Almost ready!

Well my classroom is almost done being waxed; so I can ALMOST get in there and finish working, and when I'm done, I'll be sure to post some pictures. For now, know that it's pretty basic. 

One of my main goals has been to be "ahead of the game"
Since I ... teach, coach, work the fair, go to grad school -- which I'm working on my internship hours this semester, am the school's webmaster, oh where I work at the fair has asked me to manage the building ... and all of that is aside from actually living... I need to be as well prepared and be able to manage my time the best as I can.

SOOOOO

I have made up a bunch of things that will HOPEFULLY carry me through the entire year:

These are the YEAR's worth of fluency games that are totally made up, just have to print, cut, laminate, cut, then organize and play! ... that's going to save tons of time and they're aligned to Common Core, Everyday Counts Calendar Math AND Math in Focus-Singapore Math... doesn't get much better than that!

I also made up a whole year's worth of Calendar Math pages to use ... ya know, with calendar math.




Keeping with the Math Theme ... I wanted to make these last year, but never got around to it. These are for the WHOLE year. Vocabulary mini-posters that go with each chapter for Math in Focus-- Singapore Math!

Finally, one of my fellow teachers asked me to make her a clip-chart for writing ... She's the writing teacher in our four-woman-team and she had some specific things she wanted included, so I was happy to oblige her. Here's what we came up with, she was happy with it, I hope you all are too: 

Click on any of the pictures above to go to them in my Teachers Pay Teachers store. Right now there's an awesome sale going on, everything in my store is 15% off and if you use the code BTS14 you get an extra percentage off! 

GOALS!

This summer, I can probably go back and count the days that I've slept in. 

I know, I know .... I'm doing it wrong. 

And now, I'm paying for it because I am sooooooooooo tired.
(Because also in the summer, I stay up WAY too late, and get up early. It's a vicious cycle.) 

Anyway. I am on a mission to have EVERYTHING done before I have to officially back. And though I know that this is an unrealistic goal, I know that come the fall I will be coaching softball, juggling an internship AND a class that starts in mid-October. 

So ... really, this goal is simple to me:
1. Have my back-to-school stuff printed
2. Have my room decorated (almost done!) 

3. Print my first unit of math
4. Have math fluency games organized (done!)
5. Have a way to have the kids focused during my morning (see below)

6. Get some kind of meal-plan plan going ....
7. Find a way to formative-ly assess kids and keep it organized! 

Having things printed will help me stay organized. And planning meals will help me stay on track, and be able to save some time, which I'm always about! 

This weekend I worked on putting together a calendar booklet.
I want to use this during our morning. The kids come in at 7:45am and eat breakfast in my room. They hand me notes, tell me stories, ask me to open their milk, are supposed to be signing up for lunch, run around the room, read books, tell each other stories (there's a lot of story telling going on).. but you get the picture. I am supposed to have breakfast/lunch count and attendance done and class started by 8:00am.

HA!

So I wanted to have something that would keep them (busy) focused.
This booklet is aligned to our Calendar Math program (Everyday Counts) and has just as many days as we need, but you could copy more if needed ;) 

It's 131 pages of review and those "morning routines" that I was missing out on by running around like a chicken with my head cut off.
They are very repetitive "Number of the Day" sorts of pages, with each month going a different direction with the number, as Calendar Math does.

My plan is to print it off monthly, and when the month is over we can have a little celebration and send it home!

I'm one step closer to finishing up my list of must-dos!
(I'll keep you updated on the meal planning) 

Time to get back into it...

For most, July 4th is a big celebration day. 

To me, it means we are on the downward slope toward school being here. 

I have been working hard (or hardly working) on some things to help me make this upcoming school year a bit easier, so I thought I would pass them along to YOU so you can benefit as well!

I know we are always learning new things, picking up a little tid-bit at a conference here, reading something from a book there, pinning something on Pinterest... and one of my big goals this summer was to collect games so we could use them during our "math fluency" block.

We are a departmentalized second grade, which I LOVE!
And I teach the math portion.
However, EVERY teacher teaches a section of Intervention (reading) and their own "Everyday Counts Calendar Math" and fifteen minutes of math fact fluency with their homeroom.

So I took it upon myself (being the "math person") to pull together and collect math fluency games to use during that time so we all have direction and consistency. It can be hard when you are asked to facilitate something, but don't really have a map. 

So since I did that for us ... I thought I'd give y'all a little sneak peek.
 

Inside my store, there is a FREEBIE of Part-Part-Whole Cards! 

They are just ONE piece of these games that will last you the whole year :)
Click on the picture below to grab yours: 

 

The rest of the year is in my store for just $10. You get 22 games that are aligned to the Every Day Counts Calendar Math "Computations and Connections" section. All the parts and pieces are there, so you just have to copy, laminate, and organize them! (You will need to add some dice here and there!) 

Click on the picture below to go to my store and see it for yourself:

 

Alright, That's all I have for now.
What have you been working on to get ready for the upcoming school year??

I think I can, I think I can...

Oh Lord... I KNOW that I can finish this year out strong. 

We only have 16 days left of school. 

I have printed off the rest of the math that I will need for the rest of the school year. 

I know the things that I need to do for the rest of the school year. 

I am looking forward to Field Day and our 2nd grade fun-day. 

I am excited about our Relay for Life Spirit Week coming up. 

I am gearing up for softball season. 

I am also making tons of lists of things to do over the summer. 

But isn't that the life of a teacher; hardly the time to live in the now while we are planning for the future... 

LASIK ... the real deal (a long non-school-related post)

I have worn glasses since I was six years old. For real. And they weren't these cutesy frames they have now where kiddos get glasses and people melt because they are adorable. My glasses were always HUGE, ROUND, THICK, NOT-ATTRACTIVE ... which made me feel well, not attractive. 

I was always diagnosed with astigmatism, and I was told I was near and far-sighted. When I was in middle school I tried contacts, but because of the amount of astigmatism I had I had to try to wear gas-permeable lenses. For those who have, and do, and are okay with them, I commend you. They are horribly uncomfortable and painful, and I cried. A lot.

When I was in high school and I was in show choir, glasses weren't allowed on stage. So... I broke out the gas-perms. I could kinda see. But more than that, my eyes were in pain. Our competitions were very long, and on one bus ride home I lost a lens. They were very expensive, so we scrapped that idea.

I played softball, umpired, traveled, swam, with my glasses.

My vision prescription stabilized while I was in high school. And my eye doctor told me I would be a good candidate for LASIK. I was happy, and knew I would need to save up for it. I had several family members who had it done and were very happy.

When I was in college, I once again tried soft-toric contacts to no avail. The problem with astigmatism is that it literally changes the shape of your eye, so putting a contact on your eye doesn't help because with each blink it is moving and changing shape with your cornea. Glasses will be the best fix for astigmatism, always.

Unless you do LASIK! Sooooo I called Durrie Vision. I made an appointment, and went from there. If you are thinking about doing it- think about the cost effectiveness. The cost of LASIK replaces the cost of one pair of glasses and one year of contacts plus solution for me, easy.

My initial evaluation appointment my mom came with me. We have an hour drive to the doctor, and I knew that the tests would make my eyes tired. Because of the amount of astigmatism that my eyes had, my eyes were CONSTANTLY focusing on things, and always tired- causing headaches. My first appointment my eyes were dilated, which lasted until I went to bed that night. They told me I was an excellent candidate. They also told me I have mixed astigmatism. (Which means that each eye is both near and far sighted -- WHAAAAT?!)

I got to be in a study for "iDesign" with SBK Lasik; so that required a lot more tests. So I went back. I needed a driver for that appointment as well and higher strength dilation drops were used. Because my eyes are a light color (blue), the drops are also stronger on my eyes. My eyes were dilated that day and into the next, over 24 hours. 

Tip: You have to shower the night before surgery. No lotions/moisturizers/make-up the day of surgery. Invest in some make-up towelettes. The day of the surgery I got to the office at 9:30 for some pre-op exams. One doctor marked on each of my eye balls with a purple pen on either side of my corneas. Then two assistants put in some more drops. Then the doctor came out to talk to me about the procedure and how it was all going to go -- but let me tell ya, nothing can actually prepare you for what it's like!

This whole time, my family (2 aunts and my mom) are waiting in the waiting room and watching it on a close-circuit TV.

They put you on a flat chair, and then tape one eye shut while propping the other open. There are two machines on either side of you. You slide over to the first machine to get lined up, and then slide over to the other where they "create the flap." Essentially, they use a laser to make a flap in each eye. There is a suction device used, this was the only part that was uncomfortable. And I could not have the drops that prevented my eyes from becoming bruised during this process because of my participation in the study.

After the flaps have been created, you are slid over to the other machine and asked to look at the blinking orange light. Because the flap is open, the light is extremely fuzzy, and at a point it goes totally dark. You hear the laser's "tick tick tick" noise, and you smell the burning -- all "normal"

Once the laser is done with both eyes, the doctor "wipes" your eye (puts the flap back) and puts a gel and light burst of air. That's done to both eyes and voila! The entire procedure is maybe 5 minutes!

They guide you into a little room (where my family was waiting) and put in tons of extra drops, including your anti-inflammatory and the steroid drops that you'll continue for the rest of the week. The doctor comes in to check the flaps, you get sunglasses, and you go! (You obviously have to have a driver)

The morning of my surgery I was experiencing some pretty intense allergies. The drive home was NOT pleasant. I could not breathe, I was nervous to blow my nose, my eyes were watering, I was dizzy, my vision was foggy and confusing, and I felt like crying! AHH! But fear not... it will get better! TIP: Put a timer on your phone for the artificial tears, especially the first day!

I went back to my aunt's house and just laid on the couch for the rest of the evening. When it was time for bed, I put on my "eye shields." More than once I woke up in the night to put in eye drops, my eyes were just so dry.

The next morning you go in for a one-day-post-op. I was seeing 20/15. That's what my correction was with my glasses. And I knew this was way better. Because with my glasses, I had no peripheral vision. And I was cleared to drive!  

My biggest fear was (and still is a little) showering. You have to be careful about getting soap and water in your eyes for 2 months. I've been diligent about keeping my eyes closed. I saw somewhere to keep a towel hanging over the curtain rod to pat water off your face while you're in the shower. That's helped, too. 

One of my biggest tips is to keep the preservative-free tears everywhere. In your pockets, purse, bathroom, bedside, coffee table, car, even in the fridge -- keeping them cool relieves the "itchy" feeling! They give you some samples, and I've been trying different kinds, but I've been using a LOT of them!

I am excited because I know that everyday after LASIK vision continues to get better, I'm still in the stage when it's a little watery and unclear at times.
This was my doctor, I would recommend their practice to Anyone! Click to see videos of how it all works!

Can you tell I was (and am) a little excited about all this?
Happy Easter!!! 

Preppin'

Alright... I'll admit that a big part of being a teacher is being prepared. I like to stay a week to two weeks prepped, if I can. There are sometimes that that just can't happen. (like the last whole math chapter, I was just sort of flying by the seat of my pants as we say) but this week I spent time ordering the next whole chapter of math that I would need and trying to organize my intervention time for the rest of the school year. I think it's a little motivation to "see the end in sight" as they say. 

I am also having surgery this coming Thursday, so I wanted to have some plans prepared.

We just finished taking our Terra Nova test (the equivalent to the MAP for out little kiddos) so we planned to do a "testing celebration" of all their hard work and concentration. When I think about it, these kids really do work very hard all year long. [most of the time ;)] 

Anyway, we decided to have that "testing celebration" on the day I am not going to be at school- which really works out, I don't particularly like subs to try to teach this math program anyway. So I wanted to whip up some math centers that would be easy for them to "play" during their time in my room. Sooooo that's what I did tonight:

  

There are Seven Centers in all, and they are really flexible ... I had a compilation picture, but as luck would have it, blogger is not letting me put it on right now and I'm too tired to mess with it right now. So as I like to say "ya get what ya get and ya don't throw a fit!"

Sometimes I'm not really great about preparing myself and my classroom for what's in store. But this week, I am on the ball!

I hope you all have a great week, prepared or not!
-Hilliary 

Sleep

I've noticed lately that my health is failing. Nothing "big" but as I've checked my blood pressure, it is very high for my age. I've always been a little heavy, but along with the added stress of having a classroom, coaching, being involved in the community, owning a house, keeping up with my blog/TPT store, and everything else that goes on in life: it becomes very stressful, and I'm sure adds to that blood pressure being high, along with my unhealthy habits. 

I have been doing "research" (ie: reading tons of blogs) about health/nutrition, and I honestly know a lot about it. My fault is not putting it all in place. 

One of my biggest thing is trying to cram SO MUCH into each day. I think as we are asked to do more and more and more in our classrooms, we are forced to squeeze something out of our personal day, thus creating more stress, and something's gotta give. For me it's been sleep. 

I am someone who needs sleep. Not just because I become a cranky-monster, but because when I was in high school, I had two grand-maul seizures because of sleep deprivation. Lately, I've made my bedtime 10pm. However, that still doesn't seem to be enough sleep (and nights like tonight- it's 10:12 and I'm just blogging!), as my alarm blares its first call at 5AM and I begrudgingly drag myself out of bed sometimes an hour later, and I'm still tired throughout the day. 

So tonight I searched "when should I go to sleep" on a whim ... the random site I came across said that if I want to wake up at 4AM, I should go to sleep at 8:15PM. I think I will try this. I can set my DVR to record any shows that are "too good to pass up." It will also give me some time in the morning (hopefully) that I can get a work out in before school, which should give me some added energy as well as much needed health benefits. And be able to watch those shows from the night before?? hmmm 

(Ironically, the news just did a story about waking up early being good for your health) 

Sheesh, signs much?
Have a great [stress free] week!