Polar Express Party

What a week this was! We started the week off with our Polar Express party on Monday. I wasn't too sure about doing it that early, but I figured it was the only open day we had all week. And I'm thankful I did it then, because my kiddos at home ended up being sick with a fever on/off all week. I had to take Thursday off so my husband could go back to work and I ended up coming down with an extremely nasty bug on Thursday afternoon. I pretty much felt like I was dying. Today is the first day I have felt more like myself and I can actually stay awake rather than sleeping the day away.

When the kids arrived at school Monday morning they were very excited about our Polar Express party. I printed off these golden tickets and laminated them. We punched them later when we started the movie.

I bought each of the students a little hot chocolate tumbler from the dollar store. I took out the Christmas picture and quickly printed up their names. We made hot chocolate in the classroom and they got to sip their coco while watching the movie.

Each of the students also got a silver bell necklace. This was a special day for the kids and they seemed to really enjoy the movie.  Later in the week we compared the movie and the book. During our Fairview rotations they completed the Polar Express center activities that I won from The Teacher's Club House and Queen of the First Grade Jungle. They were the perfect activities to complete right before vacation!

It's so nice to finally be on Christmas break and to be on the mend. I am ready to enjoy some quality time with my girls and my family. Enjoy your holidays! See you in the new year!

Classroom Economy System

I am linking up with 4th Grade Frolics for her Monday Made It again this week. I've been on a roll!

Last year was the first year I used a classroom economy system. It worked wonders for all of my kiddos, especially my student with a Behavior Support Plan. It's hard not to buy into something when it all revolves around (fake) money and prizes.  You can read all about how I set up and used my classroom economy system last year here. 

This year I have decided to switch to coins for our money system. My students really mastered counting bills last year. Tha
t was easy peasy by the end of the year. But many of them are struggling with counting various coins. So what better way to get them motivated to count money than by earning it themselves! I converted all of their "earnings" and "fines" into coins. What was $1.00 last year now converts to $0.25. We'll be using quarters, dimes and nickels this year.

While updating the amounts, I also made this little Dollar Store photo album into a prize catalog.  My students love to "purchase" these reward passes during our Friday store. Last year I used to put out the passes and higher priced rewards that were printed out in plastic sleeves out onto the table. It was cluttered and hard to find what we were looking for. Now they will have this small 4x6 photo album to flip through with the prices listed on each item.

I basically enlarged the reward passes to 4x6 size, printed them out and added them to the photo album. I also made a cover and back to match my classroom theme.  If you'd like a free copy of my reward passes, you can find them here on TpT.  If you'd like to make a prize catalog, you can download that here from Google Docs.  If you email me or leave a comment with your email address, I'd be happy to make you a photo album cover to match your classroom theme for your prize catalog.


Remember when I mentioned those zippered pencil pouches that I had no idea what to do with them? Alison mentioned she used them for her classroom economy system. They will work perfectly for all of our coins that the students will be earning this year. Perfect! I labeled each of the pouches with the student names (I am fortunate to already know all of my students from last year) so they are ready for day 1 of school. 

If you are interested in finding out more about what my students can earn money for and what our "fines" are, you can see that here. Included on the list is our monthly rent.  Oh yes. My kiddos have to pay rent for their desk, chair and supply box. It teaches them important life skills, that's for sure!

Summer Pile

Every teacher has one over the summer. Some large, some small. But we all have to admit that somewhere in our house we have a pile of school stuff waiting to go to the classroom.

This summer my pile is small compared to last summer. Last year I did a complete overhaul of my classroom by painting furniture, redoing every single board and changed my whole room to a black and white theme. I loved the look, so this year I don't have to change very much in the classroom. Hence why the pile is so small. Plus, I'm going to Ikea tomorrow... so I can't make any promises that this pile will remain small. I've  also been enjoying being a stay at home momma, so I haven't worked very much on creating things for the classroom yet.

I just cleaned out, organized and purged my office/scraproom last weekend. It felt good to get organized. I found all sorts of things I 'forgot' about for the classroom. Like all those zippered pouches my sister's store donated. I'm not sure how I'll use them yet, but I'll find a way.

I'm suddenly feeling the pressure that the clock is ticking and summer is half over. That's depressing. I'm having way too much fun! Now that summer school has wrapped up in my classroom I think they will be cleaning it this week. That means next week I can get into my room and start to organize and get ready for a new year. Year #16. Crazy.

It's On!

It's been a while since my last post. Its been busy, busy around my classroom! Between lots of IEP meetings, getting a new student, and state testing I haven't had a minute to breathe... let alone take pictures.

I dread this time of year. The excitement builds and the countdown to summer begins. But it also means testing time. My students also get restless and it's hard to get them to focus.

Luckily, I knocked out the majority of the state testing this past week. I have to test all my students from 2nd-6th grade. All of them have the accommodation that I will read/sign the math questions. That way it's really a math test and not a reading test. I just get so frustrated with state testing. I have 6th graders taking the 6th grade test but reading at the first grade level. It's a waste of time for them and for me. Let's give them a test that will actually measure progress rather than practice in filling in pretty patterns on a scantron form.  It's hard not to feel deflated as a teacher by this whole process.

The countdown has begun- 24 DAYS LEFT!

Meet the Teacher

So here's a little about me. I've been going back and forth about creating this little blog for a while. I've been reading teacher blogs for over a year and have been scouring the Internet for blogs about Deaf/Hard of Hearing classrooms. I haven't had much luck. So the only way to get information, is to share information. This is my way of connecting with other teachers of the Deaf/Hard of Hearing. I want to know about your classrooms and what you're doing with your students. I'm nervous about putting myself out there and sharing what we're doing in my classroom. It's just little ol' me. What do I know that other people want to know about? Who knows where this will go... but I'll give it a try.

 

My name is Kelly. Currently I teach Deaf/Hard of Hearing students in grades 1-6 in a Special Day Class. This is my 15th year of teaching. In the past I have taught preschool, did itinerant for a little while and then I settled into the upper grades 3rd-6th D/HH SDC. Due to declining enrollment we downsized our classrooms from three D/HH classes to just two. Teaching grades 1-6 is NOT ideal by any means. It's down right hard and time consuming. I'm hoping that we'll go back to three classes soon.

 

I have 11 Deaf/Hard of Hearing students in my classroom. We are a Total Communication program... the true meaning of TC. My students are mainstreamed into the general education classes with educational interpreters whenever possible.

 

I truly enjoy my job. Every single day is different than the day before. I'm always on my toes and ready for a new challenge. I love to see the light bulb go on when a student finally gets a new concept. Watching their progress is truly fulfilling to me.