It's Friday 2 of winter break...sniffle, sniffle. I have two more days of freedom as we return to school on January 2. I am trying to remain optimistic though, as I have some new organizational ideas for my classroom for the upcoming year, plus I was fortunate enough to get into school 2 different days over break to get stuff done. So, here are 5 organizational ideas I have for the upcoming year.
1. My classroom library has sincerely been a work in progress for the last SIX years. I have spent countless hours upon hours developing the system that works best for me. So far, each of my books is labeled with a sticker that has my name on the outside. Each book also has a sticker on the inside cover that has the Accelerated Reader information. All of my books are also sorted based on series or genre. I will add a picture on Monday...somehow I don't have a picture of my library anywhere.
So. my update for the library is how to get my kids to know which book goes in which bucket. I was hoping that we would master our genres so well that the kids would know....maybe by fifth grade! The solution is washi tape. You know, that cute patterned tape that you use for scrapbooking?
I plan on cutting little pieces of washi tape to put on the bottom binding of each book in that bucket. Obviously, all of the books in the bucket will have the same tape. Then, I am going to put another piece of washi tape to "hold" the book label on the bucket. I have third graders-fifth graders. We can definitely match tape colors/patterns, which means my library is done! I will post an update when I am done with this process.
2. I am SO tired of reading a book to my students and coming to an example of something, like a simile. I read it, discuss it, and ask the students what it is called. Insert blank stares. I give a hint..."It starts with an 's'." Then I hear anything and everything under the sun that starts with the letter 's': 'soil', 'synonym', 'see'. So, I am adding a reading board. I hang up anchor charts for reading, but I have never had a reading vocab wall. I am extremely excited to start this and was SO thankful that Melissa O'Bryan had a matching ELA word wall to the Math one I already purchased. So, now I am laminating and cutting words out before the end of break to start creating this reference for my students. Now, we will stop and think before shouting out words that don't make sense. [fingers crossed!]
4. With our mid-year testing finished, it's time to analyze the progress and see what path we need to take to meet and exceed our goals this year. I already have some kiddos that are moving leaps and bounds, but as usual, there are still some that need an extra push. Therefore, I am creating a template for the Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) test of the skills for each RIT band and then my kiddos will be placed in each group based on RIT. Here's a snippit of what I am doing.
5. The last way I am organizing my teaching life is with my new unit plans. I decided I was TIRED of writing weekly lesson plans. They take too much time and then I have to remember to post them for our admin team and it is just too much! I started/am starting to use unit plans. Because each unit is not the same length, I feel like I get plenty of weeks without writing plans and writing a unit plan isn't hard, once you get into the groove. I always look at all my files, my plans from the last time I taught the unit, Pinterest, TPT, and whatever resources I have for the unit. Then, I turn on some Pandora and get started! Here's a quick look at the start of my magnet unit:
I am actually compiling my Magnets unit into a pack to add to TPT soon! It's full of hands-on labs and pure excitement!
So, I hope all of you are enjoying your Christmas break! I know it seems as though I have done SOOOO much school work during the break, but realistically, it has only been two days. I limited myself, so I could enjoy plenty of cleaning and family time! I have fully enjoyed being a mom this Christmas. Here's a picture of my cutie pie from her one-year photo shoot.
But seriously, how can someone actually capture so much cuteness in one picture?? Happy New Year, friends!
~Kelly
