Year 1 Complete

The first year has come to an end!  I cannot believe that one year is done.  As I reflect on my first year, there is so much that I have learned.  A lot of things I plan to keep the same, tweak, and change altogether.  It is amazing how much my kids have taught me this year.  I find myself feeling so bad that they did not get the benefit of my first year of experience, but I have spend some time really thinking about what they did get and accomplish.  My kids grew leaps and bounds from where they started.  Are they where I would love to have them and my students for many years to come, not exactly, but they have improved in many ways and I am excited to hear about where life takes them from here!

What I plan to keep the same:  Not much next year.  At this point, I plan to keep my behavior management system the same (marble jar, money system).  That has been great for individual behaviors and the kids have really enjoyed it.  I finally like my classroom set up and I plan to keep that the same.  I love having my kids in groups and still having a space for the kids to meet on the carpet.  After all, fifth graders are still kids. I also plan to keep my math block the same as I finally have a system that I like which allows me to work with the kids in smaller groups and one-on-one settings everyday.

What I plan to tweak: Many things.  I am going to focus on my Language Arts block this coming year.  I tried the Daily 5/CAFE model in my room for part of the year and it wasn't working well.  I am going to sit down with a colleague this summer and brainstorm some new ideas for our classrooms.  I have also been reading some professional books this summer already to help give me some new ideas.  This part of our day is half the day (all afternoon) so it will be a BIG change!  My team is also changing how we teach science.  We will be rotating for science units, so I am excited to really dive into my topic: Earth and Space Sciences.

Overall, I am excited to dive deeper into the content this year and establish better routines from the beginning.  This summer, I will share with you all of the things I learn from my professional reading (hopefully pool side reading :-) ).