So Slack!

Well here it is summer again and I look back at when I blogged last time and realize-- I am so slack! How do these amazing teachers keep up with school, planning, families and a blog during the school year?.  Maybe I just don't know how to organize my time.  Well, all I know, it is summer time and once again -- I blog. I use this time to rejuvenate, think, reflect and plan for the next year.  I love summer time!!!

So  this year I am changing from self contained to ELA and Social Studies.  This is fine as I am always trying to perfect my ELA strategies.  I implemented the Daily Five last year and loved it.  It was more of a Daily 3-- with an emphasis on Independent reading, Word study and Writing.  Also I read the book, The Book Whisperer .  There is a book study on this book on another blog at this time,  and it was fantastic.  I will be reading it again so that when school starts, I am implementing those Ideas.  I am getting ready to read Teach like a Pirate. I am excited about this book -- I usually start off the year really well, and then by February, I get grouchy. Perhaps this book will give me some strategies that I can use to keep up the energy through the end of May. :)

My big project this summer is to come up with a plan to teach the common core and fit it into my social studies units so that students will see connections.  I would also like to incorporate DBQ's this year (Document based Questions) becasue that seems to be an awesome way to incorporate Common core, Social studies and writing.  I am exciterd for what the new year will bring!

I have a week left of school and I am already planning for next year. What is wrong with this picture?

I am Back

Apparantly I was deleted for SPAM.  I don't sell anything.  I don't endorse any specific products, nor do I have the capability to invade anyone else's blog or email with SPAM. I don't even EAT SPAM.   So I am at a loss.  The only thing I can think of is I made someone mad with a comment I made about a certain website that sells teacher's products.  Or perhaps they didn't like me referring to a WiKi site I had created that listed free resources for teachers who were using Daily Five activities in their class.  Is that SPAM??  Who knows.  I am so glad the "blogger police"  can delete a WHOLE account for a few comments made when there are whole entire blogs dedicated to nudity, profanity and other filth that are allowed to remain on line.