Ms. M's Tales of a Teacher: My Personal Teacher Blog

 This past summer I had the privilege of joining the writing leadership team at school to write the curriculum. After the few minutes of celebrating that I would have this opportunity I realized one thing... I had to actually write the curriculum for a brand new method we were implementing... (input scary music of choice here...)  I was fortunate that we had amazing trainers throughout the year last year to introduce us to Writing Workshop. On my own time, I conferred with previous trainers we worked with for Reading Workshop, and I am forever grateful for their guidance. Knowing myself as a learner, and taking my own advice I'd give my own students, I knew that I needed to continue my own self-directed learning in order to even attempt fully grasping the essence of Writing Workshop. I am excited to say I joined Literacy Partners Membership, purchased many books from Heinemann on Workshop, and I've been learning more everyday.  I'm noticing during my Launching unit for Rea

 I recently decided that I was going to do something special for my fellow teacher friends on Sundays. Although I wish I could do a grand gesture such as magically grade their papers or write their lesson plans for all of them, I'm aware that I have my own to conquer, and that's plenty for one person! I've decided that on Sunday I'm going to share a little bit of inspiration with the teaching community, and I hope that it reaches many teachers who need it. I'm calling it "inSpiration Sunday."  I recently heard on a podcast The Jeff Bradbury show, that often times the greatest idea starts off, well quite messy... and if we have an idea, we need to simply put it out there and try it. Work on it, tweak it, and see how it develops and changes over time. With that spirit in mind, I decided to express my thoughts in my Sunday post. Right now I don't have a specific direction or topic, but rather I'm simply speaking what's on my heart and mind through

 Happy New Year! This might seem like my timing is off, however, if you think about it, we are probably the only profession where we get a fresh start every year. We get to clean and redecorate the classroom, we get a new set of students, possible co-teachers, schedules, and more. The first few days of school (and the days leading up to them,) can be both exciting and stressful, especially if it's your first year. I've created a short reminder list to keep in your back pocket (or teacher bag!) to help you feel ready to start. The goal is to feel more excited than anxious.  Even as a veteran teacher, I can promise you that we still have first-day jitters, forget to do things, and freeze up in the middle of class when showing students the procedure for lining up for lunch. The important thing to remember is to be your authentic self and let the students have time to truly connect with you and one another. The rest will come with time!  Keep relationships first!, Keep refining you

 Cheers to the final segment of the co-teaching mini-series! Engaging... this word brings to the surface many thoughts and even emotions. Thinking about engaging students in class can spark a sense of creativity in some, and others a wave of anxiety. While it's natural to feel anxious about how to foster engagement in your classroom, I encourage you (and your co-teacher) to use every opportunity to work together to develop a plan engaging your students, yourself and each other.  One of my favorite educational influences Dave Burgess   speaks about how often we fall back on the idea that we "aren't creative" but then again, what defines creativity really? Of course we can put a definition to the term, but creativity isn't something we just wait for, we have to do it! My co-teacher and I spend a good part of our meeting time discussing ways we can engage our students in meaningful instruction. My co-teacher developed a concept "Ferny the Dragon" during vir