The 2nd Grade Chick

This summer I am working on developing our district curriculum for the new Science Standards. Anyone else? That's all.

$20 for 5 mini pocket charts (digging the colors) (used for spelling, hf and vocabulary words, 4 subtraction flashcards, 4 addition flashcards, 2 memory games, 2 telling time cards, 1 state flash cards, planner (for my health data), and pack of erasers (for my treasure box) I thought these were pretty good finds and I was sooooo excited about the flashcards.  I have a love/hate relationship with math fact fluency and flashcards.  If you print them out parents don't use them, and if you tell them to buy them they don't so I went out a limb to buy these to offer to those that need them and a set for my own 2nd grader!  So I tested them out with my 2nd grader.  Here is my pro and con list of these cards.  Pros cheap sturdy simple better than nothing addition set seems complete without the turn around facts (I didn't confirm that though) doesn't include turn around facts There is a easy side and a harder side Cons not a full set front...

Oh my neglected blog. My poor poor blog. I have a good excuse I promise.  This post is a bad news, good news post.  So bad news first.  I'm kind of laughing my last post problems were lice.  I'd almost take that one back, almost. Here goes.... What has kept me from my blog?  It all started with last summer when on June 2, 2014 my house was pummeled by baseball sized hail, fueled by 90 mph. It destroyed our roof, siding, 7 windows and everything else small on the outside of our property, along with curtains, blinds and some furniture.  Fixing that was a full-time job for the next 9 months. This lead right into many health scares.  The first was a 3.1 cm nodule on my thyroid.  Biopsy was benign but I opted for removal anyway.  It was bothersome and I found out that I am all about get rid of it, get over it and move on.  Overlapping that was the news that my mom, the breast cancer survivor, had completely unrelated stage 3 lung canc...

You itched your head just reading that didn't you??  Lice does not discriminate.  Anyone can get it.  Even me. So we have A LOT of hair at our house and about a year ago I decided it would be a good idea to grow out my hair to see how long I could go before I couldn't stand it anymore.  It is a year and a half later and I had/have lice.  Nice experiment huh?  So my daughter's Kindergarten teacher is a good friend of mine and the day after Thanksgiving break came the e-mails.  "What a day, I've sent 2 home with lice and another 2 told me that they spent Thanksgiving break bagging up toys and shampooing with special shampoo." and then "5th one just went home."  I raced home at 5:00 to discover that my kinder had a head full and guess who slept in a hotel bed with her over Thanksgiving?  Yes me!!  Time to freak out.  Please don't do this.  It doesn't help whatsover and it will be OK, I promise.   If you are reading...

A Daughter’s Perspective: Amanda Thompson ^^^Check out my guest post on this awesome blog!  I wish I was disciplined enough to blog like her.  Then again I'd have to quit my day job. 

Sight words!  We like to use these fun index cards in a spiral bound book for practicing.  I write she writes and then we go through and read them.  She is motivated!  I am convinced if her teacher asked her to multiply, she would try!!  We are also practicing writing her last name.  And on a second grade note.  I am working on creating some making some Envision math Pinterest boards for each topic.  If you teach 2nd grade Envisions let me know if you want to help me pin topic boards!

Well we've had 23 days of school and conferences are next week.  I have started new curriculum in math (envisions), writing (Lucy Caulkins) and Reading assessments (Fountas and Pinell).  We have brand new progress reports and brand new assessments. The only thing I have from last year is Journeys (thank goodness).  I just spent 5 hrs. of my Sunday cleaning up last week's mess to get ready for next week.  In 23 days we've had Grandparents' Day, a field trip and homecoming is this week.  Conferences are next week. I feel like I'm doing a lot but nothing well.  I am longing for a routine!!!!  But hopefully that should come soon.  Who is feeling my pain? I am excited and hopeful that I may have found my new Envision routine.  I am going to start off with the online story and practice page, follow it up with guided practice and reteach, followed by independent with quick check and spiral review and then the problem of the day.  If we ge...