Caddy Control

The year is now in (relatively) full swing, and I am proud to declare that I may have just established the best routine in my (gasp) 18 years of teaching:
  

the table caddy of supplies.

Now that I may have completely jinxed this new addition to my class, let me explain the need for this corralled chaos.

This year, I've taken on the challenge of the Interactive Notebook, or at least my version of one.  In doing to, I've also found the need for more 'cutting', 'pasting' and highlighting items into my students' work.  I assumed that the kids wouldn't have most of their supplies for the first days, so based on my activities, I supplied tape, scissors, glue, and markers.

I also found that setting the stage with community building activities, table groups, and constant flux in those groups was going to be a huge portion of my 90 minute Math classes this year.  (Sitting for 90 minutes straight was going to be waaaaaaay to long for my 8th graders!)  So I started the year with six groups of four in all my classes (of course, the last class requires two groups of five, since I had 26 students, and made me scramble for two more seats... but that's for another blog).

Each table was numbered and students were assigned groups based on these numbers.  Each table was identified by a stenciled number taped to a cylinder.   This cylinder is actually a LIFESAVER.  Not only is it acting as a group marker, but also is used as a trash bin for the table.   It's transparent, so it's easy to see when they need to be empty (or I prompt the table to do so).  I also can use it to clip the frequent table re-groupings for identification (that will be the subject of a future blog post).

These cylinders were marketed as a (wait for it) microwave spaghetti container, complete with lid and strainer (on sale for $0.88 each).  They're very solid plastic, a resin perhaps, and I hope they'll last quite a while for their current purpose.

The other lifesaver is the SHOWER CADDY.  I have used various plastic bins in the past for materials in class, but they always had 'issues'.   My markers were stored in Parmesan Cheese containers (perfect size for a standard Crayola set, complete with lid, and transparent plastic).  My colored pencils can fit in a green nut container, washed thoroughly and without the lid.  But in the past, these containers were always tossed around, sent rolling off the table, or not replaced on the shelf after usage.  It was hard to keep track of, even when I tried to play the 'matching game' with colored stickers.  I didn't train the kids well enough, and it became too frustrating to maintain.  So when I say on Pinterest the shower caddy, I was IN LOVE!  When I found the perfect plain Jane caddy at Ocean State Marketplace in June, I JUMPED!  And they sat on the shelf for 3 months while I waited for the new year to implement my new system.

During summer school, I tried out the supply system with another method I saw on Pinterest, the Silverware Caddy.  I had accumulated 3 of them and filled them with supplies for my two 2.5 hour classes each day.  This was only for 2 tables and allowed me to try some things out.  It was OK, but I was looking forward to my Shower Caddy system and starting an adjusted system for the new school year. (and I also lost all 6 of my pencil sharpeners during the summer program and have YET to gather inexpensive replacements)

In addition to the green colored pencil holders and the Parmesan Cheese marker containers, the caddies hold the groups Graphing Calculators that are available (rather than kids always getting UP to get them), protractors for the group, six-inch rulers, scissors (tip down), and glue sticks.  I also am in process of gathering a tape dispenser for each group.  It may be too big for the caddy, but will be marked with the group number as needed.  One of the JOBS that I also have created for each group is CADDY CONTROL.  This student is responsible for making sure that the caddy is in good shape before the table is dismissed.  So far, the kids have been receptive.  I usually go through the list 'colored pencils: tip up (to protect the sharpened ends), scissors: tip down, trash: emptied, markers: cap up (to ensure they're on)', but the kids have been helpful in cleaning up their communal space and that makes my life just a bit easier.  Maintaining it will be a challenge, but it will also force ME to get into a good routine.

So far, so good (let's hope I didn't jinx it!)

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

Garden Chaos - Top 5 things I will do again!

I was debating blogging about this, when I realized that I really didn't document the season to truly capture it all... I vow to do better next summer!  Regardless, it's time for the

Top 5 things 

I vow to do differently next summer 

in my garden.

Tip #1: Plant early to reap the harvest early!  This year, we didn't get the garden planted until well after Memorial Day (I typically plant it April Vacation week, even though it's still fairly chilly).  Procrastinating at the beginning lead to a later harvest, and with travel and weather complications, less of a yield.  Next year, I will vow to be out there daily.  Monitoring and weeding - little by little.... a little becomes a lot!  The task won't be insurmountable and I'll get some exercise too!

Tip #2: Get the garden organized and spaced well.  This year, we completely struck out with this one.  We expanded the garden to both a front yard and back yard section.  We didn't plan the front well at all, and we over planted the back.  Though it's looked fairly pathetic for the last several weeks.  In fact, to the point of embarrassment for the area on the side of the house, newly converted from crappy grass to fertile soil.  The tomatoes were tall and stringy and the vining plants weren't trellised.  Next year, we'll consider the spacing required for the plantings as well as the overall aesthetic of the garden itself.  Curb appeal still holds true.

Tip #3 :  Check for ripe veggies DAILY.  Both the zucchini and cucumbers got away from us (it didn't help that I was not home for 3 prime weeks this summer).  So the canning process for the cukes has resulted in some true Hamburger Chips - with the diameter of the burger itself.  That made it a bit tricky to can (I needed to get the wide mouth jars) but should result in some great dills later this year.  Note to self:  be sure to note HOT on the label of the Jalepeno Dills.  They get exponentially hotter when canned.  Great if you like hot stuff, not so much if you aren't expecting it.  We also dehydrated some of the peppers, eggplant, and cherry tomatoes.  Hopefully the tomatoes will be like a version of a sun dried tomato to spice up soups and salads this winter.

Tip #4: invest in a food mill or blender.  I have
my blender/food processor method for tomato paste/sauce, but others in my household have much more finicky tastes (and are quite LOUD in expressing those tastes).  I should hold my own, but sometimes you have to pick your battles.  A food mill allows you to press the pulp through and extract seeds and or skins from foods like tomato sauce.  This year, I didn't have one, but I did remove the skin from the tomatoes (though my scalded fingers don't quite appreciate the effort).  I think that will help the sauce department.  I do wish we had more of a crop for my salsas and chutneys, but I suppose they will have to wait until next year.  This year's crop of made into sauce.  I can't WAIT for my fall chili!

Tip #5: Compost is the key to fertile soil and next year's crop.  We had two methods of amending the soil this year.  First, the basic compost pile in the corner of the backyard.  Yard waste, food wastes, grass clippings, weeds, shredded paper, it all was added to the pile, watered and turned frequently.   This is something that I've done for years, but this year as the first we had a prime crop of Red Wiggler Worms added in.  They did what they are made to do:  eat, aerate the soil, poop, and procreate!  And the soil was wonderful and the worms were plentiful - to the point that we took some out and added them to the compost bin outside as well as directly to the garden soil!  We added the 'Juice' to potted plants and they perked right up.  We supplemented the topsoil when we transplanted the seedlings with 'Worm Manure' and it was not full of nutrients for our infant plants.  The plants did grow quite tall and produced lots of fruit (the tomatoes were huge, but took forever to turn - we assume that was weather based, not soil nutrients).  The only drawback is only having 3 trays for the worms.  Once they are established, they do need frequent maintenance (adding food scraps, draining excess fluid from the tray, removing manure to add room for the worms).  Lets just say, these worms will remain in my basement and will be fed throughout the winter.  I'm debating how to store the 'Juice' during the winter months.  Part of me wants to store it and save it for Spring, the other part of me says it's too fragrant (with the cap off).  We'll have to see.  I do know, though, the worms are more than welcome to return to my garden next Spring if they will contribute to my Garden's Bounty again!

I vow to take better pictures next year, so a timeline can be chronicled.  But until then, I'm off to can some tomatoes and finish my sauce :)

Visual Timer - my favorite clock!

One of my most favorite finds is my VISUAL TIMER that I use both at home and at school.  It has become a HUGE time management component of my eighth graders as well as the contingent I had during July in summer school.  It's sitting across from me RIGHT NOW as I type this as well!

I first saw this from Alejandra's YouTube site  http://www.youtube.com/user/HomeOrganizing and her own website.  She has some great ideas and I needed to find ways to structure my own time at home and in the classroom - to fight off those time vampires (Facebook, Email, etc) to put myself on a schedule to get things done.

My timer can be set up to sixty minutes by just sliding the plastic disk to the desired time.  Unfortunately, my students enjoy setting and resetting (especially when they're NOT supposed to!) but it since it always 'beeps' four times then stops, you don't have to stop what you're doing to turn it off. That makes it convenient to wrap up stuff and then reset it to the next option.  I like that better than other types of timers that keep going until you turn them off.  My colleagues like this one over my 'bus duty' alarm on my phone that sounds like the fire alarm.  (If I leave my phone on my desk in the morning...it continues to go off...oops!)

I also like the fact that it's NOT an overhead model.  I can prop it up on the chalkboard tray and kids in the back of the room can see it.  It also shows the time remaining in an ANALOG way... something that my kids are quite week at in this digital age (It's depressing how many fourteen-year-olds CAN'T tell time on my analog clock!!  I also still use the timer app on my phone, both this type of version and a digital version, but I'm in LOVE with this timer!  I hope to post pictures of it IN ACTION during my lab stations this year.

I bought my two from Amazon, but you can also find information about timers like these at Timetimer.com 

Enjoy! - Stefani

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

My Bright Idea: Color Coded Towels

I was in a white phase several years ago.  A crisp bleached laundered towel was the way to go.  Neutrals were calming.  A bathroom was supposed to be spa-like, serene, relaxing.  My, how times have changed.

Now, our house has exploded into chaos with four teen/preteens who seem to carpet their respective rooms with everything they can get their hands on.  Clothes and towels have become the new carpet in their opinion.  Cleaning their rooms mean shoving everything under the bed or in the closet.  The four hooks in the bathroom are always left empty.  I got tired of opening the cupboard to find there were no towels, yet walking into the laundry room and finding TONS on the floor.  It was never-ending and equally frustrating...

So, after watching my older son be particular about the towels he picked (the towels had to match - either solids or stripes, mixing and matching was NOT allowed, beach towels were not OK to use after a shower but OK to use at the pool) and watching the youngest have piles of once-used towels on the floor that then became a bed for the dog - I had an epiphany:  Color Coding.

Everyone now has their own color.  Two bath size towels each for starters.  If yours are wet and you didn't hang them up after your shower, your fault.  If they end up on the bathroom floor, it's clear who's responsible.  It also makes it easy to identify on the road or poolside (when we branch out into more towels) and eventually, the kids might actually be able to take them on with them when they move out...

The kids got to pick out their own colors (adults ended up with the whites we already had).  Fortunately, there was enough of a rainbow of choices that no one wanted the same color.  And to help, our bathroom is white with color accents, so coordinating, though not the primary concern, still was achieved.  Win-Win!

Color has always helped me organize in my classroom with the variety of students, but extending it into my own home was always a challenge.  Getting everyone on board was tricky - but no teenager wants to walk through the house naked, so that's a big motivator to comply with mom's BRIGHT IDEA!

QR Coding! Smart phones to the rescue!

In the last several years, technology has taken a stronger hold of both our students as well as our own lives.  Our district has both an online grading system and school/teacher pages in which homework and other assignments are documented in real time.  This has been both a blessing and a hindrance to my student's (and my own) organization.

Firstly, when we were 'forced' to use the online grading book, I tried to maintain my old 'paper and pencil' system, but found it difficult to do both adequately, so I abandoned the traditional spiral gradebook.  WHAT A MISTAKE!!!  Doing everything on the provided computer system didn't allow be to color code items as I wanted, sort items as I wanted, or tab things as I wanted... and I found myself spending MORE time following through on grading and making MORE mistakes than I care to admit.

What was helpful was being able to email an entire class at once that grades were updated, or individual students with their progress report.  It also was helpful to refer parents to this program (unfortunately, most didn't access it regularly, but those who did it became a valuable resource).

Looking ahead to next fall, I found a QR code site (http://barcode.tec-it.com/) where I could create my own codes that can be scanned using an app on a smart phone or ipod that could take students and parents DIRECTLY to the page I want.  This is quite helpful for both the grading program, but also for the classroom webpage, and even in the future, on worksheets or labs for video or other support material online.  I plan on distributing both of these graphics via business cards and address labels that I had created at Vistaprint will be added to my students Interactive Notebooks and handed out at Open House and Parent Conferences.  Conveniently, I had some great discounts that I could get a TON of business cards for a very low price.

Some battles we as parents and educators will need to tackle, of course, is appropriate use of said smart devices.  Etiquette with these devices have, in my opinion, taken a nose-dive in the last 10 years to the point that my current students don't have any role models of what might be deemed as appropriate behaviors.  This sometimes is just swept under the rug as a 'NO ELECTRONICS' policy thoughout the entire school.  However, with the use of electronic readers and the large array of age-appropriate academic apps available, it seems as though we should be modeling usage rather than condemning it.  This, certainly, is a much more difficult battle, but one whose time has come.

Regardless, I'm super psyched about these QR codes and what I will be able to do with them in the future!