First Year Teacher

The cohort and I only have 3 semesters left after this one.. We have 2 semesters of classes and 1 full semester of student teaching. It really flies by fast. We go to our classes every Monday and Wednesday then before we know it, it is the end of the semester. We always talk about how we're scared of being first year teachers. I've found some really awesome ideas on Pinterest and I thought I would share them on here.

Here is an entire blog dedicated to this girls whole first year of teaching, its really pretty interesting.


That's so Second Grade

One idea I really like and plan to carry on is packets for students who come into the middle of the year. I mean we make enough packets for students on the first day. It would be beneficial to have a few packets made up for students that come in the middle of the year.

                                 Click for Source of this idea
A few other resourceful websites are:

Teachers Pay Teachers : this website allows teachers to post lesson plans, things for the classroom, a variety of different useful things..Some are free and some they charge for. I signed up and got some really cute stuff for free already.

Worksheet Place: again another useful tool for teachers who need help with lessons

Education.com : another great resource

Teacher Appreciation :)

I think that it is important to show appreciation to our educators. They spend a large portion of their life with our children. Teacher Appreciation week is coming up in May and I hope to make a few gifts. I'd like to make one for my daughters teacher and for  a teacher that allowed me into her classroom to gain some hours. I enjoy being crafty, so  I hope to make something pretty outstanding for them. I can't wait to see what my students do for teacher appreciation week. I've been told I will receive a lot of coffee mugs and Christmas ornaments. 

Last year, I made my daughter's teacher a crayon wreath. 

This year for my placement teacher I made her a candy dish

At Home Projects

My step daughter has had to do a few at home projects for her class(Kindergarten and First Grade). I like these projects because some of them are set up in a way that we're able to get to know her on a different level. Another reason I like these projects is because it allows me to step away from my busy schedule to spend some time with her and do a fun project. We have created two posters; her Star of the Week Poster(for both kindergarten and first grade) and her 100th day of school poster. In Kindergarten she had to dress up a turkey as something so that he wouldn't get eaten. Of course she chose a princess. This year we created a scarecrow according to her likes and dislikes. They had different questions for different parts of the body, for example he got specific eyes if she was an only child or had siblings. She also created a snow man in the same way.

I'd like to use some of these projects in my classroom becaues I feel that they're a way to get parents to interact with their kids. Parents sometimes get caught up in the hustle and bustle of their world and these moments can slip by. One thing I really liked was these teachers sent some supplies home that you could use to make the project. This showed that they understood that not everyone has the materials to make them at home. I would also do this if I sent a project home. Send the basic materials and if parents can, they can branch out further.

Below are pictures of some of the projects Makayla and I created together.

         

 

Classroom Theme!

I really like it when teachers have taken it upon themselves to personalize their classrooms. I especially like it when they use a theme throughout. I like the feel of a theme because the classroom decor is cohesive and will generally cause less of a distraction. The environment should be warm and inviting while encouraging education. I'm still unsure of a theme I would use for my classroom, but I really like owls. I found some owl classroom decoration's that I think would be so cute in my future classroom! It's fun to dream right?! 

All images were found on Pinterest.

Decorations!!

Wow! The semester is coming to an end and it's just so crazy that it has came so fast!! I've been trying to figure out what I wanted to post about next and I think I've found it.. Door decorations! You're probably very confused, why would I want to post about this? It is a sure fire way to either welcome someone into the classroom, let everyone else know what you're learning about, or to simply go with the next holiday! Besides, it can be A LOT of fun!! I just love decorations outside the classroom on either the door or a bulletin board.  Pinterest has a ton of inspiration for different types of doors!

Below are some cool examples of doors that I found on this site dedicated to doors and bulletin boards. Below is an example of different types of boards.(Rainbow Within)

For More examples go here:

Rainbow Within Blog

March was reading month in my placement and each class was assigned a different country to explore and read about. My class chose Italy. I decorated their door with gondola's and we added their picture to the boats. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture with their pictures in them, but this is a picture of the door before hand. 

Classroom Management

We recently put on a presentations on our classroom management philosophy and what we would like to implement into our classrooms.  It is amazing the amount of things you've got to be prepared for. It is important to have an organized classroom with good management tactics. A few management tactics include what children will have to do to go to the rest room, leave the room, where to turn assignments in, what to do if their pencils are dull, and the list goes on. My partner and I came up with a list of things we wanted to include and then went to pinterest for pictures to give examples of our ideas. While searching pinterest, I found a few things I feel are worth mentioning. There are  examples of lessons, classroom organization, and management practices. If I've learned anything this far, it's you can gain the most knowledge and experience by learning from other teachers.

The Lemonade Stand

Tattle Tale Poster

Classroom Management Ideas
Here is a link to my Pinterest folder of school ideas. There are so many ideas on pinterest, its unbelievable!

As a upcoming teacher and a fairly creative person, I love pinterest. You can find almost ANYTHING on that site. How to sew, awesome recipies, wedding ideas, and most importantly teaching stuff! Anything from classroom organization to how to decorate your door at every holiday. Sometimes it can be hard to come up with your own ideas and pinterest makes it very easy to access different ideas. Like facebook, it use to have restrictions on who could be a member.  I believe it is open to anyone to make an account. They have apps for phones, ipads, tablets and a website that is accessible. Creativity at your finger tips at all times!!

Basically, people find things on the Internet whether it be from someones personal blog to something that has been posted by yahoo. They then "pin" it to their board and now it is accessible for all pinterest junkies like me! :)

If you're looking for something particular, you simply type it in the search box. For example, I just did a search for "classroom organization." There are several ideas that have been "pinned" So You're able to go through one or all of them and find ideas for your own personal classroom. See the print screens for the search that came up for me when I searched for classroom organization. 

 This is only a small amount of what came up when I searched.

Be sure to check Pinterest out for any ideas you may need whether it be for teaching or planning a party! Happy Pinning!!

Educational Websites

Teaching Resources:

TeacherTube:   This website is similar to youtube, but it is full of educational videos that teachers can utilize during their lessons. There are also photos, audio clips, and a place to talk with other teachers.

Weebly This website allows you to set up a classroom website. Here you can post different things that parents may need to see or access. 

Edmondo is another website that allows teachers to have a 'online classroom'. This website is set up similar to Facebook. The class is able to communicate, post questions and photos. This website also allows students to track their grades, which is important. Most students want to know how they're doing and a majority of students these days know how to operate Facebook. 

Education World Education World is an online resource for teachers to get worksheets, handouts, tools and templates to use on different subjects in their classroom. I think it is important to have a good reliable resource to go to for help or ideas.  

Fitness in the Classroom:
Adventure to Fitness Adventure to Fitness is a interactive website that teachers can utilize to get their students moving. This would be a great tool to use during inside recess so that students are still getting in some activity. Also if you notice you're losing your students, you can use this website as a brain break. This website also has different sections such as coloring, word games, and number fun.

All Subjects:

Brain Pop Brain Pop is an animated educational site for children. This site has content in all subject areas which will allow students to practice their current knowledge or enhance new learning.

Kids Know it  Kids Know it is a educational resource for children. They're able to watch educational movies, listen to educational music, play games, and print posters.

Fun Brain Fun Brain is a website that has a reading section, an arcade, and a playground. Students will be able to read books, comics, and mad libs. There is also a math section where students can brush up on their math skills. There are sections for students, teachers, and parents.

ABC Mouse  ABC Mouse is a website for mostly pre-k and kindergarten students. Although, first graders could probably still use this website to practice their skills. There are  reading, math, coloring, and music sections on this website. It helps kids learn phonics, play games and practice reading.


Language Arts:
Big Universe:    Big Universe is a website that allows students to create and write their own picture books. They also publish them on the website and are able to read other students work. This website would be useful because some students do not like to draw so they can utilize the computer to help them design. 

Mrs. Perkins Site Words Here is a website that lists sight words starting from Kindergarten and up. It is a good reference for a teacher or a parent. 

Raz Kids Raz Kids is a website that has online books that you're able to set up an account for your entire classroom. It will allow the students to read at their own pace and level. This site is not a free site.
All images were found via google image search.

Welcome

Welcome to my blog!  I'm an Elementary Education student with a focus in Language Arts.  My Educational links will pertain to Language Arts and the others will pertain to education in general. More often then not those links will have different areas for different subject matter. When you're an elementary teacher you've got to be well rounded and have resources for all of the core subjects that will be taught. I will utilizes this blog to share any websites/blogs that I come across as useful for the Elementary Teacher and Language Arts teacher. Please feel free to leave your comments and ideas you might want to add.