Day 2: Read Across America

As many of you who are in the field of education know, today marks the birthday of Dr. Seuss, aka Theodor Seuss Geisel. In addition to recognizing this day as the day of his birth, the National Education Association created "Read Across America" as part of an initiative on reading. On March 2, schools all across the country celebrate reading and honor the contributions that Dr. Seuss made to children's literature by taking the time to share the love of reading.

Today, every student, teacher, and staff member of my school lined the hallways and read at the same time for 10 minutes. It was really neat to see everyone sitting down, enjoying their book of choice, and talking about their reading. I brought a book that I have recently started and sat down right beside my kiddos and read too. 

The really great part was that when the Media Specialist announced that the time was over, the entire first grade stayed in the hall and continued reading until one of the teachers asked what time we go in and I answered that they already announced that we could. We were all so involved in our books that we didn't even notice that everyone else had already left and returned to their classrooms. I wish I had more time to just sit and read a book for myself in my classroom and show my students that I not only practice what I preach, but that I have to force myself not to read when I should be doing something else. But, as my mom reminds me, that is the story of my life. I always had a book with me and would rather be reading than doing anything else. 

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to my book!

SOL Day 1: School Day, Mom's Taxi, and The Wonder of the Personal Hotspot

This first day of March has been an incredibly busy day. It was busy at school, what with starting the Slice of Life Challenge with my kiddos, regular teaching duties, an extra after-school duty covered for a friend, and then an after school meeting. But that was only the beginning.

I left my meeting to pick up my oldest son and his best friend at their high school, where they were auditioning for the next theatre production. The next stop was another high school in the district where their choir was performing. After the performance, I hopped back in the car with the boys and another student who asked if I could give her a ride. I dropped off first one extra kid, and then the other, before heading to my second son's middle school to await the conclusion of his drama production rehearsal.

I am currently sitting in the parking lot with my son snoozing in the passenger seat (resting up before he finally makes it home and has to spend the rest of the night on dinner and homework) writing my first Slice of Life post of the challenge. Thanks to the wonders of the personal hotspot allowing my iPad to piggyback on my iPhone's cell signal, I will be able to write and post all from the warmth of my car. Otherwise, I might not make it to post before midnight!

You see, the craziness does not end when the last kid is in the car and we are headed for home. When I get home it will be time to finally have dinner, catch up with my husband, pack lunches for me and my youngest son, listen to my second grader read his nightly books, pick out my clothes for tomorrow, review my lesson plans for tomorrow, post my students SOL posts, take a shower and finally head to bed.

And today is only Tuesday! I think March's "in like a lion" might be referring more to my schedule than the weather!

Using Google Forms and Sheets to Collect, Organize, and Access Data

I have been using Google Apps for Education to create and save the documents that I need for my everyday teaching. I create assessments, keep records, and even upload student work to Google apps. In later years students will create and share work with their teachers within this platform as well. I will even get to that point with my first graders later in the school year. What is nice about this as a means for a digital portfolio is that this account stays with them from Kindergarten through graduation.

I have been an avid user of Google Forms and Google Sheets in particular for the last two years. At the request of a colleague, I chose to present the tips and uses I've learned with my district colleagues at the Hilliard City Schools professional development day, Hilliard University.  You can view my presentation below.

I am by no means an expert at using these tools, but there are a few things that I have learned and used that makes keeping up with all of my data and documents much more manageable. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions. I will try my best to answer what I can.