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Growing Grade by Grade 2016

A Prayer For Children

A Prayer For Children


     The beginning of a new school year is loaded with potential for teachers as well as students: hope that we will be our best person and our best teacher, goals for what we want to do and what we don't want to do, dreams of connecting with each and every student in a meaningful and memorable way.

      Realistically, we know that our hopes, dreams, and goals won't always be met, no matter how hard we try. Experience tells us that students sometimes bring in more challenges than we can successfully solve despite the love, care, attention, and hard work we bring to the table.
     While we love all of our students, the ones with those special, heart-wrenching needs can occupy a spot in our hearts for as long as do those who are super-successful.

               
     I love to share this touching poem at the beginning of each school year. Enjoy the re-read and please share. It touches me (let that read: reduces me to tears) every time I read it. It reminds me that our best efforts are soonest realized through faith and prayer. Download a free copy here. Read it and pass it along if you'd like. 

    
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4 Things Teachers Should Do Before The First Day of School

4 Things Teachers Should Do Before The First Day of School




     Even before the back-to-school email from administration comes, teachers are often thinking, planning, buying, making, training, reading, meeting, cutting, pasting, collating, and creating for the new year. It's part of the job, part of the lifestyle. There are so many things to do, however, that even the most seasoned veteran can feel overwhelmed as they prepare for the new beginning.

      After a career of new school years, I have picked out four essential items that should head every teacher's to-do list. They are not the most important things you'll do all year, perhaps, but they can make or break a good beginning, set the tone for a successful school year, and calm the butterflies that may have taken flight in your stomach. I can say this for sure: I wish someone had told me these things when I started teaching.

 1.  Plan for the first day. Really? That's news? I can't tell you how many years I spent frantically trying to make my classroom Pinterest-worthy (before Pinterest was invented), attend all the meetings, label all the file folders, pull all the data...then realize at 5:00 p.m. the day before the kids arrived that I had not planned for the first day! 

      Serious heart-in-throat time. Before you put up a bulletin board, make desk tags, or attend a meeting, start sketching out everything that you will wish you had done or said on that all-important first day.  Even when you're feeling the pressure, put on the blinders for a bit and focus on first-day plans.

 2.  Plan for the first week. Again, it may seem like something that teachers just naturally have done but we don't always. Planning for the first week presumes that you've been given a schedule of bells, specials, lunch, and recess. Once you have that, it's vital that you look at your remaining minutes and divide them over everything you have to cover.

 3.  Walk through your day as a student. Once you've planned your first day and week, physically move through all that you will ask your students to do, from walking into the classroom to lining up to restroom breaks to the last minute of the day. I guarantee this will highlight what works and what needs to be tweaked. You'll be glad you did!

 4.  Remember that less is more. I would never have believed it, but teachers can overdo it sometimes. One of my classes once told me that my classroom decor was overwhelming to them at the first of the year. As much as I appreciated the heads-up, I was totally taken aback. What?  Kids don't always like over-the-top decorations? 

      Truly, when I stepped back and looked at it through kid eyes, it really did look like my room had thrown up on itself. Take this as permission to go minimalist, leave some bulletin boards bare - perhaps waiting for student work, and actually leave some stuff at Target for others. You can always add as you go and a little waiting can open your eyes to particular class needs and wants that you couldn't have anticipated.

      Please share your best back-to-school ideas. Best wishes to everyone who is approaching a new school year!
     
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Make A Tabletop Easel: Quick, Cheap, Easy!

Make A Tabletop Easel: Quick, Cheap, Easy!

     There are many times during the school year when you might need a temporary place to put a sign or small poster. I'm thinking of a new center, directions for a larger group of children, a PTA meeting, or news updates where teachers sign in. Add to that the fact that you often need it now and you don't want to spend money on it. 

      Try making your own tabletop easel. It literally takes one minute and will actually hold several sheets of paper or a small sign. I used one sheet of card stock to make an easel about 8.5 inches tall and 5.5 inches wide. You can experiment with different sizes and types of paper.






     Try your hand at this easy craft as the new school year approaches. Consider other uses for a tabletop easel: personal displays for student projects, a small welcome sign for Back-To-School Night, a class roster, or a list of directions.

      Please let me know how it works for you!

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