Divali (Diwali) in Trinidad - Festival of Lights Livin' the Dream

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Livin' the Dream
Did you know that approximately 20% of Trinidadians are Hindu?  With such a large population, it's no wonder that Divali is such a big celebration here!

Beautiful street paintings - Shubh Divali

Divali is the festival of light and symbolizes the victory of light over dark, good over evil.  Here in Trinidad it is recognized as an official holiday.

The actual day coincides with the moon's phases as it is always on the new moon so it changes each year, and isn't even set until quite close to the date.  We found this out the hard way when the school calendar showed it as a long weekend but then the holiday Monday was taken away (we've been kicking ourselves ever since that we weren't proactive and pre-booked a long weekend getaway!) as the Saturday was decided to be Divali.

For the week or so leading up to Divali the Nagar site in Chaguanas hosts a huge exhibition.  The grounds were full of vendors, food trucks, businesses and a main stage with scheduled traditional performances.  It was quite the event!

The entrance at the Divali Nagar site, Chaguanas

On the night of Divali we decided to head to a small town in central Trinidad called Felicity.  This is where everyone recommends heading to see the lights and we weren't disappointed.  Almost every house puts out hundreds of deyas (little clay pots filled with oil and lit) all over their driveway, garden and walls.  Some create elaborate bamboo structures to hold them.  Many of the streets would get together and buy lighted arches to decorate the length of their block.  The pictures don't do it justice as, of course, it was dark but it was beautiful.  One block really went all out closing the street to traffic, lights everywhere, incredible paintings along the road and a stage set up for a performance later in the evening!

Deyas lit along the roadside

As we walked the streets in the dark (a rare privilege in itself here as we are constantly told not to walk anywhere after dark) people would chat with us from their driveways.  A number of people would flag us down to give us little bags full of Indian sweets!  Some we found to be tastier than others but what a lovely gesture.  Kerma was a favourite - kind of like sweet, sugar coated pretzels.  Barfi is hit or miss depending on the recipe used - it looks like fudge but not nearly as sweet.  For the life of me I couldn't remember the names of the others.

Indian Sweets

We are hoping that next year we will get a long weekend out of this celebration and will have the opportunity to travel so it was great to have the opportunity to see the cultural side this year!

Hallway Closet Makeover - finally!

Livin' the Dream
Almost 6 years ago we looked at what would eventually become our house for the first time.  My very first comment?  I don't like the entryway.  It was incredibly small and tight.  You couldn't even stop to take off wet, muddy shoes as the person behind you would be bumping into you and unable to close door.  We like the house overall and bought it but in my head, this hallway was always going to need some work!  The popcorn ceiling also wasn't my favourite feature but knowing that one needed to happen at the same time as the other, it all got pushed back again and again.  Finally, we had some pot lights installed and the dining room light fixture moved and needed to fix holes in the ceiling.  There was no way I was putting up more popcorn so the day came.

I didn't take nearly as many photos as I should and, most disappointingly, I didn't get a before picture.  (This was because I came home from England to find the hallway closet demolished by my super helpful husband!)  Imagine a built-in closet that came all the way to the edge of the door leaving no room to maneouver, and all the way to the garage door.  It was tight, closed off and dingy.

This is what welcomed me home after an 8 hour flight!

See the hole in the tile floor?  I really had no intention of retiling the hallway so, despite wanting nothing more than to get rid of those beige tiles, my plans had to work around covering up that gap.
Eventually, we got all remaining framing out, re-routed the electrical (apparently the original builders decided this was a perfect place to run the stove and dryer electrical work) with the help of an electricial friend and drywalled everything back up.  Thanks to some interesting framing by the builder, I ended up having to replace the drywall on half the ceiling as well as the obvious spots on the walls.  Gotta love when jobs give giving!  I left a piece of the original wall as this would be used as part of the bench's base and save more electrical work.

With the help of my dad and his router, and my 5 year old nephew, we made a much smaller closet.  The large section in the middle is long enough to hang coats (I measured my longest coat!) and there are four spaces to fit baskets for hats, gloves and scarves.

 

I then set about making a base for my storage bench.  Because I wanted to use the existing framework, include storage space, work around some tricky corners and cover the hole in the tile, it ended up being an interesting frame job.  I wouldn't follow my design and I wouldn't choose to build a bench in the same way again but it worked.  Less wood would be just as sturdy but in this situation would have been a much bigger hassle trying to attach everything together.

I finished framing the bench and closed it in.  I used a combination of drywall and MDF to  close in all the sides and inside, needing to keep the junction boxes that were hidden in the back accessible.  I gave it some trim detail to look a little more interesting and then it was time for some paint!

Already the hallway is looking larger and brighter!

My original plan had been to sew a cushion for the top but once I got this far, it just seemed too...white.  I ended up buying a piece of luon and staining it to match the large box I made for the space under the bench.  I put up a shelf and ended up making the gables as I couldn't find any as simple as I wanted.  You could buy them cheap at any hardware store though!  Attached some hooks and a hanging rod, and voila!

The wall still needs repainting but you can see the hanging and shelf space.

Finally, wall is repainted and a fun pop of colour added to the front door!

I still need to build a door to close in the mini closet but that's going to have to wait, and really, it works just fine without it.  When we get back into this house, the walls are going to become a grey colour and the light fixture will be updated to something more industrial/vintage.  But for now, I'm in love!

Tutorial coming soon on the little wooden sign sitting on the top shelf...

What do you think?  Have you got any ideas of how to make your entryway feel bigger and brighter?  What part of your house have you always wanted to change?

How I Document Learning - index cards, markbook and Google Forms!

It's that time of year again - report cards.  Urghh!  And if you're anything like me, you're thinking that you have, once again, not made nearly enough anecdotals throughout the term!  This is something I've struggled with throughout my teaching career and I've worked hard to find a system that I could actually manage successfully.  I need something that is quick, easy and doesn't require a lot of effort at the end of the term to make the notes meaningful.

Over the years, there have been three main systems that mostly worked for me depending on the grade I was teaching and technology available.

Grade Book Page - everything in one place!

A very long time ago I realised that it didn't matter if I took good anecdotals or not, if at reporting time I was left with piles of papers to look through, I probably wasn't going to use them.  I decided that I wanted my anecdotals right on the same page I recorded grades - no page flipping required!  I developed a grade book that, after a lot of cell merging and splitting and formatting issues, allowed me to record grades in all four categories (knowledge, application, communication and thinking) as well as include short anecdotals.  Here is a snapshot of what it looks like:

If you think this could work in your classroom, you can download the file here.

This allowed me to see all students' grades and anecdotals all on a double-page spread!  I would list the students down the left side, the summative assignments across the top, and by the time report card writing came around I would have up to 16 marks and anecdotals to help me write.  I used this with junior grades.  In primary, I found I needed more space for anecdotals.

Flipbooks

I got this idea from scouting Pinterest and coming across this image:

You can read the blog post from Thank God It's First Grade here.

Of course, I modified this idea by putting all the student cards on one side and leaving the other side blank for a 'code' sheet.  I had found over the years that I was either spending too much time writing too much, or developed a short hand which I often struggled to decipher when it came time to write reports.  I decided to create a list of codes for each subject that I could use to allow me to very quickly write short and sweet anecdotals AND remember what I meant down the road.  This also meant that I was able to record learning from more students in a shorter time frame.

FREEBIE!!   Click here to get a copy of my codes, or 'look fors'.

I created one folder for each subject and laminated them for durability before taping in each index card.  Unfortunately, I didn't think to snap a picture of them before packing the folders into a box but here are the codes I created.  I'll try to dig out the box and add a picture later!

Google Forms

When I switched to kindergarten I began looking for different ways to document.  Not only is kindergarten assessment made up almost entirely of anecdotals and observations, but I also had to be able to share these notes with my DECE.  The fact that iPads, iPods and smartphones are that much more accessible in the classroom also opened up new possibilities to me that in earlier attempts had been just plain frustrating.
I had used Google Forms in the past for tests but it had never occurred to me to use it for documentation until someone mentioned it at a workshop.  I was able to create a shortcut on every device we used, and at any point, anyone with access could add information.  When it came time for report cards, all the entries are compiled into one spreadsheet and can be sorted by student name, strand, date or however you wish.  This allowed me to look at all the patterning notes together if I needed, or all of 'Johnny's' notes in one spot.  If you prefer a paper copy, or want something more tangible for evidence, the spreadsheet can easily be printed too.

Here is a step-by-step guide to using Google Forms for documentation:

First log into your Google Drive account, click on the 'New' button and find 'Forms'.

You will be greeted with a pretty intuitive form creation page.

Simply click on the spaces to change the names.  I changed 'Untitled' to 'Math' and 'Untitled Question' to 'Student'.

To the right, you will be given the option of changing each question to either multiple choice, checkboxes, dropdown, short answer or paragraph.  Depending on the type of question you choose, the spaces to fill in the possible answers will appear below and you can add as many as you need.

On the far right hand side, there is a plus sign.  Click here to add a new question and repeat the process.

Make sure to include a short answer question at the end of each form to allow you to add any notes or observations.

When you are finished, you will click 'share' in the top right corner and this box will pop up:

Personally, I used the link to to open each form (one per subject area and one for behaviour notes) on the iPad, my phone and my DECE's phone and made a shortcut for each.  The home screen would then have a little icon for each form.  This way, with just one click I could easily document any learning that I witnessed as it happened without taking me away from the teaching for more than a few seconds.  Let's face it, after a long day, if I even remember something I wanted to document I probably wasn't going to actually sit down and do it!

TIP: to make it easier to find the form you need quickly, press and hold the icon to rename it.  I also changed the design/colour of each form so I could recognize the one I needed at a glance.

You must enter documentation through this link, NOT through the file saved in your Drive.  This is just where you can edit the questions, not add answers!

When you are ready to use all your amazing documentation to write reports, go back to Drive, open your file and select 'Responses' across the top.  You could click on the little green cross to put all this information into a spreadsheet to sort and organize to your heart's content :)

Here are some ideas for how to use each type of question:
Dropdown menu (choose one) - student names, expectations list
Multiply Choice (choose one) - strands, big ideas, achievement levels
Checkboxes (choose many) - skills demonstrated, checklist items, goals, success criteria
Short Answer/Paragraph - be sure to include one on each form  for your own notes and observations

How do you document your observations and record anecdotals?  Have you found something different that works well for you?

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Substitute Teaching - What The Classroom Teacher Needs to Know - FREEBIE!

After being a classroom teacher for 14 years, I have just finished my first three days of supply teaching.  It is totally different from the other side!

As a classroom teacher, following these suggestions will really help out your supply and make things run a little smoother in your absence.

Entry Routines
Having some sort of bellwork or independent routine that students know to begin immediately after each break is a huge help.  I began my first supply day having to wait for five or so minutes while students got settled and announcements finished before I was able to introduce myself and give them instructions.  My third day, they knew to enter and immediately begin silent reading - a huge difference!  In my class, my students would enter in the morning and complete a simple Language Arts bellwork.  After break, they would enter and complete a math 'number of the day' activity.
Click here to buy my Language Arts Bellwork pack for the whole year.

Seating Plan
My first day students entered and began sitting in what was very clearly their choice of seats.  I made it clear that I didn't mind where they sat as long as they were working and listening, and if not I would move them.  However, knowing whether or not they have assigned seating is very helpful to know if the class is 'pulling one over on you'.  And the students know that you can't be tricked that easily!  This way you can make the choice to maintain the seating plan or let them move.  In my second class, there was a binder with seating plans and the students were surprised (and dismayed) to discover I knew where they were supposed to sit.

Student Information
This is important for a variety of reasons.  The classroom teacher should be providing any special needs or accommodation information for safety reasons.  In addition, a note about students who would be great helpers, those that need redirection, any with challenging behaviour etc... is useful information.  When the supply is unsure of something, they want to get an answer they can trust.  When a child challenges them, it is helpful to know if it is a common issue or out of character.  If the sub knows a particular student struggles with self-regulation, they will hopefully react accordingly.

Finishing Work
Most teachers are great about ensuring there is something to do when classwork is done.  However, something that could be missing is what individual students should do while waiting for the others to catch up.  My supply notes included information on what the class should move onto if we completed all the assigned tasks.  What was missing was that the tasks included worksheets and textbook questions which students, of course, completed at different rates.  We of course had to wait for all to finish before we could take up answers or move onto a group component.  Knowing that they had books to read, or a test to study for, even an ongoing art project would be really helpful!

School Information
Emergency procedures should absolutely be included in your dayplans with careful instructions as to the protocol and where your class should go.  These change from school to school and class to class, as well as throughout the day.  Consider how these procedures will change if something occurs at lunch time or during gym or library classes.
Beyond that, as a supply teacher in a new school, my dayplan included information such as where to find the washrooms, when would be a good time to order cafeteria lunch and where exactly to go on lunch duty and who could help me.  I may not have thought to include a lot of that information in my own dayplans before but it really was helpful and I most definitely appreciated the thoughtfulness.

Add Some Fun!
I have most definitely been guilty of this time and again!  You know you are going to be away, you don't know who will be your substitute, it's too difficult to try to explain complicated activities, you think you are being kind...  Your dayplan is filled with quick and easy review activities, worksheets, independent book work.  I discovered very quickly my first day of supply teaching that such dayplans make the day very looong, and boring.  It also doesn't really help classroom management when the students don't want to do anything you are asking them to do!  I'm not saying plan elaborate, movement-filled activities - all the above reasons for not doing so still hold true - but perhaps schedule in a lighter task or even some time for a game.  I'm sure your students will enjoy their substitute teacher much more if they see them doing something other than handing out another worksheet.

FREEBIE!

Here is an editable version of my supply binder.  This file will give you an outline to include all the items talked about in this post.  You will need to make a copy of the file into your own folder and then edit away to make it match your school and class information!  Print it and put in a binder to keep available for any last minute absences.


What do you to as a classroom teacher to help your sub have a successful day?  What do you supply teachers out there find really helpful or wish was provided?  

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Back to School - Top 10 Tips for Getting Your Class (and you) Prepared!

This year is a little different for me, I'm actually on leave from my classroom in Canada and will be supply teaching here in Trinidad. So I can't really prepare much...  However, after 14 years of prepping a class, I have a few tips and tricks!

1.  Begin by thinking about the 'big picture'.

• What general class environment would you like?  What spaces are important to you - a carpet or meeting area? an art space? a quiet reading space? small group conference area?
• What hardware and furniture will you need to consider?  Do you have a projector or Smartboard?  Tables or desks?  

2.  Now design your physical space.  Furniture can be moved throughout the year, one of my favourite things to do, but being happy with an attractive, functional layout will go a long way to creating your students' first impression of how the year is going to go.  It also helps me put the other pieces into place a little easier after.  

If it's not your first year in a room then this is a little easier but still, think about what areas of your room worked for you last year, which areas were a source of frustration? Or maybe you just want to shake things up a bit and try something new.

3.  Decorate the room - but not too much!  I want my room to look inviting but I don't want it looking finished: that's for the kids. Have bulletin boards ready for work - background colour, title, border, whatever you choose to do to your bulletin boards EXCEPT actually filling them with premade posters. Leave them blank for a first day name art project, collaborative posters on rules and expectations, student goals,...

4.  Plan only the first two days in detail. These are filled with everything but curriculum - getting to know each other activities, lots of routines, rules (although I like to save these for a couple of days), and usually some administrative tasks - names missing from attendance, last minute registrations,...  It never goes smoothly no matter how well you planned. My first couple of days I tend to work from a list rather than a timetable as I never know how long something will take or when we will be interrupted.  I find my two day plan easily takes up the better part of the first week, so anything else was just a waste of my time!

5.  Make sure there is an independent task with CLEAR instructions for students as soon as they enter the class the first morning.  Not only does this set the tone that as soon as they enter the expectation is to begin work, it also gives you a chance to deal with the inevitable confusions and problems that crop up that first morning.

6.  Have plenty of time filler games and activities ready to go!  Make sure all photocopies you need for the first two days are done, it's easy to say you'll do all the photocopies later and then realize belatedly that you forgot! 

7.  Loosely plan the first two weeks.  I make a general outline on a chart for language, math and beginning of the year 'stuff'. Then, I work out how I would like it to fit in my timetable. This helps me make sure I don't let the kids get too bored on one subject.
Click here for a FREE example of mine from FDK last year!
Click here for a FREE example of mine from grade 6!

                    

8.  Keep work a little below grade level to begin with. Curriculum isn't supposed to start right away anyway in case of class changes and we want our students to start the year of positively and feeling success in their new class. Make work about collaboration with new peers, following new (and old) rules and routines and learning skills instead.

9.  Break them (and you) in gently. Summer is long and no one has had to sit and listen for a while. End the day with a big chunk of free time, or play an outdoor game together. You can decrease how early you stop working each day. 

10.  Build movement into activities. This will not only help to transition from summer, it will help the kids mix in different groups than they are perhaps used to and start the year off in a fun way.  One of my first activities each year requires them to get up and moving:  I might do a class BINGO or a scavenger hunt - it doesn't matter, as long as they are up and about and learning something about the class, you or each other.

FREEBIES!!

Click here for a BINGO game  

Click here for a SCAVENGER HUNT

11.  (OK, I lied about 10 tips)  Don't overplan - leave time in your planning to get to know your new group. Chat with them, learn what they like and dislike, hear about their summer, tell them about yours. Building a good rapport will be the most important thing you do for your classroom management all year!


How do you prepare for a new year?  Do you have any other tips?  Or maybe you do things differently.  I'd love to hear your ideas!

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Our First Two Weeks in Trinidad

Livin' the Dream
We have now been in Trinidad about two weeks and we have been busy!

Home at last!  Just a little luggage - the 4 pieces of hand luggage didn't make the picture.

Landing at 4:40am, we were taken to our new apartment to drop our bags and took off for breakfast and touring. By noon we had already visited a golf course to inquire about memberships, mall to learn about cell phones and a grocery store for, well, groceries, and picked up our 'new' car!

Over the first week we had a lot of list-checking to do but we also managed to fit in golf courses and squash club inquiries as well as watching a lot of squash at the CASA (Caribbean Area Squash Association) Senior Championships. It was the reason we arrived so early after all.  We even made it to the north coast for a beach day and a bake and shark!

What have we learned so far?

- Trinis are incredibly friendly, welcoming, helpful people. 

- The rainy season really is rainy. It rains every. single. day. 

- The driving is fun. They drive on the left here with lots of cars, few roads, poor signage and their own set of rules - no daydreaming allowed!

- They love to eat. Gym membership required...

- We scored an apartment with an amazing view!

The view from our rooftop patio :)

School starts tomorrow so holidays are officially over, settling in period is done and the real world beckons...