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A Few Small Things

1. Another teacher had the idea to put all the notes for an entire unit in one power point. I think this one little thing makes it easier to find things both this year and next year when we're trying to remember what we did instead of having a different power point for each individual lesson.

2. Collaboration makes us better teachers. I want to repeat this 10 times because I believe it's so important. I met with another teacher today after school to talk about the rest of the week. I believe my kids will benefit so much from the ideas she was able to share with me.

3. Today I spent about 3-5 of the 46 minutes sharing sort of silly stories that were oddly related to what we were talking about. (Meaning they had to do with what we were talking about, but really weren't necessary.) I'm curious if the kids appreciate a small break to just hear a story and then get back to it, or if they wish I would stay strictly to the point the whole time. I suspect the kids would be split on their opinion. I think there's some value in a mental break, a short writing break, and a chance to let your brain shift gears for a minute or two to let you recharge for what's next. (At least that's how I work.) It's also nice to see smiles and hear laughter in a math classroom. Maybe it's worth it if it makes it an enjoyable environment.

4. I need to work on not passing judgment. We read Romans 2 in our Bible study last Friday, and I've realized that I have a hard time with that one.

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