Thanks to everyone who left a comment or sent a note about yesterday's post. My dad is doing great and he's even got enough spunk to subject the cute young nurses to his horrible jokes! Thanks also for the amazing ideas for my name wall. I've gone from having no inspiring ideas to having way too many! I'm heading into school tomorrow for the first time this summer, so I'm going to visualize my options and ponder when I get there. I think I'm leaning towards jeeps or sailboats but I'll keep you posted. I'm really psyched to go into school tomorrow. Each year, a few weeks before school starts, we host a little summer program for the incoming kindergartners. It's called S.A.I.L. (Summer Adventures in Literacy) and it's an hour a day for three mornings in a row. We do read-alouds and crafts and it's a great way to meet the kids and let them get a little acclimated to their new "big kid" school and make some new friends. It sure makes the first day of school a little less scary for the kids (and the moms). I have my class list handy so I can scope out who I'll be spending the next 10 months with. I can't wait! I have a whole bunch of stuff to bring with me to laminate since the work room should be pretty deserted. One thing that's ready to go is a new set of mini-posters illustrating the age-old "Give Me Five" behavior management trick. When making visual reminders like this, I think that for them to be effective, it's important to have graphics that really show he kids what the expectations are. I couldn't find any clipart that matched the "Give Me Five" actions, so I tried my hand at making my own. They're not that fancy, but I think they'll get the job done. Whatta ya think? Leave a comment and let me know! You can grab a set if you think you can use them in your classroom this year. Enjoy! Grab your freebie here.
I introduced our handwriting zoo yesterday. I am telling you people, it is a LIFESAVER! I used to dread teaching the "handwriting lines" (ok, I still do BUT not as much as I used to!) If you haven't checked out the packet yet and you're starting to teach the handwriting house check it out! It's on sale in my TPT store for $3.00 until the end of September. Tomorrow is FRIDAY!! Yay!
Two teacher work days in and I'm exhausted! I'm trying to get back into the routine and I'm having such a tough time. Because I have such a long commute, I have to get up at 5:00 and I am fighting it with every ounce of my being. I can't count the number of diet cokes it took to get me through the last two days! The good news is that my room is coming along nicely and I'll be ready to go for the first day on Tuesday. Our kindergartners come for a quick Meet & Greet on Monday and I can't wait to meet the kiddos that I'll be spending the next 10 months with! Of course, the first thing I tackled in my classroom was decorating it. Nothing thrills me as much as new bulletin board borders and desk tags! One project I worked on this summer was making an "instant" pocket chart for my classroom jobs. I hung it in my classroom on Friday and and a few colleagues asked me how I made it. They were surprised at how easy it was and headed off to make their own. I thought some of you might like this little trick too, so I thought I'd share. All you need is a box of standard envelopes and a poster or foam board. Here's how you do it... The index cards with the kids' names on them slip right into the pockets and stay put. I used this trick for my Job Chart, but you could also use it for Math or Literacy Station Work Boards, a Dismissal Chart, or anything else you use task cards for. I hope you can use this little trick - I'd love to hear about what you create! Have a great weekend! Update 9/2/12 - For more info on the clipart I used, check out this post.
This week the "Imagine That" art camp focused on Picasso's Peace Doves while the younger set in Pint Size Picasso had a lesson on Paul Klee...
We were busy bees today! We started by reading this book by Melvin Berger. Then we read this WONDERFUL book that I found at Barnes and Nob...
Two teacher work days in and I'm exhausted! I'm trying to get back into the routine and I'm having such a tough time. Because I have such a long commute, I have to get up at 5:00 and I am fighting it with every ounce of my being. I can't count the number of diet cokes it took to get me through the last two days! The good news is that my room is coming along nicely and I'll be ready to go for the first day on Tuesday. Our kindergartners come for a quick Meet & Greet on Monday and I can't wait to meet the kiddos that I'll be spending the next 10 months with! Of course, the first thing I tackled in my classroom was decorating it. Nothing thrills me as much as new bulletin board borders and desk tags! One project I worked on this summer was making an "instant" pocket chart for my classroom jobs. I hung it in my classroom on Friday and and a few colleagues asked me how I made it. They were surprised at how easy it was and headed off to make their own. I thought some of you might like this little trick too, so I thought I'd share. All you need is a box of standard envelopes and a poster or foam board. Here's how you do it... The index cards with the kids' names on them slip right into the pockets and stay put. I used this trick for my Job Chart, but you could also use it for Math or Literacy Station Work Boards, a Dismissal Chart, or anything else you use task cards for. I hope you can use this little trick - I'd love to hear about what you create! Have a great weekend! Update 9/2/12 - For more info on the clipart I used, check out this post.
I've been chatting recently with some teachers who either teach in a bilingual classroom or work with ELL students. They've mentioned how hard it is to find materials, and how often they stumble upon something cute and useful only to think, "I wish that were in Spanish!" With all the great things floating around on Teacher Blogs, I can only imagine how frustrating that must be! So, to help out my bilingual bloggy buddies a little, I've updated some of my post popular Back to School freebies to include Spanish versions along with the originals. If you could use them or know someone who could, grab a copy and enjoy. Many thanks to Daysi and Stephanie for their help with the translations! Grab the Give Me Five Posters Here Backpack Tags Pencil Pail Labels First and Last Day Kindergarten Portraits Have a Great Night!
Here's a quick little post to share a coloring page that you can use to celebrate Johnny Appleseed's birthday tomorrow. I have the day off - yippee! - so we're celebrating on Friday with an Apple Extravaganza. Tomorrow I'm playing gopher for my sister who is getting married on Saturday. Squeebi (childhood nickname) if you're reading this, 3 days, 12 hours and 3 minutes to go!! Click on the picture to download Have a great day tomorrow!
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Hi everyone! Things are settling in around here - thank goodness! My Dad had a slight set back but is now happily home and getting stronger every day. Thanks again so much to everyone who has sent warm wishes or prayers this way, they were so greatly appreciated! Now that I have my Back to School Bootcamp ready to go, I'm looking ahead to September and planning for the month. I've been working on a Johnny Appleseed unit and thought I would share some freebies. I love doing a unit on Johnny because after the first few weeks of school that are filled with learning routines, assessing emerging skills and getting to know the students, it's the first real content we teach and the kids get so into it! The first freebie is a descriptive writing activity. I plan to do a giant anchor chart with words that describe Johnny, Then, I'll have my kids work on the activity down below. Since I'll be using it with my kindergarten kids, I think I'll type up words that we include on the anchor chart and have them just cut and paste them onto the paper. I think that first and second graders would be more ready to write their own words. You can grab a copy down below the picture. Grab a Copy We'll be just getting into the routine of math stations in September so I made some basic games for the kids to play. Roll and Color is always a favorite, so I made a Johnny Appleseed version. I also made a Roll, Add and Color version to differentiate for any advanced learners. Grab a copy if you'd like to give it a try. Download a Copy Here Tomorrow's the big Back to School sale at Teachers Pay Teachers. With the code BTS12 you can get 10% all purchases, and many sellers are offering an additional 5-20% off on top of that! Everything in my store will be an additional 20% off, so if you've been eyeing anything, now's the time to pick up a copy! I have about 16 things on my wishlist so I'm going to have to a lot of fun shopping tomorrow! Visit My TPT Store Have a Great Night!
As kindergarten teachers, we all know the developmental benefits of doing cutsie crafts in our classrooms. Not only do they strengthen eye-hand coordination and fine motor skills, but they also foster creativity and the ability to concentrate. When I first started teaching kindergarten, our days were filled with cutsie crafts because we knew how important these skills are. Construction paper, glue and paint were tools we used for learning every day. EVERY day. Jump to the present. Academic objectives and intense curriculums are the standard now and there is little time for crafts, which are now considered frivolous. The same administrators that complain about the penmanship of 2nd graders are raising their eyebrows when they see a room full of kindergartners making construction paper hearts for Valentine's Day. Everything we do in our classrooms has to support an official learning standard and has to be connected to the curriculum. Enter the newly popular "craftivity." By combining curriculum content and academic skills (usually writing) with a big dose of cuteness, craftivities are a win-win! We now have something to say other than "We're working on fine motor skills" when we have to justify the activity to an eyebrow-raising administrator. The craftivity is a sneaky double agent, working in a covert, crafty way to bring back our construction paper and glue! I've seen so many cute craftivities (just search Pinterest and you'll be in heaven!) and even created some of my own (stick with me 'til the end of the post for a freebie). These are some of my favorites that I found while blog hopping that I've either done with my class or plan to do this year: How cute are these Seuss Week Freebies from Mel at Seusstastic Classroom Inspirations? And this one from Alisha at the Bubbly Blonde is a great way to kick off the year. Teri at A Cupcake for the Teacher came up with this tasty treat: Jennifer at Herding Kats in Kindergarten is a girl after my heart - We love Mo! And now for my contribution to the cuteness. I always start the year with everyone's favorite kindergarten teacher, Miss Bindergarten. I thought this craftivity would be a good way for me to assess fine motor skills and how well my new class follows directions. I think they'll also make a super cute bulletin board for Open House. Templates, a writing prompt and step by step picture directions are included. You can grab a copy below the pic if you'd like to give it a try. I just dare any administrator who walks into your classroom to raise an eyebrow! Click Here to Download Leave a comment if you grab a copy and you'll make my day!
Hiya Everyone! First of all, I'm having a gleeful moment of instant nostalgia. The Sound of Music is on and I feel like I'm 8 years old again, getting to stay up late on a school night to watch Maria twirl around and around on the top of a mountain. Love it! Now on to a great little freebie I have for you... If you're anything like me, taking a day off from school ties your stomach in knots. Sub plans to write, materials to prepare, checking the clock every ten minutes and wondering if everything's OK. It's usually easier just to go in, even if you're under the weather. Taking a day off during the first few weeks of school is even worse - how can your little guys can possibly get through the day without you there?!? Well, I faced the unthinkable on Friday. It was the 7th day of school and I needed to take a personal day - YIKES! My Dad was having surgery (which went VERY well - woohoo!) and I wanted to be at the hospital with my family. I debated for a while about whether I should take the day off, because my class is just settling in to routines and procedures and I felt a little bit like I was abandoning them during a really crucial time. To make things even more tricky, it was School Picture Day. After talking with my AP, we decided that picture day was manageable and the kids would be just fine without me for a day (imagine that). So I got to work creating very detailed sub plans that I thought would keep the kids busy, engaged and learning on their first day with a sub. I wanted to give the sub easy to follow plans, knowing that he/she would be not only facing the usual challenges of being a sub, but also tackling them with a class still relatively unfamiliar with each other and the routine. Enter everyone's favorite feline - Pete the Cat! I had just introduced my newest group of kinder kids to the first Pete book on Thursday, and as expected, they were in love. I figured that giving them a day full of Pete was the best way to keep them engaged and help the day moving along. I came up with lessons and follow up activities for reading, writing, word study, math and science and wrote detailed directions for the sub. I prepared all of the materials, left everything labelled and organized, and left school on Thursday feeling OK about abandoning leaving my sweet class in the hands of a well-prepared sub. The day's plans came out so well that I thought I would share them as a little gift from me and Pete to make your life a little easier. If you have a day off coming up or just want to prepare an emergency sub kit, everything you need is in the packet. Just grab a copy of the book, Pete the Cat - I Love My White Shoes, follow the directions for prepping the materials, and enjoy a stress-free day off! Download Your Freebie Here Have a great day off!
UPDATE: This post originally ran on July 7, 2012, but as we’re starting to feel little hints of cooler fall weather, we’re getting the urge to cozy up inside our homes — and what better a thing to do inside the comfort of your own home than practice yoga?! Doing yoga at home rules. Of […]
This Keto Broccoli Cheddar Soup with Ham recipe is the perfect Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup copycat recipe. It has the added bonus of delicious smokey ham. | Peace Love and Low Carb
