Juice Boxes and Crayolas

Training Tuesday: 1 Week Down!

2013-06-18T08:46:00.000-05:00

1 week of marathon training = complete! Woo woo! Just...17 to go? Yikes. That's still a long way to go, but hey at least I am 7 days closer! This week was pretty easy compared to what I've been doing lately for triathlon training and half marathon training before that. I logged a total of 3 short runs, 1 long slow distance (just 6 miles for starters!), and 2 hot hot hot yoga classes. By the way, does anyone else get so sweaty at hot yoga that they need to stop to towel off many times during class? Just me?...

One new thing this week was that I had my first long run with a training group. I'm training for the marathon with Chicago Area Runner's Association, thanks to the free membership I got through Team Up! for Autism Speaks. I have to say, I was a little nervous about a training group! I've been a pretty exclusively solo runner throguh training for 5 half marathons, but I knew that I'd need a little extra support to get through this summer and fall of training. The only downside is that my training group starts at 6:45am a half hour's drive away...UGH. That means this lazy teacher has to get up early early early at least one day a week this summer. #firstworldproblems I even laid out my breakfast food the night before so I could sleep until the last possible second:

I really liked the training run--I had been planning on running with a 12min/mi run/walk group, but after starting with the group I quickly realized they were running more like a 13min/mi...so another runner and I decided to run together at our own pace. We had a great time chatting during the run, and the miles went by really quickly. I may try the 11:30 run/walk group or the 12min run group next week--it's nice to know that there are options and that running by myself or just with a buddy is an option too! Besides the comradery, the highlight of the training group is the fact that they have coolers of water and gatorade out on the trail. HOLD THE PHONES. You mean I don't have to ration my precious gatorade on long runs this summer, taking 1 tiny sip per mile??? WIN! (Only a runner would be this excited about gatorade...tell me I'm not alone here, guys!)

Anyways, looking forward to completing week 2 this week! I'm popping CalMagZinc and foam rolling like a crazy person in the hopes of making this an INJURY-FREE summer!

What are you training for this summer?

A Day in the Life of our Daily 3

2013-06-16T07:56:00.000-05:00

This post is a follow up to last week's post about how I create, run, and take data on Guided Reading groups.

Some of my most popular posts are about my Daily 3 structure: Daily 3 Bootcamp, Introducing the Daily 5, and Word Work. I wrote all three of those posts during my second year teaching, though, and my Daily 3 has continued to evolve since then. I wanted to take you through a breakdown of how I allocate my 60 minutes a day of guided reading time. This year, my guided reading block was first thing in the morning. Every morning after the kids unpacked, they grabbed their book boxes and joined the class at the carpet with them for our opening traditions.

This bulletin board is from a few years ago, but I make essentially the same one every year!

8:45-8:50 Opening Traditions & 1st round Status of the Class
In my earlier posts about Daily 3, I shared pictures of a packet I gave kids of graphic organizers and response questions for the week. The first page was a blank schedule for them to fill in their Daily 3 choices for each rotation for the whole week. It worked for me at the time, but I scrapped it last year because it just wasn't working anymore. Also, the packets were becoming a pain to make and weren't really working with my instruction anymore. Instead, I started taking a Status of the Class before each rotation.

Here's a sample template for my Status of the Class form. The one I used this year had 3 columns for each day because I did 3 rotations. I type the kids' names in at the beginning of the year and make a bunch of copies so I can pull out a new one each Monday.

Status of the Class is straight from the Daily 5 book. What I do is read every student's name, and they tell me their choice for that rotation: Read to Self, Work on Writing, Word Work, or Guided Reading. When I first read the Daily 5 book, I didn't really see the need for it, but since then I've decided that the minute it takes is definitely worth it. Here's why:

It helps the kids set a purpose for their rotation. Nobody is, 5 minuets in, still deciding what to do. Everyone has a task in mind, a purpose, and is able to start working productively right away.
Keeping track of their choices helps me keep them on track. Because I record the choices during the week on my clipboard, I am able to notice if students haven't been choosing Read to Self enough, or if it's Thursday and they still haven't chosen Word Work. (1 activity of WW must be completed by Friday.)

Once I have called their name and they have given me their choice, they go immediately to find a spot for the rotation. If they need Word Work materials, they head right to the Word Work station to get what they need before getting settled elsewhere.

Word Work activities are stored in a hanging file bin on a trap table in the corner of the room.

8:50-9:10 Rotation 1

I meet with my first group of the day. Check out this post for a detailed description of how I use each minute of my guided groups. Students working independently are seated all around the room: at their desks, sitting on the floor, laying on backs, laying on tummies, laying on upside-down chairs, sitting on desks, sitting under desks, you name it. The kids have their book boxes with them ALWAYS--they contain their Writing Workshop journal, their Word Work folder with any "in progress" and "completed" activities (to be turned in Friday), and of course a bunch of books.

9:10-9:11 Transition & Status of the Class 2

I ring my service bell. Students in my guided reading group return pens and put their books in their cubby. (I have a cubby for each guided group at the end of my students' coat rack cubbies.) All students pick up their book boxes and return to the carpet area for Status of the Class. Same routine as before!

Gathering Place!

9:11-9:30 Rotation 2

I meet with my second group of the day. Independent students are encouraged to choose a NEW spot, but this one is tricky to enforce because I am hurrying (always, always hurrying...) to start my second guided group. Same routine as before!

9:30-9:31 Transition & Status of the Class 3

I ring my service bell again and we meet back at the carpet. I take the last Status of the Class, making sure every student chooses a DIFFERENT activity than the first two rotations.

9:31-9:45/9:50 Rotation 3

I meet with my third group of the day, usually one of my "beyond" level groups because the time block is shorter. Independent students are encouraged to choose a NEW spot. Same routine as before!

Curled up in the library = 1 of many possible reading spots!

9:45 Transition to next subject

I ring my service bell, get students' attention, and give directions for the next activity of the day. Students return book boxes to under their desks and return pillows to designated locations.

And that's a wrap!

You can now download a pack of my Guided Reading templates for FREE on Teachers Pay Teachers! All I ask is that you pay it forward and share the awesome resources you create with the teachers in your life!

Favorites on Friday

2013-06-14T13:03:00.003-05:00

Some of my favorite happy-making things this week...

Outdoor Summer Concerts--High School Bestie and I got to see Glen Hansard this week

Maxi Dresses & Skirts--Seriously, is there anything more comfortable than maxi skirts in summer?

Farmer's Market--These were the best sugar snap peas I have EVER tasted. EVER.

Iced Coffee & Lots of Reading--What more is there to say?

Pedicures in Bright Colors :)

This fun finish line picture from last weekend's tri...

...and this one that just says, "I have nothing left in this tank and am SO glad to be done!!"

What are you loving this week?

Any fun plans for the weekend? I have my first marathon training group run tomorrow morning bright and early at 6:30am...half an hour's drive away! Holy early! This will take some getting used to this summer...I guess no one said marathon training would be easy! Hopefully getting up early will be the hardest part... ;)

What I'm Reading Wednesday

2013-06-12T08:33:00.000-05:00

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
Goodreads Summary: Enzo knows he is different from other dogs: a philosopher with a nearly human soul (and an obsession with opposable thumbs), he has educated himself by watching television extensively, and by listening very closely to the words of his master, Denny Swift, an up-and-coming race car driver. Through Denny, Enzo has gained tremendous insight into the human condition, and he sees that life, like racing, isn't simply about going fast. On the eve of his death, Enzo takes stock of his life, recalling all that he and his family have been through.

A heart-wrenching but deeply funny and ultimately uplifting story of family, love, loyalty, and hope, The Art of Racing in the Rain is a beautifully crafted and captivating look at the wonders and absurdities of human life...as only a dog could tell it.

My thoughts: Honestly, the biggest reason I picked up this book was because it was a popular download on the library ebooks page and I saw "racing" in the title. Naturally I thought it would have something to do with running! If I'd known it was a book about a race car driver narrated by his dog, I'm not sure I would have read it. I am SO GLAD that I did though! This book was, in a word, beautiful. I adored it. I am not a dog person (helloooo allergies!), but the dog in this book plays such a unique role. He is the narrator, but really he is an observer of the life and struggles of a man and his family. Enzo the dog provides an insightful, at times philosophical perspective on real life, including its connections to racing. I recommend this book 100% even if you don't like dogs or race cars--it is so moving, and the characters are deep and real. LOVED. THIS. BOOK.
5/5 stars

Five Flavors of Dumb by Antony John

Goodreads Summay: The Challenge: Piper has one month to get the rock band Dumb a paying gig.
The Deal: If she does it, Piper will become the band's manager and get her share of the profits.
The Catch: How can Piper possibly manage one egomaniacal pretty boy, one talentless piece of eye candy, one crush, one silent rocker, and one angry girl? And how can she do it when she's deaf?

Piper can't hear Dumb's music, but with growing self-confidence, a budding romance, and a new understanding of the decision her family made to buy a cochlear implant for her deaf baby sister, she discovers her own inner rock star and what it truly means to be a flavor of Dumb.

My thoughts: This book was a complete 180 from the one above, but I really enjoyed reading it. Whereas Racing in the Rain ripped my heart out of my chest time and time again, Five Flavors of Dumb was a completely fun and light read. I've always been intrigued by Deaf Culture and sign language, more so since moving to a school with a deaf ed program, so a book about a deaf protagonist's experiences managing a rock band totally sparked my interest. A really fun story about a group of misfits coming together, a teenager's journey of self-discovery, and a family's efforts to grow and adjust as each of them experiences changes. Perfect pool-side read!
4/5 stars

What are you reading this week?

*As always, all photos and italicized summaries are courtesy of my favorite site, goodreads.com :)

Training Tuesday: What's on my ipod

2013-06-10T23:19:00.002-05:00

I wrote a post last year about my favorite running songs--consider this a part two! I know a lot of people love listening to dance music and hip hop when they're running, and I like that a little bit too, but lately I've also been loving listening to some of my old high school jams while I'm out running. Current favorites include:

"M + Ms" by Blink-182
Blink-182 is a total guilty pleasure for me--loved them in my angsty high school years. This song is just so fun and upbeat; I just love the goofy lyrics: You and I should get away for awhile, I just want to be alone with your smile, Buy some candy and cigarettes and we'll get in my car, We'll blast the stereo and we'll drive to Madagascar. Not that I'm buying cigarettes, obv. :) It puts a smile on my face every time it comes up on my shuffle!

"Shake It Out" by Florence + The Machine
This has been a finish line "push it" song for me in a couple of recent races--there is just something about that chorus that always gets me moving! I swear I will never get tired of this one.

"Punk Rock Princess" by Something Corporate
I added this "classic" to my ipod a couple of months back when I needed a boost during the monotony of training for the Disney Princess Half in the dead of a Chicago winter. It totally gave me a little extra ummph, not to mention a flashback to high school!

"Cruise" (Remix) by Florida Georgia Line featuring Nelly
I'm not going to lie--when I downloaded this song, I didn't realize how country it was. I am NOT a country girl, but I still love this. I added it to my ipod right before the Chicago Spring Half, and was super pumped when it came up on shuffle. Baby you a song, you make me wanna roll my windows down and cruise. At the risk of getting cheesy, this song made me wanna "cruise"! ;)

"Somebody Told Me" by The Killers
I've had "All These Things That I've Done" by The Killers as a go-to race song on my ipod for years, but I recently added this oldie. It was way overplayed back in the day, but when I listened to it again recently, I remembered how just plain awesome it is.

"Rumour Has It" by Adele
And of course, you can never go wrong with Adele...Seriously, this girl can always get me moving, but Rumour Has It is for SURE my favorite. :)

For long runs, I've actually been loving listening to NPR podcasts--I know, I'm a major geek. This American Life is hands down my favorite--each hour long episode is centered around a theme and features a few different "acts" or stories from different people based on that theme. Some are laugh out loud funny and some are more serious, but listening to this podcast really helps pass the time on long runs.

I've been listening to This American Life for years, but I've also recently gotten into Snap Judgment. It's similar to This American Life in that it has one topic and several stories for each episode, but Snap calls itself "story telling with a beat"--it's just got a little different feel to it that I love. Podcasts have been my go-to for long bikes and runs for the last few months!

What are your favorite running jams these days?

Do you ever listen to podcasts?

Race Recap: Esprit de She Sprint Triathlon

2013-06-09T17:08:00.002-05:00

This morning I finished my third triathlon, the Esprit de She sprint tri in Naperville, IL. The race was, in a word, awesome. I am SO glad I took the scary plunge into triathlons last year, because they are a BLAST. If you have ever done a triathlon, you know that there is a lot of gear involved. This is what my dining room table looked like the week leading up to the race:

And that was only the beginning! I feel like there are so many random little things to bring for before, during, and after the race, but I finished getting everything organized last night (and miraculously didn't forget anything!). Race morning came with an early wakeup call at 4:10am. Yuck. I seriously felt like I was the ONLY car on the expressway as I made the 45 minute drive to Naperville. I made it to the race site early enough to get a great parking spot and a prime spot in transition:

I was super pumped to get a spot on the end--these are the first to go because it makes it way easier to spot your bike and you have a little more room to spread out when you're in transition. WIN.

What I was most worried about leading up to the race was the water temperature on the swim. I have a hard time catching my breath when swimming in really cold water, and I already get super anxious swimming in groups! The water ended up warming up to a brisk 70 degrees, which was better than the 68 it was leading up to the race. Not exactly bath water...

The swim ended up going really well, aside from a rocky start. I made it out to the first buoy without hyperventilating although I definitely wasn't in a rhythm. I reeeally wanted to take a minute and catch my breath hanging onto a buoy or something, but I knew that if I did it would be even harder to get moving again. I just kept swimming and telling myself to breeeathe, and before I knew it I was almost done.

1/2 mi Swim Time: 15:52

I ran into transition, found my bike with no problem, and got starting preparing for the bike leg. Towel off, socks on, shoes on, helmet and sunglasses, Off!

T1: 2:56 (2 minutes faster than last year!)

When I was almost out of the transition area, I realized I'd forgotten my Gu Chomps, the only fuel I'd planned on taking in during the race besides sports drink. Whoops! I decided not to waste precious seconds going back for them, and figured I'd make sure to drink a ton of sports drink on the bike to hopefully make up for the lack of calories. Oh well!

The bike leg went GREAT! I was a little worried this leg a few weeks back because I'd been so undertrained on my bike, but after really focusing getting in some cycling miles the last two weeks, I was totally prepared. I passed a lot of people, drank a lot, and just really enjoyed these miles. The sun was out full-force, and it felt so good to dry off after that chilly swim.

14.2 mi Bike Time: 50:24

After the bike, I raced back into transition (on jello-like legs...), grabbed those Chomps, my hat, and my IT band straps, and got moving. T-2: 1:57

The run was quiet. It started in a pretty park on a winding path, but moved quickly out into residential streets. In other words, the scenery was kind of boring. I was feeling pretty good though--my legs quickly regained their non-jello normalness, thank goodness--although I had no idea how fast I was going. I kind of was just ready for the race to be over by that point!

The last half mile or so was a killer. I knew I was running fast, and I was dying for a walk break towards the end, but I kept repeating "PUSH!" in my head. (I truly could only form monosyllabic mantras by this point! #exhausted!) It worked!

Final Race Time: 1:40:44. 45/100 in age group--I'll take it!

I then proceeded to collapse on the grass and refuse to move. Oh except to get stretched out by the PTs and get the best chair massage of my life. Esprit de She knows how to put on a post-race! They even had people doing mini-manicures! After getting back to my car, I had one thing on my mind:

Yum.

Overall thoughts: This race was awesome. I went into it hoping to improve on my time from SheRox (on the same course) last year, and I did by almost 5 minutes. Success! I sped up my swim, run, and transitions, but most importantly, I enjoyed the race. If you are thinking about doing a triathlon, I would totally recommend Esprit de She--it was well organized and just a fantastic celebration of women in sports. Oh and did I mention that the race top is HANDS DOWN the best top I've ever gotten from a race? Check out this cool cycling tank!

And now, with that race behind me, I am ready to focus my efforts back on running. Marathon training starts TOMORROW!!! (Although I think I might take a rest day for Day 1...I think I've earned it!)

Four on Friday

2013-06-07T15:36:00.004-05:00

1. This first week of summer has been a whole lotta lazy. Well a whole lotta lazy combined with some triathlon training--race day is 2 days away! I have been relishing in the slow-start mornings I've been able to enjoy most days this week. Case in point this morning:

Blog & Oatmeal :)

Wednesday morning a friend called around 9:30am and asked what I was up to. I told her I was laying in bed reading, and that my one complaint at the moment was that my book was so long that it was too heavy to hold up for hours and my arms were getting tired. #firstworldproblems

2. So I'm really starting to freak about Sunday's tri--Tuesday I talked about how ill-prepared I am for the bike leg, but I've put my feet to pedals like crazy this week and am feeling better about that. I actually took a wrong turn at the forest preserve Wednesday and my ride suddenly became 23 freaking miles. Yikes.

Anyways, I am no longer worried about the bike leg, but after I found out the other day that the current water temps are 68 degrees, I have a whole new set of worries. Did I mention I had not been planning on wearing a wetsuit for this race? The swim is in a small lake/pool/quarry, and last year the water was like bath water. That may be an exaggeration, but it was warm. No one wore wetsuits.

I know I could still find/borrow/rent/buy a wetsuit if I really tried, but I'm already an anxious swimmer, and I think swimming in one for the first time on race day would be a big mistake. I will just be cold and hopefully swim fast, I guess! I may include a light jacket in my transition area just in case I need to throw that on to warm up on the bike...yikes.

3. Have you ever tried Yankz or other stretchy laces? I used them in one of my tris last summer and loved them for quick transitions. The shoes they were were getting pretty high in mileage and ready to retire, so I decided to swap them out and put them in another pair of shoes for Sunday's race. Easier said than done. I probably should have just thrown them away and started from scratch with a new pair, because after lacing your shoes you are supposed to cut off the excess ends. Ever tried to lace shoes with frayed elastic? I don't recommend it. My shoes currently look like this:

And yes, I ran with them like that yesterday. Hopefully I get around to lacing the other one before Sunday...

4. Did you know McDonald's ice cream cones are just 49 cents right now?? Be still my heart. McDonald's cones are one of my favorite treats. If I'm driving home late at night or going on a long drive and pass a McDonald's, you can bet I'm driving through for a cone. I couldn't resist stopping for one on my way home from lunch with a friend this afternoon. I decided I better not take a picture because eating a cone and driving is probably already enough distractions...

Yum.

Happy Friday! What do you have planned this weekend? I have packet pickup + expo for my tri tomorrow (aka buying random tri clothes I don't need), then pasta, watching the blackhawks, and praying for good weather for Sunday!

Guided Reading Groups 101

2013-06-06T08:52:00.000-05:00

If there is one subject I was completely unprepared to teach out of college, it was Guided Reading. In fact, my student teaching cooperating teacher didn't even include guided reading groups as part of her literacy instruction--she was totally amazing, but guided just wasn't standard at her school! Since starting teaching, guided reading is one of the areas that I have worked hard every year to develop and continue tweaking to fit the needs of my students. It is always evolving in my classroom and is in no way perfect, but I feel it is one of my stronger subject areas as a teacher. I've published several posts about my Daily 3 (modified Daily 5) structure and activities, but those have mostly focused on what the rest of the class is doing when I'm meeting with guided groups. Last school year, I shared a post about some changes to my guided reading. In the past two years, I have worked a lot of bugs out of my groups, and I'd like to share some details about how I create my groups, what I use for resources, how I plan for groups, and how I take data on my readers.

Guided Reading Space + Materials
Here is my guided reading space:

It's not super cute, but it works! I use two trap tables pushed together instead of a bean table because they take up WAY less room, and I also think it's easier to lean across the table and listen to kiddos read. The kids sit on little stools I got from Ikea--WAY easier to squeeze them in there on stools instead of chairs! For a minute two summers ago during the big Crate Seat Craze I considered making those, then decided they were too much work and went shopping. These babies were super cheap anyways. The tables are arranged in front of a white board so I can write the group's "Focus Question" and stopping point on the board--saves a lot of, "What page am I supposed to stop on?" annoyances during the group! I also have a whole bunch of pens, highlighters, markers, post-its, and index cards available in the little bins on the table, my little bell, and of course the books. I also have these little "I'm Finished!" cards taped on the table:

Here's my guided reading binder:

I got the cover on TPT last year as a free download from "A Modern Teacher." Pretty! My guided binder holds a few things: a break down of who is in which group currently, resources about guided reading levels and questioning, lesson plans, and data sheets for each kid.

Creating Guided Reading Groups

Sorry about the blurrines, but I am super paranoid about sharing anything with kids' names, even first names.
I create my groups in fall using Fountas & Pinnell testing and occasionally MAP test data, but mainly F&P. This year I ended up with way more groups than I would usually prefer, but it's just what had to happen. I try to have a range of just 2 levels per group, maybe 3 if I have to. During the year, I update their F&P level based on informal data taken during guided (more on that in a minute). I DO NOT F&P test the kids all year long. Who has that kind of time??? I move their level if I note in my data that they have been super successful at a particular level and are ready to be pushed up. I am pretty fierce about monitoring their levels and pushing kids up all year--in the past I have let kids get "stuck" in approaching text just because I didn't know any better. Now I really try to push them into harder texts and scaffold; usually the kids will step it up after a week or so.

Guided Reading Structure
I plan to do a second post that gives a detailed description of how I run Daily 3 down to the minute, but I'll give the basics now. This school year I had a full hour in my schedule for guided reading time and was able to meet with 3 groups a day. I also had an ELL teacher for guided support for 2 of those rotations, so collectively we were able to see 5 groups per day. I try to see the needier groups first for about 20 minutes each and save the last 15 minutes or so for one of my groups of higher readers who need a little less time for building background and support.

Here is an example of my plans:

I simplified them quite a bit from the version in this post from last school year, and this template worked great for me. Here's the breakdown of how I try to allocate those minutes for guided:

2-3 min: Build Background, introduce skill, review objectives and sentence frame
1-2 min: Set purpose for reading with a "focus question" and assign chapters to read (write this question on the white board)
10-12 min: Students read assigned chapters. I conference with 2 students to listen to their reading and take data on fluency/accuracy as well as comprehension. After reading, students respond to focus questions and complete "I'm Finished" activities--see above picture.
3-5 min: Discuss responses as a group or with turn & talk partners. Make predictions for tomorrow, fill out graphic organizer if using one for this week's skill.

I typically read two books per week with the groups I see every day and one book per week with the kids I see 2-3 times a week. I use our series's (Treasures) Leveled Readers, books from our school book room, and Reading A-Z printable leveled books.

Data

The back chunk of my guided reading binder is divided up by each guided group. I always let them choose their own group names and change them midyear if they want. In each section, each student has a data sheet with spots on front and back for 4 total conferences. Once their sheet is filled, I file it and start a new one.

As I said earlier, during each rotation I try to conference with two students. I will take an informal running record to gather fluency data while they are reading and also take data on their accuracy with answering comprehension questions. I will give them an overall comprehension "rating" and write down any other relevant notes about things I am seeing. When I'm writing down comprehension info, I try to at least indicate what type of questions I'm asking, whether it's a skill like inferential, main idea, cause and effect, or a level of Blooms like synthesize, evaluate, or simply a right there or summarize question. If I have time or if it were an especially tricky question that the student struggled with, I will write down the whole question, but I don't usually have time for that.

As I said earlier, I use this data when I'm updating students' instructional reading levels and moving them between groups. I am a big proponent of sharing data with the students. If I notice a pattern in fluency errors, I will share it with the student. Before listening to a student read, I may show them on their sheet what we were working on last time. Every one of my students knows their instructional level and knows where they need to be to be at grade level. They get so excited when they see that they have moved up a level!

Tell me about your guided reading structure!

What I'm Reading Wednesday

2013-06-05T09:28:00.000-05:00

Defending Jacob by William Landry
Goodreads.com Summary: Andy Barber has been an assistant district attorney in his suburban Massachusetts county for more than twenty years. He is respected in his community, tenacious in the courtroom, and happy at home with his wife, Laurie, and son, Jacob. But when a shocking crime shatters their New England town, Andy is blindsided by what happens next: His fourteen-year-old son is charged with the murder of a fellow student.

Every parental instinct Andy has rallies to protect his boy. Jacob insists that he is innocent, and Andy believes him. Andy must. He’s his father. But as damning facts and shocking revelations surface, as a marriage threatens to crumble and the trial intensifies, as the crisis reveals how little a father knows about his son, Andy will face a trial of his own—between loyalty and justice, between truth and allegation, between a past he’s tried to bury and a future he cannot conceive.

My thoughts: I LOVED this book. I don't normally pick up crime or courtroom novels, but this was a "popular download" on my libary's ebook page, so I decided to check it out. SO GOOD! I devoured this book, totally captivated by the story and the witty narrator. The ending was a shocker too--totally a page turner!
4/5 stars

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
Goodreads.com Summary:
"Bono met his wife in high school," Park says.
"So did Jerry Lee Lewis," Eleanor answers.
"I’m not kidding," he says.
"You should be," she says, "we’re sixteen."
"What about Romeo and Juliet?"
"Shallow, confused, then dead."
''I love you," Park says.
"Wherefore art thou," Eleanor answers.
"I’m not kidding," he says.
"You should be."

Set over the course of one school year in 1986, ELEANOR AND PARK is the story of two star-crossed misfits – smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you’ll remember your own first love – and just how hard it pulled you under.

My thoughts: This book was the sweetest. I loved Eleanor and Park, even if Elenor was a little brash and tough to like in the beginning. Their relationship was real and sweet and captivating. I also loved how it was set in the 80s--so many random time period references that made the book fun. Eleanor's home life is totally rotten, and I just felt for her the whole book. A great read, especially if you're a fan of John Green (Looking for Alaska, The Fault in Our Stars, etc.) and other high school misfit novels.
4/5 stars

Graceling by Kristin Cashore
Goodreads.com Summary: In a world where people born with an extreme skill—called a Grace—are feared and exploited, Katsa carries the burden of the skill even shedespises: the Grace of killing. She lives under the command of her uncle Randa, King of the Middluns, and is expected to execute his dirty work, punishing and torturing anyone who displeases him.

When she first meets Prince Po, who is Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change. She never expects to become Po's friend. She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace—or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away...a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.

My thoughts: Initially I thought this book sounded way too fantasy for me, but a friend swore it was awesome, so I gave it a shot. I'm not gonna lie, I wouldn't have made it through the first chapters if I hadn't had my friend's recommendation--I was so confused by the world building at first. Seriously, I couldn't keep the seven kingdoms and their rulers straight! It got way less confusing, thank goodness, and I got completely sucked in. I loved the characters--Katsa and Po are both badasses and totally worthy of each other. I was definitely cheering on their relationship, and the plot took unexpected, exciting turns throughout. Even if you're not a fantasy lover, give this one a shot!
4/5 stars

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling
Goodreads.com Summary: Mindy Kaling has lived many lives: the obedient child of immigrant professionals, a timid chubster afraid of her own bike, a Ben Affleck–impersonating Off-Broadway performer and playwright, and, finally, a comedy writer and actress prone to starting fights with her friends and coworkers with the sentence “Can I just say one last thing about this, and then I swear I’ll shut up about it?”

Perhaps you want to know what Mindy thinks makes a great best friend (someone who will fill your prescription in the middle of the night), or what makes a great guy (one who is aware of all elderly people in any room at any time and acts accordingly), or what is the perfect amount of fame (so famous you can never get convicted of murder in a court of law), or how to maintain a trim figure (you will not find that information in these pages). If so, you’ve come to the right book, mostly!

My thoughts: As an Office fan and a Kelly fan, I knew I had to read this book. It. was. hilarious. I was laughing out loud through the whole book! Kaling just has this incredibly real, tell it like it is style with just the perfect amount of self-deprecation. (Too much self-deprecation and I am totally turned off.) She is incredibly frank about her childhood and the challenging start to her career, including all of the dumb things she said and did along the way. I also loved how there are little pictures interspersed throughout. Definitely a perfect summer read or for anytime you need a laugh!
4/5 stars

What have you been reading lately?

Training Tuesday: Race Week + Marathon Training Plan

2013-06-04T08:02:00.000-05:00

You might remember that last summer this time I was an anxious mess 1 week out from completing my first triathlon. I shouldn't have been nervous, though--I trained like a crazy person for that race, and I was super prepared when I showed up on race day. The race was awesome, and I had a blast.

Fast forward to this year...I am again less than 1 week out from race day, and while I have definitely not been the nervous wreck I was during training last year, my concerns are definitely building. Here's the truth: I am under trained. I almost NEVER end up under trained before a race--I am vigilant about making and following training plans to make sure I'm race-ready. How did this happen?? Well, two reasons:

1. Poor planning of my race calendar: I ran the Chicago Spring Half on May 19th. When I was planning my races for 2013, I didn't see a problem at all with a half so close to a tri. I figured the tri training would keep me cross training, and that I'd do my long runs on Saturdays and bricks on Sundays. It seemed like such a great plan at a time...until I was waking up Sunday mornings sore and achy from pushing hard in a long run, and the thought of a 2 or 3 sport brick was just too awful to bear...Whoops.

#seemedlikeagoodideaatthetime...

2. WEATHER: This is the bigger offender. There is a reason triathlon is a summer sport--not only does no one want to get in a lake in the middle of spring, but no one wants to bike and run around with wet hair for the remaining two thirds of the race or workout! I kept up with my swimming and running all winter and spring, but my bike totally took a backseat. Spring was late to arrive in Chicago this year, and summer even later. In fact, I am still wondering where summer is...Anyways, I kept my bike on an indoor trainer this winter, but I hate biking on it with a passion. It is so. boring.

Sooo as you can imagine, I did not enter spring bike-ready. Plus, having spring come sooo late this year, I wasn't able to get my bike outside until pretty much May. AWFUL! The first ride I got out for was 12 miles, and I thought I was going to fall over and die during it. This did not bode well for tri training.

Since then, I've become way more comfortable on my bike--it comes back like riding a bike, right ;) However, I have seriously slacked on the 3-sport bricks. I've done plenty of swim-runs, and a few swim-bikes and bike-runs, but I have only done ONE 3-sport brick which was lacking in bike miles simply because the weather sucked so bad. Case in point my FROZEN ride the other day..

Great weather for running, Not so great for running with wet clothes and hair

IT IS JUNE! Why is it not beautiful and sunny and a perfect day to run in damp clothes with dripping wet hair??? If you have ever tried to run or bike in damp clothes and dripping hair on a cool day, you will know that it is not a joyous activity. Anyways, I'm hoping with a little luck I will make it through Sunday's tri without drowning, dying, or falling off my bike.

In other news, I am just a week or so away from starting marathon training!

I will be training with a group and following a plan based off of Hal Higdon's Novice Marathon plan with a few adjustments. Here's what my weeks will look like:

I am looking forward to doing lots of yoga this summer--I find it is an excellent compliment to running for me. I totally suck at doing strength training at home or at the gym, but yoga, especially fast paced and hot classes, have tons of core and leg strengthening exercises built in. Plus, it is way more fun and way less boring in my humble opinion. We'll see how training goes! I'm excited to get started, but terrified of getting injured this summer. I have had such a rocky history with injury in the past that I get totally paranoid before taking on any new racing endeavor. Don't worry, I will be training smart this summer and listening to my body!

What are you training for this summer?

Weekend Wrap Up

2013-06-02T16:43:00.002-05:00

Can I just take a moment to profess my love for summer? I know some teachers love the idea of year round school, but I absolutely ADORE these two months (+ change) off every year. Hello pool side reading! (Which I sadly haven't been able to do yet because the weather in Chicago is super sucky right now. Oh well, no complaining because no matter what the weather is like, I don't have to go into work tomorrow!!)

I spent my weekend doing a mix of celebrating the end of the school year and focusing on my training goals for summer. Friday evening I hopped on a train to Chicago to visit a long-time friend. We went to a vegetarian restaurant, biked through drizzling rain down the lake front path to a German street fest, enjoyed some craft beers on a patio post-street fest, got soaked biking home in the middle of the night, stopped for pizza on the way back, and passed out on the couch watching Arrested Development. All in all, a perfect first night of summer. (Although I would not particularly recommend riding a bike in skinny jeans, especially in the rain...Seriously, I don't know how the hipsters do it.)

Bikes!!! Btw, the bike I was riding was at least a couple inches too big for me...Getting on and off at stop lights was...interesting...

Celebrating my German heritage! I am such a pretend German though--I don't know when I have ever in my life eaten German food (besides pretzels), and being a vegetarian, I doubt I ever will! The beer is good though. :)

Locking our souvenir mugs to the bikes when we got to destination 2...Come on, you know those babies would have been stolen...Who WOULDN'T want a plastic mug with American, Chicago, and German flags on it??

Saturday morning I work up, took a bus and train to the opposite end of the city, and attended the Chicago Area Runner's Association summer marathon training kickoff clinic. I got a free membership to CARA for summer training because I am fundraising for Autism Speaks. I am totally a solo runner, so training with a group will be a completely new thing for me. I'm excited, though. When I'm logging lengthy double-digit runs, I think it will be awesome to have the group support.

Swag

The clinic was super informative--we were in sessions all day about things like basic marathon training, nutrition, injury prevention, running form, etc. I was in the novice group obviously because this was my first marathon, and I was hoping to learn something new. I definitely did and took pages of notes! I left the clinic excited about training and with a head full of information. Oh, and Hal Higdon was a speaker! I felt like I was in the presence of a celebrity!

They encouraged us to write down some goals for summer training. In addition to sticking with the training plan and stay uninjured, here are mine:

I have been slacking on stretching and foam rolling lately, but I know it is super important for me, especially since I am starting marathon training with an injury (IT Band Syndrome). Foam rolling and using the stick helps keep my ITBs happy and prevent all sorts of other issues. I'm committing to rolling out after every run and before bed every night!

Today was a slow-start day. I woke up early (after falling asleep at, wait for it, 9pm...) and proceeded to lay in bed for hours reading and playing on the computer. I had a brick workout, the last one before next Sunday's tri, on the calendar this morning, but the weather was not being my friend. It was under 60 degrees all morning! I am a little bit of a wimp, and biking around in damp clothes and with wet hair is not my favorite. I figured I could be lazy all morning and attempt the brick at noontime when the temperatures were a little warmer.

I finally made it out there for that brick...and thought I was going to die. It was about 55 degrees and windy. My hair was wet and dripping down my shirt. It basically sucked. Plus, I got lost on the trail where I was biking, and became convinced I'd have to approach a random fisherman to borrow their phone and call my dad for a resuce...luckily I found my way and avoided that. By the time I made it back to my car, though, I decided to say "screw it" to my run and head home to a hot shower. I am still working on warming up!

Red, frozen fingers

Now I'm off to lay under a blanket before watching the Blackhawks later tonight with my fam--hopefully another win!

Awesome Dad and I in matching Toews jerseys...I know, we are adorable...

What did you do this weekend?

Reflections on a Year of Change

2013-05-31T13:42:00.000-05:00

Today marks the last day of the school year, and my first last-day at my new school. Nothing more depressing than a classroom full of boxes and empty of color:

This has been a year of changes, and I want to take a moment to reflect and celebrate. This year I...

Was welcomed into a building with a truly positive climate...
Fell in love with a new grade level...
Worked as part of a truly well-functioning team... ((What a breath of fresh air!))
Implemented Quantum Learning into every part of my day...
Finally KIND OF figured out how to run guided math...
Celebrated amazing amounts of growth with my kiddos...
Conquered my fear of field trips, including taking a 16hr marathon trip to Springfield, IL...
Finished my masters! (happy dance!)...
Got my *spark* back and truly grew as a teacher.

Thinking back over this year, while I still feel like I kind of got screwed out of a job last year, I feel truly blessed. Last year just plain sucked--you might remember how frustrated, defeated, and exhausted I felt when I worked, and worked, and worked, only to feel like I was being sent the message that it wasn't enough. This year was of course filled with its own challenges, as every year in teaching is, but during one of my evaluation meetings with my principal, I shared with him that I feel like myself again. What a wonderful feeling. While I didn't end up somewhere beautiful and new this year, I am confident that I ended up exactly where I was supposed to be. More than ever, after this year I whole-heartedly believe that everything happens for a reason.

My goals for next year include:

Figure out how to get the kiddos using WAY more technology in the classroom--I totally suck in this area
Figure out how to get my kids actually reading and FINISHING tons of books
Work independent reading conferences into my literacy block somewhere, and take data on them!
Keep working on guided math!!
Take a sign language class--I will not only have an ELL cluster next year, but I'll also have a Deaf & Hard of Hearing cluster! (My school has the DHH program for the district.)
Start Girls on the Run at my school--hopefully!

I will leave you today with some "gems" from the letters I had the kiddos write to me yesterday. I love reading the totally random things they have to say, and they can be pretty darn cute. :)

Because the ONLY reason for learning is to be smarter than friends and cousins ;)

^Note the triathlon themed artwork on the bottom--LOVE!

"I am super proud of the accomplishments. We did great, but not as good as you did."

Didn't realize I was in a contest against the kids!!

Look closely at the detailed drawing of the projector. I'm confused about the wavy line that connects what I assume is me to it.

:) Love random sharing.

I'm the One and Only Miss Teacher!! Woo!

Kid, I hope my summer looks just like this picture.

Aw thanks, I will try to keep it up!

Clearly they know that I am in desperate need of some relaxing time :)

Teachers--are you on break yet?? How are you celebrating your start to summer? I'm celebrating the start to my summer by enjoying a much needed night out with a friend tonight, attending a marathon training clinic tomorrow, and digging deep for my last brick of tri training Sunday before the Esprit de She triathlon on June 9th. Oh, and hopefully watching a Blackhawks WIN somewhere in there!!

What are your reflections on the year and goals for next year?

What I'm Reading Wednesday: The Read Aloud Edition

2013-05-29T19:12:00.001-05:00

I've already talked about on this blog how much I LOVE LOVE LOVE read aloud. Our schedules next year look like they're going to be even tighter and more rigorous (no, thank YOU Common Core!), but consider this my pledge that I will SOMEHOW still work in time for a daily read aloud. I wanted to share the books I read aloud to my class this year--they were all huge hits.

Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar
Goodreads Summary: There was a terrible mistake - Wayside School was built with one classroom on top of another, thirty stories high (The builder said he was sorry.) Maybe that's why all kinds of funny things happened at Wayside-especially on the thirteenth floor.

My thoughts: This is a classic, and it has always been a favorite beginning-of-the-year read aloud for me. It's a great hook to get the kids to buy into read aloud--even my too cool for school 5th graders loved sitting and giggling to this book in past years! 4/5 stars

Wonder by R.J. Palacio
Goodreads Summary: August (Auggie) Pullman was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to a mainstream school—until now. He's about to start 5th grade at Beecher Prep, and if you've ever been the new kid then you know how hard that can be. The thing is Auggie's just an ordinary kid, with an extraordinary face. But can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, despite appearances?

My thoughts: I have already sung my praises about this book here, so I won't go into it again, but this book was a huge hit with my 3rd + 4th graders. They got so much out of it, too--we had beautiful talks about kindness and courage throughout. Loved! 5/5 stars

Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea
Goodreads Summary: It’s the start of fifth grade for seven kids at Snow Hill School. There’s . . .Jessica, the new girl, smart and perceptive, who’s having a hard time fitting in; Alexia, a bully, your friend one second, your enemy the next;Peter, class prankster and troublemaker; Luke, the brain; Danielle,who never stands up for herself; shy Anna, whose home situation makes her an outcast; and Jeffrey, who hates school. Only Mr. Terupt, their new and energetic teacher, seems to know how to deal with them all. He makes the classroom a fun place, even if he doesn’t let them get away with much . . . until the snowy winter day when an accident changes everything—and everyone.

My thoughts: Again, I also talked about this book here, but I want to say again what a fun read aloud it was. Initially I was worried that the kids wouldn't be able to follow the story because it jumps between seven narrators, but we made a chart of each students na dsome character traits to describe him or her at the beginning, and they caught on quickly. Another powerful book that fueled discussions on kindness, laying blame, and forgiveness. 5/5 stars

The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
Goodreads Summary: Ivan is an easygoing gorilla. Living at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, he has grown accustomed to humans watching him through the glass walls of his domain. He rarely misses his life in the jungle. In fact, he hardly ever thinks about it at all. Instead, Ivan thinks about TV shows he’s seen and about his friends Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But mostly Ivan thinks about art and how to capture the taste of a mango or the sound of leaves with color and a well-placed line. Then he meets Ruby, a baby elephant taken from her family, and she makes Ivan see their home—and his own art—through new eyes. When Ruby arrives, change comes with her, and it’s up to Ivan to make it a change for the better.

My thoughts: If you haven't read this book yet, read it asap. It is so beautiful. My kiddos didn't buy into this one as quickly as Wonder and Mr. Terupt, which I think is because it wasn't as funny. Even so, after a few chapters they were in love with Ivan and Ruby and Stella, hanging on every word. Another powerful book that led to great conversations about respect for living creatures and ethics.

Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen
Goodreads Summary: One day I was 12 years old and broke. Then Grandma gave me Grandpa's old riding lawnmower. I set out to mow some lawns. More people wanted me to mow their lawns. And more and more. . . . One client was Arnold the stockbroker, who offered to teach me about "the beauty of capitalism. Supply and Demand. Diversify labor. Distribute the wealth." "Wealth?" I said. "It's groovy, man," said Arnold. If I'd known what was coming, I might have climbed on my mower and putted all the way home to hide in my room. But the lawn business grew and grew. So did my profits, which Arnold invested in many things. And one of them was Joey Pow the prizefighter. That's when my 12th summer got really interesting.

My thoughts: This book was totally different than our previous few read alouds, but it was so much fun! At first, my kids had a tough time following it because there is a lot of talk about investments and capitalism and stocks, but I broke it down pretty simply. When Joey Pow the boxer shows up, the book gets just plain hilarious. We loved it! 4/5 stars

How to Steal a Dog by Barbara O'Connor
Goodreads Summary: "Half of me was thinking, Georgina, don’t do this. Stealing a dog is just plain wrong. The other half of me was thinking, Georgina, you’re in a bad fix and you got to do whatever it takes to get yourself out of it."
Georgina Hayes is desperate. Ever since her father left and they were evicted from their apartment, her family has been living in their car. With her mama juggling two jobs and trying to make enough money to find a place to live, Georgina is stuck looking after her younger brother, Toby. And she has her heart set on improving their situation. When Georgina spots a missing-dog poster with a reward of five hundred dollars, the solution to all her problems suddenly seems within reach. All she has to do is “borrow” the right dog and its owners are sure to offer a reward. What happens next is the last thing she expected. With unmistakable sympathy, Barbara O’Connor tells the story of a young girl struggling to see what’s right when everything else seems wrong.

My thoughts: This was a serious one; Georgina's situation is just plain heart breaking. It was kind of an eye-opener to some of my studnets to think about how some families actually do have to live in their cars and deal with very tough times. Our big focus during this book was evaluating the characters' actions. We used lots of turn and talks and voting to share opinions and make judgments about the characters. I loved the higher-order-thinking it inspired--the kids had to share their opinion and justify it with text evidence. In discussions, I had them use sentence frames to respond to each others' evaluations of the characters. It was a really sweet book that deals with some tough issues in a great way. 4/5 stars.

What books did you read aloud this school year? We are cruising through Lawn Boy Returns right now, and I'm hoping to finish it by our last day, Friday!

And now, off to *hopefully* watch the Blackhawks win!

Race Recap: Chicago Spring Half

2013-05-25T10:59:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday, headed into the city to run the Chicago Spring Half Marathon. I went into this race with two goals: enjoy every mile and stay uninjured so I can start marathon training strong next month. As I was getting ready for the race this weekend, it struck me how calm I was feeling about the whole thing. My first half I was incredibly anxious about just finishing, #2 I was worried about getting hurt since I'd been an injured mess beforehand, and #3 I was shooting for a PR and was a bundle of nerves (#4 was in Disney and my only focus was on sticking with my sister in law through her first race, so I wasn't nervous about that one.) Anyways, what I'm trying to say is that I wasn't nervous AT ALL going into this race. Sure, I had one nightmare where I showed up late, forgot my Gu, got lost on the course, and had to run through WATER for part of the race, but that's normal, right? :) With a few halfs under my belt, everything felt routine as I lined up at the start--I knew I could do it, and I was just excited to get started. What a great feeling

My awesome dad came with and brought his bike so he was able to ride down the course and catch me several times along the way. It was a beautiful day to be running along the lakefront path in Chicago--there is nothing like feeling those lake breezes and seeing the skyline while you're running.

After a few minutes of the race, I realized that I'd forgotten to set my Garmin to beep for my run/walk intervals. To change that, I'd have to stop it and start fresh. Crap! I'm such a slave to my Garmin that I was so worried about screwing with it and having the time/distance be off. For about 30 seconds I considered just keeping track of the time and walking every 3 minutes without the beeps, but I realized that after an hour there was no way I'd be able to remember when to walk. I decided to reset it right at mile 1 so I was just 1 mile off--easy peasy. Phew! I hoped that was the worst obstacle of the race!

I had all kinds of weird aches and pains the first few miles--does that happen to anyone else? Parts of my body that I never have problems with will hurt. I'm convinced it's just my brain messing with me. Right around mile 5, though, I hit a great stride. I came out a little fast, and by mile 5 I'd gotten myself to settle in to a comfortable pace of 11min/mi--I planned to run it at 11:30/mi, but once I got started 11s just felt good so I decided to go with it!! The miles started to fly by. 6, 7, 8, 9--I LOVE when that happens in a race! I'd see the mile marker up ahead before I even realized it was coming! BEST FEELING EVER.

Along the way, I got lots of comments about my shirt:

"Dear God, Please let there be someone behind me to read this."

Of course, they were made by people passing me... :) Even though I've gotten faster, I will always be a back of the pack runner--but the pack of the pack is kind of fun. :)

I started getting pretty tired and cooked by the sun by mile 10, but kept plugging along and kept up my pace. Around mile 11, though, things got tricky--apparently at 9am a 5K walk for the children's hospital started, and it was on the same course for about a mile! Let me set the scene: a handful of half marathoners are trying to keep pushing forward along a path that dips off into the harbor, weaving through a huge mess of 5K walkers. I felt like such a jerk weaving through people, but by this point I wasn't going to just stop and walk! It was scary enough to think about how close I was to falling in the water, but the worst part was that I was convinced I was going to lose the half marathon course! I kept looking back to check people's bibs as I passed them, making sure there were other half runners around. I was terrified that I was going to end up crossing the 5K finish by accident and having to turn back around to find the half again! Yikes!

Luckily there were enough course marshals staggered along the way to reassure us we were moving in the right direction and direct us when the course eventually split. I crossed the finish line with no idea what my official time was thanks to the Garmin oops early on. The post-race "picnic" features amazingly fluffy pancakes and watermelon--PERFECT. I was a little sore, but in nowhere near as bad shape as I was after finishing the Space Coast half, so I was SHOCKED when I checked my time online later and found out I finished in 2:21:22, just 1 second slower than Space Coast! I couldn't believe it--that whole race I was so focused on my pace and time, pushing deep, ignoring pain, and focusing on finishing with no gas left in the tank. So when I saw that today I ran just as fast but felt so much better, it was awesome. Maybe I am actually ready to up the stakes and start marathon training this summer! Woohoo!

Six on Sunday

2013-05-19T17:50:00.001-05:00

Hey guys! I realize "Six on Sunday" is in no way a "thing," but it has been so long since I blogged I figured a bulleted list would be best to get me back in the game. Things were busy in spring, and I just needed a blog break. Do you ever feel that way? I hate for blogging to become a "chore" when it's supposed to be something fun that I do in spare time, so if it ever does become "work," I have no problem giving myself a blogging ~~time out~~ vacation. Anyways, onto the "six"...

1. I ran my 5th half marathon this morning! It was an awesome race and a beautiful course on the lakefront path in Chicago. I wasn't shooting for a PR, but I ended up coming in just 1 second slower than my PR from the Space Coast Half in November, and I felt WAY stronger--what a great feeling! Check back for a full recap and more pics later this week!

2. Speaking of running, I am officially signed up for the Chicago Marathon in October! Not only will I be running my first full marathon, but I will be running as part of Team Up!, the charity team for Autism Speaks. I'm thrilled to be supporting such an awesome organization and am excited I've already raised almost $2,000! Check out my fundraising page here if you are interested in hearing more about my connections to autism and why I'm running this race.

3. My class is completely falling apart in the last weeks of school. One girl was out midweek with stomach flu, another went home sick Friday with diarrhea, and another threw up on the carpet Friday mid-morning. YIKES. My fifth graders almost always made it to the trash can or bathroom to throw up, but this was our second floor accident of the year. Must be a third grade and below thing...oh well! Anyways, since all of this I can't help but view my classroom as a giant petri dish of germs, and I convince myself every stomach twinge I feel is the flu...my fingers are crossed that the large amounts of hand sanitizer I've been using will protect me!!

4. Speaking of school, with EIGHT DAYS of school left, I'm reflecting on what an awesome year this has been. The kids are totally driving me crazy right now (HELLO MAY!), but seriously this year has been a breath of fresh air. I loved fifth grade, but 3rd/4th is totally my niche. Yes, they cry more than 5th graders, but then they write something cute on a spelling test like this:

Adorable. That being said, I am so ready for summer! Pool days, nonstop reading, and vacations are calling my name!!

5. Tuesday is my LAST DAY of grad school! I am presenting my final project, turning in my loooong paper, and calling it a day! It all feels a little anticlimactic because I didn't walk at the graduation ceremony, but after Tuesday I will have my master's degree. Woohoo!! What an awesome feeling.

6. I'm not much of a field trip girl--I think I am still scared from a field trip with my insane class my first year that almost killed me or at the very least almost drove me to quit. Seriously, it was THAT BAD. Anyways, like I said, I'm not much of a field trip girl, but Wednesday morning I will board a bus with a billion 3rd & 4th graders bound for Springfield, IL to visit our state capitol. It is a 3 1/2 hour dive. We leave at 6am and will be back home at 9:45pm. Hold me...

By the way, I have some upcoming posts in the making including ones detailing my guided reading structure and notes, a typical day in Daily 3, how I ran guided math this year, updates on my marathon fundraising, and a giveaway for tart cherry juice!

Love for my new Math Bulletin Board

2013-03-27T15:20:00.001-05:00

When I moved into my classroom at the beginning of this year, I had big plans for the giant bulletin board that stretched along one of my (small) walls above my counter. It was going to be my fabulous MATH BOARD, and it was going to be colorful, interactive, and just plain wonderful. Then the school year started, testing happened, and the board ended up totally covered with a random hodgepodge (technical term) of signs displaying math terms and definitions. There was no rhyme or reason other than, "CRAP! Here's ANOTHER concept that will be on THE TEST that I didn't have time to teach! Better put up a sign and hope my darlings look at this board!!!!!" I know, I know, good teachers everywhere are cringing and shaking their heads at me with disdain.

After 2 nearly solid weeks of testing (I KNOW!), the last thing I wanted to do was look at those awful signs anymore. Last week, instead of using my precious plan time to actually grade the gigantic stack of expository essays or poetry books that I've been carrying around in my teacher bag for far too long, I pulled out my trusty staple remover and demolished the entire board. Suddenly, I had a PROJECT on my hands. Before I knew what was happening, I was typing labels for the different areas of the board, mounting them on hot pink paper, and even laminating them. (Don't ask why--I realize there is NO good reason other than that I turn on that laminator every chance I get.) I am IN LOVE with the result!

On the left: current anchor charts with content we are working on, models, and any relevant sentence frames. I have these hanging with clothes pins with tacks hot glued to the back--one of my favorite things to use around the classroom this year. SO much easier to add new charts throughout the week. I try to make them with the kids as much as possible, and if I do make them in advance, I always use them in a lesson before hanging them on the board.

Next up is our Wonderful Math Words section. After being so annoyed about stapling and unstapling (another technical term) my old vocab signs, it dawned on me to just hang a pocket chart. DUH. I know any primary teachers are confused about why i didn't think of this idea in the first place, and my only possible reasoning is that I like to make my life difficult sometimes. Love this so much more. I wrote my vocab on large index cards rather than sentence strips so I could include brief definitions or examples on some cards.

Possibly my favorite part is the game section. I've never used the Everyday Math games as much as I have this year, mostly because I am doing a guided math block and have less co-teacher support for groups than I have had in the past. This means that students are independent more frequently, and I needed something more than journal pages for that time but don't like dealing with centers. Some games are from EDM and others I made up to reinforce the skills we are working on. I am trying to find or create two games to "feature" on the board per unit that closely relate to the skills we are working on. These are our "Featured Games." I included instructions and examples/photographs of the games on the board in page protectors so I can easily slide them in and out. (Sorry for the glare in the picture!)

Below that are the "Old Favorites"--games we've worked with earlier in the year that are also available. I wrote all of the games on dry-erase sentence strips so I can easily change them without taking the strips down.

I've been going crazy all year, though, managing the handouts and supplies that go with each game. I've had a mess of papers and file folders in a bin on the counter since Fall! I knew something had to change, so I laminated file folders and stapled them along the sides before stapling them to the bottom of the board. I wrote the name of a different game on each in wet-erase marker, along with the materials needed to play. Any other materials needed for the available games are in small boxes/baskets at the base of the board (calculators, dice, cards, etc.) Now, the kids can go up and find what they need to play a game. Finally everything is running smoothly, and more importantly, no one is interrupting my guided math groups to ask questions about games!!

One other new feature is a Challenge section. Meeting the needs of my brightest math students is something I've been slacking on this year. It can just be so hard to leave a guided group of your most needy students to work with your advanced kiddos--even though they need you just as much! I'm comitting to finding more ways to challenge my students inside and outside of guided groups throughout the rest of this year and into next year. While this means meeting with their groups more frequently, it also means independent and group activities that will exercise their math minds when they are not meeting with me.

I posted two Challenge Problems on the board (also in page protectors) for them to try last week, and they LOVED them. I also found some supplemental challenge activities from EDM that I copied and put in the folder below the challenge problems. I practiced with the kids how they could go to the pocket and take any of the challenge activities any time they finished their "Must Do" math activity for the day, and checked in on what they were working on when we met during our group. All of my kids are assigned a "Brain Buddy" who they work with when they are not meeting in a group, and the challenge activities are something they can work on together.

1 week in, the kids told me they really like the new board. One even said, "Everything is so organized!" Be still my teacher heart. The most important thing, though, is that everything displayed is for a PURPOSE--enhancing the learning of my students. Isn't that what it's all about? :-)

Do you use interactive bulletin boards? This is my first venture into them, and obviously this board isn't really interactive, but it's still a step in the right direction! I'd love to hear more about how you make your bulletin boards a meaningful part of your teaching!

Pumping Kids Up for THE TEST!

2013-03-11T20:34:00.001-05:00

We are knee deep in state testing here in Illinois! 4 tests down, 4 to go. (We only give one test a day so the kids don't get overwhelmed and exhausted, but it makes for a looong two weeks of testing...) I wanted to dedicate a post to sharing some of the ways I pump my kiddos up for testing--both state testing and every test we take. I try to keep testing really light and positive. All year long I talk about tests as a "big game" or "championship"--the result of all of our practice, hard work, and "training." When I introduce a test on a regular day, I usually do it something like this. "You guys, we have something exciting happening this week! We get to show our learning on a test!" Then I have the kids cheer. :) I know, it sounds silly, but after making tests a positive thing all year, the kids actually buy into it and cheer all by themselves. ;)

Shared these testing treats last year, inspired by this pin

Next, when I pass out tests, I have the kids write "Bring it On!" on the top. I use this ALLLL the time--any time we are about to do something tough, I say, "This is challenging! What do we say to a challenge??" and the kids shout, "Bring it on!"

I've shared my affirmation wall before, and while I refer to it every day, I make sure to refer to it a little extra during testing time.

I truly believe that these affirmations--both posting them on my walls and weaving them into the culture of my classroom--make a difference in my students' attitudes. I hope that if there is one gift I can give them, it's that they carry these affirmations with them after they leave my classroom. I cover the kiddos' name tags before testing because we aren't allowed to have any tools (multiplication charts, etc.) on their desks, and I let the kids doodle on them. I also encourage them to write some positive "words of encouragement" to remember during testing. Love this girl's:

I talk to the kids all the the time about my running, training, and racing. Why? Because I like them to say, "WOW, you ran that far?" and ask, "Did you WIN your half marathon??"? Haha not exactly. I like them to see me set big goals, work hard to train for them, and risk it all on race days. I talk to them about how nervous I get before a race and how I have to tell myself to trust my training, tell myself, 'You can do it!', and visualize myself succeeding. They love hearing about it, and I feel like it sets a good example for them of how hard work pays off. I call our test prep "training" for our big event--THE TEST. :) I like to have them visualize opening their test booklets, visualize knowing EVERY ANSWER, and visualize succeeding and proud after finishing.

My absolute favorite test motivation strategy came to me randomly my first year teaching when I had 5 extra minutes the week before testing. I had the kids write a letter to the class, wishing them good luck and offering "words of encouragement" to make their classmates feel confident before testing. What started as a "filler" became a yearly tradition. I LOVE it. The kids write the sweetest, most thoughtful notes to the class. I read a few before testing every day, and the kids love them. Some of this year's favorites:

Please ignore the atrocious spelling...we're working on it...

How do you keep spirits high during test time?

Giveaway Winners!

2013-03-09T16:46:00.000-06:00

Better late than never, right? Sorry I forgot to post these days ago! The 3 winners of Running Inspired are...

Pam, Holly, and Rae, contact me at juiceboxesandcrayolas AT gmail DOT com by Tuesday to claim your prize!

Why I will Always Make Time for Read Aloud

2013-03-02T18:33:00.000-06:00

Don't forget to enter my giveaway to win a digital copy of Running Inspired, a great book for beginner runners!!

My first year teaching, I didn't make a ton of time for read aloud. I remember wondering when I was possibly supposed to squeeze that in amidst the already jam-packed day. If something was going to be cut from my lesson plans, read aloud was always first on the chopping block. Why? It just didn't see as important as the other 100 things on the daily to-do list.

Today, I can't imagine my classroom without read aloud. It is one of the most special parts of my day, and I promise you this--it IS important. In SO many different ways. We all know that read aloud gives a great model of fluency for kids, but it does so much more than that. I truly believe that my read aloud teaches my kiddos to fall in love with reading. They look forward to those precious 10 minutes every day and beg me to keep reading. Once they groaned when I had to pause the book because it was time for PE! They cheer when the endings are happy and cry when the plot takes sad turns. They line up at the library to put the book I'm reading aloud on hold because they love it too much to wait. My read alouds expose kids to books that they might not ordinarily pick up on their own.

Seeing how excited this student was when reflecting on a book he probably never would have read on his own brought tears to my eyes. Isn't teaching kids to love reading why I got into this business in the first place?

This year, I decided to use read aloud as a time to teach my kids important life lessons. There is so much more to teaching than the content areas--we are truly playing a part in helping these little people grow up to face the world. If I take a minute to think about the big ideas I want my students to come away from my class with, they definitely all don't have to do with reading, writing, math, science, and social studies. I want to teach my students kindness, empathy, courage, friendship, owning their actions, honesty, and so many other things. Read aloud is my chance to do that. I started my year by reading Wonder, a truly amazing book with so many important themes. While reading, I asked students to listen for examples of courage in the book. By the end, not only did the students all understand that courage is so much more than going off the high dive, but they understand that above all other things, kindness is always the right choice.

We also read Because of Mr. Terupt this year and had some big, serious discussions about the importance of not laying blame. When a tragedy happens in their classroom, the students in this book are quick to blame each other and blame themselves. I repeated to the kids throughout the story, "Sometimes, when bad things happen, we look for someone to blame. When we can't find anyone, we often blame ourselves." This is a big idea for 8 and 9 year olds, but by the end of the book I truly felt like many of my students understood how important it is not to blame others or themselves for things that are out of their control. They also talked seriously about how important it is to stick together in the midst of a tragedy.

Right now, we're reading The One and Only Ivan. Vegetarian that I am, I'm doing my best not to get up on my bleeding-heart soap box preaching about the horrors of zoos and the importance of animal rights, but the book is starting some interesting conversations all on its own about kindness and living things. I can't wait to see the deep conversations it stirs up in my little classroom.

I try to do quick writes or reading responses connected with my read alouds from time to time. I find that my kids are able to think so deeply in their reflections sometimes, and that even my struggling readers shine. The kids pick up on the important lessons and big ideas and are able to add their own insights in their reflections. The kids get to practice literacy skills like metacognition, visualization, making inferences and connections, and making predictions in their reflections. I don't often have time for them, but every time I do I find at least one kiddo who surprises me in their insights or deep thoughts. Such a special teacher moment. :)

So, that is why no matter how intense our days become or how many new things Common Core adds to my teacher plate, I will ALWAYS make time for read aloud. It is such a special part of our day, and there is just something about sitting so close together on the carpet enjoying a really great book that just makes our classroom community all the more close-knit. Love it.

What are your favorite read alouds?

Running Book Review + Giveaway!

2013-02-27T19:26:00.000-06:00

I recently had the opportunity to review The Ultimate Beginners Running Guide: The Key to Running Inspired by Ryan Robert. (Check it out on amazon here--it's only $4.99 for a kindle edition.) This book delivers exactly what its title promises--it lays out a step by step guide for beginner runners and covers topics like form, footwear, warm ups/cool downs, target heart rates, nutrition, and even confidence and motivation (it is, after all, a guide to running inspired!).

I really liked the way the chapters were broken up. There is a ton of content in this book; it literally covers almost everything a new runner would need to know. Robert does a nice job of breaking each content-packed chapter with headings, but what I most appreciated was the bulleted summary at the end of each chapter recapping the main points. I don't know about you, but it drives me crazy when I'm trying to remember one particular tip or suggestion for a book and I have to skim the whole darn thing to find it. These summaries would be really helpful for a beginner runner referring back to the text during training.

Robert includes several "visualization exercises" in the book. Some people might think these things are kind of cheesy, but I think visualization can be a completely valid and important exercise for runners. Since I'm not a new runner anymore, I don't really need to visualize myself putting on my running shoes and running down the block anymore, but I totally use visualization when I'm training for a big race. The night before I'll try to visualize starting, running, and finishing the race before I go to sleep, and I really think it helps. The visualization exercises in the book could be really helpful for someone who is JUST getting started with running.

Another really cool feature is that the book includes an appendix with training plans for literally every level of beginner runner, from complete couch potato to active beginner to 50+ runner. Robert also lets you download these training plans in pdf form for free, which I thought was pretty cool.

Typically, I tend to prefer my running books to be part advice/tips and part memoir/narrative, ala The Courage to Start or The Non-Runner's Guide to the Marathon for Women, but this book really does a great job of giving a new runner nearly everything he or she needs to know to get started. Definitely a quality book and at 115 pages, it was a quick read.

Now for the giveaway. Ryan Robert has graciously offered to give away digital copies of The Ultimate Beginner's Guide: The Key to Running Inspired to 3 Juice Boxes + Crayolas readers! Are you a tired teacher needing a little pep in your step? A brand new runner looking for tips? Or a seasoned runner who needs to work on form and nutrition? (cough, me, cough...) See how to enter below...

Leave a separate comment for each entry...

Be a Juice Boxes + Crayolas follower, and leave me a comment letting me know! (Mandatory)
Leave me a comment letting me know why you want to win this book, whether it's for you or to share with a new runner in your life who needs it! (+1 additional entry)
Share this giveaway on your blog, FB, or twitter and leave a comment letting me know (+1 entry each)

That's it! Easy peasy lemon squeezy as we say in my 3rd/4th classroom. :) This giveaway will close at midnight on Saturday, March 2nd, and I will choose a winner the following day using random.org. (Seriously, how is it almost MARCH already??)

Disclaimer: I was provided a digital copy of this book by the author for the purpose of writing this review. I was not compensated in any other way, and all opinions expressed are my own. :)

Race Recap: Disney Princess Half Marathon + Florida Getaway!

2013-02-26T17:10:00.002-06:00

I think it should be mandatory for every teacher to take a couple of days off and get away for a long weekend in Florida just before state testing. Seriously, this weekend was a godsend. It did get off to a bit of a rocky start though...remember how I accidentally bought plane tickets for the wrong weekend and had to buy new tickets last minute? Well I WISH that were the end of my travel woes! I had a delay getting out of the airport in Chicago thanks to a snow storm, and when I finally made it to Dallas where I had a layover, I found out that my connecting flight was delayed SIX HOURS. My god. Six hours in the Dallas airport (where I got to listen to a soundtrack that went between easy listening music and god awful country--this Chicago girl is NOT a country music fan) = my personal hell on earth. All I could find that was vegetarian was some greasy Chinese noodles and veggies. Luckily I just bought a Kindle so I at least had plenty tor read!

Needless to say, I was more than relieved when I *finally* made it to Florida! Saturday morning my sister in law and I headed over to the race expo. I was so happy to be there with her this year instead of with my brother and dad like last time--I actually had someone who wanted to visit every single vendor and debate which tshirt had the best slogan at the One More Mile booth!

Princess Belle & Princess Merida!

I swore I wouldn't spend any more money on this trip after buying my second plane ticket, but I threw that plan out the window within 5 minutes of entering the expo :) I snagged this tshirt:

I also met the lovely Shannon! She is just as sweet in person as she is on her blog and has the cutest Southern accent. The princess race was Shannon's first half--way to go, girl!!

After the expo we spent some fun time hanging out at the hotel with my sweet niece (and playing with clementines for longer than one would have ever thought they would be entertaining!!).

Sunday morning our wakeup call came at 2:30am. Ouch. My sister in law and I were running with a few of her friends, so we all met up together at the hotel and headed over. The race started at 5:30 for corral A, but the shuttles bused us to the starting area at 3am, so we had a bit of a wait. It was so nice to be with a group--I ran this race by myself last time and was pretty bored waiting around for so long! Too much time = crazy nerves!!

When the fireworks and fairy godmother finally set us off at the start line, we were pretty pumped up. I promised my sister in law I would stay with her and her girlfriends for the entire race, even though they run a slower pace than I normally do, and even though she urged me to run my own race. I wanted this race to be a fun group adventure and to support my sister in law in her first half, so I stuck with them the whole time. To be honest though, I don't know if I could have gone any faster! It was CRAZY humid out, and I'm not sure my training in sub 30 weather prepared me for that! We were all soaked within the first 2 miles and pretty much immediately dehydrated.

It was a tough race even with the slow pace, but we all made it and crossed the finish line holding hands. Woohoo!

The toughest part may have been walking around Disney all afternoon on tired legs and no sleep! But hey, I'll power through anything if it means I get to ride Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion. :) We spent the morning at Disney again yesterday before I headed home to Chicago last night. Here's what Chicago welcomed me home with today:

Oh Florida, I miss you already.

Race 1 of 2013: DONE! On to the next!

Have you seen this tired teacher's brain?

2013-02-21T20:31:00.001-06:00

You guys, I think my brain fell out of my head sometime between the report card comment writing and proofreading, trying to cram content into my math lessons to cover the 100 topics we haven't taught yet before state testing in two weeks, and working on prepping for two days of subs while I'm in Florida. I spent the good part of my evening yesterday spread out here, on my classroom floor, in a mess of copies, post-its, 10 pages of sub plans, and a box of Girl Scout cookies...

Further evidence that I officially have no brain left? Oh, buckle up--it's a good story. Tuesday night (after a crappy, long day--seriously, aren't all days following a long weekend terrible?), I was sitting in my 3 hour grad school class--already on the verge of a breakdown--when my brother texted me asking me to send him my flight confirmation for the weekend. (I'm going to Florida to visit my brother, sister-in-law, and niece and to run the Disney Princess Half Marathon Sunday.) 2 minutes later, my brother messages me on gchat saying, "WTF, this says January." Folks, when planning my trip to Florida for a FEBRUARY half-marathon, I booked a flight for a weekend in JANUARY. And didn't notice. WHOOPS.

Knowing I was in class (and probably moments from curling up in the fetal position), my wonderful brother called the airline and booked me a new flight. Unfortunately Flight #2 set me back $400+ more dollars which, added to my original ticket (that I can't get a refund for--seems they don't give refunds for things that fall under the "dumbass mistakes" umbrella), makes this one expensive flight to Florida! Oh and instead of a direct flight I now will be enjoying a 4-hour layover in Dallas. Annnd will be taking off during a snowstorm it seems...Yikes.

My whole family agrees that I officially an not allowed to book my own airline tickets anymore, and probably shouldn't even be trusted with a credit card in general...Honestly, I'm not even sure I can handle flying alone after this. Hold me.

Boarding passes for the CORRECT day and Race Waiver--check!!

I'm trying to stay positive and see the humor in the whole thing--it really is kind of hilarious. Thank goodness I was able to get last minute flights at all and on the dates I'd planned too! It definitely could have been worse!!

Oh well. I ((somehow)) made it through the week and in 24 hours I will be with this girl:

And in 60 hours I will be running here:

And everything will have been worth it :)

Shaking Up Test Review

2013-02-18T19:16:00.002-06:00

Hi friends--it's been awhile! I've been trying to let go of technology and unchain myself from my computer a little bit more these days, spending more time with books instead...that, and things have been crazy busy. But what else is new! I took a break from blogging for awhile because I just didn't have many ideas for posts, and I feel like no one cares to read my mindless ramblings when I have nothing to say! But in the past few weeks I've finally had some ideas for a few posts, mostly classroom related things. Today's is just a quick one!

I don't know about you, but I struggle with how to make review for math tests effective and meaningful for the majority of my class. It feels like for most tests there are a handful of students who would benefit from some serious review and reteaching, and the rest of the class just needs a bit of practice. In the past, I'd spend a full class period reviewing a ton of concepts, but we all know that's not exactly best practice. One of my favorite strategies is to do a guided math format (I run guided math most days) and have the kids not working in my group complete a Math Scavenger Hunt. Sound complicated? It's actually the opposite.

I write up between 8 and 10 math problems like the kind that will be on our test on individual index cards and tape them up in "hiding places" around the room--on cabinets, bookshelves, the sides of desks, etc. Then, I have my students travel the room with their math notebooks and their "Brain Buddy" (aka math partner), find all of the review problems, and answer them in their notebook.

In the mean time, I pull groups of students for guided group review. I start with the neediest kiddos, then at the end pull bigger groups of kids who have finished the review to correct their answers and reteach as necessary. My kids are well-trained in how to work quietly and efficiently with their partners, and of course I clearly set my expectations before we start. The best parts of the scavenger hunt are that not only are the kids completing test practice problems, but they are actively moving around, engaged, and it takes next to no prep on my part--no copies, just writing up some problems and taping them around the room. AND I am able to work really closely with the kids who NEED me! So much better than a worksheet.

In other news, I'm heading off to Florida on Friday morning to run the Disney Princess Half Marathon with my sister in law and a dew of her friends. This will be her FIRST half, and I couldn't be more excited for her! Disney Princess was my first half a few years ago, and in spite of some injuries, it truly was magical. :) I can't wait!

How do you make test review fun?

What have you been up to lately??? I've missed you guys since I dropped off the blogosphere planet...hopefully someone still reads this!! :)

Sprigs Winner!

2013-01-15T16:41:00.001-06:00

Brrrr! It's cold here in Chicago! When I checked the hourly forecast last night and saw that it would be only 11 degrees at 4am (Tuesday is my early running day usually), I decided to sleep in instead. :) I know I'm trying to have a "Just do it" mindset, but cold + 4am = yucky. Anyways. This kind of cold calls for a winter accessory winner! Thanks for entering my Sprigs giveaway! The winner is...

Sarah, email me at juiceboxesandcrayolas AT gmail DOT com by FRIDAY to claim your prize!!

Didn't win? Check out Sprigs.com to get yourself a little something--you deserve it! :)

Chocolate + Peanut Butter = Bliss.

2013-01-12T18:01:00.001-06:00

Happy Saturday! Just a reminder to enter my Sprigs giveaway, ending at midnight tonight!

The past two Saturdays in Chicago have had weirdo weather! I was really lucky both days though because I headed out for me run, ended up running in beautiful weather, only to have it turn cold and crappy later on in the day. This morning is was in the upper 40s! Shut the front door! I even pulled a pair of capris out of the back of the drawer! (Okay, I lied, I pulled them out of the bottom of the hamper, and they were super sweaty and gross after being worn to hot yoga the other day...what, like you never re-wear workout clothes...)

Anyways, I pounded out 9 miles on one of my favorite trails this morning, loving the weather and loving the high school throw back music I loaded on my ipod last night, including some blink-182, third eye blind, and something corporate. Some days I crave the silence of those long runs in the forest preserve, but today I was literally grinning when some of those old favorites were blasting in my ears!

Tonight I am camped out here, on the floor in front of a pile of grad school hw (and the TV watching Parenthood, my new favorite show!). I know you are all super jealous of my crazy exciting single girl Saturday nights. At least I have tea.

And chocolate with peanut butter. Yum. Is there possibly a better combination? I think not. I have been ravenous all day post-run, and I'm not going to lie--I ate half that bar in 2 bites and will for sure come back for the rest after publishing this post.

Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!

Do you ever re-wear workout clothes?? Be honest...

What are you up to this weekend?