Tell all Tuesday: a Wish, a Goal, & a Dream for the School Year

Time for another Tell all Tuesday with the creative ladies from My Day in K and Teach Talk Inspire.

This week's summer linky is comes at a perfect time. I don't know about you, but school is on the brain! I received my class list in the mail yesterday and I can't wait to start labeling and preparing for my new group of learners. It's the time of year you set goals and create a vision for your year. This Tell all Tuesday topic was difficult to narrow down... I have so many wishes, goals, and dreams at the beginning of a school year. (At the end of the year it narrows to one goal - make it to the last day!)

Here goes...

That every day I would bless someone.
There is a story behind this. I have a wonderful retired teacher who has helped out in my classroom an hour a day for the past two years. She manages small group stations and works one-on-one with students needing a little extra support and encouragement. She is the sweetest, most vivacious retiree I've met. I heard from my dear friend (and fellow kindergarten teacher) that my sweet helper's prayer everyday is "Dear Lord, use me to bless someone today!" (I feel like my daily prayer is a little different "Dear Lord, I need someone to bless me today!")
 
I want this year to be a year where I am constantly looking for how God is going to use me to bless someone. Maybe it's a student who's had a rough morning and just needs a warm hug and smile, a colleague who needs a word of encouragement, or the janitor who needs an anonymous thank you card. I need God's help to keep the focus off of me and my needs. I want God's eyes to see when and how He wants to use me to share His love with someone else.

To improve my guided reading.
I struggle with having enough time in the morning to do guided reading the way it's meant to be since our school still offers a half-day kindergarten option. I've done a mix of math and literacy stations while I work with my guided reading groups to maximize the time.

This summer I read though Jan Richardson's The Next Step in Guided Reading. I know exactly what to do better this year to make my small group instruction more effective. What exactly? I'll have to devote a post (more like several) to share all that I've learned and want to implement from this book.

 If you haven't read this book -buy it right now! It's worth it!

To go to the I Teach K! National Kindergarten Conference in Las Vegas! This may not be a fulfilled dream this year... but it's a dream I'm going to keep rolling over from year to year until I can finally attend! To connect with teachers from all over who are passionate about teaching kindergarten AND to learn from the "star" teachers of the blogging world... would be a dream come true!

I'm looking forward to heading back to the link up and seeing what everyone else posted! Join me!

Top 10 Things Teaching has Taught Me

It's Tell All Tuesday with Diana with My Day in K and Jayme at Teach, Talk, Inspire. Join in the fun as we link up to tell 10 things teaching has taught us.

10. Learning is messy! Your classroom will only look immaculate the day before school starts. After that, there is no guarantee. While it helps to have a place for everything, I've learned not to stress over a little mess. (Sometimes there's painting projects drying on one table, a puzzle (mid completion) on another, plants growing in the windowsill, glitter on the floor...it just means a lot of learning happening! And that I need a bigger room...)

This needs to be my classroom door sign!

9. Always copy an extra.
Whenever we have a worksheet or art project, I always make extra copies/supplies. Chances are someone will lose, rip, spill on, or accidentally throw away theirs. No more mid-lesson runs to the copy machine!

8. Students are sponges.
Everything I say and do is being watched and learned from. *gulp* This doesn't mean I need to be perfect.*sigh of relief* It means how I act is an informal lesson on how to treat others, handle conflict, and ultimately be a learner!

7. Kids love to know that you are a "real" person. They love to hear about your stories. Make things personal. Relate to them! I always try to connect with my students by giving real life examples of learning from my life. Their ears perk up... and they remember it (long after I've forgotten that I told them), When I teach my kinders about "sharing equally" in our fractions unit, I tell about my little sister. When she was young, mom would make us share candy and gum. My sister would share, but she would NOT share it equally. (In fact, she would smush the smaller piece till it was the same length as the larger "half".) They think it's hilarious! (I had to laugh when they later referred to her as my "naughty sister". Haha! I had to tell a few good stories about her to even it out.)

6. I've learned that I need to take care of myself in order to take care of others. It's easy to pour so much time and energy into teaching that you forget to take care of your needs. Take time to relax and fill your tank!

5. Attitude is everything.
Your attitude influences your classroom's climate. I have found that when I'm having a "bad" day...everyone is having a "bad" day. When I'm stressed, I (unfortunately) exhibit less grace, understanding, and humor. This is a nasty cycle. This goes along with taking care of yourself. If you are finding that you are stressed...find ways to reduce it.
(Maybe you just need to give yourself a dose of grace...not everyday will go according to plan. Learn to be flexible and not beat yourself up about it.)

4. Look for the "current" doesn't refer to the present moment. Think of a ocean's current - it is the unseen force creating the waves we see.
This has been some of the best life advice I received from our school counselor. There will be times of conflict, weather with a student, family, or colleague. Sometimes you will receive "waves" of hurtful words or actions. Rather than focusing on those "waves", look at what my be fueling those reactions - the "current". Unless the "current" issue is dealt with... waves will continue to pop up.

3. There is no such thing as a cookie cutter year.
Each year, each class is so unique. I used to tell my husband... I only spend this much time at school because I haven't perfected my lesson plans, room decor, math tubs....  But now I realize that change is inevitable. What works great for one class might not for another. Every class has different gifts and needs. I've come to accept that I will never work a 40 hour week, but each year it will get "easier". Easier meaning, I will have more teaching strategies to pull from and will be quicker at identifying needs and knowing how to fill them.

2. Learn from others.
One of my favorite teaching quotes is Great teachers aren't born, they learn from the teacher next door. My colleagues are my virtual filing cabinets - they are full of valuable information and resources!

1. Each day is a gift!
Teaching is a job and a ministry. You never know how God is going to use you each day to bless a student or a family. Teaching is a privilege and I'm thankful that it's my profession! I couldn't imagine doing anything else!

Teacher Bucket List

This is my first Tell all Tuesday hosted by My Day in K and Teach Talk Inspire. The topic is Teacher Bucket Lists! Summer is a great time to reflect over teaching goals and dreams. I look forward to reading what everyone else has to share!

This last month I crossed off one of my biggest career goals - getting my master's! Woohoo! I finished with a degree in curriculum and instruction and a literacy focus. Honestly, I'm still reveling in the feeling of accomplishment.

Here's what's next...

Boost my Technology Skills

It's amazing what you can do with technology nowadays. Education has changed dramatically! It's a goal of mine to constantly be finding new ways to integrate technology into the classroom to enhance learning. (Gotta stay one step ahead of those Kinders!)

Blogging falls into this category. I began blogging to share ideas and encouragement with other teachers. I have personally found blogs to be one of the best forms of "professional development", if you will. I have gleaned so much from stellar teachers across the country through their personal blogs. I'd like to give back in some way by sharing what I've learned on my teaching journey. At this point, I'm a novice (a "bless her heart for trying" novice). When I blog hop and see all of the beautiful headers, relevant posts, cutesy freebies... I feel like a kindergartener in calculus. "How did they...?" Gotta start somewhere! Right? Eventually, I'd like to start creating resourced for other teachers through TpT. I have so many ideas...just waiting for my techy skills to get up to speed through attending workshops and classes.

Become a Children's Author

It's always been a dream of mine to write and illustrate children's books. My dream retirement job is not some beach condo... but reading my books and doing related activities at libraries and classrooms across the country. Read-aloud time is my favorite part of our kindergarten day! My goal is to created fun, vibrant books that reinforce academic concepts. I want to create books that kids and teachers fall in love with!

Be a life-long learner! 

There are so many things I want learn about to become a more effective teacher: sensory processing, vision therapy, social skill development... my bucket list of learning is limitless!

Thanks for reading my Teaching Bucket List.

Head on over to My Day in K or Teach Talk Inspire to see what other teachers are saying and to link up with your own teaching bucket list!