Interactive Notebook Addiction... Vocabulary

Those of you who follow me on Pinterest know that I LOVE to pin things to help me with school. I have found many many excellent ideas, projects, resources, fundraisers, and the list could go on for ever. It is almost unhealthy the amount of time I spend on Pinterest but one of the greatest things I have found has been all the resources on Interactive Notebooks. Some of the amazing blogs I follow are listed below and I could not encourage you enough to check out all the ways these teachers use these notebooks in their classrooms. Here is one of the ways I tie these notebooks into my classes. 

In this picture you see the inside of the vocabulary foldables I call a tri-fold 

This is the outside view of the tri-fold vocabulary foldables

 These tri-fold foldables I use with my CASE courses as well as all other courses I teach to help spice up the boring idea of vocabulary. I give the students the list of vocabulary words at the beginning of each section and they have one day of in class time to research and complete these. What they do not get completed is left up to them to complete on their own time. I check these vocabulary the day before we take the quiz over each section. This is just one of several examples I have and I will post more pictures of the vocabulary as I go along. The students in my classes are responsible for all the cutting, and gluing for all their own foldables and I find that ever with high school  students this helps to keep them much more engaged and involved in the lecture style activities. Although like most agriculture and CTE courses I do a tremendous amount of labs and hands on activities juicing up the necessary lectures has been a great addition to my curriculum. On my TpT page you will find all my foldables and resources. 

Follow these awesome teachers for even more help with implementing these notebooks in your room! There are more great things on my Pinterest board Fun for School! 
Caught in the Middle
Hands on Math in High School
The Science Penguin

So how do you use interactive notebooks? How do you see this working in your class? 

Just trust me

I know, I know, agriculture teachers have no summer so why would you want to give up another week for another professional development? Trust me when I say this one is different. The National Agriscience Teacher Ambassador Program is unlike any training I have ever been to (I am sure some of you veteran teachers are chuckling at the thought of just how many training's I could have possibly been to). Through the National Association of Agriculture Educators you can find the applications which are due DECEMBER 16th that's nearly a month to talk it over with your spouse, babysitter, mother-in-law, principal or whoever you need to talk to to help reassure yourself that this is a meaningful week that you will not for one minute feel has been a waste of your time. DuPont sponsors you from the time you arrive at the airport until you arrive home and spoil you with some of the best food and views in the Delaware area! From the moment you step foot onto the farm you are surrounded by other agriculture teachers and leaders who want you to get the absolute most out of every minute you are there. 
 So we have all heard this buzz word "inquiry based learning" well if you were like me it was nothing more than just that, a word. I knew that I had experienced several trainings that claimed to explain this foreign concept but I still was totally clueless. Through extensive hands-on training and exploration into what it was like to be an inquiry based learner I have new respect for this infamous word. I have taken the MASSIVE toolkit of skills, tips and tricks I learned while there home and transformed my classroom little by little. From utilizing stamps to cut back on my own grading to changing up lessons that where tried and true I have become a better teacher because of this experience! 
 Not only do you get to go home and change the way your students learn but you are also part of a team that works to present other agriculture teachers with ways they can utilize inquiry based learning as well. Through presentation of  workshops at National FFA Convention and at the NAAE Convention (which just so happens to be in Las Vegas this year) you help to spread the word about inquiry based learning. 
 If you are thinking this is not for you or that you are past the point of changing things in your classroom or program please please please think again! There where teachers like myself there who are still new, to veteran teachers who are mere years from retirement. This program has something tremendous to offer everyone and I am incredibly thankful I was awarded the opportunity. If you have questions about this program I am more than happy to answer any questions you may have or you can always check out the NAAE website. 
This one week will change the rest of your teaching career. TRUST ME. 
                 

New but trying...

 So...after much consideration and thought I am making my debut into the blogging world! I have spent the past two year teaching agriculture to some of the greatest students in Kentucky and now that I am in a new state with new people the struggle ALL too different. 
 A little about me to entice you to continue reading. I began my teaching career by starting a program for a small independent school in northern Kentucky. I always believe they must have seen something in me I didn't even know existed to trust me with such a task but man was it an amazing blessing in disguise. I spent two years there as a part time teacher and helped them to charter their FFA and begin their journey into state FFA recognition. 

   (Three of my students and I with a Kentucky state officer in the summer of 2012 receiving out charter from National FFA)
 This past summer I received an opportunity to move to a school much closer to home and work in a multi-teacher department. Now this is where I should be very truthful and tell you that as a perfectionist and control freak I knew this was going to be a stretch outside my comfort zone but that's the only way we learn and improve. So since July I have been at a new school with new expectations, standards, students, and challenges. Like any teacher you find the good days and hold onto those with all your strength and that's what keeps you going. 
 Aside from my classroom teaching experience I am a two course CASE (Curriculum for Agriculture Science Education) certified instructor, a Teach Ag mentor teacher and most recently a National Agriscience Teacher Ambassador. Now yes this means I have sacrificed my summers for the past two years but I could not have imagined spending my time in a more rewarding way! If you have never taken the time to check out these opportunities the time is NOW! 
 So now that I have introduced myself I hope to begin blogging about my classroom and how I teach in hopes that I can help others better their classrooms and students as well. If you have any questions or are interested in a certain topic please feel free to make suggestions for future blogs!