Teacher Thoughts: Technology in the Classroom

So I thought I'd stop by to write a very quick blog post and ask those of you in the blogosphere for your help!

There's an amazing organization called DonorsChoose.org that helps teachers get donations for their classrooms.  Currently, I have a project open for a technology need that I have in my classroom. 

While you wonderful, generous people are more than welcome to help me by making a donation, I am also asking that if you know anyone who would be able to help that you share the link with them!

Thank  you all in advance for helping me to be a more effective teacher! :)

CLICK HERE TO SEE MY TECHNOLOGY PROJECT

Teacher Thoughts: Why Don't People Like Us?

It's been awhile since I've written a Teacher Thoughts post, but I have some things on my mind right now.  Where better to get them out?!

With the new change in our Nation's administration, the topic of education has been popping up in the news.  In Pennsylvania, there are some new bills in the works, and while I am not asking for a political debate or to discuss politics on my blog, it has all brought to mind some things I don't really understand.

Why Don't People Like Educators?

Summers Off
I've mentioned before that people are pretty bitter about teachers getting summers off.  This seems to be one of the biggest reasons why people hate educators.

I'm sorry that I don't have to work for most of June and August and not at all in July.  But that is the schedule for my job.  In this country (or at least most states in our country), we choose not to send our students to school year round.  How is that MY fault?

People don't realize that many teachers have summer jobs to make ends meet.  I am fortunate enough that this is not a necessity for our household.  My salary is spread out over the whole year, and my husband has a very good job.  So while I COULD work in the summer to make extra, I haven't HAD to.

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I spend A LOT of time on my summer vacation preparing for the next school year.  I work on new ways and approaches to my lessons and teaching to try to find ways to keep learning exciting and productive for my students.  Once I am able to access my classroom after the thorough summer cleaning, I am in the building getting my room set up, making copies, and preparing for the students' arrival in August.

I love being able to be available to spend time with my husband on his days off and before or after he goes to work.  This year, I am going to be able to enjoy my summer off with my first baby!

It is certainly a benefit of my job.

But should it really make people hate me?

"Those who can't...teach."
I despise this quote.

People seem to believe that teachers are just a bunch of idiots who went into teaching because they weren't smart enough or good enough to do something else.

Are there teachers of whom this is true?  Probably.

Most of us are not.

I went into teaching because I love kids.  When I was a kid, I used to spend hours playing "school" in our playroom.  I had a little chalkboard and chalk.  I would always help my teachers to correct papers (I remember doing this even in FIRST GRADE!)  Many of my teachers would allow me to take home extras of worksheets we had done in class so that I could use them to play.

Like any job, there are good days and bad, but overall, I love helping my students learn and watching them grow as people and as learners.

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We have good benefits.
I am an employee of the State of Pennsylvania.  While school districts vary in some areas, it is required across the state that each school district provide a minimum of 10 sick days per year.  There is a Bill right now that would eliminate this requirement and make sick leave part of contract negotiations.

Again, I'm "sorry" that I have good options for paid leave should I need it.  For the record, I hardly ever use sick days.  At the beginning of this school year, I had almost 70 stored up.  This turned out to be a good thing because my school district's policy is that I need to use up all of my sick days prior to getting FMLA.  So I will be able to take off from May-June to have my baby, have my summer off, start the next school year, and still have a very good stash of days.

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Let's be honest.  Teaching is a pretty traditional profession.  Teachers are able to have a more traditional family dynamic, which is something that appeals to many who enter the profession.

I don't understand why people hate us for being able to be available to take care of our families.


I could probably go on, but I won't.

The fact is that unless you are an educator or work in a school in some capacity, you really don't know or understand what it's REALLY like to work in education.

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We face a lot of obstacles each day including state mandates & requirements, uncooperative students and/or parents, demands of your individual school district, and ultimately the responsibility of providing the best education possible to our students (despite EVERYTHING previously mentioned).

Yet we still do it.

Most of us do it because we want the best for the future citizens of our nation.

We do it despite constantly being under fire from federal and state governments, as well as the "haters" in society.

And if that doesn't mean that I deserve a summer off, I don't know what does. 

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Teacher Thoughts: Return to Work

While I run the risk of getting berated for complaining sharing what it's like returning to work after a summer off, I'm going to do it anyway.

Going back to work after a summer off is not for the faint of heart.

Imagine that you are going to run a marathon.  Most people put in months and months of training to build up to that big race.

Going back to teaching after a summer off is like running that marathon without training.

I'm not joking.

I'm perpetually exhausted.

You're going from 0 to 60 in seconds, and it's a hard readjustment.

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Things that I must do now that I don't do all (or most of) summer:
*Set an alarm
*Get out of bed without lazing for an hour or so
*Pack a lunch
*Wear real clothes
*Put on makeup, do hair, and generally attempt to look presentable
*Be on my feet for most of my day
*Talk almost all day long
*Know the date, time, and day of the week

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And on top of that, there's all of the daily home chores that still need to be done.

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I also always forget that it takes FOREVER to accomplish tasks at the beginning of the school year.  Lessons take twice as long to present and for students to DO because I forget that my expectations and processes need to be explained before each new task.  And if I'm trying something new (which I almost always am), we're ALL figuring it out together.

I've made a mental note to stop having my first two weeks of plans done.  I had to rewrite last week's plans anyway.

But alas, there's nothing that I can do to stop time and keep my summer suspended indefinitely.  So we'll just keep chipping away at the days on the calendar instead.

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173 to go....

Teacher Thoughts: Summer Vacation

I know that based on the title of this post you might be thinking a few things about teachers and our summer vacation:

1) Teachers are SO lucky to get their entire summer off!
2) That [insert mean word of choice]!  It's not fair that she has a whole summer off.
3) I'm so jealous.  I wish I could have a summer off.
4) Teachers don't deserve to have all of that time off.

Maybe you aren't thinking any of those.  But still, we teachers often take a lot of flak for the blessing that we call June, July, and August.

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Maybe I can help to clear up some misconceptions about teachers and summer vacation.  (Or at least, what summer vacation is like for me.)

On summer vacation, I...

...get to sleep in more often.  I am not a morning person.  Getting up at 6:00 A.M. (sometimes earlier) is NOT my idea of a good time.  Being able to sleep until at least 7 makes my life outlook much sunnier (literally AND figuratively).

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...do more manual labor.  I can actually keep up with the house work: laundry, dishes, cleaning, etc.  That I use my job as an excuse to avoid 9 months out of the year.  :-p  Also, we are working on our house (mostly outside right now to prep for new siding) so I am often up early (see above) helping Scott outside.  I also am often responsible for mowing the lawn since Scott is usually busy working.  Having to cut the grass makes me feel irrationally irritated because I absolutely HATE it.


...recuperate from the school year.  No, teaching is not a physically demanding job.  But if you aren't a teacher (or if you don't work in the school system in some capacity), you may not fully understand the demands placed upon teachers today.  (You may want to look back at my past posts about teaching.)  But between lesson planning and actual teaching, there are many other things I am responsible for during the school day/year.  Not to mention that teaching takes an emotional toll on you.  When you care about your students, you worry about them.  It comes with the territory.

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...obsess about the coming school year.  I love, love, love getting ready for the upcoming school year.  I love getting my classroom ready, buying school supplies, and making plans for how I'm going to approach teaching during the coming year.  I am always trying to better myself and to make things work better for my students.  I want to do my best to help them learn the most during the school year.  That takes time and planning.  Ideas pop into my head at random times, and it often leads me to have back to school nightmares.  Lately, though, my school nightmares have all been featuring people and students that I encountered during the school year that just ended, so I'm not having the "new year" nightmares yet.

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...have more time to spend with my husband, family, and friends.  It's so nice to have more freedom (aka time) to make plans to do things with people I care about.  I don't feel like hiding in my house avoiding the world because I'm so exhausted.

...complete projects that I've been putting off until now.  I always have crafting ideas or things I want to organize, donate, sell, etc.  Summer time gives me the time to do all of this!  I just listed about 20 books/textbooks on Amazon recently.  It's so nice to have the time to package them and drop them off at the post office THE DAY that someone buys them, rather than having to wait until I have time.

...can read more!!  I try to devour as many books during June, July, and August as I can because it's so much harder to find time to read during the school year.

...RELAX.  I'm not one of those people who struggles with relaxing and doing nothing....even during the school year.  But summer break gives me time to get things done AND relax without feeling guilty about it.

So yes, summer break is a definite perk of being a teacher.  Many people criticize us for this, but keep in mind that many teachers DO work other jobs during the summer simply because they couldn't make ends meet without doing so.  Some teachers get the joy of spending their time off with their kids!  I truly couldn't "do" teaching year-round.  I love it, but it's stressful and exhausting at times.  Summer is my time to rest, rejuvenate, and become refreshed for the school year ahead.

Teachers, what do YOU do on your summer vacation?

Non-teachers, what would YOU do if you had the whole summer off?

Teacher Thoughts: The Woes of State Testing

Day 1 of State Testing is in the books.  In Pennsylvania, my students take the PSSA (Pennsylvania System of School Assessment).  While there are some important factors involving our school's scores, this post is not about the evil woes regarding job status or school funding.

This is about boredom.

I.  Am.  So.  Bored.

As I type this, we have only completed our first day (see beginning of post).  My students are having some extra recess (indoors because it's rainy and miserable here today).

My lesson plans for the next three weeks are finished.  I really and truly don't have anything pressing that needs to be done.

Which makes me think that I must be forgetting something.

During the testing we are not allowed to be on the computer or doing anything constructive because we are to be "actively monitoring" the students.  Also known as "stare at them and watch them take a test."

I don't put pressure on my kids.  All I ask is that they do their best.  I'm not going to give 11- and 12-year-olds an ulcer because I want them to score well to help me.  It's not worth it.  Having them develop anxiety over test taking is not one of my objectives as a teacher.

We tested for most of the morning.

Then we watched about half of a movie before lunch (they requested The Princess Bride).  Then I have mostly been letting them have recess since.  Hopefully, we can get outside at some point this week.

I read a book while they were at music class.

I.  Am.  So.  Bored.

What's state testing week like in your state?

Teacher Thoughts: Book Source

As a teacher, I have built quite a large collection of books for my students.  As a 6th grade English Language Arts (ELA) teacher, I feel that it is my duty to have a good selection of books for my students to read.

My first year of teaching 6th grade, I inherited a decent amount of books from previous teachers who retired and left books behind.  I added to this collection with books that I had as a child/teen and continued to build my library with my Scholastic Bonus Points.

Then I started to notice that books had gone missing.  Despite having what I thought was a check out system, it was truly impossible to tell who really did have my books.

Enter Book Source.

I wish I could say that I remembered how I came across this, but I don't.  All I know is that it has made a HUGE difference in how I track who has books from my classroom library.

The first thing that I did was download the app.  There is also a corresponding website, which is what I use most often in the classroom. 

Here's how I got things set up:

1.  I created an account when I downloaded the FREE app.

2.  I spent a great deal of time during my summer break entering books into my library.  

You can do this by scanning the EAN code on the book or manually entering ISBN numbers.  I had to use both methods.  I had books that were so old that they didn't even have ISBN numbers, so I just created listings myself.  I also had books that did not have a bar code or didn't have a bar code containing the ISBN, so I manually entered those, too.  I used the website to add any listings that I couldn't scan with my phone.  (I promise, that after the initial time commitment, it's not time consuming at all!)  As I get new books, I quickly scan them with the app and add them to the collection.

3.  Set up Login Information and Passwords for students.

Once I had the library set up, I created a classroom ID and password for both the students and I to login to the website.  From here, you also create a separate teacher password to access the teacher page to do things like manage students or the library.  I added the first name and last initial of all of the students that would come to my classroom this year and gave them all a general password.

Now, the set up was completed!  

During the first week of school, discussing my classroom library was on my list of introductory things to discuss with my students.  I have a poster hanging by the computers that goes through the steps of logging in and checking out books.

When a student picks out a book from my library, he goes to the website and logs in.  Then he clicks on the student tab, searches for his name, clicks on it, and searches for the book he has chosen.  Once he finds the book, he clicks "check out," and voila!  Book checked out.  I don't need to do anything.  I can pull up a list of students who have out books if I notice one is missing.

Students can return books on their own, but I prefer to be in control of that.  When a student finishes a book, they bring it to me to return.  I can scan it back in with the app on my phone or use the website.  I have a bin in my library for students to put the book back, and my classroom librarian will file it later.

I have it set so students can only check out 1 book at a time, and I know exactly who has it and how long it's been checked out!

As you can see, I have 740 titles in my library, and this has been a HUGE help!  

Teacher friends, do you have a system for managing your classroom library?

I was not approached by or compensated in any way by Booksource.com for this post.  All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.

Teacher Thoughts: Collins Writing (A Brief Overview)

It's been awhile since I wrote a Teacher Thoughts post!

Ironically, I'm avoiding grading tests and writing assignments in order to write this post.

But, I digress.

This year, I have had the privilege of attending some writing workshops with Dr. John Collins.  Not only is Dr. Collins an incredibly engaging speaker (he's HILARIOUS), his writing program is a teacher's dream.  Let me give you a brief run down:

Dr. Collin's has 5 Types of Writing.
Type 1- Quick, timed writing assignments

• Students are required to write a specific number of items
• The assignment is timed
• Students earn participation points ONLY (in other words, it's not graded)
• Responses can be correct or incorrect, participation is the key
• Often  used to check understanding of topics covered in class

Type 2- Timed writing assignments; Quizzes

• Similar to Type 1 in that they are timed
• Can be a list or short writing assignment
• GRADED- correct responses are the goal

Type 3- Longer Writing assignments using FCAs 

• FCA stands for Focus Correction Area
• Pick 3 FCAs on which students should focus their writing (On a recent comparison essay, my students had the following FCAs: Total of 10 similarities & differences, 4 paragraphs w/ paragraph components, Complete Sentences)
• FCAs are each assigned a point value for grading 
• Point values are determined by the teacher based on importance
• Dr. Collins has each paper valued at a total of 100 points (Mine are usually 50-80.)
• Students should read their own paper aloud in a 1 foot voice

Type 4- Same as type 3

• The difference between Type 3 and Type 4 is that in Type 4, students get to have another student review their papers before handing in
• Students should read partners' papers aloud in a 1 foot voice
• Students should sign their names to their partners' papers after review

Type 5- "Perfect" Writing

• These are pieces that are drafted, edited, and revised for publishing

I plan to get more in depth on Collins Writing in further installments of Teacher Thoughts.  I think that was enough for one post.

Fellow teachers, have you heard of/used Collins writing in your classroom?

Teacher Thoughts: A Little Thank You

Today's "Teacher Thoughts" is short and sweet.

This year, I was once again blessed with some Christmas gifts from my students.  It's always exciting and touching to receive gifts from them.  It's not something that they are required to do, of course, and at my school, our sixth graders switch classes which means they have multiple teachers.  I'm always especially touched when a student from another homeroom brings me a gift because that can be a lot for families to take on!

In fact, this year, there is one homeroom of students that I don't see for a class at all.  One of the students in this class is a girl that I had when I taught first grade.  On our last day before break, she came across the hall with a card and a gift (a bracelet) for me.  I was very moved because I don't see her more than in passing.  It was incredibly sweet for her (and her family) to include me in their gift-giving this season.

This year, over my Christmas break, I wrote out thank you notes to the twelve students who gave gifts to me.  While I always intend to do this, sometimes it just gets lost in the hustle and bustle of the holidays (or my incredible gift at being able to sleep at the drop of the hat even if I'm not really tired...).  I just think that it's special and important for them to get a little thank you from me to let them know that I truly did appreciate their gifts.

Are all of the gifts things that I love or will use?  No, not necessarily.  But I'm not ungrateful for getting another coffee mug, and I'm more than grateful that they wanted to bless me this Christmas.  The least I can do is take the time in this busy day and age to hand write a thank you to send home with them.

Fellow teachers, do you write out thank you notes to your students?

Teacher Thoughts: Sub Problems

Last time, I talked about what it's like to be a sick teacher.  For this post, I thought I'd delve a bit deeper into why having a substitute is so much of a problem.

One of the biggest issues in my school district is a severe lack of substitute teachers.  (I am finding out that this is not just an issue in my school district, but it is a problem in many schools in Central PA.)  We use an online system for acquiring our subs.  Openings are listed online, but subs can also be called by phone if jobs are not picked up.

There a few problems with this system:

• Sometimes the jobs do not show up for subs for various reasons
• The school district no longer hires subs directly.  They are hired by the company that runs the system.  These substitutes may not even know where my school district is or live anywhere near it.
• It's easier to not take jobs because there's no live person you feel like you are disappointing.  (When I first started teaching as a substitute, I loved the online system for this reason.  Even when calls are made, it is an automated system.  It's much easier to reject a machine than a real person calling from the school.)

We have quite a few retired teachers from our district who return to sub all of the time.  Due to restrictions, though, they are only allowed to accumulate a certain number of days/hours or it can affect their retirement.

The district has collected data, and we have actually been asked to do our best to avoid missing Fridays because we are highly likely NOT to get a substitute on a Friday.

If we don't have a substitute to cover our absences, my school has a couple of things--none of which are pleasant for anyone.

1. Cancel a special area class (i.e. art, library, music, phys ed, technology) and have that teacher cover the teacher's class for the day.  This means that any teacher whose students were scheduled for that class will not have their planning time.
2. Cancel Title 1 Reading support and have the reading specialist cover for the day (which we are technically not allowed to do).
3. Have a different teacher cover the class each period.  This works by other teachers having to give up their planning time to teach a class for a period.  I have planning time 2nd period, so when this happens, I would go during second period and teach who knows what and who knows what grade.

Of these options, #1 is the most preferred, but we shouldn't have to do this!  A teacher who is out sick shouldn't have to worry or feel bad that someone else might lose their precious planning time to cover his/her class!

IF you are fortunate enough to get a substitute any sort of things can go wrong.

I admit.  I'm a control freak.  I write detailed plans that explain what and how to do things in my classroom so that everything will run smoothly.  All a person needs to do is follow these plans.

Unfortunately, that doesn't always happen.

One of our retired substitutes has been subbing with us for awhile.  When I was teaching first grade, she refused to allow my students to work in their learning centers because she didn't like the "chaos."  A few weeks ago, I was at a professional development conference.  I was out for two days, and I got a text from a teacher on my team the second day.  The sub from Thursday had done ALL of the work I had planned for reading for Thursday AND Friday.  The worst part of it was that she assigned part of the work as homework.  Luckily, the sub for the next day was one I could trust, and we just had the students read for their reading period.

I can't tell you how many times I've come back from an absence--planned or otherwise--to a disaster.  Stuff that should have been done that wasn't.  Stuff that was done that shouldn't have been.  It's not that hard to follow a person's plans.

Subs will inevitably get things done faster than you because they don't know the students or the nuances you add into your lessons.  For my sixth graders, the simple solution is to let them read quietly.  In fact, I usually write in my plans that if they have extra time they should let the kids read!

It's not rocket science.

Teacher Thoughts: What it's Like to Be a Sick Teacher

I came across a pin on Pinterest the other day that really hits the nail on the head.  The pin linked to a blog post about teachers being sick.  Needless to say, I was inspired and decided to share my own thoughts on this matter here on Teacher Thoughts.

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First of all, to clarify for any non-teachers here, teachers are required to write lesson plans about what you will be teaching for each class each day of the week.  Some teachers write very lengthy plans and others are able to communicate what they will be teaching in a condensed manner.  (I am a condensed manner teacher).  BUT when a sub is coming to my classroom, I want to be as detailed as possible.

My first problem is that I am a control freak.  I like things to be done the way I want them done and not how a substitute teacher thinks I want them done.  So I write step-by-step plans to describe to the substitute not only what he/she should be doing but what the students will be doing, as well.

I think this should go without saying, but this takes a lot of time.

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The second issue comes up when you have a lesson (or lessons) planned that only you can teach.  I'm not saying that substitutes are not competent educators (although, some are not).  What I am saying is that there are lessons that I just can't explain to someone else.  For example, I have been attending some professional development conferences recently, and I'm learning new methods for teaching in reading and writing.  I am just trying out some of these things, and I don't have the time required to try to type up a plan explaining it to someone else when I attended a 6 hour conference to learn it myself.

Last year, my principal decided to have us all make up a folder with emergency sub plans to be kept in our mailboxes in the office.  Basically, this is for times when you need to miss work and were not planning to.  Almost every absence I have is a planned one.  My absences are almost always for professional development.  I rarely need/use sick days....mostly for the reasons I've already stated.  These plans are basically only to be used in the event that your sub can't figure out what to do, OR that you would prefer the sub follows those plans instead of trying to follow yours.

Most of the time, if I end up calling off sick and wasn't planning on it (like in October when I woke up and couldn't talk.....), I grab my phone, mentally recall my plans, and email detailed instructions to one of my fellow sixth grade teachers to print out and give to the sub.

Truthfully, this is also about leaving your "kids" in the hands of someone that you probably don't know!  I don't like not knowing what will happen in my classroom while I'm gone, but sometimes, it's just that hard to get out of bed and go.  My school has a severe substitute shortage, and you never know if you'll actually get a sub to fill your absence.

And that, my friends, will be in the next installment of Teacher Thoughts....sub problems!

Teacher Thoughts: Gifts for the Teacher

Happy first day of December!  Now that this magical month is here, I thought it would be a good idea to use this segment of Teacher Thoughts to share some great gift ideas for teachers!

(Or at least great gift ideas for this teacher.)

I have gotten some great gifts over the years.  I am always truly grateful for the gifts I receive from my students.  In truth, they don't have to get me anything.  So it's very touching when they do.  Some of the gift ideas below are gifts I have received or gifts that would be great for the teacher(s) on your shopping list this year!

1. Candles
I have never been disappointed with the gift of a candle.  Scott and I love burning them at the house, so he gets to benefit from this gift, too!  Even better than a regular candle?  Jewelry in Candles!  I'm obsessed with these right now.  (You can choose the type of jewelry that's included in the candle, and it's SO fun to be surprised!)

Naughty or Nice candle

2. Restaurant Gift Cards
There are few things that make me happy as much as going out to eat.  If I don't have to cook, I'm a happy camper.  The only thing that makes going out to eat better is going out to eat for FREE (or for less than we would have paid without a gift card)!  Scott and I have been to The Olive Garden, Applebee's, and many other restaurants for a treat thanks to the generosity of my students' families.

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3. Scarves, hats, gloves
Some of my favorite winter weather items have actually been gifts from my students.  It can be scary to buy these things for someone you really don't know because you want them to match their coats or be colors you like.  Ask your kids.  They will be very likely to know the color of their teachers' coats and/or what their favorite colors are.  Still unsure?  Include a gift receipt!  The worst thing that happens is that the teacher can take it back and exchange it for something else.

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4.  Barnes & Noble Gift Card
This is a little specific.  I suppose it could be a gift card to any book store.  I just happen to love Barnes & Noble, and I LOVE it when I get a gift card!!  The best part about this is that the teacher can choose to use the gift card to buy books for the classroom or him/herself.  Since I teach 6th grade, sometimes that's one and the same thing.  I have purchased books, read them myself, and added them to my classroom library.

Barnes & Noble Gift Card

5. Bottle of wine
I've never gotten this.  I suppose it's probably not acceptable for your child to bring an alcoholic beverage to school.  But if you happen to know your child's teacher well enough, or don't mind making a trip.  You could always drop it off in a gift bag at the office.....or a gift card in an envelope would suffice here.

Fellow teachers, what are some gifts you like (or would like) to get from your students?

Parents, what are some of your favorite gifts to give to your children's teachers?