Thanksgiving? Nope, moving on.

It seems I have missed November. I can't even sneak in a post and pretend I was doing my monthly post. Oh well...it was a good month though. Passed very quickly. I have a Christmas program coming up that has really taken up most of my energy. It is an annual thing at my school but it always takes more work than I remember each year. I work with first through fifth graders that will sing a variety of songs. I have 8th grade students that will be playing handbells. They have proved to be more challenging than in previous years. Guitar students and a small vocal ensemble have a few things to perform also. So you can see that I am a bit preoccupied.

Biggest news- got a mac book pro! Loving it. Using it now. Beautiful screen. Nice keyboard. Easy to navigate.  I really do like using it. Have much to learn about it and how to utilize everything it is able to do better than a pc.

So on to my things to share- 

I recently assisted our reading specialist at our school to present a parent workshop about emergent readers. It was a very good workshop and the parents really appreciated the information. We worked to get her a wikispace up and running, hopefully to help her parents find resources. MissVercilloReading will be a place where she can keep her parents informed. One of the first links we included was to the site Starfall. A favorite site of all the primary teachers at my school, Starfall offers visitors phonics, ABC's, books to read and be read to plus calendars, games and so many wonderful interactives. It really is time well spent exploring. 

One other thing I would like to share is if you are a fan of twitter, you should follow TCEA (Texas Computer Educator Association).  I was reminded by a colleague who has taken up tweeting, that TCEA makes a tweet each day about free apps. They frequently mention great educational websites also. I have tried to make it a part of my routine to check twitter each day to see what the offerings are for the day. Even if you don't twitter, you can still look them up to see what recommendations they may have. 

December looks to be a flurry. Literally. Busy weeks ahead. Stay warm and make good choices!