Teachers Notes

  Re-Visit and Re-Engage With the shift in classroom dynamics after winter break I was reminded by a colleague the importance of core competencies and how integral they are to the structure of the classroom as well as planning and classroom goals. I cannot believe that I didn't think of this myself but there is so much on our plates as teachers it must be pretty common to let a few balls fall when juggling everything! Now that it's on my mind I have revisited the BC Curriculum and looked at my planning for the next several weeks. Some of the core competencies that I am going to focus on moving forward are social awareness as this will help my students focus in on valuing diversity in the classroom. As part of this we will look back at the First Peoples Principles of Learning and have a class meeting about how we can better engage with these tools in day to day classes. https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/competencies/personal-and-social/social-awareness-and-responsibility As I am plan...

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Do you need to implement SEL/SLR strategies into your classroom? Well, I can hardly believe my first full semester as a teacher has already come and gone! Now here I am in the second semester with my students newly back from winter break and honestly, I am feeling a bit overwhelmed! It seems that over the holidays lots happened in the lives of my students and they have returned with a lot of big energy. Routines we had going at the end of December are no longer working as well and I think it is time to reassess!  Looking back through my notes from WKTEP yesterday, I was reminded how important Social Emotional Learning is and have decided to re-introduce some of these strategies into my daily classes! I found this really helpful website that explains SEL/SRL and provides strategies and ways to apply these in the classroom for both my students and myself as a teacher. Here is the link:  https://sites.google.com/view/selsrlcasestudy/practical-applications-strategies?authuser=0

 5 Strategies for Multi-Age Classrooms As a new teacher with a multi-age and grade classroom I am leaning into these 5 strategies as they have been working really well for myself and most importantly, my students. 1) I have been using Universal Design for Learning (UDL) since day one. I incorporate UDL into each lesson by creating an access point for all my students, experiential learning opportunities, and a spiralling curriculum.  2) Each day we focus on Social Emotional Learning (SEL) by completing a morning check in and doing partner work to emphasis the importance of collaboration. Each week the grade 7 students pair off with the grade 6 students and these partners exchange ideas and share what they have learned or still need help with. These relationships are helping shape our classroom community as a safe space. 3) Each day we practice self care by allowing time for reflective writing or drawing. This time each morning allows space for each student to practice mindfulne...

  Morning Meetings with Ms. Gray Weekly Topic: Anti-Racism  As part of my role as an educator I believe it is vital to engage people of all ages in learning about anti-racism. Each month with my students we will gather as a class and have a conversation about what we can do as a community of learners to stand up against racism in our school and community beyond. The reason we will meet monthly on this same topic is because it is important to check in, make changes, and re-evaluate how we can best show up in the spaces we occupy. Since we are now three weeks into a new school year, relationships have begun to form, trust is developing within the classroom, and students are excited to begin working on important issues that they are passionate about.  As part of our conversation we brainstormed ideas of what we can do to be anti-racist and I have listed them below: As a class we will: Become allies by educating ourselves and others on the history of racism in Canada Be an ex...

 Let's Get Learning! Notes from Ms. Gray Hello and welcome to "Teachers Notes" a blog created specifically so that I can share about my learning journey as a new educator. Within the pages of this blog I will share updates about what my students are learning, how I am navigating being a new teacher, and much more! Although I am sharing specific things about my own classroom, I hope I can connect with other teachers as well as parents and other community members. I am really excited to announce that I will be working full time in a grade 6/7 split class this year. Thanks for following along! Ms. Gray