Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Day.Four.

Well, my hallway at school is officially Dr. Seuss'ed out! It looks great with the truffula trees, the Cat in the Hat, the Foot book man, and of course all of the Thing 1's and Thing 2's jumping around. I will post pictures tomorrow. Speaking of tomorrow... we get to celebrate Dr. Seuss's birthday!! Woo Hoo! I am making a delicious treat for the kids... take a look-->
Yummy! We will also be having popcorn from the trees in How The Grinch Stole Christmas, Schlott's Knots (pretzels) Blue Goo (Blue Juice) and Animals from If I Ran The Circus/Zoo(animal crackers). I love to get the kids excited about different books because gravitate toward new books in the classroom. I see some students read the same book OVER and OVER. I get tired of it, so I don't know how they aren't. I know that a lot of them are a bit scared to take that little leap to a new book. (I know I have the same issues at times...I like being comfortable with what I am already doing... Why change it up?) But, I too have to take those leaps, big or little.

I have a great kindergarten quote today: I must preface- At our morning meeting, a child said, is Dr. Seuss  DEAD? I say,  "yes". Another student spoke up: "We shouldn't say DEAD, we should say passed away. It is just a nicer way of saying it!" (I agreed and from then on, that is what we said)  After a while, we were all in our literacy centers working hard on the new Dr. Seuss material. A little girl comes over to me, after looking at 15+ displayed Dr. Seuss books. She says...

"Mrs. Edmonds, I really miss Dr. Seuss." (as if they had been friends their whole life!)

It is amazing where books can take us! I know I can get pretty attached to characters and specific authors. I am so blessed to see children falling in love with authors, illustrators, and specific books! How exciting!


Have a Great Night! Dream of Dr. Seuss! :)

-Alexis-

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Day.Three.

Today was a GREAT day in KSACC! It was so refreshing to display Dr. Seuss books and when the students went to their activity centers, they chose READING center and looked and looked at the Dr. Seuss books. It was wonderful to watch them talk to each other about the books and illustrations. I read The Lorax to them today with a bit of hesitation. I didn't want them to miss the main message. As I read, the expressions of disgust and anger about the treatment of the Earth were so evident and encouraging. They are a smart group of kids. They always know how to make me smile!

After school, I headed to the dentist to get my cavities filled. BOOOOO! No one likes to have cavities and I haven't for at least ten years. Well, what is done is done (in terms of cavities) so off I went. I was a bit apprehensive because I have vivid memories of the shots and pain that I had as a child getting my teeth pulled, cavities filled, etc. My early dental life was full of office visits. My dentist was GREAT! He numbed me before I even got the shots! I didn't feel a thing. WHEW! I do have a strange feeling as if the numbed portion of my face is hanging all the way to the ground! It has worn off now, and I am back to my Diet Coke and dinner.

A few days ago, I saw The Vow in theaters. ((I recommend it)) There was a preview for a new Nicholas Sparks movie, The Lucky One. I was talking about it and my principal has the book! She lent it to me and I am on chapter 4. I figure I am going to read and then write every night. It is hard to turn off the TV, but it is worth it!  

There are many challenges day in and day out... but my goal to be a full time classroom teacher is so close! I know that if I take care of myself, my family, and my students, I will achieve that goal. 

 I wish running was included in the package! I haven't been able to make it to the gym at all this week... I need to get back into the habit. So busy and random things keep popping up. It is definitely an early night for me. These last few days have been exhausting! 
-Alexis-

Monday, February 27, 2012

Day.Two.

Well, all of that wonderful energy that I had this weekend went out the door when my car wouldn't start this morning. (good thing I have good people around me to come pick me up for school!) I walked into my classroom with 8 beautiful faces staring at me as well daily folder that are EMPTY! Planning on making it to school early today didn't really happen... so, I had to make due. I got everything printed within the first 20 minutes of the day and everything went off without a problem. Pan to end of school day: my car is in the garage, I am at school, and have no way to get home. (I am a baseball widow until the end of the summer now) I am glad my father in law and dad are there to help me. Got home, car started, and oil changed (with a side of -new battery-) When I got home, overwhelmed with the amount of frustration of the day, I got straight to chopping! Chopping up the salad, that is. Tomorrow is the teacher luncheon for February birthdays (yours truly included)! Making salad for 50+ people is a larger task than I expected. 
I am in no way complaining because I was forced to stay at work and do the small things that I never seem to get around to. I helped my principal create her first twitter account. The excitement that technology can bring is amazing! It really brings people together. The men at the oil change/battery place were so helpful and kind. I didn't feel like they were just selling me a new battery! 
Here is to a smoother day tomorrow and a fun start to celebrating the wonderful life of Dr. Seuss and his amazing work!


Sunday, February 26, 2012

Day.One.

Yesterday, I had the privilege of attending the Dublin Literacy Conference 2012! Not only was I surrounded by fellow teachers who LOVE what they do (which can be refreshing at times) but I was also re-enegrized by the speakers who spoke from experience to guide my classroom! I had the honor of listening to Donalyn Miller and was inspired to start writing this blog. She was a great way to start the day with so much passion. I got to sing and dance with the authors of Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, Eric Litwin and James Dean. ((I even got signed copies of their books for my classroom))


The first session I attended was all about my students as writers and how to incorporate it into the classroom. Very informative and helpful. Thank you Mandy Robek!


The second session I attended was about Literacy Teams and the different activities that they did in their classrooms to create a fun reading experience on a LOW budget. My favorite idea- Make STAMPS out of bottle caps and foam stickers! (genius because I have been looking for a set of alphabet stamps for my classroom)


The third and final session was all about the mini-lesson. I have definitely been over-thinking the mini-lesson! Ruth Ayres laid it out so organized and simply. I am excited to start using them more in my classroom.


Although it was a Saturday, I am so glad I got the opportunity to go to the Dublin Literacy Confrence! I learned a lot of new things that I will be using in my classroom tomorrow!


I love to teach and when I learn more about teaching, it energizes me and keeps my focus on the goal: my own classroom.


-Alexis