Jeopardy!

It's still frustrating when other teachers blame me for my homeroom class's behavior, but I guess I'm proud to be the first-year scapegoat. My kids were great during morning homeroom, and a mess during afternoon homeroom. They were actually pretty good during class time -- they really, more than any other class I think, respond well to the basic classroom management skills, clear expectations and behavior narration.

Today I tried something new and it worked really well. I had difficulty in the past getting all of my students engaged in review games. I tried a couple of things, including Powerpoint Jeopardy. I had difficulty deciding which team "buzzed" in first, either by shouting, raising their hand, or hitting the table. I tried a couple of other review activities, but they weren't fun. Today, I found one that worked. I even had a student ask if we can play it more often.

I used an old TFA standby, mini-whiteboards. I finally stopped being cheap/lazy and bought a pack of sheet protectors and dry-erase markers. I put a plain white sheet in each protector, and each team of students got a "whiteboard" and a marker. After each question was posted, EVERY team got to answer. After 20 seconds, they all held up their whiteboards and every team with a correct answer got a point. The winning team got Tootsie Rolls. I had almost everyone engaged, and the few troublemakers were distracted with some dry-erase doodling.

I just went running with a friend, and nothing is better than running with a friend. I got a chance to unwind from the day and I ran faster than yesterday. I did 2 miles in 21 minutes. The weather was even more beautiful.

Tuesday is one of my longest days of teaching (5 full classes plus lunch duty), so it is my afternoon off. I got a lot of planning done during lunch, so I can relax this afternoon. I have a few phone calls to make, and I'll be home before 5.