Meet the Teacher Monday

Today was the 1st day of school!  I can't believe I actually slept last night. That's a first.  I was up early though and out the door by 6:00.  I arrived at school, coffee in hand, and ready for the day. All and all... the day went really well.  My voice is sore and I have blisters on my feet, but I have a great class. We got everything completed that was on my lesson plans and even a little extra.  Amazing!  Honestly though, I still can't shake the feeling that I'm forgetting something. I'm crossing my fingers that it wasn't something vital that I can't cover on an as needed basis.  So, to unwind today, I turn to my blog and the blog world.  I'm going to join the craze and get on board with Meet the Teacher Monday.  Here is a bit about me...

Tell us a little something about you...

Hi! My name is Amanda and I'm a Aquarius.  I love the color blue, I read the Hunger Games Trilogy cover to cover in a matter of days, I love rollercoasters, and truly believe coffee should be its own food group. I recently celebrated my 2 year wedding anniversary, but my husband and I have been together for 10 years.  We actually met in high school...AP biology to be exact.  He is currently working full time and going to law school at night, which gives me plenty of time to blog, read, watch movies, workout (haha), and plan for school.  He's working really hard and I'm really proud of him. 

Ten years together, two years married!

 How long have you been teaching?

This is my 5th year of teaching, but I continue to feel like a first year teacher. I have moved grades a lot. The bad news is that you never feel fully confident with things, but the good news is that teaching never gets stale and it pushes you to learn more and be a better teacher.  I student taught in 5th grade and got my first job teaching 4th in a small town in Washington.  At first, I was so nervous.  For some reason I never thought of myself as anything but a 5th grade teacher.  Isn't it funny how so many of us put ourselves in a box? But, I loved 4th and had a great first class.  I taught 4th grade the next year too before moving up to 5th grade.  Then... I moved...across the country...and I found myself in San Antonio, thankful to have a job, and teaching 3rd grade.  That was a challenge, but a great learning experience.  This year... it's back to 4th, but I'm still in San Antonio, so it's all brand new.

You might not now...

that my dog, Riley, is completely and utterly addicted to chocolate.  He loves it!  It all started with candy cane kisses last Christmas.  He sniffed that box and sniffed that box and finally he sampled one.  He's been an addict ever since.  I'm amazed what he can sniff out.  In May I brought home specialty chocolates from Seattle to give my students.   He dug through my carry-on, found the shopping bag, opened the bag, opened the box of chocolates and downed 24 individually wrapped Frango mints. I now store the chocolate way up high and out of reach.  I will never leave an open bag near the floor again.

This is Riley aka The Flash.

What are you most excited about this year?
I am excited to have so many kiddos from last years class.  I really enjoy looping with the kids and watching them grow and change over two years.  The downside of this, of course, is that there is no honeymoon period.  You get the real deal from day one.  They already know you and it doesn't take long before the rest of the class feels the same way.

What do you need to improve?

I need to improve lots of things, but I will stick to three here so as not to overwhelm myself.  1) I want to get back to reader's workshop this year and conferencing with my students much more regularly. Last year, being new to the state and district, I had a lot of learning to do regarding expectations and standards.  This year, I hope to better organize my reading program and provide more individualized instruction. 2) I'm working on incorporating the 7 habits into my teaching and my life. I did my first lesson on habit 1 today and I am definitely still working on the language with my kids.  It will be a live and learn and grow experience all year. 3) Last year I struggled with kids blurting out in my class all the time. I tend to have a conversationalist style of teaching and brainstorming and sometimes it IS okay to share without a hand, but not always.  This year, I am going to work on making it very clear to students when to raise their hand and when to join the conversation.  I think in previous years (with 4th & 5th graders) they were better at naturally reading me and not as impulsive as my current group, so it now takes more effort on my part.

What supplies can you not live without?

I could not live without Mr. Sketch markers, my computer, post-its, my planner, and coffee!

Thanks for taking the time to read a little bit more about me. Read about more great teachers at Blog Hoppin' and link up!

~Amanda