Monday Made It

Here's 

My Smiley Wreath

Last summer I made this smiley wreath 

for my classroom.

It really served it's purpose.  When I walked in my room each morning, it never failed to smile, reminding me of my goal to find something to celebrate every day.

This idea was originally inspired by 

Girl in the Garage.  Click here for her tutorial. Click here to see more of her fabulous wreaths.

To see how I made mine click here.

Being that I'm always changing colors from year to year, my wreath had a make-over.

Class Blog Update

Here's a peek.

Last year I started a class blog. In all honesty it was a struggle keeping it up to date. As you know, there's always a hundred things to do.  I also needed to make it more interesting and interactive for the kids.  So, this year's summer project developed into the tweeking of our class blog. First, I updated the look to match our year's colors.

Then, I wrote multiple posts in advance from language lessons to studying tips. I added more pages,  created a class calendar for the year. And, for the first time, I'll be uploading my posts to Google Classroom.  Everything is ready to go, I'm stoked!  

Little White Number Frames

To avoid the potential catastrophe of losing an important paper, my students return all work, papers, or notes in the baskets that correspond with the hour they're in my class.   These are my baskets from last year, simply labeled with laminated numbers for each period. 

Instead of the laminated labels, this year we're using the little white frame with numbers. If this works I may not have to laminate numbers again. 

We'll see.

Bunting with Class Name ~

The beginning of our school year is quickly approaching.  Although I work most of the summer preparing for it, it can still be overwhelming.  Everything seems to be a priority.  

My biggest worry each year is that I won't be ready by the first day.  

A few years ago I adopted this small coping phrase and it made, and still makes, all the difference, 

"It's not the end of the world."  

"It" meaning anything that I cannot humanly take care before "the" day.  Life moves on, 

it gets managed, and everything works out.  

So, if all our t's are not crossed, and i's are not dotted by the first day our kids walk in,  

"It's not the end of the world".  

We'll be ok, the kids will be ok, everyone will be ok.  

It will get done, eventually. 

Thank you for stopping by, come back 

and visit real soon.

Wordless Wednesday: Green Breaking Through

One of my goals this summer was to work on my struggling green thumb.

Here's how it went:

I bought several plants, two survived.

I watched a YouTube video on planting mango seeds, followed the directions as I understood them, 

planted two, one is barely surviving.

Just as I encourage my stuggling students not to give up, I took my own advice.

 I went back to our local home center, bought cilantro seeds, and planted them. This time I bought vegetable plant food.  Aha!  That should do the trick.  Then, each day I'd wait and see if life was bursting through the dirt.  Nothing.

Until last Monday ~ Oh my goodness, 

I couldn't believe my eyes,

green was breaking through.

I heard a quote once that said, 

It makes me think of all the other things

I'm waiting or wishing for.

. . . Or, all the times I give up because I don't see quick enough results.  

The best intentions in the world will not produce our dreams.  However, putting one foot in front of the other, feeding with action, education, and effort, 

. . . and waiting with expectation,

one day we might see

What are you waiting for?

Are you feeding it?

Wednesday's Wonder: Learning Strategy "Kick Me"

Wednesday's Wonder is where I find learning strategies from The Teaching Channel that grab my interest and I wonder, 

"Would that work with my ELL's?"

This video was taped in Jodi Macauley's, 7th grade, writing class.  She is demonstrating a word choice strategy called, "Kick Me".  It is inspired by the prank where someone writes a note on another person's back that says, "kick me".  Just the notion of it being inspired by something that middle schoolers think is funny already says to me that kids might like this strategy.  

Monday Made It