningful way, instead of hovering over them while they work. There are practical benefits as well. All of our stuff fits (lol). I'm pretty much in teacher heaven.

And now, down to business....

I wrote a post about improving my vocabulary instruction at the beginning of the school year. Honestly, I've been doing a HORRIBLE job, and it's come back to bite me in the rear end. My kiddos recently completed their winter benchmark for STAR, and it was absolutely horrible. Out of 24 students, only 2 increased their performance. I KNOW it's a vocabulary problem. For example, I have a kid who is really, really smart. His reading comprehension is phenomenal. However, his vocabulary is limited. Case in point....a letter he and another student wrote me during Daily 5 time.

This letter and their data was a swift kick in the rear end for me. Our district/school does not have a curriculum for explicit vocabulary instruction, so I wracked my brain over a solution.  The vocabulary fairies must have heard my cries because I received an email from Flocabulary advertising a free, 90-day school-wide trial. The heavens parted and an inner peace floated down over me like a spring mist. It's a site with tools for explicit vocabulary instruction through the use of hip-hop songs and videos. While hip-hop is definitely not my kiddos favorite genre of music, I know the catchy beats will help them retain information. And, I'll be able to get their feet wet with poetry before our poetry unit in April. Two birds with one stone...yes! I'd been dabbling with explicit vocabulary instruction through the weekly words units prepared by the lovely ladies of Second Story Window. Their Tools for Vocabulary Instruction pack is phenomenal. I'm adding an extra layer of instruction by using Flocabulary Word Up Project to teach more words, specifically tier 2 interdisciplinary words. I plan to use their sample teaching schedule as a starting point and modify it as I figure out what works and what doesn't.

Here's the sample schedule:

It seems like a pretty good fit on paper as far as daily instructional minutes. I dedicate about 25 minutes daily to word study. During that time, I alternate between vocabulary and spelling, which means I may need to extend the units about a couple days. For now, I'll stick to their plan and cross my fingers. I'm open to any suggestions on ways to improve my vocabulary instruction. What are some things you guys do in your classrooms?

I was nominated for an award ^_^, lil ole me! Thanks to Alexandria at Classroom Action with Ms. Jackson for the nomination!

1.  Why and how long ago did you start blogging?

I started my blog a few months ago after a year of excuses. I started blogging, so I could share my experience working in a large urban district and collaborate with other educators.

2. What one word sums up the heart of your blog and why?

Ooooh...this is a toughy! Only one word?! I'd say responsive. Like Mr. Sims from 90th Street, I try to find new and different approaches to reach my learners. 

3.  Is there something you learned late in your blogging journey you wished you knew before? 

Blogging is waaaaaay harder than I expected/anticipated. You MUST have a plan.

4.   What is your favorite past time other than blogging?

I enjoy reading and running in my very limited free time. I also enjoy spending time with my loved ones and nesting (crafting, decorating for holidays, etc)

5.  How many hours per week do you dedicate to your blog?  

Lately, maybe an hour. I must do better!

6.  What category of blog posts do you enjoy the most? 

I love posts that give me new ideas...and freebies too, of course.

7.  Where does your blog inspiration come from? 

My inspiration comes from my kiddos and all the other teacher bloggers who share their experiences and ideas.

8.  Which post that you've written are you most proud of? 

My favorite post is called 'Third Grade Champions'. Our school held a penny war to race money for ALS. We used the competition as a teachable moment (diplomacy). We strategized with the 3rd grade homeroom, developed a "war plan" and defeated the entire school. I was very proud of how charitable my students were. It was so awesome to see them bringing in all their spare change for such a great cause.

9.   Is there any post you have been planning to do, but have postponing it for a while now?

Yes, I've been meaning to blog about some of the management strategies I use to keep the learning flowing throughout the day. I also need to blog about my #SLANTbox experience. :-x

10.  What is your favorite aspect of blogging?

I enjoy meeting other teacher bloggers and collaborating with them.

Which recipe, project, or idea on my blog would you be most likely to try yourself? 
I'd most definitely try your math task cards. :-)

All done...and now, to nominate!

1. Ashley at Teaching in Bronco Country

....more nominations to come. Everyone I planned to nominate has more than 200 followers. :-P

The Rules: 

Now that you've been nominated here are the official "rules" for accepting:

1. In your post link back to the blogger who nominated you as a thank you and "shout out".

2. Answer the 11 questions given to you (the ones I answered above).

3. Nominate 11 blogs that have less than 200 followers each.  Provide them with 11 questions or have them answer the questions above.

4. Let your nominees know they've been nominated and provide them with a link back to your post so that they can accept.

5. Send your nominator a link to your post so s/he can learn more about you as well.  (You can just put your post link in the comments below).

I'm back!

Hello! It's been a while, I know. My life has been pretty hectic these past few weeks, including parent-teacher conferences, receipt of our Acuity scores, and a new student, math night and Truck or Treat....on top of my usual work load...and I like to enjoy my life from time to time too, lol. Let's just say that I've been one exhausted lady! I have lots to share! Let's begin with my totally awesome Acuity math scores...

I was totally expecting the worst, and not because I don't believe in my kids. There was a new format to the test this year. In previous years, the first test was a diagnostic, and the following tests were predictive (of how well they'd score on the MAP). Not this year. This year, they completed a CCSS Readiness test. It looked different. It was worded differently. I analyzed the sample questions, and they required a level of thinking that was much more rigorous than previous versions . Well, let me tell you. I should have WAAAAAY more faith in my kiddos because they blew the math portion out of the water. I have 22 3rd graders on my roster (and 3 4th graders....but that's another conversation for another day...). Over half of my 3rd graders scored in range 3 (the new 'proficient'). I am totally impressed with them. There were so many external factors that could have influenced their performance as well, including a district-wide testing fiasco (the servers crashed), a school-wide technology disaster (our computer lab is archaic), and a new test format. I learned 2 major lessons from this all: my kiddos are way more adaptable than I thought, and I need to have more faith in them and myself. 

I'll be back later today or this weekend to share more. I can't wait until I get to Trunk or Treat. In the meanwhile, I just checked the time...off to breakfast.
 

a new place to read

They've finally finished my windows. Hallelujah! They installed the frames and shades last week. My kiddos were over the moon because it meant that Sparkles could return, and the reading futon would make its debut. Well, today was the day. I clearly love these kids a lot. I had to spend my Friday evening hauling (and by hauling, I mean directing my boyfriend, lol) the futon into my classroom and rearranging my room, so it would fit. My first group of students had the chance to enjoy it during Power Hour (RTI intervention time).

I'd be remiss if I didn't gush over my new look. I absolutely. LOVE. it. My infinite thanks to Christi of Ms. Fultz's Corner and Design by Christi for beautifying my blog.