Summer Check-In and Free Clip Art Image

Like many teachers, part of my summer "off" includes resting, reading, and creating!

My under-eye circles are fading, thanks to the start of sleeping in until 7:00 a.m.  For someone who wakes at 5:15 each morning during the school year, this is BIG.

My eldest has been supplying me with non-work related books since February, and I'm caught up with The Expanse sci-fi series, anxiously awaiting the next installment:




I've been crocheting, working ahead on a baby afghan stockpile.  Most of my new colleagues are young, newly-marrieds, and are beginning to start their own families.  As I'm old enough to be some of their mothers, and handmade baby items are becoming more and more of a rarity in this world of gift cards and internet shopping, I hope the thought, time, and effort put into each blanket are appreciated as much as the gift itself.



I'm taking two online classes in anticipation of renewing my teaching license this winter, and am planning ahead to the upcoming school year.  In the midst of creating a TPT ELA Journal pack for pre-k, kindergarten, intervention, and home school activities, I realized I wanted an iPad clip art image.  Unable to find one that I liked available for free, I quickly made my own.





It'll come in handy when I reprint my "iPad Rules" anchor chart and other activity pages too!

You can grab it by clicking here.

How have you been spending your time away from school?

What I've Learned Over Summer Break (So Far)

Sounds like that obnoxious essay we had to write the first week we were back in elementary, middle, or even high school, doesn't it?  I never liked having to write it, because it was much more efficient to just tell friends and teachers that I read books, crocheted, watched t.v., did chores, and then read some more books, no s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g or "expanding upon a theme" required.

Short.

Sweet.

To the point.

And now that I'm a forty-five year old wife, mother, kindergarten teacher, blogger, crafter, coffee drinker and cookie baker, here I am.

Typing.

About what I've learned this summer.

Oh the irony (which could be the opposite of "wrinkly," in some of my students' minds).

No three page papers, double spaced here though, okie dokie?  A list will suffice.

• I taught myself how to create slides, posters, work pages and labels via Powerpoint, all by my lonesome.  That's right, now there's a Teachers Pay Teachers button in my sidebar.  Go me.
• Lurking and even participating in education-related Twitter chats is an awesome way to build and learn from a global PLN.  Once school starts up again, my favorites will likely end up being the ones that post questions in advance so I can set my responses and additional questions into the queue on Tweetdeck to auto-post.  Yeah, I've become THAT tweep.  Thanks #TeacherFriends, #edchat, #ResilienceChat, #G2Great, #KinderChat, #SatChat, #SunChat and #KSEdchat. You ROCK.
• There's no rhyme or reason to my summer teaching goals except for the fact that they're always related to making my Super Stars' learning environment exciting, inspiring, fun, and safe. One summer I sorted all of the math and ELA manipulatives into easy-to-distribute containers and bags.  Last year I painted wooden toys to eliminate graffiti, er, "environmental print" that a student had added.  I modified inherited storage, making materials more mobile on a rolling cart which helped as my students used every available surface, corner, and hidey hole in the classroom.  This summer, it has been all about the books. Sorting books, donating books, buying books, and creating my longest ever wish list on Amazon.com.  Sure hope Santa or some generous benefactor looks me up and surprises me with them all.  A teacher can dream.
• It takes me exactly thirty-three days out of school to lose track of what day it is.  Now THAT'S data.
•  You know how Lucy always freaks out after Snoopy kisses her, dancing around, arms flailing wildly, screaming "Ugh! My lips have been touched by DOG LIPS?"  Turns out I have a VERY similar reaction when I'm outside watering plants and a frog jumps out from the leaves and attaches itself to my bare ankle. And.  Won't.  Let.  Go.  A few more energetic kicks in an attempt to ~fling~ the frog off of my foot perhaps, but the same number of "ughs" and gags.  And flailing.  I've got the moves... like... Lucy.

I learned that last one just this morning. 

Yes, I'll admit I washed my ankle.

Twice.

What have YOU learned this summer?

Freebie: Summer Bingo Cards for Teachers

I've been having fun with PowerPoint and clip art lately, and have certainly been enjoying the start to my summer.  Want to play along?  Here's a freebie Summer Bingo Card  TWO Bingo cards, just for teachers:

How many boxes will  you fill by the end of the first week of summer vacation?

#TeacherFriends Chat: A Charming Giveaway

Many regular readers know my non-teaching time is spent with family, friends, or downstairs in the crafty nook, and that my "summers off" are typically spent creating and crafting to my heart's content.  It's more than a hobby, it's a need to make, do, learn, and often, share.  It's how I wind down from the good and not-so-great stressors that accumulate during the school year.  It's how I relax and re-energize.  It's a ritual, even.

It seemed fitting to create a charm for tomorrow's #TeacherFriends chat: one lucky participant will win it!  Join us (try following along via Tweetdeck.Twitter.com, it's easier) Tuesday evening, June 2, at 7:30 p.m. Kansas time for our "early bird" chat, and stay for our formal chat when we'll share ideas for how to refresh, renew, and re-energize ourselves this summer. There will be additional prizes as well, so make sure to find our link to a Google doc during the chat so you can enter to win.  All teachers and friends of education are welcome to participate, regardless of tweeting experience!

See you soon!

Summer's 3 R's: Refresh, Renew and Re-Energize

For many teachers, summer vacation has started, or is just around the corner.  Family time, naps, professional development, travel, catching up on medical and dental appointments, and ~more~ naps are on many of our agendas.  As we tackle the items on our to-do lists (that we likely postponed during the school year), our pace can closely resemble that of our typical work week.  Add to that the awkward adjustment period of days or even weeks when our internal clocks force us awake at 5:30 each morning, and our transition can feel less than relaxing, delaying the start of our necessary self care.

Non-teachers may think that I'm advocating for undeserved pampering when I mention self care or advocate for a summer version of "the three R's:"  Refresh, Renew, and Re-energize.  It's the often ignored fourth R component of our jobs, relationships, that make the other three so necessary for teachers.

First, some definitions:

re·fresh

rəˈfreSH/

verb

give new strength or energy to; reinvigorate.

re·new

rəˈn(y)o͞o/

verb

resume (an activity) after an interruption.

  re-en·er·gize

   rēˈenərjīz/

    verb

    verb: reenergize

    give fresh vitality, enthusiasm, or impetus to.

Teachers form new relationships with students and families every school year, and continue to grow partnerships with fellow colleagues and other friends of education.  These relationships form the foundation of a safe and nurturing environment, but they can be the source of stress, worry, and even fear for teachers.  Poverty, politics, and performance anxiety can drain teachers of our energy and inspiration, despite the goals we set for ourselves and our students each year.  We often put the needs of others before our own, and forget to replenish our own energy reserves, though it's essential that we do just that: our students should get the best that we have to offer, instead of making do with what's left over.  As it happens, summer vacation, that traditional time for children, families, exploration and memory making, is also the perfect intervention... for teachers.

Dr. Karen Horneffer-Ginter, author of First Cup, Thirsty Spirit: Nourishing the Soul When Life's Just Too Much, shared this infographic over at The Huffington Post, suggesting fifty ways that we can take a break in order to refresh, renew and re-energize ourselves:

This Tuesday, June 2, #TeacherFriends will be chatting about how and why teachers can implement self-care over summer break.  Join us and share your suggestions and ideas regarding meditation, hobbies, exercising, eating healthy, and replenishing your teaching spirit.  Teachers new to Twitter are also invited to join us, taking baby steps with lots of online support and camaraderie as we tweet, retweet, chat, and share. 

Did you notice the hashtag #PRIZES?  Chat participants will have the opportunity to put their names in a hat (actually a Google doc) for several prize drawings!  Since part of my self-care routine involves crafting and creating, I've decided to offer a patriotic soldered charm to one lucky winner:

Join us (in your jammies, if you like!) Tuesday, at 7:30 p.m. Kansas time, for an early bird "practice" chat opportunity.  I'll answer any questions you might have (my favorite color is red, I wear a size 9 shoe, and this will be my 20th year teaching kindergarten), and then get our 3 R's chat underway with Debbie Clement (@KweezleQueen) and friends at 8:00 p.m.

See you soon!

~Michaele~ (@msommerville)

It's the First Day of Summer Vacation

... and I'm unwrapping used crayons to dice up and melt so that August's Super Stars will have recycled star-shaped crayons to enjoy their first week of kindergarten.

This is part of what it means when teachers have their "summers off."

*****

Fellow teachers, we've finished up another year.  As you pack your classroom away, what ideas are floating around in the back of your head for next fall?  Curriculum mapping?  Organizing materials? Creating new centers?  Or are you simply taking summer one day at a time, with the goal of sleeping in every day possible?

No matter how I try to leave all things kindergarten in the classroom over the summer, I inevitably find myself pinning new ideas and inspiration to my Pinterest boards, buying additions to or replacements for my class library and manipulatives, and dreaming up new ways to use familiar spaces that will engage my students as they explore their world and curricular concepts.  Thankfully, I have The Nine Year Old to spend summer with, and our plans for the next eight weeks include tending our garden.

We're already enjoying strawberries:

*****

What do you have planned for the summer?

~Michaele~

My School-Year-into-Summer Routine

School's out for summer, but I have an annual routine that I work through as I transition between days spent mostly in the classroom to those I'll hopefully spend at home in June and July.

On my list:

1)  Blogging my end-of-the-year reflection.  Done, oh yes. (✓)

2)  Cleaning my house, top to bottom, "spring cleaning" style, only it's not spring, and it's more like dust-bunny-germ-and-oh-isn't-this-cathartic sterilization.  Seriously.  I boil water. (✓)

3)  Dumping out and cleaning my teacher purse/bag/luggage.  It's Vera Bradley (fabric) thus washable.  Today I came up with five tubes of lip gloss, two opened packs of gum, seven pens, a Starbucks gift card, my phone charger, a Christmas c.d. (Bing Crosby), an education journal I've been meaning to read for two months now (okay, three) and expired coupons galore.  (✓)

4)  Transferring all of the balances on the coffee gift cards I've received from Super Star families to the one card I keep on my keychain.  My Stars' parents understand and condone my very necessary relationship with Starbucks, in fact, my students no longer give me bath gels, lotion or perfume as eau de coffee is apparently now my signature scent.  (✓)

5)  Choosing a non-school-related book to enjoy before working through my planned professional development titles.  Thank you Dan Brown.  (✓)

6)  Ironing some capris and shirts and hanging them in the closet for days I actually have to be seen in public.  Making sure tank tops, shorts, skirts, tees and flip flops are within easy reach.  Jammies are always easy to get to (or stay in).  Can't check this one off of my list as I haven't ironed yet. 
 ----> (  )

7)  Planting summer flowers and getting the garden in order.  The whiskey barrels in front of the house are full of blooms, but storm and tornado watches since the last day of school have prevented me from planting anything other than strawberries, grapes, blueberries, pumpkins and onions.  Must.  Plant.  Seeds.  Soon.  ---->  (  )

8)  Stocking our safe room.  My family and I live in Tornado Alley, so we have a shelter downstairs to huddle in if a twister comes our way.  Oh sure, Dorothy and Glinda make it all look so glamorous, but don't believe the movie magic.  Tornado watches put me on alert and tornado warnings/sirens terrify me.  Food, water, paper products, clothing, blankets, flashlights, trashbags, buckets, first aid kit, kitty litter/box and cat food are all in tubs, with not a single ruby slipper in sight.  (✓) (✓) (✓) (✓)

Once your classroom is packed and your keys are turned in, how do you mark the beginning of summer?

Summer Vacation

This summer, I'm an off-duty kindergarten teacher for about a week before professional development (formerly known as "inservice") begins again, in the form of a seminar in St. Louis.  Many of you know that I'm a full-time kindergarten teacher, and a not-enough-time crafter.  I look forward to each summer "break" so that I can re-energize, rest, roam, create, read something OTHER than professional texts, experiment in the kitchen and crafty nook, and of course, rest some more.

Unfortunately, I have to down-shift from teacher mode to off-duty teacher mode every year in order to really enjoy the rhythm of summer.  It tends to take a week or two, which is NOT a good pace for this year with the upcoming seminar muscling in on my annual down-shift transition.  Typically, I need to sleep for the first five or six days.  As Dear Daughter's school year ended a week after mine, chauffeuring duties have interfered with the planned snooze agenda.  Dear Husband coming home mid-day interrupts my plans for a nap.  The Kindergartner (oh yes, he finished pre-school and is now ready for the Big Time) fulfills his mess-making duties with truly remarkable gusto and finesse.  More clean-up chores for me.

It's too hot to sit out here during the day, but I am looking forward to relaxing in the fresh air either in the morning with coffee or in the evening with iced tea on my beautiful repurposed bench (a teacher appreciation gift from one of my Super Star Families):






...if my friend is nice enough to share, that is!

*****



Teachers, how will you be spending your summer?  Seminars?  Travel?  College courses? Sleeping?

P.S.  I've checked all of the links in my blogroll and have deleted those that no longer work correctly, but have also added SMART Board/Interactive White Board links under "Technology."  Let me know if there are other links you think readers would find helpful!

Summer Vacation: Day 1

It's Day 1 of summer vacation.  While relieved to be free of lesson plans, instruction, transitioning centers and assessments, I'm still in that go, go, GO mode.  Case in point:  yesterday evening I let McDonald's make dinner, and as soon as I was home and the kids were fed and settled, I read through the latest Charlaine Harris novel... in one sitting.

I woke up and had no problem savoring each sip of coffee while the Five-Year-Old ate pancakes and played (our usual Saturday routine), but once I snuck a peek at the clock, my internal schedule kicked in, and so did my inner monologue:

Whoa, I need to figure out my cell phone.  Get the pictures off of it and into my computer. Upload music files so I can have a decent ringer instead of this Lord-of-the-Dance sounding jingler.  


Have I started a load of laundry yet?  No?  Uh, HAVE TO GET THAT STARTED PRONTO.


Here we go, emailing photos to everyone.  Because I promised I would.


I need another cup of coffee.


Clean the kitchen... can't stand a dirty kitchen.  


I *know* I'm forgetting something.  Should have written it down.  What time is it?  Hey, my students would be at centers right now.


... and so it went all morning long.  Trying to break that particular rhythm, I figured I'd sneak some sun time in, and put on the bathing suit and took a towel with me to the porch.  What did I do?  I looked at the clock as I walked out the door and realized it's recess time!


Enough already.

Or it's time to hide the watches and cover the clocks for a few days.

Does anyone else go through this at the end of each school year?