A Little Bit About the Programs Taught

When students are pulled for Resource classes, we provide remedial instruction through research-based programs. Below is a description of the programs I am teaching this year.

Reading Mastery is a direct instruction program that starts with teaching basic sounds (even before teaching letter names).  As the students progress, we explicitly teach them how to blend sounds to read words "the fast way" and then move to reading sentences and identifying where a sentence stops and starts.  Reading Mastery has several levels.  Once students learn individual sounds and how to blend those sounds, the program moves to teaching sounds of letter combinations, like "th" or "sh" or "ea."  Mastery tests are given at equal intervals to assess each student's proficiency with what they have been taught, which will determine whether the group needs to review a particular skill or is ready to move on to the next lesson.  As students begin to read, reading checkouts are done to measure each student's reading fluency.

There are "take-homes" (worksheets) that go with each lesson that the students complete.  I try to check their work as soon as they finish, and ask them to make corrections on anything they missed before they leave my class.

Reading Mastery Plus is an extension of the Reading Mastery program, but the focus turns more toward reading comprehension than in Reading Mastery, so that decoding skills and comprehension strategies are being addressed.

Corrective Reading is a program that was created to help older students (typically 4th grade and above) who continue to struggle with decoding.  It focuses primarily on different letter combinations and rules of reading, such as the "silent e" rule, double letter rules, and word endings.  The worksheets that go with this program are designed to help students apply the letter combinations/sounds rules in order to read and spell more accurately and fluently.

Number Worlds is the math program we use in Resource classes.  We try as much as possible to align our lessons with the skills being taught in the general education classroom.  Number Worlds is different from other math instruction programs in that it is intended to be a remedial teaching tool, not a whole curriculum.  It also focuses on why we do certain things in math, and less on algorithms.  Number Worlds provides a lot of hands-on learning activities that are done before the students begin their workbook portion of the lesson.

At the end of each Number Worlds lesson, there is a "Reflect" portion that students do in their workbooks that typically requires higher order thinking and extended response.  There is also a "Real-World Application" question that encourages a class discussion and demonstrates how the skill being taught is used in every day life.

8:30-9:00   4th and 5th Grade -- Number Worlds

9:15-9:45   5th Grade Writing

9:45-10:30   3rd Grade -- Reading Mastery

10:40-11:25 4th and 5th Grade -- Corrective Reading

11:30-12:00   Lunch and EC Team Planning (Wednesdays and Thursdays)

12:00-12:30   K and 1st Grade -- Phonemic Awareness / Handwriting Without Tears

12:30-1:00 1st Grade -- Language For Thinking

1:00-1:30 Planning

1:30-2:00 3rd Grade -- Number Worlds

2:00-2:30 Kindergarten -- Reading Mastery

Because my students get homework assignments from their general education teachers, I typically do not assign homework for my class.  In rare cases, I might send something home with a student who has gotten behind, but I always respect that classroom homework is the number one priority.  If you would like some suggestions to help your child with a skill with which they are struggling, shoot me an email and I'll try to come up with some suggested activities (that are not necessarily worksheets) to do at home.

About Mrs. Mahaley

At the beginning of every school year, I give my students a questionnaire to complete so that I can learn about them and things that are important to them.  Then on the back of that paper, I give them the opportunity to ask me anything they want to know about me.  I do this so that they can see me as a person, and not just as a teacher.  I want them to feel like I will be able to connect with them and understand them.  Here are some of the questions and answers from this year:

Are you married?

Yes.  My husband's name is Ryan and we have known each other since we were in the 7th grade.  We got married during Spring Break in 2010.

Do you have any kids?

Not yet, but we want to have children one day. I have 3 nieces who I spend a lot of time with, so I consider them my "part-time children."  They are 12, 10, and 6 years old.

Do you have any dogs (cats,  fish, turtles... the list of pets they asked about goes on)?

I have a dog named Drake. He is three years old, and he is very spoiled!  He weighs about 80 pounds and thinks he's a lap dog.  :-) 

Did you go to college?

Yes.  I got my teacher certification from UNC Greensboro, where I majored in Special Education and minored in Psychology.

Do you like to have fun?

Oh yes!  I even like to have fun in my classroom!  Students can earn "Fun Fridays" so that we can play cool games to make learning even more fun.

In my personal life, I like to spend time outside with my husband and playing with Drake.  Ryan and I like to play catch, go to minor league baseball games, go target shooting, and visit places like the NC Zoo.  We also love travelling.  Since we've been married, we've been on two cruises; one was to the Bahamas and the other was to Grand Cayman and Cozumel.  I also really enjoy spending time with my family - both immediate and extended.  We like to get together for cookouts, bon fires, "low-country boils," and games like horseshoes, volleyball, swimming, and board games.

Do you like sports?

YES!  My two favorites are college basketball and professional football.  I LOVE the North Carolina Tarheels and the New England Patriots !!!

Do you like to shop?  If you do, where do you go? (This is the first year a student has asked me this question!)

I enjoy it when I do go shopping, but I don't go a whole lot.  I tend to prefer places where I can shop for clothes and home goods all in the same store like Marshall's and Kohl's and places like that.

Where do you live?

When I answered this for the students, I lived in the northern part of Salisbury.  My husband and I both work in Concord/Charlotte, so we have just recently (FINALLY) moved to Concord! 

How old are you?

Haha!  I get this question every year!  I told the students I started teaching when I was 22 years old and this is my 7th year of teaching.  They have to do the math.  ;-)

Do you have any brothers and sisters?

I have one sister who is 2 1/2 years older than me.  Her name is Lana.  The only "brother" I have is actually my brother-in-law.  Tyler is 19 years old and goes to Western Carolina University.

Have you ever been sky diving?

No, but it sounds like fun.

Do you know anybody famous?

No.

How many places have you visited?

I wasn't really sure how to answer this one.  Outside the US, I've only been to the Bahamas, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel, Mexico.  I've been to something like 17 states, but some of the highlights of my travels have been Savannah, New Orleans, Chicago, Orlando, Cincinnati, NYC, and Washington, DC.

What is your favorite color?

Purple.

What is your favorite number?

8.

What is your favorite food and drink?

My favorite thing to eat is sweet potato casserole.  My Nanny makes the best!!  My favorite drinks are Pibb Xtra and Cinammon Dolche Latte from Starbucks.

Do you give homework?

No, because classroom teachers do.  : )