Representing Multiplication Multiple Ways

Now, for some reason the IPG (Instructional Planning Guide) in my district says to start 4th grade with arrays, factors, and multiples.  A specialist explained the logic to me once, but I'm still not sure I fully understand.  Place value seems like a more natural place to begin...but... I don't always get to make those decisions, so we are starting with arrays.

Did you notice that I said arrays, factors, and multiples and not multiplication/division concepts?  Well, that's because THAT unit comes later.  Makes perfect sense, right?

I know...it confuses me too.

So, as any good teacher would do.  I tweak.  I start by finding out what they already know about multiplication.  Novel idea, huh?

We started our unit with a quick brainstorm of multiplication and I was very impressed with my results. Here is the list my students came up with:

• 12 x 12 = 144 - Those are called facts.
• Anything times 0 equals 0.
• Anything times 1 equals itself.
• 3x4=12 is just like 4x3=12.  We call that a fact family.
• You can draw a picture of multiplication by using circles and sticks.
• It is repeated addition. 
• You can draw it by putting 4 dots down one said, and three dots across and then fill it in. (She knew about an array, but didn't know what it was called.)
• It is like skip counting.

Sorry for the blurry phone picture.

I must say...well done 3rd grade teachers...WELL DONE!

That is a pretty good list for the first weeks of 4th grade. We spent the next two days talking more and more about arrays. You know...building up our math vocabulary, learning the difference between rows and columns, and finding arrays all over the classroom.

Then, we made our Multiplication Posters to show off what we know.  First, I showed them my example. Sorry, I forgot to take a picture, but it was really nice. I promise.

I wrote in my best handwriting, used different colored headings for each quadrant, organized my array by color (i.e. red row, blue row, etc.), and made my equal groups using all the same kind of stickers.

Then, I let them go. Not one turned out just like mine.

 

Naturally, many of the arrays were a hodge-podge of colors.

They also used as many different kinds of stickers as possible.  

 Please ignore the incorrect multiplication fact in the upper right corner. *shakes head*

All and all though, the posters turned out pretty great.  It was a great review for kids on multiplication. 

I would love to say that these were 100% my idea, but y'all know...I'm the Teaching Thief.  I combined two terrific ideas I found through blogging and Pinterest. 

First, I pinned this over the summer. (Mine looked a lot more like this.  I'm a rule follower.  My students are clearly more creative. *wink, wink*)

I used this same concept in the past, but only with drawings.  I loved the addition of stickers and food. It made it is WAY more entertaining.  Unfortunately, I don't know who to credit with this marvelous idea, so if it was you, please let me know.

I also found another great idea from Mr. B's Beach Brains.  Um... edible arrays?! Yes, please.

And so...our edible multiplication posters were born.  My kiddos had a blast putting together the posters and they make a really nice display in the classroom. Very colorful and fun!

What activities do you do to review multiplication concepts?

 

Getting Started with Metacognition

Y'all my office smells like something died. Seriously!

It started about two weeks ago.  I walked in and got hit with a pretty putrid smell. So, naturally, I started to search.  I looked everywhere and honestly, there are not that many places to look.  My space consists of a work table, a desk, 2 bookshelves, and a small table for my printer.  Nothing.

I finally had to come to the conclusion that something has died in the wall. Ugh! Gross!

Needless to say, I couldn't be in here all week.  It's just nasty. So, yet again, I have fallen behind in posting, reading, and responding to emails. So sorry.

The good news is that the smell is improving thanks to a variety of air fresheners and those gel bead things that supposedly absorb bad odors.  So, I'm back for a few minutes or at least until I can't take the smell anymore.

So, what have my 4th graders been working on lately? Well, becoming active readers, of course.

We started with that big word: METACOGNITION or the process of thinking about your thinking. 

This video does a great job explaining metacognition and the importance of teaching it to our students.

 

Although the idea of metacognition is introduced in previous grades, many of my 4th graders come to me not really understanding what it means to listen to their inner voice.  They seem lost when I ask them, "What do you think about your book?" I get the tilted head, scrunched up nose, shrugging shoulders look or (even worse) I get a completly blank stare.

We go very slow and I do a lot of modeling of metacognition through reading aloud both picture and chapters books.

How to Get Started:

I believe it is important to start with introducing all the strategies at once.  As a reader, we don't use only one strategy per day.  We don't pick up a book and tell ourselves "Today, I will only ask questions." As teachers, we must be careful not to send that message. The strategies we use while reading a text depend on our background knowledge of the topic, the readability of the text, and our interest while reading. 

To introduce all the strategies, I use Constructing Meaning by Nancy N. Boyles.  What I love about this book (aside from all the great resources in the back) is her use of kid-friendly language to introduce the key comprehension strategies. Students can infer and synthesize well before you ever introduce those skills by using her kid friendly language of noticing and figuring out. 

In the book, she walks you through the entire introductory lesson and explains WHY each reading strategy is so important to a reader.  By the end of the first lesson, you have introduced all 6 strategies in very approachable easy to use terms: connecting, wondering, guessing, noticing, picturing, figuring out.

The book also comes with a disc to print your own posters for each strategy. There is an icon to go with each strategy as a reminder. 

After introducing these six kid friendly strategies, I display my metacognition sentences stems poster. All of the posters below are inspired by Tanny McGregor and her wonderful book Comprehension Connections.

2012-2013 Poster

This is the poster I am currently using in my classroom.  I felt it was important to include a sentences stem for my non-fiction readers that are always learning new facts.  So, I added "I just learned..."

Because I was trying to downsize my poster (due to lack of wall space) I had to pick and choose the strategies I put on here this year.  I choose the ones that my 4th graders seem to use the most or at least the ones I would like them to use the most. 

Here is my poster from last year.  I included it again in this post, so that you can compare the two versions.  It is also one of the most pinned things from my blog which is a huge compliment.  Thanks everyone!

I also updated my Real Reading poster this year.  Again, this is straight from Comprehension Connections.  I love the visual is gives my students.

Finally, the students have been given the tools or at least the language to begin.

We start reading some books and practice the art of stopping and listening to our inner voice.  I don't use post-its or write down anything yet.  That's right...at first, there is not an anchor chart in sight.  We just read and talk, read and talk, AND read and talk.  For some of my favorite books to model  metacognition, click here.  These books encourage the use of ALL strategies simultaneously.

After a day or two students begin taking 1-2 post-its with them when they go into Read to Self.  I have learned not to give too many post-its at once as it can be very overwhelming for students in the beginning...even 4th graders.  My lower readers begin to panic and can't seem to get anything down if I give them too much at once.  One post-it at a time seems doable and we just work up from there. You can always give out more when they ask.

Once we have gotten a good overview of the strategies this way, we begin diving into each strategy on a deeper level and using the teacher words of inferring and synthesizing. First up...questioning!  It's always a class favorite. 

Happy reading and thinking!

New Favorite: Tub-Boo-Boo

 I just had to pop in tonight to share my new favorite picture book: tub-boo-boo. Have you heard of it?!

It is H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S!

Our new reading coach recommended it to introduce mentor texts for ideas.  BUT it could be used 101 different ways to teach writing.  From word choice to sentence fluency to voice...oh my gosh... the voice.. it is a really high quality, well written book that kids would enjoy mimicking. I think I could honestly teach everything I need to teach in writing with THIS book.

The story is told from the sister's perspective as if she is a reporter giving you the full TRUE story.  Basically, her younger brother has to take a bubble bath because he is filthy. Just before getting out of the bath, he gets his toe stuck in the faucet.  It's a tub-boo-boo! Mom, being the mother, is positive she can help, but gets stuck too. Dad comes into save the day, but...uh-oh...you guessed it.  Dad gets stuck too.  So, Dad pulls out his cell phone and calls the police, who come and (of course) also get stuck.  I'm sure you get the idea.  Luckily the sister (aka the reporter) comes in and saves the day just before all the bubbles disappear and the situation gets too embarrassing. 

Again, it is H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S!

You and your kids will laugh out loud while you read it.  The book is pure fun! After reading it aloud, we used it as a jumping off point for a personal narrative on an embarrassing moment.  But honestly, you could use this for so much in terms of teaching ideas or writing craft.

I'm glad I read it in September, so that I can continue to come back to it as a mentor text over and over again throughout the year.

There is even a lesson for it on WritingFix.com.  Bonus!

It is truly a great book. Now, I had to give my copy back to her, but I plan on ordering it from Amazon tonight.  I hope you grab a copy too!

If you have 8 minutes, here's the story being read aloud by Miss Nona, the Reading Lady. Enjoy!

WBT: Getting Started with Mirror, Gestures, and Bubble

Why, yes...yes...it has been almost a week since my last post.

Seriously people, how are you teaching and blogging!?  I come home during the week and crash.  I'm lucky if real food even makes it into my mouth for dinner.  I'm honestly in awe of all the bloggers out there that are teaching and posting regularly. AND...many of you are parents too.  Good grief... y'all are amazing and I completely salute you! Also, I would LOVE to know your secret.  :)

Today, I wanted to offer some advice for kicking off Whole Brain Teaching in your classroom.  I posted about Oral Writing several weeks ago and had several readers post questions about getting started.  One of the best things about WBT is that you can completely personalize it and make it work for you and your classroom.

I started using WBT at the end of 2011 and beginning of 2012.  Click here to read my first post and see a great overview video. I'm by no means an expert but I have learned a few things along the way. I discovered the videos on YouTube and started using a few key strategies right away.

I actually started a little bit out of order.   I started with techniques that I found appealing and knew would be highly engaging to my students. This was a great place to start.

The first few things I taught them were mirror, gestures, and bubble.

MIRROR:

I was not very technical when I started using this, I just threw it into my science lesson one day. Sometimes I think hopping into things is the best way to get started.  Mirror is very simple. Basically, your students mirror you. Now, normally mirrors don't talk, but in our classroom, mirrors do.  In fact, we talk a lot.

Here is an example of how I use Mirror in my class:

Teacher: Mirror on! (I always hold my hands up, so the stuents immediatly have a gesture to copy.)
Students: Mirror on! (Students copy exactly what you are doing. )

Teacher: An array... (use fingers to make a rectangle in the air.)
Students: An array... (copy gesture)

Teacher: ...is a representation of multiplication (make a big X across your chest.)
Students: ...is a representation of multiplication (copy gesture)

Teacher: An array... (use fingers to make a rectangle in the air.)
Students: An array... (copy gesture)

Teacher: ...is made of columns (hold arms vertically) and rows (hold arms horizontally)
Students: ...is made of columns and rows (copy gestures)

You get the idea. I continue talking slowly and purposfully while using gestures to explain. The bigger the gestures the better and changing voices to emphasize words is fun too. When I'm ready to turn mirror off, I just say "Mirror Off!"and make a safe sign with my hands indicating that we are finished.  Students repeat words and gestures. 

It is so much fun!  Plus, you have 4 parts of brain going: seeing (visual cortex), saying (Broca’s area), hearing (auditory cortex) and doing (motor cortex). 

GESTURES:

If I only want students to copy my movement while I am teaching, I say gestures.  This is basically silent mirror and works well too.  I like to go back and forth between the two strategies. Once they understand mirror, gestures is a natural follow-up.  Although, sometimes they still try to talk.  Hehe.

BUBBLE:

This is actually a strategy I picked up while watching a video of a fabulous first grade teacher using WBT.  I love this because it helps kids give everyone more think time.  Again, this is very simple. 

Start by asking a question to the class.  It can be a true or false question or a computational question like 5x5? After asking the quesiton, instruct students to "blow the answer into your bubble."

Students hold up a fist to their mouth and blow their answer into their hand.  If some kids still need more time, delay the release of the bubble. Tell students to release.  Students will then hold up their arm over their head, open up their fist, and answer the question aloud.

This is a great to use if you have students that love to blurt out. It is also a great way to informally assess student understanding.  If you hear a variety of answers, you know not everyone is on board.  Students don't have time to look around and see what everyone else is going to say, they have to think for themselves and yelling out all at once feels safe.

Here is the video I first saw showcasing Class-Yes, Mirror, and Bubble.

Once my students and myself had these things down pat, I started adding on. I found it was easier for me to start adding things to my plate gradually.  These three techniques were easy to weave it into my daily routine pretty flawlessly even though I wasn't doing all the WBT stuff.

WBT absolutely saved me last year.  My class was full of kiddos with ADHD.  Now, I know what you are all thinking...everyone's class is full of kids with ADHD.  But, honestly, my room buzzed.  My room bounced.  My room could have powered the school if we could have channeled their energy correctly.

WBT worked wonders.  Using these teaching strategies my class became an even more interactive place to be. My kids loved mirroring me and for my students that were severely ADHD is gave them a chance to move all the time.  I noticed that some of them started gesturing me even if I didn't ask. They just watched me and followed me.  Before I had been fighting to get there attention! It was a complete 180.

This year my class does not buzz like it did last year.  I could survive without using WBT techniques, but I don't want to.  The benefits of using these strategies are priceless.  I highly recommend incorporating these strategies into your daily classroom routines.  I promise you, your kids will not be disappointed and you will be amazed at the level of engagement.

I hope you are able to take one or two or even all three of these strategies and try them out in the next few weeks.  I'd love to hear how it goes. Please come back and let me know what you and your students think

Guess Who Portrait Envelopes

Happy Sunday folks!

Did anyone else feel like the 4 day week was LONGER than any other five day week EVER!

Oh. my. gosh. I was absolutely wiped on Friday night. I crashed.

Of course... I have been working 12 hour days pretty much everyday.  I know y'all understand.  It is the life of a teacher. I haven't even had time to blog or read blogs.  My Google Reader is in overflow mode and is, quite frankly, overwhelming me.

I was hoping to use this weekend to get caught up, but I have been whacked over the head with allergies.  I'm not sure what's dragging me down, but I've got all the symptoms: itchy watery eyes, scratchy throat, cough, etc.

Needless to say, my couch and I have become reacquainted and I've been catching up on Beverly Hills Nannies.  Does anyone else watch this show?  It's addicting. You are expecting to be appalled by the Beverly Hills families and you are, but honestly the nannies are just as bad.  Oh my...that's some good reality TV right there.  

Anyway, as one of my goals this year was not to neglect my blog and dope up on television, so I wanted to share with y'all a back to school project that my students and I just LOVE.  This is not my original idea, but an activity I learned when I joined my awesome 4th grade team. Thanks guys!

Introducing... Guess Who Portrait Envelopes.

Portrait Envelopes are very simple.

Materials Needed: white business envelopes, crayons or colored pencils, some type of get to know you survey

Step 1: Explain that everything is a secret. Shhh! Students should not share their portrait envelopes or answers to their survey with anyone because we are going to use the portrait and the clues about the person to try to guess their identify later in the year. 

Step 2: Students will draw a portrait of themselves on the envelope. Make sure they fill the whole envelope with color. No names anywhere.

Step 3: Students will fill out some kind of B2S Get to Know You survey. I usually choose one that only has no more than 8 questions.  Keep it simple. No name on the survey.

Step 4: Teach students how to fold the 8.5 x 11 piece of paper into an envelope properly. (This is apparently a lost art.)

Step 5: Have students seal the envelopes with the interest survey inside and then... hide them.  Stuff them in a file cabinet.  Wedge them between some books on your shelf. Drop them into the black hole that is your desk.  Put them where ever you want, just hide them.  Out of sight, out of mind.

Step 6: Many months down the road or towards the end of the year rediscover them. Pull them out and "ooohhh" and "aahhh" over them to the class.  Then when you have a few spare moments throughout the next couple of days go through the envelopes.  Show off the portrait and see if the class can guess who it is.  Next, open up and read the clues from the inventory.  After having all year together, the kids are sure to figure out the mystery person and have great fun doing it!

And, that's it. Simple.  The kids love it.  It is a great first week activity, but you can also do it anytime during the first nine weeks.  The time put in during the fall is worth it when you start opening envelopes in the spring.

If you try it out, I'd love to know how it goes.  Enjoy!!

Kicking Off Daily 5: Read to Self

This year is all about NEW.

Even though it is my sixth year of teaching and my 4th year in fourth grade, almost everything I'm doing in my classroom is more new than old. It is exciting and overwhelming all at once because I want to do everything well and sometimes when you are too overloaded nothing gets done well.  It's like that old saying, "I'm a jack of all trades and a master of nothing."  Yeah... I don't want that to be me, so I'm doggie paddling as fast as I can to keep my head above water.

Here is a quick run-down of some of the "new" going in my classroom during the first week.

1. Leader In Me - We are launching the program school-wide this year.  I love it and I love using the 7 habits language to talk to my kids, but it's all new to them.  
2. Morning Meeting - I have been doing classroom meetings for years, but never a daily meeting.  This fits in perfectly twith Leader in Me and provides a nice way to incorporate daily community building.
3. Whole Brain Teaching - I started this last year and I'm still learning.  My class has already learned the 5 Rules, Mirror, Switch, Teach-Ok, and Class-Yes. 
4. Daily 5 - Again, I have used bits of this program, but I've never gone full blown Daily 5.  Although I will still need to modify it this year, we are doing so much more than I ever have before.

See?  There is a lot of new going on.  So, let's focus on one thing for now...Launching Daily 5!

We started with 3 Ways to Read a book and I found the B-E-S-T book for this lesson.  My students loved it and were so engaged throughout the story.  Have you heard of The Knight and the Dragon by Tomie DePaola?

Okay... it is the cutest book and it is mostly wordless.  It is about a knight and dragon who have never fought in a battle, but want to fight each other. After reading several books, they train and prepare for an epic battle. Finally, they are ready and invite each other to the big fight (I love this page), but the battle does not go as expected. The two realize that perhaps they were not meant for the battlefield and could work together instead.

The story is adorable and the pictures are priceless.  You really have to study the pictures to see everything and connect the dots of the story.  One of my students even said that they last page is like an I Spy book. Cool!

The best part about this book was that it was new to ALL of my students. Now, I love rereading as much as the next reader, however, sometimes it is nice to have something new.  Shhh!!  Don't tell the other teachers at my school about this book.  I want a few more years of seeing those little faces light up to a brand new story.

We also launched Read to Self this week and got into our book boxes.  I was much smarter this year because I did not try to do all of this on day 1.  Instead, I had my kids fill out one of those get to know you surveys and used the surveys to fill their book boxes.  I was able to stock boxes with book on  favorite animals and if they shared a favorite book I tried to match reading level and genre.

Here are our book boxes all ready to go with a variety of reading materials.

Considering my students had not been in a classroom that did Daily 5 last year, I was really impressed with their ideas for the I-chart. Look at what they came up with with just a bit of prompting.

I like the addition of getting comfortable.  That is something I have seen added to my I-chart year after year.  Kids simply can not follow the other expectations if they are not comfortable, so we always make it a rule.  Get comfortable, stay in the same spot, and read... read...READ!

Before we started reading, we talked about stamina (as suggested in the Daily 5 book.) I find it easier to teach this lesson after the summer Olympics, because you can use faces and names of Olympians to get your point across.  I always use Michael Phelps. (LOVE HIM!)

I'm a huge fan. He is an incredible athlete and has accomplished so much in his career.

Anyway, I started by giving my students some background information on Phelps and swimming.  Then, I shared one of my favorite stories:

 Once in practice, his coach (Bob Bowen) stepped on his goggles so they would leak while Phelps was swimming. He wanted to prepare him for anything.  He wanted him trained to expect the unexpected.  And then, the day came when all his training paid off.  At the Beijing Olympics when he was swimming the 200 meter butterfly,  he dove in and his goggles leaked.  He couldn't see. But, he knew the swim and his stroke count so well, that he won gold..one of his eight golds at those Olympic games.  Amazing.

My kids were captivated by his story. We talked about the need to train our minds and bodies to do things the right way, so it becomes a habit. (Boy, does this tie in perfectly with Leader in Me.) We also talked about how Michael Phelps didn't wake up one morning and decide to swim in the Olympics.  He had to train and he had to practice.  He started small with just a few laps and built up his stamina.

Okay, I think you get the point. There are so many great athletes to use as your example for stamina, perseverance, and muscle memory. Choose yours and go for it. You should have seen my class...Sitting on the edge of their seats I tell ya.  When I finished they were all, "Is that true?" "Where is he now?" "So, he's like the best swimmer in the world, huh?"

Haha... they were ready to start training.

We spent the rest of the week building stamina and we are graphing our progress as we go. We're off to a great start!

Tomorrow we are reviewing metacognition and the reading strategies.  It's time to bust out some Tanny McGregor and get our thinking on!


 

Excuse me while I VENT!

Picture this...

It's been a L-O-N-G day.  The kind of day where you arrive at school an hour early and stay three hours late.  The kind of long day that can only happen after a three day weekend and you simply have to get your affiars all sorted out.

It wasn't a bad day...just a long day.  Are ya with me?

Then, I get out my phone to check my email.  I'm giddy because I have new comments on my blog and I love comments.

Ah... but perhaps I should rephrase my last statement.  I love productive, supportive, encouraging comments.

Just look at what showed up in my mailbox today.

Can you read it?  It is kind of small.

In response to my classroom paint makeover it says:

Was far better before; the colours were much more causative to learning. Now it just looks dull, and will not have as positive an influence on your students as before. Fail.

Hmmm....WHAT?  Did I read that correclty?  Does that say FAIL?!? Are you kidding?  Is that a joke?!

I'm  was speechless when I read it. I'm all for voicing your opinion and that's totally cool if you are not a fan of my color scheme, but my goodness.... FAIL?

And honestly, I thought my teaching skills were more causative to the learning that goes on in my classroom...not my wall color. I'm just sayin'....

Let's take a quick look at the before and after pictures.

Before

After

After

Anywhooo, I 'm sorry they found it dull.  I find it quite nice and the anchor charts and student work that go up on those walls really stand out now.

I guess what really gets me is that I'm just so surprised someone would write such an unkind comment. Why do it? They could have expressed their opinion a million different ways without being so negative. Fail?!?  Humph. I just can't get over that last word.

I had to play like 10 rounds of SongPop just to recover.

Well, that and...vent on my blog. But, I'm better now. Thanks for listening.

So, in conclusion, please do leave comments, but please don't leave anything that would ruin my day. 

I'm a teacher.  I have enough things to worry about besides filtering my comments.

Let's pass on the positive, highlight the creative, and continue to encourage and inspire each other one comment at a time. 

DIY Crate Seats

I finally did it! After two years of staring at these cute crate seats on blogs and then seeing them all over Pinterest, I finally made my own. Whoo-hoo!

First, I read over Lisa's wonderful directions at Learning is Something to Treasure.  She was very specific and I like that she told me exactly what to look for and about how much everything would cost.  It made the materials hunt go much smoother.

Then, I went shopping.  Home Depot was first up on the list.  Do you think I got enough wood?!?

The guys helping me may have misjudged the size of plywood needed to make 5 seats.  I walked out with 19 pieces of plywood perfectly cut for my crate seats for $20. I would have had 20, but they needed a practice one.  :)  Anyone need some wood?

Next, it was off to Hobby Lobby where I picked up my fabric, poly-foam squares, and spray adhesive.

Finally, I want home and got started.  Here is the final product. Cute, huh?

I'm really excited about fabric I chose.  It is actually cotton duck...something I didn't even know existed until this weekend.  Basically, it is canvas.  I'm hoping it will hold up through the year a bit better.

I can't wait to get them into my classroom and start using them.  Till then, at least I can cross out one more thing off my Pinterest To-Do List.

Surviving the First Week

I survived the first week.

That's right...I made it a full five days with my students.  Whoo-hoo!

It was both the longest and shortest week all wrapped into one mega week.  Each day was absolutely exhausting and yet it was over before I knew it. Thank goodness for coffee!

Back to school is tough for teachers. We loose all our teaching stamina over the summer.  Your voice is not used to talking all day.  Your feet are not used to walking and standing all day. Your stomach is not used to being deprived of mid-morning snacks.  It is a complete 180 from the teacher summer lifestyle.  AND...that doesn't even account for having to wake up early and wear real clothes.  I mean... whew!

The good news is that I am truly blessed with my class this year.  I have a great group of kids. So many of them LOVE to read and learn new things. I haven't had a class this eager in several years and I'm just ecstatic! It made getting up at 5:00 a.m. so much more bearable. 

But, don't you wish we could build up our teaching stamina like the kids?  Wouldn't it be nice if someone told us we only had to teach for 3 minutes on day one?  Then, we could build up day by day and track our progress.  But, alas, that is not the way the world works.  Teachers have to be ready to go 150% on day one.  It's like going from pee-wees to the Olympics.

Luckily, I can usually fake my stamina throughout the day and hold off the inevitable CRASH until I get home. Anyone else fall asleep wearing their work clothes this week?  How about fall asleep with the light on and book in hand?  Anyone grab some crackers for dinner and head straight to bed?

Well....I did all those things. Plus, I have reacquainted myself with my snooze button.  Hit it once on Monday.  Twice on Tuesday.  Three times Wednesday.  Are you starting to see the pattern? Let's just say it continued all week.

So, what exactly do you need to survive as a teacher? I'm linking up with Corrina at Mrs. Allen's 5th Grade Files to share what I use to help me get through the first week of school and beyond.


Coffee, Coffee, and More Coffee - Drink some before you leave the house.  Grab another cup for the road.  Keep sipping all the way through the morning.  Microwave if needed.

  
Chocolate - I'm not picky here.  Anything will do...Snickers, Twix, Milky Way, even a Kit Kat.  I can't keep any in my own classroom because...well, let's be honest...the entire Costco size bag would be gone in a few days. However, my principal keeps a bowl of chocolate on the table in his office.  It's good to know it is there if/when I need it.

Cold Hard Cash - I always like to have a few dollars laying around so when the afternoon melt down hits, I can book it to the staff room and buy some more caffiene.

Tylenol - Be calm and pop some Tylenol.

 

Music - I have to have some tunes while I wrap things up for the day.  It relaxes me.

The Bag of Doom - Okay, this is really just the bag I use to haul everything to and from school each day, but my husband lovingly refers to it as my bag of doom.  But, without this bag of doom, I would be at school FOREVER.  So, I appreciate it.  If I take it home I feel like I can leave and although I may not always take that bag of doom out of the car, at least it came home and gave me permission to leave work a few minutes earlier.  It actually helps me with my sanity. As all teachers know, there is ALWAYS more to do and will still be there tomorrow.

Box of Wine - Don't judge on this one, but a glass of wine is the perfect way to end a long/rough day and I was wasting so much wine with the bottles, I switched to box.  I recently bought the wine cube from Target. Honestly, it's not bad.  Clearly, I keep this at home.

The number one thing that helps me survive is my amazing team.  They are the best!  I work with some of the best people on the planet.  Seriously! They always help me gain perspective, laugh at the most stressful moments, and recognize the difference we make everyday.  In a super stressful job where it is easy to feel deflated, my team helps keep up morale and makes everyday fun! 

Finally, weekends help me survive and THANK GOODNESS for this three day weekend.  I have been sleeping in, getting caught up on blogs, and spending some time with my husband and the two pups.

Life is good.