Wednesday, February 06, 2019

Busier Than Ever; More Positive Than Ever

You know that phrase, "Be careful for what you wish for." Well I've been wishing for the kinds of teaching and learning opportunities that exist for me now, and I must say I have no regrets. Though busier than ever, I finally have a teaching environment that provides me with what I need to do a good job. Now the challenge is to maximize the use of the great supports that abound to do that good job.

Of course, it's never perfect. There's room for growth, but the promise here is that people are listening, responding, asking more questions, and providing needed help. This is much different from days of old when new ideas were met with sarcastic comments and/or no response at all. So I am not complaining.

I could literally work around the clock given all the capacity I have now, but of course working around the clock does no one any good, so I just have to continue to push forward on this positive to-do list of good teaching/learning activities including the following:

  1. Complete WPSF grant proposal if approved by needed leadership
  2. Prep additional materials for students' fraction project. Respond to student project work as needed.
  3. Forward portfolio work for upcoming student/family conferences:
    1. Prep stat files and sheets for upcoming student portfolio work.
    2. Review student homework and project work for upcoming portfolios.
    3. Create a few reflection sheets for the portfolios.
    4. Forward the portfolio work. 
  4. Prep for the new science rotation including the following:
    1. More role tags, folders
    2. Initial teamwork lesson
    3. Student science lab books
    4. Question/Focus mini posters including pedagogical priorities, standards-based questions, key vocabulary, and order-of-study
    5. Continue to organize materials and material carts
  5. Prep for new reading RTI groups and revisit reading time expectations with all students.
  6. Focus on teamwork in general with the whole group
  7. Prep for upcoming climate change advocacy project work for and with students.
Keep going!