5 Most Popular Posts of 2018!

Good morning colleagues! We're getting down to the wire here before Christmas break. We still have a week left of school, but due to Christmas eve being on a Monday, and traveling next weekend to see family, this is my last blog post of 2018! Where has this year gone?!

Per tradition last year, after being inspired by Catlin Tucker, I've decided that my final post of the year will recap my top five most viewed (popular) posts on my blog. It's not too much of a surprise to see my top five as they were all posted before summer break and all had content that was relevant to all and/or was a "hot topic" in the news.

Post #1 (21 Jan 2018) 
In this post, early this year, I blogged about how our district implemented digital portfolios. I provided some links to resources about using digital portfolio with students. I also talked about how digital portfolios can provide your students with a voice and with choice (they pick what's on their site, and they reflect upon their decisions and learning). I briefly discuss my own digital portfolio and why it works for me. Then I end by mentioning how a student could graduate with 13 years worth of work. THAT is powerful! 



Post #2 (21 April 2018) 
In this post, I write out the alphabet, A-Z, and next to each letter, I discuss a potential problem with digital learning. Some examples include distractions, managing time, plagiarism, xenagogue (yep - I even thought of an X word!). Technology can provide so much support in our classes, but it can also be a nightmare and a downfall! I hope that this post helps people, who are thinking about implementing technology into their curriculum, problem solve BEFORE the issues happen! 



Post #3 (13 May 2018) 
This post focused on how my grading policies have changed since I first started teaching. Things that I have changed include no zeroes, late grades, or "fluffy" grades, more formative assessments, and my take on why behavior does not equal achievement. This whole post stemmed from me being frustrated by ineligible students not being able to compete in our big track meet. 




Post #4 (28 April 2018)
In April of this year, teachers across the US went on strike to get better salaries and conditions (for themselves and their students). Our district did not go on strike, but our state did have an educator rally at the state Capitol in Denver. This post focused on my experience going to the rally with my educator friends and WHY I marched at all.





Post #5 (5 May 2018) 
This post is focused on six steps to help you create meaningful work in your classroom. As you start to burn out as a teacher, you have to make changes to your personal and professional life. I can't tell you how to fix your own life (except to take care of yourself), but the six steps helped me remove myself from a burnout situation. I also provide ways for you to support your students in making good work in the classroom which puts the bulk of the work on the students instead of on you! 

To end, I just want to wish you all happy holidays! As always, thanks for reading (especially throughout the past couple of years!) I will return on 12 January 2019!!!

- Rachel

@historicalipad
My Teacherspayteachers website

A self-care Christmas list!

Good morning colleagues! There are only two weeks left before Christmas, and I realized I haven't done a self-care post in a while. I figured... why not combine the two? So here is a Christmas list with some of my favorite self-care products!

For relaxing on the couch

• Kindle Paperwhite - currently $99 (regularly $129): I am a voracious reader. It's in my Bails blood! I always scoffed at people who used e-readers. I preferred to have a real book in my hands that I checked out from the library (thank you very much!). Then I found out that you can check out ebooks from the library, so I put the Paperwhite on my Christmas list a couple of years ago. Thanks to my generous in-laws, I am in LOVE. Not only do I check out books from the library, but I also stash books that I find for free online (you know, for a rainy day...)
• Twinings Earl Gray tea - $3 (available everywhere): Within the past year I had my first taste of a London Fog latte, and it CHANGED MY LIFE. I always thought Earl Gray tasted disgusting, but with some steamed milk, vanilla syrup, and a sprinkle of homemade vanilla bean powder, it is the BEST. If you're a tea drinker, especially a tea latte drinker, you have got to make one of these! 
• Fuzzy socks - price varies: Do I have to explain why you need a good pair of fuzzy socks? Have you ever spent the entire day in your pajamas on the couch? Bonus points if it has a cat or a llama on it!
• America Needs Teachers mug - $12: Oh Raygun... I love you! I'm all over this website because they make hilarious Iowa stuff. They are also entirely unhinged liberals, so they are pro-LGTBQ, teachers, women, science... basically all of the things I am "pro" of as well. I have to shout out this mug because the people reading this blog are teachers... duh... 
• IKEA lamp - $12.99: A - this lamp emits more light than you think; B - this lamp has a reading lamp attached; C - it's twelve bucks. SOLD!
• Spotify subscription - $9.99 a month ($14.99 a month for 6 accounts): I may have been an unsavory music downloader once Napster was created. Since paying for Spotify, I haven't downloaded a single song. It's incredible - I just want access to all of the music. And Spotify has almost every song you've ever wanted to listen to!

Getting to the gym

• Fitbit Versa - $149 (not sure how long this price will last): Fitbit put the Versa on sale for Black Friday. My Charge 2 was cracked and wasn't very good at keeping my heart rate during an intense workout. I bit the bullet and upgraded to the Versa. I am SO glad that I did! It's waterproof so I can track my swims. I also trialed it with a spin session, and it kept my heart rate the entire time. Because it has a larger watch face, it can show me all sorts of notifications. I can be updated with breaking news, and sports score alerts!
• Zella leggings - price varies: People rave about Lululemon, but I'm too cheap for that. I'm obsessed with Zella instead. Their leggings are just thick enough for great coverage and fit, but aren't too thick for significant sweaters like me! They're so flattering on any body type, and no matter how much my weight yo-yos, I've worn the same pair for 5-6 years. They last after repeated washings! 
• Yoga towel - $38-$58: These hot yoga mat towels are not cheap, but they're so good! They have some beautiful designs, and on the backside of the towel, they have little grippy buttons. When you are super sweaty, and you lay down for locust pose, you will be glad you have that towel!
• Camelbak water bottle - $10: There are cheaper water bottles out there, but I'm partial to the "podium" series by Camelbak because they are easy to drink out of while on the bike, but they also don't leak (after repeated dishwasher washings)!
• Clif bars - price varies by store: These bars are filling and relatively cheap. The flavor is also good, and though they aren't gluten-free, they are okay with my gluten intolerance. 

To pamper yourself

• Mighty Patch blemish patches - $2.50 for 6: I don't get much acne, but when I do, it comes in like a hurricane! Put one of these patches on your zit for six hours and it sucks all the white stuff out of the zit. They're pretty amazing. I will wear one overnight, but other people swear you can wear one under makeup. They work either way!
• Dr. Jart Cicapair Cream - $40: Though this cream isn't cheap, it's been a GAME CHANGER for my face! I have a lot of redness when I don't wear makeup. My face is super dry and is easily irritated. I also blush very easily (or get red face when I'm warm, workout, or drink). I don't like putting a lot of products on my face. BB cream works relatively well (especially when paired with a redness-reducing primer), but sometimes I need something quick in the morning. A little bit of this cream goes a long way. I received a .5 oz sample in a Birchbox. I've used it almost every day for two weeks and probably have another 5-10 days left in the container. It is thick, but spreads easy. It covers all acne and definitely evens out my skin tone. It looks like I'm wearing concealer and it reduces all redness. It's absolutely amazing!
• Blistex Medicated lip balm - price varies by store: I love Burt's Bees, but I've recently found this lip balm. It works well with my dry lips, but also adds a little tingle (I'm guessing due to the medicated piece?). It also has 15 spf sunscreen in it, so it's great for track season when I'm outside all afternoon.
• GlamGlow Thirstymud - $25-$80: A little bit of this hydrating mask goes a long way as well. It doesn't look like a traditional face mask, so I use this product more like an overnight moisturizer. I think it smells fabulous and it makes my face really soft. When I've completed a hot yoga session, my face is sunburnt, or my face is just super dry, this is my go-to product.
• Gold Bond Radiance Renewal - price varies by store: I got a sample of this in a beauty box, so I tried it on my new (at the time) tattoo. It was perfect for the dry, irritated skin! I bought a bottle and now won't look back. It's really good, thick lotion. I use it every day on my dry hands, and if the rest of my skin is looking a little rough, this lotion smooths it out. It's that good.
• SinfulColors Nail polish - price varies by store: This is cheap nail polish that I stand by. They have crazy cute colors and the price is solid. Pick up a bottle for your next girls night in!

"Hitting the hay"

• Vanilla Sleepytime Tea - price varies by store: I love Celestial Seasonings tea, but I am partial to their sleepytime tea. Drinking a mug makes me cozy and dozy! I recently tried this vanilla flavor and I'm obsessed. It's SO good.
• Nature's Truth Sleep Spray - $6.99: A few sprays of this on my pillow and I'm ready to pass out. It smells like frankincense and lavender. I love it!
• Foam mattress topper - $25 for queen size: This mattress topper is cheap, but it works! We have a decent mattress, but this topper makes it that much softer. I want to curl up and stay in bed all day!
• Fuzzy blanket - $40: When eight of my college girlfriends came to visit, I went out and bought some new blankets for the house. Now that they're gone, I put this blanket on our bed. It's cute and cozy, and the cats goes crazy for it. It's perfect for snuggling and it's soft on the face when you're tucked under the covers.

And with that, I hope you find something great for yourself on this list! Thanks for reading... I'll see you next week :)

- Rachel

@historicalipad
My Teacherspayteachers website

My Relaxing 5

Good morning, colleagues! I am part of a teacher blogging group, and one teacher, Mari, encouraged us to blog about our "relaxing 5." This stemmed from Brian's post about "Putting Yourself First." As teachers that have stressful jobs, we need to find ways to relax and take care of ourselves. I always likened this to airplane rules - put the oxygen mask on yourself before your child. You can't be a good teacher and take care of students unless you care of yourself. This blog post is all about the five things that I do to relax after a long day (or week) of teaching.

Read a book. I've blogged before about my love for reading. I'm currently reading book #51 for the year. Reading is often how I wind down before bedtime. I make time to read each night from 8 - 8:30. I change into my PJs, spray my pillow with sleepy spray, and tuck myself in under the blankets. If I'm lucky, one of my cats will join me on the bed. Once I've read for a half hour, I'm usually sleepy and ready to go to bed. It's also a way for me to let go of my day and "escape" into another world for a while.

Meet with friends and grab a drink. I have fabulous friends here in the Springs, but because most of us are stressed-out teachers, we don't meet up as often as we should. Sadly, last week, one of our friends passed away (she was also a former colleague and my mentor during my first year at Skyview). The week of Thanksgiving was rough, to say the least. We've all discussed how we really, really need to get together more often, whether it's for a game night, a movie night, happy hour, dinner, or coffee. No excuses - these ladies are my people, and I want to enjoy every moment that we can together.

Take some photos. I am an amateur photographer. Recently I've been taking pictures of my travels (Steamboat Springs, Iowa, New York, Belize, Guatemala), but I know that I need to get out more often and take local images. I've recently been lucky in that someone posted on Reddit about a cool bridge in town. I went out to take pictures of the bridge, and it was super snowy (instead of pretty fall leaves). It was also foggy, so I drove to Garden of the Gods to see what it looked like. It ended up being a lucky opportunity because the conditions were stunning. BUT I made the time to drive around and take pictures. I NEED TO DO THAT MORE OFTEN!

Attend a hot yoga session. Literally, all I can think about is how hot I am. I cannot think about my day, about tomorrow, or about anyone else in the room. I'm purely focused on not dying. Then, once done with the session, I feel detoxed and relaxed. I also feel like I can conquer the world!

Listen to music. This sounds pretty normal... but I'm kind of a weirdo when it comes to music. Do you make a ridiculous amount of playlists for specific feelings? Probably not. But I do. Sometimes I can calm down and relax when I recognize my emotions and then build a playlist with songs that will change that mood. Need a good cry? Boom. Relishing your summer? Enjoy. Unwinding on the back deck? Cheers. Happy about something? Dance it out.

These are #myrelaxing5. What are yours? I'd love to hear them in the comments because I'm always on the lookout for #myrelaxing10 or #myrelaxing20.

Thanks for reading! I'll see you next week :)

- Rachel

@historicalipad
My Teacherspayteachers website