What Not to Wear: Teacher Edition

Am I the only one who has mixed feelings that What Not to Wear is in its last season?  On one hand, I will miss the makeovers demonstrating that any woman can look classier.  On the other hand, I have cheerfully worn tees and jeans all summer without worrying if I will appear on someone's secret footage.

Here are my "rules" for dressing for work.  (We don't have a dress code.)
1.  Concerning retro, if it was in your closet as a trend the first time around, you can't wear it now.  (Unless it is spirit day.) 
2. No theme sweaters.  You know the ones.  They are made for each holiday with bright colors and applique.  (Unless it is spirit day.)
3. All clothes should be wash and wear.  No dry clean only and no ironing.  I don't have the time and the extra cash for anything else. 
4. When trying on clothes, raise your arms above your head to see if there is a gap.  Try sitting down in a chair and on the floor to see if you can do so modestly.  This is another place where I hope I don't appear in someone's secret footage.  I am grateful that I don't have to enter the 360 mirror.
5. When you find something that fits you and the above rules, it's okay to get it in a couple different colors.  I know this breaks the spirit of What Not to Wear, but when I find something that works I want to use it.

I want to thank Clint and Stacy for their wardrobe advice over the years.  I do know how to put together an outfit: trouser, blouse, completer item.  I know that colors don't have to match, they just have to go.  I still plan to wear comfortable shoes. (See previous blog post.)  I am relieved that they won't be showing up some day to throw out all my clothes.

Quote of the Week

 

“Greatness does not approach him who is forever looking down." - Hitopadesa

Free Birthday Graphing Activity

Click here for the free printable Birthday Graph.

Our school went back to school this past Wednesday.  I usually have my students complete this activity the first week of school as a part of our team building get to know you activities.  I decided to redo my birthday graph and share it with you this week.

I keep this part posted by my calendar so I don't forget birthdays. 

I celebrate summer birthdays on their half birthday and the way this chart is organized helps me keep track of that too.

 This year I found some stencil rulers at the party store and I made some simple name tags and attached with curly ribbon.  I am all set for the year.

 

 

I give very little direction for the graph side of the page.  I feel like this should be a simple graph for fourth graders to complete.  I can see who struggles to collect and organize information.

 

 

I hope you enjoy this activity with your students.



Trust Me: the book Swindle is much better than the movie

Books generally are better than their movies.  Hearing that from my students never gets old and we have a good discussion analyzing plot and characters, dialogue and description.

I have quite a collection of Gordon Korman books in my classroom library.  I haven't done an official author study, but I could easily pull it off with my fourth graders.

So, I was curious when I heard reports of a movie based on the book Swindle.  It was released last month as a TV movie for Nickelodeon starring several of the teen actors in their TV shows.   The plot is very loosely based on the book.  Teens sell a baseball card to a collector named Swindle.  Let's just say he lives up to his name. 

I accidentally found it one evening and almost didn't recognize it.  If you loved the books, I will save you time: don't watch the movie.  If students happened to watch it, I would send them in the direction of the books.  This may be its only redeeming quality.

For an explanation of my rating scale, click here.

Currently September with Oh Boy 4th Grade

 

I missed the first day of Farley's Currently.  I love this monthly blog party and I have already sneaked a peak at some other bloggers' answers. 

Currently I am listening to the Castle marathon with my stepdaughter.  We are both huge fans.

I am loving that I chose not to go into school today.  I spent time in my classroom most days in August.  The students arrive on Wednesday.

I am thinking about More or Less which I finally finished listening to today.  I wrote about this audiobook on this blog on Wednesday.  I want to conduct an experiment that he recommends, but I haven't worked out the details.

I want nothing right now.

I need to put a chicken in the oven so we will have meals this week.

The three things I want to do for myself this month are:
1.  Walk 3x a week.
2.  Leave work at 4:30 each day.
3.  Eat more salads for lunch.

Join the party.

Five Tips for Better Parent Communication

I originally wrote this as a guest post for  Raki's Rad Resources and I have updated it a little based on recent experiences.  This week I begin my twenty-third year in the classroom.  Although my career has not been totally free from conflict with parents, I want to share with you five things I consider when contacting parents.

Be proactive.  I start with a parent information form the first week of school.  At the top of the form is this sentence: “I believe that a parent is a child’s first and best teacher.”  It sets the tone for the year.  I included this form in a previous post.

Be positive.  All families advocate for their children. They just may not approach us in the way we like at the times we like. All families want their students to be successful. We may define success in different ways. Someone who doesn’t seem to cooperate is probably just afraid.  I need to remember that some of my parents have never had a good experience at school. 

Be predictable. When I transferred to the school where I teach now, I earned the reputation of working well with parents.  “You answer our emails,” one parent shared with me. I make it a personal goal to respond to a parent within twenty-four hours.  I make sure I am on time to parent meetings.  I want parents to know they can trust me with their children. If I put off contacting the parent, the problem generally grows worse.

Be professional.  It’s tempting to gossip in the staff lounge and speculate about family backgrounds.  The more parents know they can trust me to keep their concerns private, the more they are willing to share with me information that will help me teach their child.

On the other hand, talking with the student’s previous teacher can give you good information to help you this year.  Make sure this conversation is private and based on direct observations of the child and parent conferences.

 

If I do need to process a difficult situation aloud, I have a teaching buddy in another district who I walk with.  I know I can share and she will keep my confidences.

 

Be prudent.  I have had five or so parents in my career that made me uneasy for one reason or another.  It is wise to invite another staff member to attend these conferences.  Another person can be a buffer in a potential conflict or a neutral witness to what I share with the parent.  If you do this, let the parents know who will be attending the conference so they don’t feel cornered. 

The other side of this is inviting the parent to bring in someone he or she feels comfortable with.  It is tough to receive difficult information without a support system.

I make communication with parents a priority and I hope they see that.  I believe that this priority benefits everyone.

Quote of the Week -- September 1, 2013

 

"A teacher who can arouse a feeling for one single good action, for one single good poem, accomplishes more than he who fills our memory with rows and rows of natural objects, classified with name and form." -- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe