Christmas Fail and Winter Break

So I was a complete failure with my 17 days of Christmas and which turned into only 12 days. For starters I was late uploading things and fell behind schedule. I just could not keep up. Next year I need to start making things ahead of time like starting in October or earlier. 

Also I was so so so busy planning for the last three days of school before winter break. As a team we decided to do fun Christmas themed activities. So spent spent many of those days searching on Pinterest and then trying to get all of the materials ready. 

Sorry for anybody who was following along with that. I am thinking (no promises) that I might do another one sometime before the school year is over. Maybe. Will see. 

Anyways so far I have been planning and creating things to use in my classroom. We are getting ready to start word families, so be expecting that to be showing up in my store. I have been trying to get things ready like to center activities and worksheets. I have a new parent volunteer coming in to "help" and want to make sure that I keep her busy. In the copy room.

I feel very productive and relaxed at the same time because knowing that I am planning ahead makes me feel good. January is going to be a very busy month. I have to start checking students reading levels and then I have to do another assessment. Also sometime during the month I have my formal observation. The only I am not looking forward to is the lengthy doesn't seem very important lesson plan I have to type up. 

I hope everyone is enjoying their break while it lasts!

TPT Cyber Sale! Nov. 30-Dec. 1

Starting on Monday and going on through Tuesday, there will be a sale going on on Teachers Pay Teachers. 

I don't have too many paid products in my store, but come check out the few that are there because starting in December I will be adding new products every day (expect weekends) to my store for not 12 days of Christmas, but 17 days of Christmas. 

Everyday until Christmas eve, so be sure to check back a my store everyday in December! All the products will be FREE for just only the first day!

My Very First Conferences

The Night Before:
I can't even begin to express how nervous I am about having my first conferences. This will really be the first time that I meet the parents expect for my one parent helper. I am mostly nervous because I don't really know what to expect or what the parents will ask. I have talked by email or phone with some parents about students already and those went well. 

For the most part I am just worried about two parents based on the emails I have had with them so far. Those students are about behavior and no parent wants to worry about behavior. 

Most of my students are either on grade level or above, so I don't have to have those awkward conversations about the student not progressing. I have been told by my team that some of the parents won't even show, though I did get all my conference papers back saying they could all make it. 

The Day After:
Well I did it. My first conferences are over and they didn't go to bad. I only had two parents that didn't show up. Though I did have a few parents that were late. 

Most of my parents were fine and happy to hear what I had to and show them. I only had one helicopter parent, but I think I calmed her and told there was nothing to worry. Her child is one of my high students. 

I only had one problem with one parent and I just really felt at a lost for words because I didn't know what to tell her. On the report I basically put on that he needs to develop his language skills. This child barely talks to me or participates in class. He really only shakes or nods his head at me. She apparently has been told by people that he is very articulate, has really good grammar, and vocabulary. So now she is going to be "volunteering" in the classroom. What bothers me that she is so caught up on that when he still doesn't know his letters, letter sounds, and can't identify numbers. 

I am not going to let her bother me and my holiday. Besides another teacher was telling me the mom is strange when she had the older child and told me not to worry about her. 

Planning, TPT, and Other Teachery Things

I have just been so busy, which I am sure many of you know how busy being a teacher can be let alone a first year teacher starting after the school year. I feel like no matter how much I try to plan ahead for the upcoming week over the weekend, that I always fall behind, though my team feels the same way since we have a new curriculum this year. 

Overall things have been slightly overwhelming with things at work. Like keeping up with county assessments, planning, meetings, emails, and events going on at school. It's all just a lot and I never know who to talk to about all of this. I kind of have a mentor, who has been really great, but there are just some things that she doesn't know or I find out that she told me wrong. I just worry about missing deadlines for all of the county assessments and getting in trouble. 

I have one assessment that needs to be done by the beginning of November and all I have been doing for the past two weeks is assessing students. I feel like I am not teaching them anything, especially during math because that is the time that I spend the most assessing students. It has gotten so bad that I don't even know exactly where I am even at in math. After school this Monday, we are going to plan for math and I am just so thankful because I feel just lost at this point. 

Then I have started my own store on TPT which has been an interesting and new process, so far I have only free items, but plan to add paid items soon. I know that it will take time for my store to grow and when I add my paid items that it could take time for it to sell. I post twice a week and thankfully I spent my summer creating items, so I just had to add it to my store and I do not have to worry about creating activities. 

I know my store comes second compared to my students, but I do want to take my store seriously and hopefully it will become a little something. I plan to move sometime the beginning of next year. My commute is about 50 mins to 1 hr. drive and it is starting to take it's toll on me. I will soon be driving in the dark to work and then back home in the dark. 

Anyways I better get back to planning for this week. Luckily we have a half day on Thursday and then no work on Friday. I could really use a three day weekend. Also I am not sure about a schedule for my blog, but hopefully I get everything settled with work soon and can atleast post once a week. 

Kindergarten Teacher!!

I know just last week I said that I was working as a long term sub for a teacher's assistant, but know I officially have my own classroom starting on Friday!!!

This went really fast because the new school year has already begun and they needed a teacher fast. I get an email asking about doing the interview on Monday. Then Tuesday I had my interview and then today I was offered the position! 

I just still can't believe this. I am just SOOO excited. I know this next week is going to be crazy and I am ready for it. 

New School Year.....and No Job

The new school is here and I didn't get a full teacher position. Which was not a surprise because after finding out my profile was available to principals until the end of summer most positions are taken. 

Anyways a few weeks ago I went in for an interview for a long term substitute position. There was a few spots and it was decided that I would be more comfortable in the grade that I had interned in. The down side was that it was for a teacher assistant. 

I wish I knew more about how much of a money difference there was between assistant and teacher then I might have said no. I will be there until sometime in January. I assist two teachers. One really good thing about this was that I get to experience more and different teaching styles. I also really enjoyed seeing what they do on the first day! It gave me some great ideas for hopefully my classroom next year. 

I can't say exactly what will happen when my time is up here. I know that it will be a sad time and I will miss the kids. Maybe another long term sub position will open up and I will be offered it. Or maybe he will know of another one at another school that I could do.

This is the first week of school and oh I am in kindergarten! I don't think I said that. Though the kindergartens don't start a full day of school until

Student Teaching Tips

I wanted to give those who are being to student teach some tips that will hopefully help them along on their journey. 

1. Breathe

Take a deep breath. You are going to do fine at your internship. You will make mistakes, but you are suppose to. You will have a mentor there every step of the way to help and guide you through everything. And you will learn so much during you time there. 

Also, Remember to have fun and to not stress about the little things. Before you not it this will all be over and you will be graduating. 

2. Student Teaching Binder

This binder is similar to my To Do Binder, though once I began student teaching I made some adjustments to accommodate along with my student teaching schedule. 

This helps me keep organized about all of the different assignments and lesson plans that I will have to do throughout the semester. I also like to take this with me to my classes and when I am at my placement school. 

In this binder it holds lots of important information that I need:

• Grade Sheets
• To Do List
• Calendar 
• Assignment's Schedule
• Class Syllabuses

To create this binder for yourself, you will need:

• To Do List
• Grade Sheets
• Calendar 
• 1/2" Binder
• Dividers/ Sheet Protectors

* The Schedule and the Syllabus you will have to get on your own. 

Also when printing out the To Do List and Grade Sheets I like to print on the back of them too, so that way I can use them again while saving paper.  

Now, lets go through how I set up the whole binder from the cover to the back. I use a binder that has sleeves on the front and the back of the binder, so that way I have more places to put things. 

On the front of the binder I have my To Do List, so I can pick up my binder and look to see right away what is I need to do. I like to go one to two weeks ahead of the time to write down what will be due on the list. I also write them down in order from what will be due first. 

On the ringers of the binder, I use dividers for each of my class. For each class section, I have a divider that also is like a sheet protector where I have the syllabus on the front and then the grade sheet on the back.  

3. Save Your Money

I can't even begin to tell you how many girls in my cohort spent lots of money during our student teaching semesters. Be wise and don't spend so much. It's important, as future educators, to learn how to create amazing lessons without spending all of our money in the process. 

It's more about the content of what you created and not always just the looks. You can make things look amazing with just a little money. Don't worry about how over the top some of the other student might be doing. As long as you meet the requirements your teacher has given you then you both will get the same amount of points. 

Also ask your mentor to see if she happens to have any of the things you need. Teachers are like secret hoarders and you will be amazed by what they have hiding in their storage closets. They also don't mind letting you use there things for your lessons. 

4. Your a Student

Don't ever forget that you are a student and it is a privilege to even be at that school. One girl in my cohort became too comfortable in the school and the other teachers and even the principal did not like that (I talked more about this here). Remember you are going to need your mentor's recommendations when applying to jobs.

Back to College Tips

Back when I originally thought about doing this post, I thought I would have more tips to share, but I couldn't think of that many. I am going to link some of my college organization tips posts that can be helpful for going back to school on the bottom. Be sure to check all of them out by clicking on the tab at the top that says College Tips. 

1. Get to school early if you commute. Parking the first week or two are ABSOLUTELY horrendous. It is like a battle zone with people flying through parking lots and garages trying to find a parking spot. I always dread these weeks and plan to get there early knowing that it could take time trying to find a spot. It's also a good idea, so then you can go and search for the room because sometimes that can be tricky trying to find. 

2. Make a plan for where you park, your walking path, and all the way to your classroom. Also at my community college they had maps for inside the building, so then I could know exactly where my room was in the building when I got there. Unfortunately, my university did not do that and so I had to walk around the buildings a couple of times before I found the rooms sometimes.  I have slight anxiety and it rises when I am in uncomfortable situations such as not knowing the area that I am in, so I feel more comfortable if I know where I need to go.  

3. Don't buy your textbooks new. Instead buy used textbooks or rent textbooks, but not from your college. Use this website,Bigwords, to help find the best prices for textbooks. I talked more about this website here on another post. I used to only want new textbooks, but that is so expensive and after buying used textbooks for the first time, there was nothing wrong with them. Some of them even looked brand new. You are only going to use the book for a few months and to be honest you might not even use it all that much for class, so don't waste your money buying new. 

Other posts that might be helpful:

• Drawer Organizer Schedule/Storage
• To Do List Binder
• What to Ask the Professor

August Blogging

I decided since nothing is happening right now that I am only going to post on Wednesdays. That could, but I doubt it, change if any interviews happen and it becomes a job offer. I had thought about what I was going to do with my blog.  I want to keep clogging when I become a teacher and want to do it here for the first year, so I can give my honest opinion about what is happening. 

Fingers crossed that something will still come up.

July Wrap Up

It's the end of the month again. I can't believe how quick this month went by. 

This has not been going well and I can't seem to figure out the problem. About two weeks ago I decide to apply to another county because I have only applied to two counties. And I realized that the one county is very far away. I don't want to be to far from my family in case something happens. 

The county I applied to is pretty closer to where I am now. Of course wherever I go, I plan to move because I don't want to be communicating all the time and getting stuck in traffic. That is just such a waste of time and as a teacher time is so valuable. 

Just the other day, I thought about what is going to happen if I don't get a job. It's a long time until the next school year. My mom is making me nervous thinking it won't look good if I don't get a teaching job. I decided to apply to another county. I also have been thinking about applying to another for a county I don't really want, but I am worried. 

I just really wish something would happen sooner rather than later. 

I have not bought anything yet still for my non existent classroom nor has my mentor given me any thing else. Besides I don't think there is much more room in my parents house. About a week or so ago, I went through Teachers Pay Teachers free downloads section and got a whole bunch of stuff. I have a folder on my laptop related to everything about teaching and it has almost 2,000 documents. Almost all of that is from TPT. 

I have been binge watching Pretty Little Liars. It is pretty good, but again just like with House I got bored around season four. Though season five was really good and now I am all caught up. I guess I will have to go back to watching House and finish watching it. I only had two seasons left anyways. 

I am still ahead of schedule for a reading goal for the year. I have read 7 more books during this month. I thought that I read more then that, but I had trouble finding books I was interested in reading. There were three books that I enjoyed very much; Kiss the Girl, Forfeit, Revenge, Ice Cream, and Other Things Best Served Cold.  

Application Woes and Anxiety

Trying to obtain a teaching position is not going how I thought it would be. I honestly thought I would have been on interviews by now and have been offered a position. I would be spending by weekends going to yard sales....but that's not happening like I wished. 

I had only applied to two counties. One of those counties is the biggest in my state, but I got so worried about not getting a position before the school year that I applied to another county. I haven't heard any as of today that I am uploading this and I applied a little over a week ago.

The day I applied to the other county and I got thinking about something and I emailed the other county, the big county, human resources department because I felt like something was wrong with my application. I already had the pre-screen interview, but was thinking the lady did not attach that to my application since it was a while ago. I tried emailing her and it would not go through, so I emailed HR. 

A few days later I got any email from the county saying I need to schedule a phone conference for the pre-screen interview. Though the email also said to ignore the email if you have already done it. I emailed back right away asking if I still needed to do it or not because I thought the teacher fair interviews counted. 

I got an email back the next day saying that the person I interviewed with doesn't work there any more, but the lady checked and said that my interview was there. I then got emails from recruitment saying that basically my profile can be seen by principals and they will call if they are interested. 

I felt so relieved when I got this all fixed because I was worrying that maybe my mentors really didn't like me like they had said and I had bad reflections. But everything is fixed now. I just wish I had done it sooner because now I feel like the principals would have completed their interviews and have finished their hiring. 

It has now been a week since I have gotten everything situated with my application and I have not heard from any principals. I got an emailed from my university supervisor last Friday or Thursday asking about how everything was going and I told her about everything. She told me that she doesn't think it's too late and that she got an email asking about her reflection and she said that usually means a principal is interested. 

I am just starting to lose a little faith and losing confidence in myself. 

DIY College Clothing

I think that college clothing is very expansive. It costs like $30 to get a simple grey shirt with your university's logo on it. 

I decided that I was just going to make my own. It's much cheaper and not difficult to do. 

You will need:

• T-shirt Transfers- Found a pack of 12 at Walmart for $12
• T-shirt- Found plain shirt at Walmart for $3
• Colored Printer (make sure ink is good)
• Iron
• Flat Surface (table)

Step 1: I went on Google to find my University's logo that I liked. Then I saved that image in my pictures file. 

Step 2: Then I opened a document and added the logo image. I made the image as big as I could make it. TIP: I turned my document in Word to Landscape to make the logo bigger. 

Step 3: Then I printed that logo onto one of the transfers sheets. When you print make sure you mirror print. TIP: Test on plain paper to make sure it mirror prints correctly before using transfer sheet.

Step 4: Next you need to cut the logo out as closely to it as you can. 

Step 5: Follow the directions on the t-shirt Transfers to iron the logo onto the shirt. 

Also make sure that you use the light colored shirts if you buy light iron sheets and the dark iron sheets on dark colored shirts. I didn't and the first shirt didn't look very good, but the second one looks amazing!

Praxis 2: PLT Early Childhood Help Guide

I wanted to make a help guide for those of you who are studying for the Praxis 2. 

First off I studied what was in the official study companion on the Praxis site that can be found here. In there it gives you a 12 page list of all the possible topics that will be covered. This is great, but if you are like me you still need to Google to find out what some of that information even means. 

I recommend making note cards to help you study. I spent a lot of time trying to find information about almost everything on the study companion. While doing this I also got confused a lot about what I was reading or that it was similar to something else that I already wrote down on a different topic, so there may be somethings that are wrong. If so let me know and I will make those changes. 

I created a study guide with all the theorists, theories, and educational words that I studied that were on the study companion. (Side Note: This is not everything you need to study. There are somethings that you cannot Google to find the answers. You just need to remember what your professors taught you.)  

You can download the free study guide I created here.

I hope this helps you if you are studying for Praxis 2 PLT Early Childhood. Good Luck!

Future Classroom Supplies

I can't help but to look up possible items that I want to buy in my non existent classroom at the moment. I tell myself, this way I will already have an idea what I want to purchase when I get a job, so that is why I looking at supplies. 

I ended up creating a board on Pinterest to keep items that I found all in one spot. Also didn't want to forget about anything when the time comes to purchase. I know I will have a lot of things going on with everything being new to me and I want to get organized now. 

These list could change when I really do shop for my classroom based on what the school supplies and how my classroom is set up. 

Anyways lets move onto the items/supplies:

Magnetic Letters and Numbers

What elementary teacher doesn't use magnetic letters for reading groups, centers, and activities. I also got numbers now from my mentor teacher, so I don't need those anymore. 

Dry Erase Boards

Both of my mentor teachers had dry erase boards at the students seats and it made for a quick and easy assessment to check what the students know or learned. I already have lots of dry erase markers. 

Dotters

I have found lots of activities and center games that uses dotters. I think students will love to use them. 


Counters

Again, counters are something I feel that almost every teacher uses for math. 


Colored Paper and Sandwich Bags

These two items would be great to use differentiate activities and centers in the classroom and to keep them organized.

Caddies

I want to use these as a cutting station. I would have the students get them out when they cutting something. I also want to find something small to place paper scraps in inside the caddie too.  


Mailboxes 

I want to use this for the students mailboxes instead of the big piece of furniture since this takes up much less room. 


Book Boxes

I want to put the book covers on the back of student's chairs as their book boxes. I saw on a blog of someone doing this. And this would take up less space too.



Leveled Books

These mini crates are the prefect size to store the books inside and to keep by the reading table. 

ALRIGHT! That is everything as of right now. There are some other items on my board, but I am not sure about them. I may make a part 2 if I think of other things, though hopefully at that point I will be doing teacher supply hauls instead of what I am really buying for my classroom. 

What College Didn't Teach Me About Job Searching

I feel like after graduation I still need someone to help me with things. I went to a great College known for its education program, but I feel like there are some things that they could of taught me to help get that job. 

I don't know who to turn to for help because the girls in my cohort, that i would go to help, either don't know themselves or have different opinions. 

1. Applications: First off, I have trouble trying to find the applications on the websites. For different counties you find them in different spots and under different titles. 

I wish there was a class that talked about applying to the counties and what you need in order to apply like a cover letter. I did have a class about writing a resume

2. Cover Letter: I didn't even know what this was and while I am filling out the applications it's asking for it. I had no example to go by for typing one. When you google it there is an array of varying examples and I don't know which one is the correct one. Luckily, I asked my brother's wife and she gave me hers to go off by. 

I typed up my cover letter and attached that to my applications earlier in the month. I am hoping that typing that will pay off in getting a job. Also I had my mom read it to get her opinion and she told me that she was really impressed by it. 

3. Teaching Certificate: I don't know about every state, but in mine there are different types of teaching certificates and I didn't know that. I also wasn't sure how to even apply for a it, what you need, or when to apply. In some counties they will apply for you. 

Again I felt lost trying to figure how to get the certificate. There is just so much information on the department of education website. Thankfully one of the girls in the cohort found the letter we have to type to send in, so it will make the process much easier. 

I recently sent in my paper work for my certificate and hopefully everything will go fine.

College Organization: Tip 12

Small Whiteboard

I recommend hanging a small whiteboard in your room where you can write down notes about your assignments, appointments with your adviser, and other things. I love having it in my room because I can look over to see the important things that I need to do for that week. 

It is a helpful reminder to see everyday what is due or when you are suppose to meet with your adviser. I like to have a visual reminder that I see every time I enter or leave my room. 

I would usually write down what I need to do that weekend for the upcoming week. I write down what day the assignment is due too. You can use different colors to be even more organized, though that is not necessary. 

You don't need a big whiteboard. Something small about 1.5' to 2' will be a good size. Also check prices for them everywhere like Walmart, Target, and Amazon to get the best price. 

I put my whiteboard right by the entry to my doorway, so I always see it and know what needs to be done. 

Then I like to check or cross them out, so then I feel more productive and know what I got done and what I still need to do. 

Canceled Interview

In my June Wrap Up I talked about how I got an interview for in early July and now I am going to discuss why I canceled it. 

I got a phone call on a Thursday saying that I had an interview at blank school with blank person about a position as a head start teacher and an email would be sent to me. I looked up what head start was to make sure I knew what it was and I was right. It was to work with 3-5 year olds. 

I want to work in a grade level. I already worked at a daycare for 5 years and don't want to do that anymore. 

I ended up sending an email back a few days before the interview explaining why I was turning down the opportunity for an interview. I was originally going to do it for the experience, but I felt weird thinking that I would be interviewing for something that I did not want. It also would have been a two hour drive to the school. 

Hopefully more opportunities will be coming soon for positions that I want. To be honest I feel weird turning the interview down, but in my heart i know that I would not have been happy doing that. 

July Blogging

I have decided that I am going to continue blogging twice a week, Mondays and Fridays, through the month of July. More is happening now and I want to share everything that is happening to help others going through this too or will be one day. Hopefully big things start happening this month!

Be on the Look Out For:

I already have blog posts ready or ideas for posts this month, so look for those coming. 

1. One major post to look for towards the end of the month is a Praxis 2:PLT:ECED help guide. I am going to make a huge study guide on all of the vocabulary terms and theorists that you need to know. 

2. My go to interview outfit for every interview that I go on. Plus my tips when deciding on an outfit. 

3. Future classroom supplies that I think I know for certain that I want in my classroom.

4. What college did not teach me about job searching and other important things. 

June Wrap Up

So, It's just about the end of June and I thought I would give you an update about how my summer is going and how my search for trying to find a job. 

I worked on my cover letter earlier in the month and have sent attached that to my applications. At first I wasn't sure about doing a cover letter since most of the other girls in my cohort weren't, but I decided, after taking with some others, that I would. I just felt that then they would get to know be better as a future educator and what I want to do in a classroom. This way they can know if I am what they are looking for or not. 

There are two girls that have gotten jobs about the same school where they interned, but nothing else about the other girls. Honestly I am not worrying about a job right now because it is still so early. Teachers don't have to say if they are staying or going until mid July. 

I think late July is when I will hear more back from the schools. Now if it's August and nothing is happening, then I will start worrying. Just not now. I am enjoying my summer off and trying to stop myself from buying things for my future classroom. 

Update: Late last week I got a phone call about a job, but I think it is for a preschool position and I don't want to teach that grade. I am going to go for practice and there might be other openings that I don't know about that they might keep me in mind for or for other schools them might know. The interview is on July 1 and I will let you know how it goes. 

If you read my post called Books, Books, and More Books then you know that my mentor and another teacher at the school have given me a ton of supplies and books for my classroom. 

I now have a little over 300 books, an easel, activity books and ideas, pocket charts, calendar chart, posters, and some other things.  

I have been watching some tv series like House and now I have gotten into Pretty Little Liars. I had read the books before the tv show, so I kind of know some things that are going on. I enjoyed the series House until about season 4 when new cast members came in and after some episodes I got over it. Then during season 6, I got a little bored and began watching PLL. 

Also I began watching this new tv series called Unreal on Lifetime and I love it. Lots of drama going on and it's kind of about the Bachelor. It makes me wonder if they things really go on on the show.

I have been reading what feels like a lot this month. One of my favorites was Take Heart by Lauren Michelle Smith. My goal for the end of the year is too read 80 books and I keep track of my book goal on GoodReads. Though secretly since I am not working this summer I want to try and read 100. As of right now I am at 43 books and according to the cite, I am 5 books ahead of schedule. 

Books, Books, and More Books

Last week my one of my mentors sent me a text asking if I still wanted books that she didn't want anymore and of course I said yes! Any little bit will help me and save me money in the process. Back when I was interning she had asked me and I was really happy to hear from her with the offer still.

So later that week I stopped by the school and got to see the students from both classes and it was great. All the students were really happy to see me and had so much they wanted to share that I ended up being there later then I planned. 

While I was there my mentor said that she still hadn't gone through all of her books and said that I can come back next week to get more. I couldn't believe it, the first time I went there she was getting rid of a little over a 100 books. 

Then I went again the next week and she had said this other teacher had somethings that she was going to give me too. I had no idea that I would end of up leaving with my car looking like this:

I also had stuff in the passenger seat. 

I can't even begin to tell you what everything is because there is just so much and I have not even gone through all the stuff myself. Some of the items are posters, magnetic numbers, an easel, foam things, lots of books, baskets, activity books, stickers, and pocket charts. 

I was up late at night going through almost everything. I just wanted to weave out anything that I knew for sure that I didn't want. 

I don't know have many books should be in a beginning teacher's classroom library, but I feel like I am pretty much set. I have a little over 300 books, though I do plan to stop by the thrift store from time to time maybe after I get a job and grab a few other books, but not many. 

To keep myself organized about what books I have when I go shopping I download this app Booksapp to help me and that's how I know how many books i have. I will admit that the app is not the best and maybe I can't figure this out, but not all books have a bar code, so I wish I could type in the code to look it up instead of putting it in manually. 

I am just so thankful for everything they gave me and really hope that I get a job.