The war and art of combing my daughter's natural hair...

The Art of combing and maintaining natural hair is a totally exhausting and tedious process.  I dread the 2-5 hour process that goes along with washing, moisturizing, conditioning, and cleansing Laylah's hair.  I am still a practicing cosmetologist (only on family and close friends because I am a teacher) that sculpted mostly all clients with relaxed tresses so I am not well versed in this area.  This natural hair upkeep is a whole new job in itself.   My 1st daughter (now 16) had a relaxer at 4 years old (bad I know), and I did not have to deal with the  matting hair issues.    I always maintained and kept up Maiya's hair easily and never had to deal with what God has blessed me with today.  As the old saying goes, when you know better you do better, I vow to never put a relaxer or harsh chemicals in her hair until she is old enough and educated enough to make that decision on her own.  So, for now, I will be battling this very huge mass of hair and watching it grow!

Some tips that I have for Mommies in the same situation are as follows:

• Apple Cider Vinegar and water as a softner and detangler
• Kera Care Hydrating shampoo as a softner and detangler --also has a ph of  6.0
  
• Isoplus Orange cleanser as a great tool to clean her scalp and rid the hair of residue.  (1st step)
  
• Olive Oil Mayo for daily maintenance (No Pic)
• Island Oil (Mango & Lime) is great tool for moisturizing her hair daily.

Happy combing and my end result pics are included!  

**Excuse the parts, I will not win every battle!

My Toddler after 13 years...

Many times we wait for the perfect time to have kids, but my timing of 13 looong years apart is testing my early thirties. What a lively and smart baby, but the work never ends.  If you are looking for that perfect time, just  know that the younger the better (if you are fiscally secure of course) and your mate is definitely on-board.  Gotta love the toddlers.

A Look Into My Class Routine

 
My high school Math class is an ideal place for learning with a variety of stations that allow my kids to grow.   What we do in my classes are in alignment with the VDOE and offer some of the best SOL prep based exercises.  My routine is the same every single day and the kids adapt to our daily routine quickly.  Here is a look into what happens everyday in my class.

1.         Students walk in and go straight to their folder in the labeled colored bins.

2.       Grab a calculator & pencil (furnished):/; I so gave up on the "bring a pencil to class war" a long time ago.

3.       Take a seat ( No assigned seats might I add)...will share more later.

4.       Begin Warm-up that is readily available in folder (given out at the beginning of school year)

5.       Complete at least one out of the three.  An SOL problem, Review problem and a Current problem.  **Borrowed CST idea**

6.       Once 5 minutes has passed I walk around with my "happy stamp" and stamp each students WU. My HS  students make sure they get a stamp also. :D

7.        We review the WU as a class and transition into the class lecture/PPT or review.

8.       After the lecture is complete we move to Independent/Group practice mode. This is a great time for students to mingle and have accountable talk about the work, partner up or just interact with me for additional practice. (15 minutes)

9.       An assessment is given after each student's work is checked for accuracy and completion. Normally it is a 2-5 question quiz.

10.     After the quiz is turned in, I check it immediately and do not allow a pile up.  This also gives me a chance to reteach or mitigate any issues my student(s) may have mastering the concept. I put their grades in the grade book and assign online IXL.com practice until the bell rings.

Wew, it may seem like a lot but it is generally a smooth ride throughout the class being that it is a repeated theme throughout the day and my students know what to expect.  Hope you like my slide show and my blog for today. 

The Fight for Mulitplication Fluency

I have been a high school special educator for some time now (10+ years) and I am still quite confused as to why my teenaged students cannot recite their multiplication tables, but can tell me all the lyrics of Chief Keef or Drake's new album! **Ugh and Sigh**  I have also been doing my own investigation where I sneak in a few lessons, to try to mitigate this issue and they still do not study!! So here is the big question...Should I just continue on, notify parents and say to hell with it? or Should I teach them this 3rd grade concept as it may or may not help my bottom line in the long run?