A Day in My Classroom

It's Monday. How is it possible to be so exhausted after a restful weekend?! Tired or not, I'm here to show you what a day looks like in my classroom. I tried to snap some pics throughout our day today to give you a better picture of what we do! I get so many questions about time constraints and how I fit it all in. Well, I don't. I always think I could do more, teach better, squeeze something else in. I have a TIGHT schedule, so here it goes...
It all starts in the morning. Our morning work varies. Sometimes I use Morning Work from Second Story Window. Sometimes we do spelling. Sometimes we finish work... it just all depends on the day/week. I'm not a fan of doing the same thing every morning. I try to fit spelling in there because if not, we just don't have the time. This morning we did ABC Order and a quick-write until it was time to get started with our day. We use our spirals a lot during this time.

Our day really gets started at 8:00. Announcements are over, the tardy bell has rung, and most of my kids have arrived by that time. This morning I introduced Prefixes with a Brain Pop Jr video and a class chart. I gave each student a root word and we decided which flap it should go under. I found the idea for this HERE. I also have some prefix freebies HERE.

8:30-9:00 I switch classes and do the same English lesson again with my 2nd group.
At 9:00 we stop doing whole group lessons and start our Daily 5/guided reading groups. This class did have to complete ABC Order with their spelling words before they could choose their Daily 5. While my students are in Daily 5, I meet with 2 guided reading groups. Our grade level shares students during this time, so I get students from other classes, and some of mine go to another teacher. We combined all of our reading level data so that we could make the most of our guided reading time. This helped us form groups with 4-6 students instead of having a group of 2 or 3.

At 9:30 we resume our language arts time with reading. This week we are reading Horrible Harry Bugs the Three Bears. Before reading each student made a prediction on a sticky note and put it on our Horrible Harry chart. We will also use this chart for character analysis, chapter summaries, interesting words, and so on. For the most part when we read a chapter book I have a class set of these books. We read parts of it together and they read some of it in partners. Today we read all but three pages together, and then they finished up Chapter 1 with their partner. Often times I do a comprehension check so that I can have reading grades. It also helps me make sure they are paying attention :) You can find my Horrible Harry stuff for free HERE.

I've talked a lot about my math block, so I'll try not to bore you! For the first 40-45 minutes we do our math concept... we may be doing this whole group, in partners, or independently. But, we are all working on the same concept. Today we started standard measurement. I read Inch By Inch by Leo Lionni. Each student drew an animal and we measured them using inches and centimeters. Later in the week we will squeeze more in during this time, but it's always hard to get a lot done on Mondays!

After the students finish their math assignments- whether it's independent or partner work- they go to math stations. This week we are using my Some Bunny Loves Math Stations. After Math Stations I am done with Class 2 and get my class back for the rest of the day.

And the rest of the day I teach on repeat! So, I get one class for a 2 1/2 hour chunk, and my homeroom is spread throughout the rest of the day :) 11:00-11:20: Recess 11:25-11:55: Lunch 11:55-12:30: Reading with Class 1 12:30-1:10: Math with Class 1 1:10-1:30: Math Stations with Class 1 1:30-2:15: Students go to PE, Music, or Library and I am on conference 2:15-2:50: Daily 5 and Guided Reading with Class 1
Mondays are definitely more about introducing and getting back in the groove. I'm always exhausted and thirsty because I do the most of my talking on Monday! For the rest of the week my students are normally working with their partner while I am just facilitating!
Keep in mind that my partner teacher teaches Science, Social Studies, and Spanish Language Arts. So, my kiddos do get 2 hours of language arts a day, it's just in two languages :))
Have any questions? Ask below!
And before I go, I have to tell you about my sweet friend, Michelle from Smitten With First. You may have seen her picture on my blog before because we've met up a couple of times in real life. She's just as precious as they come, and her family couldn't be any sweeter. Michelle is expecting her 2nd child in just a few short months. Her little one was diagnosed with Spina Bifida. You can read more about her story HERE or HERE.

First of all, I know Michelle's heart would be warmed if you prayed for her sweet boy. They are praying for a miracle, and sweet Piercen is in my prayers often. She's asking everyone to spread the word to pray that God would heal her baby. I don't know about you, but I believe my God is capable of anything... whether the doctors believe it or not!
You can also help by purchasing a bundle of pretty amazing units! There are 3 different bundles that you can choose from. With the diagnosis came some pretty hefty medical bills. When we all band together, a little can go a long way! Head on over to make a donation and receive classroom resources in return!