Teaching, Creating & Inspiring Teachers
Kids love being the expert of all things. So why not have them be the expert of your class, grade level, and you as a teacher! Yes, you heard me. Let them take all that they have learned and be an expert to share advice for future students who will be coming to your class next year. Over the years… Read More
Recognizing the good your students do is so important, especially in upper elementary grades. Students are used to getting “gold stars” and constant praise in their early school years, but as they continue in their academic careers, we often just expect them to do the right thing and work hard in school. It’s imperative to reward students who traditionally follow… Read More
Spring is almost here, and it’s time to spruce up your teacher wardrobe with Amazon Teacher Outfits on a Budget. These teacher spring trends will have you ready for anything whether it’s testing, daily classroom activities, field day, or parent teacher conferences! Just like you update your bulletin boards for spring, update your fashion style. From head to toe, these latest… Read More
Chances are you have students at various reading levels in your classroom. There are students reading at grade level, students who are reading far above grade level, and students who are struggling to comprehend classroom texts. Regardless of reading levels, the strategies that promote reading comprehension skills can be used with any text. Using these skills and strategies in your… Read More
All of our classrooms are blessed with a rich diversity of backgrounds that we should honor and celebrate. I have always loved celebrating all cultures in my classroom through sharing books, activities and recognizing important influential leaders. During the month of February we celebrate Influential Black Leaders , we honor heroes such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks,… Read More
It is a New Year and we are typically still on “vaca” mode after being off. It is hard to get into the mindset of teaching, so I wanted to share some ELA winter activities to keep your students engaged! My Winter Activities usually partner with some wonderful books I have a created a collection of my favorite Holiday and… Read More
Dressing for comfort while remaining in #teacherstyle can be a challenge for a busy teacher like yourself. Fortunately, current teacher fashion trends make it easy for you to update your professional wardrobe. My favorite thing is to shop online and to save on a budget, I love saving all my favorite trends in my Amazon Shop for future reference. Make… Read More
Free reading can be a joy for many upper elementary students, but for others, it can be a time of fake reading or fear. For reluctant and struggling readers, time to read in class is neither inspirational nor enjoyable. However, there are books that even the most reluctant readers can find themselves drawn to. In fact, finding the book that… Read More
It is the most wonderful time of the year, the excitement is all over. One thing I always do is keep my students engaged with thematic units of learning. I love having this Winter Creative Writing Bulletin Board and incorporating Winter Read Alouds for the season. Engaging your students will come easy when they see the fun in the lessons. I… Read More
Creating my website and teacher shop have been a creative blessing for me the past 3.5 years. Today, I am excited to share that I am recognized in a Voyage Houston Magazine. Here is a snippet of the article, Meet Jacqueline, that I would love for you to check out. Today we’d like to introduce you to Jacqueline Ortiz. So,… Read More
Planning engaging lessons for your students should not be a headache. As a teacher my goal is to make life easy for myself and others. My goal is also to offer ideas to new teachers, tips that work for me, and offer literacy free resources for elementary teachers that you can use that are a no hassle! When I started… Read More
Fall is such a fun time with the weather changing and so many special events during the season. I love planning special activities for my students to do from fun Fall Learning Bulletin Boards, to great Autumn and Fall Books. Also, we love writing and creating poetry and displaying it for students to enjoy! Let the fall learning fun begin… Read More
Building awareness of all the different cultures and diversity is such an important part of every classroom. A celebration that many recognize early in the school year is Hispanic Heritage Month. We celebrate the Latino culture from September 15th to October 15th. It is a great time to recognize the influential leaders and read books that will help students and families… Read More
It never fails. Each school year, I have a goal to get organized for the upcoming year. Once the kids enter the classroom, it’s easy to get bogged down with assignments and paperwork. These classroom organization tips for teachers can help you stay focused and keep on track all year long! Classroom Organization Tip 1: Declutter and Digitize You know… Read More
Growth mindset may seem like the latest catch phrase in education, but it’s changing the way my students think about learning and their own self worth in the classroom. Teaching growth mindset to elementary students can help them change from a fixed mindset of “I can’t” to a positive self confident “I can” attitude. Positive Language Teaching Growth mindset is… Read More
Kids are heading back to school, and it’s time to stock your shelves with independent texts as well as read alouds. Our favorite Back to School Chapter Books for Upper Elementary involve strong characters to help demonstrate voice. Check out these chapter books you’ll love to share with your students. Here are my Top Back to School Chapter Books for Upper Elementary… Read More
This.... ❤️my students are always my students. Several years ago I created a meme with this and it came to life in a teacher tee this month.
❤️ etsy.me/2VVB66n
❤️It is on S-A-L-E this weekend!
❤️This tee has tons of color options!
#youwillalwaysbemystudent #teachertees #teacher #iteach
Love this, my friend shared and I think it’s brilliant to share with students!
To all the mommas out there who sometimes feel this. I honestly cried reading this today. It was something I needed to hear.
❤️Always a New DayI bought bouncy balls for my son’s class treasure box. Something nice for the teacher, a simple way to show my son what it means to give back. A simple way to show him how much extra teachers do for their students.
Plus, it was a good excuse to go a little crazy in the Target dollar section.
So I took him to the store and let him pick everything out. We picked out basketball bouncy balls and soccer ball bouncy balls and pink bouncy balls and some that were just plain blue. This morning, he informed me that he is really hoping for a basketball.
My initial reaction was to text the teacher and ask her if she could hold one for him. After all, he helped pick them out, so he kind of deserves to get the one he wants, right?
But then the other half of me, thought “No, you’d better not. He needs to learn to be happy with whatever he gets. He needs to learn that you get what you get and you don’t throw a fit. And you don’t need to be interfering in his life anyways.”
So this back and forth went on like a ping pong ball inside my mind for a solid five minutes.
And then it dawned on me: This. This is why moms are so exhausted. Yes, we chase kids. Yes, we clean up after them like the guy scooping up poop behind the horses in the parade. But I don’t believe that’s the true source of our exhaustion. I believe it’s this dance, this teetering back and forth between trying to walk this very, very fine line of what is right and what is wrong. What is black and what is white. What is good for our kids and what is even better.
When you have a baby, you walk this fine line and you worry about whether breast milk or formula is better, about whether your baby needs Pampers or Luvs, about whether to keep your baby in the room with you, or let them sleep in their own crib. Every decision is as delicate as that precious baby you are holding gently in your arms.
When you have a toddler, you walk this fine line and you worry about whether or not to start them in a Mother’s Day Out program or to keep them at home with you. You wonder whether screen time is really going to destroy your child for life like all the articles say, or whether one (or four) episode/episodes of “Paw Patrol” is fine. You also have to get the laundry done, and you can’t do that with your 2-year-old hanging on your leg. So back and forth, back and forth — you begin the process of wading through the mud to find what is best.
Not what is good. Good’s not good enough. You need to know what is best.
And then they throw a tantrum in the middle of the cookie aisle at Kroger’s. Right there, with everyone watching, waiting, wondering how you’re going to handle it. Right there in-between the Oreos and the Chips Ahoy. Will you yell? Will you give in? Will you be too hard? Will you be too soft?
When you have a school-aged child, you walk this fine line and you stress about which school is best for your child. Again, this is your child. This is their education. The weight of your decision is heavier than a two-ton elephant sitting on your chest spraying water out of his trunk. This decision will go with them forever, so there is no adequate. There is no fine. There is no good enough. There is only what’s best, and it’s all on you to find it, like Waldo, only if you don’t find it, you can’t just turn the page and move on, you’ve basically ruined your child forever.
When you have a teenager, you walk this fine line of letting them still be a kid, and pushing them to become an adult. This fine line of going crazy and trying to keep your cool. This fine line of taking everything they own away and tossing it out the window of your two-story home and understanding all the changes puberty is putting them through. This fine line of being the adult who doesn’t put up with disrespect, and this friend who will come and pick them up if they’re at a party, starting to feel uncomfortable.
And then there’s the fine line of who to put first: your children, your spouse, or yourself. You can make the case for all three. You can easily argue all three sides.
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
No wonder we are so exhausted. Our minds are a maze. Our lives are a juggling act. Our jobs are trying to find the black and white in a world full of muddled gray. Our jobs are trying to dance the tango and the waltz and the Boot Scootin’ Boogie and the Macarena all to the same bizarre song.
No stinking wonder.
I don’t have a ton of advice here, honestly. I’m not an expert. I’m right in the middle of the mess with you, my friends. We are mothers and we will always want the absolute best for our children and we won’t stop until we find it, even if that means mulling every decision over by digging through a giant haystack of articles and advice until we find the dadgum needle our children need.
I can only tell you this: you’re doing a good job. You’re doing a hella good job.
You wouldn’t care so much if you weren’t.
You wouldn’t worry so much if you weren’t.
You wouldn’t be walking that fine line like Johnny Cash if you weren’t exactly what and who your kids needed.
They’re going to be fine, and so are you.
Sometimes you’ll miss the mark, sometimes you’ll be off by a few feet, or even a few hundred.
Apologize. Forgive. Get back up and keep going, keep trying.
Keep trying to tiptoe across that tightrope. Keep trying to balance your way through motherhood. Keep trying to do the things that are the very best for your children.
In trying, you’re loving them in a way that will make a loud difference in their lives. And I promise, that love will be the thing that carries them over the threshold from happy childhood to successful adulthood.
That love will be the thing that makes the most difference, not whether or not you call the teacher and ask her to set aside the basketball bouncy ball. Not whether or not you make your own almond milk, buy organic milk, or buy the cheapest milk you can find in bulk at Sam’s Club.
Love walks the fine line, and you’re doing it. You’re doing it better than you know.
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