meet the teacher

Who doesn't love a good blog hop? I have seen many bloggy friends linking up to this, so I am jumping on the bandwagon!

Tell us a little something about you...

I am Mrs. Sneaker, or KT as I always sign my bloggy comments, and I currently (as of two days ago) live in Portland, OR. I spent the summer in Germany with my husband, who was working there for the past two years. I lived there with him during the 2009-2010 school year and worked at an international school as a SPED teacher, but returned to Oregon this past school year to keep my spot in my district (teaching jobs are a wee bit hard to get right now) and to continue working on my doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction. I am SO happy to be back in the US with my husband and reuniting with all my girlfriends! This will be my second year teaching Kindergarten (two half-day sessions) and I am excited for another year!

How long have you been teaching?

This will be my 7th year teaching. I started out teaching in a bilingual Head Start for migrant families when I first moved to Oregon. That year provided me lots of practice speaking in Spanish with my wonderful colleagues, so the following year I was able to snag a spot teaching first grade in the district I really wanted to work for since relocating to Oregon in 2005. I taught first grade for three years and then Mr. Sneaker and I moved to Germany where I worked first as a classroom assistant in third grade and then as a Support Services (SPED) teacher with kids in grades 3-9. I loved the opportunity to assist in so many different classrooms and watch fantastic teachers in action, but I really missed having my own classroom and my own group of kiddos. When I gave notice to my district in OR that I would be returning for the 2010-2011 school year, I was placed at a different school in Kindergarten. At first I was so sure about the assignment, but now I am hooked. Kindergarten is a special year and I am happy to be a part of it for so many kiddos.

You might not know...

Right now I am living in a hotel. Since we just moved back from Germany, Mr. Sneaker's company provides us temporary housing until we find a place. We own a home in Portland, but it is currently occupied by renters, so we have to wait until the lease is up in March to move back in. We are staying in a Residence Inn right now and will move to a different short term furnished apartment on Sept. 2nd. We'll stay there for 6 weeks and then we'll move to another apartment for the duration of our renters' lease. Lots of moving...We are living out of suitcases and awaiting our belongings which will arrive on a boat sometime in October. 

What are you looking most forward to this school year?

I'm really looking forward to the consistency that this year brings--same school as last year, same grade level as last year, same team as last year. It takes a year to figure things out, especially when joining a new staff and teaching a new grade, so I am happy to be returning to something I have already done rather than starting new again (which I did the previous two school years). I have been brainstorming all summer, so I am excited to put some new ideas into action!

What do you need to improve?

One of my big goals is to more effectively recruit and organize parent volunteers. This year I plan to write up some descriptions of weekly jobs that I need help with so that I can have parents coming more routinely for specific tasks. I know that not all parents can commit to coming weekly, but for the sake of being organized enough to actually benefit from the time the parents put in, I feel like having specific jobs will be helpful. I have a hard time asking for help, so I need to be better about really clarifying (for myself) what I need help with so I can ask for it. Sometimes I get frustrated when parents come in and don't really know how to effectively help, so I want to be more proactive about "training" them to do the jobs I want done. I suffer from the "I'd rather do it myself because it's a hassle to explain what I want done to this parent who arrived in the middle of my lesson," but truly, parents who help are so wonderful and it's nice to not do everything myself!!

I also would like to get better at moving my kiddos towards working more independently. I have visions of Daily5-esque classrooms with quiet children busily working, yet there always seems to be a bit too much noise pollution in my neck of the woods. I am tired of everything being whole group so that every kid is doing the same exact thing at the same exact time and I want my kiddos to have more opportunities to think for themselves and problem solve.

What teaching supplies can you *not* live without?

Teaching Books (picture books, idea books etc.)

Post-its

Sharpies

Document Camera (!!!)

White

BLOGS! (Not really a supply but a resource I heart!)

 

* * * * *

 Now it's your turn. Check out Blog Hoppin' and link up! Thanks for playing along!

10 Questions

Today for my last post from Germany, I am copying Kelly's 10 Questions from yesterday:

What are you really good at? What are you really bad at?
I am good at writing, being thoughtful, baking, being a perpetual student, working hard, and teaching.
 I am really bad at decorating, navigating/finding my way around,  team sports, and being spontaneous. 


 Have you ever been in a car accident? What happened?
I have been in a few car accidents, but nothing serious. One time my brother and I were driving to school on the narrow back roads of CT and we slid on some ice and hit another car. Another time, I was in the car with my friend Lauren and we got rear ended. Another time, I was turning right on my way home from class in college and I rear ended the driver in front of me. To be honest, the most damage I have done is hitting stationary things....my husband will never let me live down the fact that I drove into a telephone poll when I was taking him to the train station early in the morning. Not proud of that one because I did it in my brand new car.

Why did you attend your college?
Having grown up in Connecticut, Villanova was the perfect distance in order to be "away from home" but to still be close enough that I could make it home without a lot of hassle if I needed to be home.  I didn't really have a lot of guidance when selecting a college and I actually applied to 2 other schools that were strictly business schools (didn't really have it figured out that I wanted to be a teacher until after I was accepted to the Villanova Business School, so I requested to transfer to the School of Arts and Sciences a few months before school started). Looking back, there were aspects of Villanova that I didn't really love, but I honestly think it was fate that I ended up there because that is where I met Mr. Sneaker.

Describe your morning routine today.
Woke up to Mr. Sneaker's alarm around 8. Usually I go back to sleep when he leaves, but I got up this morning because he needed me to sign some tax papers. I wanted to go back to sleep after he left, but I was starving, so I made myself some scrambled eggs which I ate while checking email, facebook, and reading blogs.

Have you ever snooped through someone else’s things? Did you find anything interesting?
Right now I am staying at someone's house who is not here, so it's kind of hard not to "snoop" through his things in order to find what I need. It's not like I am looking through his closet or his desk or anything, but I have done a lot of searching in the kitchen to find utensils, plates etc. I have to say, one thing I am really looking forward to is having my own kitchen again. There is something about using someone else's stuff that I just don't care for.


What do you think happens when you die?
That is a really interesting question.  I don't really think about that often. I guess it's one of those things I figure I will find out when I get there....

Are you superstitious?
 In some ways, yes. I definitely fear the jinx. For example, I worry that if I ever called out of work and said I was sick when I wasn't truly sick, that I would then get sick for something important in return. I am not too worried about breaking mirrors or black cats crossing my path, but I do worry. I guess I could call myself more of a worrier than a superstitious person.


Do people think you are younger or older than you actually are?
I've never really had people comment either way. I think I look pretty much my age, but I hope I continue to look my age now as I get older. ::wink::


How did your parents’ relationship influence you?


1. I believe in the value of hard work.
2. I think family meals are important for the sake of good communication and family bonding.
3. I think marriage requires a lot of give and take, which means it requires effort and shouldn't be taken for granted.

What were the three happiest moments of your life?
 This is really tough to answer.... I have to alter this a little to make it the three happiest moments of this year because I can't process my entire life right now.


1. Passing my core paper/defense
2. Reuniting with Mr. Sneaker after being apart for so long
3. Crossing the finish line of my first half marathon

Answer one of the questions in a comment!!

We fly for a long time tomorrow. Wish us luck!!

 

Almost There

Tomorrow is our last day in Germany. I think it is much more difficult to leave for Mr. Sneaker because I already left once and the best friend I made in Germany is waiting for me back in Portland, but he is leaving a lot of friends and many truly wonderfully welcoming and kind people that kept him company while I was away.

We are both looking forward to being back in Portland, but there are a few things in particular that are on my mind:

• Target (particularly the dollar spot...and Michaels cause I got an email about some awesome sales)

• My car

• My girls who I cannot wait to hang out with!

• Chobani Greek yogurt (I just can't find good yogurt here)

• My classroom (it's time to put all of my summer ideas into effect)

Today is our 4th wedding anniversary, so I am dressed and waiting for Mr. Sneaker to come pick me up. We are going to his favorite steak place and I am hungry! Mr. Sneaker and I don't do anniversary gifts and this year I didn't even get him a card because they're just not the same in German, but we've got a lot of wonderful things in our life to celebrate and all that matters is that this year we are together for our special day :0)

Processing

I haven't fired up my laptop since relocating to our temporary housing #1 and it's difficult to post and comment with my ipad, so I am bringing out the big guns today to bring you this post--

I woke up to an email in my inbox from my lovely team partner Mrs. Bee this morning alerting me to the fact that we had received some scheduling info from our principal via district email. I immediately checked it out and Mrs. Bee's lament was confirmed--half day Kinder classes do not have specials this year.

::sigh::

With only 2 hours and 20 minutes to cram in everything we are mandated to do, it is challenging to find time for specials. Last year we started with 10 minutes each of Library, PE, and Music in our classrooms. The time flew by and it was a little cramped, especially for PE, but the kids loved that time of day and the activities were great to break up the very academic lessons that we do with them. By mid-year, we started doing 30 minutes of PE in the gym and the kids would just have PE once every 6 day rotation rather than twice. By the end of the year, we also added a 30 minute computer/library checkout session once every 6 days as well and we started bringing our kiddos to the Music room rather than having our Music teacher come to us since his room houses all the great instruments and it's literally just down the hall from us.

At the end of last year, our Librarian positions were cut, so I am guessing that the schedule change for our specials is a result of that. I am sure it will be more challenging to fit in specials now that we no longer have three different specials to attend, but we are still disappointed that specials have been entirely removed from half day Kinder.

The nature of Kindergarten has changed so much in recent years leaving the children with a very rigorous, fast-paced, academic session devoid of play time, recess, and daily snack. We are constantly rushed with our short half days and although as the teacher, I would love to gain the additional time with my kiddos, I know how much enjoyment they get from Mucic, PE, and Library, so I am sad for them. I am hoping we can arrange to have at least one PE session per rotation, but I understand that the master schedule for the entire school has undergone changes and it may not be simple to "just add us in once."

Bummer.

At least now, I have a copy of the schedule and I can start to figure out how my day will go. I still have 30 minutes of pull out ELD for some kiddos, so my day pretty much revolves around when those kids leave. The morning class is scheduled to have ELD from 9:30-10:00, which means I have 40 minutes with the kiddos once they return. Last year, there were only 10 minutes once they returned, so it was story time and then we got backpacks and headed for the bus. That was nice, so I am trying to process what activity I will save for last because it's difficult to get something productive accomplished once they return. I know this because my afternoon class had ELD last year from 1:15-1:45 and then we had ten minutes before specials followed by 20 more minutes of class time, which meant math at the end of the day was really tough to get through. Also, we frequently have issues with the children not being returned exactly on time, which makes it difficult to transition smoothly into a new activity upon their return.

Lots to think about.

I think the morning will go like this...

8:10-8:20 morning work at tables

8:20 Announcements immediately followed by good morning song and transition to morning greeting carpet.

8:20-8:30 Greeting time, review daily schedule, morning message of sorts, review of letter of the week/sight word of the week==> transition to the new carpet (fingers are crossed that our amazing new carpets will arrive in time for the first day of school!!!)

8:30-9:00 Fast Track Phonics lesson (first part at the carpet, writing part at tables)

9:00-9:30 Math- Start at the carpet for daily math routine, then go into lesson. The Daily Math routine has some movement and this year I am going to add music to it, so this can be a more active time prior to the lesson where the kiddos most likely sit.

9:30-10:00 ELD. This will be the time where I do my daily activity with the kids who remain (Math games on Monday, Travel Tuesdays, Words on Wednesdays, Thoughtful Thursdays, Flexible Fridays). Hopefully I can train the kiddos well enough so that as soon as the kids return from ELD, we can quickly clean up and transition to the last activity of the day.

10:00-10:30 Additional Reading/Sight Words. Last year in the PM class, I found it was much easier to have kids doing more hands on things during this last block as opposed to sitting and listening to a math lesson. During this time we do things like paste die cut letters to make our sight word of the week, letter looking, letter cut and paste etc.

10:30 Star of the Week

10:40 Dissmissal

I used to do star of the week at the beginning of the day after our greeting, but this year I am going to try it at the end of the day. Hopefully it doesn't feel as rushed.

The PM schedule will be different because the ELD block is closer to the end of the day leaving only 10 minutes after the kiddos return. I can do Star of the Week at that time, but only if the kiddos returning are on time. I guess I have a little bit of flexibility because the buses sit outside for 10 minutes after the bell, so it's not like we need to leave the room exactly at 2:25, but I prefer for my kiddos to get on the buses earlier than the older kids. I also have to figure out if I want to do straight Reading/Literacy and then Math or put Math in the middle to break up the phonics lesson and the sight word practice.

And, this is based on the schedule that was sent to us, which is subject to change....


What are your thoughts on half day Kindergartners not having specials? I waffle in my perspective...sometimes feeling like it's such a short day at school that they can certainly play when they are not at school, yet on the other hand, I feel like getting to know the specialists, being exposed to those classes, and walking in the hallway are all very important parts of school that might as well start in Kindergarten.


How do you configure your daily schedule? We are required to teach certain things for certain lengths of time, so I don't have a ton of say, but I do try to make sure that the kids have enough transitions and are not sitting for too long. My daily schedule works best (for me) when it is very consistent, especially since I have two different groups of kiddos with difference schedules). I can keep track better if we basically do the same thing at the same time each day. That inevitably gets interrupted, but for the most part, I try to keep things consistent.

Empty

Thank you for the sweet comments on yesterday's post. I appreciate the kind words about what I post and I know that the lack of comments doesn't mean that nobody is reading or that my posts aren't interesting. I also frequently read many blogs that I don't comment on, so I need to be better about that too. Sometimes even a simple comment makes me smile, so I need to do the same for all my bloggy friends out there.

Today I am back at my now almost completely empty apartment while a new team of movers takes apart our two very large wardrobes and moves out Mr. Sneaker's friend's stuff. Mr. Sneaker had a roommate for awhile when I was in the US, and that friend has since moved to Amsterdam. He postponed the move of his stuff so that he could buy some of our stuff and include it in the move with his stuff. Does that make sense? So, his movers are here today which means I need to be here while they do their work.

All I have to say is thank goodness for internet because it would be really boring here without the ability to go online, read blogs, check facebook, send and receive emails, and watch TV. Hubs is a major fan of TV, so we have been able to access all of our favorite American shows the entire time we've lived in Germany thanks to a Tivo at his parents house, a sling box, and a sling catcher. He set it up so that I can use my computer to access the Tivo, so I watched Project Runway this morning while sitting outside on the patio. Then it got really cold and started raining so I am sitting on the floor in the empty living room. I am getting so hungry, so when I am done posting I am going to head over to the closet store to buy a frozen pizza. I don't have any plates, utensils, or napkins...but I do have an oven, so I am going to make it work (as Tim Gunn says).

Other than my laptop, I also brought along my iPhone and my iPad for this day of solace. As I mentioned in a previous post, I really like reading books on the Kindle app on my phone. Yes, it's super tiny, but I have always loved very little books. When I was a child, I had several sets of very small books that I just adored. Some were fairy tales and then there was a Babar the elephant series about the different elements (earth, water, air, fire). I also collected miniature plastic Cabbage Patch dolls and little woodsy animals that had little families of animals like foxes, owls, etc. I can't think of the name right now, but I will ask my mom--she will know. I LOVED those little creatures and I think they are still up in mom's attic. I will have to dig those out when I go home for the holidays. Ok, I had to google it....they were called Sylvanian families...So cute. I had bears, rabbits, and maybe some others too.

 

Do you remember these toys?

Wow, that was a tangent.

Besides playing Words with Friends, reading The Life and Death of the American School System (which is very good and I am almost done with it), and watching some TV, if I am really honest with myself, I know that today is a great day for some paper writing. I have been slacking. One a day has been hard with so many trips and with moving, so it's time to get back into that groove. How many pages can I write in the next 6 hours??? If I really tried, I bet I could do 5. I'll get back to you on how that works out. I have been reading great stuff and I finally have  a decent outline, so I know there are good ideas floating around in my head--I just need to get them down on paper. It's really hard for me to just write without attention to minute details though, so I need to get over that and just get my ideas out. I can revise later. Does anyone else have a hard time separating composing from editing?? I always edit as I go and that majorly slows me down.

But, first it's time for some pizza. So I will leave you with a few questions....

What is your favorite kind of pizza? I like pizza with lots of veges on it, but I also like meat sometimes like sausage or ham. There are few things I won't eat on a pizza, but anchovies is one of them. None for me, thanks!

If you could bring three items with you to entertain you for the day in a boring place, what would they be? All I have to say is thank you to Steve Jobs for my three :0)

Did you collect anything when you were younger? I collected rocks (because my brother did), postcards (I did one of those chain letter projects in order to get postcards sent to me from people all over the world), little Cabbage Patch figures, and....I think that's it!

Wiped

I am wiped from a long day watching the movers pack up our life. Now I am left with nowhere to sit but the patio furniture. Thank goodness
The new tenants in our apartment bought
The chair I am sitting on or else
I would be on the floor.

So today's post is going to be a simple question...

What needs to be different on this blog in order for people to comment/say hello/give input??

I see many blogs that receive insane amounts of comments on every single post.

I feel like I hear crickets chirp...

I am just not on the giveaway
Bandwagon nor do I make really cute teachery things for people to snag, but that's just me. It doesn't mean I don't love you guys!

So your challenge for today... Talk to me! I want to know who you are so I can check out your blogs too!