Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Testing

Next week, state testing starts.  I've been watching anxious teachers for the past few weeks.  Some are starting to show it to their students.  More lecturing is going on in the classrooms.  For some reason, I haven't been too anxious.  Being anxious isn't going to change anything, at least for me. Do I worry?  I'd be lying if I said no.  Especially since testing is going to be tied to our evaluations.  Because of this, I think down the road you are going to see more anxoious teachers.  And as a result, more anxious students.  So I am determined not to become anxious.  I don't want the students to be anxious.  Would I rather them go into a testing situation in a state of anxiety or in a state of calm?  I choose calm.  Therefore I need to make sure I remain calm.  I haven't even talked about the state test to the students until this week.  All we are doing is reviewing some things and looking at a few old tests just so they can get a feel for the structure and how they may be questioned.  We also discuss some testing strategies.  Not all will pass, but I think all have them have made a years growth.  All I ask of my students is for them to do their best. I know they have it in them.  Keep calm, and carry on!

Friday, April 12, 2013

Friday's Top Five

Here are the top five things for this past week!

1. Brandon Mull visit!!  My school was so lucky to have Brandon Mull visit our 4th and 5th graders!  To say the students loved it would be an understatement.  (Same goes for this teacher!)


2.  New books!!  I made a trip to my local independent bookstore, Fundamentals, and left with this stack.  Is it possible to leave a book store with only one book???  (This doesn't include the books my son bought...)

3. Signs of spring!  While it has been quite a rainy few days, there are some wonderful signs of spring.  I love it when my forsythia bloom!

4. I received a new book in the mail this week from ASCD.  I am looking forward to reading it because I have been asked to help create maps for our district.  This appears to be a quick read and looks interesting.

5.  I am getting ready to head out the door to Amish Country.  Every year I get together with some friends and we head east to scrapbook.  Of course, you can't go to Amish Country without doing a little shopping and eating!  I better be sure to pack my running shoes to burn those extra calories I'll be consuming from that delicious Amish food!

Have a good weekend!