The Value of a Well-Planned Curriculum Night

                           Themed Curriculum Night

Dreading Curriculum Night?  The thought of 50 parents sitting in your student desks for an hour, watching you with their arms crossed and never saying a word can be nerve racking to say the least!

Although this event is extremely stressful,  Curriculum Night or Back to School Night,  as some schools refer to it, is essential to a smooth transition into a new school year. Putting together a well thought out night for parents will help you survive the night and actually walk away feeling more confident about the year ahead.

Technology has really helped take away the uncomfortable feeling that all eyes are on you.  Use it to give your audience a place to focus. It will also help you stay on target with your agenda for the night.  I have created a Hollywood-Themed Google Slide presentation to demonstrate what I mean. You can project it onto your white board and give your parents something to look at other than you!

When you plan your presentation, include information that will help your classroom run smoothly. Take advantage of this night because it is the only time you will have parents altogether to explain how things work, how they can support their child and how you can work together to have a successful year.

Some things to consider adding to your presentation:

• Introduce yourself.  Share your credentials and philosophy about teaching.
• Explain your expectations and procedures clearly so parents can help hold their children accountable.
• Share the highlights of your curriculum. 
• Explain grading, assessments and how you hold students accountable for their own learning.
• Discuss the positive behavior support you will use this year.
• Solicit parent support-explain the importance of a strong Home/School Connection.
• Let your parents know that you are here for them and their children.  Share with them ways to communicate with you throughout the year.

Give your Curriculum Night a personal touch.  Send out an invitation. Display student work from the first few weeks. Have students clean their desks and leave their parents a special note. Provide a sheet or survey for parents to fill out on their child. Provide water and a small snack for parents to enjoy as they sit and listen to your presentation.   

Consider making a handout with more detailed information to accompany your presentation that parents can take home as a reference.  

Pictured are a few extras that will make your Curriculum Night run smoothly.

• Parent Sign-in
• Notes to leave for parents and students
• Treat for parents
• Coupon book for parent volunteers to fill out, tear off and send back to the teacher

Treat Curriculum Night as a gift to yourself for the purpose of getting your classroom off to a great start.  You won't regret the time you put into its planning and you will walk away feeling confident that you have begun the very important connection between home and school. This is the beginning of building a successful learning environment for each of your students!

Click on the link below to see the Hollywood-Themed Curriculum Night Bundle.
Happy planning!

click here

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Personal Narrative-Back To School Writing Assessment

       

Personal Narratives 

with a Twist

     How and when do you assess the skills of your new classroom full of writers? Are you trying to fill that first week of school with activities that assess your learners but also keep your students busy before you really know them?

      The first week of school is an excellent time to begin assessing student writing skills.  In fact, it is the perfect time to write personal narratives using all of those small moments your students have experienced over the summer. 

      

     I love using the mentor text, "How I Spent My Summer Vacation," by Mark Teague to inspire students to write about their summer adventures.  It is funny and engaging for upper elementary and is a perfect example of personal narrative-a student sharing his summer vacation with his class. The twist in this book is the character exaggerates "just a little" about his trip out west to see his grandma. This mentor text is a great example of the author's craft elaboration or exaggeration. Your students will love writing about their summer adventure and making it even better incorporating a little exaggeration.

      After going through the writing process, students can write their final copy in a "Summer Sandwich"- adding illustrations. These can be displayed on a bulletin board or greet parents on their desks at an Open House or Curriculum Night!

Your students will be proud to share their "Summer Sandwich" stories with their peers or parents.  Through the process, you will also be able to observe your students as writers; how well they understand the writing process and the strengths and weaknesses they possess. You will be a great start to your writing instruction!

click here

Here's a link to this personal narrative in my TpT store.  

Click to see all that is included in this back to school resource!

     

      

      

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Let's Get Organized!

      

       Ready...Set...Go!

          4 Ways to Organize 
         Your Teaching Life


    Are you beginning to have sleepless nights?  Dreaming about bulletin boards and how everything goes wrong on the first day of school?

    Well...no worries!  Here's your Back To School Checklist to help you get organized for the upcoming school year!

Click here!

   Put your mind at ease! Being proactive is key to getting ready for that new school year. After that, you can simply enjoy getting to know your kiddos on that first day of school!

   Rather than ruining those last few weeks of summer, take small steps to get in the right mindset for a successful new year. 

3 weeks before school-Teacher Prep

    I call this Teacher Prep because what it really does is get the teacher excited and prepared to start thinking about a new school year. It allows you to take small steps to admit to yourself that summer is coming to an end. Here are some suggestions on what you can do.

• Get a copy of your class list
• Begin collecting pertinent information that will impact your planning-upcoming meetings, schedules for special classes, lunch and recess, etc.
• Do something to say "welcome" or meet your new students-send a letter introducing yourself, some teachers like to do home visits or phone calls, plan an Open House, etc.
• Take a motivational trip to your local teacher store to get ideas and supplies to spiff up your classroom
• Definitely take a trip to Target and peruse their dollar section-so many things that you can use to brighten up and organize your classroom

2 weeks before school-Classroom Organization

    Choose a rainy or cool summer morning two weeks before school to go into your classroom and start unpacking boxes, moving furniture around and pulling out things you'll use again this year. It will give you peace of mind and may even get you excited about the year ahead. Save those beautiful days you have left to enjoy your summer. Some suggestions to get a head start.

• Arrange your furniture-desks, cubbies, shelves, etc.  I think finding a new arrangement will spark possibilities for the new year but you may be more comfortable with the status quo.  Do whatever works for you!
• Create center areas in your classroom that will provide seating flexibility and easy transitions in your classroom.  Some areas you may want to incorporate are a place to meet with small groups, a large group meeting area for mini-lessons, and a quiet corner for your reading area.
• Create and hang bulletin boards-consider a theme for your classroom and which boards will stay up all year and boards that you can change periodically. Some suggestions are a "Welcome to Our Class" board, helpers, calendar, birthdays, a board to display student work and subject area boards. So many possibilities!

1-2 weeks before school

     Below is a list of things you can do at home when you are watching a movie and enjoying those last few weeks of summer vacation. All of these tasks can be finished up in the classroom the week before school begins.

• Label and hang locker tags.
• Label and attach desk tags.
• Organize student supplies-sharpen pencils, make supply boxes for your groups with necessary supplies for sharing keeping in mind the students who don't have their own personal supplies.
• Label student folders, composition books, workbooks, etc. for easy distribution the first week

1 week before school

    Get ready for that first day! It seems like I'm always doing this last minute! Help is on the way if you're like me and you need some activities to get your year off to a great start!

• Organize lesson plan book.
• Make 1st Day of School gifts for desks-See free gift below!
• Make student planners
• Get weekly folders ready for taking home important notes and daily work
• Plan and prepare activities for that first week-see below for some suggestions!

Click here!

Click here!

Click here!

Click here!

    
Visit my store:
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Sparlings-Spot
Visit my blog:

www.sparlingsspot.com

     Enjoy your first day of school and have a great 2018-19 school year!

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Conferencing: 3 Ways to Let Kids Lead

Conferencing:

3 Ways to Let Kids Lead

Conference time is right around the corner.  Are you looking for some fresh ideas that will get your students involved in their own conference?  

If your focus is...

• Students taking responsibility for their own learning through Student-Led Conferencing
• Utilizing data for student reflection and showing proof or evidence of growth
• Goal Setting and action plans...here are some ideas to consider!

Every school district has different parent-teacher conference requirements.  As a teacher and a parent, I have always felt meeting with parents two or more times per year is not too much to ask, whether students are struggling or performing at or above grade level.  Luckily, I have always been in district that have at least two conferences per year.

There are a variety of ways to conference with parents and students. I have always valued conferences where students lead and take responsibility for their own learning.  These three ways to encourage kids to LEAD have been successful conference models for my classroom.

1. Student-Led Conferences can be held anytime of the year. They are especially     beneficial  at the beginning of the year when students are reflecting on their growth and setting goals for the remainder of the year. Your students can take the lead in their conference using the GOOGLE SLIDE PORTFOLIO. Click here  I have also created a variety of activities/worksheets that will help students fill out their own individual portfolios. These worksheets can be found as a freebie on TpT called Student-Led Conference Sheets. Check them out in my store, Sparling's Spot.  Click here
2. Not interested or equipped to use Google Slides? Student-Led Conferences can also be achieved using the activities in the Conference Sheets Packet and a script that will guide them through their conference. The worksheets in the packet also allow students to utilize data, reflect on their growth and learning, brainstorm goals and develop action plans for the next semester.  Students can use their Data Notebooks or simply work collected by the teacher to share with parents.  The Student-Led Conference Sheet packet includes an Effort Scale, student reflections and goal-setting sheets and a script students can use to lead their conference.
3. The third option is an Open House to share student growth and learning. This option has been used more often in the spring when teachers are given less time for conferencing. Some students who are struggling may need a one-on-one conference with their parent and teacher. Students who are performing at or above grade level may enjoy sharing their learning at an Open House where 3 or 4 students can be scheduled during the same time slot.  

Here is how an Open House works. 

Five or six centers are set up in the classroom to highlight student learning.

These centers should represent different content areas and core standards that students are working on in each curricular area.  As students arrive at their scheduled time,

 they will be directed to begin at different center activities around the classroom. 

The teacher is available to assist or answer questions as needed. 

Below are some center examples made on trifold boards.

Each of these three conferencing methods require students to take responsibility for their own learning.  Students will utilize data or evidence to show growth, reflect on their learning and set goals for the future. They will walk away from any one of these conferences feeling  empowered and proud of themselves as they LEAD their own way to becoming a responsible learner.

You will walk away feeling proud too!  Have fun implementing student-led conferences in your classroom using one or two of these methods throughout the school year!

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