They are O-U-R-S!

The events of last week have left its scars. We are moving forward but we have not forgotten. The tragedy cannot be done; Heaven has received some amazing new angels.

I am always amazed at the judgments made during this time, the things that people focus on but I choose to focus on building a better future. I do not wish to argue over whether or not teachers are heroes or just doing their job. Whether gun reform would have stopped the issue. Who or why the situation occurred. I want to simply focus on how to move forward and plan on a better tomorrow.

On my classroom website, I have information for parents that I feel is important for them to know. I included this poem and thought it would be appropriate to share this with all of you as well.

As many of you know, my classroom website is a work in progress. It is part of my thesis, that thankfully I have an extension on completion. Maybe someday it will be completely DONE! Click on the picture to download your own copy.

A student is someone's baby. For a little while we are blessed to share them with their parents. As we mourn this week, as parents and teachers bury angels returned too soon I think it is time that we come together and remember that each student is ours. A shared love and joy that will never be forgotten.

Books, Books, & More Books!

I love books. I rather read than watch tv. During family movie night, I usually have a book on my lap and sneak in some reading while pretending to watch the movie. Shhhh! Don't tell my family my secret.

My children shares this same love of reading. Perhaps I should have not taught them how to read by flashlight on that one camping trip oh so long ago as now I find them up late at night under the blankets with a book and their flashlight.

To make it easier to find books that I love and want to add to my collection - I created a store with Amazon! These are books I either own, am planning to buy in the future, or have access to in my classroom.

I tend to be horrible at keeping up with things but I am trying to get better. In an effort to help all of you, I have now added my monthly book suggestions to my Amazon store. You can click on the button in the sidebar or the picture above will take you directly to my October book section.

Don't ya love how I got it to match my colors! =)

The site above is the one I created just for Think, Wonder, & Teach. It has so many of the things that I love on there. I have to remind myself to update it but it is a great starting point for ideas.

I have a separate store on my classroom website... I list recommendations for parents and students. This contains lists of favorite series, my monthly book recommendations, stories to read together, books without pictures, and more!

I always figure the more details I can provide to my parents the better! Each month when I send out a notice for the monthly Zebra Quest Family Challenge... I link to this month's list of books. A lot of these books appear in my monthly activity packet but not all.

I also add recommendations from other people. So if you have a favorite book for October (or November!) please leave me a comment and I will add it. =)

Note: These stores are revenue generating (supposedly... although I have personally never made money off of them). Revenue comes back in the form of Amazon gift cards (yea! More books!). I just like that I can create a custom site with pictures and reviews easily!

Parent Connection Communication & Tips

The post below originally appeared on Marie Dismondy's Blog - Making a Difference in August 2012. It was such a hit that I thought I would share it with all of you as well.

I am so excited to be here today with Marie Dismondy! Marie is an award winning author and has become a great friend as well. I have learned so much from her about teaching character to our students and improving my own character. It is such an honor to be asked to join her to celebrate the start of the new school year!

As students head back to class, it is important to remember to build a relationship not only with our students but with our parents as well. We must take the time to help our parents to feel welcomed and a valued part of the community of our classrooms. There are several ways that I do this.

The most important part of any relationship is communication. 

This is actually the secret to success! It truly is that simple. On my classroom website, I have an area dedicated to information solely to help my parents out. Not all parents will need this information but I have created this area as a direct result of questions parents commonly ask.

During my open house talk, I discuss the importance of the parent connection. When parents, students, and teachers unite for success any obstacle can be overcome! This reminder is on the homepage of the parents section of my classroom website. This is something I want parents to see and remember often.

Only together can we succeed!

Now that everyone knows how important communication is, the next step is providing information on how to communicate. We each have our own preferences. It is important to let your parents know how you prefer to communicate.

Directly below the information on the importance of the parent connection, I have displayed these 10 tips for better communication.

1) Meet your child’s teacher early in the school year. Don’t wait for a problem.
2) Ask your child’s teacher about his or her goals, rules, and limits, and how often you can expect to hear from them.
3) Tell teachers about your child – special interests, likes and dislikes, strengths, and weaknesses, and any major changes in his/her life.
4) Get involved at school. Volunteer in the classroom and for special events and field trips.
5) Make sure the school knows your schedule and how to reach you.
6) Let teachers know the good things your child says about them.
7) Ask questions when you have concerns and stay informed about what’s going on at school.
8) When requesting a meeting, state your general topic so the teacher can prepare.
9) Avoid automatically taking sides, whether the teacher’s or your child’s. Try to stay objective and state your observations only.
10) Stay calm – never accuse or attack. Share what you would like to see happen. Be specific and ask for details.

At the very end of this, I add a reminder not only for the parents but myself as well. How we communicate with each other is teaching the student how to communicate with others in the classroom and in the future. We must show the student what good communication and negotiation skills look like at all times and in all situations.

My classroom website is always changing and growing. If you would like to see how this information appears live on my website or what other information is available on my site, feel free to click on the picture above.


Feel free to stop by and say hi to me at Think, Wonder, and Teach where I am hosting a giveaway for Maria's book "Pink Tiara Cookies." I LOVE this book! I was so surprised when even my boys liked it as they hate all things girly. (UPDATE: CONTEST HAS ENDED!!)
 

WallWisher & Tips for new Teachers!

So... a  few months back I saw this amazing new idea from Josh over at Mr. B's Beach Brains. He has so many amazing ideas. It is called WallWishers and it is FREE! It is so free you do not even have to create an account. Be still my heart!

Check this out!

I made a wall to store all of the tips, suggestions, and great ideas that new teachers or student teachers need to know about. Every day I am learning something new and I love all the great things I am finding out!

This is one of the things that I am using with my students in my current classroom. We are using this to create word families. I have asked students to pin their add-ons to each family as close as possible. We also have one for interesting words ala CAFE method. Parents can access it at night to see what their child has learned during the day.

LOVE this!! 

Part Classroom Website - Part Thesis

About six months ago, I began working on my thesis. In addition to the huge paper I have to write, I must also create a classroom website that supports my philosophy, meets all the requirements of my university and professors, and is designed to be read by parents and students alike.

It is no small feat. 

I began building in Weebly. I needed a lot of room to work and Blogger limits me to 20 pages per site. Weebly is unlimited in pages. I shared with you my original site. It was okay... I submitted it for a status review.

Results:

Content:

Satisfactory

Missing required elements

Design :

Does not meet expectations

So I went to my friend and business partner over at Honey Bunch Blog Design and said... 

WAAAAAAAAAAA!

yea... there was a lot of whining

complaining

more whining

Erika says shhh! I'll fix it!

LOVE HER!!

So she headed over to Weebly to see what she can do. She researched and played. She even took a design class but even though Weebly claims it is user friendly and customizable... its really not. Not to the standards I needed any way. 

After a few debates and much brain storming... we decided to move all the content to Blogger. 

WHAT A NIGHTMARE!!

There are over 80 pages of content

I am still moving it over

It was well worth it... take a look!

 

Isn't it beautiful???

It is due August 30 and I still have so much to finish adding to the site but the design is done. Erika is amazing and learned so many new things to create this site. 

All o f those page links are actually drop down menus. In Blogger! Amazing right?? 

Now while this site has the feel of one huge seamless blog... it's not. It is 5 blogs combined. It allows me to have up to 100 pages so I have room to grow if I need to.

I also need to thank Nikki over at Melonheadz Illustrating. Nikki has created all the additional graphics on every page of the design and is still working on more. She has completed at least 50 graphics at this point and counting. 

I have some truly amazing friends! 

The picture above is a link to the site. Feel free to stop in and take a look around. If you find any errors, please, please, please let me know! I am leaving this site open until I have my own classroom. 

Feel free to use anything on my site for your own classroom just remember to site your sources! (great I am starting to sound like my professors!) You can link directly to the classroom pages from another classroom and not violate district and federal policies. YEA! As I have done that quite often in my own site.

I am sending it off for a final status review on August first so you know what I will be doing for the next few days. I will be posting more about my site and my favorite pages in the coming days.

Formating Parent Communications

I was talking with a friend today about how I "sugar coat" bad news to make it sound good. She was surprised to hear I actually took a class in college called Creative Communication Strategies where for 16 weeks I learned how to take the worst news possible and turn it into something nice.

In business, there are lots of times when you need to tell someone something they don't like to hear. I am blunt, straight forward, and to the point. I struggled in this class. It was the hardest class I ever took. I passed with a B... the lowest grade I ever received in college.

It never occurred to me that teacher's don't take this class although we could certainly use it! I know I use it all the time!! So today, I thought I would teach it too all of you.

It's Pea-nut But-ter Jelly Time!

(just pretend I am rapping/singing it cuz its stuck in my head that way)

WITH SPINACH!

You have seen the video haven't you??

If not, here's your chance to be annoyed.

My sons have been banned from 

singing this ever again!

There is an ice cream and cake version...

NO ONE TELL THEM!

Anyway... we were talking about PBJ and spinach not annoying songs. That is the formula for parent communications. 2 compliments... the bad thing you really want to share... and another compliment. 

Peanut Butter

Compliment #1... is just like smooth creamy peanut butter. It is simplistic in nature, easily seen by anyone who has ever meet the person. For example, Johnny comes to school every day impeccably dressed. His hair is always parted perfectly. Even his desk and backpack are always in perfect order. Or Susan walks into every classroom with a smile on her face eager to see what the day holds in store. 

Jelly

Compliment #2.... is just like sticky, sweet jelly. A little sappy, a little over the top as all parents (persons want to be complimented. For example, Johnny wit and knowledge on a wide variety of subjects enhances our daily discussions exponentially. Or Susan is just the sweetest doll and so helpful, I just don't know how I will do without her in my class. 

Spinach

The Negative.... the thing that you really wanted to say this whole time. It's like finding spinach in your sandwich. It's disgusting! You don't want to talk about, its the elephant in the room.. but it has to be said. Despite following our classroom plan, Johnny continues to exhibit difficulties with Jose. The name calling has escalated to a point where we now need your help to resolve this issue. Susan is continual interrupting the class with her humor and wit thus not allowing the other students to learn. I need your assistance in curtailing future interruptions.

Bread

Compliment #3.... Wrap up the whole thing in a nice warm piece of homemade bread fresh from the oven. I truly love having Johnny in my class and I know with this minor change his true loving nature will pour forth. Susan is so beautiful and talented. Decreasing her need for speaking will allow her to become a the brilliant brain surgery I know she is destined to become.

So there ya have it... one disgusting sandwich making lesson you will never forget. And it comes in handy too. What method do you use for sharing bad news with parents?

9 days and counting....

Vocabulary City Review & Giveaway!

Okay... I am beyond late to my own party and Krista has been such a great host that she has not even complained yet! This month on 3-6 Free Resources, we are asking teachers to link up and share their favorite websites.

I have so many! 

It was sooooo hard to choose a favorite!

But after a long while, I finally decided to go with something fun, educational, and saves me a bunch of time.

I found this site many years ago as a homeschooler and loved it then. I love it even more as a teacher!! 

What is so great about this site? 

~ It is fun! My sons beg to play games on this site. Yep - the children whom I cannot get to do their spelling homework, who claim they have no such things despite the fact that I personally know each of their teachers beg to go onto the website. 

~ It's free! There are a lot of great games, videos on how to use this site, spelling lists, and more all free.OR you can go with a premium membership for even more great options. 

~ I can print out almost anything into a worksheet for those who do not have access to technology at home. 

~ It makes my life easy. No arguing with my boys to do their homework. The premium options are a dream come true for me as a teacher. I can create a login for each student, assign them groups for differentiated instruction, create assignments, give them tests, and more. 

~ It grades the tests my students take. You all know how I love and use emoticons in my classroom, right? Get this, I can use emoticons to give my students feedback on their scores. It keeps track of what each child does individually AND I can print this out for record keeping purposes. One less record for me to keep. 

~ I can create custom lists or use the ones they have. I have a homepage and you can find me by searching for my school. I can create groups in my class for the various levels of spelling we do. 

~ Subjects include... Spelling, Vocabulary, Writing, and even Handwriting. LOVE IT!

~ If I don't know how to use a feature, there is a video to show me how. There are even letters for class-home communication. 

BREAKING NEWS!!

I just heard some amazing new things are headed our way for the upcoming school year!!

~ An iPad app

~ Google Chrome App

~ And it is now available as a premium feature for Edmodo users

There are SOOO many features. You truly need to go and explore them all for yourself. AND here is one person's chance to do that! I am giving away a 1 Year Premium Class Membership!!! (Value $49.99) Just leave me a comment below to enter and I will choose a winner at random next Sunday. 

Brainy Matters

I was out blog stalking the other day and came across a brilliant idea at Mr. B's Beach Brains. If you are not following his blog, you are truly missing out.

I have mentioned before that I have two special needs children but have never shared much more than that. One was recently diagnosed with damage to his working memory. While this was a relief to know the issue behind the problem it also presented some new struggles as I was informed that there is no cure and no treatment. From researching on my own, I have found that this is incorrect. There are things that can be done to improve his capabilities.

What is the working memory?
The working memory is the part of your brain that takes in information around you and processes it. In fact, you are using it this very second. How I explained it to my son is that the box in which he gathers information into his too small causing his brain to turn off and stop taking in new information. From the working memory, information is sent to the short term memory then the long term memory.

For him, his brain usually shuts off after five minutes. This is nightmarish to me as who ever heard of a five minute lesson! Once his brain is full, he has to process the information to his normal sized short term then long term memories. If he does not process it, he loses it. If he gets too much, he loses it.

What does this have to do with Mr. B?
Ah yes... back to the brilliant Mr. B who stole borrowed this idea from another teacher. I stumbled upon his Brain Book right after trying to digest information on what my son would need to succeed. This book correlates with so much of the research I have read on handling children with traumatic brain injuries!

I, of course, had questions and wanted more information. Checkout Mr. B's answers! The answers helped but I knew if I did decide to utilize the Brain Book, I would make it my own.

I also called in my guinea pigs for their take of this idea.The first question was if they could have a notebook shaped like a brain. Ummm... no, sorry guys! This mama/teacher is not cutting out countless brain-shaped pages for your use. Despite the lack of a brain-shaped notebook, they like the idea.

This is the first in a series of posts about the Brain Book as I am tweaking it to fit me. I am using a black notebook for my brain book. (For organization purposes, all students use the same color notebooks so I can see at a glance they are using the right book.).

Page 2 & 3 - Brain Book Expectations - Using Mr. B's document as a template, I created my own letter to parents.

The students will actually begin writing on page 7 or 8. It depends on how the other things fit into the book. What other things you ask and what happened to page 1? Ah... yes, that is a post for another day.

UPDATE: I have created an entire kit for use in your classroom! The name "The Brain Book" is protected by copy right so my book is called "Brainy Matters." The boys laughed and thought it was cute. Get your copy today at TpT!

Now I am off to do my homework!