First {full} Year: COMPLETE

There's so much I wanted to share with you over the last several months, but just didn't make time to blog about it. So, in this post I will give you some highlights and favorite memories of my first year of teaching in no particular order!


The 100th day of School!
I think I was more excited for this day then the students were! A couple of weeks prior to the 100th day, I sent home a letter informing the first graders and their families that we had received a challenge from Evil Dr. Double Digit. He challenged us to complete 10 tasks. If we did not successfully complete those tasks, the world would be stuck in the double digits forever! The first task Evil Dr. Double Digit gave us was to make a superhero cape decorated with 100 items of our choice.
Accompanying the note was also a cape made from Dollar Tree plastic table cloths. We had two 1st grade classes with a total of 36 students. Each table cloth made 6 capes and then I hot glued ribbon so the students could tie the cape. So, the total cost for the cape project was less than $10! Students also had the choice of using their own cape as well.

To start the day, we had a superhero fashion show to show off our 100 item capes! 

I saw this idea on pinterest used at a superhero themed birthday and I thought it would be PERFECT! Anyone who walked by my classroom as I was taking photos must of thought - what in the world is she up to now?! I was up on a ladder directing students how to pose, telling my four corner holders which way to pull the sheet, and thinking to myself - DON'T FALL OFF THIS LADDER! Later, these photos were put into their end of the year portfolios/scrapbooks to remember this exciting day!

Chinese New Year!
I mentioned in one of my Friday newsletters that we would soon begin learning about the Chinese New Year in social studies. The following week, a parent approached me and said her sister was hosting two foreign exchange students and wanted to know if I would like them to visit our classroom. I don't think she had the question out of her mouth before I answered, "YES!!!!" So, a week or so later high school students from the Beijing area came with food, treats, and two engaging presentations for the first graders. These girls were AWESOME!

National Lutheran School's Week

I loved this week growing up and I loved it just as much as a teacher! We had a pajama day with an all school movie showing in the gym, picnic lunch day, Hawaiian day, a pep assembly... it was a BUSY week and I loved every moment of it! Oh, and the 100th day of school fell during this week as well! 

For NLSW, an email was sent home to parents telling them there was a contest put on by our district's LCEF wanting nominations of teachers they thought deserved recognition. A very sweet hearted parent wrote in to the contest about me and I won $250 in visa giftcards! I was BLOWN away. As the LCEF representative read the letter she wrote about me during staff devotions, it took every ounce of me not to tear up. Those kind words will mean more to me than that parent will ever know. 

Valentine's Day

My Christmas party was not nearly as organized as I thought it would be. In fact, in my mind, it was pure chaos! So, I challenged myself to make the Valentine's Day party go more smoothly. And it did! (My mom was visiting that week so I think that played a big factor in how smooth it went too!) I planned a fun valentine's day snack and a variety of Minute to Win It games! I have never seen a group of 6 and 7 year olds so focused and determined than during those games. It was INCREDIBLE.

The kiddos had a minute to transfer as many M&Ms from one cup to the other using only a straw.

The Last Day of School
I knew I was going to cry, but I figured it would be at dismissal. Oh no, I was very wrong. It happened when the first student walked through the door and handed me a letter and picture he had made. Then, the next student did the same thing. Then, the next! After about ten pictures and letters had come in, a parent brought me a binder to put the letters in---such a cool idea! The third student to bring me a letter, also brought me flowers. He was accompanied by his mom who started tearing up as she thanked me for the wonderful year her child had...that's when the full on ugly crying started. Thankfully she was a teacher at another school and understood how I was feeling! As I write this post and think about the last day, all I can do is laugh at myself as I was all aboard the hot mess express that day. I'm also thankful that we were dismissed at 11:30 and not 2:55! I can't imagine what I would have been like if it had been a full day!

"...I don't want to leav but I haf to so I can learn more..."

Precious.

This one was a big tear jerker...

This tree is to add fingerprints to at the end of every school year! My students were SO excited to give it to me and were telling me that eventually I might have to make a pile of leaves on the ground and that each class could be a different color.This is a gift I will cherish forever.
(Side note: It's much larger than this picture portrays it!)

What a blessing this year has been! My heart is so full of love and thankfulness for this class of 19 students who in all honestly might have taught me more than I taught them.

Fall Fun!

There are so many underrated things to celebrate in the fall! At the end of September, we celebrated the life of Johnny Chapman (a.k.a. Johnny Appleseed). Shaunna and I divided the kids into six groups. For the entire morning, the six groups rotated between both of our classrooms to complete six different centers. This day would not have been a hit without Shaunna's great ideas and the freebies on Teacher's Pay Teachers. (Warning: This post contains lots of links to other sites and downloads that are all FREE! These are in white print, so just click on them!)
Here's what the 6 centers consisted of:
 1) Johnny Appleseed Roll and Graph

 2) Johnny Appleseed word search
 3) Appleseed Addition/Apple Patterns

 4) Apple Tasting (At this station, the students learned the specific names for apples and created a mini book. Whenever a student brings an apple for snack or lunch, they all try to figure out what kind it is!)
 5) Apple Chip/Crockpot Applesauce Making
 6) Apple Tree Sequencing (students had to put in order the stages of an apple tree's life and glue them onto a long strip of construction paper)

Earlier in the week during writing groups, I had the students fill out the first two sections of a K-W-L chart in their journals. This was our first time using these. At first the students were EXTREMELY confused, but once I showed them a sample, it all clicked! This also gave me a better understanding of how in-depth they studied Johnny Appleseed in Kindergarten. For the "L" section (what they LEARNED), several students wrote that Johnny Appleseed had a servant's heart. I thought that was just too sweet!

For handwriting practice, I gave each student a set of apple jokes. The students had to copy it in their best handwriting on Johnny Appleseed paper and draw a comic to go with it.
Naturally, most of the students chose this joke to write and illustrate:

What do you call an apple with tummy problems?

(A tooty fruity!) 

I gave them the option of flipping the page upside down and then writing the answer so their readers wouldn't be able to read it right away... anything to trick someone else and they are all for it! 

We also marked spots on the map that were important to Johnny Appleseed's life. Things like where he was born, where he died, where he planted apple trees, etc. Each student was given their own map and had to draw a specific color apple on the state where the events took place. It involved a lot of direction following, so it was rather difficult for some students!!!  

As a time filler and during our morning meeting, we played,"Where's Johnny?" The students LOVED it and I loved that it got them practicing their sight words! (There's also an alphabet version available if you teach younger kiddos!) It took a little bit of time to prep after I added cardstock and laminated the cards to make them more durable, but I keep reminding myself that all of this prep will pay off next year and the year after when I use them again! After all of the cards are cut out, all you need is a pocket chart, pointer, and you're ready to go!

This past week, we had parent teacher conferences. Here are some things that I prepared to show parents in addition to samples of their child's work.

Glow and Grow

For each student, I created this small form for areas in which the student "glows" and areas the student could "grow" in. 

(I found this idea on wardswayofteaching.blogspot.com and revamped it to fit my class' needs!)  

Dolch Sight Word Assessment Form 

With the help of a parent volunteer, we tested all of the students on the primer, pre-primer, and 1st grade Dolch sight words. I hope to test them several times this year to check for improvement.

After showing parents their child's assessment, I gave them their own Dolch Sight Word List to practice with at home.

While parents waited for their child's conference, they had the opportunity to play a little game! 

Each picture is fastened on with a brad. Parents could swivel the picture to reveal the name of the first grader! It took me a little bit of time to make this, but I had so much fun doing it! Seeing the students get so excited about having their mom or dad guess was too cute! 

(I saw this idea before I even started teaching and knew I had to create something similar!) 

I'm in the process of planning a Veteran's Day unit for social studies before we jump into the history behind the first thanksgiving. November is going to be very full, but very fun! I'm going home in less than two weeks for my cousin's wedding and I'm beyond excited to see my dog and family! Before we know it, the semester will be over and we'll be celebrating Christmas...I just can't believe it!!! 

Have a wonderful 2nd day of November! 

The First Days of School

We're about to start our 6th week of school and I can hardly believe it!

The kiddos are FINALLY getting into a routine of what our everyday procedures are, we are mastering Praise Friday songs and their actions (St. Paul readers, you know what I'm talking about!), and they're constantly making me chuckle. 

Here's a glimpse at how we started our school year!

Anyone who took education classes with me, or just knows me well, knows how much I LOVE Mo Willems and his pigeon. Sooooooo, naturally, the students are greeted with this on our door everyday!

Because our school year started with two half days, we devoted the second half day to Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus.

But first, we rocked out with Pete the Cat and his school shoes! The book is great, but to get the full effect, you HAVE to accompany the story with its CD. (Click here to preview!)

After we read the story, the students had to think about what they like to do in their school shoes. 

I am "decorating" in my school shoes!

I am "running" in my school shoes!

We then compiled these pages into a class book - complete with a reading pointer! This book is a HOT item in the reading center. I even had to take it away for a few days...

The library pocket is taped to the inside of the front cover.
(I have to give credit to my mom for giving me this idea!)

On our second half day, pictures of Pete the Cat randomly appeared all over the school! So, the two first grade classes went on a Pete the Cat hunt looking for these images. (Once again, I have to give credit to my mom! She really should have her own blog...she would TAKE OVER Pinterest with her ideas. But, her pre-schoolers have a "Clifford Day" and they follow Clifford prints all over the school to get to know the lay of the land.)

Pete was taped to the library, office, bathroom, water fountain, the basket we turn papers into, etc.

We decided that anywhere we saw a Pete the Cat, it must mean there was a special rule associated with it. Whenever we saw the picture of Pete, we stopped and brainstormed together some important rules. We ended in the gym where I was surprised with cupcakes and students singing "Happy Birthday" to me! (Thanks, Shaunna!!)

Then, we moved onto the ever-so-sassy pigeon!

We read Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. I started by asking if they noticed anything special about the cover. This lead to a discussion on the Caldecott Medal and what it means. Right away they started critiquing (positively!) Mo Willem's illustrations. They came up with several fantastic reasons why they thought this book won the prestigious Caldecott Honor. I was so excited that they were beginning to love the pigeon as much as I do and it was only day two! 

The students then had to decide if they would let the pigeon come to first grade. Not only was it a fun topic for them, but it also served as a writing sample for their portfolio. Their answers were pretty creative!

"No because he berbe." ...TRANSLATION... No because he is DIRTY. (We are working on our b's and d's!)

"Yes, because I kan floy on hr bak."

Then, we graphed our answers.

I will leave you on a comical note... I couldn't resist posting this....

During the first week of school, we gave a pretest in spelling. 

They were suppose to spell the word type...

They've always got me laughing! 

Here are the pages for the Pete the Cat book or the Pigeon project! 

(Regular primary paper with room to draw a picture would work just as well!)

The Grand Finale to Summer

Monday marks the official day teachers will return to school to begin making preparations for the upcoming school year. Thankfully, this week has turned out to be a grand finale to the summer!

On Monday, Kara asked if I wanted to join her and her kiddos on a morning trip to the Denver Botanic Gardens. And boy, I'm sure glad she did! It was BEAUTIFUL! The flowers. The weather. The company. The glass sculptures by Chihuly. EVERYTHING!

On Tuesday, I worked up at school for a bit. 

Do you see the resemblance?

 

We start the school year with 2 half days in a row. I have some fun things planned for the first day involving a Pete the Cat hunt around the school, but on the second half day we will be doing some pigeon activities. After reading the book, the students will be asked to decide if they would let the pigeon join our class. Then they will draw and write about it. As a large group, we'll graph their answers.

Wednesday-Friday, I stayed in Beaver Creek near Avon, Colorado, where my Aunt Linda and her friends were vacationing. It was fantastic to be with family and friends in such a gorgeous place. We went ATVing, saw a movie, ate delicious food, watched a little of the Golden Girls, and enjoyed the beautiful scenery that surrounded us. I'm so thankful they let me tag along. I truly enjoyed it!

Please excuse our helmet hair :)

LOOK AT THAT VIEW! 

Back to School Postcards {Featuring Macie!}

Before I left Tonganoxie, I decided to have a photo shoot with my dog, Macie. My hope was to come up with something creative to send to my future students in the mail before school starts... and well, here's the finished product!

(Yeah...yeah...I know they're kind of cheesy, but I sure hope it will bring a smile to some little faces!)

I won't meet my students until the first day of school, so hopefully this makes a good first impression with them...and their parents! :)

FRONT (Macie modeling a Zion t-shirt.)

BACK

Sweet Home Colorado

After locking the keys inside the Penske truck and losing the debit card inside of the emergency break console while trying to pay for the deposit on my apartment (I have never been more thankful for tweezers or my mom and sister at that point!), I have moved to Colorado!

Since moving here, I have started setting up my classroom. Granted, it doesn't look like it, but I have at least started. I'm in the process of organizing my classroom library by theme. As a first year teacher, you'd think that I would be able to do that in about an hour or so since I wouldn't have that many materials. But fortunately, I have had so many books given to me! I figure since I am starting with a blank canvas of a classroom, I might as well start off on a well organized foot! I'm entering all the books into a spreadsheet so that I can easily find a book when I need it. It is a goal of mine to keep these books organized, especially since I now know how time consuming the whole process is. (Hopefully saying it on here will keep me accountable! We shall see...)

I'm so thankful to have moved to an area that I am already pretty familiar with. (For those of you who don't know, I did my second portion of student teaching here.) It has lightened the stress. I have already had a wonderful dinner with another teacher and her family, ate lunch with two different sets of college friends passing through, and have been camping with Megan and her family at Golden Gate Canyon State Park. The last two weeks have flown by!

Megan and I live exactly 40 minutes apart now. Today she had an interview to get into nursing school and tomorrow she leaves for Guatemala on a mission trip with her mom and sister! This girl with so many talents and a big heart for God and others is going to do great things. Please keep her in your prayers! 

This Kansas girl has a great appreciation for these beautiful mountains! Kansas should really look into getting some :)

A New Look!

I decided to try out a new look!