When You Believe

"If I can make it here, I can make it anywhere." - Alicia Keys

Because this semester marks the end of another spring semester as well as the beginning of summer break, it almost feels like everything is ending all at once. But as an optimist, we have to look at every ending as a new beginning. Like our students, teachers struggle, whether it be personal and professional, because we are not gods and superheroes.

We do, however, assume the roles and responsibilities that challenge us to go beyond what we are capable of. We encourage and motivate students to do their best, but every once in a while, we stumble and fall. Therefore, we need to remind ourselves of our strength and persevearance, and that anything is possible. Anything is achievable!


Good luck to everyone. Take care and keep in touch.

P.S. Yolie, can you please share with me the awesome recipe for your dip? Thank you in advance!


Love,
Simon

Batter Up!

"I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and come from behind. But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!" Dr. Seuss

I have had many troubles this semester balancing my work load. I must admit that I fell through with my blogging but I am glad that I was able to keep up in my own way. I am glad we were all able to complete our work for the semester! I couldn't have asked for a better group of people to have worked with! Great Job!

One Art

"The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery." ~Mark Van Doren

As the Spring semester concludes, I must admit that this quote resonated with me because it closely related to the material we covered in class. When it comes to teaching students, learning is a process of discovery. As Language Arts teachers, we must guide the reading path of discovery: from words, to sentences, and into ideas. As teachers, we guide our students into that journey of learning new things and ideas,the complex process of discovering and rediscovering.

Teaching at its best!

"Good teachers are costly, but bad teachers cost more." -Bob Talbert

I believe when all teachers went into this profession, we didn't think about how much we were going to get paid. We went into the profession because we truly believe that we were going to make a difference with all our students. Sadly, their are many bad seeds in the teaching profession that are just there to collect a paycheck every two weeks without giving their all. In return, students pay the price of not being prepared for the future and that is costly!

In Chapter 13, Taberski uses reader response sheets in her teaching. When I was a classroom teacher for seven years I used this as one of my writing centers. My students just loved writing about what they read and drawing their favorite part of the book. In return, I loved reading what they had to write about!

Sky's the limit!

"Life is amazing and the teacher had better prepare himself to be a medium for that amazement." -Edward Blishen

There are so many wonderful things that a teacher can teach a student not only in the classroom, but about life as well. The opportunities that a teacher can open for a student is endless!

What stood out in Chapter 12 for me was the weekly reading logs that Taberski had her students fill out. Each student wrote about how they were successful in their reading for the week and for next what their goal was. That is positive teaching at its best!

Give students something to think about!

"I like a teacher who gives you something to take home to think about besides homework." -Edith Ann

Teachers who bring imagination and excitement to students are the true teachers for our students!

Taberski mentions in Chapter 11 that teachers need to find the right books for all their students to read. I started my library for my classroom early on before I began teaching. Then when I started my profession, my library grew abundantly. I got my students to order from Scholastic and got points to add on to my collection. Not to mention that attending the IRA monthly meetings gave me the opportunity to purchase more for my students and to use them in my thematic units. I am proud of my classroom library!

Touch the Hands of Tomorrow

"Teachers don't impact for a year, but for a lifetime." -Anonymous

A teacher's work is everlasting. All students remember the teacher that made the most difference in their lives.

The most interesting part of Chapter 10 was Taberski providing several key practices for doing one-one-one instruction with students. I like how she starts off her individual conferences with telling how the student is doing and she is very honest with her feedback. I could visualize her in the classroom as this dynamic teacher getting through to all her students. What a wonderful sight to see! A practice that I would love to take on if I do go back into the classroom one day!