Hello everyone! I'm a first year teacher, still looking for different ways to optimize my time. I'm wondering how much time you each spend on each subject??? I would really like to launch Lucy Calkins' Writer's Workshop, but I barely have enough time to finish everything we do as it is. We use Open Court Reading, which DEVOURS time. I understand that I'll have to make a few changes, though. Here is the schedule we currently follow: 9:00 Arrive/Morning Work 9:15 Morning Meeting 9:30 Open Court (Phonics, Phonemic/Phonological Awareness) 10:20 Special 11:00 Snack/Bathroom Break/Fluency Tests 11:30 Open Court Reading (Decodable Books)/Dictation Activities 12:20 Lunch/Recess 1:00 Math 1:50 Social Studies/Science 2:20 Open Court (Shared Reading) 2:30 Open Court Language Arts Lesson 2:55 Dismiss bus students 3:00 Dismiss all Most of our day is Open Court!!! And I don't even do everything in it. The other 1st grade teachers say that it's impossible to do everything in OC... we'd be able to teach ONLY Open Court, all day! Anyway, enough of my complaining. I guess I'm looking for an excuse to change my schedule. Let me know your schedules!!! (And if anyone does Open Court and still manages to fit in supplement stuff, PLEASE let me know how!!!)
i used to use open court with my kindergarten class. i know some people speak really highly of how open court works but i couldn't stand it for the fact that it took up SO much of the day... i felt like i never got anything done! it was frustrating because it was all so scripted and i hated not getting to everything bc i felt like i wasn't using the program properly. on the other hand they did provide a lot of really nice materials to use in the classroom. anyhow... i am not really providing a lot of useful information for you just my own experiences with OC(SORRY) but i do know that i have seen some other teachers post about open court on here before really liking it. maybe you could search 'open court' in the forums and see if there's anything good. or you could just hope for someone to respond with better answers for you : ) GOOD LUCK!
Open Court is a phonics based reading program. It's VERY scripted, and is a major time-sucker, however, in it's defense-- it works. I've seen MIRACLES happen in the past month (with the kids learning to read quite fast). Really. Lol. I just wish I had more freedom to try all the great "best practice" techniques I learned in college. They did not prepare me at all to deal with a phonics based program like Open Court.
Does snack and fluency tests have to take 30 minutes? You might be able to shave off 30 min. there. Also, depending on how students arrive in your room (all at once versus trickling in), you may be able to begin you morning meeting sooner and save maybe 15 minutes or so?
This is my new schedule as of this week. 8:30-8:50 Morning Work 8:50-9:15 Morning Meeting (greeting, sharing, activity- shared reading, phonics, shared writing, etc., news and announcements) 9:15-9:45 Literacy Stations and Guided Reading groups 9:45-10:30 Reading Workshop (Minilesson, independent reading, sharing) 10:30-11:15 Writing Workshop (Minilesson, independent writing, sharing) 11:15-11:50 Lunch 11:50-12:10 Read Aloud/Phonemic Awareness 12:10-12:20 Calendar 12:20-1:05 Math 1:05-1:40 Specials 1:40-2:20 Science/Social Studies 2:20-2:30 Pack up/Dismiss PS it seems really great to me but it's difficult to get enough word work in. Also transition times takes a lot out of the time blocks.
8:55 community time (whole school) 9:05-9:20 morning work 9;20-10:20 Calendar time, whole group reading instruction 10:20-10:35 Recess 10:35-11:40 Leveled group instruction. My EA and I have 4 groups total at 30 minutes each. 11:40-12:25 lunch/recess 12:25-12:55 Storytime 12:55-1:05 Planner (kids write in their planner daily) 1:05-1:30 PE on Tues/Thurs 1:05-2:05 Math on Mon, Wed Fri 1:30-2:30 Math, SS/S or Art on Tues and Thurs 2:05-2:25 Recess on Mon Wed and Fri 2:25-2:30 drinks 2:30-3:00 Specials 3:00-3:10 Clean for inspection 3:10-3:23 pack up and read aloud
Here is my daily schedule: 7:50-8:10 Morning seat work 8:10-8:20 Morning math meeting/Question of the Day 8:20-9:00 Science or Social Studies 9:00-10:00 Specialists 10:00-11:30 Reading 11:30-12:20 Recess and Lunch 12:20-1:00 Story read-aloud and journals 1:00-1:35 Math 1:35-2:00 Reading interventions 2:00-2:25 Write Well and/or Math 2:25-2:30 Clean up/pack up/go home
We just got a new literacy program this year. If we do everything it would take all day as well! Some teachers are teaching reading and writing every other day. I however, am teaching it all every day but shortening the lessons and trying to add a lot of the activities into centers. My daily schedule: 9:00- 9:20 Trickle in of students and morning work 9:20- 9:30 Morning Meeting/ Calendar 9:30- 9:40 Vocabulary journals 9:40- 10:00 Phonics 10:00- 10:20 Whole Group Reading (Shared reading/ comprehension) 10:20- 10:55 Guided Reading and centers 10:55- 12:00 Recess and Lunch 12:00- 12:55 Read Aloud and Writing Workshop 12:55- 1:00 Authors Chair 1:00- 1:15 Recess 1:15- 1:20 Bathroom break 1:20- 2:00 Math (also peer tutoring and centers) 2:00- 2:30 Content/ Sitton Spelling 2:30- 2:50 Sight words/ QAR/ S.S.R. 2:50- 3:00 Pack Up/ Data notebooks 3:00- 3:35 Specials
My schedule varies by the day but here is the schedule that works best for us: 8:00 students arrive 8:15-8:30 Free time/Morning work 8:30-8:55 Pledges & Religion class 9:00-9:15 Calendar 9:15-9:45 Math (Saxon Math) 9:45-10:00 Snack & D.E.A.R time 10:00-10:25 Recess 10:30-11:30 Open Court ( Phonics, Phonemic Awareness & decodable books. Shared reading if possible) 11:30 - 12:30 Lunch & recess 12:30- 12:45- Shared reading ( seasonal book or story for fun) 12:45- 1:15 Social Studies or Science 1:15- 1:30 Shared reading from Open Court (if not done before) 1:30-2pm Physical Education 2:00- 2:50- Writing (grammar or writing workshop or dictation from Open Court) 2:50- 3pm pack up for car line & end of day.
8:25- Get ready for day 8:30-9:00 Reading Whole Group 9:00-10:00 Guided Reading/Centers 10:00-10:15 RR break 10:15-10:35 Calendar 10:35-10;55 Recess 10:55-11:30 Math 11:30-12:10 Lunch/Recess 12:10-1:00 Show and Tell/Library Check-out/Indep. reading 1:00- 2:00 Specials 2:00-2:35 math 2:35-2:55 Recess 2:55-3:30 Sci/SS/Phonics 3:30-3:45 Get ready to go home 3:45 Dismissal
We have specials two different times throughout the week, but this is the better schedule of the two (although one day we have TWO specials! Talk about getting nothing done!): 9:00-9:10 - Arrive in the room, attendance, lunch count, homework check, put away coats/backpacks 9:10-9:25 - Calendar routine/morning meeting 9:25-9:45 - DEAR/small group work (pull kids who need one-on-one or small group phonemic awareness or word work, running records, etc) 9:45-10:20 - Writing workshop 10:20-10:30 - Bathroom/water break (required by the school!) 10:30-11:10 - Reading workshop 11:10-11:30 - Lunch 11:30-11:45 - Read aloud 11:45 - 11:55 - Bathroom/water break 11:55-12:35 - Literacy centers or reading projects and guided reading 12:35-1:15 - Special 1:15-2:05 - Math 2:05-2:35 - Science/SS 2:35-2:45 - Pack up/go home There's never enough time in the day! I feel like I'm never doing any one thing justice, and I'm looking to do a major overhaul but things like specials, bathroom/water breaks and lunch (of course) can't be changed. Sigh!
Unfortunately, I can't seem to find a way to make snack shorter. Our classroom is at the end of the VERY long corridor, and it we lose 5 minutes each time we need to travel to or from a special (which end at 11:00 am) (especially if we run into "traffic" from other classes). The art teacher keeps them like 10 minutes longer every time!!! When we return, I check their study binders for signatures (from reading decodables and wordlines), and then they get their snacks. Then I give them each an opportunity to use the bathroom, which sucks up even more time. As for the morning- school starts at 9:00 am, but with the traffic in the hall, and waiting for other teachers to pick up their kids when I have duty (3 times a week), we get to our room at 9:05 at the earliest. At that point the kids unpack, and do morning work, while someone collects daily folders, and I do attendance and lunch count. I seriously do not know where those 10 minutes go! I feel like I'm going as fast as I can, and rushing the kids, and we still always finish at 9:15 (on a GOOD day). Not to mention, we have to wait for the messengers to return from dropping off things to the cafeteria, nurse, and office (which, again, take forever, since we are at the VERY end of a VERY long corridor). You could say that our location is less than desirable.
Wow! You seem to have a really short day! Here is a suggestion, if you would like to try writer's workshop, do 3 days of writer's workshop during your science/ss time and the other two days science/ss. Then, try to integrate science/ss into reading and writing. Good luck!
8:20-8:30 arrival/morning work 8:30-9:00 morning meeting 9:00-9:30 guided reading (2 rotations) 9:30-10:10 Saxon Phonics 10:10-10:50 guided reading (2 more rotations) 10:50-11:25 recess/lunch 11:25-12:10- unit focus (ss or science) 12:10-12:50 specials 12:50-1:30 writing 1:30-2:05 math 2:05-2:20 extra recess 2:20-3:05 school-wide reading intervention (Reading Mastery Plus) 3:05-3:20 planners/pack-up/dismissal At the beginning of the year guided reading was all in one chunk (one hour) but that was so much time of independent work for the kids (45 min. uninterrupted for some) so we broke it up and I like it a lot better, plus I think the kids are more efficient and do more working and less daydreaming or messing around.
MissR, I really like your schedule! Do you do whole group reading lessons or just guided reading groups?
I think I feel like many of you - that there's just not nearly enough time to get everything done. I feel that I have to squeeze in a lot of stuff and that things always end up feeling rushed, but a typical schedule would be: 8:30-8:45 Morning Work 8:45-9:00 Morning Meeting (greeting, calendar, shared reading, etc). 9-10 Reader's Workshop and Guided Reading (I meet with guided reading groups while others are reading independently) 10-10:15 Snack 10:15-11:00 Writer's Workshop 11:00 - 11:45 Special 11:50-12:50 - Lunch and Recess 12:55-1:10 Pack up (copy down homework, pack up homework) 1:15-2:15 Math 2:15-2:35 Phonics/Word Work/Shared Reading or Writing 2:35-3:10 Science or Social Studies 3:15 Dismissal Most days I have two specials - one is almost always at 11, the other is at another point in a day. So, something always gets left out! I enjoy having the prep time but squeezing everyhing in is just difficult!
snickydog, I feel exactly the same way! I'm hoping to do some serious thinking over Christmas about how I can rearrange our schedule, because I feel like we never get anything done. Part of it, I think, is that I have a larger class than I did last year (I started at 20, had kids come mid-year and ended at 22. This year I've started at 26 and keep hoping that no new ones will come) so everything just seems to take longer. If I come up with any great ideas I'll be sure to let you know!
Miss Kirby: phonics is whole group as is Reading Mastery and they are very different from each other, so along with guided reading I feel like the kids get very well-rounded reading instruction. We level the kids for phonics and Reading mastery within first grade, so the kids move to other classrooms. Guided reading is leveled within my regular classroom of kids. I like my schedule pretty well, too.
Wow! I'm looking at all the things different teachers are able to squeeze in and it's amazing. I hate my schedule but I have no way to change it: 7:20-7:50 Student arrive/Morning Work (In reality our they start showing up at around 7:05--I don't know why this one bus is so early even though our administration has complained) 7:50-8:00 Character Ed (yeah, right) 8:00-8:15 Math Meeting 8:15-9:00 Whole Group Reading (Universal Literacy) 9:00-10:20 Stations/Small Group Reading (U.L.) 10:20-11:00 Spelling/Grammar/Writing 11:00-11:30 Lunch 11:30-11:45 Reading Intervention 11:45-12:15 SPE teacher and I do additional Intervention in my room while my kids go to other first grade classes 12:15-12:50 Saxon Math 12:50-1:35 P.E. 1:35-2:00 Social Studies or Science (We do three weeks of one them swap) 2:00-2:25 Snack/Read Alouds/Progress Monitoring 2:25-2:35 Clean Up/Line Up
Our Schedule I teach in the South Bronx, here's our schedule: 8:15- I pick up the kids and bring them up three flights of stairs (in a 5 story building) with about 25 other classes using the same 3stairwells. 8:25- We arrive in the room, kids unpack and take out their homework while I walk around checking it 8:40- Morning Meeting, on a good day this will happen earlier, also depends on how many of my kids are on time- they all walk to school there are no buses and many come late everyday- at MM I do the calendar, days in school, all about today, morning message, and weather 8:55- Phonics- on Monday, Wednesday, Fridays we do a full Reading Reform lesson, on Tuesday and Thursdays we quickly review sounds and do word work 9:25- Shared Reading with a comprehension skill for the week- we use Scott Foresman Reading Street 9:45- Guided Reading/Centers- I have 5 groups and we do 2 rotations of 20 minutes each so I meet with two groups a day for guided reading 10:30- Lunch 11:20- Bathroom Break/Independent Reading- bathrooms are down the hall so I send students in pairs and read with them one on one and sign their reading log if they read the book well, they get to put a sticker on their chart (they have to read 25 books by the end of the year, this is how our school keeps track) 11:35- Writer's Workshop- we use Lucy Caulkins and our reading program, we use the Lucy skill and the journal writing from the program 12:20- Math- Everyday Math 1:20- Science/Social Studies- Science 3x, SS 2x weekly 1:50- Special/Prep Period 2:35- Dismissal I, children stay after TWR for an extra 50 minutes for small group instruction (Pre-K and K don't stay so there are all those teachers plus out of classroom professionals to take groups of 10 students) My prep changes every day but that's my monday schedule when it's last period, which I prefer because I actually get everything done on Monday, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays I have two preps which I love for me but hate for my students. We don't get a lot done that day as 1 1/2 hours is at the prep and the students come back crazy and I need to take an additional 10 minutes to get them back so a lot of instructional time is wasted those two days. Hope it helps you.
My schedule is: 8:35-8:50 check in and morning work 8:50-9:35 writing workshop 9:35-10:45 reading workshop I (shared rdg, guided rdg & workstations) 10:45-11:15 recess 11:15-11:30 chapter book read aloud 11:30-12:00 lunch & bathroom 12:10-12:45 reading workshop II (minilesson & independent rdg) 12:45-1:15 math 1:15-2:15 specials 2:15-2:45 math 2:45-2:55 snack 2:55-3:25 phonics/spelling/word work 3:25 dismiss On Friday I only have 1 special so I do an hour of science or s.s. after lunch and move math into the late afternoon and do math stations/small groups.
