Hey everyone! As we only have two more weeks of school left I would love it if you could take a moment and fill out my end of year survey! I would love your feed back so I can help the program grow and make sure I am meeting the needs of all of our students!
Please click HERE
Thank you so much!
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Monday, June 2, 2014
Test Stress!
As we get closer and closer to the end of the year I get more students coming to me about test anxiety. Especially the 3rd grade students because they have never taken the EOG. Everyone handles stress differently and I try to really explain that to the students who come to my office and say well the other kids don't seem worried. Here are a few tips!
Night before the test:
- Go to bed at your normal time. Maybe a little early (try and keep the routine the same!)
- Eat a good healthy dinner
- Drink alot of water so you are well hydrated.
- Do things to help you relax.
- Do NOT study!!!
*That last one is really important! I know as parents you want your kids to study and be as prepared as possible. However, last minute cramming can lead to feelings of more stress and anxiety if they don't know the information. It is best the night before a test to let the student simply relax. If is the night before the test they either know it or they don't and last minute cramming doesn't help.
Day of the test:
- Keep as normal a routine as possible!
- Eat a healthy filling breakfast (try and not let the kids eat sweet sugary cereals that wont keep them full)
- Get to student to school a little early so they have time to get settled in. (Desks will be moved around so your child needs time to find their desk and get comfortable. As well as go to the bathroom and eat breakfast if they eat at school).
These are simply just a few tips I share with the children. I use Pinterest alot as a resource to find new ideas and information. Here is a link to my Pinterest board on Test Anxiety. I have used several of these things but not all of them. Feel free to follow the board or just look at the ideas and suggestions.
http://www.pinterest.com/asupirate/test-anxiety/pins/
One of my favorite things I found this year on Pinterest is a video from YouTube called This Test Does Not Define You! It is a little over six minutes. You need to watch the whole thing! The kids have really enjoyed this video. For my lesson plan click here!
Night before the test:
- Go to bed at your normal time. Maybe a little early (try and keep the routine the same!)
- Eat a good healthy dinner
- Drink alot of water so you are well hydrated.
- Do things to help you relax.
- Do NOT study!!!
*That last one is really important! I know as parents you want your kids to study and be as prepared as possible. However, last minute cramming can lead to feelings of more stress and anxiety if they don't know the information. It is best the night before a test to let the student simply relax. If is the night before the test they either know it or they don't and last minute cramming doesn't help.
Day of the test:
- Keep as normal a routine as possible!
- Eat a healthy filling breakfast (try and not let the kids eat sweet sugary cereals that wont keep them full)
- Get to student to school a little early so they have time to get settled in. (Desks will be moved around so your child needs time to find their desk and get comfortable. As well as go to the bathroom and eat breakfast if they eat at school).
These are simply just a few tips I share with the children. I use Pinterest alot as a resource to find new ideas and information. Here is a link to my Pinterest board on Test Anxiety. I have used several of these things but not all of them. Feel free to follow the board or just look at the ideas and suggestions.
http://www.pinterest.com/asupirate/test-anxiety/pins/
One of my favorite things I found this year on Pinterest is a video from YouTube called This Test Does Not Define You! It is a little over six minutes. You need to watch the whole thing! The kids have really enjoyed this video. For my lesson plan click here!
Below are pictures of the mandalas that the students drew. They are hanging in the hallway so they see them as they walk into the room before EOGs!
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Thursday, May 15, 2014
Meredith College
Our college of the month is Meredith College! Mrs.Gingery, Mrs.Meares, and Mrs.C.Jones all attended Meredith College.
Meredith is located in Raleigh, North Carolina. It is the largest college for undergraduate women in the southeastern United States. It was founded as the Baptist Female University and then later changed its name to the Baptist University for Women. In 1997 the school moved away from direct connect with the Baptist State convention and is now known solely as Meredith College. Meredith students are known as the Avenging Angels. For more information check out their website: http://www.meredith.edu/
Meredith is located in Raleigh, North Carolina. It is the largest college for undergraduate women in the southeastern United States. It was founded as the Baptist Female University and then later changed its name to the Baptist University for Women. In 1997 the school moved away from direct connect with the Baptist State convention and is now known solely as Meredith College. Meredith students are known as the Avenging Angels. For more information check out their website: http://www.meredith.edu/
Kindergarten Parent Orientation
Tomorrow we will be hosting a rising kindergarten parent orientation in the library at 10am. If you happened to be unable to attend please let me know and I can get you whatever information you might need!
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
1st Grade Anti-Bullying Shilds
Greetings Everyone!
I wanted to take a minute to share what our 1st graders have been working on. We have been talking alot lately about bullying and different ways to deal with a bully. One of the ways is to Ignore the bully. And when I talk with the children we also talk about how hard this can be. Especially when someone says something that can really hurt your feelings. In the story we read, Brenda Bee is trying to ignore Big Beetle. In order to do this first she comes up with a "Power Sentence". A Power Sentence is something you say over and over again in your head to try and block out what a bully is saying. I give the students several examples of ones I come up with. Things such as "I am smart", "I am beautiful", and "I am strong". Then I invite everyone who wants to share one they came up with. Next I had the students create an Anti-Bullying Shield. On their shields they were to write their name, draw a picture of themselves, a picture of what they are good at, a picture of what they like to do, and a picture of their friends and family. Next year I plan on making the paper the students use bigger because many of them couldn't fit the picture of their friends and family. However, it was very sweet to see them asking their classmate how to spell each other's names. The students also kept asking how they were suppose to wear their shields ( I didn't add an arm band on the back). So again maybe next year I will make it so the students can actually wear them. They were very excited to let them hang up in the hallway. I tried to remind the students that when they are ignoring someone and saying their "Power Sentence" to try and picture their Anti-Bullying Shield to give them extra strength. I told the students that they can also use the Stand up to Bullying skills even when someone is doing something we don't like and not just being a bully. These are skills the students can use to cope with various friendship problems they may come across as they get older.
I wanted to take a minute to share what our 1st graders have been working on. We have been talking alot lately about bullying and different ways to deal with a bully. One of the ways is to Ignore the bully. And when I talk with the children we also talk about how hard this can be. Especially when someone says something that can really hurt your feelings. In the story we read, Brenda Bee is trying to ignore Big Beetle. In order to do this first she comes up with a "Power Sentence". A Power Sentence is something you say over and over again in your head to try and block out what a bully is saying. I give the students several examples of ones I come up with. Things such as "I am smart", "I am beautiful", and "I am strong". Then I invite everyone who wants to share one they came up with. Next I had the students create an Anti-Bullying Shield. On their shields they were to write their name, draw a picture of themselves, a picture of what they are good at, a picture of what they like to do, and a picture of their friends and family. Next year I plan on making the paper the students use bigger because many of them couldn't fit the picture of their friends and family. However, it was very sweet to see them asking their classmate how to spell each other's names. The students also kept asking how they were suppose to wear their shields ( I didn't add an arm band on the back). So again maybe next year I will make it so the students can actually wear them. They were very excited to let them hang up in the hallway. I tried to remind the students that when they are ignoring someone and saying their "Power Sentence" to try and picture their Anti-Bullying Shield to give them extra strength. I told the students that they can also use the Stand up to Bullying skills even when someone is doing something we don't like and not just being a bully. These are skills the students can use to cope with various friendship problems they may come across as they get older.
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Middle School Registration!
Greetings parents! This post is mainly for our 5th grade parents.More to come about the other grades later!
It is that time of year when we start to talk about middle school. If you had older students there are very few changes from last year. I received the recommendation sheets at the end of last week and have sent them out to the students teachers for them to place their recommendations. If your student is AIG or has an IEP those teachers will be giving the recommendations along with the classroom teachers.
Because Math placements can be very confusing, especially for parents, there are going to be 4 parent information sessions. There is a letter coming home with your child today. But just in case that doesn't make it home to you here are the dates and locations.
Choose from Four Locations...
Session #1: Monday, March 17th, 2014
Location: Salem Middle School
Time: 9:30am-10:30 am
Session #2: Wednesday, March 19th, 2014
Location: Heritage Middle School
Time: 5:30pm-6:30pm
Session #3: Monday, March 24th, 2014
Location: West Lake Middle School
Time: 5:30pm-6:30pm
Session #4: Wednesday, March 26th, 2014
Location: East Millbrook Middle School
Time: 9:30am-10:30am
During these sessions they will be talking about the Middle School Math Placement Guidelines, Resources to support success in Math available in ALL WCPSS Middle Schools, Math progression in middle and high school-What come after 6th grade math, and How and When you have options for Math Acceleration. I HIGHLY suggest attending one of these sessions! For more information please check the following link created by WCPSS : http://wake-ms-math.weebly.com/
Our homeroom teachers will be working on their recommendations when we return from D.C.Once they have finished their recommendations, the sheets will be sent home for you and your student to sign. I MUST have these back as they register your student for their middle school classes. You will also be getting a sheet about electives for your students middle school. That also MUST come back with the green registration sheet. If the elective sheet does not come back then the middle school will be choosing your child's electives.
If you already know that your child is going to East Garner Middle they are having a Magnet Application Course Registration Night. They will be sending you more information. This again is only for those students who already know they are going to East Garner. I will also be sending home an elective form that you can bring with you that night so they can help you choose the best classes. On April 22nd from 6-7:30 East Garner is having an Expo night. ALL students are welcome to come that night to meet the teachers, counselors and administrators while touring the school.
North Garner Middle has already had their open house. If you missed it do not panic! The best thing to do if you have questions about courses at North Garner Middle is to call and ask to speak with the 6th grade counselor for next year. I only know some general information about their courses so for specific questions call the school directly. Also because so many of our students attend North Garner, a counselor will be coming to talk with the students about middle school in general to answer any of their questions.
For other questions about specific classes you can also view the WCPSS Middle School Planning Guide. This gives you a summary of every class.
And finally all rising 6th graders must also have the Tdap booster. Please click here to read more information on the WCPSS website.
It is that time of year when we start to talk about middle school. If you had older students there are very few changes from last year. I received the recommendation sheets at the end of last week and have sent them out to the students teachers for them to place their recommendations. If your student is AIG or has an IEP those teachers will be giving the recommendations along with the classroom teachers.
Because Math placements can be very confusing, especially for parents, there are going to be 4 parent information sessions. There is a letter coming home with your child today. But just in case that doesn't make it home to you here are the dates and locations.
Choose from Four Locations...
Session #1: Monday, March 17th, 2014
Location: Salem Middle School
Time: 9:30am-10:30 am
Session #2: Wednesday, March 19th, 2014
Location: Heritage Middle School
Time: 5:30pm-6:30pm
Session #3: Monday, March 24th, 2014
Location: West Lake Middle School
Time: 5:30pm-6:30pm
Session #4: Wednesday, March 26th, 2014
Location: East Millbrook Middle School
Time: 9:30am-10:30am
During these sessions they will be talking about the Middle School Math Placement Guidelines, Resources to support success in Math available in ALL WCPSS Middle Schools, Math progression in middle and high school-What come after 6th grade math, and How and When you have options for Math Acceleration. I HIGHLY suggest attending one of these sessions! For more information please check the following link created by WCPSS : http://wake-ms-math.weebly.com/
Our homeroom teachers will be working on their recommendations when we return from D.C.Once they have finished their recommendations, the sheets will be sent home for you and your student to sign. I MUST have these back as they register your student for their middle school classes. You will also be getting a sheet about electives for your students middle school. That also MUST come back with the green registration sheet. If the elective sheet does not come back then the middle school will be choosing your child's electives.
If you already know that your child is going to East Garner Middle they are having a Magnet Application Course Registration Night. They will be sending you more information. This again is only for those students who already know they are going to East Garner. I will also be sending home an elective form that you can bring with you that night so they can help you choose the best classes. On April 22nd from 6-7:30 East Garner is having an Expo night. ALL students are welcome to come that night to meet the teachers, counselors and administrators while touring the school.
North Garner Middle has already had their open house. If you missed it do not panic! The best thing to do if you have questions about courses at North Garner Middle is to call and ask to speak with the 6th grade counselor for next year. I only know some general information about their courses so for specific questions call the school directly. Also because so many of our students attend North Garner, a counselor will be coming to talk with the students about middle school in general to answer any of their questions.
For other questions about specific classes you can also view the WCPSS Middle School Planning Guide. This gives you a summary of every class.
And finally all rising 6th graders must also have the Tdap booster. Please click here to read more information on the WCPSS website.
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Highlights from Random Acts of Kindness Week
Greetings!! Today wraps up our extended Random Acts of Kindess Week. Thanks to the snow we were able to talk about kindness for two weeks!
Here is the bulletin board where students could share their random acts if kindness. It took a few days to get going but then the students were really getting into it. Next year if I do the same thing I will be looking for help to have a few spots set up in the mornings. Because I was in the lobby I missed a lot of the students who rode the bus.
With the third grade students we talked about how we could be bucket fillers around the school to make our school community a better place. We read the book Have you filled a bucket today? Then we talked about what it meant to be a bucket filler at our school. The students were invited to write on a circle a way they could be a bucket filler in five different areas of the school. Each class talked about ways to be a bucket filler in the classroom as well as in the bathrooms. Each class also had 3 other common areas of the school. Today we talked about the classrooms, bathrooms, cafeteria, playgrounds, computer lab, library, art, music, P.E., and guidance. These are the areas that all students are expected to follow the same Rand Road expectations that help them attend the PBIS celebrations each quarter. After the lessons were finished I have hung them up around the school so all of the students can see them and hopefully reflect and talk with one another about how to be a bucket filler throughout the school. 
Thank you for everyone who brought in food for our food drive!! It was a great success and I will be dropping the food off some time this week at Wake Relief!
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