Top 3 Things Linky Party

I've been finding so many wonderful blogs over the past few weeks!  Becca over at Simply 2nd Resources is encouraging everyone to share the top three things they are going to focus on this school year.  Here are mine:

1. Technology- I should be getting a SmartBoard ANY!DAY!NOW!  And I can't hardly wait.  My two math teammates both have SmartBoards, so I've been left out of all the fun for the past year.  I want to find, create, and incorporate some awesome interactive lessons with my kiddos.  I can't wait to see how a SmartBoard transforms my teaching and my students' learning. 

2. Small Group Instruction- My students visit math stations each day.  One of those stations is Teacher Station.  I want to make better use of this time with small groups.  In previous years, I've had one activity at the station, but this year I want to have a variety of activities to choose from so I can give each student what they need.  Stations are student-selected, so I'm not able to create leveled groups during that time (that probably would be the easiest solution, but...we like giving our students choices).  But I know I can do better at differentiating activities so everyone in my class gets the most out of teacher station.

3. Creativity!- For the past couple of years, I've been using the same resources and activities that I inherited from the previous teacher.  This year, I want to branch out a little and create new things!  We got a new math curriculum (Math in Focus) last year.  Now that I've spent a year stumbling through learning the curriculum, I know what the kids need to know and where the book is taking them.  So I'm looking forward to creating some awesome station/center activities based on the Singapore math strategies taught in Math in Focus {and sharing them with YOU!}.

Join in the fun and share your top 3 focus areas for the year!