Busy, Busy Week! Five for Friday

Happy Friday!  I can't believe another one is upon us and that November is quickly passing.  Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Wow.  In any case, I'm linking up with Kacey over at Doodle Bugs Teaching for another edition of Five for Friday.  It's been many weeks since my last link up, so here I go!  

Parent-Teacher Conferences were yesterday from 12:30-7:30PM.  I had a great turn out.  Sitting down with each parent to discuss progress made by their child and listening to parents' comments regarding their child's feeling about our group time spent together is always welcomed.  As always, I made sure to let parents know their child brings much to group and is a wonderful addition to our *reading family*.  

A recently published article written by Christopher Lehman called Parent-Teacher Conference is Dead was very refreshing to read.  Nowadays, I feel as if teachers have so much "data" to share with parents during conferences, we have little time to connect on an emotional or personal level.    I have been a teacher leading Parent-Teacher conferences for 20 years now, but until my twins started preschool last year, I was never on the parent side of conferences.  Reading Christopher Lehman's highly-regarded advice for teachers and parents alike was very timely.  I was able to read the article, as well as send it out to the staff, prior to meeting with parents.  I made an even stronger effort to let parents know their child is cared for in group.  If you have a moment, take time to read and digest his valid points. 

On a lighter note, I started up a class Twitter account called @TeamNoffsinger earlier this week!  If you follow us, you'll get a peek into our reading groups via the perspective of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade students.  Posts will begin streaming in after Thanksgiving Break, so if you have a class Twitter account, please let me know in the comments below.  We'd love to start following, communicating with and learning from friends in the outside world!

 

Now, here's the reason @TeamNoffsinger tweets are temporarily on hold until after Thanksgiving Break: Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Testing has started!  The Reading staff started testing students throughout the school this past Monday.  Testing will continue for the duration of November, so testing is my life at school for now, instead of working with students in small groups.  We have finished up 2nd and 5th grade students this week and will begin testing the 4th and 1st graders next week.  The progress they've made is astounding thus far.  Nice work, Irving teachers!  #IrvingPride

I've been preparing my post for an upcoming book study on Donalyn Miller's Reading in the Wild: The Book Whisperer's Keys to Cultivating Life Long Reading Habits.  The book study starts this Monday, November 9th on Reading and Owl of the Above.  It is hosted by Kristin, one of my district's amazing Reading Specialists and author of Reading and Owl of the Above.  Other Reading Specialists, Literacy Coaches and classroom teachers from my district will also be participating in the study.  We are known as the #D100bloggerPD Crew.  Please join us!  I will be reflecting on Chapter 1: Wild Readers Dedicate Time to Read on Wednesday, November 11th.  Click HERE for more information!

Image created by Kristin from Reading and Owl of the Above.  Love it!

Another memorable Halloween has passed with the kiddos!  I had a Rapunzal who thought the long hair was "too heavy" to wear and a mask-less Spiderman who couldn't see with his mask on.  Below are pictures from a pumpkin hunt the weekend prior to Halloween, since the kids were in coats concealing their costumes on Halloween.  Tons of candy was collected (much too much for me to keep around the house)!  I'm thankful we managed to stay happy, warm and dry on a rainy Halloween.  All is right in the world. :)

I have Monday off from school and am looking forward to a little rest and relaxation from a busy week.  Enjoy your weekend and don't forget to link up with Kasey over at Doodle Bugs Teaching!