Other Words for Home Book Review

Summary according to Goodreads: 

Jude never thought she’d be leaving her beloved older brother and father behind, all the way across the ocean in Syria. But when things in her hometown start becoming volatile, Jude and her mother are sent to live in Cincinnati with relatives.

At first, everything in America seems too fast and too loud. The American movies that Jude has always loved haven’t quite prepared her for starting school in the US—and her new label of “Middle Eastern,” an identity she’s never known before. But this life also brings unexpected surprises—there are new friends, a whole new family, and a school musical that Jude might just try out for. Maybe America, too, is a place where Jude can be seen as she really is.

Review: 

Hi all! We are back with another book review for you today! As an educator, I am always reflecting on how I can improve for my students to help them reach their fullest success. I want to make sure they see themselves where ever they look. When it comes to books, I am working on diversifying our classroom library. In my search, I came across Other Words for Home. 

As you read from Jude's perspective, you feel yourself take on the emotions she is feeling through her lyrical narrative. As the reader, you are transported into her world and go through her experiences as if you were walking alongside her. There were so many times I just wanted to reach through the book, hug Jude, and reassure her that she isn't alone. 

The book opens up your eyes to the reality of what life is like in Syria and how we across the ocean barely bat an eye. To read from the perspective of a young, Arab girl who is coming of age is telling enough on how we have been sheltered and conditioned to turn our heads while children in Syria live through it. 

There is great character growth too. As you read, you watch Jude go from terrified to gaining confidence in a new world to coming terms that there can be many words for home than just one. That one never forgets where they are from even if they are not there. 

You will not be able to put this book down, and you will be finding yourself rapidly turning the pages in order to continue absorbing Jude's story. 

Teach to Grow Podcast: Episode 1- Here's to New Beginnings

One of my good friends Maryam and I did a thing... we created a podcast!!

Creating a podcast and then speaking/leading a podcast is the furthest thing out of my comfort zone. Creating a podcast was one of those things that were always said lightly between Maryam and I. Maryam came to me one day extremely determined to do this, and I jumped on board! 

Our purpose/why for this podcast is to create a place where educators - both new and veteran - could learn they aren't alone in experiencing situations. When we increase our momentum during the school year, there are times where we may feel boggled down with all the responsibilities or overwhelmed even. Now that Maryam and I just finished our first year (what a rollercoaster that was!), we wanted to share our experiences and how they taught us to grow into strong educators for our students. 

This first episode Maryam and I dive into how this podcast came to be and what you can expect from us if you choose to join us each week or just want to pop in every once in a while to say hello! 

You can find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and by clicking here!

Let us know what you think!

~ Meredith 

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing Book Review

Title: Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing

Author: Judy Blume 

# of Pages: 120

Reading Level: Q

Summary according to Goodreads: 

Life with his little brother, Fudge, makes Peter Hatcher feel like a fourth grade nothing. Whether Fudge is throwing a temper tantrum in a shoe store, smearing mashed potatoes on the walls at Hamburger Heaven, or trying to fly, he’s never far from trouble. He’s an almost three-year-old terror who gets away with everything, and Peter’s had it up to here!When Fudge walks off with Dribble, Peter’s pet turtle, it’s the last straw. Peter has put up with Fudge for too long. Way too long! How can he get his parents to pay attention to him for a change?

Review: 

I remember this classic being read aloud to my class when I was in 3rd or 4th grade. As I kid, I was always curious and hanging onto each word to find out what Fudge would do next and hear Peter's reactions. One of my guided reading groups this past school year read this novel, and I couldn't help myself but to go back down memory lane with Fudge and Peter. 

You follow along with Peter as he narrates what life is like with his little brother Fudge. Judy Blume does a wonderful job helping you feel the irritation and sadness of Peter when he doesn't receive the same amount of attention as Fudge as well as the understanding and growth when he learns time and time again that his parents do truly love him - not less and not more than Fudge.

It's a fast read that has readers turning pages to find out what the next shenanigans will be that Peter, Fudge and their friends find themselves into. 

How to Incorporate into the Classroom:

~ Class read aloud

~ Small group for guided reading

~ Whole group novel study

Summer Reading Menu with Templates

How are you? I am currently taking some time to be outdoors relaxing on my front porch enjoying listening to the summer sounds of people chattering on walks and lawns being cut. The way the school year ended was weird, but these sounds still arrived with summer. It's bit comforting amidst this uncertainty.

With America's new launch into space, there comes a feeling of excitement and thrill of what will come next. I am taking advantage of this feeling and applying it to my own new chapter that I am launching into of blogging and creating content to help other educators. 

No need to wait until January 1st to turn over a new leaf! 

As you work towards wrapping up the last strings that hang in front of you and summer break, I come to you with a Summer Reading Menu with correlating templates! 

My 4th Graders were sent home with expectation of reading one book of their choice! My teammates and I wanted to expand on whichever book they chose. The outcome was this reading menu and templates that come in one packet for easy access. 

In this product you will receive: 

~ A pre-made reading menu

~ 9 different activities that hit on different reading skills from character traits to setting

How to Use:

~ Accompany a summer reading book

~ Extension activities 

~ Early finishers

~ Small Group

~ Independent reading project

You can check out this this product by clicking here!

What did you send home with your kiddos for the summer (if anything)? I would love to hear down in the comments!

Until next time, 

Meredith 

5 Thing I've Learned during this Pandemic

Ever since COVID-19 has hit our territory here in the United States, many of us have found a lot of extra time on our hands. This extra time could be filled with online teaching, teaching your own kids and students (Bless you! Special place in paradise for you!), finding a new hobby, intense spring cleaning, and finding alternative methods of taming your Starbucks fix. 

We may not be in our preferred traditional classroom at this time, but that doesn’t mean learning has come to a halt! I am a strong believer that no matter our age or location we can learn something new. 

As the days at home begin to merge into one long period of time with no true concept of what day or time it is, I have decided to share five things I’ve learned during this. 

1. This is Not a Productivity Competition

I’m happy that you are finding time for your list of to do’s! However, you’ll find me being happy for you while I’m relaxing on the couch watching my 5th episode in a row of binging Dexter! Some days I knock out everything on my list while other days I don’t fill out one checkbox. I’ve learned that is absolutely OK! I found myself stressing out about how much others were accomplishing. Remember you are you and not them, and you need to focus on what you need. If you need to relax and watch Netflix then go for it! 

2. Prep To-Do List for Online Teaching is Nothing Compared to Regular Prep. 

I will never take for granted nor complain about how tedious prep was before the whole online teaching. Everything I create or prep to prepare for the week takes double or triple the time. I don’t mind, because at the end of the day my kiddos are learning and interacting with me still in a new format. In my mind, everything is quicker with technology. This whole experience has shown me a different perspective. 

3. The Creativity of Passing Time

We have all gotten down to business to defeat the boredom and the prevention of seeing those we love and going to places that bring us joy. I’ve had more virtual movie nights with my friends than we ever had in person. In a couple nights, we will be trying out virtual card games. The creativity that I see on social media for entertaining and educating kids all day demonstrates all of our capabilities of making the best out of the situation. 

4. Putting Our Patience is a Virtue to the Test

We are practicing this while we wait for all of this to come to an end. We are being patient with ourselves as we learn this new way of working from home, meeting our families’ needs, and our own needs. We have been and will continue to encounter new methods that we want to implement to better our students’ experiences. Be patient. Take your time. Practice what we tell our kids as they become frustrated or disheartened when it takes them a bit while learning something new. 

5. We Are Not Alone

I think the most important thing I have learned throughout this whole experience is that we are not alone. We are connected to each other through us banding together to still provide for our students. We are connected as we strive to create normalcy. We are connected by our determination to see this through until the end when we can be united with our loved ones and our students in celebration! 

You are doing amazing things from your new set-up at each of your homes. Be open to the unfamiliarity. Be willing to become students again in order to help our students. Be kind to yourselves as each of us progress at our own paces. 

My Hopes for the Second Part of Year One of Teaching

I may be a few days late to the new years resolutions but I am a reflector who goes at her own pace!

With the first half of my first year of teaching under my belt, there are some hopes that I have for the next half that will hopefully keep me focus on what I want to accomplish for the next five months.

1. Be present and patient with my students. 

There are times where I feel like the only thing I hear being said is my name over and over and over. Are there times that my tone in my response becomes a bit tougher than usually? I own up to it, yeah it does. I apologize for it. My hope the second half is to be patient and more understanding of why they are saying my name so much. Did I go through directions too quickly? Did I assume that they would just be able to pick up and go? Do I need to review a procedure? Find the root and address it.

2. Become more efficient with my time. 

This first half I really haven't set myself boundaries with how long I should be doing school related activities, such as grading, planning, and prepping. This second half of the year I want to be more efficient with my time. I don't want to come home from school anymore, take a hour break and then jump into another five or six hour work time with school related activities. I want to plan out ways that I can prep to get ahead, not bring home as much grading, stay on top of grading in general. To get to the point where I don't feel guilty for not working on school work.

3. Begin developing my own materials to help other educators. 

I hope to begin creating more products to share with other educators in the coming year. I have begun listing topics that I have struggled finding materials on, so in the coming months I will try to create products around these topics.

4. Continuing building She Believed So She Taught. 

I hope to become more consistent with posting and interacting with each you. I want to expand content by having more book reviews for books for your classroom libraries, professional development, self-care, etc. Having quick posts about pieces of food for thought. Continuing my series of a First Year Teacher Tips. Exciting things are coming!

5. Creating a more active lifestyle. 

There it is. The cliche new years resolution of exercising more and eating healthier. I make the same resolution each year for the same reason of never achieving it myself. This year I have invested in this resolution by becoming a coach. Accountability heightens when you are surrounded by others who have their goals they want to achieve.

What are your resolutions or hopes for the next five months until summer break or for 2020 as a whole?

Beginning a new year is a daunting task for many. 365 pages to have to get through before the next one. Determine what you want to accomplish - in the classroom, at home, with family, in business - and take the first step. Don't let yourself get comfortable.

My hope for you is that 2020 and the rest of the school year is a time of growth, stumbling, and success!

Thoughtful Thursday 1/2/20

Dumping Kids with IEPs into General Education Classrooms is not Inclusion

Link: https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/dumping-kids-with-ieps-into-general-education-classrooms-is-not-inclusion-2874f0f657c1

I came across the above article earlier today as I was procrastinating on the grading I brought home with me over break (oops!).

My wheels began turning. As a double major in Special Education and General Education (elementary), to see the difference between the two educators hurt. There's not many educators out there who can play both fields per se. 

I don't know much about either educator in the article. I just know what I read. The main thing I took away from this article though was how the importance to have knowledge in both fields is ever more pressing to have in order to teach the whole child in today's classroom. 

I know in college it was shoved repeatedly in front of us how we need to build an inclusive classroom for each and every student no matter their background, no matter their ability, no matter their economic level, no matter what. 

Teaching and interacting children who have special characteristics, unique struggles, and who are just plain different from us can be intimidating. We think to ourselves how am I supposed to relate to them? How am I supposed to teach them with x, y, and z in the way? Why didn't college prepare me for this?? 

You learn. You become the student again. 

There is  one thing that I always promise myself that I will do no matter how many years I teach. That promise is to never stop learning. I may hold the title of teacher now, but that does not mean I stop learning. 

Does learning take time? It sure does! Does the lightbulb or the method that works happen over night? Most likely not. However, is the success moment after many trial and errors, methods, articles read worth it? Yes, because you had a break through that impacted that child. 

By taking the time to research and be willing to step out of your comfort zone into uncomfortable territory where the learning happens, that is how you can begin relating and connecting to that student. 

Old habits take time to break. Trust me, I have several habits that I wish I could break. Getting into the habits of trying new ways, materials, methods, strategies can be a breakthrough for your student. 

Every child is a different learner. Some may have similarities but most of the time not all of your tools in the toolboxes will work successfully for each child. 

Learning takes that fear away and lets the growing begin.