Life, Love, and the Pursuit of....Spring

......a late post from January...oops!
Ah yes we have arrived at oh so lovely mid year mark! This is an exciting time for many reasons including but not limited to....

      1. We are halfway done! Your sweet kiddos are halfway to the next grade level. Their little mind's are halfway full of the school year's standards, concepts and materials. Most importantly you have....halfway made it!! Do yourself a favor, take a sigh of relief and kiss. your. brain. my friends!!
   
     2. Your students have hopefully returned from Holiday break slightly different...in a good way! They seem to be tad bit....more confident, taller, and dare I say... have even matured. It's so rewarding to see those sweet dependent souls gain a pinch more independence over those few magical weeks.

    3. Celebrations! The second part of the school years holds the key to so many fun (and educational) treasures. We have the 100th day of school, MLK, Groundhog Day, Valentines, Teddy Roosevelt Day and many other memorable moments to look forward to!

With the excitement of mid year comes one not-so-fabulous DUD we call

WINTER. 

Also known as: The Season of No Recess. 

Last year, winter brought most Atlantans this leisurely ride home...

or if you were one of the lucky few you got to cozy up on your school's gym floor like this...

For the first time in a long time there is a part of me that is grateful for the lack of snow days thus far. 

Needless to say, here in Georgia I  WE don't do winter very well....

The streak of days where you see nor feel the sun and its warmth for what feels like an eternity! Having to wake up 15 minutes earlier just so you can scrap the ice off your windshield and as I mentioned before..... NO RECESS.

 Let's face it when the weather tells us that it's too cold...I panic.

No amount of blocks, markers, play-doh, puzzles, and paints can 

channel the inner 6 year old's need for speed.

Their minds' need a break as much as their bodies' need to move. 

In a moment of desperation, which might have entailed a watercolor center gone terribly wrong, I decided we needed to dance. 

Yes. Dance. 

So I opened up the not so always trusting YouTube and came across some random Under The Sea (per Just Dance Kids) Dance-A-Long Video.

Little did I know how big of a hit this would be....

As the song played they danced, laughed and sang (in an inside voice of course). ;-)

It was pure bliss.

Wanting it to last longer than three minutes and forty five seconds, I set out to find something that would help wiggle the worm out of their bodies.

THUS Discovering Go Noodle

Why do you need Go Noodle in your classroom?

1. It's Free!!

2. Your kid get moving inside the classroom with options that include: Zumba, Olympic event training, singing and dancing combos.

3. It can be used with a large range of grade levels. 

4. The entire class gets a brain break! Yes, you deserve one too!

5. They adore it!

Welcome!

Hello friends!!

I can't believe I am finally getting around to my FIRST post! EKK! 
I have been eyeing the blogging world for awhile now and have decided to go ahead and jump in feet first! Woo Hoo!!

Lets start with a little about me!

My name is Megan! I am a 5 foot, twenty something, first grade teacher( who often gets mistaken for a 5th grader). I teach at a fabulous little public school in a small city outside of Atlanta! Fun Fact about my school...we have a wing devoted to serving DHH students! Other than beings able to sign the Alphabet I have zero, zilch, nada experience with signing. Ha! Thankfully we have amazing (and patient) interpreters working with us.  

Though this will be my third year teaching, I feel like I am still in the "toddler stages" of navigating this new world! My teaching focus has mainly been in the primary grades- Kindergarten (student teaching), First Grade (1yr), and Second Grade (1yr). I am determined to gain confidence in the world of Common Core! Anyone else at times feel like they are deciphering a web of mysterious codes when it comes to the big CC? I sure do! 

I bit the bullet and decided to create this blog after finding effective tools and tricks from the brilliant minds of REAL LIFE teachers! From ways to organize your room,to untangling this world of new standards and goals and just plain LIFE it's fun to have friends to lean on out there!   

As mentioned earlier I am no pro but would love to share ideas that have worked for me along with the things I struggle with!

With that being said.......here is my goal for this year

2014-2015 Goal: 
 I would love to come up with FUN (yes we like to get a little crazy in Ms. Steele's class) and efficient activities that my students will remember well beyond their years of schooling.

I want said activities to provide HANDS ON experiences! What's not exciting when your allowed to get your hands dirty???

While keeping learning aligned with standards! 

I sometimes struggle with finding a balance! At times I feel like my activities can be so crafty, cutesy, detailed the "important stuff" gets lost.....and on the other side.....I am scared to loose those little minds in the piles of worksheets and lengthy lecturing! Let's face it there's probably not a perfect balance right? I could most definitely be setting myself up for failure LOL! But hey! It would be nice to find a place to meet in the middle! I would love for you to join me along for this journey and share your own thoughts, advice, and tidbits! Thanks for visiting with me!!!