NASA's Endeavour flyover

 I almost forgot to share this awesome picture of Mrs. C's first graders and me watching Endeavor on TV after it flew over our school.

Our principal made an announcement right after primary lunch that it would be flying over our school within a 10 minute window and the excitement was in the air! the entire school went outside to look at the skies and kept our eyes peeled for the once in history experience of seeing a real space shuttle mounted on a huge airplane. I was the first to spot it in the horizon and some of the littles were upset because it was flying VERY low and they couldn't see it over the trees and buildings in front of our school. So we ran back inside the classroom to watch it on TV. Check out those smiles!!!

New Beginnings

Hi Everyone!! 

Happy 2012-13 school year. I am totally in love with my new assignment this year! 

I can honestly say I do miss the privacy of my very own classroom. However, this new situation has created a small group environment for the little ones that I share to learn better. I hope I don't get spoiled and then when I get my own class of 30+ children I'll be all like ahhhhh!!! 

As everyone in California knows, our schools were inundated with combination classes throughout all grades and left with less classes. At my school alone there is a: 

K/1st
1st/2nd
2nd/3rd
3rd/4th
5th/6th

Can I get a collective WOW ????

Here is where my little assignment comes in. 
Since I just taugh 2nd grade last year, I was hired as a Title I aide to alleviate the congestion in the 1st/2nd combo and take the 2nd Graders for a couple of hours of the day to teach ELA from 8:20am until recess time at 9:55. I have a total of 8 students in this session and honestly it does not feel like a class. It feels like a study group. Lovely! 

After primary recess I take the first graders from the K/1st combo as well as the straight 1st grade class and teach them math. I have a total of 15 kids in this session and although there's more than in the first group it's still a lot less than the 30 I would normally have. 

Mind you, the pay is just as small as the group sizes, but it's still doing what I love and what I enjoy the most. TEACH! 

I hope to chronicle my adventures and experiences as an aide juggling 2 different grade levels and subjects. 


till next time
Lissete 

My First Time...

My first blog....please forgive me...As you remember the first time is always the worst.

I still remember the first time I googled (since it is now a verb) a thematic unit....Time has surely changed.


Since moving to a new grade this year, I have been researching more and more ideas and different ways to teach lessons and OH boy has my researching world changed. I found pinterest, TpT, and a million other teacher pots of gold. All of this amazing work by other teachers around the country has inspired me to revamp my teaching strategies and to share some of the cool ideas I have come up on my own.

If anyone reads this, I hope you can share your thoughts and ideas as I definitely do appreciate them.

Smiles,
Ms. Diaz