Budding Blogger Showcase: An Apple a Day in First Grade

Wow!  These Wednesdays just keep sneaking up on me, but that's a GREAT thing...it means it's time to showcase another budding blogger!  This week we have a fellow South Carolinian!  You don't want to miss this Carolina Girl's blog!  Check it out and become a new follower.


Hey Ya'll!  I am so excited to be here today sharing a little bit about myself on  Amanda's fabulous blog!  She is amazing and I am honored to be here as part of her Blogger's Showcase.  My name is Karen and I have a new blog called An Apple a Day in First Grade.  I hope you enjoy reading a little bit about me!


Personal Information
I was born and raised in South Carolina.  I am married to my wonderful husband of 15
years.  We have 2 beautiful girls who are
12 and 7.  We also have a very spoiled
Boykin Spaniel.  I love to read, blog
stalk, shop, create teaching materials, and spend time with my family.
Mr. M and I celebrated our 15th anniversary this summer by taking a Caribbean cruise!

Kinsley and Kaley







Bella



Grade You Teach
I
teach first grade and absolutely love it!
I have also taught Special Ed., Child Development, and Kindergarten.  Having the experience of teaching these
different grade levels has definitely helped me in my teaching. 
Click on the picture for a link to this postcard.


How long have you taught? 

This school year will mark 18 years!
Wow!  I have grown and learned so
much about our profession since I first started out!  I’m currently working on my Master’s degree
in Teaching, Learning, and Advocacy.  I
am so excited about this program.   The classes I have had so far have definitely
enhanced my teaching.  With the
completion of this degree, I hope to one day be able to step out of the
classroom and into the role of an instructional coach or interventionist.
What is your favorite subject to teach? 
Because I teach first grade, I am responsible
for teaching all of the core subjects.
If I had to pick though, I would choose word study as being my most
favorite subject to teach.  Math,
surprisingly enough, would be a close second.
I love to use lots of hands-on activities with my students.  It’s a great way for them to learn how to
work together and problem solve.
What would we likely see if we popped into your classroom
unannounced?
 
 Lots of structure!  I am very structured and have high
expectations for my students with regards to their behavior and their
learning.  It takes a lot of hard work at the beginning of the year to establish this, but it really pays off in the long run!

What gets you through one of "those" days? 
I would have to say the encouragement that I
receive from all of my first grade colleagues helps on
“those” days.  They are the best and I am so blessed to work
with each and every one of them.  We can
always find something to laugh about at the end of the day!  A nice, cold coca-cola helps as well!






What is one "can't live without" teaching
resource?
 
I don’t think I could make it
through the day without my smartboard.  I
absolutely love it and use it for just about everything.  The kids are engaged and more attentive when
we are using it. 

Give us a glimpse of your teaching style by sharing a brief
summary of a favorite classroom activity/project.
 
Last year I found the Whole Brain Teaching website through
another blogger’s post and I was intrigued with the idea behind it.  I watched several videos of different teachers
using the techniques and knew that WBT was something that I wanted to try with
my kiddos.  My class responded in a way
that I never expected.  I was
hooked!   I love that I can engage my students with
classroom management and maintain a
positive learning environment with just a few simple techniques! 

What is one of your blogging goals for this year? 
I’m a new blogger, so one of my biggest goals
is to increase my number of followers.  I’ve
received some great advice from some pretty spectacular bloggers on how to do
this.  Right now it’s just learning how
to manage school, home, grad school, and blog life.  I am truly excited, and honored, to be a part
of such an awesome group of educators that are working super hard to change the
education profession.  Blogging has
opened the door for many opportunities for sharing, collaborating, and making
connections that might not would have ever happened.   It’s a great time to be a teacher!  Another personal goal that I have is to open
a TpT store.  But, that will have to wait
until I finish my Master’s next summer!
Thank you Amanda for hosting me on your blog today.  And, a big thank you to your followers for taking the time to read a little bit about me!  Stop by sometime and say "Hey!" over at my blog.  I love new followers!



4 comments

  1. Thanks Amanda for featuring me on your Budding Blogger Showcase! I am honored! Your blog has been an inspiration to me throughout this new blogging journey!

    Karen
    An Apple a Day in First Grade

    ReplyDelete
  2. I just boo-ed you
    check out my blog to see what this linky party is about!
    ஐRikki
    The Hive

    ReplyDelete
  3. YOU'VE BEEN BOO-ED!!

    Stop by my blog to check out the fun directions for participating :)

    rachaelaschauer@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. Amanda,
    Thanks for hosting this, I love meeting new bloggers. I'm heading on over to Karen's blog to check it out.

    ✰ Stacy

    Simpson Superstars

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for visiting my blog and sharing ideas! I love to read your comments. I like to reply back by email, so make sure you have that option enabled so we can chat! :)

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