Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Special thanks to the grandparent of one of my students who brought this in today as a special treat for my first graders.  It was delicious!  The turkey was brought in by the same grandparent who brought in the healthy banana-ghosts and nectarine-Jack-O'Lanterns for Halloween.  My student told me to, "You can eat the head!" so I did!

Gobble!  Gobble!  Gobble!

Everyday Math Counting

Students complete a page called "Math Boxes" in their Everyday Math journals for every lesson. Yesterday my students had to count the number of posters in our classroom to complete one of the Math Box problems.  This is a video of my first graders counting.  You can see how engaged and appropriate they are while they count.  What a great group of first graders!

National Board Certification - Looking Backwards and Forwards

National Board Certification is a rigorous national teacher credential that is recognized nationwide. It currently consists of four components that are blended together and taken as a whole to assess a teacher's entire practice:  effective and reflective practitioner, teaching practice and learning environment, differentiation in instruction, and content knowledge.  Each component requires deep analysis of the architecture of accomplished teaching.

As November 15 approaches, my first anniversary of Board-certification, I find myself reflecting again.  Maybe it's because I remember so well the feelings I had a year ago this week while waiting for my scores to arrive in my portfolio. . . the anxiety and the waiting and the wondering.  I think about my colleagues nation-wide who are going through the same process right now as I type this, and I know that a majority of them will not pass.  I wonder if I would have had the courage to try again had I not passed on my first attempt.  

While my first year was passing by, a document was created that clearly defines the advantages of Board certification. Michelle Exstrom, the Education Program director at the National Conference of State Legislatures, authored Today's Board Certification for Teachers, Answers to Legislators' Questions.  She relied on the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards for assistance with the content of the document.  The entire document is here.  Some of my key take-aways after reading the document include the following:

1. During the past decade, research from multiple states across the country has shown that students taught by Board-certified teachers learn more than students taught by non-certified teachers.  In addition, student gains in high-needs, high-poverty schools is greater.  This is relevant to my practice because I teach in a school with a diverse population, and some of that diversity is marked by high needs. 
2. National Board Certification "screens" applicants.  Teachers who achieve Board-certification out perform teachers who attempt to become Board-certified, but fail.  This was new learning for me, I had incorrectly believed that if a candidate did not pass, it was possible that the candidate could be as effective as a Board-certified teacher, but simply could not "prove it" within the structures in the process of becoming Board-certified. 
3. Capitalizing on the expertise of Board-certified teachers is a part of the mission statement of the National Board.  There is a blog posting that I recently read that speaks to this piece of the mission statement.  Thank you to fellow NBCT, Mike Lee; I couldn't have said it better myself. 

Finally, I want to be clear that this posting is not an indictment towards teachers who are not NBCTs, but more of a summary of my reflections on my first year as an NBCT.  

Champions!

Thank you to all parents who sent in Box Tops!  We collected 920 Box Tops, which means that our class contributed $92.00 for new playground equipment. This banner is hanging outside our classroom door.  Great job, everyone!

Surprise! Pumpkin Pancakes on Halloween!

Every year my husband and I have a surprise pumpkin pancake Halloween breakfast for my first graders.  I am not sure how much longer we can keep the surprise up. . .it's becoming quite popular and one of these days the second graders in my school are going to let the black cat out of the bag and tell one of my first graders about the surprise!

Here is the pumpkin pancake flipper. 

And the pancakes:  You will notice that the pumpkin pancake flipper is still wearing shorts, even though it is the end of October in Maine. 

And a healthy fruit snack sent in by one of the grandparents of my students:

There were four stations: a reading Halloween books station, a puzzle station, an eating pancakes station, and a craft station.  Here are pictures from each station.

These first graders are reading Halloween books:

Here are some pictures of the puzzle makers:

The pumpkin pancake eaters:

And first graders making Halloween crafts:

Everyone had a wonderful time.  Thank you to all parents for keeping this a secret, and a special thank you to the grandparent who sent in the goodies and also volunteered at the craft station!

At The Lake!

Usually I don't post anything personal on my blog but, after four years of blogging,  I am going to make an exception.  My husband and I purchased a four season home on a lake here in Maine last month.  It is a fairly new log home and garage on three acres on a very clean medium-sized lake. Because I teach first grade, I have about nine weeks in the summer to myself.  Since my husband only needs internet for his job, we can maximize the time we spend at the lake house, which is only one hour from our home.

One of the benefits of the lake house (besides all of the rest and relaxation and extra time with my children that I am enjoying) is time to think about what I might try in school to increase the learning of my students.  It's amazing how all the fresh air, long walks, hearty breakfasts, and relaxation contributes to the time I spend thinking.

So, here is a picture of our view.

More Pictures From The Beginning of School. . .