July Goals & Snapshots Saturday

July is right around the corner so I'm linking up with I {heart} Recess to share my July goals.

Personal:  July is the heart of my summer so I want to make sure to capture it with lots of pictures. I will be going to Belize in the middle of July on a mission trip and hope to take many picture there.   I will have time to go snorkeling and to see the Mayan ruins. The picture below I found of the island we will be going to.  I can't wait to see that blue water! 

Family:  My nephew is at my house almost every week day this summer.  He is six years old and currently doesn't have an interest in reading.  I feel like I'm badgering him to get him to read the phonics books he is supposed to be working on.  So this summer I want to try to read more with him and hopefully find something that will interest him.

Health:  I've been running much more lately which is great exercise.  However, I want to stay in a constant routine of running so I will build up enough endurance to run a race.  There is a really fun race in August called the ROC race which is a 5k with obstacles that I want to enter.

School:  I have a pretty good idea of how I want to set up my language arts classroom next year.  However, I'm still questioning how I can change my social studies instruction so that my students remember what we learn for more than a week.  I'd like to come up with a structure for my classroom and also go ahead and prepare some social studies lessons.

Blog: I'd love to learn how to make my own new blog design.  If it seems to take too long then I will purchase a custom made one.

Outside the Box:  Going out of the country in July will be a new experience for me.  I really need to start praying more about it and asking God's plan for me while I'm there.  There are also many changes at my school this year so I need to spend more time praying about it and less time worrying. 

I also found a new link up I wanted to participate in called Snapshots Saturday with Miss Nelson.  The point of this linkup is to share your favorite snapshots and photography tips. This will work great to help out my personal July goal of taking more pictures!

My current favorite photography app is PhotoStudio.  I love it because it has so many different effects you can use.  You can also add text to photos easily with this app.  Here are some photos I edited using PhotoStudio.

The view around our driveway.

This is me in downtown Lexington.

Raleigh Flea Market last summer

Make sure you go link up with Miss Nelson as well. I'd love to see everyone's photography skills!

Five for Friday

Today I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday.  This week has actually flown by really fast.  Summer needs to slow down.  I have too much I want to accomplish before it flies by.

1.  Monday I went to school to practice with my cheerleading squad.  While I was there I went to my old classroom and saw that my room was completely bare.  Next year I will most likely be in the room in the picture above.  Looking at it right now makes me think of how much work I will have in the fall to make it look the way I want it.  This room is actually a little bit bigger than my old room, however there is a bi-fold door that separates it with another classroom which isn't the best for hearing other noises.

 

2.  I went to Charlotte this week and had an amazing dinner at Alexander Michael's.   I'm from a very small town so to go into a big city can be both fun and overwhelming at the same time.

3. Yesterday I went with a friend to the park.  It was so hot outside but we had a great time playing putt putt and walking around.  I won playing putt putt, that rarely happens so I was pretty excited!  They also have an animal exhibit with snakes, fish and other animals.

  

4.  I've spent a lot of time outside this week.  My niece and nephew are at my house everyday so I play outside with my nephew a lot.  We sat outside by the pool and were able to have some butterflies come to us.

5.  I'm saving the best for last! Yes, watermelon flavored frozen yogurt made my week.  It isn't often that I find watermelon so when I do I am one happy camper.  What made the day even better was that I won a free 12oz cup of yogurt by texting their Sweet Frog number.  

Well that is all for this week!  Make sure to follow me on my new facebook page & on bloglovin before Google Reader shuts down on Monday!

Thinking about Thursday Linky, Book Whisperer Live Discussion

     I have had a lot on my mind this summer about what I want to change in my classroom next year so I decided to make a Thinking about Thursday linkup. The purpose of it is to make a post about things you are pondering at the moment.  It can be anything from how to decorate your classroom, how to teach a certain subject or what to eat for dinner!  Then add your post to the linkup for other people to see and give you ideas on whatever you are pondering.

I am currently thinking about how I want to set up my language arts classroom next year.  After reading The Book Whisperer I really want to change the way I teach to better benefit my students.  I will be hosting a book discussion on The Book Whisperer tonight at 8 p.m. EST.  If you've read it or haven't and are interested in how you can change your language arts class then join us on my blog tonight for a live chat.  

I'm also thinking about some good summer reads for myself that have absolutely nothing to do with teaching.  I need to take a break sometimes! Any suggestions?

I also wanted to participate in Throwback Thursday!

This post came from last year before I first started teaching.  It is about the book In the Middle, which really relates to The Book Whisperer.

During my undergraduate reading course I was required to read a few chapters from the book "In the Middle" by Nancy Atwell.  I'm now reading the textbook over again to see what I can learn about teaching middle school language arts.  What I've taken from the book so far:

1) An idea to introduce students to the classroom is to provide a scavenger hunt of classroom supplies instead of just pointing them all out to them.

2) Require students to write a letter to me at least once a week about what they are reading and then reply back to them.  I will be making sure that each student has a one subject notebook for this purpose. 

3) Nancy Atwell structure her daily schedule to include a writing workshop and a reading workshop everyday. I most likely won't have the time for both but I do like the idea of having word work as a bellringer, followed by a mini-lesson and then either a reading or writing workshop which I can alternate each day.   I also like how she emphasizes the importance of read alouds which I think I will end each day with.

4)  "In the Middle" offers many ideas for topics for mini-lessons.  Some suggestions for the beginning of year include:

 -Expectations for writing or reading

 -Conferring with peers: where, when, how

 -How to use an editing checklist for writing

 -Classroom literary resources

 -Procedures for booktalks

 -Setting goals for reading and writing

Recap on Thinking About Thursday Linkup

1) Make a blog post about what you are pondering.  It can be about anything that you want people to give you advice about.

2)  Add my Thinking about Thursday button to your blog post.

3)  Add your blogpost to this post

4) Visit at least two blogs before yours and comment on them.

  

Have a great Thursday and happy linking!

Tried it Tuesday- iHelp Classroom Jobs & Bloglovin

     Over the summer I will be thinking about what classroom management ideas I want to use again next year. Today I'm linking up with Tried it Tuesday from Fourth Grade Flippers to share an iHelp board I made last year.

  I found this idea for keeping up with classroom jobs on Pinterest and decided to try it myself.  My students thought it was cute because they all love their iPhones and iPods.  I really liked it because it was very easy to change their jobs each month.  I kept index cards with the names of students in both of my two classes and could easily see who had already had a job in prior months.

     I'm sure you can figure out how to make this just by looking at the picture.  The pockets may be the trickiest part but all I did was fold cardstock into a pocket and glued down one side.  I then laminated the entire poster and went back and cut slits in the tops of the pockets so that the index cards could slide through.   The best thing about this poster is that it is still in tact and ready to use next year.  All I have to do is make new index cards with my students names on them.

I also am linking up with Tori's Teacher Tips for a Bloglovin linky.  I will miss using google reader but Bloglovin seems pretty neat.  Make sure you click the button below to follow me & stay updated!  Also, make sure to visit Tori to find some other awesome teacher blogs to follow!

It's Monday! What are you reading?

Now that it is summer I actually have time to read what I want to read so I decided to link up with Teacher Mentor Texts. Mainly I am trying to read books that are in my classroom library so that I will be able to recommend books to my students next year.

Children's Novels:

Last week I read Radiance by Alyson Noel.  This is a fantasy novel about a girl who is trying to find her place in afterlife.  I don't read very many fantasy novels so I read this just to be able to relate to those students who enjoy it.  Personally I wouldn't recommend this book to a friend, but I'm sure some kids would enjoy it.

I'm currently reading The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg.  I must say this book is very entertaining.  For any student interested in comedy or adventure I would recommend this to them.

Books I want to read for me:

  How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas Foster has been recommended to me by other teachers as an enjoyable read.  I would be curious to see how he says we should "read between the lines."

  

 Alex, Cross, Run has been on my read list for a while now.  James Patterson is one of my favorite authors so I hope to find some time soon to read his latest book.

What I recommend this week:

    The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller is by far my favorite professional read so far this year.  I am hosting a discussion on my blog this Thursday at 8 p.m. EST.  If you are interesting in learning how to revamp your language arts classroom then read this book or just come join us for discussion!

Book Whisperer Discussion

I'm excited about the response I had to host a Book Whisperer discussion. I've decided to host the live discussion right here on Thursday, June 27th at 8pm EST. If you can't make it at that time then feel free to come by later and catch up on our discussion. For those of you who haven't read The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller I highly recommend it if you are looking for a way to revamp your language arts instruction. Feel free to join in on the discussion even if you haven't read the book yet. It is helpful to hear multiple points of view on how to teach reading. I hope to hear from many of you Thursday!

BlogLovin

Since Google Reader is coming to an end, I have signed up for Bloglovin.  Make sure you follow me on there to get my updates!