Book Study: Building Mathematical Comprehension

Last summer when I was a baby blogger (well, I guess technically I still am), Brenda from Primary Inspired was hosting a book study on the book Guided Math by Laney Sammons. I was super late in joining and probably didn't join in the discussions all that much, but I loved the book. 

I had an overwhelming start to the year and didn't get to implement much of the amazing things I learned in the book, but I plan on it this year. 

I was doing back flips when I saw that she is hosting another book study this summer with her pal Beth from Thinking of Teaching.

I am so excited to read the book and actually be a part of the study from the beginning. This study's topic....drum-roll please....... 

 

They're giving away two copies too, so head over right away and enter their giveaway! The fun starts on June 8th so be ready! 

Looking Ahead...A Linky Party

I'm so glad that I blog hopped my way over to Kim's pad, Finding Joy in 6th Grade.   

 

She's hosting her first linky party; a time for looking ahead to next school year (I'm glad I'm not the only one already making plans!) and taking note of those things we know we'll be doing differently. 

When I sat down for some reflection time I had a bazillion "I wish I had..." "I should have..." It would have been better if I had..." "I'll never do that again..." thoughts flooding my mind. It was seriously hard to narrow it down. Here are few of the easier ones that came to mind. 

When students turn in a big project I always make sure to assess their neatness and effort. But that is not always the case when they are turning in their daily work. So much is going on each day that sometimes I don't even realize that their work is a train wreck. My goal is to start the year off by making it clear that students will have to redo papers that are messy or hardly legible.

We've had a handful of moments where I've brought my third graders to an open spot on the carpet and have read them a picture book. They absolutely LOVE it. You are never too old to enjoy a great picture book. And it's a great way to tuck in my CAFE reading strategy mini-lessons. 
 

This year the flu hit my family with a vengeance! It took about 2 1/2 weeks for the whole thing to cycle through. I was out for the count for 4 days! I didn't have 4 days worth of sub plans. Ouch!! I had to drag myself to the computer and figure out what the sub would do with my class each day. My sweet partner teacher helped out the best she could and she would call occasionally with questions. I could hardly think clearly enough to give her a good answer. It was an unfortunate situation all around. Watch out flu...you won't catch me off guard next year; although I'd prefer that you not catch me at all!

Of course this list could be insanely long, but I'll leave you with that. Go link up with Kim while your thoughts are fresh in your mind. And as always, if you don't have a blog to link, hit me up in the comments section. 

Summer Bucket List Linky

Time to link up with Hadar (Miss Kindergarten), Teri (A Cupcake for the Teacher), and April (A Modern Teacher) for their Summer Bucket List Linky Party!

This post could have some serious length, so in the interest of saving you an entire afternoon, I'll narrow this down to my top 3 me and top 3 class bucket list items. 

Here we go.

For me:

1. Visit Hearst Castle
It might not happen this summer with husband's government furlough days, but I'd love to see this place. 

 

2. Get a massage
My husband got me a gift certificate for Mother's Day. I'm notorious for letting those types of things just sit around or expire. Not this time. Relaxation here I come!

 

3. Play with my kids!!
I can get so wrapped up in MY bucket list that I don't spend as much 1 on 1 time as I should with my kiddos. This year I'm letting them create their bucket list of things they want to do with Mom (and Dad, on the weekends) and we're going to have a blast checking them off!!

My Pinspiration:

 

   
For school:

1. Revitalize my math and reading lessons. Last year I focused on spelling, writing, science, and history. There is still work to be done in those areas, but math and reading is taking center stage this year. Here are some inspirations...

 

    

Writing about math and documenting what you've learned. 

 

 click here to purchase

Guided Math. Great book! Read it last summer and I'm ready to implement some of these great ideas.  

 click here to purchase

CAFE and Daily 5. Not sure how this will look in real life for my class, but I love the concept and will be meeting with a small group of teachers over the summer to work out the details.  

2. Come up with an easy way to manage pencils in my classroom. It will probably start with buying this:

 

and then implementing something like this:

  

 (duck tape to keep pencils from disappearing)

combined with something like this:

 

3. Read lots and lots of children's books.

  

My #1 summer goal: Don't be SO busy that I don't enjoy the things that matter most!!

Go link up with these lovely ladies and share your summer bucket list. If you don't have a blog to share, leave a comment. I'd love to know what you all have up your sleeve for the summer!