The door has closed on another school year. My room sits closed and stuffy, bare walls, clean desk.... an empty echo of voices long gone. All is all, it was a great year. I am not confident I taught as much math as I should have. However, we did an incredible amount of worthwhile learning this year. Having laptops really impacted my teaching in ways I never thought possible. The students really put the pressure on to us them every day, and I am just not competent enough in tech integration at this point to always have Plan A involve the computers. Still, in the end of year evaluations students fill out, their responses were so positive in regard to the laptops and how helpful they found them.

Today I was looking over the end of year STAR reading test scores, seeing the dramatic improvements made by so many kids. AR, right or wrong... is getting our students to READ!

Our new math program is on order! I am so excited. A bit intimidated as well... I have NEVER taught using a text book primarily and I am not so keen on doing it either. I do think these books will better suit our population. We are going to Glencoe from Connected Math. I love so much about Connected - the higher level thinking skills are great but I have always doubted the effectiveness of it really giving my students the down and dirty skills they need to succeed, in high school math, and in life. I just don't see kids developing NUMBER SENSE anymore. I am hoping the more parent and kid friendly layout of the Glencoe books will help our MEAP scores rise. Our new superintendent really layed it out - if he buys the books, the SCORES MUST IMPROVE.... I understand his point.. I really do.. but kids are unpredicatble.

Now with the imminent threat of the local prison closing, who knows what the next year will bring. If all those kids leave our school.... who knows WHAT I will be teaching....

Busy summer plans... one week was already spent at Digital Design Academy learning Dreamweaver, Flash, and Fireworks. WOW... way cool... way cool...
This week one day working on the Technology through Generations project with my 5 high schoolers who will teach adult ed classes in the evenings about basic online stuff. Two more days working with the Eastern Upper Peninsula ISD Math Intervention Specialist Team developing the new protocol for special ed referrals for struggling math students.
Next week starts tutoring my little incoming 7th grader.... an online Tapped In project with TLN, working on NSDC presentation.... planning for CiviConnections grant conference....

and I really want to read the latest Nicholas Sparks and John Grisham novels before school starts again....