Accountability 201: Round two for summertime to-do

June is here, and school is in the downhill slide (with a few roadblocks along the way, but we should make it unscathed).  That means it's time for my summer-time list of items that I ignore most of the school year, and have to get completed before the whole school year creeps up on me again.  Overwhelming?  A bit, but breaking it up into chunks and checklists actually helps me stay on top of them, accountable, and less risk of forgetting (which is happening more and more... and I definitely rely on my calendar and post-it notes!).









So this year, the list comes back out to get all the craziness out of my head and onto (electronic) paper.  I still have the sticky notes in my office, but since I'm actually spending LESS time there, and more out and about, this electronic version may be more appropriate this year.  Time will tell.



Last summer, my strategy of a TOP 5 list worked quite well.  It kept be on track and gave me a target.  Sometimes, it was less than 5, sometimes more, but it was a starting point, and I was able to make progress.  You can read my FIRST and LAST posts from last year here and here.


This year, I'm attempting what appears to be MUCH more.  It seems overwhelming, daunting, crazy; but that's my style.  Bite off more than I can chew to give me a lot to feel good about at the end.  (Who ever finishes their list anyway?)  I plan on rewarding myself along the way... and several of these are setting myself up for fall success in both school and business, so it's worth it.

Three months, and MUCH on my list.  Let's get this party started!

 
How many of these can I get finished by September 1?

• Home
• Kitchen
• Clean and Organize Frig
• Finish shelves & stock pantry
• Organize under sink
• Organize cabinets
• Electric
• Faucet
• First Floor
• Paint Stair Trim 
• Organize Breezeway
• A Frame away
• AC Mounting boards (exterior)
• Basement Stairs
• Garage
• Bed to Attic
• Table workbench
• Camp stuff on shelves
• Attic Stairs
• Second Floor
• Organize bathroom closet
• Paint bathroom
• Towel Rods 
• Closet Curtains

• Yard
• Organic Veggie Garden
• Potato Condo
• Side Shade Garden
• Trellis (Pallets)
• Chicken Coop

• Personal
• Doctor
• Mammogram
• Pap
• Eyes
• Budget
• Annual Budget Update
• Monthly Budget
• Pay off One Credit Card
• Debt Snowball (+600/mo)
• Sinking Fund ($2000)
• Read 5 Fiction Books
• tba
• tba
• tba
• HS Summer Reading tba
• MS Summer Reading tba
• Read 3 Non-Fiction Books
• 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
• tba
• tba

• Fitness
• Yoga
• Sunday 10:30
• Boot Camp @ Tanya's
• When?
• 30 Day Challenge
• Abs
• Arms

• Office
• Organize File Cabinet
• Organize Manuals
• Shred Documents
• Legacy Box

• Upload
•  TpT
• Line of Best Fit Project
• Rule of Four
• #1
• #2
• #3
• #4
• Bundle
• DC POWs

• Worcester (AxiD Corporation):
• Furnace Cleaning
• Sprinkler Inspection
• Alarm Inspection
• Washer Service
• Fire Extinguisher Inspection

• Canning, Freezing & Household:
• Liquid Laundry Soap
• Liquid Fabric Softener
• Dishwasher Detergent
• Lemon Kool-Aid Mix
• Green Salsa
• Red Salsa
• Pickles
• Spaghetti Sauce
• Chili Sauce 
• Freezer Meals
• Stock Freezer for winter
• Flash Freeze
• Kale
• Carrots 
• Peppers
• Potatoes (cook first?)

• Thirty-One:
• Fall Preview - June 12
• Book 3 parties summer
• Book 3 parties fall
• Book 3 vendor events
• RSS
• Budget (Jan - July)

• Family
• NYC w/ Dad and boys (late June/early July)
• Comic Conn @ Mohegan (August)
• Hike
• Beach
• Tubing w/ Softball
• 
  
• Scouts:
• Camp
• Pack equipment
• Merit Badges
• Citizenship of the Nation - A
• Archery - A
• Boards of Review/Feast

• School:
• Summer School
• Gr 7
• Gr 8
• Videos on SchoolTube
• INB usage
• Distribution
• Algebra Tiles
• tba
• Geometry Plan
• INB
• Year Calendar
• Algebra Review (biweekly - 10-18 packets)
• Math 8 Plan
• Pre-test MC
• Post-test MC/OR
• Vocab Tests MC or Matching
• Checklists (including bookmarks)
• HW Lists
• Study Helps
• Pictures of Current Work for samples (every chapter)
• Vocab Examples too!
• WYLB

Happy Summer!  And here's to accountability and accomplishments!

Summer School: How to Tame the Paper Overload!

As summer school has started, I realize how much organization and streamlining I accomplish during the first day of any school.  It's always overwhelming, and stressful, but once my systems get into place, things tend to run fairly smoothly.  The expectations are in place, and the summer blahs that my resentful students seems to go by the wayside (for the most part).  With the program we have in place, they feel like they have control of what they can work on, as long as they are given timeline and score parameters, and it works.

This year, we set up a modified Interactive Notebook, mostly for accountability with scores, attendance, a table of contents, and scrap paper for the skills.  Training the students in our routine was half the battle.  Simple systems like numbering pages and writing the day's date at the top seemed basic, but until a routine was established, proved quite difficult.

Another paper overload area was tracking scores on the computer program.  We created two types of trackers.

One was a standards post-it tracker taped on the wall above each students' computer.  These trackers had the computer program coded skills on post-it tabs and allowed the students to self-monitor the skills assigned to the class.  They could move the tab along the spectrum, in four color-coded areas.  We discussed how they should set a small goal when they start a skill, like reaching a score of 50, then when that goal is reached, to modify it to another goal.  I was trying to get them into the 70% range (the orange, Satisfactory, area), which depending on the skill, could be quick, or could be quite challening.  However, many of the kids wanted to reach MASTERED (100%), and were frustrated when that proved too challenging.  They also noticed that their risk was greater the higher their score was.  Getting one question wrong while in the 90% range dropped significantly, and they needed one question correct for every point they wanted to earn back.

The other tracker was a hanging folder for each student and demonstrated where to access the daily data measuring their progress.  Having each student document their own data, rather than the instructor gathering everyone's, proved helpful in two ways.  They documented not only their cumulative scores,  but also their performance and time practiced.  The weighted average was calculated by me, as a percentage of time spent,

First, it allowed the student to reflect on their performance immediately.  Yesterday, in fact, I had a student who commented that they were very off track, as their total practice time was only 15 minutes (when we typically have two 20 minute target sessions).  He noted that he was very unfocused.  I hope that this reflection will allow him to keep himself on track today.

Second, it allowed me to keep all the students records in one place, in the classroom, for evidence on their progress.  Our summer school this year is set up to be more remediation practice rather than pure instruction, so this allowed us to document the skills practiced and provide evidence for the administration once the program is complete.

We'll check back in a few weeks to see how the systems are maintained.  It's giving me hope - especially for kids who are not as strong mathematically, reluctant and resentful to being here in the summer, and are weak in organizational skills.  They CAN find success and improve in their skills - especially when they feel like they are in some control, have immediate feedback, and can set and meet goals.

Right now, were working on intrinsic motivation with some electronic motivation built into the computer program.  My back up for the last week is some extrinsic motivation (in the form of stickers and candy).  We'll see how their resentful attitudes are in a few weeks.  I'd LOVE to report that I don't need to break out the stickers!

Setting Goals and Sticking to Them

As the school year is getting into full swing, I finally have a chance to comment on my goal setting strategy with my students.  The challenge, to get them to commit to EIGHT goals (Seven of which are academic) in their Interactive Notebook this year.



The introduction of this task was clear:  Eighth Graders should have EIGHT goals.  Goal setting allows you to see progress, be motivated, feel accomplished.  Goals can be LARGE items or LONG TERM GOALS (like running a 5K) or can be broken down into smaller, manageable goals or tasks or SHORT TERM GOALS (run around the block, then move up to running for 15 minutes, then for a mile...etc).  We compared this to a series of stairs.




I hope to check in with the students on these goals several times a year to check on progress.  Some ideas about motivation, is making paper chain to hang around the room as we accomplish some of these goals (as a class) to add or stickers to add to their traced hands that they posted in my classroom.

At the end of the year, I hope to have an opportunity for students to complete a Goal Board to take with them.  I found that idea from a fabulous resource Teacherspayteachers.com where my teaching colleagues can post lessons and other resources that they have created.   I also have made a template of my own Quarterly Goal spreadsheet modified for usage that is available for FREE!  We'll see how the year progresses and how these kids strive to reach those goals!

 Create A Goal Board (Smart Goals)s by The SuperHERO Teacher

Template Quarterly Goals  by Stefani's Hope

Top 5 to do

Back from a family-filled and relaxing vacation, and swamped with catching up on life now that I'm back home, I figured that an appropriate blog post world be about my TOP 5 on my to-do list. 

Though this changes practically daily, it gives me both immediate gratification of checking those things off my list, as well as slowing chipping away at the larger items by breaking them down into more manageable tasks.  I am a HUGE fan of checking items off of a list or erasing them off a white-board.  I am queen of the post-it notes (almost to the point of being an addict).  I think the one thing that's actually throwing 'my game' right now, is that I've had to change my systems for the last 2 weeks while being gone, and it's taking me a bit to get back into the routine.

Now, back to the list.  For example, today's TOP FIVE list consists of:

1) Wash vacation laundry (an all day task, made easier by the timer app on my phone that lets me know when both washer and dryer are done.  I am IN LOVE with this app!)

2) Pay/Record Bills (the mail was on hold until today, so this will be interesting once my mailman shows up!  Fortunately, I was able to manage both my direct deposit and schedule some bill payments while on the road via a banking app.  Love technology!)

3) Pack boys and myself for scout camp (no app for this.  However, it is broken into two phases:  kid packs; mom checks.  An all day event)

4) Make customer service calls for my home-business and catch-up on e-mails.

5) Visit my neighbor who just retired yesterday.  (ready for this since my first cup of coffee this morning, but SHE'S NOT HOME!!!)

When I'm feeling particularly sluggish or need a good pick-me up, I often make a top 10 list, but have very menial tasks or individual portions of a larger task.  This might seem mundane, but it really helps me feel accomplished during the day.  A sense of satisfaction and accomplishment can go a long way! 

Now, back to checking those things off my list!

- Stefani