ANOTHER School Year in the Books.

Friday, May 30 was our last day of first grade--and what a year it was. I had some of the sweetest and smartest students I have ever had!

......I also had some of the MOST DIFFICULT and emotional students I have ever had. Ever. But, let's not dwell on that. Here are some highlights from my school year:

My Classroom

LOVE my classroom! I added some different things this year and even more throughout the year. Click here for a full tour.

Writing Center

My writing center got a HUGE makeover this school year. I added more paper, more supplies, and different resources to help the kids remember/use the writing process. Success. Take a closer look at it here.


Math Stations

 

I also completely changed the way we do math stations. What worked for my class last year did not work for my class this year so change was necessary. I LOVED it! Read about it here.

Thematic Units

This year I was finally able to take a multidisciplinary integrated approach to teaching. Penguins and plants were our big units this year! I wrote all about my plants unit here. Next year, I hope to have everything mapped out before the school year starts so that I am able to teach using a multidisciplinary integrated approach all year.

Poetry

Poetry is hands-down my FAVORITE change I made this year. Last year, my class used poetry here and there and during our poetry unit. This year, poetry was a DAILY thing. And I LOVED it. And the kids LOOOVED it!

I even used this pocket chart and DIY stand to implement a poetry center for use during Daily 5.

I will be posting about our weekly poetry routine soon! :)

Phonics Groups

I also changed the way I taught phonics. Instead of a whole group lesson, I divided my class into 1 high and 1 low group and instructed them in those smaller groups. This allowed me to better work with my students both high and low. I really LOVED doing it this way.  Check out this post about my Daily 5 time to learn more about my small group instruction.

Well, time to get this day started. Upcoming posts:

-Poetry in action

-Technology integration

-The return of "Sweet and Simple Saturdays"