The Together Teacher Chapter 9 - Tame The Email Beast

 It is time for another chapter of "The Together Teacher" in our book study. Today it is time for chapter 9 which is all about taming your email.  Our hostess this week is  Sara from Dare to Be Different - Teach.

If you have missed my previous posts from this book study you can find them below:
   
                                                                             Chapter 8

      Chapter 7

                                                                             Chapter 6
                                                                             Chapter 5
                                                                             Chapter 4
                                                                             Chapter 3
                                                                             Chapter 2
                                                                             Chapter 1

I think this chapter of The Together Teacher was written just for me! Why do I say that?  Because at this very moment my email inbox has  3,885 emails in there!  Beastly just a bit don't you think??

According to Maia, email is not the enemy, bit it certainly can become out of control when your in-box is full of hidden to-do's that are not accounted for in your Together Teacher System, which means they are in danger of not getting done.

Many of us spend way too much time scrolling through our in-boxes, re-reading messages trying to determine what to do with them with no real system.



Intervention Time - Declare Email Bankruptcy


If you are anything like me, it is time to stage an intervention! The goal is to get our in-boxes as cleared as possible.  Maia has a few tips for getting there:

1. Limit your total number of email accounts. (I do pretty well with this, I have 2 - one for work and one for home).

2. Unsubscribe - you know all those newsletters you really don't read anyway.

3. Sync it up.  If you have a smartphone, you should sync up with emails so that you can delete when you have downtime.

4. Get friendly with the delete button  Make your life simpler by getting rid of the clutter.

5. Email Bankruptcy - Just like ripping off a band-aid, get rid of all of your emails at once, then start using the strategies for keeping it maintained.

Setting Up Your In-Box For Success


1. Create Folders for Filing- Maia provides a few folder ideas including:

* Follow Up
* Projects
* Meetings
* Administrative
*Processed
* Other - (If you have other functions such as PTA, department chair, etc.  I have a Twitter and TpT file set up)

2. Admit you have a problem - Create Better E-mail Habits - This is probably my biggest weakness.  When I don't want to get things done, I often revert to checking my email.  Maia suggests checking your email only a few times per day, and scheduling WHEN you will check it.

3. How to Check E-Mail
Use the STAR methid
S- Scan
T - Trash
A- Archive
R - Respond

How has this chapter helped you tame your email beast??

If you are following along with us, be sure to add your link to the linky below.

Don't forget to visit next week's host, Ellie from Middle School Math Moments for Chapter 10 which is all about setting up your classroom for success!

The Together Teacher Chapter 8: Keeping Your Organizational Muscles Strong!

I hope you are enjoying becoming a "Together Teacher" with us through this book study - I know I am! Today it is time for chapter 8 and our hostess is Stephanie from Technology Timeout.

 If you have missed my previous posts from this book study you can find them below:

      Chapter 7

                                                                             Chapter 6
                                                                             Chapter 5
                                                                             Chapter 4
                                                                             Chapter 3
                                                                             Chapter 2
                                                                             Chapter 1

 Chapter 8

Just like trying to eat healthy or exercise every day, when it comes to being an incredibly organized person, no one is ever perfect 24/7.  In this chapter, Maia Heyck-Merlin addresses the common pitfalls that you may find along the way of becoming a Together Teacher - and most importantly, how to find your way out!

A few of the bumps she mentions:

1. Forgetting to carry our system with us.

2. Forgetting to look at our system. (So guilty of this one!

3. Not writing everything down (Again, one of my weaknesses!)

4. Forgetting to look beyond today (yep)

5. Choosing the wrong tool

Have you ever experienced any of these bumps while trying to become more organized?

What to do when your to-do's are not getting done

When you just don't feel like doing it.

1. Bring on the extrinsic motivation and give yourself a treat when it is completed.

2. Set a deadline - even better is someone else helps keep you accountable.

3. Tackle that task first thing in the morning - Get it over with!

Does It Really Need To Be Done?

1. If not, cross it off your list!

Monster Projects

1. Break it down into bite-sized pieces.

What Do You Do To Keep Your Self On Task?

If you are following along add your link below.

The Together Teacher Chapter 7 - Automate: Create Routines and Planning

This week Sarah from

 is hosting chapter 7 from The Together Teacher which is all about creating routines and planning. You will definitely want to visit her blog today, not only to read her thoughts on chapter 7, but also because she is hosting a GIVEAWAY!

 If you have missed my previous posts from this book study you can find them below:

                                                                             Chapter 6
                                                                             Chapter 5
                                                                             Chapter 4
                                                                             Chapter 3
                                                                             Chapter 2
                                                                             Chapter 1

 Chapter 7

By now if you have been following along with us, you should have developed 5 key tools to help you:

1. The Comprehensive Calendar to meet your deadlines.
2. The Upcoming To-Do List to list all of your to-dos
3. Thought Catchers to track your ideas and thoughts
4. Meeting/PD Notes to follow up from meetings and PD
5. Weekly or Daily Worksheets to plan your schedule

If you haven't already bought the book to follow along, what are you waiting for?  It is your time to be more organized!

This chapter talks about putting all of the tools above into use on a regular basis.  It tells you how to plan ahead and make the greatest use of your limited time - all in the interest of taking home less work!  Can I get an Amen on not taking home more work? I thought so!

The Weekly Round-Up
This is what Maia coins the time that you take to plan ahead for your upcoming week.  What, you aren't planning ahead?  You should be!  Maia even gives you an agenda of what to do during your time so that nothing is forgotten!

You can find a copy on her website here.  You need to register, but it is free. Maia says you should ideally conduct a weekly round-up on either Friday morning or Friday afternoon in preparation for the following week.  I have been working on mine on Sundays, but Maia says that you should conduct it BEFORE the weekend in order to reduce the feeling of being overwhelmed during the weekend.  I am going to give this a try this week and let you know how it goes.  We have an early release day on Friday, so the afternoon should work out perfectly.

Your weekly round up should take between 30 and 90 minutes depending on how much work you need to process from the previous week.

Daily Routines: Making the Most of Openings and Closings

Just like your morning rituals of waking up, showering, brushing your teeth, etc. your time when you arrive at school has a set list of things that you need to get done or prepare for your day ahead. Maia says that there isn't one right way to have a morning routine, as long as it is one that is clear to you.  She shares a few examples from various teachers. Likewise, you should also have a closing routine at the end of the day to set you up for success for the next day.

Use Those Preps To Their Fullest

Sometimes it is so easy to waste our prep times when we don't have a plan for how we want to use them.  It is very easy to get sidetracked in a conversation in the copy room and before you know it 45 minutes has just flown by.  Maia suggests mapping out your prep periods with an ideal plan of what you want to accomplish, things might not always work as planned, but at least you have a plan of attack to start from.

She also suggests keeping like items with like items.  For example, you might want to set one prep period for making copies for the following week.  Another day might be dedicated to planning or parent phone calls.

Next week Stephanie from Technology TimeOut is hosting chapter 8!



If you are following along with us, be sure to link up below:

The Together Teacher Chapter 6 - A Week's Worth of Readiness

This week, Sara from 

 is hosting chapter 6 from The Together Teacher which is all about creating routines and planning.  If you have missed my previous posts from this book study you can find them below:

                                                                             Chapter 5
                                                                             Chapter 4
                                                                             Chapter 3
                                                                             Chapter 2
                                                                             Chapter 1

Chapter 6

This chapter is all about your weekly or daily worksheet. This is a tool that allows you to create a clear view of your week or day, allowing you to plan ahead, get stuff done, and capture incoming work.  Maia emphasizes in this chapter that the process is more important than the product.  Just as in previous chapters, she says it doesn't matter whether you are a digital person or a paper person, as long as your system works for you.  The tool of your choice should allow you to:

* Plan the week or day in advance by mapping out how you will spend your time
* Look ahead at what is coming up
* Do the work by ensuring that it is clearly organized
* Capture incoming to-dos and thoughts

The Together Teacher Website features templates for both Daily or Weekly Worksheets.  You have to register to access them, but registration is free. Maia suggests using only one of the two, not both.  The Daily worksheet is for people who like more space.

I use a daily worksheet myself, but I use this one from Andrea Dekker.


Don't forget to enter to win a $25 Teachers Pay Teachers Gift Card if you haven't entered already!

Next week's host is Sarah from
If you are following along with our book study, share your link below!

The Together Teacher Chapter 4 Never Forget! Capture Your Thoughts

Time for another chapter from our book study of The Together Teacher by Maia Heyck-Merlin. If you missed the previous chapters, you can find them here:

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Today our guest host is Jenny from Owl Things First.    Head on over to see her take on chapter 4 and to enter to win a $20 Amazon gift card - perfect for buying those back to school organizational must haves!  In addition the winner will also win a set of stuffed elephants which will be perfect for classroom decor!  Even my older students love reading with a buddy!

My thoughts on chapter 4

As teachers, we have a million things a day coming at us from all directions!  Things we need to remember to do, things we need to remember to tell others (principal, school secretary, parents, etc.), things we need to copy, things we need to grade, and on and on and on!

Maia's solution to keeping it all together is through the use of a thought catcher.  It can be something as simple as a piece of paper divided into fours, or as complex as an electronic notepad or file for each section of our lives.

Prior to reading this book, my thoughts were often scattered everywhere - on sticky notes, scrawled on my calendar, scribbled in a notebook, or just swimming around my head.  The big problem with this is I can't always find these notes when I need them, or even worse, I forget about them altogether!

With thought catchers kept in your planner, you can keep track of them in one place!  You can set up your thought catchers by action (i.e. emails to send, calls to make, items to copy, etc), and or by person (principal, spouse, teammate, etc.).

You can find some free thought catcher forms on Maia's website here.  You will have to register for the site to access them, but registration is free.

Don't forget to visit next week's host, Michele from Jackson in the Middle!

If you are following along with us, be sure to link up below!

The Together Teacher Chapter 2- No More Missed Deadlines & Arc System Giveaway

Today is all about Chapter 2 of our book study of The Together Teacher by Maia Heyck-Merlin.  If you missed chapter one, you can find it here.  Every Wednesday, we will be reviewing each chapter on our quest to be more organized "Together Teachers".  I also have a giveaway for you this week!  Read on to find out more!

Chapter 2

This chapter is all about making sure you don't miss any deadlines by using what Maia calls a Comprehensive Calendar.  In this chapter we learn how to determine what type of calendar to keep (you will have a chance later in the post to win MY calendar of choice), how to put the calendar together using the Ideal Week Template we created after reading chapter 1, and finally how to maintain that calendar so that it can sufficiently guide us from month to week to day!

The Multiple-Calendar Dilemma
How many of us are guilty of this one?  Having a calendar for school, a calendar for your kids' activities, a calendar for your non-school related issues, a calendar of deadlines for classes you are taking, calendars in your cell phone, calendars on your computer, calendars, calendars, everywhere?  When you have multiple calendars it is so easy to lose track of everything you have going on.  Maia says that this can lead to collisions (such as report cards being due on the same day as your Master's thesis - not that I've ever been guilty of that!).  She says that this is the result of the fact that most of us do not take the time to put all our our time commitments and deadlines into one place.

The best way to deal with this is a Comprehensive Calendar, which is a place that lays out all of your time commitments and deadlines in one easy-to access location. It can be paper or tech based. Whatever works better for you.  At minimum, it needs a monthly view where you can keep the following:

• Deadlines (one time and recurring)
• Special events
• Standard meetings (grade level collaborations, PD, etc.)
• Personal events (doctor appointments, kids' practices, birthdays, etc.  

You can take it a step further by scheduling time blocks from your ideal week into you calendar.

 Ideally, this calendar should be set up for at least academic year ahead of time in order to see what events or deadlines lay ahead on which you must make early progress.  Now is the time to put in all of those grade deadlines so that you can plan mini-sessions to work on them rather than panicking at the last minute as you stay at school until midnight the night before they are due getting them ready.

Maia gives detailed examples from real teachers' calendars to show you what this might look like using both paper and tech based methods.  She also gives pros and cons of each ones so you can choose the option that is right for you.

I personally use both.  I ALWAYS have my phone with me, so I will make notes or plan appointments using it.  But.. and this is the big but, I will ALWAYS match it up with my paper calendar as soon as I can so that I don't miss anything.

The Up-Front Investment: Creating Your Comprehensive Calendar

Setting up your calendar really is an up-front investment.  Just like putting money away for a rainy day, taking the time out of your day to plan your calendar will save you from those embarrassing moments of missing a work deadline, or disappointing your child when you miss a big game.

The Steps are:

1. Rounding up your calendars (all of them - school, sports's schedules, unit plans, pacing guides, syllabus, etc.)

2. Put in the hard deadlines (tax day, lesson plan due dates, grade due dates, etc.)

3. Add your soft deadlines (things you want to accomplish but don't have fixed dates - organizing classroom library, bulletin boards, etc.)/

4. Events

5. Meetings

6. Don't Forget Your Personal Stuff!

Once this is complete (celebrate!  Buy yourself a Starbuck's and marvel at how much more prepared you will be this year!)


Then you need to think about what this preparation is going to look like through the year!  Maia gives tips for adding to your calendar throughout the year as you:

• Process incoming emails and memos with deadlines and events
• Process regular or routine communication
• Deal with "day of" deadlines
• Deal with deadlines that require work prior to the due date (those darn grades again!).
• Deadlines that you receive via phone
• Deadlines that come up in meetings

So, now that your calendar is set up, you are good to go and no deadlines will be missed, right?  Not so fast, Maia says, once you set up your calendar, you must review it regularly (she explains how in a later chapter).

1. Get a copy of the book if you haven't already.
2. Choose a calendar ( you can win the one I use in the giveaway below)
3. Take an hour or two to plan out your comprehensive calendar for the upcoming school year. (If you are posting along with us, link up below, or just add a comment when you have finished this step to let us know you are working along with us!).

Don't forget to visit next week with our guest host - Laura from Luv My Kinders.  She will be hosting a giveaway for a $20 Amazon gift card (so you can order the book or other organizing supplies!)  

I have chosen to use the Staples Arc System for my Comprehensive Calendar.  I love it because I can completely customize it to fit all of my needs.  Using the special hole punch (which the winner will receive) I can add any paper that I need to so I don't lose it.  I keep not only my calendar, but also my lesson plans, my pacing guide, and my standards inside.  Along with this, there is a place for me to keep notes from meetings or thoughts that pop into my head.  No more lost sticky notes!







The winner of this giveaway will win a flexi-arc notebook along with the special arc punch (approx $60 value)  Good luck!

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An InLinkz Link-up

The Together Teacher Giveaway and Book Study Announcement

When people meet me and find out that not only am I a teacher, but I am a mom of 6 boys, a city council member, a blogger, a Teachers Pay Teachers product creator, and a drama teacher, they always ask me the same question.  Where do you find the time?

The ugly truth is that I didn't always "find the time" and more often than I would like to admit, I dropped a ball or two as I tried to juggle this crazy thing we call life!  

Luckily, I found this amazing book, The Together Teacher that really helped me to get my life in order (and feel like I still have one despite my hectic schedule).  And although I have read the book several times (my book is embarrassing to look at!), I am going to go through it again this summer.  As I do, I want to host an informal, yet structured Together Teacher Book Club on the blog, and I would love for you to join me!

Interested, if so, here is my proposal:

Using the book, we will focus together on organizing the following areas of our teacher lives:

o Weekly Worksheets
o Email Management
o Paper Management
o Daily and Weekly Routines
o Meeting Notes

There will be some suggested pre-reading questions to think about as you read. We will focus on one chapter per week and will have several giveaways of products to help you get and stay organized!  If you have a blog, you can post on each chapter and link up, or you can just read and learn.  You can learn more about the author and the book here.

I’m also looking for co-hosts for the duration of the book study.  Being a co-host is simple… you sign up to host a chapter, post your thoughts, provide a linky for the giveaway and for others to add their posts. You don’t have to donate a prize, but you are more than welcome to if you would like.

The book study starts on July 23rd.. so you've got plenty of time to grab a copy of the book and get reading!  Even better, you can win a copy of the book by entering the Rafflecoptor below.  I'm also offereing a choice of any product from my TpT store to the winner as well.

“The Together Teacher” Series 

Make you you are following me on Bloglovin' to follow all the updates!  This series will help you get organized (enough) to be a more effective teacher.  You will find clear advice, and step-by-step actions for building habits, finding tools that work for you, and creating space to become a "Together Teacher". We will explore the key routines of Together Teachers - how they plan ahead, organize both work and their classrooms, and how they spend their free time.  We'll explore real teacher to-do lists, calendars, classroom photos, and more!

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100 Minutes Book Study - Chapter 9 - Building In New Literacies

This is the last chapter for our book study on 100 Minutes by Lisa Donohue.  Even though it is the last chapter, I will definitely be going back and re-reading it as I make my plans for next year.  This is also one of those books that you will find yourself going back through each year.

 If you missed my previous posts you can find them below:

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8

Today I am linking up with Tina from Croft's Classroom for Chapter 9.



My thoughts on Chapter 9:

This last chapter is all about integrating digital technology and media literacy.  Lisa Donohue opens the chapter with the statement that "technology in the classroom should not be considered an add-on."  Instead, she says, it should "support and expand students' learning and directly connect to the content and skills that are being taught during other instructional times." (p.139).

As I read this chapter I have reflected on my own use of technology in the classroom.  Although I am the only teacher in my grade level without individual ipads or laptops, I have managed to add some technology to many of my lessons.

 
  We have used our Smart Board to brainstorm.

We have made predictions using our Smart Board.

We have used our Smart Board for writing prompts

But one thing that my colleagues and I have not always agreed upon (at both my current and former school) is the fact that I allow my students to use their own ipods or cellphones in class (if it is related to the task).

My students are usually very responsible about using them wisely, and if they don't they lose them until the end of the day.  I was glad to see that Lisa talked about the BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) movement, because for many of us, we do not have the luxury of 1:1 devices in our own classroom, and this helps even the playing field.  I also agree with her points about teaching students to use digital tools responsibly.

She also talked about "Working With What You've Got".  Since we don't all live in a dream world where 30 devices per classroom is the norm, we have to make do with the few devices we may have.  I have two student computers along with my own computer in the classroom.  I also have two ipods and my own personal ipad that I share with my students.  Lisa talks about setting aside a tech block during your independent time so that students can have a meaningful amount of time to accomplish a task while using the technology.  

She reminds us that regardless of how technology is integrated within your classroom, it should always be intentionally connected to the learning that is happening in other areas, not as a means of busy-work or student entertainment.

• I would like to be more thoughtful in the time that I have students using the computers.  I have usually used them for research or typing papers, but I would love to develop some projects that center around our curriculum units.
• I will definitely continue to use students' own devices in order to increase our resources available.
• I am thinking about having boards that are similar to Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram so we can talk about how those resources can be used and how they can be used safely.

I want to think more about how tech time will fit into my literacy block.

How do you use technology in your classroom?

100 Minutes Book Study Chapter 8 - Small Group Learning

One of the books that I am reading this summer for a book study is 100 Minutes by Lisa Donohue. If you missed my previous posts you can find them below:

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7

Today I am linking up with Emily from Emmy Mac's Class for Chapter 8.  She is also hosting a giveaway for a $10 TpT gift card and a $20 shopping spree in her store, so make sure you head over there to enter!

  

My thoughts on Chapter 8:

I always notice the most growth in students during small group instruction, so I was excited to read Lisa Donohue's take on it as well.  She states that small group instruction is the vehicle for teachers to be able to monitor individual students and to provide them with differentiated instruction based on their needs.  She also says that it can be a time for students to set and monitor their goals.  I have previously only done this in individual conferences, but I think that using small group time to do this will not only be more efficient, but will also give students the opportunity to observe their peers setting goals as well.  I could see having a small group comprised of two strong goal setters with two weaker goal setters just for that purpose.

Grouping Students

Lisa also gives a variety of ways in which to group students including:

1. Personal interest (non-fiction interests such as snakes, fiction interest in a certain author or series).
2. Student's current areas of strength and need.  (fluency, comprehension, decoding, etc.)
3. Instructional levels

The most important thing about grouping students is that they should not be "forever" groups.  She states that groups should change on average, once a month.

Small Group Reading Lessons

A typical small group lesson should last 15-20 minutes. Donohue says, "Ensure that students are spending the majority of the time reading the text."  That is so easy to forget as we want to get in there and teach.  She says the teacher should:

1. Set the stage for reading
2. Engage students in discussion during reading
3. Allowing students to reflect after reading

Writing Conferences

I have had individual writing conferences with students, and I have had students work in groups to discuss their writing, I have even had whole group writing conferences, but I have never had actual small group writing conferences.  Last year my students were really successful when they worked together in small groups to review their writing.  I had blogged about these sessions in previous posts:

                    Roll and Retell

                    Increasing the Level of Student's Writing


However, I often felt like I didn't get enough opportunity to coach them when there were issues (a student not participating in the group, or when they all couldn't think of anything more to share or add to the conversation) or to assess who needed more help as I flitted from group to group.  I LOVE the idea of having small group writing conferences together and then giving them the opportunity to work on peer editing themselves later.  I can't thank Lisa Donohue enough for giving me this format to grow my practice.  I love this gradual release of responsibility model and I can't wait to try it out this year.  I really see how it will add to my students' learning.

Feedback  

Donohue says that feedback is most helpful when it is "descriptive and skill-based".  She says feedback that is evaluative in nature, such as , "This is level 3 work" can give students an indication as to what they are successful at and what they need to work on.  We use Marzano's scales, so this could be easily incorporated.

She also says that the teacher might refer to mentor texts as well as the success criteria to model ways that the criteria is used for the student.

Donohue cautions that a writing conference is not a time when students hand over their work to the teacher in order to have it corrected (I am so guilty of that!). She says it is not the teacher's job to fix the mistakes, but instead is to draw the writer's attention to areas of confusion and areas that need improvement by posing questions in a way that cause the author to revise and rework the piece.

I love this because I know that often times I become frustrated when the same student makes the same mistakes over and over again. Donohue states that the reason for this is because the student is not an active part of the process when the corrections are being made.  They must be involved in order to actively learn and transfer that understanding to a new situation.

• I would like to create or find an interest sheet that I could use to group students into small reading groups throughout the year.  I really like this idea and it would make natural book clubs rather than just by ability alone.

• This chapter has really had me evaluating my small group instruction.  I am thinking about changing what I have been doing (which is mostly leveled readers and text book work) to have articles or short stories the students can read. When they initially come to group, I will have them read the assigned reading silently while I make sure the rest of the class has begun their work independently.  I will then introduce the skill we are working on and then have them choral read to certain sections. During the reading I will pose questions based on the specific skill we are working on.  After reading the students will reflect and respond. (I know that sounds like a jumbled mess right now, but as I develop it into actual lessons I will share!).

I want to think more about how to make feedback more visible to the student.  What do they specifically need to do to move their work from a level 2 to a level 3?

Next up- Chapter 9: Building In New Literacies

Be sure to visit our co-host Tina from Croft's Classroom on June 25th to continue this learning journey with us.