Hello!

I spend hours on the computer each week.  I follow dozens of teaching blogs, crafting blogs and a couple that just make me laugh!  Pinterest is my new best friend or, on the days it has caused me to be late, my worst enemy.  I have discovered so many great teaching ideas and am so grateful to everyone who shares their wonderful creations and lessons.  This summer I have decided to spend some of that computer time sharing my own ideas about teaching first grade.
I have spent the majority of my 30 year teaching career working with first graders in one capacity or another.  I love watching first graders develop into readers, writers and mathematicians.  I don't think there is another grade where the students grow and change so much during the year.
Last summer I followed an online book study of Deb Diller's Math Work Stations book and spent a lot of time reacquainting myself with math after years of concentrating on language arts.  Next year I hope to take it a step further and really get into guided math.  My goal this summer is to work on ideas for guided math and to spice up my guided reading by adding new word work and higher level thinking activities.  I'm starting out by rereading The Next Step in Guided Reading.  As I read I'll share some of my thoughts and hopefully hear how others keep guided reading fresh.