2009-2010 ALPS Team

*Mrs. Howell is no longer with us. She's the reading specialist for Kenilworth Elementary.

1st Project of the Year

I love teaching!!! This week I got to start the first project of the year with my class. They are going to be doing animation. Mrs. Iniguez and I have teamed up on this project. Her part of the project is to have the students do the research for the animation topic. I get to show the student how to actually do animation. This week I talked and showed the students a brief history of animation. I got to show them some very old black and white animations that were over a hundred years old and boy, did that shock them. I also talked to them about the various kinds of animation and show them short animated clips to illustrate my point. Next week I will show them the essential elements that are needed to make a good animation piece.

Classroom Rules and Expectations

I've printed below my classroom rules and expectations. I have them posted in my room and this last week I made it a point to go over them.
-Be prepared to learn
-Be responsible for your own actions
-Be considerate when others are speaking
-Be respectful of other people's property
-Be aware of your own personal space
-If in doubt, ask

First Week Over

Wow!!! The first week is over and I'm beat tired. It's so good to have the students back. We spent this opening week getting to know each other. We did a variety of ice breaking activities. My favorite was called "clumping". This activity had the students coming together based on certain attributes. It was fun watching them figuring out whether or not they belong to a certain group. This week also allowed me to discuss what my expectations are for this year and what I expect of them in the classroom. I'm using this weekend to recharge and I'm looking forward to week two.

Koi Pond

Added a new gadget to my blog...it's a Koi pond. I have the same app on my iphone and absolutely love it. It helps to relax the mind :-)

ALPS Starting

Well, ALPS starts this coming Monday. I'm so excited about it. This year will be a little different. Instead of having the grade levels coming on a specific day, schools will be coming on a set day. This is very different from last year and yes it's new but it shouldn't be feared. Mrs. Harris and I will be with the at different schools to make sure that the ALPS students get on the bus. Make sure to fill out your "welcome back" packets. Have a nice weekend and I really look forward to seeing you next week.

Back at Work

It's really good to be back at work! The last several days the ALPS team has been meeting together and working on this year's projects. We plan to make social studies our focal point of study this year in ALPS. We're planning on cover the topics of community and immigration.
Our first day with the students will be Monday, August 17th. Rest assured until then we are working very hard to have everything in place for a successful year.