Annie Forest

Here I am at 35 weeks!  Thanks for following along with me on this journey!  It's bittersweet to be coming to the end of the school year with my 8th graders.  They have been along for this pregnancy journey too and when I look back on being pregnant I know I will remember these students for being a part of it. This group of kids were a good group and it's always a little sad to say good-bye and watch them graduate… but on the other hand, it is exciting to be at the end of another school year and feel like they have really learned so much and are ready to move on to high school. Since my first year of teaching, I have realized the importance of having a few little projects or activities in my back pocket for the end of the school year.  With weird schedules, disruptions, end-of-the-year procedures, and lack of student motivation, it is important to have some interesting things to do with the students that keeps them busy and engaged! One of my favorite...

Whoa… large circumference! Week 34 It's a little less fun getting dressed in the mornings for school.  Finding tops that fit is getting to be a challenge.  I'm still dealing with my swollen feet so that is why you are seeing these coral flats a lot-- there are 1 of the 3 pairs of shoes that fit. Being an 8th grade teacher this years brings a lot of end-of-year events that I have to attend in the evenings that makes for long days.  The other night I attended an event called Best of Berwyn where students in the community are recognized for achievement and service.  It is such a great event and I was so proud that 3 of the top 20 are kids I teach.  At the event, they announced the winners and 2 of my students were in the top 3 and 1 was the overall winner!  Best of Berwyn: Top 3 (my students are the two on the right)

My students have been blogging for a few months now and it's going great!  I highly recommend it as a reflection tool. I've tried to comment on each student's blog at least twice and I encourage the students to comment on each other's blogs.  When I'm looking at the blogs I do notice the difference in detail, explanations, and understanding that each student writes.  I wanted a way to showcase the students that are doing great math, writing interesting reflections, or just have something about their blog that stands out among the rest.  I decided to try a "Weekly Blog Hall of Fame" where I provide links to the posts that caught my eye so that the students can check them out.  Hopefully, by seeing these examples, it will help everyone step up their game with their own blogs. Here are last week's picks: Last Week's Blog Hall of Fame These students did some great math! http://michelledmathblog.blogspot.com/2014/04/graphing-standard-for...

Here's the pic from last week (32 weeks).  I still have super swollen feet, so I'm limited to 3 pairs of shoes that fit… it is making it tough to get around the classroom, but the kids have been great and really sweet.  I asked a girl to get me my water bottle off my desk and bring it to me and she almost ran to get it! When I wore this same shirt in the picture to school my students said I looked like eos lip balm !  Ha ha, I kind of do see the resemblance! 32 weeks pregnant = eos Lip Balm?

It's no secret that one of the ways to get better at something is to teach it!  Being able to analyze how something is done, organize your thoughts, and present it to others can be a powerful learning tool.  I wanted my students to have this experience in math class.  We are learning about using substitution to solve systems of equations.  I gave students a choice of which problem they wanted to explain.  They then made a "how to" video and I taught them how to embed their video on their math blog. Check out these examples of student's videos! Daisy B Kyra R

30 weeks and I'm getting lots of kicks from Baby Girl!  I also have pretty swollen feet so I only have about 3 pairs of shoes that fit.  My students are being so nice and encouraging me to put my feet up… but that doesn't work too well when you are a teacher!  My best classroom management tip is proximity, so walking around is key.  I'll just have to make sure I can rest a bit on the weekends. :) 30 weeks (pic taken in the nursery)

Here is the desktop background I'm using this month… super cute and Springy! :)