Five for Sunday (Just a little tardy!)

Ahhhhhh. The last few hours of Spring Break are ticking by. All morning I've been wanting to say to the clock: Can you pleeeeease move a little more slowly?!

While I made a commitment to truly resting and recovering from a tough few weeks at school before Break, I really did get a lot accomplished. Some of the "clutter" has been put away (or at least put out of sight!), laundry is finished, papers are sorted, and lesson planning is in progress. But, best of all, I feel (almost) "ready" to go back to school and enjoy being a teacher!

Here are some highlights of my week...

When I left school on Friday, I was practically shouting...Woooooo Hooooooo! On the way home, I stopped for some promised-to-myself ice cream and looked up at the sky. I feel so fortunate to live in a place that is beautiful almost all year long. Palm trees and sunshine and loveliness...

About that ice cream... Oh. My. GOODness! There may have been more than one of these "opportunities" during vacation. My new favorite treat is "sweet cream" ice cream with hot fudge sauce from Cold Stone Creamery. Dee.Lish.Ous. I took this picture on the first day of break when it was ninety degrees. I am a less-than-capable photographer, but I was determined to get a photo before the ice cream was completely melted! (And, in case you're wondering, it tasted just as good in this "format"!)

Yep, those are my pillows. For the first time in ages, I actually rested. I may need to define that a little more carefully. During the school week, I don't get a lot of sleep. Normally, I got to sleep between eleven and midnight, and by 4:30, my coffee cup is generally in my hand. There were a few mornings when I slept all the way to six o'clock (which felt like noon!) Not to mention the TV marathons and naps! And there was coffee (sometimes with whipped cream) just for fun--and not because I had to stay up to grade assignments, essays or tests! It was just lovely, and I am so glad I "scheduled" some unscheduled time!

It was so nice to be on vacation the week before Easter. Generally, Spring Break is not connected to Easter's place on the calendar. (I am old enough to remember that, when I was in school, we called this week "Easter Break" and banks and other businesses would close at noon on Good Friday). Fast forward several decades... There were several Easter events at Church this week. And while it was beautifully decorated inside, I am so glad I got a picture of the beauty outside the church too! The color of these flowers was even more brilliant in person. I've begun thinking that this shade of pink may have become my second favorite color (after purple, of course!) So many blessings!

 Despite the naps and the ice cream and the coffee-with-whipped-cream, I did get a lot done. I am almost ready for tomorrow! On the "menu" this week: Colonies (5th grade social studies), Mesopotamia (6th grade social studies), ratios, rates and percents (6th grade math), multiplying fractions (5th grade math) to find area, analyzing poetry and finding evidence to support and opinion/argument. I even remembered to make extra reading cards, bathroom  logs, behavior reports and the April seating chart! Yippee! I am suddenly feeling quite accomplished!

I am thrilled to have found some wonderful task card-makers on TpT, whom I also happen to enjoy as BlogFriends! Pictured (blurrily!) are Areas of Rectangles with Fractional Sides (Kate Bing Coners), Rate and Proportions--Pirates! (Amy Alvis) and Measurement Conversions in 5 Days (Teaching in Room 6). These teachers have made my week a lot easier! They are printed, cut, and bagged, and I plan on using them all!

As always, I am late to the party, but there are lots of interesting sagas to enjoy if you head on over to Doodle Bugs Teaching. Just click on the words you just read (Doodle Bugs Teaching) or the graphic above.

Whether your Spring Break is just a memory or if you are currently plotting your activities (and naps) for your vacation-which-lies-ahead, I am sending you sunny thoughts...

Currently... March is almost over!

It's 9:45 on March 31st. That means I have a few more hours until it is officially April.... which makes it "Currently" March for just a little while longer! Late, as usual... but well-intentioned, as always! (And I know that my pal Farley will forgive me!)

I am so THANKFUL that Spring Break has finally arrived! I'm stuck between wanting to get millions of things accomplished... and doing nothing at all.

I am trying to find a balance in between those two extremes. Returning to school after a break with so many things "undone" generally leads to an unhappy week. At the same time, returning without some time to rest and relax is also unwise. I'm aiming for some middle ground.

Regardless of whether you are back at school or enjoying Spring Break along with me, I am sending you happy wishes...

{Giggle} You can link back to Oh Boy's Fourth Grade's March Currently with the link above... but I am guessing it would be more "Current" to just link into April's event!

Recapping Spring Break... in Five for Friday

I have been thinking about my Five for Friday post all week! And now I am typing it on SATURDAY! Ah, well, I'll just think of it as The Week in Review... and suggest that Friday had to be over so that I could include it in my post! (Okay, that's not really true since Friday was the same as all the other days this week, but my reasoning certainly sounded convincing...)

I have truly enjoyed Spring Break this year. Often, I travel or make a To Do list five miles long during the few days I get away from school. I didn't do that this year, and I'm glad. The break has seemed long and luxurious. I know I will be panicking on Monday morning (or Sunday night) about everything that did not get completed, but at this point, I feel rested and relaxed. Neither of those are familiar vocabulary words for me, so I am just enjoying their fleeting ascription.

If you know me at all, you can guess that one of these will be Starbucks and you won't be disappointed! So... what did I do this week?

Coffee! MMMmmmmmm. I do LOVE my coffee! It's scary how many pictures of coffee and coffee cups I have stored on my computer. And here's a new one! It's my warm weather favorite! Iced mocha with caramel drizzle. And then a little half and half that gradually mixes in. Oh. My. Goodness. That's one yummy concoction. I think Starbucks should borrow my recipe and call it Joyful Mocha. It certainly makes ME joyful!

Naps! Morning. Afternoon. Evening. There were naps. Lots of them! Some days I went back to sleep after I had only been up a few hours. Sometimes the room was warm and sunny and I was typing... and then I wasn't. I can't nap when I am stressed out by school and responsibilities. Clearly I was able to put those thoughts aside!

OhBoyOhBoyOhBoy. This is a new favorite of mine! I love many flavors of ice cream... but ice cream with a peaceful spin? My heart be still! And how's this for cool? When you eat all of the ice cream there are peace notes inside the container. It's like having some ice cream with John Lennon. "... Just give peace a chance..." (Did you sway a bit and sing along?) Did I mention that there are little tiny chocolate peace signs in there? I can't imagine an ice cream with a better message! And it's might tasty too!

 

Computer time! If I wasn't drinking coffee, eating ice cream or napping, I was tapping away at my computer. Actually, pounding away would be more accurate. When you don't know how to type, and you only use four fingers, it is hardly a gentle touch. It sounds like this Type! Type! Type! pause... look for punctuation keys... Type!

I chatted on facebook, exchanged e-mails with friends, wrote (SIX!) blog posts, bought twenty-seven (NOT kidding) items from TpT, and printed quite a few. There were linky parties (three) and blog hops (two). And then there were blogs to read, and comments to be left, and things to be pinned and... and... and then I had to eat ice cream and take another nap!

And for the record my bloggy background is purple not blue. And, yes, the cup DOES say Starbucks!

I did spend a little bit of time on school work. And I thought (and worried) about Common Core. When you have been teaching for more than three decades, it is scary to think that the whole world will be turned upside down for something new. I think there are many good things about Common Core... I just fear the "gap" that will exist as we scramble to find materials. And I fear the expectation that kids will arrive having mastered the Common Core standards from the previous year--especially in the first two or three years. I've been through this before. It will take time before the kids can catch up to the system. 

One day this week (although I can't tell you which day!) I went to a training on Common Core standards in math. I gave up a day of bliss. It was more philosophy than strategy and I found myself thinking: Just tell me what to teach! They used an example of having seventh graders build a gingerbread house to measure surface area (could be good) and then having them fill the house with frosting to measure area (could be really bad). My OCD wouldn't let me get past cleaning up after 36 frosting-sticky gingerbread houses. I'm feeling lucky that the people from our math adoption are actually stepping in to correlate and supplement their math materials to match Common Core. I was impressed. And we had a great trainer--which made the time pass much more quickly!

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Now I really need a flower that says "Negative 1" for the things I didn't do. Wait! I'll make one!

 

I was going to make the flower black, but that seemed too ominous, so I made it colorless to indicate the things that didn't make the list of things I wanted to accomplish...

I didn't clean the garage. And I didn't grade many papers. And I didn't do much of the "spring cleaning" you are supposed to do during Spring Break. I didn't read the professional books I set aside for this week (unless you count the first three pages of the one chosen because it had the cheeriest cover). I didn't start the healthy eating plan I should be following (did you SEE that ice cream?). But, for the most part, I didn't worry about what I didn't do, and, instead, enjoyed what I DID.

And that's what Spring Break is for. A BREAK. That falls during the spring. California provided warm, sunny weather and I am thankful for the time AWAY from, well, from everything!

Now, even though it is only Saturday, Doodle Bugs has over a hundred link-ups! So fill up your coffee cup and join us over there. Just click the link below!

If your Spring Break is over, I hope it was wonderful. If you are just beginning your Spring Break, I hope you have time to rest and relax and enjoy the word "Break." If you are a teacher or a mom, or, especially, a teacher-mom, a break is exactly what you need--and deserve...

 PS Don't you just love those flowers? They're from Ashley Hughes and you can go check them out at TpT by clicking HERE. 

Enjoying Spring Break and Playing the Noun Game

One thing I know for sure...

All of these sweet springtime elements are from Scrappin Doodles

I do love Spring Break. Not because I am going anywhere or doing anything "big"--but precisely because I am not going anywhere or doing anything big.

I'm just reveling in the fact that the hands on the clock can go all the way around and no bells will ring and no whistles will blow. Pure bliss!

So, I am going to spend part of my afternoon joining in on the next installment of Latoya Reed's Linky at Flying into First Grade (because the link will expire soon and I will be the last one linking up... again. At this point I am thinking I should change my bloggy button into the shape of a caboose!)

This past week, the task was called "The Noun Game," and it gave you the opportunity to name your favorite person, place, thing and animal!

1. Favorite Person: This is the hubs. He fills in the spaces in my life in so many ways. He is a volunteer tutor for the younger kids at our school twice a week, so he is forever "picking up something that we need" or "stopping by Starbucks" or "bringing something by" that I forgot. He wears a coat and tie to tutoring so that the little kids will know that learning to read is an important and serious business. Adorable! And then he spends time on his cell phone or looking through books trying to find a picture of a puffer fish or a trilobite or Gettysburg so that he can help bring the stories to life. On top of that, he is constantly setting something up, taking it down or building it or cooking it for an event at school. He listens to all of my stories and complaints and frustrations, and then knows just when to say, "Well, that's good"--even when it is the tiniest bit of improvement or a barely perceptible success. He's great guy. Best part: We've known each other almost 40 years...

Circa 1976

2. Favorite Place: I'd love to say some place exotic, but I like... my house. And I like... my classroom. I'm comfortable in both paces. And, of course, I like Starbucks, but that is a bit more transitory. I can stay in/on my bed and read or plan or work on the computer for HOURS. I'm a big fan of cozy. Give me some coffee (in a JOY cup) and I'm good to go. No fancy clothes required. Delight!

3. Favorite Thing: There are oodles of school-related things that I love. I love my Promethean board and my document camera. I love my laptop and all of my books and Sharpies and colorful clips. I love my decades-old paper cutter and my almost-brand new laminator. However, none of those things would be useful to me without my coffee. And not just any coffee. I love Starbucks--all kinds and temperatures and flavors  (except the green one. I haven't learned to like the green frapuccino yet.). I like Starbucks at home and Starbucks at/from Starbucks.

Here is my coffee cup wrapped up in a coffee cozy from Missy Squirrels. She's one of my favorite bloggy friends on the PLANET. You can visit her HERE. And you can check out her Etsy shop by clicking on the picture of the cup cozy! Missy Squirrels always makes me laugh! But you know what else? Missy Squirrels is also serious and warm-hearted and caring and compassionate (all at once). Oh, and she has a purse shaped like a chicken. With a name. Betty. But this paragraph was supposed to be about my love of coffee not (just) about my appreciation of Betty... Thankfully, Missy Squirrels likes coffee too. I'm not sure about Betty, though.

AND I like purple. Purple makes me happy! I have a lot of purple clothes. And ,many, MANY things in my classroom are purple. But, oddly, almost nothing in my house (decor-wise) is purple. I never gave that much thought until this minute. This minute, however, I AM wearing a purple sweatshirt and purple socks!

4. Favorite Animal: I am not much of a pet person. I did have a cat once... long. long ago. His name was Alex P. Kitten after Alex P. Keaton from Family Ties (The one with Michael J, Fox, right?). Eventually it was determined that Alex was a cat with some unique needs. If he were in my classroom, we would have to decide on a calm down area. And he would need some extra opportunities to practice being nice to our friends. Once, Alex (the cat) swallowed a piece of scotch tape. I was so traumatized, I almost had to ask the vet for some calm down medicine of my own! Alex flew to Colorado to live with some friends (of mine) and spent his days chasing ducks. And dogs. I no longer want to own a pet, but if I could pick an animal that I could just like from a distance, it would be a sloth or a manatee. Both are slow-moving, kind of chubby and not much concerned about being fashionable--just comfortable. I find those traits admirable and reassuring. This is definitely the kind of creature I could grow to love... from a distance, of course.

This sloth is from Scrappin Doodles. Click HERE to see him there!

Well, that's it for the nouns in my life. I have to scurry over and link up before LaToya closes the linky. I'm sure I'll be the last link again. Just call me the caboose.

Frame (above) and caboose are from Ashley Hughes HERE on  TpT

Don't forget to link up to LaToya's party too--or maybe you should aim for the next one. (Unless you can whip something up in the next hour or two). LaToya's got a plan for both of us, though. The new linky is already posted!

Check it out here:

Tomorrow is Easter. If you celebrate this holiday, have a wonderfully blessed and tradition-filled day. And whether or not you celebrate Easter itself, I hope that you will be able to enjoy a restful sunny Sunday with people that you love!

I Might Be Telling the Truth...

Hello My Bloggy Dears! I have missed you!

I'd like to say that I had sailed solo to Tahiti, or built a three story room addition or won the lottery, but, alas, no. I've just been overwhelmed by the craziness of being a sixth grade teacher when Spring Break and state testing are simply too close together!

Testing is only three weeks away, but all we can think about is S-P-R-I-N-G---B-R-E-A-K!

As a testimony to the state of mental exhaustion that has overtaken us, I misspelled "Spring Break" three times trying to type it in that last sentence. At least I caught my error before suggesting that I was waiting anxiously for Sping Break or Spring Beak.

In an effort to ease back into blogging, I am joining up with LaToya Reed at Flying into First Grade! I am already a week behind, so I have to jump in quickly before this link "expires," and then catch up on the new activity.

Week One's assignment {well THAT makes me chuckle} is to present the readers with two truths and a lie--and to leave you guessing (at least for a little while) which facts are true and which fact is untrue.

Ooooohhhh. I do like the sound of this! I've done this activity with my sixth graders in the past and we had a lot of fun. As I recall, they needed two sets of reminders. First reminder: There is a difference between "personal" meaning "about you" and "private" meaning "your parents won't be happy if they found out you shared this information with thirty-five of your closest friends." Sixth graders tend to blur those lines with some regularity.

Second reminder: The "lie" should be not be obvious. I remember students writing things like: "I won a million dollars yesterday" or "I stole three cheeseburgers and three hundred dollars at McDonald's last night" (So often, their world revolves around food, money, sports and video games!) Telling an almost-truth about themselves was not quite as easy for them to do! (Not to mention the importance of reminding them that this is a game and they are not supposed to be lying in the first place--especially if you are the one who stole my purple pen or broke that last roll of "boo boo tape"...) If you do try this activity with "bigger kids," these reminders might be helpful in the set-up of the game...

So, back to lying about myself...

Font from Hello Literacy... Chevron paper from Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah Designs (see button at the end of the post)

Can you guess which two statements are true and which one is completely-falsified-so-that-I-could-include-it-here-for-the-sake-of-this-game? So...

Statement 1: While working for the Hawaii Department of Education, I got lost in a sugar cane field with my co-presenter somewhere in the vicinity of the school where we were assigned to work. We drove through rows and rows of cane plants (which poked into our windows and nearly damaged the car) for over an hour and narrowly missed having the workshop canceled on our behalf... Or...

Statement 2: As a seventeen year old employed at a doughnut shop, I misread the directions while making raised dough (such as that used for glazed doughnuts). As a result, once I mixed the warm water and dry ingredients, the dough rose out of the mixer, filled first one large trash can, then two, and then nearly half of the dumpster in the parking lot behind the shop... Or...

Statement 3: During my first year of teaching, I was on duty as the recess supervisor when three large dogs from the house across the street broke free from their backyard and found their way onto the school playground. Hundreds of children watched amused and/or horrified as I ran back and forth across the playground, among four square, hopscotch and tether ball games, trying to catch and capture the furry friends with only the help of my whistle and a commandeered jump rope...

Hmmmmm. Are you left wondering? Which ones ARE true? And which is completely made-up?

Thanks for checking in today! I hope that you will stop by Flying Into First Grade and learn some fun facts about some of your other friends in the Blog-O-Sphere. Just click on the colorful button above. And if you're not in the mood for scrolling upward, I added another copy of the link below!

The next time I link up with LaToya, I'll tell you the answer to my challenge. But for a bit of fun, you could leave a comment and let me know which fact you think simply cannot be true.

And just to make it a little more exciting... I have a little treat for you if you guess correctly correctly. I'll let you know Wednesday night (3/27/13) if your sleuthing capabilities have led you to the truth!

If you are on break this week, I am wishing you a delightful mix of fun and relaxation. If you're still waiting (like me!), I am wishing you patience and perseverance. And if your break is a thing of the past, I am wishing you a chance to reflect on the best-of-the-best moments of your time away from school...

The sweet fonts in my graphics are from Jen Jones-Hello Literacy at TpT and at her blog and the nifty chevron digital paper and the oh-so-cool numbers are from Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah on TpT! (Click the buttons or the links to see great stuff!)