ABOUT MY CLASSROOM
Having my own classroom is something that I have dreamed about since I was in second grade. As a child, I would set up my "classroom" in the basement and "teach" my students, both pretend and real (i.e. my younger siblings and my friends). I vividly remember the year that my grandparents bought me a double-sided chalkboard easel for Christmas; I was thrilled because then I would be able to write things on the board for my students, just like my own teachers did! As the years went on, and I eventually stopped playing school in the basement, I still felt the strong need to help others learn and grow in various ways - as a nanny and as a tutor.
My love for helping children grow and learn has never ceased and I continue to be highly motivated by that love to this day, finally in my own real classroom. After completing my year-long student teaching internship in a Kindergarten classroom, I spent one year as a substitute teacher throughout Oakland County, MI. In August 2014, I was hired as the new second grade teacher at Our Lady of the Lakes Catholic School (OLL) , my high school alma mater. I taught all subject areas to my students (ELA, math, science, social studies, and religion). In June 2019, I was moved to a self-contained sixth grade class, where I taught all subjects with the exception of math. Below you will read about and view pictures of my former classrooms.
Upon entering my former second grade classroom, the first thing you would see is the open carpet area in front of the whiteboard, where my students gather multiple times a day for various lessons in all subject areas. Some of our lessons and activities, such as reading, writing, and vocabulary, required students to sit at the carpet with their assigned partner. During other subject area lessons and activities, students had the choice to sit at their desks, on the carpet or somewhere else around the room, so long as they were able to focus and be productive. I do not use a complete flexible seating method in my classroom, however, as I still feel it is important for students to have their own personal space (a desk) in which to keep their materials. The desks in my classroom were arranged in three large groups, which allowed for collaborative learning and discussions to take place. It also assisted in pairing students quickly during lessons, activities, and games. The half-moon table, directly to the left of the open carpet area and whiteboard doubled as my small group table and my teacher desk. I met with students at this table for individual and guided reading, writing conferences, and extra math support. On the outside walls of my classroom, you will see shelves that were organized by subject area materials. Please view the pictures below to see my former classroom set-up!
 Entrance to my current sixth grade classroom. |  Student seating in groups - this is my current sixth grade classroom. |
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 My current sixth grade classroom. |  My desk area and front of the room - current sixth grade classroom. |
 This is the large open carpet area where my students gather multiple times a day. |  The student desks are currently arranged in three large groups. |
 View looking in from my classroom door. |  Another view of my table groups. |
 This is our white board located at the front of the classroom. Via a projector, I am able to display my computer screen, a document camera or mirror my iPad with AppleTV. |  This is the calendar, morning meeting, and classroom job board. Below it are my students' mailboxes. |
 Our Reading Wall displays anchor charts that align with the comprehension skill we are currently working on. It also displays past vocabulary words my students have learned. |  The closet door in my classroom displays all my students' birthday pictures! The shelves along this wall serve two purposes in my classroom: they hold the majority of baskets of books for our classroom library and provide storage for my curriculum binders and materials. |
 This is one part of our classroom library. I have the books organized and labeled according to author, series, and genre. Each book also has a small colored sticker in the top left corner which indicates the DRA level of that book. Throughout the year, students receive a D.E.A.R where their individual DRA level stickers are put. This helps me to always select books for independent reading at their level! |  Another part of our classroom library. These shelves house a combination of picture books, beginning readers and chapter books. |
 The final section of our classroom library. These shelves house some of the most popular chapter book series in my 2nd grade class! |  The purple shelves are used to hold iPad bins for each table. This is also where students can find the paper choices for Writer's Workshop. Additionally, students store their book-boxes here and Fast Finisher/Indoor Recess activities are located on the bottom shelf. |
 Our classroom Word Wall. Each week we learn 14 new words that are then added to the Word Wall every Friday! |  Along the back wall in my classroom, I have a large bulletin board that is used to display information and objectives for Religion and Math. The crate seats below this bulletin board are used as special places for students to sit during D.E.A.R and also hold more indoor recess materials. |
 The last wall in our classroom was painted bright green last summer and it's one of my favorite parts of the classroom! Half of it is used to display our Math anchor charts. |  Below the Math anchor charts are all of our math bins. There is also a community supplies area on the top of the shelf. |
 The other half of the bright green wall is used to display anchor charts for Writing! |  Some of the materials I use for guided reading and individual reading conferences. |
 More materials used for guided reading and individual reading conferences. |  My teacher corner! I use this half-moon table as my teacher desk and also my small group table. |
MY STUDENTS
Each year, the number of students in my classroom varied based on enrollment at OLL. My first year of teaching I had 28 students; last year I had 19 students. Regardless of the amount of students in my classroom, though, I strive to create a classroom community in which each individual student feels safe and supported and is able to achieve their personal best. In addition, I work diligently to implement differentiation as means of support for each of my students to help them achieve success based on their diversity, experiences and strengths. My ultimate goal is to prepare my students to be successful inside and outside of the classroom. Please view the pictures below to see my students in action!
MY CLASSROOM WEBSITE
In order to promote positive communication with the families of my students, I created a classroom website during my first year of teaching. The purpose of this classroom website is to provide a place in which parents will always have access to important information, dates and events, and weekly homework. Parents can also find helpful information and links to resources that I am using in the classroom throughout the school year.
INSTAGRAM FEED
In an effort to connect more with parents and other staff members at OLL, I maintained a private classroom Instagram. Below is a slider of all the pictures and videos from my years of teaching second and sixth grade at OLL. Please click on the individual pictures to view each set of pictures and/or the short video clips.
THE LAYOUT
Note: All student pictures have been authorized by past and present family members and are my personal images.