Report Cards

Thanks to this new assessment for the early childhood classrooms, the report cards are a cinch.  I do the documentation on the students all quarter long, then input them into the teaching strategies online program, grade the students and finalize their developments and then Walla! a computer generated report card with room for teacher comments.  Thank the many deities for technology!  I don't know what I'd do without it.

Parent Involvement

So I had my first parent conferences!!  Excited that I got 14 parents to show up.  I was ecstatic because I wasn't sure how many parents would actually show up.  On top of that, I had some great conversations with my student's parents and got a better look at what he/she is like at home.  YEAY for a successful PTC!

As for other projects, I've been sending students home with practice work, things they can do at home to help their child develop some fine motor skills and problem solving skills.  The children are eager to get their work back to me and are mighty proud of the work they do at home.  I am skeptical to see what happens towards the end of the school year but they children are trying their best but they can't do it without their parents helping them.

At my school, we started family literacy circles and these are projects sent home every month.  Well for September, we sent home book templates for my students to fill in and draw with their families.  I had almost every book back and they were great.  We shared the books the following week and every single child was proud and eager to share it.  This month, we sent home materials to make a paperbag puppet and the puppets that came back were so creative.  On Friday, they all got to share their puppets with the class and a small group of families.  One of my students (who during the week squished all his puppet making materials in his backpack) brought in a cookie monster puppet that love nutter butters.  Another child brought in a puppet that is a rockstar designed after the school security guard who played instruments for the class during our community helpers themed weeks.  Another child made a princess puppet with her picture and a princess doll dress attached to it.  I thank the parents who worked so hard with their child to make their puppet happen.

I am thinking about collecting all their family literacy circle projects together and showcasing it at the end of the school year to demonstrate the child's growth with the help of their families and friends.

On another note, October is the month for most teachers to start losing their steam but I feel like I've only just begun and my next challenge is report cards.  Yup, 3-4 year olds get report cards!

donorschoose.org

I was super lucky and one of my first projects on Donors Choose got funded and shipped within weeks.  Now I am on a more ambitious project: getting some indoor gym equipment.  It's harder than I imagine and I haven't had any bids yet.  I'm tempted to bid on it myself but hey, that would seem counterproductive since I got on this website to lessen the out of pocket I am already spending.  Maybe I just need to think smaller next time.

If you're interested in donating to my classroom, you can message me or look at my profile for classroom wishlist.  Thanks donors choose for making it possible!

Mommy! Mommy!

Last week I was called mommy by a student.  Yup and I looked at the child and I said to him, he's mommy was at home and I am his teacher.

Also, unsure how I feel about Rhee leaving.  I feel like I just got to know her and now she's leaving.  Maybe this is how dc feels too.  I was hoping to get to know her better.

All in a Day

So this week I stopped a fight a 3 year old started.  Luckily enough I was able to remove him physically, if it was a older child, I don't know what I could have done.  It's all sorted now but it was scary.

On a slightly better note, I have a child draw a picture of me, my first picture of the year.  I was smiling from ear to ear.

I realize that these things will happen, some great moments about being a teacher and some not so great ones.  I'm learning tons from my students and I hope that I'll have more of the later and less of the fighting. I realize that sometimes, you can do as much as you can to  give positive reinforcements and praise good behavior and give choices and be a good role model and explain but it just doesn't go your way.

Every Wednesday

I have shared duty with my paraprofessional for lunch and recess since the rest of the school is at Fillmore Art Center every Weds. I have so much fun.  One, I get to see the lunch habits of the students and two, I get to see them play amongst themselves without having the share the playground with 50 other students.

Lunch habits, my students won't try new foods/vegetables, whatever thing they can't pick up with their fingers.  I have tried on numerous occasions to get them to taste new dishes.  My para and I have even taken a small portion to demonstrate the deliciousness of school lunches.  Our school lunches are quite nutritious with plenty of veggies.  Hopefully they will come around.

Recess, my favorite time with them.  This is the time I can watch my students and actually see how they play without the restrictions of a classroom and classroom rules of a game.  They play and get rough.  I even have overlooked some rough and tumble play because sometimes they just need it.  I have watched a step show given by a four year old and played a game of  monster while scaring and chasing children around the playground.  I noticed how the children are dominate or become submissive during a game of pet store or house.  I get to see the social aspects of play without being a part of it and the pecking order is quite amazing.  How the quietest student become the loudest and most dominate in a game of house or the most vocal student "hangs out" on the sideline with the teacher.

Hoping to not get jaded by the expectations of ME (master educator) observations and feedback.

Meetings!!!!

So at my school we've been having tons of collaborative planning meetings and PDs, unfortunately the school is so small that sometimes the the collaborative meetings end up consisting of PS-G2 teachers and the PDs are about general usage of DCPS technology.

I am open to collaborating with other teachers but when their immediate or my immediate issues does not effect them, it makes our time together useless and meaningless for one or more group of individuals.  I have already brought this up and luckily, other senior teachers have expressed this concern.  Instead of meeting 3 times a week (M, W, F) we will only met for 30 minutes once a week.

As for the PDs (T,TH), I have sat through 3 half hour meetings learning about google calendar, creating an event and inviting people to the event.  I must say that these meetings were useless for me and could have used my time in a more meaningful manner.  I don't want to get upset but I have tons of documentation that can be completed during this time and time to set up my classroom before the children arrive.

This means that every morning I have a half hour meeting before the children arrive to school.  I don't like meaningless meetings because all it does is a half of complaining on one party or another.  Rather I would like productive meetings in which issues are discussed and matters are solved, that people are held accountable for the time outside of the classroom.