Lesson plan format

I just finished my model lesson plan for SURN. I like the format even though most of its elements are familiar to me with my current lesson plan template. The SURN format reminds me to engage and keeps me on task as I prepare a lesson. I think I will continue to use it!

Harder than expected

Writing a lesson plan for his is turning out to be harder than expected. Since I am teaching two different (and new) subjects I am having to constantly think, "Am I covering the content that is required?" and "Am I engaging the students in the magnificent seven?" I have written this lesson plan several times in my head, so hopefully when it finally comes out on paper, it will not need that many revision.

Getting back into the swing of things

This past week was the first one back to school for the students. The majority of time was spent getting back to the grind and using icebreaker activities to get to know my new students better. Monday will be the first day that will have a chance to break out the tools box and truly utilize my Power Tools. I will be explicitly teaching the Magnificent Seven Strategy visualizing. Here goes!

Teaching Students how to Summarize

The I-Tunes conference really made me re-think the way I teach literacy in my classroom. The first unit for English 11 in Norfolk is the Non-fiction unit, and my 11th grade team begins with teaching students about Native American myths. When I looked in the SOL (red) warm-up book for the passage from the myth "When Grizzles Walked Upright," I noticed that the summarizing literacy strategy was used for the multiple-choice questions. Thus, thinking back on what I learned from the conference, I designed my lesson completely around the summarizing strategy. The students and I will read the first myth together, and we will complete the "Somebody Wanted But So" activity in order to summarize the myth; then, the students will read the second myth and complete the SWBS statement independently. I will then use their SWBS statement to assess whether or not they summarized the myth correctly. After I realized what "magnificent seven" strategy I wanted to use in my lesson, the rest of the lesson fell into place!

Power Tools Help With School Improvement Plan

The Power Tools for Adolescent Literacy book helped to devise strategies for improving English 9 reading scores. In addition I am using three on the first day of school. Yay, Power Tools!

Wow...we have already had to share an overview at a full faculty meeting. Next step, we have to do a lesson demonstration tomorrow!! And this is before we have even gotten underway!! It is really exciting to me that we are going to use and remember the wonderful strategies because our school is committed to supporting and acting on it!! I love, love, love the magnificent seven and have gotten a new zeal for preparing my lessons the first nine weeks to SLOWLY walk through them for the benefit of the students!! Thank you SURN!!

Returning to work

As I drove home from Williamsburg yesterday, my mind was racing with what I needed to accomplish during the next several hours. I would be picking up my twins from my sister, squeezing in a much needed hair appointment, rushing to cheer practice and thanking the other coach who got it started for me, and eventually getting home to unload the car, unpack then pack again to leave this morning to take the kids for a last summer visit with their grandparents in N.C. Dinner ended up being a quick sandwich at 9 pm and I fell into bed relatively early.
I woke up this morning while it was still dark outside and my thoughts jumped excitedly from one idea to another and they all had to do with the iTune into Literacy conference from which I'd just returned. Even though I attended as an ambassador, I got so much out of the conference! I am emailing my principal a "plan" for the continuation of our Literacy initiative begun last school year. I love WAFL that the administrators came up with at the conference & would like our building to embrace the We are for Literacy slogan. I will share the plan I'm submitting to my principal in a future blog...I simply wanted to share my enthusiasm for the upcoming school year and my hopes that your year is phenomenal.