Hardest Year of My Life

This has been the hardest year of my life.  I have lost 15 pounds, but I needed too!  I feel constantly uneasy. I want this particular state of being to cease.  I am struggling with it terribly.  It is holding me back.  It is keeping me from my higher understanding.  The constant thoughts are almost terrifying.  Hmmmmm that makes it sound life threatening and it is far from that.  Perhaps I need to stop being soooo melodramatic.  If that is who you are, can you stop it?

I have no idea what day this is . . . calendar math here we come

 Soooooo . . . today I was going through some math for today with my kids.  And I realized that I don't think I can keep them on track with EVERYTHING that is going on in their classrooms, because I can't keep up with it.  Not to mention the fact that not all the teachers in the school are as organized as I am (though I am NOWHERE near where I would like to be).  I want the kids to see the things that they are doing in the classroom, but many of my kids can't keep up.  I need to keep them on track as much as possible with the classroom, but I need to boost up their deficits.  By helping them with their deficits, I can give them everything they need.

Now if only I could figure out their schedule.  As for the title, I realized that they need a little calendar math to help practice our daily skills.  (Plus without doing calendar math I can't seem to remember the day or date!) This would be easier, IF I had a working sympodium or airliner smartboard.  Please Lord let IT get that up and running.  I am sooo ready to do calendar math.  I am ready to have a running routine in my room like I did in my kindergarte room.  And I realize that I may never have a 100% routine like I want, but we can get something done.  At least a little more than what we are doing now.  We are working hard, but it is not nearly as focused as I would like!

Now if only I could figure out their schedule . . . lol

I made something!  Daily Calendar Math Sheet.  I think it will be a success.  Now I need to figure out what to put on the back, because no need to waste paper.

Ok!  I can't figure out how to link a document!  Ugh!!

School and School

I feel like I am struggling right now.  And I mean I really really feel like I am struggling.  I have so much that I want and need to do in my classroom and yet I have so much homework that I need to do.  Maybe taking a class right now was not a good idea.  It's just I know that once I get going everything will fall into place a little bit better than what it is.  I am soooo tired of everything that is going on right now.  I started seeing students the second day of school, but I need to be assessing and testing so the students have been expecting awesome teaching and . . . I am not feeling it.  This is not how I wanted to start and I am frustrated!

The Bus

I was going towrite right quick, but my oldest has missed his bus!

Special Education

Well. . . . lots of things happened and didn't happen and now I am going to a new school district.  Same town fortunately.  OMG!  It hurts my heart how much I am going to miss kindergarten.  Resource room grades 1 - 6.  I couldn't ask for more variety though hmmmm?

Taste a Rainbow | Holiday & Seasonal Cupcakes | FamilyFun

This looks awesome! I think I will make this for my kiddos! They will love the colors. This will make a great St. Patty's Day Party before we get out for spring break. I will probably do this this week for our discussion on weather. We can eat these on Friday as a culminating event.

Taste a Rainbow Holiday & Seasonal Cupcakes FamilyFun

Little Giraffes Teaching Ideas | A to Z Teacher Stuff | Themes

I don't necessarily need this anymore, but it is interesting. . . I loved calling myself a kindergarten teacher.

Little Giraffes Teaching Ideas A to Z Teacher Stuff Themes

Sing About Science ... and Math!

Sing About Science ... and Math!

This is an awesome site! I haven't explored it but for about five minutes and I am impressed. Now, there was only a little that will be helpful to my little ones, but it is neat!

Dr. Seuss's Seussville.com | The Lorax Project

Dr. Seuss's Seussville.com The Lorax Project

This site is really neat! I love Seussville. The kids and I have been playing on it for so long I forgot I was supposed to be "researching" the site for classroom use. Sometimes, I think that is all I do. Just look at stuff that I may or may not get to do. I have always thought my organizational skills were good, but now I am wondering. . .

Family Literacy Bag: The Lorax | Reading Topics A-Z | Reading Rockets

Family Literacy Bag: The Lorax Reading Topics A-Z Reading Rockets

This will be really helpful to me as we do a Dr. Seuss week. I wasn't going to do it on his birthday, but sometimes the best laid plans of mice and men . . .

A Black History Kindergarten Lesson | eHow.com

This one I will use this year!

A Black History Kindergarten Lesson eHow.com

How to Teach Kindergartners About Black History Month | eHow.com

This has some interesting ideas. Some of them are kinda obvious and what I already have planned. I guess my problem is I always think that there must be a better way to teach it to them. You know something more interesting or fun. . . .

How to Teach Kindergartners About Black History Month eHow.com

Online Kids Games & Activities, Kids' Dental Products & Children's Dental Health | Colgate® Kids World

Colgate has a pretty interesting page.

Online Kids Games & Activities, Kids' Dental Products & Children's Dental Health Colgate® Kids World

Dental Health

This is mostly for me so I don't lose my site but this is pretty good here! Lots of different things for dental health.

Dental Health

National Children’s Dental Health Month Activities — Faithfully Frugal & Free

I love a blog about free stuff! This connects to the ADAs website which has a free curriculum. Like I always say, I am not here to reinvent the wheel . . . though I may tweak it a bit!

National Children’s Dental Health Month Activities — Faithfully Frugal & Free

6 Degrees of Freerice - pledge - English | Freerice.com

Freerice is a great site! Fun and educational! I have really been able to bone up on my french and increase my vocabulary and my children's!

6 Degrees of Freerice - pledge - English Freerice.com

STATE FLAG COLORING PAGES | Education.com

STATE FLAG COLORING PAGES Education.com

There are only 49 flags in this collection and I can't quite figure out which one I am missing. Hmmmm

I need to keep up with stuff . . .

I need to keep up with stuff and what better way than to do it here on my own blog!!!

So the kids and I didn't do as much on Martin Luther King Jr as far as artsy craftsy type of stuff.  I really wanted to do some stuff to put in the hall.  We spent some time talking about it and we even did some play acting.  They were really upset by the "whites only" signs that were around when MLK was little.  I really wanted them to understand and appreciate their lives now, but most of them are very young fives, so I just had to understand that there was only so far that their understanding can do for them.  I think they do understand and remember though.

Next month, we are going to do some Black history.  I am going to do mostly inventors.  I want them to understand that not every person who contributed to our great country was White. That they came from all races and creeds and that is what America is: a great salad bowl.

Anyway, back to February.  We will do a little dental health.  Talk about St. Valentine's day.  Have a nice little valentine's party.  There is also groundhog day.  I am NOT prepared for that as I have been very sick the last few days.  I want my kids to do something fun.  I think we will have some ice cream sundaes for snack.

I was going to put www.superteacherworksheets.com on here, but I am a little disappointed that they are charging a members fee now.  It's not much, but everything costs so much these days!  Anyway, it is still a great site.

Woe is Me

Hmmmm. . . I thought I would take a moment for a little pity party.  Woe is me.  I am in the middle of getting my classroom together with very few days until school starts.  I just didn't know how hard it would be to get started.  I am mentally exhausted from the effort.  I feel that everyone does things differently and when I look around I don't necessarily see anything that will work for me.  I feel like I am getting started about 10 seconds behind the gun, everyone else is looking at the finishline and I am looking at their tail ends!  Sigh. sniff sniff sniff

Ok! Party over! Back. To. Work!  We have a meeting this morning to plan the first six weeks of school.  I feel that once we have sat down to do that, I will have a better feel for where I need to go.  I hope everyone comes and gives their input.  I am going!  With that said, let me get dressed and go!

Have a beautiful day!

Chugging on along

So I have found some great resources!  I am very very excited.  www.kellyskindergarten.com has been sooooo very helpful.  Of course, I have also been very confused!  This center thing is really getting to me.  I think I have too many ideas.  I am not sure how I am going to make everything work.  And I still need to get a po and go to Landmark books and get my calendar and stuff that I have on hold.  This was the secretary's first week back so I didn't want to bother her.  I get the feeling that she can be a little grumpy! (This might be putting it mildly if the looks I have been getting mentioning her name are something to go by.)

Anyway . . . starting something new is very interesting.  It is cause for a lot of introspection.  I went into this for the right reasons.  I am glad I did it.  Of course, I am very scared that I won't be able to continue from here on out.  Will my convictions be enough to carry me through?  Will I lose myself in this?  I guess now is the time to put my big girl panties on and suck it up.