Teacher Week 2013 - Day 2

Today for Teacher Week - we are going on Classroom Tours!  If you still want to join, it's not too late!!  Check out the list for every day this week.

Classroom tours!  I know that it's tough to find a lot of Middle School classrooms, so I'm happy to share mine.  This is so exciting too.... because I'll quickly remind you at what I started with:

Gross - right?  I'm pretty horrified still and I had to clean up all this crap the other teacher left behind.  (And the teacher before him and the teacher before THAT!)

Pictures of my overall room.  I know a lot of people commented on my high ceilings - which are very nice and create an open space.  However, I wish my room was a little bigger.  I have 39 students in my second period and it's a PACKED HOUSE.

I place my students into groups because I manage behavior by using table points with Class Dojo.  It helps and leaves me the option of going into rows when I'm super angry!!

My fun tree that I made after seeing a few posts on Pinterest.  It was really easy to make and I was pretty impressed with myself. (haha)

I spend 98% of my life talking about Plot Charts in my first semester, so I figured I would put one up!

I liked keeping the STAR theme together here.  The table below is where my students turn in papers, staple, sharpen all that good stuff!

My library is there in the corner.  Its a close fit next to table #4, but remember 39 kids in second period. There's no where else to go. :(

My KINGS corner!  My desk is next to the microwave/fridge.

My sentence frames on the board.  I used magnetic dots to attach EVERYTHING this year.  Just a great deal at Lakeshore.

Stick them on the back of your border and make your OWN magnetic borders!

Table Numbers!

Finally, the view from my desk.  That's my smart podium cart that I WILL NEVER PART WITH.  They were on our "Surplus" broken furniture website through our district and I cannot believe someone wanted to get rid of it.  It's the best invention EVER.

Thanks for taking my room tour...  I might have missed a few areas, but that's pretty much the whole thing.

Teacher Week 2013!

I'm so excited to be a part of the Teacher Week 2013 link up week!!

I just found out about it yesterday, but here's the scoop!  Each day there is a different topic for you to blog about and then link up over at Blog Hoppin!  Today is "Let's Talk About Me!"

Here we go!

1.  This is the start of my 8th year teaching!  They are starting to blend together a little bit.  I have to mentally count upward from my first year assignment to remember how many years I've taught!  I'm back to teaching 7th grade Language Arts and Social Studies again!!

2.  I met my husband playing roller hockey when I was 17 years old.  He was originally this jerk that bothered me.  Sometimes, he still is that jerk that bothers me, except now I live with the jerk.  We both grew up playing hockey and now we're happy to pass that along to our son.

3.  I was born and raised in Southern California.  My parents moved here from New York in the 1970's.  I can't imagine myself living in NY.

4.  This is a Disney Household.  Disney Channel is usually on some TV in the house, we usually have Disneyland Annual Passes and this winter we are going to DisneyWorld!  (Whooooooooooo)  I have Belle statues spread throughout my office too.

5. I am afraid of the Smurfs.  When I was 7, I watched an episode where they ate bad ham and became zombies.  They transmitted their zombiness by biting each other.  I still shudder to this day and pretty much refuse to eat ham.

6.  I also have mild OCD when it comes to pens.  I HATE HATE HATE pens that have lost their caps.  If the cap is gone, just throw the rest of the pen away because it just bugs me.

7.  Even though teaching has become increasingly stressful with testing, Common Core, etc - I still love my job and I cannot imagine doing anything else.  

8.  I am probably the clumsiest person in California.  I walk into walls, trip over my own feet, drop things...  My husband is just used to it and says I passed it on to our son.  Oops!

9.  I'm a techie/Mac geek.  I love all things Mac and I've been addicted to the computer since I was 10.  My poor husband gets neglected sometimes because I'm too busy online.  I even built my first webpage that I hand coded the HTML when I was 14.  It was lime green and was about the Beatles.  Yes, I was dorky even then ;)

10.  And finally, I'm approaching my 2nd blogging anniversary and I'm amazed that I'm still in this thing.  Thanks for reading and sticking with me!