Wax On, Wax Off

I made the trek to school today, a wonderful 25 minute jaunt because it wasn't rush hour. When I arrived I nearly had a heart attack. The floors were being waxed, common for this time of year in schools across the country. What in the world was I going to do? Thankfully my room opens to the outside, and the door was unlocked (courtesy of our janitor! so great!).

I was able to get quite a bit done today. When I left last week they were getting set to re-wax the tile area in my room, which needed to cure before I could move anything. That was all set, so I was able to scoot desks, tables and computers around. I moved our computers back to where they were, taping their Ethernet cords to the wall so that they are mildly inconspicuous. I unflipped the desks that were in a giant cluster, putting them into some approximation of what my classroom will look like. I was also able to return some of my instructional materials (teaching guides) that I won't need to look at in the next two weeks (at least not at home, as some of those are still in the home office). Novels were also moved on top of one of the bookcases, creating another shelf since a majority of them will sit there until used for my various novel studies.

What are the next steps? Getting the physical space looking good is a great start. Next is making notes about what content I will teach, and how I want to teach it. I also need to look at the sequence so that I am sure it makes sense. I'll make other adjustments once the year gets rolling, but you need to start somewhere.

I am using the tool which I am using for my novel study summaries, OneNote, for my curriculum planning. Instead of oodles of notebook paper that I won't refer back to, I have a document that I am excited to add and revise to. I am using a new OneNote document for each curricular area that I teach (Reading, Writing, Social Studies), with different tabs for expectations and units. Thus far I couldn't be happier.

Hurry Up and Rest

Last week seems like a distant memory. Waking up at 8 or 9am instead of 6 has been great, and I think the bags under my eyes are starting to dissipate. My wife and I have a long to-do list for this week, and we've made great headway. We've also been able to see friends for dinner and drinks, which we never do (aside from the occasional Friday). This week is for recharging, and next week is for work.

While I was hired in early July, I wasn't placed until late August. I essentially had 10 days to get to know my team, the building, and what I was going to be teaching. Add to that trying to figure out how to integrate reading/writing into social studies, and you have a rather large task. I feel like I've done fairly well. But next week is my chance to get ahead, get prepped, and map out a large portion of the rest of the year. Does that mean I won't be responsive to my kids? No. It means I'll have an idea of the content I want to teach, the EALRs I am going to hit, what sequence I'll teach it, and how I'll teach it. I have a broad plan, as social studies (particularly US History) can be linear. But I need a clearer plan.

That waits until next week...

It All Starts

Parent-Teacher-Student conferences start tomorrow. I'm a little nervous, but really excited. I've got folders with a variety of information setup, and I feel pretty organized. Of course if I had my wits about me I would have prepared far further in advance. As it was today was a busy day of going back over everything, making sure assessment data was in folders, and writing down strengths and areas for improvement.

Once the first one has started I don't really have a chance to breath, which is a good thing. More time to think means more time to stress over what went well/not. I feel comfortable adjusting as I go, and this will be a similar experience. As a whole, the formula is fairly similar for everyone. Talk about what has gone well, and overall strengths. Then go over assessment data and evidence, and use that as a segue into a conversation about areas for improvement. The goal is for it to be a conversation about where the child is on the continuum, with everyone interested in the child's development. Should be fun. A full slate tomorrow and Monday, and fewer on Tuesday.