Teacher Talk Tuesday

The purpose of today's Blog Hoppin' post is to provide advice for new teachers.  Though I have been teaching a while, I still want to learn all I can.  But here are some things I always try to remember:

1.) Talk to other teachers.  Get advice, think aloud, and bounce ideas off of other professionals.  They will always think of things you didn't!

2.) Read professional books.  Many talented teachers write books on so many subjects: writing, classroom management, motivation, etc.  Read and learn!

3.) Create your own bag of tricks.  There are many books on classroom management and so many different ideas.  But you have to find the ones that work for you!  Ultimately, they should inspire children and create a sense of excitement and purpose!

4.) Remember you are a learner, too.  In your classroom, you are the lead learner.  If you can't picture yourself doing your own project, then your students won't find value in it either. 

5.) Never stop learning!  There are so many things to learn that will help you become a stronger teacher.  The more you learn, the better teacher you become!

Today was our second day of school!  We received textbooks, created maps, covered our Writer's Notebooks, and had our first silent reading time.  I had to remove some tables in my classroom because there wasn't enough room to move around.  I designed the classroom in my head before the kids arrived, but now that they are here, I can see what works and what doesn't.   I love that!  I can keep making it better!

(P.S. Today, I chose a pair of Bandolino silver flat sandals.  They were super cute and super comfortable (which was great for outside car duty)!