A Teacher's Summer: Color-Coded Sequencing

Hey guys! Just poppin' in to share a quick strategy I tried this summer. 

I am teaching ESY for the last year ever I am so tired  and one of my Kinders/Rising Firsties is having difficulty recalling the order of things in a story.

Which sucks because she is pretty meticulous in remembering EVERYTHING that happened...

just not when they happened. 

"M" really likes to color, so we picked out her favorite colors and color coded her story.

She loved it! 

While we broke the story apart, we  practiced words she recognized as a clue to search a story for sequence.

She thought it was so cool that after we found the sentenced it was so colorful!!

"It's Like a Rainbow."- M

After that, we talked about First, Next, Then and Finally and Number Sequence.

It was ALOT to cover, but she LOVED having the teachers attention to herself. 

I cannot wait to see if this strategy works in my classroom next year.

Have you guys tried it?

A Teacher's Summer: Creating Crate Seats

Finding out I am teaching a new grade level has me pumped! 

SO pumped that my "teacher brain" will not turn off.

Ever.

SO yesterday, I decided to put it to GOOD use:

I am so excited!!
so excited I put "seat crates" and not "crate seats" on my pic (above).

SO EXCITED, that I stared at it because I new it was wrong...
but was too excited to edit it and re-upload. My error is candid.

I have wanted to make these forever, but  I was always under a pile of a million district assessments and #teachtothetest responsibilities never got around to it.

Until now.

I know that PINTREST is flooded with how-to's about how these are made.

So I will not beat a dead horse.

Sidenote: I always cringe at the visual I get from that.

UGH.

Anyways, here are the things I used:

I got everything from Staples, Lowe's and Wal-Mart.  

The most frustrating part was finding the fabric. I have only been in this area for two years, and everything is pretty accessible....but the noticeable difference is no one seems to sew in the city. 

So fabric stores are few and far between...

So stuborn me would rather to go home and eat than use more gas refused to drive another mile!

I just used a throw blanket I found at Wal-Mart. 

>>>>>> Which feels fantastic!

I cannot wait to update you all when I get these cuties into my classroom!

If you have any questions, please leave them below.

Also link your blog in the comments if you have made these for your class. 

Or if you do not mind if I stalk your blog.

With my best Mickey Mouse {Clubhouse} voice:

Thanks for stopping by :-)

Oh Currently!!! Oh Currently!!! It is finally July!!

Could you tell I wrote this post title to the "America" tune? 

Now you know...read it again.

See? Haha!

I cannot believe July has bursted on the scene. 

And what better way to kick it off than with Farley and her CURRENTLY.

LISTEN...have you ever made Siri say dumb things...

or asked her silly questions? 

Clearly this is for my iPhone users.

Stop what you are doing and ask Siri:

"What's zero divided by zero?"

I'll wait.

How do you feel? lol. 

I am LOVING with my new Melonheadz Swagg.

Not only did I finally #MelonheadzAddictsUp ....

I got some Personalized Melonz done. 

Nikki is a genius!!

and Yes I said Melonz.

AHHH!!!! And a little birdy told me she is opening up slots again.

Starting with her Facebook fans.

I am just sayin'.

Okay, so I have been THINKING. 

Not that I have had a couple moments to breathe, 

I am ready to approach next school year....

With "Gazelle-like" Intensity.

I hit some blips this year (see a few emo posts back) and

 I really though maybe teaching was not for me.

But through prayer and reflection, I realized it was for me.

Even Whoopi Goldberg knows I am a teacher...

I got a new EC Life Planner.

*cue pitbulls*

I know how some people have been feeling about ordering lately.

I have been there. Read about it (here) later!

Anyway, thanks to my above scenario, I do not have to buy a

 Teacher planner for two years!!!

And now they have interchangeable covers, so I fixed my issue.

I am WANTING to washi them now!!

Aren't they lovely?

NEEDING? 

I do not want to talk about it, but my room is a mess!

{Insert offensive hoarders reference here}

Just know, my brain gets wonky when I am stressed.

My room = Exhibit A-Z.

I'm just sayin'. 

ALL STAR..... What do you guys think?

Refer back to "listening" if you have to. 

Okay, it is your turn!!! If you have not already link up with CURRENTLY.

RANDOM PLUG: I just created a Donor's Choose Project.
I am waiting for it to be approved, but until then...

You can still help!!

Will you, pretty please?!?

Donate here.

3-2-1...Teacher Bio!!!

Hey There Everyone!

I am finally on summer vacay (as of last Wednesday) so I am "recharging" Teacher Bloggy-style.....

With a Link-Up!!

Okay so I know that it "technically" is no longer the weekend....

 But its Monday in the summer for a teacher = WEEKEND-ish.

Anyways, this is my first time linking up with this particular linky but I couldn't resist!

            But first, the rules:

            Okay here goes nothin'.....

1. So my teaching journey has been pretty interesting. 

That's why I cannot believe I am approaching my fifth year. It doesn't feel like it. 

Why you ask?

Because I have switched grade levels like some sort of weird binary code.

5-7-3/4-3/4-2

Which is fine but it also went:

ALL SUBJECTS GENERAL - MATH/CIVICS/READING SPED INCLUSION- MATH SPED - MATH SPED - ALL SUBJECTS SPED.

Well I assume this year is all subjects. I found out in a random late night email the last day of school that I was going to a new grade level. Like "Your new assignment is 2nd, have a nice summer."

Literally. 

I am excited because I have ALWAYS wanted to teach 2nd. But I am nervous because I have not taught reading to the little ones. And this year was suppose to be my "I been in a grade level 3 years" victory lap. Oh well. I want to be a Reading Specialist so this will help since I have spent the last 2 yrs in Math. 

MOVING ON.

2. Call it too many days watching Reality TV.... or blame it on my roots in Interpersonal Communication and Psychology, but I love a challenge. Thus, my heart goes out to so called "behavior kids." You all have ran across one, so no need to explain what they are.

But, I feel like whatever way you describe them, they are misunderstood. And most have learned behaviors...and they learned it from somewhere and for some reason. And I feel that as teachers we should try to understand why the behavior exists so that we can develop a way to help them replace it with a new behavior. 

And in a perfect world I am always successful. 

3. Okay so, yeah. I may get a little carried away when I really "get into" a lesson. And I like to include real-world dialogue and impression...and behavior narration. And sometimes I throw myself into it to get my kiddos engaged when they are looking "lack luster", or they may be nervous to ask for clarification. Like, " Fractions? What does that mean Ms. Tidwell?" 

Or sometimes lamer things. 

1. Okay so instead of talking you to death about this one, just take a lookie:

2. Who DOESN'T like Pitch Perfect??? Okay, do not answer that, because I heard that some people exist that do not like when people randomly break into song.

Somewhere out there. 

But anyway, Pitch Perfect(s) is hilarious. Especially Fat Patricia Amy.

And I will not fully confirm that I learned like 90% of the numbers and lines from the first movie and plan to do the same for the sequel when it hits stores. 

This is one of my NUMBER ONE goals. I am trying to get better in the financial department so that I can actually reap in the rewards of being a teacher in summer. And spend the summer creating stuff for fun and on TpT without feeling like I never sleep. 

Sorry if it felt as if my post would NEVER end! 

I am just getting back into the swing of things so, bare with me!! 

Lastly, If you are interested in linking up there is still time!! I will link back the blog I found it on here! Also, make sure to check out some of the other bloggers posts.

And 6 Months Later.... A June Currently!

Hi Everyone! It has definitely been one of those years.

As I stated before and never came back.

I have been doing some soul searching; determining if "teaching" is where I should be.

Or better yet, finding my teacher-niche' ....and wondering if Special Education is it.

More on that later.


Its been six months since I "Currently-ed" so go easy on me....

A lot of what I wrote is self-explanatory, but a few things. (THINKING) I recently joined a nonprofit that mentors fostered youth. I am so excited because I was matched up and I get to meet my mentee tomorrow! (NEEDING) In order to get my finances in order, I have made a few changes. One includes Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University, which I graduated from this past Saturday-yay! In it you make an Emergency Fund of $1000 for instances when Murphy pops up....and he does pop up!  (SUMMER LOVIN) I plan to be touristy! I am coming on my third summer in this area and I never really explore...I made it my goal to do so! Also, I want to get back into art- my first love. Art can be very therapeutic and I need it after this school year is over....on the 24th-AHHH! Lastly, Ramsey taught me to go after the things I want to change or improve with "gazelle-like" intensity, so I plan to spend the summer doing just that.


Thank you guys so much for stopping by. Stay tuned for a follow-up post about Highlights and Lowlights (?) from this year and where I have been.

It's Me......Ms. Tidwell. I am here.

So I was reminded today by a friend of mine that this blog still exists.

I never realized just how occupied my time has been lately. But going forward I plan to blog.

Things have been happening and I still want to share my teaching experiences.

I am slowly creepy out of that "not so groovy" space.

My random teacher rut.

Let's start with a Currently.

I have not teamed up with the awesome Farley in a while.....

Well- what's funny is I CURRENTLY'd last month, got busy and never posted it.

*slaps head*

Anywho......

Most of these are self explanatory, so I will save you the details. Also, some are silent prayers between God and myself.

Feel free to volunteer to complete the IEP goals though lol.

Send prayers up for Jayson if you are able and willing. Short story, he suffers from a syndrome the doctors are not able to diagnose(yet). He just had cranio-surgery and had distractors put in to allow him more space for his brain. But this is not the only elements of his journey.

Please read about his story here.

You Oughta Know About....VersaTiles!

It has been like two months. I know.

As teachers, you can understand me when I say...

I am having "that" school year.

So my afternoons have been crawling from under work commitments to  wallowing in self "is-this-what-i-wanna-do-forever"ness.

But I digress.

What better way to make a comeback than with this

I had a GREAT time with this Blog Hop during #Back2School, and I love the ideas that Jasmine (Buzzing With Mrs. McClain) comes up with so I decided to give it another go....

...and I plan to hop over to her blog after I am finished to see what she has been up to!!

So for the HOP.

I thought "You Oughta Know About" - V E R S A T I L E S!!

I Ab-SO-lutely love them. 

And I just got them for my kiddos on Wednesday!!!

Yay!!!

What are they you ask?

Taken COMPLETELY from the ETA Hand2Mind VeraTiles Website:

"VersaTiles is a unique skill practice and hands-on learning system that is proven to help teachers meet rising expectations and support standards. It allows students to work individually, in work stations, or as a class to practice essential skills using an innovative answer case that disguises learning as fun. The program covers a wide range of detailed skills and instructional objectives across Math, Language Arts, and Science. Unlike tedious workbooks, VersaTiles provides students the opportunity to persevere and find the answers themselves, making it perfect for differentiation. "

(O_o) ? <---the "show me pictures cause I read and think all day" version of that copy/paste monstrosity face

Basically, its a self-correcting activity that students can do individually and/or with a partner. I plan to use it as a finish early activity or something I can have a kiddo grab to work on a skill they are struggling with.

Also they are pretty low maintenance. Once your kiddo gets a handle on " the numbers represent which question, not your answer" then they can fly free. 

 And self-correct as they go. If they answer them correctly they will get the pattern shown in the book.

Let me also say the magic phrase we all wanna hear....

They are Common Core Aligned.

lol.

The kit comes with books that are separated based on skills areas that students are learning.

Here are a few disguised as awesome kid faces:

It also comes with a Teacher Resource Guide. The guide includes a breakdown of what is where. That way you do not have to page flip.

I teach a pretty small Comprehensive Special Education CSEP population, as some of you know already, so I got a starter kit for each grade level...3rd and 2nd (I teach 3rd and 4th but my kiddos are performing 1+ grade levels behind in some skills). This kit comes with:

1 copy of each skill book (8 books)

1 teacher guide

1 answer flip case

ALSO, sprung for an additional flip case because my rotations groups are 2-3 kiddos. 

I lucked out and got funds from my school for both starter kits and the extra answer case for like $182. I plan to copy from my books as masters be totally legal. hehe. They do sell class set cases fyi, that come with multiple copies of each book.....  but they are definitely like $300 bucks. 

Welp! Thats what I thought you ought to know...

Follow my blog and in the next week or so, I plan to share a way to get some funds when the "school funds and teacher bucks" just AINT 

aren't rolling in.

Until then...

Stay Classy San Francisco

Oh and "I Mustache" that you go get "your hop on" with my fellow Ought-to-Knowers.

An InLinkz Link-up