Passionate educator. Tech Whiz. Lifelong Learner.
Classroom
Fun Facts about Ms. Check
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Years I Have Been Teaching: 6 years
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Number of Schools Worked In: 3 schools
Favorite Drink: Coffee Frappuccino with 5-7 pumps of Frap Roast ​
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Favorite Snack: Pita Chips or Pretzel Crisps
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Favorite Grade Level: Kindergarten or Third Grade (too hard to decide!)
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Favorite Children's Book: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
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Favorite Part/s about Teaching: Seeing the "lightbulb" go off when students understand a concept, Student growth academically and behaviorally
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What's New at countryside?
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This upcoming school year, Countryside Elementary will be transitioning to a new management system called Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS). The 2021-2022 school year was filled with many challenges, many of which included a spike in behaviors. Students showed disrespect towards other students and adults in their lives. Behavior referrals and interventions were at a high.
The administration took charge and decided to send a group of teachers to attend PBIS training. The 2022-2023 school year will be the first year we will implement this new system. In previous school years, I implemented ClassDojo for a behavior management system, where students would earn Dojo points for positive behavior. Instead, Coyote Cash will be handed to students for specific behaviors they exhibit such as appropriately walking in the hallway or being respectful to an adult. Those tickets will be entered into a classroom drawing and a school-wide drawing, where students can earn prizes for their positive choices. Students at the end of each quarter will also attend the Quarter Celebration, which includes fun activities such as the Prize Walk, Limbo, and even Kona Ice. ​
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There will also be a Coyote Code students will follow. They are three simple rules that have specific behavior expectations for each part of the school building, from the cafeteria, to the bathrooms, even outside on the playground.
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The Coyote Code is: Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Safe. There are specific expectations for each part of the school building. Posters are hung up in classrooms, hallways, bathrooms, and other locations for students to remember these expectations. With the Coyote Code, teachers are able to use the same common language amongst all students in the building from all grade levels. I am looking forward to seeing how the PBIS system will support our students for success in their behavior choices. ​
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What Happens in Room 208?
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Entering into Room 208:
In Room 208, students feel loved, cared for, respected, and appreciated. I will usually greet each student with a "Good morning ___________," followed with a hug or a high five. I am one of the first few faces my students see once they enter the school building. With a smile on my face, students get to their morning routine (e.g., hanging their backpack on their chair, putting their lunchboxes in the gray bucket, and getting to morning work). ​
Morning Circle:
Morning Circles are great to hear everyone's voice and to hear any announcements, discuss any issues that are happening in the classroom, and of course, hear what will be for lunch. Sometimes I read a read-aloud story in order to introduce a topic that students are having issues with, such as letting others play at recess or sportsmanship.
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Restorative Conversations:
Restorative conversations are conversations that allow students to have a voice in what really happened in a conflict, teaching students to resolve conflict with facilitation with an adult, and show empathy towards one another. Restorative conversations come from the philosophy of restorative practices. Restorative conversations are done when students exhibit inappropriate behaviors such as disrespect and defiance. I usually ask the students these questions:
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What happened?
What were you thinking at the time when this incident happened?
Who was affected by what happened? In what ways were they affected?
What do you need to do to make things right?
Students that are engaged in a restorative conversation tend to process their actions critically and can answer the questions truthfully. There may be some students who typically say "I don't know" when asked what they were thinking at the time, so probing and asking follow-up questions help them to unravel and figure out what happened. By having these conversations, it helps build the classroom community and helps students know what empathy is. ​
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Here I am with my students at a Be Kind assembly. This was our kickoff to Kindness Month.
Sometimes you have to take a selfie with your teacher.
Students had the opportunity to bring in their fluffy friend after earning their whole class incentive. These three students all brought Yodas!
Every month, I have students pick where they would like to sit. I believe they should have a say in who and where they want to sit. Here is one of my seating arrangements I tried this 2021-2022 school year.
As an end of the year reflection, Student J wrote his favorite part about third grade was "when my teacher is proud of me." He is a big success story that jumped leaps and bounds in his academics and behavior.
Writing was a strong subject for me and my students. We wrote whenever we could with the use of sentence starters and LOTS of modeling. Here is their holiday writing "If I Was an Elf."
Students need the time to get out of their seats and move around. Here are some of my students dancing to a GoNoodle brain break dance.
The weeks before Winter Break were difficult so to alleviate that challenge, I made a Bingo board. By the last day before break, they earned extra recess and technology time.
One of the ways I build a classroom community is to integrate team building exercises. This Charlotte's Web poster was done for our Read Across America wall decorations but also was a great chance for students to work together.
Student M and I at her choir concert.