Back on the Grind

Headed back to school today! I hate to say it, but I'm kind of excited. I don't know what it has been about this summer, but any chance I got to sit at home I was bored out of my mind. However, I couldn't find the motivation to get stuff ready for school either. I'm a little sad that there will be some faces missing this year, but I'm also excited for all the new people we have too. It is going to be a good year! 

I couldn't resist sharing this picture with you. My niece Morgan is 16 months and can already work an iPad. She knows which apps to pick. If she messes up, she knows to hit the home button to go back to the home page. She can slide through the different screens to find the apps. While she may not know what they all do or what they are, she knows how to get them to make noises. Its amazing to me the types of technology that kids are growing up with these days. I thought desk tops, having phones hooked up to your car, portable CD players and a VCR in your car was the coolest thing ever. Kids these days have so much more right at their hands. It makes me think how much teaching is going to change. If at 16 months, Morgan can do all of these things, what kind of technology and teaching will I have to do when she is in the 7th grade. It isn't just Morgan either. Kids all around are learning how to use cell phones and iPads before they can even talk.  Times are changing!

Youth Writing Camp

A few summers ago, I joined the North Star National Writing Project. Not only did it give me six hours towards my Masters, but it also helped me become a better teacher to my students. I was able to join reading and writing together more. Best part was I got to make some relationships that I never knew possible.

This summer a few of my Project members ran a Youth Writing Camp. I have to tell you that at first I was wishing I hadn't signed up for it. I was extremely stressed out at the end of school and it felt like another thing added on. Running the camp made me so happy that I had decided to go through with it. I had the best time.

We had two camps running at Calhoun Middle School and Guyer High School with 18 students ranging from 4-10th grade. The pieces that these students came up with were incredible. Many I had during the school year, and I had no idea that they could write like that. We got to do a lot of activities to help deepen their writing and make it more their own. A lot of the students camp willingly and many came by force of their parents, but at the end of the week each one of them couldn't stop talking about how much fun they had. We had started a blog for them to publish their writings, and many were using that as a way to stay in touch. I seriously can't wait to do this again next year.

We had a celebration for them at the end of the week. Our sponsors, UNT members, and parents got to see and hear all that they kiddos had been working on. I found myself coming to tears a few times at what all they students had taught us.

I get a worried about showing students' faces on the internet, but I thought I'd show a few pictures that I have that are faceless.

 One of the stations we had for the students to write

 Decorating journals

 Decorating journals

 Writing time

A decorated journal 

 Learning to blog

 A fun writing center

 Set up at Guyer

 This is the back of our t-shirt

 Some of the posters at our celebration. We coordinated them with our t-shirts

The kid's mail bags that they had all week

What Time is It? SUMMER TIME!

via

School is out for the summer! I am a happy girl over here. I had the most incredible kids this year. Many (MANY!)  were quite the handful. I have so many crazy teacher stories from this year that I will remember for the rest of my life. There were a ton of sweethearts that I will never forget. Every week, I had a group of girls that came to my room to do homework and have a dance party to cheesy boy band songs. It was truly amazing to become so close to so many kiddos. The last day of school was filled with a dance party in my room too!  I truly love my job.

It was a little bitter sweet though. Our team leader and math teacher decided he was retiring this year. He has been our "dad" and an incredible leader to us. He mentored me through a lot my first few years of teaching. He will surely be missed. 

What are your plans for the summer? This week off I have been busy helping interview new teachers for our empty positions and sitting in on 3 days of CHAMPS training which is a district wide discipline plan we are doing. In two weeks, Dustin and I are headed to Mexico with my sister-in-law, brother-in-law and friends. We are headed back to where we had our honeymoon and I cannot tell you how excited we are. The week we come back is a Youth Writing Camp I am helping run. July and August are going to be pure relaxation and planning for next year. My main priority lose weight!

Hope you have a super relaxing summer and don't get TOO hot!

Did you enjoy my High School Musical picture and title? I have this fun picture of about 50 kids doing the Wobble in my classroom, but I can't find my camera among the 1000s of things I brought home from school. 

I'm Alive! I Promise!

Gees, school starts back up and I become MIA! Don't think I haven't thought about posting, because I have. Just about every day. Right now, close your eyes, and picture the most wonderful postings. You laughed, you cried, some you even told your friends about. Can you picture it? Good. Because I thought about writing every single one of those! Seriously, every day when I look at all my fabulous blogs I follow or when I actually do something fun in my boring life, I think... maybe I'll actually turn on my laptop tonight. I swear, these iPads are the best things ever, but I'm awful at typing on them. So I only actually write posts on my laptop, which I never use anymore.

There really has not been a lot going on since I was alive in the blogging world. But I thought I'd share with you in pictures...

Awhile back I talked about how nervous I was to be the head 7th grade coach this year. Since getting back from Christmas (which is just about the last time you heard from me), my life has been consumed by basketball. I had a great group of girls this year. They got 3rd place in our district! I was so proud of them. I have never seen a team have heart like they did. They wanted it so bad, and they fought every step of the way. I was truly blessed to have a group of a girls like I did for my first year. Next year's team has big shoes to fill.

Coach Kenney learning how to Dougie in the locker room before an 8th grade game

Two weeks ago, I flew to Lubbock for literally 24 hours and had a fabulous time! My good friend Brooks was getting married Saturday night. Steph and I decided to make it a girls' weekend and left the boys at home. Steph lives in New Mexico and we NEVER get to see each other. She is getting married in May and I'm super excited. I flew it Saturday morning and got to meet up with my friend Lindsey, another who I never get to see. She picked me up from the airport and we did lunch with her sister, Ally, and hubby, Kuhrt. (who by the way is the drummer of a fabulous band called A Road Less Traveled. Check them out) After that we ran a few errands and caught up at our favorite place Chimy's. That night was Brooks and Amye's wedding. It was beautiful. They had the wedding on campus and I loved getting to be at a place that we all knew so well. We had a fabulous time hanging out with all of our friends.

So Lindsey and I didn't take pictures while I was there, but I couldn't leave her out. This is a picture from about 4-5 years ago. Can't you tell by the college/sorority girl kissy face?

Steph and I in our one moment of being classy.

Classic of the first picture we have.

 Our other half for the night. Brooke and JPatt

 So Amye totally broke out into a dance on the floor. Literally. In wedding dress and all. She is one brave woman and I love her even more for doing it.

 Calvert and Taylour. I'd say Calvert and I avoided being friends in every way, but somehow our weird twisted lives kept showing us it was a must.

Calvert giving his speech 

The fabulous Mrs. and Mr. Brooks Jay

The Hotchkiss duo has also been hanging out with family! My brother and his girlfriend came over last weekend to hangout for a bit. We have so much fun together. My brother, Josh, is hilarious. Probably the funniest person I've ever known, and Alexa keeps him grounded and somewhat normal. Josh somehow always ends up being "that guy" whenever we go out. Never in a bad way, but the guy you are talking about his one-liners days after. His latest thing is to Yo-Yo while he is out. Most of you may think this is weird, but being around him for 23 1/2 years has just made me used to it. We also got to FINALLY meet Baby Bryce. I talked about the Erwins earlier. Baby Bryce was born in September and is just the cutest thing.

 My brother Josh showing everyone how to walk the dog

 Alexa showing us her skills

 Dustin learning

Baby Bryce!

My Classroom

For the past 4 years, I have slowly put my classroom together. My first year I slapped a few posters on the wall and figured it was ok. I hated it. It was hideously ugly. My second year I actually put some thought into it, but I still felt like it wasn't screaming "me" or "reading." Last year I finally concentrated mainly on my room. I loved it! This year a few things have changed but not much. So here it is.... my classroom.

This is actually a picture from last year. This area now is our 5 Day Late Rule. Kids can see when assignments were late and what they haven't turned in.

 Once again a picture from last year, the back of this is green now.

 The agenda  and homework. I love this area. The color just pops so much.

 This has a few more popcorn signs now, but this is books that are written for teens that have movies too.

 Pillows I tie-dyed and Sprague made.

 This picture got messed up, but this is two of the three built in book cases in my room.

 Class folders for each period.

 Reading area.

 This is from last year. Notice the board says Roden. This is two of the bookshelves I have. The books are arranged by genre.

 Other side of the reading area. The red bin has blankets for reader's workshop in it.

 My area. It takes up a lot of room sometimes, but I have a place for everything. I tie dyed those curtains myself!

 My box with my new name! I moved up in the alphabet though and I can't ever find my box.

 Where I can let the kiddos know what I'm reading. This book was actually on Oprah's list, and is a very slow read.

 Two of my kiddos from this year made me this Longhorn sign once they found out I loved Tech. They asked me to put it on my wall. So I did. Upside down.

 My "Me" wall. The Cream Puffs poster is a project from two years ago that I can't get off the wall. Luckily, the student who made it was one I really enjoyed as well as her class. So it always makes me think of those kids.

 Many of the people who are most important to me. Notice the Steak'n'Shake tray.

 The wedding frame Sonya got me (no picture yet) and the Mrs. Potato head Sprague gave me to think about her in Idaho.I miss you two so much!

 My new sign! I keep forgetting though and won't answer right away all the time. A lot of them have started calling me Coach Kiss which seems to be catching on rather quickly.

I started trying to change all my books over to Hotchkiss. I got this far into my library before I realized it wasn't that fun. Whoever is my first detention will be changing my name over. 

I just realized I never got pictures of the whole room or from the entry. Maybe another time.  



Appreciate Your Teachers!

     It is Teacher Appreciation Day, Week whatever you want to say. Personally, I think we should be appreciated every week, but that is just my opinion. Just kidding! Since starting this blog, I have become a 100% blog stalker! I have loved getting decorating and cooking ideas and catching up on peoples lives. One of the blogs I follow is The Crafting Chicks. It is a group of women who come together to pass around their crafting ideas. They had these Mini Oreo Apple Pops on their blog yesterday. I decided that I would appreciate the people that I teach with every day and make them the same thing. Mine of course don't look at professional, and I was going completely off memory when I was at the store today. This was more of a trial run, so I was pleased with the way they turned out for the first time.

Ingredients:
Oreos - The Crafting Chicks used mini oreos. I got normal ones (oops!). If you go this way I would do the double stuff and stick a popsicle stick in them The toothpick wasn't strong enough to hold the entire oreo up.
Pretzel Sticks - I just took normal pretzels and broke them because I completely forgot to buy them.
Green Air Heads - It took me four places to find a place that sold them by the flavor. Everything else was a variety pack.  I finally went to a gas station.
Red Candy - I went to JoAnns in the candy area and they have tons of flavors that you can melt.

This was after breaking the pretzels and cutting the Air Heads. I used a steak knife to cut the candy and it was really hard. I'd recommend heating them up or using scissors like The Crafting Chicks said to do.

The melted candy. The stuff I got was super easy! I just put it in the microwave for 2 minutes and it was ready to go.

So mine don't look near as good as theirs did, but hey I feel like it was a good first try! I learned to not put the pretzels and Air Heads in the oreo because it will break them and use the candy more like glue. Also, having something to dip them into the melted candy would be easier. When the toothpicks didn't work, we tried popsicle sticks, but since they weren't double filled it was hard to not break the cookie. We eventually just glopped it on with a spoon. Oh, the we include my brother Josh. He was a great helper once he realized we could eat as we made them!

If you're one of my teacher friends come find me tomorrow! I made 30 and I'm bringing them to say how much I appreciate you!