New Journey, New Year

Change is hard.  Change is inevitable.  Yet, as you change you have the opportunity to grow. I've recently changed jobs and I'm now teaching second grade in an independent school district.  I am so excited so be able to share what I've been learning this summer.

I've spent July putting my new classroom together and reading Debbie Diller's books on Literacy Stations and Math Stations.  The  month of August is a fun filled, exciting month and I will begin posting soon on which stations I plan to use at the beginning and how I plan to implement Literacy Studio in my new classroom. Enjoy your last few weeks of summer!!

SOL-Where is God?

Often in our lives we see God.  In rainbows. In a hushed silence. Or an unexpected phone call from a friend at just the right time.  However, this week has been one of those weeks that started with “Where is God?”  I’ve lost several loved ones in my 33 years and they followed an illness of some kind.  This week my loss was unexpected and shocking.  People shouldn’t be gone having lived only 36 years of their life.  People who are good people shouldn’t suddenly be GONE.   When I heard the news that my cousin had been killed in an automobile accident my mind began repeatedly saying Where is God?.  The same question echoed in my ears 5 days later as we attended his memorial service.  Where is God and why if he is so omnipotent did this happen?  Then I saw Him.  I saw Him in the waves of people who were lined up outside the chapel after it reached capacity.  He was there as I heard little cousins giggle and play.  I heard him in the words of my child say, “My Nae-Nae is sad and I want to go cheer her up.” Then running into Nae-Nae’s arms wrapping her in them as only a four year old can and planting a juicy kiss on Nae-Nae’s lips.  I found my answer.  No the answer did not take the pain of the loss way, but a little bit of peace fell for a short time. 

Reading: Digging Deeper

In February, I saw Debbie Miller and Lucy Calkins and they discussed the importance of going deeper in reading.  It isn't just teaching reading strategy. It is about applying the strategy and using it on the age appropriate level or standard of the classroom.  My students have loved the Among the Hidden series.  We've read the first two books and I knew that I wanted to really teach going deeper in reading responses the last 5 weeks of school.  So I decided to use the third book in the series.  We began the book last week and I had the kids write a response with no extra instruction.  Then today I used their responses to show exemplary work at what making good connections should look like and sound like, what a good question should look like, and what an meaningful inference looks like and sounds like. Then we read three more chapters of the book and wrote responses again.  During their silent reading time I graded their responses. The difference was AMAZING!!   As I was reading them I began to star the pieces that were exemplary and we had a sharing circle.  As they shared our question to the circle was, "Explain how this response is well thought out."  The answer:  It makes me think more about the text!

BINGO!  

We really truly  have thinkers in our classrooms, however, it is up to us to raise the standard and expectation.

Slice of Life Tuesdays

How I've missed my time on the blog reading everyone's slices and stopping to ask myself, "Will I document this part of me today?"

Poetry is one of my favorite units of the year. As we wrap up our final week of test prep, I've begun to really allow the creativity to shine. We have been looking at the many different forms of poetry and today we focused on Haiku. After listening to a haiku in  my Community Class in Church on Sunday inspired by Psalms I decided we too would go looking for things to inspire our Haikus. I've often read Haiku Hike and allowed the kids to make watercolors then write the poetry, but today we went outside.  Granted it was not within a forest, but I really wanted them to notice their senses and the things around them.

As we looked upon the empty playground I said, "You know things look so different without 175 students running around.  What is this picture saying to you?"  Really I am talking rhetorically more to myself then to anyone in particular because of what it was saying to me, but a young man turned to me and said, "I imagine the Wild West, but without gun slingers."

"True, I believe a different competition is played somewhat like outlaws and the sherriff,"

His eyes light up!  "Can you imagine soccer in tumbleweeds?!"  He exclaims. Then he vigorously writes.

Isn't it important to listen to those little nudges of inspiration?

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Write because it's good for you!!  Join us every Tuesday at http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com

Quotables

Desire is the key to motivation, but it's determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal - a commitment to excellence - that will enable you to attain the success you seek.
Mario Andretti

To the teachers who are wrapping up the last 5 days before state mandated testing begins.  Excellence is seen in each of you every day.

10 Reasons I Should Write Each Day

10.  Writing each day allows me to try different types of genres.
9.  Writing each day allows for experimentation with words.
8.  Writing each day led me to conversations about my writing and others writing.
7. Writing each day provided me to look each day in the face and ask, "Will I document this today?"
6.  Writing each day stretched me as a writer.
5. Writing each day was easy on some days.
4. Writing each day was hard on some days.
3. Writing each day led to discovering truths about myself.
2.  Writing each day led to discovering more about others.
1. Writing each day became more about getting parts of me on a page and less about writing each day.

31/31

I don't win things. I'm okay with that.  I went to the dinner because a group of people were celebrating us--teachers.    A beautiful  dinner.  Wondrous words of perseverance.  Added bonus of give a ways.  And I won.  A kindle.  I tend to not buy things for myself and I hear a colleague whisper as I sit down, "So glad you won something for you, Mommy."  And you know I am too!