Well, if you read my post yesterday you saw that I was having a mini melt down LOL I was doubting myself as a teacher and really worried about if I was actually making a difference. I realized that my problem last year was that I was trying to do too many things differently which totally threw me out my comfort zone. SO as I said yesterday I was making some changes. I had to go back to what works for me, I LOVE Daily 5 but last year I let me students have free choice for each round. I can't do that, I need the structure so I totally changed the way I will conduct my reading block. Well I stayed up until like midnight last night working on a new plan for my classroom and then I got up early and I went in early to set it all up. Then, today I introduced the more structured rotation to my students, still using the Daily 5 components. I had them practice the rotations today, instead of coming to the teacher table they went to the computer, so I could monitor the rest of the class. It went SO well!!! Oh my gosh, I could almost hear the birds chirping and the sun shining down on my classroom, and the angels singing the hallelujah chorus LOL
So the lesson that I learned this week was that I have to be me. No matter what else I implement into my classroom I have to make it fit MY comfort zone and not the other way around. I can implement new ideas and new strategies in my classroom without stressing myself out. I have to do what works for me and I have to use the structure that works for me. I can't be any other teacher except me. All in all I just gotta be me.
And thats enough:) Glad you're feeling better about stuff! I'm still "feeling" all this new stuff out too! Love the Book Whisperer ideas I have implemented and Daily 5 so far...after reading your blog and a few other...not sure that I will go all out CAFE this year...I do teach all those strategies anyway so will do the mini lessons but thinking will still pull my kiddos in groups..still in the training process so not sure but you're right. You have to make it fit for you:) Would love to hear your ideas on Word Work...launching that on Monday:)
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I'm so glad the new structured rotation went well for you! You are so right...you have to do what works for you! I am a firm believer that kids love structure!
ReplyDeleteTara, I tried to do both D5 and CAFE last year and I don't feel I did it well. I feel that I was trying to do too many things and that none of them were done well. So I figured that I am going to do what I feel my kiddos need, I will use D5 as my "centers" which the kids LOVE and I still have my structured reading groups. As for Word Work, I actually have some Lakeshore activities that the kids just love! I got Vocabulary and comprehension games that are designed to be "played" individually. Here is a link to some of them. The first one is the comprehension games and the 2nd is the Vocabulary games
ReplyDeletehttp://www.lakeshorelearning.com/seo/ca%7CsearchResults~~p%7CHH252~~.jsp
http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/seo/p%7CHH253~~.jsp
Here is one called Word Work and one for writing and Grammar. I am hoping to get these 2 after I get paid and get a little extra $$ going on :-)
http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/seo/p%7CHH254~~.jsp
http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/seo/p%7CHH251~~.jsp
They say for 2nd and 3rd grade but I want them to be easy enough that the kids are practicing, I don't expect the Word work center to teach them anything new LOL
Also if you go to the website for Florida Center for REading Research - fcrr.org they have great printable actvities for free. When you get to the main page of the website on the right hand side you will see Student Center Activities" Check out the ones for 4th - 5th grade plus the ones for 2nd - 3rd because they are higher level activities and they also have blank pages where you can adjust the activity to make it fit your needs. I get a lot of great stuff from that website to use with my shared reading of novels and my Word Work center.
Lana, you are so right! My class did SO much better today with the structured routine, even my difficult little guy who has come from home school and has a little trouble with the structure of a classroom. He even did better today, he stayed in one place while he was assigned to that area.
ReplyDeleteOh good grief!!! I have tons of stuff from FCRR....my brain is worn out...thanks for the other ideas:) I hope my launching of Word Work goes as well as the others have:)) Have a great weekend:)
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