Some inspiration for me (and you)!

As I have been preparing for the coming week I was reflecting on all the challenges I have this year.  I say to my husband, "Gosh, it seems like I am not teaching as good as I can be this year.   It is impossible to feel successful when I am counseling more then I am teaching."  Then my son reminded me, "Mom, you always say if you talk negative nothing positive will happen. You need to say you can do it and you will."  Wow my teenage son actually listens to me?!?!  I am glad he gave me that little reminder.  I created this little printable, a quote from Alice and Wonderland, to remind me that things are only impossible only if I believe it is!
*Click here to download your own copy*

A Fun Cool Way to Learn New Vocabulary!

Miscellaneous - a random groups of objects

We just had our second annual Vocabulary Costume Parade!  It was so much fun and a FABULOUS learning experience!   All the fourth grade teachers start off start off by reading Miss Alaineus A Vocabulary Disaster by Debra Fraiser.   Then we assign the students a vocabulary word and send home a letter to the parents explaining that their child has been assigned an at home project where they need to create a costume that describes the meaning of their vocabulary word.    We encourage the families to be creative and use things they already have to create their costumes. We set a due date and then have a vocabulary costume parade for the rest of the school!  When the parade ends 4th grade meets together and has a word scavenger hunt.  Some examples of what is on the scavenger word hunt list.... find a word that means keenly watchful to detect danger; ever awake and alert (answer: vigilant) or find to adverbs, etc.   Above you can see me as "Miss Alaineous" one of the characters from the book.  Our students were sooooooooo creative and really learned a lot of new vocabulary words this activity!  I really recommend doing this activity whether you do it as a class, grade level or school!
 Here are some some pics of some of our best costumes.

awkward

humble

zany

generosity

rickety    useless    vigilant    energetic    essential

I hope this inspires you to do have your own Vocabulary Parade!  For more ideas visit Debra Fraiser's page

FREEBIE!!! Inspirational Quote

This is another one of my favorite quotes! I posted a picture of this quote on facebook and several of you "liked" it so I thought I would create a FREE printable! (the frame is not part of  the printable).

*Click here to get your freebie*

Its okay not to be serious ALL the time!

Yesterday, I wrote a post about report card comments (*click her to read it*) and it really upset some people.  I  received some really hateful and mean emails about it.  For those of you who were offended....lighten up! I wrote that post in jest.  I LOVE my job, I LOVE my students, and I even LOVE my students parents (most of them).  At the risk of tooting my own horn, I am a great teacher..... I even won educator of the year for my entire district in 2004. My students and parents love me back (most of them) :)

Here's a little advice (just my opinion)....  Don't take life to serious! Have fun! Live, LAUGH, Learn!

It's Report Card Time!

It's the end of our first grading period.  Nine weeks already done and gone....Time flies when you are having fun! I have been real good this year and graded assignments weekly if not daily and  entered them in the grade book right away so I didn't have to worry about upcoming report cards.  However, I did worry about the comments I would write.

I thought I would share some comments I wrote on my report cards this grading period.  Sometimes it helps me to read other's comments and adjust them to my needs.
*Click Here* to see report card comments.

I would love to hear/see some of the comments you guys use.  Just put your  report comments in the comment section of this post.  Thanks in advance for sharing!

Chatting about subs with Crystal from Kreative in Kinder!

Greetings froggy friends! I am Crystal, author of the teaching blog Kreative in Kinder. Now, you may wonder what a kindergarten has in common with fourth grade, but a teacher is a teacher, right! J Hats off to you for teaching the big kids. I totally couldn’t do it, lol. Anywho, let’s chat about substitutes. We all need them to survive a school year because either you get sick, need to attend training, or a simple mental health day is necessary. J I think it is super important to have a “sub tub” in your classroom. I know when I am sick, the last thing I want to do is go up to school and write lesson plans for a sub. In my sub tub, I will include worksheets (based upon math and ELA lessons you are teaching that semester), books that the sub can read to your kiddos, sometimes an educational video (Magic School Bus) and the holy grail of notebooks. In my Substitute Notebook, I include:

Class list, class schedule, allergies (super important), map of the school, emergency procedures (would they know what to do in a fire drill, tornado, lock down, etc.), activity schedule, discipline expectations along with what to do with students who get in trouble, nurse notes, lunch count forms, a phone list of important people (nurse, office, etc.), how everyone gets home chart, a list of helpers and kids that need extra time or instructions, pull out schedule, and notes for them and you.

It’s a lot of work at first, but it will make your life so much easier and your sub will love you for it! Communication is key. J I hate returning to a messy room and a stack of unfinished work. I think substitutes will perform to the level you require depending on what they walk into and how organized you are. I always try to leave my substitute a treat (candy bar or something) too because everyone knows when the cat’s away the mice will play so I am sure they will need a pick me up at some point. Most importantly, TELL SOMEONE where to find your sub tub. LOL. Have it labeled and in a place where anyone can see it.

Thanks for letting me guest post today. Come by Kreative in Kinder sometime to see me. Have a great week!

So, what is your greatest substitute tip?

Blessings,

<>< Crystal

Thank you Crystal for a wonderful guest blog post!  If you want to purchase awesome Substitute printables check out  http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Substitute-Folder-Printables at Kreative in Kinders' TPT store!  You can also follow Crystal's blog at http://www.kreativeinkinder.blogspot.com.