Spring Cleaning

     According to Wikipedia, Spring cleaning is a practice followed by many cultures. Simply Google "Spring cleaning" and you will surely find hundreds of cleaning and organizing tips to get your home in mint condition. But wait. What if we applied this same philosophy of Spring cleaning to our teaching profession? 

     At the end of each school year, I take some time to just consider my surroundings. Alone, in my room, I contemplate the furniture. Do I have too many chairs,desks or tables? Do I have enough? Are any of these in need of repair? I don't want the "stuff" in my classroom to interfere with the learning. Desks, tables, chairs, bookshelves, and cabinets should enhance the environment and enable me to teach effectively and facilitate learning. I don't want anyone to confuse my classroom with a storage shed...lol.





     I refuse, for example, to pack away handouts that I might use someday if I teach a particular grade. And just because a colleague is giving away "goodies" for free, does not necessarily mean that I need them. Sure, a counter full of giveaways is tempting (sooo very tempting), but if I don't have a foreseeable need, then I force myself to keep walking. If I'm Spring cleaning on the one hand, but hoarding on the other, then I'm not making strides.

                                                               My clutter is not limited to what I can box up and pack way. There is also the clutter inside my mind. To make room for a new year of learning and professional growth, I find it helpful to discard old ways of thinking and misconceptions. Our profession is dynamic and exciting. Science is uncovering new realities that can powerfully change what we thought we knew about teaching. Of course we don't want to throw the baby out with the bath water, but we need to make room for new learning and new understandings to take root.

  Last week I attended my first meeting of the district's MTSS Task Force. I'm new to this well-established group of professionals and I'm humbled by the wealth of experience and knowledge these educators have. I think it's wonderful that we are embracing what we know to be good for students without tossing out those initiatives, strategies, programs, etcetera that have proven themselves to be successful. 

Lola Jollie

     

Elevate!

Elevate!
Last month, my early learning team (pre-school, TK, kindergarten) and I attended a conference together in La Jolla.  The conference was put on by a kindergarten blogger I have followed for  the past few years, Mr. Greg at The Kindergarten Smorgasboard.  He has become a big influence on my teaching via his blog, facebook posts, and YouTube channel. I was very excited for him to come to Southern California (he's from Tennessee) to share his knowledge and excitement for teaching all  things kindergarten so I got my team to come with me! If you are an early learning  teacher, I highly recommend this conference.  We all left very inspired and energized!

The conference costs money, of course, so we used district resources available to teachers to get it paid for.  I used part of my Spotlight stipend for professional development while my colleagues used the Teacher Initiated Fund (TIF) to cover their costs.  We used those monies for the conference cost itself plus a hotel room for one or two nights.  Since the conference was on a Saturday, we did not have to worry about substitute costs.

We all applied  for these funds early in August. First, we had to fill out a "Request to Attend" form for our site administration to approve. You can get that form here.  Once our site administration approved us, we sent it in to district administration (currently Veronica Bucheli) for review and approval.

The myomta.org  website has all of the  information you need in order to apply for these funds  The key is to apply early in the school year because the  funds can go quickly.  Each year the maximum amount per teacher can change, but this year  the maximum amount was $800.  That can cover most expenses incurred, such as sub pay,  hotel costs, parking,  mileage, and meals.

I encourage every teacher to take advantage of this  opportunity for professional  growth.  If you have any questions about the process,  please contact Tisha Curry at tisha.curry@omsd.net.

Happy Teaching (and Learning)!

Erin Grebel

Forever in the Middle: Book Talks Using Flipgrid

Book Talks Using Flipgrid 

We started off the school year with great enthusiasm and momentum for reading in class and I’m happy to say that hasn’t fizzled out. I thought, “this is great!  These kids can talk about books! What an amazing group!” Then I set them up and showed them how to use Flipgrid and guess what I found out: They did NOT know how to share their books. I had all kinds of things going on that I didn’t expect. Some were talking into the camera but blocking their faces, some were giving away major plot points, others were just generally unsure of what they were supposed to be doing. Oops! Then I realized that of course, like many new things we do in the classroom, this too would need to be explicitly taught then practiced before they would perform at any level of proficiency. .

That is exactly what I did and look at the results!

Here are the steps I took:

1. Students were given enough time to finish a book so they would have something to share (about 5 weeks)
2. Partners practiced sharing their books using book talk frames.
3.  Students practiced the same book talk with a new partner.
4.  They practiced making a Flipgrid video.
5. They completed and submitted their book talk flip grid.

Is every book talk video perfect? Of course not! As with anything, some kids were amazing right away and some need more practice but I know they will get there and I’m excited to see their growth as the year goes on.

The students whose videos are amazing get the added incentive of getting a QR code for their Flipgrid taped onto the cover of the books in my classroom library so now interested students can see what they’re about. This gets the conversation about reading going and the buzz about books stays constant. It’s a win for me and a win for the featured kids because now they have celebrity status in my classroom.


Why is this important for instruction?
Aside from promoting reading and all the benefits of it, students are getting great practice presenting information to an audience in a low stakes environment. In addition, they are able to receive feedback and also become a reference for other students who may be interested in reading. Once the routine is learned, the kids will be faster at creating these (which save instructional minutes) and it can become an expectation for demonstrating comprehension of a text (digital reading log?)

This gives kids a feeling of importance and value that some don’t normally find in Language Arts because Language Arts can be really hard for some kids. Maybe this is the way the kids who aren’t natural writers can shine.

Stay with us as we continue on our journey and find out where it takes us.

You heard from me so let’s hear from you: leave a comment below to let me know what you’ve done in your classroom to encourage a love for reading. I can’t wait to hear your amazing ideas!

Keep the magic alive,

Kandyce Valverde
See what is going on in my classroom on Twitter @valverderules

Do you want to see this first hand? Come visit my classroom by scheduling a Spotlight visit!

One Pager - I am excited . . .

A couple months ago I wrote about doing a One-Pager with my math students and that I would give
an update on how it went.  My 8th graders have completed one of these activities and my 7th graders just completed their second one.

Well, I cannot contain my excitement about what I received from my students and the possibilities I see happening for next year.

Why am I so excited?  The products I received were all student created with very little direction from me.  I handed out the expectations and then let the students self-create their own product.  The students were able to capture the important facts for the unit of study, draw diagrams for the unit, list key vocabulary words, and ask two questions that they had about the topic of study.  While some of the final products lacked the eye appeal you might expect, there were so many the showed a huge effort to make them professional looking by adding color and setting them up in a easy to read fashion.

I wonder to myself what would have happened if I had actually shown examples of high quality work to the students as what I am expecting?  Without any guidance from me (besides the one page expectation handout), students were given free reign to design the One-Pager however they wanted.

Another small detail that I enjoyed was that students laminated their One-Pager on the day it was due.    This small detail seemed to show students that I felt this was an important document that I wanted them to keep for a long period of time.  While there is an expense on my part for doing this, I will continue with this practice as it ups the ante and allows students to keep something from being destroyed.

Next steps . . .

First, the 7th grade math team has agreed to prepare students for 8th grade by reviewing integer operations and solving equations after SBAC and before the end of the school year.  To that end, math 8 teachers will be visiting each of the math 7 classes and asking the students to complete a One-Pager for each of the topics.  Students will be shown examples of One-Pagers completed by 8th graders so that all students have a visual of what is expected.  The final documents will be put back-to-back and laminated, collected and saved for students to use next year.  The hope is that students will create documents that will be usable next year and give math 8 teachers some initial insight into students personal understanding of two key topics.

Second, next year, every 8th grader will create a One-Pager for each of the topics taught throughout the year.  These One-Pagers will then be used during our sprint to SBAC review and any common assessments given throughout the year.  The hope is that students will take pride in their work since they will be allowed to use them throughout the year and that they will become meaningful for every student.

I am thankful to our site's AVID team for presenting this type of student understanding conceptual.  I firmly believe, that as educators we hear different strategies throughout our teaching career, and many times we hear the same ones from time to time.  Yet, sometimes we are not at a place to use the strategy or it does not ring true for us at that time - but then at a later time, the same strategy is presented and we find so much value and meaning in it.  Continue to be open to strategies that are presented by your colleagues and value the time that they have put into the presentation.




Kevin Stott

Keeping Students Motivated at the End of the Year

Keeping Students Motivated at the End of the Year

It's hard to believe that we are heading into our final month of the school year. As a write to you, my students are finishing up our last week of state testing. There is an atmosphere of excitement in my classroom as we celebrate completing state assessments. Students have been working hard for the past three weeks showing what they have been learning all year long. As we head into the next few weeks, it's easy for students to feel like the school year is over. While students (and maybe teachers too) may have a countdown to summer, the truth is that there is still a lot of learning to be had for the next few weeks. So how do keep students engaged after state assessments are over? Here are a few tips to help the remainder of the school year go smoothly.

"Learn from yesterday. Live for today. Hope for tomorrow." - Albert Einstein

Keep Routines

It’s important to keep routines  and schedules the same to encourage positive behavior in the classroom.  We will continue to keep our schedule the same until the end of the school year.  This will help to keep behavior problems to a minimum and also help students know what is expected of them.  

Kinesthetic Learning

Students in my classroom have been sitting quietly for three weeks during assessments.  Now is a great time to try out a few new Kagan strategies to get students moving as they learn. Try quiz, quiz trade to review math and grammar rules.  You can also use this strategy to learn new material too.  We are currently studying the gold rush in my classroom.  Students are using this strategy to learn new vocabulary used during this time in California history.

Project Based Learning

A while back, I wrote about the GATE Gala that takes place at my school every year.  This event will be happening next week and we couldn't be more excited to share what we have learned so far.  Students are currently working on presentations about the countries they are researching, models of famous landmarks, creating board games with country facts, and more.  

In addition to this event, I have a few more activities to keep students motivated.  For example, in math we will be working on creating a map of a gold rush town that includes area and perimeter. 

Technology

While we use technology throughout the school year. Now is a great time to introduce students to new technology. Green screen, stop motion, slideshows, and coding are great ways to have students showcase what they have learned this year.

"How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard." -A.A. Milne

Whatever you have planned for the remainder of the school year, I hope that you keep in mind how much of an impact you have had in your classroom this year. For me this is such a bittersweet time of the year. My heart overflows with pride and joy as I see how much my students have learned. We have become a family. Now I have to prepare myself and them for the next school year. It will be difficult to see them move on to the next grade, but I am excited to see them develop as learners.

Learning and Teaching with Grace,

Alina

Flexible Seating Part 2

 This was my first year at attempting flexible like seating in my classroom, and now the end of the year is quickly approaching I would like to reflect on my classroom environment.  There are aspects of my experience with flexible seating I am really enjoying, and there are parts I will definitely be tweaking.  Overall, I am truly pleased I took a risk and experimented with flexible seating. The first part of this blog can be found here so you can read how I got started and resources I used.

Positive Takeaways

1.      Welcoming Environment

 The classroom environment is warm and welcoming.  I feel that the kids are enjoying the classroom set up, which is comprised of circle tables, tables of different heights, a couch, pillows and bean bag chairs.  They enjoy the novelty of the room set-up and look forward to sitting in different areas.   Parents and staff have made several comments about the classroom being welcoming and comfortable. The students also have options that work best for their learning styles, whether it is in a group of six, four, in pairs, or individually they have some control over their learning environment.   For me, this is my favorite classroom configuration. 

  2.  Student Collaboration

 Each seating area allows for student collaboration, and still is familiar enough the students can switch back to working independently with ease. It has been a fairly smooth transition for the students and myself. My favorite part of flexible seating is watching students collaborate and build on each other’s ideas.  The circle tables and communal seating lends itself toward discussion; however, making sure that students were able to control when they needed to talk and when they needed to listen took a bit of practice.  Honestly, it can still be a struggle at times.  As a final reflection, I believe flexible seating adds to student conversation and encourages them to share ideas and information.

Changes for Next Year
1.       Seating Contract

My biggest problem I have had is students mistreating the furniture.  Because this is a novel situation, there is an excitement and roughness some students bring to the classroom. They want to move the chairs, or they will hop up on them.  All of my furniture was second hand, so it has already had wear and tear.  Of course, I repaired and painted, but it was not in a place to be moved constantly. With that being said, a behavior expectation contract has been created.  Students will sign a contract to outline my expectation from the start. My current students helped create this contract.  I wanted them to contribute their input on how to respect classroom seating because they were, many of them for the first time, experiencing this setting first hand. Their perspective was important to include.  Hopefully, this will preserve furniture for longer than one school year. 

    2.   First come, first serve   

At the beginning of the year, I was trying to incorporate Reading Counts and PBIS into flexible seating.  I must remember to keep it simple.  The Library was for top readers in Reading Counts, and the Compass Corner was for students who were showing PBIS behaviors and were rewarded with a Compass Card (PBIS reward ticket).  Next year, these areas are going be on a first come, first serve basis with a caveat. In order to sit and stay in those areas, students must show respect, responsibility, honesty, and integrity.  Which will also be a part of the behavior contract that I mentioned previously.  Simplifying when and how the students will sit in these areas, I’m hoping, will add to my classroom management.  Meaning there will be fewer behavior issues because a positive reward is in place for the students, and they will have a choice in where they sit.  The expectation is not perfection, but increased positivity and happiness in my classroom.

I’m extremely happy with my decision to try out flexible seating in my classroom, and over the summer I will be on the lookout for different pieces to add to the classroom. Flexible seating builds responsibility, brings choice, and adds warmth into a classroom. 

Going Beyond the Limits

We are almost to the end of the 2018-2019 school year! It is hard for me to believe this is the last blog for this school year… we are down to the home stretch, people! Do not get me wrong, I love my students as if they are my kids, but we all need a break to rest, reflect, and record thoughts on how we influence the lives of 20-30 little ones each year. We should ask ourselves questions to engage in reflection. Did we engage in our best teaching? Did we provide a setting that allowed students to capture and flourish in the beauty of their dreams? Whether you answer yes or no to these questions, you have to remember that you instilled new learning to inquiring minds and that is powerful in itself!

“A teacher affects eternity; no one can tell where their influence stops.”    ~Henry Brooks Adams

I started the school year reminding educators that you are not alone on your teaching journey. As you begin to reflect on how this school year went, look to see if it was different in any way. Did you connect with peers to discuss curriculum, standards, expectations and/or lesson plans? Did you make your practice more engaging by adding new strategies? Awesome job if you did! If you did not, then as you begin to write your reflections think about the modifications you can make next year. Remember that as you may be uncomfortable with change, you are challenging yourself to do something new. The new challenges can lead to immense professional growth, giving you the confidence to lead and generate a positive environment where the possibilities can be endless.

“Our borders and our obstacles can either stop us in our tracks or force us to get creative.”   ~Amy Purdy

 As you increase your confidence through reflection, remember that you are not alone! Everyone goes through fear of the unknown when changes come about. Know that you are teaching students that may be feeling the same way throughout their educational journey. As educators, we want our students to know that their level of confidence is crucial for success as well. Read my blogs this year to learn that growth is evident when we seek to improve the foundations of all learning. If a child is lacking confidence, the child may still be struggling in reading. Reading is the foundation of all learning! Teaching a child to read, teaches the foundational skills that make way for inquiry, investigation, and making connections for understanding to take place. When a child has confidence in reading, you build upon their language and literacy skills, stimulating the brain to go on many adventures dreaming the impossible! Let's practice what we teach. 

Go out this year believing YOU and YOUR Students can live and learn beyond limits! At the beginning of the school year, I have my students watch this Ted Talk with Amy Purdy to gain confidence and believe the impossible is possible. As you watch, I hope it inspires you too!
https://www.ted.com/talks/amy_purdy_living_beyond_limits?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare  

Have a Splendid Summer Terrific Teachers!

                                                                  Live, Love, Teach!

The Importance of Showing Not Telling for Writing Instruction

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Writing instruction has always been my area of weakness as a teacher (If I'm honest, it was always my area of weakness as a student). I’ve always struggled with how to differentiate the instruction for the different needs of my students. In my first year as a teacher, I can remember providing an essay prompt, and then saying, “Ok, start writing!” I remember grading those essays and feeling confused about how different they all were. My second year teaching, my site adopted the writing program “Write from the Beginning.” I fell in love with the use of the thinking maps for the brainstorming and planning stage of the writing process. However, many of my students were still lacking a strong introduction or conclusion paragraph or didn’t have well-organized body paragraphs. I found myself struggling how to teach them the skills of writing without providing too much for them.

“Doesn't it help to scrutinize that already-assembled bookshelf display at Ikea before going home to those often confusing instructions? (Clearly, I speak from experience on this one.)”

Using Mentor Texts to Motivate and Support Student Writers

By Rebecca Alber

Showing not Telling

Generally speaking, most people find it easier to complete a complex task when they have a model to reference. Think of a Lego instruction booklet. They don’t just give you a 1000+ piece set and say, “Now, build a pirate ship.” If they did, not many adults would ever buy them for their children. Instead, the instructions provide pictures of diagrams and images showing where the next couple of pieces should be placed.

Using a mentor/model text for writing instruction is like a Lego instruction booklet. The mentor text provides a model of an end product (pirate ship a.k.a. an argumentative essay, personal narrative, etc.) and has examples of where to “place” the claim, thesis statement, evidence, descriptive details, etc.

Using a mentor text has proven to help my students over the past couple of years. This notion of showing them what a claim looks like in an argumentative essay helps them to form their claim when the time comes. Likewise, they can see firsthand how descriptive details can help the reader imagine and understand the setting better.

Using Mentor Text Before, During, and After Writing Instruction

1. I choose a mentor text or two before I introduce our next genre of writing. The Wonders adoption has some great “student drafts” to choose from. I have also done a simple Google search to look for mentor text before (i.e.” 6th-grade argumentative essay student draft”). The website Thoughtful Learning might be useful when looking for student drafts as well. If I can’t find something that helps with the writing prompt I am going to assign, I write my own mentor text.

2. 

   Mentor Text for Argumentative Writing

   Next, I make enough copies for all of my students with the writing rubric attached. We first read over the rubric, so they know what they will be graded on, and then we read and annotate the mentor text together. At this point in the year, I try to make this process more student-led by asking questions. For example, what do you notice about this author’s introduction paragraph? How do we know this author supports this or that? What do you notice about this author’s word choice? Then, using the rubric, we score the mentor text and discuss why that author earned a two instead of a 3. What could they have done differently? What should add in during
3. During the writing process, I remind students who seem to be struggling with their next steps to take out their mentor text and reread our annotations. This helps them to transfer the thinking we did together and apply it to their own essay. For example: If they can identify how the author used evidence to back up his/her claim, then they can see how to do the same for their own essay. This step helps me as the teacher, see where they are getting stuck.
4. Before my students publish their best work, we take out the mentor text and rubric and compare our essays to it. This step is where many of my students make revisions/edits to their drafts. At this point, I use the mentor text as a checklist for them. “Do you have a thesis/controlling idea? Let’s look at the mentor text to see an example of one?” “Did you use academic language?”
5. After everyone has turned in their essays, and as I grade them, I look for new mentor text to use in the future. This step is essential for me, as it helps me to plan for my next writing instruction. Here I can see what my students need to practice as writers.

Happy Writing!

Jenni Merry

Children: Full of Life

If you have read my posts this year, you may be aware of my instructional focus on writing all year long.  One of my main writing routines has been Reflect and Respond Journaling in which students are given an interesting writing stimulus such as a picture, a video, a quote, or a prompt.  They are to reflect first and then to respond in whichever manner they wish in their journal.  Afterward, they are invited to share their writing through our Author's Chair in the classroom.

However, I wanted to share with you a very powerful documentary I watched many years ago and forgot about it until recently.  In this documentary, a 4th-grade teacher in Tokyo instructs his students to write their true feelings through letters in their notebooks.  They read these out loud in front of the class.  By sharing their lives, the children begin to realize the importance of caring for their classmates.

It truly demonstrates the power of writing to empathize with others, be vulnerable through writing and how writing can create a classroom community.  It is truly inspiring.  As we move towards the testing season, let us not forgot the importance of instructing the WHOLE child.  There is no test that can measure the character of our students other than how they treat others.

Be warned....if you can make it through the first 10 minutes without shedding a tear, you are strong!  Enjoy.

Happy Writing!

Gustavo Macuil

Poetry Madness

Every year it is a challenge to bring in some great examples of interesting and thought provoking poetry which connects to our unit of study.  Each time I am usually met with groans of frustration at "hating poetry."  I even hear the same responses from other teachers and I get it...poetry IS hard because it is often not straightforward, but it doesn't have to be groan-inducing.

An amazing reversal poem
written by an inspired student..
Read each line top to bottom
then bottom to top.

This year I wanted to try a different approach.  I had seen mention online of an approach other teachers take and I decided that what my students really needed was to find enjoyment in reading poetry, not to understand structures and analyze difficult texts. Poetry March Madness was the key to my struggles!

Honestly, I was not expecting this to be as exciting as it ended up being for my classes but it ended up being what they looked forward to every day.  I went from hearing, "Ugh. A poem." to "Are we going to read poems today?" and in the end I even had kids voluntarily writing poems emulating the structures of some that we looked at.  Amazing, right??

Really this was a pretty simple thing once I had it all set up.  Here is what I did.

Five Steps for Poetry Madness Success

1. Select 16 poems. I used lists I found online, poems recommended by other teachers, and poems that connected to our current novel unit. I tried to pair each set of poems by subject or style.  Then I placed them in the brackets.  Poetry March Madness Brackets
2. Read two poems with your students every single day. 
3. Briefly discuss the poem ("What did you like about the poem? What do you think the point of it is?")  Keep the discussion brief and positive. This took no more than 10 minutes each day. I printed both poems side by side and also projected them onto the board.
4. Allow students to vote for their favorite of the two poems. I used Plickers and Google Forms but also sometimes had them get up and move to the right or left side of the room according to their votes.
5. Repeat the process for all eight pairs/16 poems.  Round 2, 3 and the finals will be quick. (See the video for how the bracket works). The whole process takes 15 days.

Things I learned in the process
1. Choose equally amazing poetry so that it is difficult for students to decide.  I was able to turn some of the discussions into an impromptu Philosophical Chairs discussion because they were struggling to decide.  When we read "Nothing Gold Can Stay" and "We Real Cool," I only had a few votes for "Nothing Gold Can Stay." I knew if they talked it through, the votes would change. I let them debate a few minutes and the final vote ended up being really close in all groups.
2. Reflect on the discussions from students and make adjustments. Next year I'll probably adjust the first four poems.  They were great for round one but didn't really stand a chance in rounds 2 or 3 because there wasn't a lot of depth to them. I also ended up changing two poems near the end because of the timing we would have read them. It would have given away a big plot point in the novel we were reading if I had kept them.
3. Don't tell them that "The Rose That Grew From Concrete" was written by Tupac until after they discuss and vote.  I learned this one quickly and changed my approach for the second class!

Our School-wide Read unit after testing focuses on poetry and I know that getting my students excited to read, analyze, and then write poems will not be hard this year!

Comment below with something that you tried out and found that it worked better than you expected it to.  I can't wait to see what you share!

Keep the magic alive,

Kandyce Valverde
Follow me on Twitter for more classroom updates! @valverderules 

Poet Today- Known Tomorrow

The Poets of Today, Will Be The Voices of Tomorrow

Poetry? Exactly what is poetry? Is poetry merely a writing genre that spirals through our Language Arts curriculum, which we hope to cover before we move on quickly to the next writing task? Perhaps it is much more than that.  Poetry can be an avenue, which allows our students to exercise their artistic expression, a gateway for our students to share their most intimate fears and goals in a safe environment, free of judgment and without prejudice. Well, I in no way consider myself a poet, but I can tell you that poetry is the latter. As a teacher, I promote the art of poetry and encourage all of my students to fall in love with the writing genre that is free of writing conventions and allows even our most at-risk student to shine through the pages it is written on.

Poetry in Our Classroom

For the past three years, I have had the honor of being a part of OMSD’s Annual Poetry Day event. All students from our district are invited, and encouraged, to share their artistic abilities with everyone through the medium of poetry in hopes of being recognized at the district level on the day of the event. Because of this, I have learned to appreciate the importance of providing students with opportunities to express themselves in writing beyond the margins, lined pages, and rubrics we so often use. I have witnessed kindergarten students entertain us with their light-hearted humorous views on life, as well as eighth-grade scholars who dazzle the committee with their writing. So, how do we as teachers promote such individualized expression into our already overcrowded schedule?

“Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.” –William Wordsworth

Let’s Get Started

First, we must all remember that Poetry is one of our target writing genres and we must actively make time to introduce it. Introduce the use of effective technique, descriptive details, and academic language directly related to poetry.

Next, the easiest way that I have learned over the years to tackle poetry is to link it to the highly coveted VAPA projects, we so seldom get to. A quick art lesson is a great way to get their creative juices flowing and before you know it, VOILA!... they are using their imagination to draw and write about their feelings and ideas all at once.

Finally, publish it! Students love to see their work displayed in the classroom. Publishing their poetry allows students to feel accomplished and helps make the room part of themselves. However, because poetry can sometimes be a very personal journey and one that may have been difficult to put in writing, let us remember always to ask our students for permission before we display it for the world to see.

Join Us

So I leave you with this invitation…

Please join us at our 7th Annual OMSD Poetry Day event this Saturday, April 13th from 9 am-Noon at Linda Vista Elementary, as we celebrate the Poets of Today- Who Will Be The Voices of Tomorrow.

Hoping to inspire through her words,

Yvonne Milian

New Teacher... Always!

New Teacher?... Always! 

My first year as a teacher, I sat with my principal Arturo, in his office, who shared with me some advice on what he believed to be the secret to happiness. He shared, "If you want to be happy every day, the secret is to choose a career that brings you joy. In turn, you will take that joy home and never feel like you have worked a day in your entire life." I have to say that 13 years later that is still the best advice I have ever received.

The path that my career has taken me on has not been an easy one. I came into teaching at a time when there were no permanent positions available, and I was labeled a 'New Teacher' for the first ten years of my career due to my Temporary status. 

As a new teacher, back in 2006, I bounced around from one elementary school to another hoping to catch an assignment each year. As a new teacher, I soon learned that to be successful, I had to be as nurturing as possible and 'feed' my career daily. Now 13 years later, I can look back and appreciate all the obstacles I had to overcome to get here, and more importantly, all that I have learned because of it. 

What I Learned...

The first thing that I learned was that I was here for our kids. I chose a career that asked that I put the needs of my students before mine every day. I was here to make a difference in their lives and only to make choices that would, in turn, benefit my students. 

The second thing I can honestly share that I learned was that I had to go above and beyond, raise my learning curve with every opportunity provided, try my best to be the hardest working person in the room, and in turn my students would directly benefit from this.  

Finally, I learned to get involved! I find that this can sometimes be the most difficult to master, yet it is the one that has given me the most in return. I had to be part of as many projects as I could on campus. I had to be in the trenches helping make decisions that would directly impact our students. I wanted to help lead committees and run enrichment programs that my students would benefit from.  

"There is no magic to achievement. It's really about hard work, choices, and persistence." -Michelle Obama 

How Can You Do This...

1. First, LOVE what you do. For myself, it has proven to hold true that if you love what you do, you will never feel like you have a worked a day in your life.


2. Raise your learning curve daily. We encourage our students to do this- so why not do the same! Learn something new, try something new; become that lifelong learner we so eagerly work for in our classrooms.


3. Get involved! There are so many committees and projects happening at each of our school sites, and they are waiting for people just like you who are excited to be a part of them! Ask your site principal to help you choose the project which will be the perfect fit for you! 

Finally, I have to share that the most important thing I have learned is that I will always strive to be an expert learner in what I do. Now, this by no means should be interpreted as me being an expert at anything (seriously insert LOL) what it means is that I will always strive to be the best, just as I did when I first came into teaching because that is what our students deserve... the best.

Your lifelong learner,
Yvonne Milian