This guest post is written by Lauren DeIntinis @laurendeintinis, a 2nd Grade Teacher in Manassas, Virginia. Check out more of her information at the end of the post.
My name is Lauren DeIntinis and I am a 2nd grade teacher at the FABULOUS Ashland Elementary School in Manassas, VA. I am originally from Pittsburgh, PA but have lived in Virginia for three years as an elementary teacher. I started in school as a Psychology major and wiggled my way into education on a very windy path.
Though not what I originally planned on doing, teaching has become the most important aspect of my life and something that I can honestly say I am in LOVE with!
Besides getting a salary to teach, laugh and love my students every day, the second most rewarding aspect of the job is interacting with other educational professionals. Thanks to the brilliance that is social media, interactions now go beyond the walls of a school and can be made across counties, states, and even countries.
BLOG BROWSIN’
One of my favorite “free time” activities is blog browsing! There are hundreds of amazing teacher-run blogs out there that are like an encyclopedia to education. Everything from organization tips, communication tips, and lesson plan ideas can be found organized (usually chronologically by month, OMG I die…) and have great resources to be shared! These are then linked up to social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Teacher Pay Teacher to be stored and shared once again. It’s like a big party that I (and you) are invited to!
THE CORNERSTONE
One of my favorites (seriously, ONE of probably a dozen I check regularly) is The Cornerstone by Angela Watson. Ms. Watson is a National Board Certified Teacher with twenty years of teaching experience and over ten years of successfully running her website packed full of “ideas that make teaching more effective, efficient, and enjoyable”. I first found The Cornerstone after joining Watson’s 40 Hour Teacher Workweek Club (click and subscribe, it’s GREAT) and have followed ever since. She glows with positivity and appreciation for the true purpose to teaching. Her latest book Unshakeable: 20 Ways to Enjoy Teaching Every Day…No Matter What is another great resource for educators and provides inspiring ideas to get more from teaching each day.
POSITIVITY, PERSEVERANCE and PASSION
Watson shares 20 meaningful messages for teachers to use and share in their classroom to promote positivity every day. That word positivity caught me as I was reading, because it is THE word that I decided to use as a vehicle for 2016 year. I wanted to challenge myself to make a conscious effort in the New Year to show, teach, and expect positivity in my classroom. This is the environment that I have the most control of, and the environment that is the most important to me. I want my kids to know that with a positive attitude the hardest tests are passable, the meanest kids can be you friends and the worst days are going to end up OK. If I can teach them that at 8 years old, then I did my job.
Watson’s 20 Ways provided me organized, visual ways to display this message in my classroom. My goal is to introduce each message at the start of the week, track and share ways we interpreted that message in the classroom, and then reflect at each week’s end. My hope is that my students and I will start using the vocabulary of these messages in our day to day interactions and have a better understanding and demonstration of a positive mindset by the start of summer.
Feel free to reach out for a copy of the full list for yourself! The first message “Share Your Authentic Self” starts Monday and will fit perfect with Ashland’s already positive message to “Be Yourself”! Follow me on Twitter (@laurendeintinis) and with my classroom hashtag #Room115AES (previously #Room115) to see how we do! Thanks for reading!
Connect with Lauren and give feedback on her post below!
Lauren DeIntinis @laurendeintinis 2nd Grade Teacher
Ashland Elementary School, Prince William County Schools, VA
Email: deintil@pwcs.edu
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