Do not!!

As usual, I've discovered from a narrative writing sample that my kiddos picked up a few bad writing habits somewhere along the way. They are typical and boring beginnings for narratives. I will begin formal Writers' Workshop sessions pretty soon, but for now I couldn't resist making and hanging these posters as guidelines for what I consider ILLEGAL in my room. These beginnings and endings are boring, after all, and we aren't interested in being boring writers!

First week...phew!

It's Saturday, and I'm taking it easy! This past week marked the first full week of the 2012-2013 school year. It was a great week, but it was exhausting! I always feel overwhelmed by the enormous task of collecting and sorting through stacks of signed paperwork in addition to teaching procedures, rules, and of course learning the names, interests, and personalities of 40ish little darlings. . My kiddos have learned how to crack the combination to their lockers and the basics about middle school, but we're still working on transitioning quickly. It is truly tough for ten year olds to not only get their locker open with time constraints, but also to put in what they don't need and take out only what they do need. Patience is certainly necessary! I am happy to say that my new owl themed classroom library has been a hit! They seem to appreciate that the books are organized by genre and the new seating in that area. I've also gotten lovely comments from the kiddos about my hanging flowery thingies above their desk! I am very excited to shift away from teambuilding and introductory activities to actual teaching of new content. This is my favorite thing about teaching kiddos! Being busy with teaching and facilitating new lessons, assignments, and projects gets me excited and gives the kids a chance to show what they're capable of and helps me get to know their personalities even more! My brain is still a bit too fried to go any specifics about the weeks, the kids, and ideas that I have, but I'll previous some of these ideas with brief tidbits below...

• Students photos on day 1 holding a sign specially made for them....adorable!
• Equipment to assist two hearing impaired students has been installed in my room....surround sound!
• Last period planning. I used to loathe teachers who could walk out of school 10 minutes after the bell sounded....I'm loving it now.
• Interactive notebooks....I'm nervous!!
• My classroom blog...to maintain or not to maintain??

I'll be back soon!