Hello Everyone! Well, starting my 33rd year as an educator of young children has been inspiring. I gain strength from these kids every year. They rejuvenate, exhilarate, substantiate,(and just about any "ate" word you might think of...or make up!! :) me to no end! We also have an amazing first grade team this year and I anticipate nothing but "awesomeness" happening this year. We began the year with our Super Hero theme and the kids love it!! A huge thank you to our wonderful moms for helping with the hallway vision!! And the kids' little projects to start the year came out so cute!! Our shirts say "I Teach 1st...What's Your Superpower?" (I'm in the red skirt) We will put kid's pics on the stars. Can't wait!!! Thanks to the moms who took all the pics!!! One of my roles this year is to help plan the written expression lessons. I am in love with helping kids write!! On tap this past week was showing kids where to get inspiration for their writing. Many of you have your kids create a map of the heart. That is exactly what we worked on this week. The idea comes from Georgia Heard's book, Awakening the Heart. For this activity we focus on the "heart that feels. " The heart holds so many memories, loves, places, etc. I created my heart for the kids to get an idea of what inspires me and then let them get busy with their own! Mini poster of heart questions My "Map of the Heart" These became a part of the kids' writer's tool box. One of my sweet teammates shared what she loves to do with her kids to help them look inside and feel special. Will. I. Am. created a song for Sesame Street called "What I Am." Oh Yeah!! We pulled it up on You Tube and sang and danced away!! The words are so powerful!! We created a large I chart including the fun words and then the kids created their own showing "what they are." This will go into their tool box as inspiration as well!! If you are inspired, CLICK HERE!!! :) I'll be back soon to share some of the "name" activities we did to get to know each other and learn about letters and sounds. Stay tuned. I hope your beginning of the year has been just as SUPER as mine!! Ready or not...here we go!! Joyfully! Nancy
I've made lots of sewing mistakes with clothing that sit in my closet instead of being worn. I'll tell you how I learned about how to sew clothing I love.
This simple and fun activity is a great way to get students thinking about and reflecting on all the things that make them wonderful. Great for self-esteem, self-confidence, and self-awareness. Could also be used as a Valentine's Day activity.
About a week out of school, and I am already thinking about next year!!! What.Is.Wrong.With.Me??? Normally, I give myself a few weeks before I allow the next school year to sneak into my summer vacation. However, I have a new challenge ahead of me next year, and need all the time I can get. I…
The Palawan is hands down one of the most beautiful places on the planet! Here is a list of things to do in Palawan Philippines.
Want to help your kids learn about gratitude? Play the gratitude game with them. It's a fun game that the whole family will enjoy!
Looking for a new and engaging classroom management system for your classroom? I love Secret Student because all of my students buy into this system...
I LOVE my class this year. Diverse. Capable. Sweet. Unique. Enthusiastic. Energetic. Hard-working. Funny. Lovable. These are some of the words that come to mind when I think of my first graders. But one more word that also comes to mind is...chatty. Very chatty. We are a 'work in progress' with this. And thank goodness, we are continuing to improve each week. :-) Now, don't get me wrong, I believe a classroom should be FULL of rich, collaborative dialogue. Student discussion is vital, and our little guys need frequent opportunities to engage with peers and share their thoughts. I pride myself on having a dynamic, student-centered classroom that encourages this. To foster this kind of a climate, however, students also need to learn how to be effective listeners and independent workers. There are appropriate and inappropriate times for talking, and to get students to adhere to these boundaries, clear expectations must be set. Here are 12 ideas/strategies to try when working with a chatty class.
Looking for the best things to do in Ljubljana Slovenia? Here's my top 22 things to do including: sights, food, activities & day trips from Ljubljana!
While the beach wave is one of my classic go-to’s, I also love, love, love me a good high pony. Not only is it super sleek and classic, but it elongates the neck and lets you show off that sexy collar bone. The high pony can easily be taken from day to night, and I […]
Do As I'm Doing
Sequencing events in a story can be difficult for students. This is one of my favorite lessons to teach because it really engages my students. It makes them
Non-physical compliments help move us beyond a culture that worships beauty and image. Try complimenting someone's energy or compassion...
Would you like to decorate your classroom with fun, hand-drawn anchor charts/posters? Do you simply not have the time to get them done? Well, you have come to the perfect place! I love making these engaging and appealing anchor charts. I also can draw/create any other topic you would like, just contact me directly and ask! My students absolutely love these posters and references them every day. Many of them are visual learners, so the colorful images really help them connect and remember what they have learned. This particular anchor chart is for readers/writers practicing to sequence events. Visuals always help my students learn in a deeper and easier way. Please let me know if you would like me to adjust it in anyway to meet your classroom's needs. I also wouldn't mind collaborating with you as well if you would like me to add anything else! I have been teaching now for over 7 years in all diverse school districts and with all different ages, so I understand the importance of being as flexible and understanding as possible! **These will be copies unless asked otherwise. Hope you love it :)
Dana White is Nony The Slob... and I love her so much! Her reality based organizing tips and ideas have helped make my craft room cleaning so much more effective and given me more space to work!
I met Hester at Blogtacular this year, but before we had the chance to meet in person I was an avid follower of her Youtube channel Handmade Home. I love any woman who’s not afraid to pick up a power tool and Hester definitely knows her way around a drill driver! So I just knew that […]
Special ed teachers collect data for IEPs. Learn how to collect data using daily data sheets in your special education classroom.
As teachers we are constantly REINVENTING THE WHEEL!! Although it can be time consuming, one thing I love about my job, is that I get the opportunity to learn, grow, create, and RECREATE year after year!! I have been using Reading Response Journals in my classroom for over 10 years, and each year I make…
Here we are! The first post in the series. As we explore embroidering crochet fabric, please do leave me any questions or comments you have. I love to experiment and will work out any answers I don’t already have. Two notes: All photos may be clicked to reach larger versions. To keep the front page … Continue reading Embroidery on Crochet 1: Basics and freehand stitching
Are you searching for heartfelt, beautiful gifts to give a woman fighting cancer? Discover our top picks we are sure she will love.
Learn how to make this homemade Jacob's ladder toy with your kids. It's made with simple supplies you likely already have!
I love ALDI and these are my most-purchased, most-loved, most-consumed ALDI products that are a key part of making our day-to-day lives delicious, wholesome, and affordable.
So what are prayer games? We're sharing 4 fun ways to pray using prayer games, and explaining why we think prayer can be fun!
Even in the dead of winter, I am buying plants. My husband thinks I'm crazy, (Yeah, crazy plant lady!) but he supports my love for greenery any way he can. Mo…
Money makes the world go around, and young entrepreneurs are stuck with limited opportunities because they don’t have the experience or resources to make something of their ideas. But with the right advice and guidance, it's still possible for kids to make money.
It took me a year and a half to complete my geometry curriculum, but I finally did it. I’m constantly updating and adding to it. I guess you could call it a living and growing curriculum. I…
This listing is for a JPG DIGITAL File that you print yourself. No physical product will be shipped to you. I will personalize this print with your chosen information. Instructions on how to send your list: Please send your colour choice and the FINAL version of your reasons/things, spell checked and in the order you would like them to appear (you can copy and paste them here in the personalization section, if you have too many characters, send the list to me in a message). PLEASE separate each reason with a space and / Example: I love how you dance - Jim / You have the most beautiful eyes - Mary / Your pancakes are the best - Sarah / I love you - Dad *If word count exceeds limit, send your list in a message. *PLEASE NOTE, that the content that you send needs to be the FINAL content. If you require additional changes to your content, you may incur additional costs. If you would like to RUSH and guarantee your order in less than 24hrs, please add the RUSH YOUR ORDER listing to your basket and you will skip the line. https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/981075004/add-on-rush-my-order-need-it-asap-same?ref=shop_home_active_4&frs=1&crt=1 Looks great in a white or black frame. Designed to print beautifully on your home printer, or take along to your local copy store such as Staples, Costco or Kinkos. I will then email you a JPG Digital File. Please allow 72 hrs for artwork turnaround or send me a note and I can have it sooner if requested. Thank you for choosing Oliver and Company! Your business is truly appreciated. ♥ ©Oliver and Company 2021 / All rights reserved
When a new school year starts, I usually have a few weeks of math lessons to fill before my team and I can start teaching our math curriculum. One of the back
Here are 38 ideas for you to fill out your blank notebook with and feel amazing. Learn how to be more productive using these ideas.
I love the look and the simplicity of this project. I also love how easy and cost effective it was!Here's what you need:-piece of scrap wood, any width that you…
Last September me and my co-workers feeling a bit... spacey. We had just finished a exhausting summer reading program, and we were ready for a simple theme with some crazy fun activities. So we decided to follow our gut and have a spacey month. We decorated with floating stars (fishing line again!), drank a lot of tang, and read some out of this world books (groaaaan). But my favorite story (by about 2,538,000 light years) was Aliens Love Underpants by Claire Freedman. Everyone loves aliens, and everyone loves underpants. However, we've read this story lots of times, so we wanted a way to make it more fun. We decided that underwear was the way to go. And not just any underwear. Underwear that could be whatever color, design, or type you wanted. That's right. We let the kids design their own underwear. I drew up some almost life size coloring sheets, then we printed them off and let the kids go to town. We got some really great underpants. One every talented boy even drew some zombie pants, and another had some awesome stripes. I, of course, had to color some Spiderman briefs. After the storyhour we had some extra coloring sheets, so I left them out on a table so the public could contribute. By the end of the week, all of the coloring sheets were gone, and we had a bunch of new pairs of underwear to hang up next to the others. (I'll let you in on a secret... I think the adults enjoyed coloring just as much as the kids.) And because I know you're jealous, here are some underpants to print out and color whatever way you want!
I have been trying to figure out how to lay out our new living room for weeks, so maybe you wonderful readers can help me out. The issue is the shape of the room and
