...And Then it Was Summer

I'm not going to make any excuses for my long absence.  I'm hoping to actually carve in time duing my working hours to blog.  So, here is the short list update!

Since my last post I've-

• had a baby
• taught my 2nd graders
• packed up my classroom
• attended training: CHAMPS, Canvas, and MORE!
• taken care of my daughter (unexpected surgery)
• put my house on the market to sell
• moved to 3rd grade at the same school
• started working out

Phew!  That is just the TIP of the ice berg!  I'm a pretty busy gal, and love doing things well.  This week I'm at CISD Connects Technology training learning all sort of COOL things, house hunting, and spending time with my family visiting from WI! 

Kiss the Pig Winner!

Wow! Thanks for for the support for our school parents! The kids in class really enjoyed watched me kissing the pig on KTUF this morning! 

Blessed!

What a blessing it is to work with such wonderful and caring families.  Thank you so much for the baby shower and helping us get ready for the arrival of our baby girl! The games were fun and the gifts were very much appreciated! I can't wait to see the pictures that you took! 

How adorable!

I love reading kid writing...we had a section on a citizenship assessment where the student had to draw a picture and fill in a sentence frame with how they show good citizenship! Well, this time I was featured in the student's art work! This shows our class waiting to switch and my student at the front being a good citizen in the hallway-made my night! 

Read for a Better Life!

Our class enjoyed a special guest reader, Principal Cresswell!  She was able to come and read some of the Pigeon Books by Mo Willems to our class and Mrs. Harrison's class.  
What a special treat! :)

Principal Cresswell reads to our classes!

Go Noodle!

One of the awesome things about teaching 2nd graders is the fact they are kids and like to have FUN!  I personally believe that children are not meant to sit still all day, and a firm believer of "brain breaks".  These are breaks we take to stand up, get our blood moving, and give ourselves a break from our learning so that we can learn more.  If you are interested in the research behind brain breaks, read this article "Moving With the Brain in Mind" by Eric Jensen, one of the leading researchers on teaching with the brain in mind.

In our class, I use an internet site called GoNoodle to help our class refresh, refocus, and reenergize before moving on to the next lesson.  It has a variety of activities including Yoga stretches, Zumba for Kids, Just Dance type of dancing, running training, and much more! The cool part is that we have a little mascot that we earn points for with our activities.  Every 10 points our mascot grows, changes, or adds a friend.  The kids LOVE earning things for their mascots and taking breaks!  I can't wait to join in with them after my maternity leave!

Here is a picture of our class enjoying a "GoNoodle" break: 

Budding authors...

Had a fantastic Writer's Workshop! Here is my morning class during our "open" workshop thoroughly enjoying the writing process and all are engaged...love!