Last week we had our annual Open House.  This is a night in the spring when parents come to see all the hard work that the students have done over the course of the year.  To be honest, until I started blogging, I thought this was a normal occurrence.  I have been a part of the same district my entire life (went through my own education here, and now back to teach :) ) so Open House was just something we did.  Now I see that not everyone takes part in this outside of my own little bubble ;) Since you all don't get a chance to see the entire thing on a daily basis like I do, I thought I would take time to show off my room to you.  There are no lesson ideas here...just pictures of my room.  LOTS of pictures of my room.  All of the things here I have written about on my blog in the last few months or so though, so they can be found (and I will link them soon, I promise!)  So, without further ado....Room 6. From the front to the side of the room......

The other night, we had Open House.  Now, until I started blogging, I actually thought this was a normal ritual around the country.  Every spring, we open our doors to anyone and everyone to show off all the great work we have been doing throughout the year.  (we have Back to School Night in the Fall, where parents come to meet the teacher)  I have come to learn that this is NOT the norm, but nevertheless, it is a time honored tradition that we all here in CA have come to embrace (or not embrace, depending upon who you are ;) )   And in the tradition of Open House, I am going to open my classroom to you today.  So there will be no lesson plan or activity explanation.  Simply a tour of my room and all the great work that the students have done. So without further ado.....Room 6. Whole Class Views View from the front door.  I ADORE my rug.  Simply adore. Another front door view.  Now you can see all of my tables.  I ha......

Click here to access the Circle Map The BEST idea I ever borrowed from another teacher was this little gem from my friend Risa.  I was looking for something to have my early bird parents do during Back to School Night while they milled around, waiting for everyone to show up.  Risa came to my rescue. She had the idea of having the parents make a list of all the things that they would like me to know about their child.  I turned it into a Circle Map (and my love of Thinking Map continues...) and set them out on the desks. What I got back in return was THE MOST REWARDING AND EYEOPENING perspective of the students in my class.  Reading the responses allowed me to see these children for who they are....children.  These kids are the world to someone else.  They mean just as much to another mother as my own children mean to me.  They make someone smile at the drop of a hat, make them cry in the blink of an eye, and make them instantly proud, worried,......