Summer!

Wow, what a school year! I managed teaching two new electives this year, in addition to my normal biology class, and not only survived but did well! I got a lot of great feedback from students, parents, and staff, and I'm excited to continue planning and making the courses even better! But I did work my tail off so I am also very excited for summer and to relax!

Today was my first official day of summer break, but I didn't start relaxing just yet. I decided to sign up for 2 weeks of classes to earn some credit hours towards my next raise (likely still another year or two away). This morning's class was about education sites on Weebly. I learned how to make a Weebly page; it was actually very easy. Right now my class webpage is on Google Sites but if I have time this summer I might switch things over. I think Weebly has more features I could take advantage of.

Tonight I am headed to the Akron Zoo for our monthly volunteer meeting, followed by a volunteer picnic. I also joined the Boo at the Zoo committee and have a meeting for that as well, so it is going to be a busy night! That is ok though, it is probably good I am starting off summer with some plans so I don't get too lazy and out of my routine.

July will be my month for travel. I am going to San Diego for a Teacher Conservation Workshop (read about it in my previous post) and am also going on a family trip to Chicago. In Chicago I am excited to check out the zoos and aquarium.

Summer will likely go very fast, doesn't it always though? August is always spend preparing for the new school year so really there isn't as much free time as many think.

Anyways, I love hearing how teachers spend their summer so feel free to comment with your plans!

Have a great one!

^ After checking out other teacher blogs I decided to add my own signature line :)

13 school days til summer ... and San Diego Summer Teacher Conservation Workshop

Has anyone else started their summer countdown yet? :)


It has been a busy school year and my classes went great. We did so many fun labs and activities but I just did not have extra time or energy to post about them all. I am hoping next school year I will be able to make more time to blog.


I wanted to share some great news though, I got accepted to the 2014 Summer Teacher Workshops in Conservation Science at the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research. I am so excited and can't wait! Not only will I get to travel to California for the first time ever, I get to see and experience San Diego Safari Park. I am a huge fan of zoos (I have a goal to visit at least one in every state and so far have been to 15 zoos in 10 states). I'm so excited for the opportunity to experience San Diego and learn info to bring back to my classroom. We'll be sleeping in tents at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park and learning about all kinds of topics. Here is the topic list they sent us:

Recovery of the California Condor

• Pedigree analysis

• Karyotypes

• Polymerase Chain Reaction

• Gel electrophoresis

• Captive breeding program management

• Reintroduction biology

• Radio telemetry

The Bushmeat Crisis

• DNA sequencing

• Phylogenetics

• BLAST

Reproductive Endocrinology

• Reproductive physiology

• Enzyme immunoassay

Climate Change and the Polar Bear

• Animal behavior and behavior modification

• Human impacts on climate

• Applied research on denning behavior

Life in a Biodiversity Hotspot

• Biodiversity of Southern California

• Field Methods

Spatial Ecology

• Introduction to GPS and Google Earth

• Analysis of spatial data

• Conservation program management

Global Amphibian Decline

• Wildlife disease

• Human impacts on biodiversity

The Value of Biodiversity

• Introduction to biodiversity

• Intrinsic and utilitarian importance of biodiversity

Science as Inquiry

• Intro to guided inquiry investigations

• Intro to open inquiry investigations

While in San Diego, I'm going to stay a few extra days to experience other parks, including the San Diego Zoo and maybe Sea World if time/money allows. I'll make sure to post pictures and how it went after my trip!


Enjoy these last few weeks of school until summer. I know this trip is my well-earned reward for a busy school year, I hope all of my teacher friends find a way to reward themselves and relax too :)

Planarians and Sponges!

What a fun week we had at school last week. My Zoology class started their Planaria Regeneration Lab to wrap up our chapter about Animal Reproduction and begin our study of the different animal Phyla. The students had many reactions to the planaria. Some said they were bigger than they thought they would be, others thought they were smaller. Some thought the smelled and were gross, others were super intrigued. Almost all were amazed they could survive being cut in half, or in some cases into thirds. I loved that they were making observations, asking questions, and talking about science! Each group got 4 worms. First they took measurements and recorded their observations, then made the cuts. They had to re-do any partial cuts each day to make sure they wouldn't heal back together. I am very excited for the upcoming weeks to see students' reactions as they regenerate. This was my first time doing this lab too, so definitely a fun experience for me as well. I took a lot of photos and videos, here are just a few...

Tomorrow we start sponges. I stayed after school on Friday for some meetings and decided to decorate my chalkboard as well. I love drawing on my chalkboard to make it linked to our content. Not only is the creative outlet stress-relieving for me, but it also helps draw students attention to the daily tasks, learning targets, and homework assignments posted on the board. Also, how many times as day do teachers get asked "What is today's date?". Yep, most common question ever! Having a fancy date design each day prevents students from having to ask this... or at least asking as much :)

As you can see with the chalkboard design... tomorrow my zoology class is starting sponges. So this weekend I edited all of my Sponge (Phylum Porifera) materials and uploaded them to my TPT store. Feel free to check them out! http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Miss-Abrams

Well, that is all for now. Have a great week at school. Happy Teaching!!

Free Teacher-themed Desktop Wallpapers

I love editing and creating graphics to use in my classroom- on signs, in PowerPoint presentations, etc. This week I was feeling extra creative and decided to make some desktop wallpapers to fancy up my computer at work and home. They turned out so nice that I decided to share them.

If you want to use a wallpaper, just click on the image to expand it, then right click on it, and 'Set as Background'. Don't worry about the link at the bottom, that won't show up. It should be hidden under your taskbar so you won't see it, I just figured since I would be posting these for free I'd use it to help promote my TPT store in the process. :)

The desktop wallpapers are 1600 x 900... because that is what my screen is set at, but if there is enough interest I can make them in other sizes. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: My inspiration for most of these was Pinterest and I'm hoping none of the images are copyrighted. If so, just let me know and I will gladly take them down!

If you are addicted to Pinterest as I am, feel free to Follow Me :) http://www.pinterest.com/lightpinklily/

Lastly, here is a link to my TPT store, feel free to Follow Me there too. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Miss-Abrams

Happy Teaching! Take care!

Snow Day #6

We have had the past 4 school days off because of snowy weather and extremely cold wind chills. Can you believe it? It is hard to believe it is still January and we've already used up all of our snow days, plus one extra day that we have to make up. Winter isn't over yet either, so we may be stretching our school year into summer this year.

The time at home has given me time to work ahead on some things, and post some new lessons to TeachersPayTeachers. I uploaded my first 2 chapters of Zoology materials and can't wait to upload more.

You can find these, plus more, in my TPT store here: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Miss-Abrams

In other news, I am slowly healing from my foot surgery that I had over Christmas break. I am still wearing an air cast boot, but hopefully in the next few months I will be back to normal- or even better than before!

We are in second semester now, and my new challenge is getting the kids where they need to be by state testing in March. We are very behind this year, due to a wide range of problems, including snow days, so it will be a challenge for sure!

Well, time to relax on the couch a little after working at my computer all day. Hope you have a great evening and end to your week. Stay warm!

Happy New Year!

Wow I can't believe how long it has been since I have posted. And I can't believe it is 2014! The first semester went way faster than expected but I am so happy it went well.

My Forensic Science class was a huge hit! It went so well in fact, we've decided to make it a year long course next year. I was able to create a lot of awesome units and plans, all of which I have posted in my TPT Store. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Miss-Abrams I'm looking forward to creating more next year as well!

       

Speaking of... an article got published about my Forensics class! Check it out here on page 8, http://www.mhjf.org/Websites/mhjf/images/pdfs/ProExFall2013B.pdf

This next semester I'm going to be teaching Zoology and I am very excited about it! I love animals and am very excited to have a course all about them! I have taught many animal units for Biology and AP Biology but this is extra cool since I can devote a whole semester to it! Stay tuned as I create and share my Zoology plans as well.

Oh, by the way since we have a crazy wind chill warning we got yesterday and today off of school. I love snow days! It has been such a nice extension to Christmas break, particularly since I had foot surgery over break and would have had to miss school yesterday anyways to get my stitches out. I am doing ok though, just a few more weeks of wearing an air cast boot.

Well, stay warm and have a great 2014!

Unity Day and Forensic Fiber Analysis Lab

Today was Unity Day and as co-chair of our Bully Prevention team, we organized to wear Orange today to promote anti-bullying. A lot of students participated which was great to see!

We also started our next Forensics Lab this week- Fiber Evidence Analysis. So far it is going great! Today students examined fibers under the microscope, then started their burn tests. Right now they are collecting data from known fibers. Next they will test unknown fibers and try to identify them. Here are some pictures from today's portion:

This is the first year our school has allowed students to have/use cell phones in class. I must say I love it! So far they have been really helpful in documenting labs.

I'd call this lab a huge success so far. Students are engaged and learning! As soon as we finish, I'm going to tweak a few small details then post it on TPT to share with others! Keep an eye out for it in my TPT store. Click the 'Follow Me' button if you want updates on when I post it and other new resources.

Lastly, a cold is going around school and I seem to have caught it! I got through the day today and am hoping I can power through another day tomorrow. I just need to make it to the weekend, then can rest up! In the meantime, Dayquil, Nyquil, and the tissue box are my best friends!

Have a great night!