Timetables- how to fit it all in!

This week I've felt really bogged down by the things that need to be done/ taught and the realisation of the fact that there's only three weeks of school left for the year. I then began reflecting on the past six years and how I have timetabled and prioritised things in past. I also thought about how my own teaching practices have evolved over the years… and how I've been influenced by amazing mentors and colleagues. I've also been introduced to many new programs/ pedagogies and these have helped to shape my programming.

So I thought that today I would share with you some of my past timetables and how they have evolved over the years... as well as some thoughts on where I'd like to go next (because let's face it... I'm still not getting through everything!)

OK so lets start at the foundation... how much time should we allocate to each subject (KLA)?

Now I teach in NSW so I will begin with looking at what BOSTES states, however, I will then share the National Curriculum expectations for those teaching in other parts of Australia. If you're not currently teaching in an Australian school, please feel free to check out our standards and then compare them with your own- they may be similar?

BOSTES (NSW)

Taken from: k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au

I really like this pie graph as it clearly states how much of your teaching should be dedicated to each KLA (Key Learning Area).

If the school week is made up of 25 teaching hours you would need to spend the following amount of hours of each subject:

English: 7.5 hours (at 30%) or 8 hours rounded up
Mathematics: 5 hours (at 20%)
Science and Technology: 2.5 hours (at 10%)
HSIE (History & Geo): 2.5 hours (at 10%)
PD/H/PE: 2.5 hours (at 10%)
CAPA: 2.5 hours (at 10%)

And that would leave 2.5 hours (maximum) for Assemblies, Library, Languages, Scripture, and extra sport opportunities. 

I like to leave the morning block for English and then teach an hour of Mathematics after recess each day. However, this isn't always possible due to RFF and other school-wide commitments.

Australian Curriculum (ACARA)

Taken from: qcaa.qld.edu.au

This table was taken from the Queensland Curriculum & Assessment Authority website. It explains how much time should be spent on each subject over the whole year.

I like how they have set time aside for languages. I also like how they have broken HSIE down as well as Technologies. However, I would like to know how this would look over a typical week!

Here are a some of my timetables, starting with my first year of teaching right through to the year I left to go on Maternity Leave. Please note that I haven't included this current year as I am Job Sharing and only work two days.

2011 - Year 6 Timetable

2012 - Year 6 Timetable

2013 - Year 6 Timetable

2014 - Year 5 Timetable

2015 - Year 6 Timetable

As the years went on I began including the Quality Teaching Framework at the bottom of my timetable. I also included little iPad icons to indicate when my class had access to the devices. Finally, I tried to ensure that I kept my KLA time allocations as close to the guidelines as possible.

I feel this is a nice representation of how my teaching has evolved over the years. I'm particularly happy with how I structured my time table in 2014. It was a little more comprehensive than the rest. You can clearly see where I would conduct my pre-tests and post-tests for the week. I even stated whether my lessons were modelled, guided or independent. The different KLA's were colour-coded, which added to the comprehensiveness. 

Where to next?

I would like my timetable for 2017 to include time for goal setting. I'd also like it to include the different programs/ pedagogies that shape the lessons, so that it can be clearly seen where it all fits in. For example, where and when I will teach TOWN… is it attached to a Maths lesson or is it separate? 

I would love for it to be digital with a hyperlink to the current teaching program. I will make sure that I continue to use the iPad icon, like I used previously. And finally, I want to ensure that I am sticking to the KLA time allocations set out by BOSTES. If possible, I would like to spend a little more time on English and Mathematics.

How to ensure I don't spend every waking moment of my life doing schoolprep!

Today's post is about something very close to my heart, and something that I struggle with almost every day: HOW to be a great teacher without sacrificing family time. I'll be honest, it's a fine line between getting it right and getting it horribly wrong. I am no expert... But since cutting down my working week to just two days and job sharing, I've picked up a few tricks and I thought I'd share them with you!

1. Keep marking to a minimum 

It's really important to mark work and some schools can be particularly strict on how often work is marked. But there are ways to get it done without taking tubs of books home every afternoon. First of all, marking work together as a class is a great way for students to be accountable to their own learning as well as cutting down your workload. However, marking as a class isn't alway feasible, and so that's why I created these amazing stamps with Vistaprint. I created a stack of different stamps so that I'm not always writing the same thing over and over. If you wait for a sale, you can get the stamps for a bargain.

2. Use your release time efficiently

I have always wasted my release time by prioritising my work badly. I've spent the time "catching up" rather than getting ahead. I only have one hour of release now, so I have to use my time wisely. Instead of going down to the staff room and potentially getting caught in a conversation with a colleague, I spend my first half hour marking and my second half hour photocopying and borrowing resources ready for the next week. So that when I come in on a Monday morning, I can ease my way back into work.

3. Have split up booklets organised for sick days so that students are still on task

Split Up days happen. It's unfortunately the way life is for teachers nowadays. Because I job share, there's a higher chance that my colleague or I have to take a day off. So we created 'Split Up Booklets' that are stored in an easily found tote tray for those days when one of us can't make it in and the school can't get a casual teacher in time. The booklet contains work that can be completed independently, however, is still keeping the class on task. STEM activities are great ideas for Split Up Booklets. Blank templates for planning and writing as well as spelling activities that cater towards different spelling lists are also great activities. I've put a couple of images below of our current Split Up Booklet below.

4. Use your diary well

This one is pretty self explanatory and links in with my second point. Write important details down and then remember to check your diary. I like to plan out what I need to do before and after school so that I make the most of my time. I also try to do jobs as soon as possible so that I don't forget to do them. Rip it off like a bandaid. 

I created a couple of different planning templates for you to download and use. I like to print them off in advance and bound it ready for the term. Click on the images to download the templates.

5. Keep parents up to date with what's happening regularly so that you don't have to spend your whole lunch break chasing them up

I've mentioned this point in a previous blog post… I highly recommend using ClassDojo! It has an amazing messenger tool where you can directly message parents. It's a great way to keep constant dialogue open between school and home. A quick message here and there is far easier than a long phone call.

6. Look after your own wellbeing… 

Make sure you make an appearance in the staff room. Don't always diet. Have a laugh. Say thank you to others. Ask people about their weekends. A happy workplace is a productive workplace.

7. Give yourself a pat on the back sometimes…

And ask yourself what went well rather than what went wrong.

8. Keep things digital and back up your USB regularly. 

I think every teacher has had a moment where they've had to search for a resource that they've put in a "safe place" and then they couldn't find it when they've needed it. Times have changed... There's no need for hard copies of every worksheet... It's time to get digital! Then you can access documents from home or school. 

My colleague and I have gone digital with our program too. We're using 'One Drive' but there's so many sharing platforms out nowadays. Google Docs is a great tool for working documents and there's lots of programming apps out there too. Check out iDoceo! 

Make sure your USB is organised. Label files and documents appropriately so that you can easily find them when you need them. I can't tell you how many times I've had to recreate a worksheet or PowerPoint presentation because I couldn't find the original one I made. We do not have time to reinvent the wheel let alone recreate things because they're lost! 

And remember to BACK EVERYTHING UP!

9. Have students assess their own work and teach them to be accountable for their own learning.

I've been using these little checklists for a while now. They're great for seeing which students understand and which students could have worked harder.

I also like to get my students to mark their own work where possible. By doing this, you're not only saving your own personal time but you're teaching them to be accountable to their own learning. I think it's important for them to be apart of the process. So mark homework as a class. Mark pre and post tests together. Get them to calculate their score and figure out whether they've improved. 

10. Stop being a Perfectionist!

There's just no time and perfectionism isn't always attainable. Just do your best!!

What should I actually spend my money on?

I ask myself this question every year! 

Some years the answer is simple as I have more money in my pocket and less reservations about spending. But lately, I've found it harder and harder to part with cash. It was ok at first… kind of a novelty. However now it feels like I'm constantly spending my money on things, and it's not always worth it. So I've compiled a list of things I BELIEVE that you should spend your money on. Anything outside of this list I would have to seriously question whether or not I'd actually need it. Let's face it… we've all splurged on resources thinking that they will change teaching for us, only for them to be put on a shelf and forgotten about.

The back to school shopping list:

1. A Diary (doesn't matter what type… this is a necessity)
2. Pens/Pencils/Erasers/Rulers/Sharpeners, etc (ONLY if your school does not provide these items). I usually buy a stash for those "just in case" moments and I like to have new stationery for myself… it's kind of therapeutic.
3. A USB (if you don't already have one)
4. A new folder for your program
5. Laminating pouches (we all use them!!)
6. Velcro/Blu-Tac/Thumb Tacs (again only if your school does not provide these items)
7. Soap/Paper Towel/Tissues (I usually get my students to bring in these, but it's nice to have one lot ready to go for the new year)
8. WHITEBOARD markers (my school provides these but they're always hard to get your hands on!!)

Other than these eight things… everything else you spend your money on MUST REQUIRE a lot more thought before handing over the credit card.

Remember that your school does supply you with stationery (obviously each school is slightly different), you can borrow books and other resources from your school library and even your local library. I'm fortunate enough to live close the the Henry Parkes Equity Resource Centre which has stacks of resources that teachers can borrow.

What to eat?

The question most of us ask ourselves each morning is 'what will I take for lunch today?' 

I absolutely hate planning meals. I hate organising them of a morning but I especially hate eating garbage because I didn't make the time to organise my lunch. There's nothing worse than sitting down in the staff room to eat your packet food to then smell the beautiful aroma of someone else's lunch. Try adding being pregnant to that you've got yourself one crazy teacher.

Now I'm no expert at this… but I hoped that by doing a bit of research for someone else, that I would be able to find the motivation to get my butt into gear.

I've found a couple of great blogs/ posts from ladies across the world who have come up with inspiring lunch options. Not all of these ladies are teachers, or even pregnant, but their ideas are so usable… anyone can do it!

The first blog is titled Pregnant Girl Diet and it's written by a lady named Kari Burghardt. I particularly like how she pushed the need to drink water and introduced the idea of a 'Snack Pack' (see left). I'm going to give the water bottle idea a go… I like how she chopped up strawberries, limes and pears and put them in her water bottle. I only wonder how long the fruit will last?

The second is a post titled 50 Pregnancy Meal Ideas from the Fit to be Pregnant blog. This blog post gives numerous meal ideas and has a section dedicated to snacks. However, most of these meals require a significant amount of prepping. I may take a recipe or two from this blog… but not all.

The third and final post I'd like to mention is 5 Tips for Safe, Healthy Lunches while Pregnant which is from the Fox in Flats blog. This blog post does exactly what it says… it gives you great tips for safe, healthy lunches. The five tips are:

1. Make your own
2. Invest in some good quality lunch containers
3. Keep it chilled
4. Serve hot things HOT
5. Try and focus on what you CAN eat

Simple tips, however, absolutely necessary!

This term, I'm going to make my own lunches. Healthy, yet tasty meals that very rarely include sandwiches. I will post some of my favourite lunches over the next couple of weeks.

Oh and remember… good quality doesn't always mean expensive! 

Sometimes you'll just need to look around and maybe do some research before you buy. I was able to pick up these cheap BPA FREE containers and this 1.6L BPA FREE drink bottle from ALDI the other day. They were on special and I cannot wait to use them when I go back to work!

Simple ideas to make my job easier!

I am a massive fan of VISTA Print. Particularly when they're having a huge sale. Two years ago I decided to make some business cards which simply said 'A note from Mrs Sellen'. Simple idea right? Well I have used them almost every day of the past two years. On these cards I can send home simple reminders about notes that are due in to school, and I can also send home little notes to parents about how well their child has been doing in class. The kids love them. The parents love them. And they're so simple.

I originally got this idea off PINTEREST (where all good ideas come from) and I've modified it slightly to better suit my classroom.

Here is the original idea (click on the image to head straight to Pinterest):

Here is what my modified version looks like:

If you are lucky enough to get a really great deal from VISTA Print, you might get 250 of these for free. This time round I paid $9.99 for them. As I mentioned before, they've lasted me two years so it is definitely worth the investment.

This year as I'm going on Maternity Leave I decided to make a bunch of labels (in the same design) to stick to the things that belong to me that I will most probably leave behind. Teaching can be quite expensive and I don't really want to buy a lot of these resources again. So for $9.99 I bought 140 labels with my name on it, so that I can mark my belongings (I will be taking a lot of things home too). 

Here's what my labels look like:

It should take about 7 days for them to arrive as I just got standard shipping… but I can't wait! I want this transition into Maternity Leave to be as smooth as possible!

WOW where did the year go?

It seems to be that time of year again where I find myself freaking out about the year ahead and my list of "things to do" keeps growing. 

It has been almost a year since my last post. As you can imagine, the year fills up and you find yourself drowning in various commitments. 2014 was a HUGE year for me. I had a great time teaching Year 5 and I also had a great year personally. I found out in September that I will be expecting a bundle of joy in May 2015 and so my priorities around work and life have shifted dramatically.

I will be going back to work for 2015, however, this time I will only be working for one term. Over the next couple of weeks I will share how I've set up my classroom spending the least amount of money as possible and how I will hand-over my class to someone I haven't even met yet. I want to be kind to this next teacher, but I also don't want to do their whole job for them. It will be a balancing act. BUT I already have a plan and *fingers crossed* it works :)

Like any year it's important to start the year off with a diary. For me, this choice was far harder than usual as I will only be working for one term. I needed a diary that would suit me in my professional and personal life. So this year I decided to go with a kikki.K A4 Weekly Leather Diary. It's a weekly diary (which I love) and it has plenty of space to write down notes and anecdotal comments from the teaching day. There is also a significant amount of space for the weekends (the most important days of the week) and it has monthly planners. Click on the image of the diary to be redirected for the kikki.K website. If you buy from the store, they also throw in a free pen. I LOVE BARGAINS! 

That's it for now… I will be back shortly with MORE amazing Back to School ideas! 

So much to do... So little time!

I don't know about you... but I feel like there is just so much to do. I keep thinking about what I need to do next and when I'm out I feel guilty that I'm not at home doing work. 

Today I went to my cousins engagement party... and I felt guilty.

What has the world come to? 

When did work become more important than life?

That's why I am going to log off.

 I am going to spend the rest of the night with my husband. 

Even though I didn't get everything done... I will not feel guilty about it. 

I hope you can log off too... tune out... and spend time with your family <3.

Regret nothing.

Some of my 2014 Classroom Set-Up Ideas

Here are some of my Classroom Set-Up Ideas for 2014!

Back Corner:

1. Street Sign

My husband and I made this for an 'Out of this World' youth camp at Luntanda, Mt Victoria. I fell in love with it and I just had to bring it to school. The street sign points to places such as: Hogwarts, The Enchanted Forest, Middle Earth, Hundred Acre Wood, etc.

2. Cupboard

My cupboard is still a work in progress. I have SIX tote trays for students work books. I have another tray that I will use to collect work to be marked. The draws to the left contain coloured paper, scrap paper and bits and pieces.

Literacy Station/ Stationery Station:

1. Literacy Station

I bought these tubs last year for about $20 and they've paid for themselves (check out my Literacy Groups post for more details). I have a tub for each one of my Literacy Groups and a couple of spares... I've already begun to think of things to fill them with.

2. Stationery Station

On the top of the tubs, I have the 'Stationery Station'. I have found some cute containers that house rules, pens, pencils and scissors. I also have a large eraser that students can borrow and a sharpener.

The idea of this station is that everything is like a Boomerang... meaning that it comes straight back. I find that I usually have to replace the stationery every term (sometimes more often). However, it is nice to know there is NO EXCUSE for not doing work in my class!

On My Desk:

1. How I store my stickers

I don't know what made me thing of this... but I've had this for about a year now and it has been really helpful. 

I picked up a travel wallet from Typo for a couple of bucks and I use the wallet to store my stickers. Travel wallets usually come with dividers, so I use the dividers to sort my stickers... I sort them by way of size. I also put a pen and post-it notes in the wallet so that I have everything I need to mark books.

2. Magnetic Tape

Seriously, this stuff is amazing! It's just like a roll of sticky tape, except the tape is magnetic. This means you can tear off a strip and place on the back of a laminated card, then you can magnetically stick it to a whiteboard. Genius!!

I make sure I have some in my draw AT ALL TIMES. 

I pick my magnetic tape up from OfficeWorks and it's usually around $5. This is a must have!

I hope you have found these ideas to be useful! Remember you can always find PLENTY of ideas on Pinterest. Why not follow me?

http://www.pinterest.com/rasellen/

THREE back to work helpful tips!

Sometimes I think we can waste our time on the wrong things. We'll sit there worrying over tiny little things, we'll spend too much time laminating things and freaking out about the perfection to which we cut the pieces out, and we spend too much time surfing the net for ideas that we may not need at that present time.

So I've come up with THREE helpful tips for wasting as little time as possible while getting ready to start the new year.

1. I don't know if you're like me but I waste a lot of time searching for a diary for the new year. I love all things digital, but there's something nice about handwriting out your day and making a quick note here or there in pen. When I first started teaching I came across this amazing diary. Since that first year, I've bought it every year. You can shop online for one or in store. They're usually around $25 each.

They're called 'Teacher's Weekly Planning Mate' and they're published by Educational Supplies Pty Ltd. 

The diary is broken up into weeks, and each day is broken up into sessions: morning, middle and afternoon. I love it. It also comes with these cute little stickers/labels and it covers most major events (parent teacher interviews, camp, NAIDOC week, etc.)

2. I find that I spend a lot of time searching the internet for cheap (or better yet... FREE) digital resources. However, I have come across an amazing website. Every year I tell myself I do not need a subscription, yet every year I find myself renewing it only days after it has expired. TEACH THIS (http://www.teachthis.com.au) is an amazing website filled with resources for Primary Teachers... and the best part is... they're constantly updating them!

3. LAMINATING... Don't get me wrong... I do love a little laminating from time to time... But I cannot tell you HOW MANY TIMES I've laminated things only to find I've gone through the whole year without using them. So I've started to ask myself the following questions:

• What is it that I've laminated and haven't used? 
• What do I need now... and what can wait until next term?
• Who can I speak to who has experience and may know what I will and won't need?
• Who can I recruit to help?

My friends and I have had 'School Days' for a couple of years now. We'll meet up during the holidays and work solidly for a day, getting our resources organised. During this time I find that it is constructive to chat with them and get a second-opinion on some things. I know that I can't possibly do everything at once, so I need to prioritise. I know that I'll need this this term, so I'll do this now. But this other thing can wait a little longer because I don't need that until next term. 

I find that we're all happy to help each other because we know it will all work out evenly in the end.

So question... chat... prioritise... recruit... help others and stress less!

This is my job... it isn't my LIFE!