New SCHOOL Year Resolutions

My summer is quickly coming to an end! I return to work in just 2 days! 

With each new school year, I try to set a goal for myself, a RESOLUTION if you will :) I don't want to overwhelm myself by setting tons of goals or making lots of huge changes each year because I already know that next week when I walk into our professional development days, my principal will be waiting with a list of new changes and challenges.

SO...with that in mind, I have set only 2 New SCHOOL Year Resolutions for the 2013-14 school year:

Resolution 1: TEACH GRAMMAR - Let me be totally honest, when I think about teaching grammar to first graders I think UUUGGGHHHH! I have really neglected this in years past and I vow to do better this year. When filling out report cards I come to the dreaded grammar grade and always tell myself I need to do better but, finding extra teaching time and quality resources has always been my hiccup. SO...this summer I have worked on creating and finding resources to help.  I have created "Grammar Guide" reference posters to display in the classroom (picture of my Grammar Wall coming soon)

and I have purchased several grammar workbooks and TpT products to use. I am looking forward to evaluating the workbooks and resources I purchased and creating new resources to share with you throughout the year! 

Resolution 2: SOCIAL STUDIES - I stink at teaching Social Studies. I seems I am always trying to just quickly squeeze in Social Studies instead of creating purposeful, meaningful units of study. I became inspired late last school year by reading a few of the "Who Was..." books. 

 These books are awesome! This series includes: Johnny Appleseed, Lincoln, Washington, Martin Luther King Jr., Neil Armstrong, Helen Keller, Columbus and many more great American Heroes - perfect for first graders.  I purchased some of these books through Amazon but you can also find them at Really Good Stuff and I have even found a few of them at Target and Walmart! I have been creating book guides for each book so while we are digging into the informational text we can also work on writing.

 I plan to create a American Heroes Timeline to hang in the class for student reference. As we learn about each hero, we will add them to our timeline. (Pictures coming soon!)

For me personally, two goals seem obtainable. I am excited to create more resources to share with you. 

What are your New (School) Year Resolutions? Join me in sharing your Resolution(s). Just add your link below and don't forget to grab the button at the top!

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