I am back with Mrs. D's Corner to talk about my FUTURE carrying out plans, after a full summer of being ridiculously pregnant :) I am going to talk about my "looking back in part one!" Which you can find here. As well as talk about what things I am going to work on implementing this next year!
Communication
So back at Part 1: My communication were newsletters and weekly updates. The weekly updates usually happened through texts or a quick letter home (which I found made home most days/weeks/months at the bottom of kiddos backpacks)
Which leads me to something I want to try this year: Google Classroom!
I am going to be gone 2 months on maternity leave and I want a way to see my kiddos work, and communicate with them, which I can do and access from home.
Here is a preview of what Google Classroom looks like. I don't have any assignments up right now.
I'm super excited to dive into this. I am hoping I can just get it all explained and set up within 3 weeks of being back at work with my kiddos.
Also, I am a huge lover of Remind 101. I struggled last year with getting parents to sign up, so I am thinking at Open House, they HAVE to sign up before they leave. Maybe I could enter the parents who sign up in a drawing? Something. Shoot me some ideas ;)
Organization & Classroom Management
I absolutely do NOT want stuff all over.
Looking at pictures last year makes me cringe. My husband is going to create me one of the shelves like Hope King's in this picture, except with only 6 openings, and then I am going to get the drawers. There's 3 for their journals, and 3 for supplies. That's one of my ideas.
I have yet to see my room, so check back for a classroom reveal to see how my room looks at the end of August :)
Content
I am super excited to teach JUST writing this year. I love writing so much, especially when I can use amazing authors and novels to showcase writing styles and techniques.
I have went a little overboard with new novels, but my expectations are going to be SUPER high this year for my students, so they are going to have higher level mentor texts to use as sentence structure examples as well as paragraph ideas.
I also am a huge advocate of Gretchen Bernabei's writing style.
I'm not sure if you've heard of her, but if you haven't! Check out her page and visit my friend Kayla at Texas Teaching Fanatic who is a workshop provider for Gretchen's style!
Here are just a few of her books that I am LIVING through next year:
If you teach upper grades 4+, PLEASE check out her stuff. It is PHENOMENAL!
Last, but not least
My Big Summer Project(s)
Maternity plans and a YAG
Well, my maternity plans are pretty much written and developed, now to get the big sub tub and book together. SERIOUS work. Holy moly. I wish I could just take baby to school and teach at the same time?
YAG - well I have mixed feelings about this.
In my masters classes this summer we just learned that there shouldn't necessarily be SO MUCH dependence on following a YAG given that students may or may not be prepared, so there should always be room for "ifs", "not readies", etc. I firmly believe this. It's a great idea in theory to have it all laid out for the year, but what if a majority of your students don't get something for 3+ days and you have to completely alter instruction or go back and reteach a standard they should already have mastered. Should always be in the back in of our minds.
Whew so, I'm totally not ready for summer to be over. My birthday is in 2 days, baby will be here in a little over a month. I am so ready. I finish my masters soon too. Busy busy! I hope y'all have had a great summer and have gotten back in your rooms, I can't wait to creep on them all!! We get in on the 10th and I can't wait to share with you my new ideas :)
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