As I begin my school year off in a new grade level there are lots of changes and adjustments that I must confront. One big change that is undeniably visible is the use of desks!!! When I taught Kindergarten my seating was flexible in the sense that no student had an actual assigned seat, but instead would rotate through centers and chose a seat at the table they were assigned to be at in that moment. As I walked into my into my new 2nd grade classroom I almost forgot that desks would be involved. Thinking back to my own 2nd grade desk experience, and honestly the majority of my primary school experience, I remember the rigidness of rows facing the black board! I knew for sure that is not what I wanted to do, but also felt a bit at a loss of what it "should" look like. I picked at my colleagues' mind in the building and got great ideas of how to clusters desks together. But, when I looked online for more ideas and inspiration I was greeted by the idea of flexible seating.
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My first year of teaching I remember trying to get sign up sheets available for room parents and volunteers. I worked with a great team that did not use much technology so it was an experience of tracking clipboards with sign up sheets and surviving a very full back to school night. My second year we started off the year by expanding that basic classroom forms, although still in paper format, from just basic communication information to include a more in depth cultural and ethnic snapshot of each family. The attempt to create a better school home connection was quickly disrupted by the pandemic. Soon we all found ourselves scrambling to keep our heads above water, from home, while we adjusted to a new way of teaching. It became clear that the idea of parent involvement was more on a survival mode and lots of consideration and compassion was shared with everyone's changing home and work life. As we adjusted back into in person learning I feel like that connection we were aiming to r
Hola, soy Srta. Calcagno! Hello, I am Liza Calcagno and am in my 5th year teaching at a Dual Immersion Public School in Montgomery County, Maryland. Life has taken me on a journey before finally returning to my true passion, the classroom, and I couldn't be more grateful. I studied Early Childhood Education and knew very little about Two Way Immersion programs. So when I went on an interview at my school, I thought it would be great practice/ experience in interviewing and not that this is where I would be 5 years later. I have learned so much about how to teach in both English and Spanish; having experienced 4 years in Kindergarten and now my first year in 2nd grade. Along the way in my professional career I have been fortunate enough to be involved in different perspectives beyond being a classroom teacher. I have served as the Kindergarten team leader for 2 years, spoke on panels to represent my school and our program, as well as been involved in the interviewing process to hir