Getting Down with Education

Some of my readers might know that I recently switched careers to teaching…computer teaching to be exact. A few summers ago I worked at Technology Summer Camp and fell in love. I have always loved kids and wanted to incorporate teaching into a career somehow. I never in a million years would have thought I would have so much fun as a computer teacher.

I’m not the best at computers but I know more than I let on. I can get lazy with things like html or Photoshop simply because I feel my creativity lies in writing and in taking something and adapting it [i.e. taking an image or a clip art I like and recreating it or making it more me].

Last week was my prep week at work, and yesterday was my first day with students! To prepare, I made myself a Lesson Plan folder.

I could not find one to support my needs because most teachers in elementary have different subjects, not different grades. Often when someone does have different grades, it is not 10 different grades like me.

I happened to find at Staples a folder system that just blew my mind. It is called Arc and it is a completely customizable system. The pages sort of clip in instead of using rings so they are easy to remove.

I purchased a notebook, but took all of the papers out of it. I opted for sheet protectors so that I could easily interchange pages without them getting wrinkled or ripped.

I bought 50 sheet protectors and probably have about 30 of them in this folder. It is full, but like I said, I can change my pages easily. 

My curriculum is pre-written by the company I work for, so I do not have to worry about saving old lesson plans. Once the class is done, I can recycle them because a) everything is in Google Docs and b) they will probably slightly change next year.

I made different sections based on my needs with Post It tabs.

I absolutely love this sticker section. These tabs and stickable note sections are slightly see-through and clip right in. They were only $3.99 and I can see them being a huge help, especially on top of the sheet protectors.

The cute calendar is from this website. It is a free download and I love it so that I can take a look at the bigger picture.

On that same educational note, I have decided to take part in National Novel Writing Month. Nanowrimo seems amazing and my always creative best friend Bee got me into it. We are going to have writing parties on Fridays. She really is the best at getting my butt into creative gear. Even when we were in high school she always inspired me with novel writing, photography and creative layouts for the newspaper. Journalists unite!

The concept is really awesome. Through inspiration and support you are motivated to write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November. You then can be entered to win! In addition to online support, there are in person meetups, too. I am really looking forward to this. Be my Writing Buddy!

Now to come up with a novel idea!

Another fun thing I will be starting [aka going back to] will be Vlogs! Woo hoo! I am hoping to have the first one up on Friday, though I am nervous.

What is your favorite creative outlet?

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