After a tough month in October, I can say that I think things are slowly starting to change for the better in my class. So far this month I have been able to implement more writer's workshop techniques in my class. Before we let out for the Thanksgiving holiday, I had some students write some some really good pieces about what they were thankful for this holiday season. A few even tied in some Social Studies content about being thankful for freedom, civil rights, etc.. (yay!). It was really a proud moment. I realize that I need to celebrate these moments more in my classroom. I believe it will help students to feel encourage and motivated about their learning.

Starting in December I will be moving from teaching ELA and Social Studies to teaching Social Studies and Math. I feel encouraged to teach math considering we just finished our math course with Dr. Smith. This will be a great opportunity to start teaching math through CGI.

The toughest part about this school year has definitely been the social dynamics within my classroom . I've been able to increase the time I spend with students and build teacher to peer connections. Moving forward I do want to focus more on building peer to peer connections. I've decided to take the last 10 mins out of the day to start a new ritual of team building with my students. I think incorporating a small activity at the end of each day in which students are able to work together will start to build the positive connections within my classroom that has been missing. In addition just taking opportunities for us to spend time together talking during lunch, bus duty, etc... will help students to form those bonds with me and each other.

I'm really trying to stay positive for this second semester. The first semester was very rough but I'm determined to have a positive second half of the school year. Cheers to December!!