Teachable Moments for March

March is almost upon us!

One of my favorite times of the year. We are coming out of winter and heading into spring.

One teachable moment I would like to share doesn’t have to do with March at all, but was a great memory from when I was teaching middle school.

I had a sixth grade class of second language learners and I taught English, math, and social studies to them. We had been studying idioms and their origins in English class and Greek Mythology during social studies. I had bought a fan book which had each of the Greek gods and goddesses. I told the students that I would copy each page but I was going to have to cover some of the pictures because the Greeks wore little clothes and had “too much skin” showing.

Then a week or so later, I was trying to encourage students to read more and I was sharing how if you find an author you like, read other books from that author. I happened to have just bought an adult novel that Judy Blume had published. I showed the kids the book and shared how I loved her books as a child and I was interested in how she was as an adult author. One of the students asked me to pass it around so they could look at it. I told them I didn’t want to do that because she had some bad words in the text. And that is when one of students said, “The book has too much skin, Ms. Jackson.” I laughed and said, “Yes, it does.” I loved how this idiom was born in the classroom! As a teacher, you relish in the times the students make connections with the lessons that you teach them. It was a great moment!

Until next time, hope all is well with you and your students.

Five for Friday

Happy Friday the 13^th!

 I always have good luck on Friday the 13^th. It is already starting off great because I have the day off. I love holidays!

I am linking up with Doodle Bug Teaching for Five for Friday.

First, I got my pictures back of my kiddos on the Star of India. We spend the night and pretended we were sailors for the night. What a great experience for my students.

Second, my students had a performance this week with the violin teacher. They did such a great job with only eight weeks of lesson (1 hour a week). Now we are on to the flute.

Third, my students have earned 100 – 100% on tests so far this year. So we celebrated their achievement by having a Hawaiian Party in February. Only in San Diego right? They moved all their desks and sat on beach towels. We had flower cupcakes and listened to Hawaiian music.

What a fun day!

Fourth, we finished the book Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry by Mildred D. Taylor. My students loved this book. It has a lot of themes and historical references to racism. It stirred up quite the conversations. It is great to see my students tackle difficult material.

Fifth, my students spent the week doing Valentine's Day Math Activities. They are a great way to review standards that they need to master this year.

Hopefully, all of you will have a nice President’s Day break (my daughter gets a whole week off – lucky). Thanks for stopping by to check out my blog!

Currently February!

Happy February! I am linking up with Farley at Oh Boy Fourth Grade.

Listening to: Sea Chantey - Drunken Sailor.

I just came back from spending the night on The Star of India, a 150 year old ship. I still have sea chanteys running through my head. My students and I were sailors acting out a trip from London to New Zealand as an emigrant ship. The students worked in 5 crews: line handlers, boatswains, deckhands, riggers, and galley. They had to work on the ship and do 1½ hour shifts during the night. The students had a fantastic time!!!

Loving: A Few Hours to Myself. 

My husband went fishing for a few hours and I have the house to myself. I am doing laundry, watching a movie, and working on my blog. Just me and the dogs. I usually don’t like to be alone, but I needed it today!

Thinking: Where to Put All My Pictures and New Furniture.

I just received some new furniture and unpacked all my pictures for the house. We just got the last of our stuff out of storage. I want to hang all the pictures and rearrange some of the furniture to mix in the new stuff I bought.

Needing to: Finish my “By the Great Horn Spoon” TpT Product.

I have been working on several projects at once and I need to finish my big product – By the Great Horn Spoon. Sometimes the big products drag out a little bit, and I am feeling the need to finish it this week.

Wanting to: Finish my Spanish Homework.

 I am taking a Spanish Conversation course and my professor gave me a lot of homework this week. I want to get it all done before the weekend is over. It gets so busy during the week, it is hard to get it done at that time.

Queen of Organization

I feel like all I have been doing lately is organizing my entire life and I am not finished yet.

Hope you all have a good start of February! Thanks for stopping by!

Tried it Tuesday

I am back into the swing! I am hooking up this week with Fourth Grade Flipper for Tried it Tuesday.

I want to share something that I have been doing in class for a while now. It is not glamorous, but it is effective.

Each morning I have a warm-up. My students do the warm-up to get their mind in focus. Since I teach gifted students, many of them are avid readers. So much so that they will read when they are supposed to being doing something else – like school work or listening to the teacher.

Over time, I noticed students were not finishing all of the warm-up and waiting until I went over it to finish it. I would catch some students reading. So I started to star their papers. If they were finished and everything looked good from a glance, they would earn a star. Then, the students who received a star would earn a point for their table. I keep track of table points each day. Of course, the table points were used for other things too, but now I included finishing work.

Now, I not only do it for warm-up time. I do it during all the subjects. During social studies or science, I will star classwork when the students finish. And the students know – their table earns a point.

I know it seems so simple, but I wanted to share this technique because it has increased engaging production in my classroom! If you are someone who struggles with students staying on task, maybe this will work for you.

Thanks for dropping by!

January Currently

Happy New Year! Here is my 2015 currently!

I am linking up with Farley from Oh Boy Fourth Grade!

Listening to silence - I am waking this morning to silence. My kids are sleeping in – I have three teenagers – so I won’t see them until noon. My husband is quietly watching television and I am working on my computer. I love the silence. I rarely get to hear it!

Loving my vacation! I really enjoy teaching, but I do need my vacations. I find myself rested and reinvigorated to teach the next few months when I have a break. I went to Albuquerque the first part of my vacation to visit family. It was so fun – love that part of the family! Now we are back and getting things done around the house and shopping. Few more days before I return to school.

Thinking of a new year in the classroom and TpT. I can’t wait until our field trip to the Star of India. Student, parents, and I will sleep on the ship for the night and experience what the passengers to the “New World” experienced.

As far as TpT, I had a great first year. I am looking forward to another year filled with products and milestones.

Wanting to finish my latest project: By the Great Horn Spoon. I am creating a visual support for the book along with questions for each chapter. I am using the book in January and need to finish the product soon.

Needing to clean up my house. In December, we finished the tile floor and had carpet installed. Now, I need to put everything back. A lot of stuff is still in the garage and it keeps staring at me. Such a huge task, but I need to get working on it. Maybe I will do a little today!

Yes to eating right! Like most out there I need to get back on track of eating right. I have let myself go and need to rekindle my healthy eating habits.

I have already started last week as soon as we returned from the relatives. It is always hard to eat well when you aren’t at home.

Maybe to reading more! I wish I had more time to read. I have a few books sitting here ready to be read – it is just the time – work, kids, TpT, housework, etc. are always first. Oh well, I will keep trying to fit some reading in.

I wish to have a great year! This past year came with some challenges. I am looking forward to a better year! Thinking positive and moving forward!

Thanks for stopping by – I hope this New Year is a great one for you!

New Year's Resolutions

It is almost New Year’s and you know what that means – time for New Year’s Resolutions. I am linking up with Second Grade Nest to give you my resolutions.

First, I want to learn how to create my own clip art. I bought a scanner a few months ago and have started an Adobe account. So the next step is to try it out. I am not an artist but there are a few things I could draw. I want to use the artwork in my classroom and for my TpT products. So, wish me luck!

Next, I want to get my office organized. I have piles of papers that need to be filed or trashed. I have been in an extensive remodel of my house and needless to say, my paperwork has suffered with all the moving around. I just carpeted the rooms, so it is time to organize the office. I am going to purchase a new file cabinet and get started. Yeah!

Surprise, Surprise – I want to eat better and exercise more. Lately, I have been eating more than usual because of all the holiday parties and family visits. Plus, I haven’t been to the gym in the last few weeks. I love how when things get crazy, it is so easy to drop eating well and exercising. Oh well, I am geared up and excited to get back on track!

Next, on the remodeling road is to complete my master bathroom. We just completed our floors with travertine and carpet this fall. Right now, my husband is installing all the baseboard and molding around the doors and windows. But this year’s goal is the master bath. We just need tile everything and install the cabinets. We have the fixtures and tub already. The shower is functioning – it just needs tile too. So as usual, it is time and money. When I get my tax return we will have the money and then by then my husband will be done with the baseboard and stuff – so he will have the time - lucky him!

Finally, I signed up for my new Spanish class. I am super excited – it is with my favorite instructor, Carmen. I learn so much from her. This is a conversation class - something new for me. Two classes to go and I will be ready for the test. I am almost there!

Thanks for stopping by - I hope you have a wonderful year ahead!

Sunday Scoop - 12/7/14

Happy Sunday! Here is my Sunday Scoop!

This week I am linking up with the gals from 

Teaching Trio.

 Three things I have to do:

1.   I have to put my house together. We just got carpet in 6 areas of our house – five bedrooms and the living room. So needless to say, I have a lot of furniture and stuff in the garage and patio that needs to go 

back in its place.

 2.   I have to write a practice test for my students on fractions. I am using NY engage math to do common core math, but I like to have a practice test so the students are prepared for the test. We are still learning how to do math with common core. My students still struggle sometimes with what they are being asked to do.

3.  Laundry – not only my weekly clothes but linens and blankets. I have cleaned out rooms that stored some linens and blankets and I want to clean them before I put them back.

Two things I hope to do:

1.   Finish my TpT product I am working on right now. 

I am making a visual presentation for the book By the Great Horn Spoon. When I have read the book in the past, it helped students to have a slide show of vocabulary of words they didn’t really know. For example, I would put up pictures of paddle boats or pantaloons. Now I am going back and adding questions to the PowerPoint.

2.  I am hoping to have some extra time to read some books I bought. They are in Spanish. I am continuing to improve my Spanish so I become bilingual. The book sitting next to my bed is El Libro de la Vida (The book of Life). It is about a 3^rd grade level – just my speed. I know most of the words, but as I tell my students, reading improves vocabulary. So, that is what I am doing – in Spanish.

One thing I am happy to do:

1.   This Wednesday for our staff’s professional development we are all going bowling. My principal is having us do team building by bowling and having pizza together. I am looking forward to having a good time with my colleagues. We are always talking and working together to help students. This will be a 

fun change.

Thanks for visiting! I hope you have a good week and Happy Holidays!