3 years y'all. THREE. YEARS. These last three years of silence have been a growing period for me. I left first grade and the school I thought I would teach at till I retired, had a gap year, and am starting my second year of teaching third grade math at one of the most supportive schools I have had the privilege of being a part of (student teaching included!). I will tell you, I have learned so much about patience and seeking the Lord and knowing that His plan is not my plan. His plan is perfect. He placed in me in long-term leaves for teachers which allowed me to get to know the best team of teachers in third grade and a wonderful administration that has been nothing but supportive of me. And all the support staff in the office...YOU LADIES ROCK!
I debated a lot about getting back to my blog last year, but I wanted to spend my time focusing on getting to know my kiddos, getting to know my school, getting to know my coworkers, and getting to know the standards and curriculum for third grade math. I debated again this summer on whether or not to update my blog and was super torn. I didn't want to publicize my struggles and failures, but then God reminded me that He brought me through those times and that sharing of where I am now could help another teacher going through something similar or anyone feeling like their plans are not working on. GOD'S PLAN IS SOOOOO MUCH BETTER THAN YOURS!!!
Don't get me wrong - it does stink starting over in every aspect of getting in a new routine with new people in a new school and a new community, but it has so been worth it personally and professionally! Actually, I have liked coming in where not everyone knows me so that I can make a name for myself. Has each day been perfect? Absolutely not! Were there days I lost my Kool-Aid (as I said to the kiddos..lol)? Absolutely yes! But this past school year was by far the best year EVER!
Since I have already been in my classroom for a year, I don't have a whole big classroom transformation/reveal. Actually, we didn't even have to move desks for the summer! We are getting a new school (hopefully) by the start of 2020, so we were told our floors wouldn't be waxed and everything could stay put. Let me tell y'all though, I spent a HUGE majority of my summer last year deep cleaning my room and getting everything just the way I want it. I am such a Type A person that I want everything in its place and a place for everything. I can't just put stuff away to look for it later. When that happens, I forget where it is or I can't find it. So, I would rather just take the time the first time and put things where I want them. And believe me, they tend to get moved a thousand times before I am satisfied. (Ask my husband about this...lol!)
So, I will show you the before and after pictures from last year. When I go back to my classroom, (I am determined not to go back till July) I will take a before and after picture that won't be quite as drastic. It is pretty much set up already, but there are a few things I want to change and fix and a few summer projects I am working on at home for school.
Without further adieu, behold the pictures from the 2018-2019 school year!
BEFORE PICTURES
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| This was after some progress had been made. I had moved all the student desks to the middle to form makeshift tables to store all my stuff for the time being. |
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| This is after I had pulled out more stuff from cleaning and bringing in my own stuff. A little progress was made on the cabinet in the back where Math games and manipulatives are stored. |
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| Another corner and wall of my room. |
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| The front board and front of the room. |
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| This is once I put everything away that was on the desks. You can somewhat see the layout of my room at this point, but it is still not where I wanted it to be. |
AFTER PICTURES
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| This was my setup for the first few weeks of school. When you open my classroom door, this is the view you get. I had the students in rows so I could easily learn names with faces before we got into groups later on. On that wall, I have my class rules and some motivational posters. On one table, I have trays with extra paper and my pencil sharpener. On the counter, I have 2 mailboxes. One is for my Chromebook storage and the other is for take-home folder storage. On top of the Chromebook storage, I have trays were students return notes and signed papers from their parents. I have a rolling cart loaded up with paper with a fridge on top. In the brown drawers, I have headphones for the students to use. I had 21 students. Our school provides a majority of school supplies, so in their cubbies is their Math books, binder, pencils, erasers, and crayons. Under the the counter behind the curtains, I have other various supplies we use throughout the year. |
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| This is the view of the front of the room from the back. I will start on the left and work my way to the right. Above the cubbies, I have magazine holders where I store worksheets, activities, and assessments I use for each chapter in Math. Even though I just teach Math, I do have books in my room for kiddos to read during their freetime or to "borrow." Above my books, I have my calendar. I post holidays and important announcements there for the students to refer to. I will talk about my board in the next picture. Above it, I have the alphabet in cursive, birthdays, and after school started I added a place value chart at the top of the wall. To the right I have my personal corner of the room where my desk, filing cabinets, and bulletin board for my info to hang. |
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| My board changed a good bit within the first 2 months of school. Over on the left side, I ended up using washi tape to split it up into 3 sections: homework, objectives, and standards/outcomes. Beside that, I posted the date and our data charts for learning our multiplication facts. In this picture, I have a Mimeo (I think I spelled that correctly?) that was used from my computer to the projector onto my board like a Smart Board. Luckily, my amazing administration put my name in for a Smart TV that was mounted on the board and is AMAZING! I am still learning new things about it and the kiddos love it. |
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| This is my little corner for peace. Nothing too crazy here. I use the bulletin board on the back to post schedules and any special things I need to remember. I also like to post pictures and drawings that my kiddos make and give me throughout the year there as well. |
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| This is the back of my room. To the right, you see the rest of the cubbies with motivational posters above them. Each class keeps a set of reading textbooks in their rooms, so that is what is on my shelf. I also have to round tables in the back. I am not crazy about them, but that's what came in the room. I have stools around one and regular chairs around the other one. The yellow rolling cart stored my computer that was connected to the projector, but once I got my Smart TV it was good to go. In earlier pictures, you saw how cluttered the cabinet was in the back left corner. All I did was buy 2 shear curtains to give a pop off color, but also cover it so that it wasn't and eye sore. I picked shear so that I could still semi-see through it when I need to get a game, activity, or manipulatives. |
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| On the wall beside my door, I have 3 hanging files that are numbered. This is where students in each class turn in their work and assignments. Each student is assigned a number in their homeroom, so they known where their work goes. Beside the hanging files I have pockets labeled with classroom jobs for my homeroom students. I write their numbers on popsicle sticks and rotate them around at the beginning of each week. At the top, I have some helpful Math posters. The teacher before me left the flower clock, which my kids love. My kiddos also refer to the addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division signs when we work on word problems. SO SUPER HELPFUL! |
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| This is a panoramic view of my entire classroom from the door. |
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| This is another panoramic view of my classroom right before Meet Your Teacher night. It is a bit more tidy. |
