When the school year ended, I was fully convinced that I would keep my room Dr. Seuss themed. I couldn't imagine changing everything-- that involved way too much work. I'd need to remake all of my labels, table signs, and word wall letters. I'd then need to find new decorations for my bulletin board area. So, like a crazy person, I changed my mind and decided to do a Harry Potter themed classroom. Enjoy!
My "doorway" aka Platform 9 3/4
I decided to incorporate something called "gamification" into my room. Basically, you turn aspects of school into a game to make it engaging. Each table is a house of Hogwarts, with table 5 having a representative from every house. Throughout the day, their behavior can earn them house points. Whoever has the most house points at the end of the week will earn a table prize.
Ignore the mess, I was still getting everything together!!
Each star above Hogwarts is a clothes pin that will display student work. (Also shoutout to my wonderful mom and GiGi and BoBo for the amazing teacher easel!)
Book shopping-- the labels have mini deathly hallows all over them
Not Harry Potter related, but my crayon organizer. (Also remnants of my Dr. Seuss room in the background!)
The "H" is a sorting hat, and "L" is a lightening bolt.
Morning tubs are labeled with each Hogwarts house, plus the Hogwarts crest.
All ready for meet the teacher! The parent handbook is courtesy of Mrs. Ds Corner over at tpt. HUGE thank you! My parents loved it.
Last but not least, my favorite Harry Potter item:
In each gift bag, I included a wand pencil. Super easy to make: just hot glue, spray paint, and a marble. My kiddos LOVED them! You can get directions on how to make them here!
I really can't believe it's been a year. Looking back on the idea of this blog, I can tell you with full confidence that it was a dumb idea. Who knew that I wouldn't have time for it? (Everybody.) That I'd fall asleep every night around 7? (everybody.) that I'd cry myself to sleep and feel like quitting most days? (That's right, everybody.)
That's not to say that I didn't have one of the most transformative years of my entire life, because of course I did... but man was it hard.
So here's something that I'm sure will shock you--teaching kindergarten is hard. Not like "oh man, this calculus formula doesn't make sense" hard, or even "wow, this 50th mile is a doozy" hard, but like "holy hamburgers, I need to herd 24 kittens into an area full of mice, milk, and boxes" hard. Seriously. This has come to be quite the cliche, but teaching kindergarten is a lot like herding cats. You get one in line and .5 seconds later, there are 20 out of line. And that's just procedures, y'all. Don't get me started on teaching them actual content. I swear, I probably said "I can't tell you how to spell it, stretch it out" around 5000 times, "well what number comes after [X]" around 7600, and "come on, it's a sight word" around 20000. It would surprise you how often you repeat yourself when talking to five year olds-- but then again, maybe it wouldn't.
I was also extremely shocked by the behavior of five year olds. Seriously, I was. I guess I went into this year with rose colored glasses. My dream year went like this "wow, friends, you are such great listeners! I love how you follow directions and apply what I'm teaching you right away! You're angels! Saints!"
Newsflash... It did not go like that. In fact, probably the exact opposite.
There's a moment during your first year of teaching where you look around and think, "I learned absolutely nothing in college to prepare me for this madness, I am the worst teacher in the world, I'm going to quit. Right now." If you're like me, that moment happened five minutes into the first day. If we've spoken at all in the last year, you will have heard me say I had a tough class. I had some friends who didn't exactly know that you were supposed to keep your hands to yourself, and other friends who used words to cut you deep. Hence the crying (both me and students). And while I was dealing with these super friends, I also had the normal kindergarten occurrences:
-objects in noses (fingers, beads, you name it)
-bathroom accidents
-demanding clothes stay on (why they want to take them off at school is anybody's guess)
-eating things you shouldn't
-playing games you shouldn't
-saying things you shouldn't
-tears
-tears
-more tears
-spills
-messes
-did I mention tears yet?
It was at that point I decided that I sucked as a human being, not just a teacher. If I couldn't handle these things, what was I doing here?
Cue student who radically changed my world.
I will be honest and say that the content was the one thing I fell confident in, if you could call it confidence. I'd say I was "confident" in the sense that it was the one thing I was doing right. And that's a good thing, right? That's what they're here for....right? So when a student of mine massively jumped reading levels, I was kind of floored. By kind of, I mean really. Somebody was getting it! But, of course it couldn't have been me. It was the exposure to reading and writing. It was because the parents were reading with them at home. It wasn't me, it couldn't be. I was a failure. My reaction to this student was along the lines of "wow!! You've learned so much!!" To which she responded, "well yeah, Ms. Briggum, I've been listening to you when you teach us."
Umm... What?
I'd be lying if I said that moment was anything short of radically transformative. That moment is when I fell in love with what I do.
So of course I still had the kiddos who made bad choices, and I still had the typical "what is even happening" kindergarten moments, but at least what I was saying was resonating with them. I was, in some small way, making a difference. And I'll tell you something--that has the power to change the way you view kindergarten.
As I close, I'd like to end with the big{ger} shocker: I think I loved kindergarten. Since school has been out, I've been able to reflect on the year and come to the conclusion that yeah, it was hard, but when is anything worth something not hard? On Saturday, I got to hang out with one of my students and have ice cream. I kid you not, I was telling people about it every day leading up to Saturday. I was so dang excited to see her again. And now I can't wait to start the school year and begin relationships with my new babies. I literally cannot wait.
'Twas the night before kindergarten, when all through the house,
Your teacher was having a major freak out,
She'd done all her shopping and labeling with care,
Wishing and praying that you'd soon be there.
It was too hard to finish the rest of the poem with my own words, so I'm going to stop while I'm ahead. I've been thinking about what I want to say about the first day of school, and basically it's come down to an emotional, jumbled mess. I feel like all of my dreams are coming true!
Kiddos, I've been waiting my whole life for you. As a kid, I played teacher. As an adult, I play teacher. I sat through four years of college, learning how best to meet your needs. I have slaved over our classroom, making it look pretty and welcoming, so that you can feel at home when you're with me. I laminated until I could laminate no more, and I bought every Dr. Seuss themed-product in Target. I painstakingly wrote your name tag in Zaner-Bloser font, and prayed over our time together. And it's all lead to this... the first day of school for us both.
I know that you will be scared when you walk through my door. I was, on my first day of kindergarten, and every first day since. But I promise that there is nothing to be afraid of. I know that I can't expect to earn your love and respect on the first day, but I will be trying my best anyway. My hope and dream and prayer is that you come to love being in my room; that you make friends who will be your friends for years to come; that you become inspired to learn. We will do many fun things together--from playdoh to watching chicks hatch. You will laugh at some of the silly things I say, and I will laugh at the silly things you say. You will inspire me with your joy for life, and I hope that I will inspire you to work hard.
I expect that there will be a lot of mistakes throughout the year. Both on my end, and on yours. But mistakes help us grown and learn-- and that is something we will do a lot of together. I hope that you will have grace with me, and I will have grace with you. Sometimes you might not like what I do, but know that I do it out of love for you. I want you to be the kind of learners who impact the world and who care deeply for others. When you make poor decisions, there will be consequences. But please know that we start each day with a clean slate. You can mess up a million times on Monday (hopefully not actually a million!) and have a great day Tuesday. That's how we will work. As long as you come ready to be a part of our classroom family--and family is what I hope we will be.
You are a gift and I cherish you deeply. I cannot wait to see you tomorrow!
So on Saturday, I graduated from the greatest university on the planet, sic 'em! I was supposed to graduate in May, but my pesky foreign language requirement prevented that. Oh well. Graduation was only two and a half hours as opposed to four in the spring. Basically, I came out on top here! ;)
So while I'm here, I want to go ahead and talk about one of the reasons I even have my degree: Albert Red Cheek, as we all liked to call him, Pop.
In the 1940s, a poor kid from a small town in Texas headed down to Waco to attend Baylor and play on their football team. Two years in, however, he put that on hold to serve during WWII, and circumstances prevented him from going back to Baylor. That didn't stop him from being one of the most loyal Baylor football fans in the nation, though.
When I started my college search senior year, Baylor wasn't even on my radar. The only thing I knew about it was that Pop drove down to Texas for nearly every football game, and they weren't even that good. I grew up in Stillwater, home of Oklahoma State University, and I didn't even know that Baylor played OSU. It was that far off my radar. But something in me (maybe the pestering from my mom) convinced me to tour the campus and I absolutely fell in love. It was truly love at first sight. Any one of my good friends from high school can tell you that I was downright obsessed when I got back. Heck, for Halloween I was a Baylor super fan. And let me tell you, the look on Pop's face when I told him that I was going to Baylor is something that I would never trade for anything in this world. I had never felt like I was carrying out a legacy more... that is, until I decided to become a teacher.
It's a well known fact that the Cheek family practically breeds teachers. The number of them on our family tree is borderline unbelievable. But, I'd like to think that Pop started it all. He was the kind of teacher that I aspire to be-- one that impacts his students on both an educational and personal level. I don't know much about his teaching years, but I know that he consistently made a difference in the lives of those around him. He was compassionate, loyal, selfless, and understanding. I am so thankful that I got to know him-- who can really say that about their great-grandpa? I hope that he's sitting somewhere cheering on our bears (sic 'em), and cheering me on as I carry out another part of his legacy.
Baylor Round Up, 1940(ish?) Pop is the center picture.
*this particular blog post was written as per request of one of my wonderful colleagues*
**Warning: this post contains a lot of emotions.**
Holy hotdogs.
Today I experienced something that every teacher has been through: the numbers game. Dun dun duuuuun.... And while I'm going to explain, I think this picture describes the emotions that come with said game pretty darn well:
Before I continue, I need to preface this blog with a statement: I work at a fantastic school. I have no idea how I managed to get a job with such amazing people, but I can only thank God. My team has welcomed me with open arms and I have never felt like out of place. The only way to fully describe the community at my school is with one word-- family. Everyone at the school has made it their goal (it seems) to make me feel like I belong. They smile, they ask questions, and they seem to genuinely care. I could really go on and on, but I'll just say one more thing-- I am truly blessed by this school and these educators.
On to the tough part.
At approximately 1:30 pm, I was sitting in a training about kindergarten math and science, and just so happened to look down at my phone. Waiting for me was a text from my principal. While this would be a good thing at any other time, my mind immediately went to the fact that my class list was at 11 this morning. Eleven. So when my principal said that he needed to meet with kindergarten ASAP and would conference call us in if we couldn't make it, this huge cloud of dread began to blossom and I thought the worst: they're going to move me.
Long story short, it turned out that first grade had way too many students, and kinder had too few. Registration was over and it was time to start thinking about their next steps. They had a few options, and one included moving me to first grade. I am not going to lie, big, fat, ugly, tears started pouring down my face. Thank goodness I wasn't making sobbing noises!
Now, don't get me wrong-- I love first grade. I student taught first grade. I interviewed for first grade. I could teach first grade. But that wasn't the point. The point was that I had built this amazing community with my team that I didn't want to let go of. Not only that, but my classroom was fully decorated and I'm graduating from Baylor this Saturday so I didn't have time to redo everything. And no, I did not blame administration. In fact, I sincerely appreciate their honesty and frankness with the situation. They had the kids in mind, which is something I truly value when it comes to a school. But was I hurt? Absolutely. Was I freaking out? Definitely. Was it going to be okay? I really didn't know. So I did what any logical person should do: I cried and then got to work preparing my heart for first grade.
Let me tell you this: had I been moved to first grade, I would have been okay. In fact, I probably would have been great. First grade has got some amazing people on their team. I went to their area to meet the other teachers and start over with the whole community thing, and realized that they truly are f a n t a s t i c people. Not that I doubted it for a second, I just hadn't experienced it firsthand yet.
So, cat out of the bag, I ended up getting to stay in kindergarten. A wonderful teacher on our team volunteered to move up to first grade and I am truly grateful for her selflessness, and truly ashamed of my lack of. I wish her all the best and I know that she will love first grade because it is awesome. And, I learned a valuable lesson today: God works through everything. I am truly truly truly lucky to work at my school, no matter the grade. No matter where I would have ended up, I know that I would have been supported and encouraged the whole way through. That is something that I couldn't have even imaged when I began my job search in May.
God has a plan, y'all. And for a minute, I lost sight of that. I hopefully won't again (but I will).
Yesterday, we were able to move into our rooms and start decorating! Needless to say, I was excited. By 4:30 am, my body couldn't handle the excitement and woke itself up. Four thirty in the morning. Luckily, I fell back asleep an hour later... only to wake up again at 7 and head to the school. Early bird catches the worm, right?
Let me tell you this about decorating a classroom for the first time: it is not as easy as it looks. Basically, you take a bare-boned room and turn it into a home away from home for your kiddos-- not an easy task. Try looking at this:
....and trying to figure out what angle your projector needs to be placed while still being in reach of the Smart Board and computer without blocking any fire exists! Talk about thinking outside of the box. But, as I've heard some great teachers say,
"flexibility is the most essential attribute of a great teacher."
So I gave it a shot. It worked out pretty well, I'd say. I had so much fun rearranging my furniture and putting up my decorations! I walked in to my room sincerely thinking that I had too much stuff (ha ha ha) and was greatly surprised to find out that I didn't. There are so many things that you don't think of until you're actually in the room decorating. Such as command hooks for my "crisis bag." And even when you know to bring specific things, you run out! Like border for my bulletin boards...
Day one of decorating consisted mainly of rearranging my tables, making a small group area, and putting up my bulletin board decorations. I was there the whole day, too! Who knew that would take so long. I decided to do a Seuss themed classroom, since I love him so much!
From my "doorway"!
Check out that cute mesh on top of my board! Thank you to an amazing colleague of mine who taught me how to make it. It worked out so well with the red bows. Very Seussical!
The Dr. Seuss quote above my board says,
"Today you are you. That is truer than true! There is no one on earth who is you-er than you!"
Did I mention that we're open concept over here at CyFair? Say hello to my neighbors over there!
So Monday was GREAT! I made some great progress on my room and my class ring came in the mail from San Jose Jewelers! Ain't it purty? I love it so much because not only is it gorgeous, but I get to look back on my amazing time at Baylor every time I catch a glimpse of it. Sic 'em!
Whew! These past two weeks have been crazy!! I got back from Arizona last Monday where I spent the weekend with a ton of family that I hadn't seen in years. It was so much fun bonding with them on an adult level and I could absolutely see what I'd been missing as a kid! We also got to celebrate my mom for two reasons-- 1. her graduation from the physical therapy doctoral program, and 2. her engagement to Nate. So much fun! I came back feeling refreshed but also just wanting to get a jump on things! I'm still unpacking my apartment even though I've been here for almost a month now. I'd say I'm embarrassed, but it's kind of hard to unpack a one bedroom apartment when your living room is full of classroom supplies! Boy am I ready to get into my classroom!
In keeping with my "productive" mantra, I have been attending professional developments at any chance I get. I know that I just finished four years of professional development, but I am so eager to be the best teacher I can that I just cannot say no to more learning. At the beginning of the month, I attended Capturing Kids Hearts. If you haven't attended, you need to. I learned so much and I made some friends in the process! :) On Tuesday and Wednesday of this week I had the opportunity to attend the CyFair Digital Learning Conference and it was awesome. There was so many great tools, but two really stuck with me and I'd love to use them in my classroom this year. Starting with... augmented reality.
Augmented reality...it sounds like some sort of science-fiction, futuristic mumbo jumbo and, plot twist, it totally is. Augmented reality is like a QR code, but you can scan pretty much anything and it will show you a graphic right on top of the object you scanned. Basically, it's a hologram. I attended two breakout sessions throughout the conference, and one presenter showed us an example of the augmented reality that we're already used to: lines on a football field. When you're watching football on tv, the lines will show up on top of the field, but it's not actually on the field.
See how the blue and yellow lines are there, but aren't actually there on the field? That's what augmented reality, or simply AR, does. But how does this work in the classroom? Thanks to Brad Waid and Drew Minock, the guys over at Two Guys and Some iPads we were able to find out.
First off, let me just say that Brad and Drew were excellent presenters. I laughed and I learned-- two things that go together very well. After introducing the idea of AR, they showed us the app Daqri that has all sorts of resources that can be used in the classroom. One, for example, was a picture of the solar system. When your hover your device (tablets, phones, etc)over the image, a 3D version of the solar system pops up. Then, by moving your device closer to the image, it zooms in on the solar system. Cool, right? I couldn't find a video of the Daqri product, but here is an idea of what it would do:
So how awesome would it be if we could bring this kind of thing into the classroom? Not only would it be cool for us, but it would be engaging for students! Brad described a time where he used this with his fourth grade class. They wrote a paper and drew a picture of an assignment and then filmed a video to go along with the topic. When parents came in for an open house, they were able to scan their child's work and watch the video instantly. I just can't get over the many possibilities that can come from this. But while I was sitting there listening, I was thinking "great, this is awesome, but how could I use this with kindergarten." Luckily, some programmer dads out there had the same question and designed ABC AR flash cards. When you scan the card, a 3D animal that starts with that letter shows up. No, I'm not kidding.
Start at :38 to get to the good stuff
So to finish off on AR, here are the apps that were mentioned in both of the sessions I went to:
DAQRI
AR Flashcards Animal Alphabet
Aurasma- I didn't talk about this one much, but it allows you to create your own AR. They have preset 3D graphics that you can add to any target (what you point your device at). This one could keep you busy for hours!
Moving on from Augmented Reality, we have Plickers. Plickers is the new way to check for understanding in one quick scan. Each student is given a card with an original square on it. The sides of the square are labeled a, b, c, and d.
This is an example of two different cards.
Before using Plickers in the classroom, you go online and set up a free account. In your account, you will have the opportunity to create a classroom... do it. Each Plickers card is labeled with a number which corresponds to the student in the class. Once this is done and you've download the app on your device, you're ready to go. After asking your question, students hold up their card so that the answer side is on top. You take your advice and scan the room. It documents which students got it right and which students didn't, and keeps that data on your account for you. How super stinking cool is that? What a great way to do simple formative assessments throughout your day! Definitely worth looking into.
There you have it! Two really cool technology tools that could catch your students' attention in no time. Enjoy! And feel free to ask any questions and I'll do my best to answer!
