The New Teacher's Touch

I spent yesterday presenting workshops for our school district's New Teacher Orientation. I wanted to inspire the new teachers in our district and give them some nuggets of wisdom as they start their teaching career. I'm not sure if I accomplished my goal, but I left with great excitement about the up coming school year. Earlier this summer I watched an episode of Ellen Degeneres, the show featured Alferd Williams, a 70 year old first grader and his teacher Alisa Hamilton. It touched my heart and I found a short video on You Tube about Mr. Williams. I shared it with the teachers that attended the workshops. Each time I watched the video, I thought about the child that will really need me to give him or her extra help, an extra hug or praise for even the smallest accomplishment. I will be meeting my new students next week and you can be sure the inspirational story of Alferd Williams and his teacher will stay with me for a long time. If you need some inspiration for the new year click on this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eGIKMGKBO8
Linda

The New Year

For most people the new year begins on January 1st, but for those in the education field the new year begins in August or September depending on where you live. I'm getting ready for the new year by shopping (we teachers get really excited when Target, The Dollar Tree, Wal Mart, Dollar General....stock their shelves with back to school items). In my last post I mentioned that I was reading Debbie Diller's book, Spaces and Places. I went to my classroom yesterday with several bags of school stuff and looked around. As a kindergarten teacher I have a lot of teaching materials. I looked around and immediately thought about my resolve to reduce. (I must have forgotten that resolve as I rushed around purchasing scissors, name tags, teacher note cards, pasta (yes, pasta, I dye tons every year for sorting, patterning and counting), crayons, sorting trays, a new big book easel, not to mention the many books I ordered this summer from Amazon.com.
As I looked around my classroom, I thought it a bit ironic that I'll be doing a workshop for new teachers in our county entitled, "Teaching Cheap."
So, Happy New Year to my profession. My resolution is to take Debbie's words of wisdom to heart. The only problem with resolutions is that they are easy to break. What will happen when I receive the Back to School issue from Scholastic Book Clubs? Can I resist the promise of several thousand bonus points? I'll keep you posted, any thoughts you have are welcome.
Linda

A Child's Touch

I am in the middle of reading Spaces and Places by Debbie Diller, one of my favorite authors (educationally, speaking). I spend lots of money on my classroom; I am constantly buying books, both professional and children's literature. As I read through Debbie's book last night I began to wonder if all the stuff I think needs to be in my classroom really needs to be there. So, I will spend the next few weeks rethinking what is essential and what can be given away. I want my classroom to be a place where children enjoy learning and are developing independence as learners. I want my classroom to have "a child's touch." What are your thoughts on what's essential in a classroom? I'd love to hear from you.
With a teacher's touch,
Linda