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Ever the Planner

Posted on December 4, 2012 by auburnchick

The other day, a fellow reading teacher came into my room, asking my assistance with one of those “teacher” things the District makes us do.

“No problem,” I told her, “But I have to ask you something very important.”

“What is it?” she asked.

I told her that I needed help making a decision.

I took off my shoe and showed her my toe, painted up in a new polish I’d recently purchased.

“Should I go with this polish or red?  I’m getting my nails done today, and I simply cannot decide.”

My students, reading quietly, to their credit did not bat an eyelash.

They are used to my crazy antics, bless their hearts.

My friend, however, raised her eyebrows and opened her mouth in surprise.

“Really?” she said.

heehee

Yes, I was quite serious.  I don’t think she realized just how much of a planner I am.

I am so much of a planner that on Sunday evening, I pulled out the clothes that I wanted to wear each day this week.

Um…yeah.

I might have a little problem.

But see, here’s how I look at it.

Who knows when the alarm clock isn’t going to go off…when I’ll forget to plug my phone in and the battery will die…or if/when I’ll hit that snooze too many times and have to make a run for it, hoping to get to work on time.

It’s happened before.

Any female knows that one of the hardest decisions we have to make each day is what in the world we are wearing!

I like taking the guess work out of things.

As I said before, I think I have a little problem.

It’s part of my overachieving nature.

Oh, and which polish did I go with?  The red or the one on my toe?

Take a look…

https://i0.wp.com/farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8238812503_208af6745a.jpg

The picture doesn’t do them justice.

There are sparkles in the polish.

I like sparkles.

My red polish has sparkles too.

Oh, and for the record, I know how I’m getting my nails done at my next appointment.

Stay tuned…

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: | Leave a comment »

Cupcakes for the Crew

Posted on December 3, 2012 by auburnchick

Dear 4th Period Class,

I wanted to thank you for making last week’s observation go so well.

All year, I’ve bragged about what a wonderful class you are, and I have to say that when crunch time came, you pulled through for me again.

Even my sweet “A,” who promised to be on her best behavior, came through on her promise.

Mr. “M” got to see what I’d been telling him all along…that you are a warm, supportive class…eager to learn…eager to succeed.

Yes, you talk a little bit more than I’d like; however, you have proven to me that despite your chatter, you are listening to the lessons I am imparting…proof that teenagers do hear everything that’s going on around them, despite what we, adults, might think.

As a reward, I am treating you to the following…

https://i0.wp.com/farm9.staticflickr.com/8198/8239891742_83bcdda544.jpg

I hope you enjoy them, for you earned them.

I want you to keep your eyes focused on The Prize…that diploma you’ll earn one day.

Remember that I ♥ you much and thank the Lord that He has placed you in my class.

Love,

Mrs. AuburnChick

Filed under: Teaching | Tagged: | 1 Comment »

Observation #1 for Year 3 of Teaching

Posted on December 2, 2012 by auburnchick

So…observation number one of my third year of teaching…

One would think that I wouldn’t be as nervous as the previous observations I’ve been through, but that was not the case.

Overachievers stress about e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g.

What can I say?

It’s hard to be me.

One thing that makes observations especially difficult is the GOBS of documentation, all online, that my district requires us to do.

Oy!

I’d attended a basketball game Tuesday after school even though I KNEW I needed to be home working.

What can I say?  I love watching my students play the sports they excel at.

I wound up staying up until 1am tweaking my plans…probably not the smartest idea ever but necessary nonetheless.

My brain just doesn’t seem to get going until late at night, and it works s-l-o-w-l-y.  I really wish I could make my brain work faster.

Sigh.

Regardless, my lesson went swimmingly!  I used a Kagan structure, Numbered Heads Together, to work on identifying main ideas and details.  We then broke into our differentiated groups for stations, and my principal observed as my students transitioned quietly (bless them) and worked diligently.

One of my girls was on her best behavior, as she’d promised before class started.

Bless her and the class in general.  I see fancy cupcakes in their near future.  I truly love this class.

I got great feedback from my principal, so now I’m in the stage of self reflection.

While I seem to excel at creating good relationships with my students and a comfortable learning environment, a common theme I noticed in the feedback i received is that I need to create more of a student-centered class where students have greater input and choice in everything from rules to assessments.

This is incredibly difficult because I come from a traditional education where teachers stood up front, lectured (imparting great wisdom), and students took notes.  At the end of a unit, we had a test…usually a difficult one that required rote memorization.

Today’s teachers know that research demonstrates that students comprehend information better when they participate in hands-on activities driven by CHOICE and higher order thinking skills.

This requires letting go…having control of a classroom but in less of a tight-fisted way.

While I understand the concept, I cannot seem to figure out the execution.

I want to become a “Highly Effective” teacher…not for the recognition but because such a status means that I am teaching in such a way that provides my students with skills that will not go away when the school year ends.

I am impatient, which is why I stay up late every night researching lesson plans and teaching methodologies while fine tuning my own.

As a perfectionist, it’s difficult to accept that learning how to incorporate research-based strategies to change my classroom into a student-led one will come with time and experience.

That is what these observations are about…learning…reflecting…revamping.

Filed under: Teaching | Tagged: | Leave a comment »

You Did That

Posted on December 1, 2012 by auburnchick

Boy, am I a bad blogger lately!

Last night, I ran into a friend of mine, a first-year principal who started a blog a few months ago, and she apologized for not having responded to a comment I’d made.  She also told me that she was going to subscribe to my blog.  I assured her that she hadn’t missed much as my blogging has been haphazard of late.

The reason why I haven’t blogged much is that this has been a very busy time for me.

I had the first of two observations, so I had a lot of thinking, planning, and more thinking (maybe I should say “overthinking”) to do.

All went well, I am happy to say.  I’ll be blogging about that tomorrow.

What I wanted to share was some new lingo I learned this week.

When you work with teenagers, you get to keep up with the latest and greatest in everything…music, movies, clothing, and lingo.

You already know that I took advantage of Black Friday sales to pick up new clothes.

I was eager to show off the new threads at school, so I wore a pair of my skinny jeans, paired with a blingy customized t-shirt I had made.  I wore a pair of Skechers that I’ve had for a while.

Well, let me tell you that while the kids liked the new look, they HATED the shoes.

The boys who entered first period were not shy about dogging them.

The girls were more polite, telling me, “Well, I wouldn’t wear them, but if you like them, then that’s all that matters.”

Yeah.  Right.

One of my girls in my 6th period class told me, “I’m surprised that you are wearing those.  You usually have on cute shoes.”

Gee.  Thanks.

Another girl went so far as to look me up and down and say, “You did that.  But the shoes.  No.”

I’d never heard that phrase before…”You did that” except in strictly literal terms…so I had to ask her what she meant…if it was a good or a bad thing.

She repeated the statement, “You did that.”

Ok.

Sure.

“But is it good or bad?” I repeated.

“It’s good,” she said, “Except for the shoes.”

Ok.  Gotcha.

On Thursday, I wore a sparkly red shirt and new pants.  I also had on a cute pair of grey plaid flats I’d bought at Old Navy.

I wasn’t sure about pairing up the shoes with the rest of the outfit, but I’d gone for it.

The kids ooohed and ahhhhed at my outfit.

My 6th period student…the one mentioned above…said, “You did that.”

I had to smile.

I’d done good.

Friday, I wore a school soccer sweatshirt, a different pair of new skinny jeans, and a different pair of white lace up sneakers.

I was very nervous given the response to my shoes a few days before.

My worries were not necessary.  My little girl gave me the validation I needed when she declared, “You did that” again.

I laughingly told her that I’d be blogging about her comment.

It’s always good to know what they kids mean when they say something.

Actually, maybe it’s not always good.

heehee

Filed under: children, Teaching | Tagged: , , | 1 Comment »

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