Better Late Than Never, Right?

After changing my blog design earlier today, I am motivated to get back into blogging!  Summer's approaching and I'll have more time to share more about the huge challenge my new job has been - in both bad and {mostly} good ways!

But for today I'll join in with a new linky party I've found: Super Six Sundays, hosted by bewitched bookworms.  And even though it's Saturday, and they'll be starting a new linky tomorrow, I loved the topic they chose for this week and can't help but join in the fun!

This week's prompt:  List Six Books You Couldn't Stop Thinking About.


Zoo by James Patterson

I have to admit, I'm not a huge fan of James Patterson, and usually when I finish one of his books, I can't remember it for more than a couple of hours.  That's what makes Zoo so different!  I read it months ago and I keep talking about it to anyone who happens to bring up books, reading, animals, or almost anything else!

Henry's Sisters by Cathy Lamb

This is one of the best books I have ever read.  I recommend it to everyone who asks, but I have never known another reader who has read it!

The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate

I spent all of last summer looking for a new great book that could measure up to the previous summer's offerings - to no avail.  Read my review for Ivan here.

Okay for Now by Gary Schmidt

The same summer that gave me Ivan also introduced me to Doug Swieteck.  I have still not recovered from my angst for Doug.  Read my original review here.





 

Madame Tussaud by Michelle Moran

Historical fiction at its best. Meticulously researched and brilliantly executed, I felt like I was in the midst of the French Revolution, and Marie's struggle to survive!







The Book Whisperer & Reading in the Wild by Donnalyn Miller

The best professional books ever!  Each one confirmed for me what I already knew and justified my teaching style to anyone who doubted me!






Click each title to see the book on Barnes and Noble.

It's Official!

I got a job!!

On Friday, I had my very first teaching job interview.  To say I was nervous is the understatement of the year.  I had been prepping/worrying for an entire week about what it would be like, what they would ask, what to include in my portfolio, what lessons I would teach - the list goes on!

I have to thank my friends - without their love, support and prayers, I don't think I would have been so prepared or confident going in.  By the time Friday came, I had heard from everyone (enough that I believed it!) that any school would be lucky to have me!

So, I took a deep breath, said a quick prayer of my own, and headed for the door...

Needless to say, the interview went GREAT!  I was {almost} offered a job on the spot.  (There was another interview later in the day.)  I was told not to accept any other offers between Friday and Monday without speaking with them first.  But, by 8:00pm that evening, the principal had emailed me an offer!

So, here's the scoop:

I will be teaching 4th/5th Grade Math and a section or two of Science and/or Social Studies.

The best part about my new school is I will have each group (4th then 5th) for TWO HOURS each!  I can't even imagine  how I am going to schedule two hours of math instruction yet, but I am absolutely thrilled with the idea!  In last year's classroom, I was lucky to carve out an hour block twice a week!  The other days, I had to make due with 40 minutes!

I am going in later this week to sign some paperwork.  I'm hoping to snap a few pictures of my classroom, so I can do some planning and maybe drop a couple of things off.  Sooo excited!!!

Right now, I'm off to the bookstore to get these two books:


I have to admit - while I like teaching math and I'm good at it, I have almost always read Literacy Professional Development books.  So it's time to catch up!  I know that Guided Math was huge among bloggers last summer, so I'm starting there.

What other PD books about math do you recommend?  Help a girl out!

The Daily 5. Yay or Nay?

So I just finished reading and rereading The Daily 5.  I have mixed feelings about implementing it in my classroom.  In bullet points, here's what I see as strengths and weaknesses (for me).   **Warning!  This post is a bit 'stream of consciousness' (i.e. - rambling) as I sort out my thoughts.

Strengths:

• I love that the students are taught to be independent and the responsibility for success is put in their hands.  This is something I always strive to do - sometimes successfully, sometimes not.
• It's a proven plan.  I know many teachers who use it and love it.  None of them are near my school.
• The book is set up to be foolproof.  The sisters guide you through nearly every aspect of every lesson for the first 5 weeks of school!  I feel like if you follow their steps, you will succeed!
• Oh, to not have to create and manage centers anymore!

Weaknesses:

• I'm not sure how to fit it into my day - and still teach everything else I have to teach (math, ss, science, religion, specialty classes, etc.)
• My room is S.M.A.L.L., y'all!  I have no idea how to add a gathering space, anchor charts, an easel for creating anchor charts, listening centers, etc.
• We have a new P this year.  No one else in my school does The Daily 5.  Will the new P be ok with me doing something completely different than everyone else? (Not that we teach reading the same way now...)

Well.  How about that?  Writing out these pros and cons has solidified my decision.  I can see now that my 'weaknesses' were just excuses.  I am going to do it!  I have a meeting next week with the new P.  I'll clear it with her, and then I'm going to figure the rest out!  I don't really think I have time to do a true Daily 5; probably I'll do a Daily 3 like the sisters suggest at the end of the book.   It's been a long time since I changed up my plans so drastically, and it makes me a bit nervous, but I know it's what's best for my students - so bring it on!

Meanwhile I found this ridiculously cute owl themed set of D5 posters for free!  Nancy at Joy of Kindergarten offers these on Scribd.  Plus she's from Ohio - just like me!

Click the picture to go to Nancy's blog and grab your set, too.

How to Handle Difficult Parents

 

 How to Handle Difficult Parents

Suzanne Capek Tingley

September 2006

From Shelfari:

"Be it "Pinocchio's Mom," who thinks her child never lies, the "Caped Crusader," who will stop at nothing to have a book eliminated from the curriculum, or the "Helicopter Mom," who hovers and swoops in to protect her child from disappointment, this humorous handbook helps educators deal with impossible parents. Each chapter features a hilarious caricature that illuminates common parent anxieties followed by specific, practical methods for addressing the problem. Easily implemented advice on face-to-face confrontations helps teachers approach each conflict with the confidence to get their point across and the composure to keep their professional principles intact."

I sat down and read this book in one sitting.  I couldn't put it down!  The caricatures of  parents I have dealt with made me laugh out loud, but the advice for handling them was invaluable and  really kept me reading for much longer than I had planned.  Like I've said before, I  tend to shy away from professional books unless they have tons of practical advice from real teachers - and this does just that.  Ms. Tingley is a former teacher, administrator and now a superintendent.  Some of the advice is common sense, but who can't use a reminder that common sense sometimes must prevail?  I will keep this book for years as a refresher and resource to have on hand when I need it.

Summer Reading Linky Party

This is my first blog post that isn't a book review on this site.  (It's also the very first time I have joined in a linky party!!)  When I saw the great linky party going on at Clutter-Free Classroom, I just had to jump in.  After all, recommending books is, like, my thing, right?

I am a bit hesitant to pick up a professional book without a recommendation; many are too full of theory and not enough practical, been there, done that, this works, kind of stuff that I crave.  So after watching the blogs most of the summer, and reading some of the discussion surrounding it, late last summer (and into the school year actually) I finally jumped on the bandwagon and read THE BEST PROFESSIONAL BOOK EVER:

Donalyn Miller is a genius, and her book justified many of the things I already did in my classroom (SSR, DEAR, whatever you call it, and no more AR point goals!!) and showed me the way to improve and enhance my reading instruction with fun and focused lessons.  Over the three or four days it took me to read it, I shared tons of information from the book with my students.  I was so eager to share that even they weren't safe from my glee!

This summer (which starts in, officially, 6 school days!) I am not waiting to pick a book.  I've seen these:

   

recommended by bloggers I have followed for a while, like The Ways They Learn.  Who can't learn new tricks for classroom management, right?  I can't wait to get started!

I also have some standbys that I read each summer: 

      

Just for fun reading is a whole 'nother thing!  I have soooo many books on my TBR list, I don't know where to start.  The aforementioned genius of all things reading, Donalyn Miller is hosting (?) a Book-a-Day challenge.  Sounds both exhilarating and terrifying!  But at least for little while, I'll just be finishing all the books I started over the last few weeks, so I may start out pretty strong.  We'll see what happens after that...

I can't wait to see what other books are chosen!  Click below to join in or see the list!