Five For Friday: Just a Few Things!

I promised myself that I would link up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for the Five For Friday Linky all day.  It has been my little internal mantra!

This will be basic and quick.  Hank and Lucy are wrestling at my feet, begging for attention and a long walk.

1

I have been holding this inside me for over two weeks, afraid to say it aloud, but I LOVE MY CLASS!  Sweet and innocent, eager to please, with actual manners!  I have heard, "Thank you," and "Please."  Four or five boys argue daily over which one of them will "get to" hold the door for me.  All of them returned their information sheets, the next day!   Most of them managed to log in and change their password from the default, and the few who struggled were immediately helped by an eager classmate.  I was out for a training day, and they BEHAVED for the substitute.  I am in teacher heaven!  I know that some of you are thinking that the honeymoon will soon be over, but this is real and workable; this year is going to being awesome!

2

That is why I haven't had the time or energy to blog!  I am so into this year and this class, that I am SUPER TEACHER!  I move around the room constantly, we are doing activities, I am planning and revising as the week goes on.  Everything is ready and in the folder for the day!  We have actually done the morning warm-ups consistently for the last 2 weeks!  And I have them run off and ready for the whole first semester!  Interactive Notebooks?  All over those!  Close reading?  Their model reading passage is marked up, text-based answer written and ready for display at Back To School Night!  We did CAVE PAINTING today and they worked on their Mini-Me-Maroos (pictures next week).  Being Super Teacher is exhausting:).

3

Hank, Lucy, and I have been getting up at 4:30 a.m. and walking 2 miles before school.  Actually, I have cut back the walking time to 30 minutes, so it is closer to a mile and three-quarters.  Hank loves fetching, so we use the last 10 minutes to play before I jump in the shower.  Then I leave and worry all day about what he is up to at the house.  I can't even go into the shenanigans he got into the first week and half back at work.  Less loved dogs would have found themselves dumped at the pound.  This last week, we have reached a truce.  As part of the agreement, he gets treats hidden in a cardboard box before I leave.  He can shred it to bits, just not anything else.  He is happy, and I am happy.  However, it took a little trial and error to get to this point!

4 

Honestly, he is an awesome dog.  He is just 8 months old, and he is a puppy.  All of his energy has been good for me.  This weekend, I made a walk that I had not done in several years.  

Instead of our normal and safe route around the neighborhood, last Saturday I dared the trek up the hill to the park a mile or so above me.  A year ago, there was no way I would have survived that walk.  Instead, 3 plus miles later I was happy and ready for the rest of the day.  This was the view I was rewarded with when we reached the park.  Very proud of myself:).  We are doing again this evening!

5

Finally, I have gotten a few questions regarding how I use the "I Can" Statements for Language Arts and Math.

 I put mine in 3-ring binders.

 I used the Bonus Checklists of standards and "I Can" statements as dividers.  The "I Can" statements are in plastic sheet protectors.

As I need them, I pull them out of the binder and put them up on my Homework and "I Can" board.  The little clipboards are hanging on nails, and I just clip them on.

Have a great weekend!  Don't forget to check out Doodle Bugs Teaching Five for Friday and see what everyone else is up to!