So long, sweet, sweet summer! It's Back To school Time and I am feeling recharged and READY for the 2016-17 school year! I did a lot of creating, reading and grant writing over the summer and have developed new systems, goals and projects for this school year. To start off with, check out this fun visual syllabus!
One system that I am excited about is the Artist Trading Card Binder. Last year I had the 7th and 8th grade class participate in two ATC swaps. These were swaps within the United States and I assigned the students to design ATC cards specifically for the swaps. This year, ATC Cards are an early finisher project. So when a student finishes their work they can gradually work on a mini masterpiece and store it in their cubby until they are done. Their artwork can pertain the the content of the unit we are currently working on OR anything they choose. Once they are finished with their card they will file it into the ATC Binder. When we engage in a swap- and this year my goal is to expand internationally- students will select one of their favorite cards to swap! YAY! I love systems! Check out this FAB Binder!
Last Year I had MANY goals and was able to achieve them all. Part of that was because I was teaching 3 days a week and had two week days to work on accomplishing them. With coming back full-time this year (YAY!) I have decided on a few goals to strive for.
- 1 positive email EVERYDAY. This means I do my very best to keep a positive filter on and see as much good as possible out of every one of my students. #WIN
- Ditch the Desk: This means I do my very best at immersing myself wherever my students are and not isolating myself behind a teacher fort. I want to be WITHIN the culture of my classroom.
- Blogging Once a Week: Reflecting through blogging has helped me tremendously. I am able to process the teaching week through writing. Once I process I am able to see areas of weakness that I need to strengthen or areas strengths that I need to celebrate. So sharing out what is going on within the four walls of my classroom is something I strive to do on a weekly basis!
Projects! I LOVE creating curriculum! Creating new projects for students is one of my favorite part of this job! Sure, we have some units that for the most part are constant, but this year I have added a few new projects to both 7th and 8th grade that I can't wait to try out! Here are just a few:
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| Inkless Tattoos |
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| Packing Tape Sculpture |
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| Cerealism Pop Art |
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| Animoji Animation |
I like writing grants. It's like a competition and I guess I have a little competitiveness in me ;). This year I decided to write my grants over the summer as they take a bit of time. So, over the summer I wrote six short and sweet grants. I should find out by December if I am awarded any. I always walk into a grant knowing it's a crap shoot whether or not my project will get funded but I feel like it's worth the time and effort to try! Linked here is a Donors Choose grant that I wrote. Fingers Crossed!
So now that I am back to school I am really glad that I took the time over the summer to create, read and write grants because now I can focus my time and energy on teaching the kids and meeting my goals. Who's Ready? I Am!!!
