Curriculum Rewrite: My "Teacher Binder" Coming Together

Hi there!

We're experiencing quite the heat wave, and since I've clocked more beach time than is deemed healthy for a person as pale as myself, I'm taking a break from summer to continue working on my curriculum rewrite.

This year the goal for our school is to launch standards-based report cards. Whether or not this is truly going to happen as quick as our board of education is hoping is unclear, and I probably won't know until the first day of school (or later.....). We spent all last year breaking down the Common Core standards to more workable and simplified language that parents and students could understand. But, in order to get to the point where we are completely letter grade free I feel like every department should have a complete curriculum rewrite to align with the new Common Core standards, as well as new formative and summative assessments that align with Common Core and the language of the standards-based report card. But, that's just me ;). So, I'm doing it myself, for 8th grade Social Studies anyway. The truth is, we didn't have ANY curriculum aside from some mess of standards and suggestions passed down from the state website last year (my first year teaching) and it was quite stressful.

In order to keep track of all these changes, I'm putting together my "teacher binder". When I was struggling to stay organized last year I spent many hours googling the fascinating science that is teacher binders. All in all, there is no "one size fits all", and since many of the examples I saw were elementary focused, I'm trying my best to adapt those examples to fit 8th grade. My binder will be the place where I keep track of the assignments I give, which standards they assess, and my conferring notes about those assignments (which are mandatory in our building....yes, we have to write down every conversation we have with every student every week, just in case a parent questions a grade). Here's what I have so far:

Here is my working list of units. As it is, I already made a change after uploading this photo, but it was a good start. 

Each unit will have a table of contents page like this one. My goal is to complete at least the first couple of units before the year begins. Since we are going towards inquiry-based learning we will have fewer assignments that require more time and research. Each assignment gets a number that will be used in conferring notes so I know what assignment a student was working on when we had a conversation about their progress.

And finally, this is the spreadsheet for conferring notes. There is a column for the student's name, the assignment number they're working on, and then a key for some shorthand I'll be using. Sometimes to save time I have students write what we decide to record that day while I begin with the next student in their group. This should give me a quicker way to see at a glance how students are doing during a unit and give me enough evidence to justify whatever that student receives on his or her report card. We'll see how it goes!

So! What do you think? Feel free to comment and give advice, borrow some ideas, or give me some other inspiration on what YOU use in your classroom!

Classroom Set Up - 360 Degrees of Clutter: Part 2!

Hello world!

So, I have not been able to get into my room and set up yet (both because the floors are being refinished and because I'm forcing myself to try and relax this summer). But, I did manage to get in there to take some pictures of the room all stripped and ugly looking so you can see what I'm working with. Overall, I have four bulletin boards, a chalkboard, and then of course a whiteboard. One of my goals is figuring out exactly how to use each of these ugly yellow bulletin boards, which will be covered with my new patriotic fabric. Eventually I'll get to blogging about my curriculum re-write and standards-based report cards that are being rolled out, but since it is summer I'm indulging in my decorating fascination.

Looking through the doorway. See that ugly grey wall? It has to go.

Left wall looking in. Excuse the clothing rack - it is left over from an end of the year dress drive. 

Again with that ugly grey wall. My teacher desk is to the left, which may change since I might be winning the lottery and having an Epson board installed. Maybe not. Who knows?

The front of the room. Notice that awkward mini chalkboard to the right. I never know what to do with it, especially since I HATE chalk! Also, check out the fabric and imagine all of that yellow GONE!

TV / Counter.

Here's a glimpse of my storage center / counter.

And finally, the wall with the door. Cabinets to the right, counter to the left. 

Decorating an 8th Grade U.S. History / Social Studies Classroom: Part 1

For my first post on my shiny new blog I thought I’d talk about how I plan to decorate my room this year compared to last. In order to do that, let me clarify what happened last year. 2012-2013 was my first year as an 8th grade social studies teacher. I was hired two weeks before the school year began, and inherited a classroom so cluttered and full of garbage it took me nearly a 40 hour work week to just get it functional (cluttered – but functional). Throughout the year it evolved greatly, and as soon as I find them I’ll post the evolutionary photos that show the progression from dump to learning environment. However, I’ll be the first to admit my classroom was far from impressive looking. We did the best with what we had, but with only two weeks to dig through piles of educational memorabilia dating back to the 1980′s, I had very little time to devote to true organization, decor, or “feng shui”.

But this year will be different – oh yes it will be! I hit the stores right after the 4th of July for some clearance Americana goods. I’ve got everything from patriotic fabric for my bulletin boards, to color coordinated flower pens (handmade by yours truly), flags, and political themed goods. Check back later in the week for an update on how it looks on the walls! Here’s a sneak peak: