What Worked Wednesday: My Course Guide

What worked for me on the first week of school you might ask? Why my Class Course Guide, of course! Last year I ditched a traditional syllabus and begin using a one page course guide. I had two motives behind making the switch. A) How many parents and students actually read it beyond my reading it to the students in class? B) I wanted something that students could tape in the interactive notebooks that we'd use all year and refer to it when they had any questions about the class.

With those two things in mind I made the plunge and ditched that old, long, boring, traditional syllabus. This nifty little one pager (a little term I stole from the great @EdTechLove) packs a ton of useful information in a fun little delivery format. I feel that this one page Course Guide can take the place of a syllabus because it give important information about the class without all the boring, yet important, stuff that many don't even bother reading.

Included are 10 sections outlining the class policies, supply list, assignment policy, how to receive extra help, our class in social media, Schoology (our LMS), our team webpage, and goals for the year. Since this is printed on a full sheet of paper and must fit in a standard composition notebook, there's even a handy little flap when you fold it for the student's and parent's signature. I always tell my students to fold on the dotted and cut on the solid when we do foldables in hopes that no one will cut their course guide but it sometimes still happen. Not students has cut their yet (knock on wood!) and I know one does.

In addition to the 2 goals I have for students I ask that students choose a goal that we will re-evaluate each quarter. I ask that students choose a goal then explain how they plan to achieve that goal. For example, most students would write get good grades or maintain an A in math. I'd always ask them how they plan to maintain this grade. Students usually said things like study more, not procrastinate, or do homework as soon as they got home so that they would not forget. I told them that my goal was to not procrastinate because man am I the biggest procrastinator in the world. When I was a student, my best work and highest grades were a result of my procrastination but I'm learning that the stress from procrastination is never worth it.

After going over the course guide with my students, I touched on the grading scale and some other things that are in the syllabus and posted in the classroom before allowing the students to complete a team scavenger hunt using the course guide. I gave the teams 15 minutes to answer 10 questions that could be answered directly from the course guide. I gave each person a job and had one person to write their number on the board once the team finished so I could keep up with the order in which each team finished. I walked around and checked the questions as the teams finished. I circled questions that were answered incorrectly and told students to go back and check their answers.

It seemed as if students thoroughly enjoyed this activity. I figured I should come up with something high energy for the students to do after going the course guide for a majority of the hour long class period. Students worked well with their teams and the first 5 teams who answered all questions correctly received a treat. All in all this was a very successful execution of a syllabus and team building activity that worked for me, LaDonna!

        

         Until next time,

            LaDonna 

New Year's Goals 2017

 

I used this Winter Break for resting and reflecting. Even though I spent more time resting and doing nothing I did take some time to reflect on myself as a teacher and myself in general. I was inspired to blog about my goals after reading @historicalipad's New Year's Resolution Post Saturday.

Goal #1
Save more and spend less. I received a harsh wake up call when we relocated to Colorado and I am just now really adjusting almost 3 years later. I currently save a little each month but it is nothing compared to how much money I feel I waste and have nothing to show for it. I am really bad about "wanting it now" and instant gratification. I feel that I am quick to spend without weighing my options. My family eats out way too much and there are several things that I feel we can go without. We recently purchased a home and we have a list of wants that will actually benefit us in the future when it comes time to put our house on the market. Goal #1 will eventually open other doors for my family.

Goal #2
Workout consistently. I currently workout but I'm not consistent at all. Some weeks I workout 3-4 times and then I go weeks without lifting a finger. My goal is to workout 3-4 times a week. I am more consistent with a partner but I have to learn how to motivate myself to workout alone. I'm excited to now have an At Home Gym but I need to utilize it more consistently. Our gym is still a work in progress but I'm proud of the what we have so far and I have enough for a full workout. I always feel better and have more energy when I workout so with accomplishing goal #2 I have nothing to lose.

Goal #3
I would like to blog and upload to my TpT store weekly. I've been trying to figure out a schedule that will work for me but I have not been able to find that magical formula yet. I currently purchased a planner and have been researching formats to help me plan out my life. I really like passion planners and bullet journals but have not decided which is going to work for me. Goal #3 will eventually help me to build my platform and reach more fellow educators so that I can do the many other things I'd like to eventually do in the near future.

#oneword2017
With all of my goals I was able to come up my own personal #oneword2017 which is consistency. With consistency I will be able to #slay the goals I have for myself in 2017. I find that when I do get off track it is because of a lack of consistency. I am looking to come up with a routine that will not take away from my family or sleep. Looking back at 2016, family time and sleep usually suffered the most when I was working on something extra or work related.

What are some of your goals? Did you write down resolutions for 2017? Do you have an #oneword2017?  I'd love to hear from you. Leave your comments below.

SURPRISE! I moved to Colorado...

As I was basking in the joy of the endless possibilities that this school year would bring, my husband received orders that would take us from Louisiana to Colorado. So with sadness in my heart I had to pack up and leave the most exciting school year ever.

Upon arriving in Colorado in September, I had an interview 2 days later. This was before we were settled, had a home, had our children enrolled in school or child care, before our belongings had arrived ad so on. I was blessed to be offered the position although I was nervous to take it, seeing that we had just arrived in the state. Reluctantly I accepted the English Language Development (ELD) math position. I would teach 6th, 7th, and 8th grade ELD math as well as a group of regular 7th grade math students. I viewed this as a learning opportunity and a chance to add another certification notch to my belt...

Let's see how this all works out. To be continued...