JANUARY MATH AND LITERACY ACTIVITIES Whew! December is over and the new year is here! I love January because I always get a burst of energy after the long break off from school. I think we all kind of need this as teachers to recharge our batteries and start fresh.
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This block design has been around for ages and there are a lot of different tutorials for this on the web. I’m providing this tutorial to show how I make my personal take on it. I did not invent th…
Get 130+ free January 2025 printable calendars! Choose from various styles and layouts, easy to print and perfect for planning. All free!
I LOVE January! Not the blustery, freezing cold that has me heavily considering a Hawaiian move or hibernation, but the opportunity for a classroom refresh and the promise that the new year offers each one of us. Even though we are only half way through the school year, January means we are HALF WAY through the school year!!! Semester one down, semester two to go! We've got this!
January means resolutions and often those are to make a fresh start in attaining and maintaining fitness goals. Did you know that sewing your own active-wear leggings is actually pretty simple and a great way to get the perfect fit? The Women’s Activewear ‘Get Moving’ Fitted Bottoms & Leggings pattern was written with exercise in mind, but adding a gusset will help reduce the chance of popping a seam during stretching. The stitching where the inseam crosses the rise seam receives the most stress during wear and inserting this diamond-shaped gusset piece will help strengthen that area. This add-on can be utilized on the girl’s size Jocelyn’s Leggings as well, so the following pictures are of new leggings for one of my daughters. They’ve both been requesting fleece leggings for lounging around the house (specifically to wear with their shirts I made last week), though I do not recommend fleece for activewear. **If you do choose make a fleece pair, you should probably sew at least one size bigger since most fleece doesn’t have the stretch required for leggings.** First things first, cut out all the pieces for your leggings (right leg, left leg, waistband) along with the athletic modification gusset corresponding to the size you’re making. It can be found here. (Save to your computer and open with Adobe Reader to ensure accurate printing. If you print from your browser, your 1″ square will likely be off, meaning your piece won’t be the correct size either.) To insert the gusset, we need to change the order of construction from the legging pattern directions. Instead of beginning with sewing the rise, you’ll want to sew the inner leg seams first. You’ll end up with a right leg and a left leg like the picture above. Turn one leg right side out and set aside. **Tip: I like to use my sewing machine’s triple stretch stitch (which, on the stitch selector, looks like three lines of stitching side by side). It allows the fabric to maintain stretch, but looks like a straight stitch rather than zigzag. By going forward-back-forward for each stitch, it is also a fairly strong stitch for high-stress areas.** Take your gusset piece and pin it right sides together to the inside out leg, matching one of the wider angles of the diamond to the top of the leg’s inseam (above left). Next, pin the sides along the raw edge of the curved rise (above right). Using a 3/8″ seam allowance, stitch along those two sides of the diamond, starting and stopping 3/8″ from the points. **Tip: When you reach the inseam, stop with your needle down and lift your presser foot. Pivot, put the presser foot down, and continue stitching the second side of the gusset. ** Slide your right side out leg into the inside out leg (right sides together) and match the opposite wide angle of the gusset to the top of the second leg’s inseam. Match up and pin the remainder of the rise and stitch. Make sure this line of stitches touches the ends of the first stitching on the gusset so you don’t have any holes at the points. You can now turn your leggings right side out and admire your new, finished gusset! Yay! *ahem* Apparently, we need to work on stretching techniques, hahaha! Follow the pattern to attach the waistband and hem the ankles and your athletic leggings are done! Put them on and get moving (without having to worry as much about popping a seam)! Happy Sewing!! ~ Joelle
January is a month full of inspiration and motivation. We're all looking forward to our New Year's Resolutions and trying to keep them. Blogs are a great resource, so I'm sharing with you 30 January
Need some inspiration for hand lettering January? Here are 10 unique January hand lettering styles for your bullet journal or planner.
When you head back to school in January, it is so nice for a fresh start! Teach your students how to set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Timely) Goals, and create habits for the new year. Perfect for ANY subject as a first week of class assignment! This is also perfect for Advisory and Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) classes! You will get: 3 CLASS PERIOD LESSON PLAN (for 45-60 minute classes) NO PREP! Interactive Google Slides™ Chat GPT and AI Resistant Assignments (No more cheating!) SMART Goal Definitions Interactive Slides SMART Vocabulary Matching Game 3 Personal Smart Goals 3 Academic Smart Goals New Year’s Resolutions/Habits Clickable boxes for student reflection Editable Page with Directions for Turning it In
Download your free Printable January 2024 Calendar now! Choose from various designs and options for a fun and organized start to the year. % %
This Garter Ear Flap Hat was an engineering feat to get me back on my…
The mess, the disaster, the thing I avoid...my classroom library. Between the reading conferences, guided reading groups, and managing independent reading I don’t have the energy left to make sure all of my books are neat and organized. A few weeks ago I was managing my notifications on my phone and I found an app that I totally forgot I used - Goodreads. If you haven’t seen this app/website before you HAVE to go check it out. If you have used Goodreads before, go back and check it out! I realized that this was the solution to my classroom library problem. In the past I had used this for creating lists of what I read, was currently reading, and had already read, but guess what! You can make your own bookshelves. So here is what I did: Step 1: Take an afternoon (actually a few afternoons) and organize my books. Until this project was finished I put an under construction sign on the library and pulled some of my students favorite books and created a book basket for them to use. Step 2: Create a bookshelf in Goodreads for each category (animals, sports, favorite authors, etc.) Step 3: Add the title of each book (You can enter the title by typing it in OR you can use the scan app on your iPhone to scan the barcode of the book!) in that category on the Goodreads bookshelf. The added bonus, you can rate any of the books you have personally read in that category. (I read a lot and fast and many times I forget the books I have read. This is a quick reminder that I have read the book and if I wrote a review it makes it easier to remember.) Note: If you have a book you haven’t read be sure to click “want to read” and then the shelf. If you just click the shelf it will assume you have already read the book. Step 4: Hire Classroom Librarians. I printed out the list for each basket. Once a week I have the classroom librarian check a few baskets to make sure they are accurate and date the books. This is usually a 15 minute assignment. Step 5: Explain to the class the organization. Once I explained what I had done to the library I found that most of the student bought into the new system. More and more I observed students straightening and thinking before they placed the book in “just any old place.” After getting this organized I realized that the mess and clutter and bookshelf disarray had disappeared and I could run my reading conferences and guided reading groups without the worry of a disorganized classroom library. What are ways you have used to keep your classroom library in order? For even more ideas from The Primary Peach, be sure to follow us on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to catch all the latest news and updates!
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Agree or Disagree? September is the new January! For me, this is definitely TRUE. I always feel energized and inspired to start fresh come September, even in the years when I haven’t been teaching. It just feels like a fresh start, a perfect time to set goals and make changes. In many ways, I find I’m ... Read more
Doing a detox right does not mean living on only juice for a week or any other drastic measures.
The Importance of Self-Care: Why It Should Be a Priority
JANUARY MATH AND LITERACY ACTIVITIES Whew! December is over and the new year is here! I love January because I always get a burst of energy after the long break off from school. I think we all kind of need this as teachers to recharge our batteries and start fresh.
Now that it's time for the kids to go back to school, why not use these free book covers.
