September = School Starts!

I feel like everybody else has started school except for me!  I'm so left out!

I meet my students Tuesday and first official day is Wednesday!  Yippee!  Until then, I'm soaking up every last minute of this glorious summer.  That means I'm binge watching movies, meeting up with friends, and probably school lunch grocery shopping.

The three trips makes me sad because now I want to go travel but I can't because school is starting.  I guess I should make some money before I go traveling again.  Ireland is on the bucket list, so hopefully sometime I'll get over there.  Since moving to Washington, I think I've heard the state of Alaska mentioned more than every other time in my life combined, so now I'm intrigued.  And closer.  So maybe I'll get up there someday.  I caught a quick glimpse of Coeur D'Alene  I drove through Idaho and I'm dying to go back and spend time there... that one may be the only real possibility in the next few years.  

Don't forget to link up with Farley...

Until then...back in the classroom!

            

Follow RTL On 

5 Types of Professional Development

We start school this week.  WE START SCHOOL THIS WEEK.  My students just found out that I'm their teacher yesterday.  They have no idea who I am, so I'm guessing it was a little anti-climactic.

I've spent three whole weeks in training.  New teacher training.  Writing camp training.  Professional Development.  Technology classes.  ER Training.  The works.  I'm all trained up.

I love professional development.  I love to learn about my teaching passion.  Sign me up for all of it.  However, time is money my friends, and I also have this teaching career that takes a lot of my time.  I love it, but there's a lot going on in my head when I'm attending training.  I want to devour the information at hand, but also make it fit with what I've got going on in the classroom.  I want ideas that are great, research based, helpful, and to the point.

But how many times have you left an entire day or even week of presentations and someone asked how it was and you said "it was ok".  Some presentations are going to be like that and are necessary.  First aid and emergency training, for instance.  I've done it a zillion times, but it's important and we will continue to do it even thought most of the time it's review.  Then some are huge wastes of time.  Then some are fabulous.

So this time of year when I have a billion things to do on my list and I'm sitting in meetings, this is how I'm feeling....

Here's how I break down the presentations I attend...

The Pinterest Presentation

This is probably my top choice for worst presentation.  I would actually rather listen to someone read directly from their Powerpoint Presentation of slides that they also gave to us in handouts.  Slide after slide of pictures found from Pinterest, which are, 99.9% of the time, not sited for original sources because it's "from Pinterest".  

I will follow that up with, I am most frustrated in any presentation that begins or ends with "Just go to Google/Pinterest and type in 'blahblahblah' and this will all come up."  If that's the case, then just email me some key words and I'll do it myself and save myself these 6 hours.  You also just lost a lot of credibility as a presenter.

The "You Present" Presentation

I know some people love these "you do" presentations because that's how they learn and we're teachers so we love that stuff.  But just financially speaking, this one drives me bonkers.  Either I'm paying you or you're paying me to be here.  If I'm paying you, then I'd like you up there doing the work.  Don't dedicate 3 hours of your 9 hours of presentation (plus hotel and travel) to me doing some research and teaching that I will never use again, just for you to sit and smile and tell us all we're doing a great job.  I'm a teacher.  Statistically that just doesn't make sense.  We can't all be doing great.  Some of us aren't and you don't care because you get paid either way.  If you're paying me, then you already know I'm a professional and can do my job.  You could pay me less if you let me go earlier and skipped the part where I make up a bunch of stuff.  I have never used a presentation I created for a training in my actual teaching (have you???).  If you want to see me teach, pop in to my classroom when I'm already getting paid and catch me working my magic.

The Directions Presentation

The one I attend because it's the only way for me to get those 4 directions I really need to get started or get finished.  Then I spend hours wandering the web because the rest is self-explanatory.  However most of the time, these are truly helpful for anyone who isn't very fluent in computers, so I can't complain.

The "Time for You" Presentation

This one usually begins with 30 minutes or so of great information or training.  It ends with "now we want to give you some time to work".  Sometimes this is helpful.  Typically it's timed when I have a billion other things I'd rather be doing because I can do this particular task later.

The Empowering Presentation

The best.  The best of the best.  You learn something new.  It's something practical for your classroom.  One of my coworkers went to one of these the other day and she came back exploding with excitement.  She flipped through pages of notes and promised copies for everyone and was pumped to get back to her classroom and begin.  Love when that happens.

But if you look at it from this perspective, then attending all those professional development days isn't so bad.....

Do you have any to add to the list??

            

Follow RTL On 

Time is a pesky little thing.

This is the most wonderful time of the year... and I truly mean that.  I have tons of friends and facebook teachers and other teachers I meet on the street that are all "Ugh summer's almost over, I'll have to work again!" and I'm all "THIS IS AWESOME WHEN CAN I START THIS CRAZINESS!"  Except this year I'm not quite ready yet so it's a good thing I have a couple weeks left to prep.

I am feeling like I don't have enough time, which is a complete lie.  I have time.  I'm just choosing not to use it.  It passes either way though, so that's the problem.  Today in training we discussed how when we are overwhelmed, we often do nothing instead of tackling the project.  That's basically the neighborhood I'm hanging out in right now.  The I'm Overwhelmed So I'm Going to Do Nothing neighborhood.  It really does not help the issue.

Then, I was flipping through my feed and realized ohhhh....shoot.  I forgot that tomorrow is ANOTHER TpT sale and I should probably get my store ready (and by that I mean...discount everything).  So now it's all prepped and ready to go.  Discount starts at midnight; set your alarm!

I wish I could keep up and give you more details, but I'm ear deep (that's a term, right?) in writer's workshop and training from THE Teachers College Reading and Writing Project, which means I'm currently training with the people who helped Lucy Calkins write her books and workshop approach and it's super overwhelming as a new teacher to this district so I'm trying to focus.  It's a four day training and we are are writing narratives, which in my opinion is the most brutal of all the writing types.  Workshop training is giving me some great ideas for my students though, so I am scribbling notes to help me set up my classroom and, of course, to share with you once I get my head screwed on straight.

In the meantime, grab all those things you forgot on TpT- don't forget to use the promo code to get the full discount!

Good luck with back to school...maybe make yourself some cookies.  Or buy them, because that's less time consuming.

            

Follow RTL On 

New City, New School, New Calendar

"So I was reading this blog" is totally the teacher's version of "So I was at this party"...

So I was reading this blog...The Inspired Apple...and Abby just posted about this great calendar she made on a canvas with these lovely bright numbers/letters that she posted for free... and suddenly I was in Michaels buying a canvas and at home printing off new calendar numbers.  I just couldn't help myself.

Besides, I had just hung up my old calendar and kind of ho-hummed my way through finding the September card and stapling it through the wall and thinking "this is terribly inconvenient" about both the most convenient calendar location in the room and the fact that I had to staple it to the wall.  I've shared my internal debate over my brand spanking new bulletin board walls.  Really do love them...just struggle in the how to set up a bulletin board part when the entire wall is my oyster.

Basically, this canvas calendar solved my problem-o.  Not to mention, I can take it off the wall and replace numbers/months instead of reaching across my desk to put all my weight into stapling it to the wall.  And velcro?  So smart.  Bonus.

When I returned from my surprise trip to Michaels (btw, canvases are buy one get one free at Michaels right now, and they are sold in sets of two, so really you can walk away with 4 plus 10% off if you use your phone coupon.  You're welcome.).  Suddenly I was drinking coffee and busy.  I may have jumped on a few other projects while everything was out and I was highly caffeinated.

I read an infographic once** about how if you want to be creative you should drink beer, but if you want to get things done, you should drink coffee.  I'm waiting for the combo so that I can be both all the time, but until then I will hunker down with my coffee and get to work.

**Everything on the internet is true.

And while I'm already inadvertently advertising for things (this is just really what I did...I don't get paid for being me), can I mention how much I l-o-v-e-d this marker/paint pen?  It was just what I was looking for and it was awesome... it made big thick lines and didn't run out or stop working or suddenly spit out a ton of black paint on my canvas.  It was spongy so I could smoosh it on the board.

I'd like to pretend like I spent hours measuring and making my squares really straight, but I didn't.  I did some quick pencil measures and then just went for it with the paint pen.  I live on the edge.

So I pretty much just love my finished product and I can't wait to take it to school and hang it on the wall!!

I don't know what I'm going to use the squares on the right for yet, but I decided to go ahead and make them instead of centering my calendar.  I'll find something.  Or not.  I don't know.

So... thank you, Abby.  You're a calendar genius.  And also this perfectly timed with what I was looking for.

            

Follow RTL On 

Oh, hello there, it's me.

As I was attempting to catch up on my blog reading (ohmygoodness there is no end in sight) I ran across Stephanie's {Falling into First} Meet the Teacher Linky and I was like yesssss.  I have a boatload of blog posts in draft form and nothing finalized and the beginning of the year is almost in full swing and it's 99 degrees today and I have no air conditioning and I have to pick a new health plan asap and my brain is on overload.  All part of why I love my job.  Except the air conditioning part.  I may be spending time in my car later just so that I can cool off.

THEN I was reading Diane's {Fifth in the Middle} meet the teacher post and I was like yesssss.  I, too, am feeling like a first year teacher with eight years of experience because I switched schools and moved halfway across the country....and I totally related to her post.  

So that's how I got to this point.  But if you want to know more, here's a little about me...

 THESE ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS...

*when you're talking with a friend and realize they totally get you*  

*new school supplies* 

*teaching & learning*

*laughing*

*being challenged*

*books books books*
*going on adventures and retelling the stories later*

 IF YOU WEREN'T A TEACHER, WHAT WOULD YOU WANT TO BE?

I was convinced I would be a child and family psychologist all through high school.  Then someone told me I would probably take my work home with me every day and it would take an emotional toll on me.  So then I became a teacher.  Wait, what?  

But I think teaching is the better fit and this is where I'm supposed to be.  So I guess I can thank whoever gave me that weird advice and totally doesn't understand teaching.

THREE LITTLE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE YOU.

happy * dedicated * focused

 

FINISH THE SENTENCE, "________,  SAID NO TEACHER EVER!!"

"Yes, I'm the one who broke the copier"
 

Q: IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY AND YOU CAN INVITE ANYONE {DEAD OR ALIVE} TO THE PARTY. WHO ARE YOU INVITING?

All my family and friends.  They're fantastic.

Q: IF SOMEONE WROTE A BOOK ABOUT YOUR LIFE, WHAT WOULD BE THE TITLE?

Let's do Lunch

 Q:YOU GET TO PICK ONE SUPERPOWER. WHAT IS IT?

 To help people understand another side of a situation or argument.

Q: WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE QUOTE OR SAYING?

or... 

 

Q: IF YOU HAD TO SING ONE SONG ON AMERICAN IDOL, WHAT WOULD IT BE? 

 Hallelujah 

...although I'd be terrible.

 

 Q: ARE YOU A MORNING PERSON OR A NIGHT OWL?

Night owl...but since moving to the west coast, I've stayed on central time and I'm just up early in the morning and grumpy about it.  Coffee to the rescue! 

 

Q: WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE RESOURCE THAT YOU'VE CREATED IN YOUR TPT SHOP?

 This is so silly, but I think it's my Place Value Bulletin board set!  I love it every year!  

Q: SHARE SOMETHING WE MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT YOU!

I love Nancy Drew books... I collect vintage editions and will go into complete geek mode if you strike up a conversation about them with me.

So go ahead and link up... or just go read about your favorite teacher bloggers and discover some new favorites to follow!  

            

Follow RTL On