Mid-Year Reflection on my Goals #MTBoS12Days

Back in August, I blogged about my Goals for 2017-18 as part of the MTBoS Sunday Funday challenge.  Now that the year is halfway over, it's time to check in on my progress!

Checking In on Goal Progress 2017-18

In my original post, I said I wanted to start 3 things..

• Vertical Non-Permanent Surfaces - This goal is well on its way!  For my birthday, hubby bought me white showerboard cut into 2 ft by 4 ft boards and my Father-in-Law sanded it down and put in handholds to hang them.  I have used whiteboards more in Geometry overall, but I love that my Geometry students will often ask if they can get a whiteboard to work on.  I haven't gotten quite to where I want with VNPS, but I'm closer than I was in August! :)
• Asking Better Questions - This goal is pretty much where it was back in August.  I printed off the question stems, but I haven't done a good job of implementing these questions.  I need to go back and rethink how to integrate more intentional, richer questions into my lesson plans.  If you have any resources, I'd love to see them! :)  One of my summer list items is to go through the Exeter Math curriculum to find good Geometry problems to use with this goal.  
• More MTBoS Involvement - I'm happy to say that I've done so much better with this goal over the past few months!  To put some numbers to it, let's look at my blogging record for the Fall Semester for the past few years.  In 2017, I have blogged 16 times from September - December.  For that same time period in 2016, there was 1 (yes, only 1) blog post and in 2015, there were 9 posts in that time period.  I would like to get back to #EduRead at some point, maybe there will be time this spring!

I also said I wanted to stop 2 things...

• Rescuing my students - As happy as I am about the successes above, this goal hasn't really worked out very well.  I wanted to "be less helpful" but it's easier said than done.  I want to get to the productive struggle and it's still one of my goals, but I'm just not there yet.  I'm really hopeful for this goal this semester in Geometry as we delve into some deeper concepts.
• Eating lunch in my room - This one has been a fail.  My original goal was to get out of my room and go eat lunch in our lounge with the other teachers, but that hasn't really worked out.  My lunch time and planning period are together, so I have tried to be more intentional about using that time effectively so that I can have a better balance in my life.  This is a trade-off I'm okay with :)

And I wanted to continue with these 4 things...

• Effective Formative Assessment - This past summer, I read a lot on FA strategies and while I've used some of them, I need to go back and re-read my notes on how to use this data effectively.  I think this is a goal that others would say I use well but I personally don't think I do.  It's going to be one of those topics that is always just out of reach because the bar keeps moving slightly higher the closer I get to it.  (I hope that makes sense!).  
• Personal Health - This is another win!  I met my #fitbos17 goal of 120 hours of exercise in October and am currently around 135 hours for 2017.  Since the end of May, I've lost approximately 35 pounds and I'm at a good place in terms of physical, emotional, and mental health.  I've done well at finding balance this semester and finding time to read for fun and "choosing joy" on a regular basis.
• Instructional Strategies - I have enjoyed creating INB pages for Geometry and am ever grateful for the MTBoS in sharing ideas and Pinterest photos to spark my creativity!  I've continued with many Make It Stick strategies, like the spiraled Multiple Choice each Monday and kids have commented on how useful it was to always be reviewing older material.  I need to re-read Make It Stick this summer with an eye on how to implement it more in Geometry as well.  (Assuming I get to teach Geometry again!)  I have continued to use SBG, but I am at the place where I really need to refine it some more, specifically with remediation and reassessment.
• High Five Fridays - I love, love, love HFF and yesterday I found a stamp at Target that says #HighFive!  I can't wait to use it :) :)  I love when former students come by my room just for a High Five!

Overall, there were some definite "wins" and some definite "not yets", but I'm fairly pleased with my progress!  How did you do with your goals this year?