Goals, Goals, Goals & Laminator Love!

Well....it's almost that time again....Back to School!  I was in my classroom yesterday for the first time to drop off some books and to put up a few bulletin boards. I start teaching summer school in two weeks and then we are officially back on the 27th. 

I have to admit...I am looking forward to it!  Not that I don't enjoy my lazy days of summer, I do!  But I am ready for a change.  Besides, the weather in Wisconsin has been very chilly for the past week and it doesn't look like we will get out of the 70's for awhile so I think even Mother Nature is ready to go!

With that in mind, I am linking up with Jess at I {heart} Recess for her monthly goals linky party.  This month's theme...Back to School!

Personal:  Spend more time writing
A part of participating in the National Writing Project at UW-Milwaukee was that we wrote EVERY day.  What I discovered is that I love to write and it could become a new hobby for me.  I have always loved writing, but just didn't do it on a regular basis.  Now, I will be more committed to carving out time every day to write.

Organization:  Put it away
Hello, my name is Jennifer and I'm a piler, not a filer.....OK, now that I've admitted it, I can face my piling addiction and start getting a handle on it.  I make great piles -- and I know where everything is in that pile -- but I want to start to de-clutter my life and that begins with getting rid of piles. 

Planning:  Write it down
I have told myself "I'll remember that for next year, I don't need to write it down" on so many occasions, I can't count them!  Truth is, I don't remember...and now some great ideas that I had last year are probably gone.  :(  This year, I will be more committed to keeping track of my ideas and plans so I can stop this cycle of forgetfulness.

Professional:  Learn more about Mentor Texts & Writing Circles
My research project for the UWM-WP was about using mentor texts to REVISE writing.  (If you want to read more about it, you can read about it here and here.)I will present my research again at a conference in November so I need to keep learning more about them.  Also, as a result of my friend Kelly's research at the UWM-WP, I have a new-found obsession with Writing Circles.  I am reading the book right now by Jim Vopat and there is a possibility that I may get to meet him and work with him on some action research so I want to learn as much as I can!

Students:  Create a community
Creating community is so important to do at the beginning of the year!  I want for us (this includes my students) to create a classroom where every student is valued and feels safe to share their ideas and take chances to grow.

Motto:  They don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care!
This motto is compliments of my Classroom Management professor, Dr. Corey Thompson.  It's pretty self-explanatory and goes back to a sense of community and respect.

Make sure you head on over to I {heart} Recess to share your own Back to School goals!

I'm also linking up for the first time with Covered in Glitter and Glue for What I'm Loving Wednesday.

Like many of you, I have fallen in love with my laminator.  I bought it last year and am so glad I did!  It is really nice to have so many of those small projects done before going back, instead of having to stand in line for the laminator.  As a matter of fact, this little guy will be getting a lot of use today as I laminate my new Number of the Day task cards that I just designed and put up for sale on my TpT store.  I will blog more about those tomorrow so check back!

 

 

 

And since this is Wednesday and I haven't linked up with Teach N' Tex for PMA Wednesdays in awhile, I want to throw this one out there because I think it fits in perfectly with goal setting as we head back to school.

Source:  http://www.debsphotographs.com/photoblog/2011/04/crossfit-update-eight-months/

So here's to hoping that we will all "find a way" to meet our goals this year.  May this be your best year yet!