My To Do List

        After school today I was updating my regular calendar and my Every day Counts Math bulletin board so that I would be ready to begin the month of May in the morning and I could not help but think about all of the things that I need to do before the end of the school year.  Does everyone else feel like there is just so much to do?  So I thought that I would share my to do list with you . . . just let me know if you think that there is anything you think I may be overlooking.

To Do List:

 -Wear a shirt that says "Life" and hand out lemons on the street.

 -Hire two private investigators and get them to follow each other.

 -Go back to college and major in philosophy and then ask people WHY they would like fries with that.

 -Go into a crowded elevator and say, "I bet you're all wondering why I gathered you here," with a straight face.

-Make vanilla pudding, put it in a mayo jar and then eat it in public.

-Make a test (since I am a teacher) where every answer is "C." 

-Wait until someone is about to sneeze, right before they do, loudly scream "ACHOO!"

        OK, so this is not my actual to do list but those things would be so fun.  I am a little bit of a dork but sometimes we need to be right? Oh well.  Happy Monday everyone!!!

Perfect Pinterest Pondering

        OK, so like many of you I have recently expanded my online obsessions from websites, to blogs, and now pinterest.  I have to say, I love it.  One of my favorite things is to find and read quotes.  I love quotes!  I have them everywhere!  So this weekend I found one of my favorite quotes yet.  It said,

"Don't raise your voice,

Improve your argument."

This is AWESOME to me!  As a naturally quiet person that grew up in a relatively peaceful home I have never understood yelling to try to get your point across.  In fact one of my favorite people in the whole world had to adjust to this thinking (the above quote) in order for our relationship to not only thrive but survive.  I remember saying more than once early on in the friendship just because you are louder doesn't make you right.  I am happy to say that this person and I are now extremely close and while I understand that this person is naturally louder than I am we have come to an understanding and if/when we disagree it ninety-nine percent of the time has a much better outcome than before.  After all, nobody's perfect.  Anyway I just had to share my thoughts.  I hope that everyone is having a great week and if your students are testing I hope that they are doing well and you are not going too bonkers.  : )

Back to Normal

        We made it!  My students finished up our state testing last week.  We tested Monday-Thursday for seventy minutes each day.  I am so glad to be done, now we are just waiting (as patiently as possible) for the results.  I am proud of my students they worked so hard all year and throughout the testing.  It was exhausting watching them work and not being able to say or do anything.  So I am SO glad to get back to normal this week.
        This week we will begin our author study of Verna Aardema.  She was an American folktale author that has retold many great stories.  You may know of her book Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears, it is great for teaching cause and effect but it is not even my favorite of her books.  I stumbled upon her last year and really loved her books so I am excited to read through her books again!
       Do you have a favorite author that you use for an author study?  I am always on the look out for great authors to study!!!

May the Odds be Ever in Your Favor!

        Testing begins tomorrow for my students.  We have two days of reading followed by two days of math.  By lunchtime on Thursday (as long as no one is absent) we will be done.  I am excited to get it over with, is that bad?  I feel that I have prepared my kiddos the best that I know how and now I just need for them to show what they know.  I recently ran across a quote from Aristotle which said, "We are what we repeatedly do.  Excellence then is not (a single) act but a habit."  My students have worked toward meeting/exceeding our 3rd grade standards this year and that is what I call working toward the habit of excellence.  I will remind my students tomorrow and everyday afterward that they have everything that they need to answer every question already inside their brain and all that they need to do is retrieve it.
        So as I am approaching my week on state testing I would like to wish everyone else out there the best of luck on with their students and their testing.  And to quote the very "famous" Effie Trinket I say to you, "May the odds be ever in your favor" as you test!

Top Ten Signs Your School is Too Focused on the State Test

        I have three more school days until our state test (FCAT) so I was looking around for other cute music videos (with words) to show my kiddos to pump them up and lower their testing stress when I found the slideshow titled, "Top Ten Signs Your School is Too Focused  on the State Test."  I am very proud to say that we haven't gone that far at my school : )  Check it out and see if your school is "too focused," hopefully they're not.  It is good for a giggle anyway.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8wg9hgzD9Q&feature=related

      

Happy Easter Everyone!

        My little froggy friend and I wanted to wish everyone out there a very happy Easter!!! 
       My hubby and I spent our Easter service with my in-laws at their church and their pastor spoke about how Easter is all about how He (God) makes all things new.  What we need to remember is to stop trying (on our own) and start trusting.  II Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."  I was reminded that through God we have the promise for change, the product of change, and the pathway to change.  What a powerful message! 
        Happy Easter!!!