Lara Whitaker

@TigerMolly11 @jk_coffee Great job--very useful information and insights tonight!

@jk_coffee Thanks! I was coming up with this completely off the top of my head! It was fun! #teachSC

A6: wax melts for my wax melty lamp in my classroom--something with a very calming scent #teachsc

A5: We are going to have a lot of new people--so just letting them know that I am there if they need help, and then actually being there and remembering not to be to "cliquey" with the returning teachers since we have so much history together. #teachsc

@TigerMolly11 @katrina_hankins @GoogleForEdu it's pretty time consuming--that might be a Winter Break activity for you :)

@katrina_hankins @LaraWhitaker11 @GoogleForEdu Same here!!! It’s not like I’m already pretty much rewriting an entire curriculum worth of stuff... #teachSC

A4: We already using @GoogleForEdu and I became a Google certified educator this summer, so I've seen all that we don't use and I'd like to try some of them--such as Google Chat or Blogger. #teachsc

@katrina_hankins @GoogleForEdu It was not--but I am familiar with a lot of the tools that we use in my district such as classroom, forms, etc. I think if you do the online training and explore them some on your own, the certification will be easy for you.

@LaraWhitaker11 @GoogleForEdu Was getting certified difficult? I'd like to explore the tools but I'm afraid that it is beyond my skill set. #teachSC #conversechat

@jk_coffee I bet the students would love that as well!

@katrina_hankins Google Forms has saved me so much time!!

A4 I plan on trying Google Forms for conferencing so I can collect and analyze data on Google Sheets. #TeachSC #conversechat

A3: We are using a new reading program (I don't remember the name--the PD was month ago!) so I hope to see huge growth in my Ss reading levels. #teachsc

@GrowingMindsSC Most are not things I can fix/change, but I can change my attitude towards them and pray a LOT more--so that's the plan for this year :)

@LaraWhitaker11 Lara, what were the reasons that led you to consider leaving? Are they elements that you can change? #TeachSC

A2: This year, my anxiety is that this year will be like last year-when I was very close to leaving the profession--but then I think "It can't possibly be that bad"--can it??? #teachsc

@TigerMolly11 @katrina_hankins I've used this one before and they seem to really enjoy it!

@katrina_hankins My students love people bingo. I try to destroy the idea of the clique in the middle school world by showing students that they have something in common with someone outside of their group! #teachSC

Do you have any specific getting-to-know-you activities that are fabulous? #TeachSC #conversechat

A1: My most important start of the year event is a teamwork activity--such as line up in birthday order without speaking. It sets the tone of teamwork in my classroom. #teachsc

@katrina_hankins me too--I wonder if it's happening?!?

I'm in! #TeachSC #conversechat

A8: I foresee a beautiful world--we currently have so many who only think of themselves, their feelings, etc. A new generation where it's not all about 'me' would be so peaceful! #5thchat

A7: I think really focusing on characters in our novels, as others have pointed out tonight, and allowing the students to think of projects than help people with similar challenges. #5thchat

@holtkala My wheels are turning to figure out how I can integrate it into some of my content in ELA

@LaraWhitaker11 You might be able to combine the two or encourage your Ss to come up with something on their own.

A6: I would like to include empathy based projects--maybe that should be a goal of mine for this year. Our school is very active with Relay for Life but this is normally separate from any scholastic projects #5thchat

@elena_SF_CA @MysterySci That is awesome. We so often just focus on helping other humans--I love that they thought of animals!

A5: My students became interested in our local birds & trees after a @MysterySci lesson making bird feeder prototypes. They not only filled actual bird feeders for them, but also planted natives flowers to attract insects. We also grew trees from seeds. #5thchat

A:5 After reading Long Walk to Water, my students wanted to raise money for a well in South Sudan. They held many fundraisers, one of which was a school dance. We now have a well with our school's name on it in South Sudan, bringing clean water to many #5thchat