Gorgeous Monday

9/30 Today, I need to talk to classes about 1. Parent-Teacher Conferences: I have emailed all parents with information. Gosh, that took FOREVER!! Some have emailed back. Most asking how to schedule their conference. The kids need to tell parents they don’t need to schedule, just show up. 2. Modified Contact Days: Friday, only students with last names A-L come, Monday, M-Z. We’ll look at some data, one student at a time, and do goal setting. Look at grades, make-up work, visit the book fair. All I can think of now…

Such a week!

9/23-9/27 This week just wasn’t designed for reflection. Rainy some days. Chilly some days. The big issue though was 3 days of the week were adjusted schedules. And 4 scheduled meetings for me. Two days we had block schedules, because the eighth grade had to be guinea pigs for a new test… Science, maybe. Then on Friday we had an early dismissal. Rather than 53 minute classes, as usual, they were 29 minutes. Then we spent the rest of the day working with our new SAT. (SAT= Student Achievement Team) My team is working on Writing goals. Another team is working on Reading and one on Math. The week actually went off well. Reading classes worked on both figurative language and point-of-view. The DHH (Deaf and Hard of Hearing) teacher did a demonstration, so that hearing students could see what it was like for DHH students.  Hear what it was like, I mean. I made plans to collaborate with the psychologist in finding ways for several of my 180 kids to be successful.  It feels great to have someone else trying to figure this out with me. Kind of takes the weight off.

View through my glasses>

Friday…

Feeling pretty good about the week, but not really full of focused thoughts. Reading classes will be doing a web quest activity. They will be wandering some fable websites to read a few fables and look at the morals. I think looking at morals is a way for them to understand the concept of ‘theme’. The idea that the author of a book or story has a message that he/she hopes the reader will remember long after the characters or details are forgotten – Well, that’s new thinking for a lot of students. Fables and morals make it a little more accessible. Other than reviewing plans in my head and thinking about homework I need to do before 10pm tonight, I’m just noticing random things,,, The gas station sign has no decimal point, so car washes are 150 dollars. But at least things are spelled correctly on the sign. That is often not the case. Also, noticed a really spooky looking tree. They get all kinds of weirdly shaped when branches are cut back and cut back again to protect power lines. Maybe I’ll make a collection of spooky trees for students to compare for Halloween. If I turn this one sideways, I can see a dragon… with a REALLY long front leg…or wing.

Kids walking to school

It makes me happy seeing kids walking to school. First, I’m happy because they are walking and not getting a ride. That’s a good thing. So many kids get rides from parents, even when they live very close. Let them get some healthy exercise, for goodness sake!Also, it makes me happy, because most of them are former or present students. I like living in the same community with my students. I see them growing up, playing, babysitting, skate-boarding. Some of the younger girls just get so excited to see a teacher outside of school…Funny. Where do they think we live? This group was ahead and I was trying to figure out who was who. The young man is a former student – in high school now. Two of the girls are current students. One girl is at my school, but not my student. The last, I’m not sure about. All of them said, “Hi, Ms Hahn!” at the corner and stopped at the corner store – for snacks, I’m sure. Just a nice way to start the day :)

Tired, cranky, and then…

I walked out the door feeling just WORN OUT. My toothache kept me awake. I stayed up late working on AIP homework. I hadn’t eaten much…tooth thing. Just not a good morning and then I looked up and WOW! How can I not feel refreshed and hopeful and excited about the day when the sky is shouting joy at me? It makes me just feel like running to school as fast as I can… Well, if I wasn’t carrying this ridiculously heavy backpack!

So, now, on the good side. I don’t have any meetings during planning today, so I will actually be able to grade and plan. I want to work on the Word Wall and start an anchor chart for ‘moods’ students identified for reading. I need to sit down with the CAP documents and work on goals….. Read my professional books… Woo!Hoo! Let’s get going!

Tuesday Refocus

9/17 Feeling good about the use of the Refocus Room. It really seems to be working with all but the most stubborn and least caring students. My student teacher is teaching the Reading classes today so I’ll be able to focus on getting organized. I just love the growth and collaborative work in those classes. I am not feeling good about the ridiculous tooth pain I’ve been having. The pain feels like an electric shock and I can’t talk or move or touch my face when it hits. Here is my dentist’s office where I stopped yesterday – Sadly, my dentist is in Germany so I can’t get any antibiotics until Thursday! Ugh! It is just so hard to focus and stay on track when it hurts so much. Not very reflective this morning – I’ll be better once I get in the classroom. 

Monday after the floods

9/16 - A lot of Colorado isn’t going to school this morning. Roads are washed out. Streams have completely changed their paths. Thousands of people are unable to go home, if they even have one left. The little creek I cross every morning has grass completely flattened on the right bank and a line on the concrete about 2 or 3 feet above the ground. I’m feeling prepared for classes and blessed that I seem to be in one of the few places not carried away by crashing, speeding water.