Oh, How Pinteresting Wednesday

     Well, it actually feels like a Thursday instead of a Wednesday because our kiddos only have a half-day tomorrow and then we have a teacher workday on Friday, BUT here we go for another round of Oh, How Pinteresting Wednesday!  I am linking up with The Vintage Apple!  Make sure to head on over to see what everyone is pinning lately!

Here are a few of the things I have been pinning lately:

Raining Nouns...

Source: acrossthehallin2nd.blogspot.com via Michelle on Pinterest

A Magic Tree House Door...

Source: Uploaded by user via Michelle on Pinterest

It's not too late for Easter Activities...

Source: teacherspayteachers.com via Michelle on Pinterest

Beet Ravioli...YUM! I  can't wait to try and make this!

Source: theitaliandishblog.com via Michelle on Pinterest

Feta Dip...

Source: the-girl-who-ate-everything.com via Michelle on Pinterest

Thanks for checking out my pins!  Happy Wednesday!

- Michelle

15 Followers Away and Ollie's!

      One of my goals for the New Year was to reach 100 followers and I am only 15 followers away!  I can't believe it, especially because I have been bad at blogging the past few weeks!  I should be blogging all of the time since my student teacher is teaching full time, I just haven't had the motivation to work on  my computer each night!  I've been taking advantage of having a little free time in my evenings.  I promise I will get back on track! 

      Thank you for following my blog!  The blogging community is just that, a community!  I know that since I have began blogging and following other blogs, I have become a better, more creative teacher. 

      I know I have shared about books from Ollie's, but seriously this place is amazing! (Well for books that is!) If you have an Ollie's in your area then you need to check it out.  They have hard bound books for $2.99 and $3.99.  I bought two books for me and two for my student teacher's end of the year gift and I only spent $12.00. 

 

                     These two are for me and they are adorable!

These are for my student teacher.  I bought her a Thirty-One bag and am going to fill it with items for her first classroom.  I am collecting books to put in the bag.  Skippyjon Jones is one of my FAVORITE characters!  So, I knew it was a must for my student teacher!

Don't forget to check out the steals at Ollie's and Thank you again for being loyal followers!  Only 15 more and I will be at 100!!!

Happy Tuesday!
- Michelle

St. Patrick’s Day Freebie, Common Core, and Reading Street

     If your school is anything like mine, you have had a year or two of transitions with the Common Core.  This year our school is in full implementation of the Common Core and it is a transitional year from using Scott Foresman Reading Street towards a Reader's Workshop Model. 

     Our grade level has worked very hard to find a balance between a workshop model and the positive aspects of the Reading Street Program.   We took the stories and rearranged them with our ELA Curriculum Map so that we could teach the Common Core, with a workshop model, in the sequence that is required by our county.  This has allowed me to really incorporate a variety of methods for teaching specific reading skills.  I am so proud of the amazing readers that I have in my classroom!  They are applying all that is taught in the Reading Street Program and the Common Core for first grade, during their independent reading. 

     One of the ways that I blend the skills from Reading Street and a workshop model is through my interactive read alouds.  I love using thematic books for this and using them to teach and model the skills that good readers do. 

     This week my our class is focusing on cause and effect.  They are going to listen to the story The Night Before St. Patrick's Day and review cause and effect with a little activity I created.  Head on over to my TpT site to grab a free copy of the cause and effect activity for this book.  Click on the title above or the picture below.

    

      If you download this activity, please go back afterwards and leave me some feedback.  Also, don't forget to follow my TpT site for more freebies and class activities to support your daily instruction!

Fabulous Field Trips!

     
      We had a FABULOUS time at our field trip!  I don't know about your schools, but we can only go on two field trips a year.  The first grade usually takes one to the pumpkin patch in the fall and one to our Children's Theater in Charlotte in the winter/spring. 
      The Children's Theater has wonderful productions for young children.  This is an experience that I LOVE to provide for our students.  Many of our students have never been to a formal show in a theater.  We teach them about appropriate etiquette and dress. We have also had years where our students have never been to downtown Charlotte and they are amazed at all of the huge buildings. Today, you should have heard the kids telling us about who they know that works in "that really tall building"!

     We went and saw "The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs!", where we were able to hear the Wolf's side of the story.  It was really funny and very cute!  I loved hearing my students talk about whether or not they believed the Wolf!  There were even a few discussions on the bus ride back about how it is OK to disagree about our thoughts on the verdict.  Tomorrow my students will write about whether or not they believed Alexander T. Wolf.  Click here to grab your copy of this writing prompt for free. 

                                                          

     To get ready for this play, we used a variety of reading materials.  My students are reading on a wide range from levels G through level U.  In order to read materials about the three little pigs, I found three stories that are on a variety of reading levels, providing great differentiation.  The kids have really enjoyed reading these books this week and they will continue their work with them into next week.  Click on the pictures below to grab your copy of these great activities!

What types of field trips do you take at your school?  What do you do to get your kiddos ready and pumped up for the trip?  I would love to hear your ideas!
Happy almost Friday!

-Michelle 

Ready for Spring, St. Patrick's Day Ideas, and I'm a NC Blogger!

     Ready for Spring, St. Patrick's Day Ideas, and I'm a NC Blogger!

      I am SO ready for spring!  To me, the month of March means springtime is here!  In North Carolina you never know what type of weather you might get, especially in March!  Last March it was VERY warm!  This March hasn't started out the same way.  Thankfully we are NOT going to get the snow they thought we might get tomorrow and this weekend we should finally have some average to above average weather! 

     Nothing tells me spring is on the way more than springing our clocks forward (this upcoming weekend), warmer weather, and of course my favorite March holiday...St. Patrick's Day!  I LOVE this holiday and all the fun that it can bring at school.  The only downfall of having a student teacher is that I won't actually be doing any activities with my kiddos this year, for St. Patrick's Day. My student teacher is using a bunch of my items, but it is still not the same!  In the spirit of St. Patty's Day, I am linking up with Primary Inspired to share my St. Patrick's Day Pinterest page. 

     Also, if you haven't seen it, Fifth in the Middle, is having teachers link up by the state in which they are teaching/blogging.  It is amazing how many teacher bloggers live in NC!  Make sure to head over there and link up and maybe meet some other bloggers from your area!

                                       

Have a great night!

- Michelle

March Currently

I have read other people's currently blogs for SO long and I am finally linking up with Oh' Boy Fourth Grade for her March Currently Linky!

•  Listening to Pandora!  Now that we have unlimited Internet at home, we can crank up the music!  Music makes working so much easier!
• Loving that my student teacher is almost ready to take over!  This week I will still be teaching for about an hour and a half each day.  She is pretty much teaching the rest of the day!  Then the following week, she will begin taking over full time for 4 weeks!  I have a lot of projects planned. :)
• Thinking about how it is supposed to snow this Wednesday!  We CAN'T have any snow!  We have a field trip on Thursday and I don't want to miss it!  All we need is a dusting or a threat of a dusting, for them to cancel school.
• Wanting spring to be here!  I am ready for the cold weather to be over!
• Needing to iron!  I iron my clothes for at least 3 days of the week, so I have one less thing to prepare each night.
• Like- March is a great month.  I love St. Patrick's Day and how spring is usually arriving!
•  Love- My new books.  I went to Ollie's this weekend.  I bought all of these books for $18.00!  It was fabulous!
• Hate- Monday mornings are tough.  I love my job and I love my kids, but Mondays are always tough for me to get up and get moving! 

I am glad that I finally linked up after so long of reading other people's currently blogs!  Thanks for stopping by my blog! 
- Michelle

Five for Friday...on Saturday!

     I am Linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday.  I am a little behind.  I was SO tired yesterday that I just couldn't get it together to link up after school!

Three of my five random things are about Read Across America Week.  We had a BLAST celebrating the works of Dr. Seuss, but it was a LONG week! 

Here are my five random things from this week:

1.  Our Read-A-Thon was awesome!  The students brought in blankets, pillows, and books by Dr. Seuss.  We spent a little over an hour reading books by Dr. Seuss.  The best part is that the students really spent the whole time reading!  I walk around and give stickers to those who continue reading and this really keeps them going!  We had a great time!

2.  Green Eggs and Ham!  On Tuesday we read Green Eggs and Ham and then ate them!  I love watching their faces and seeing who realizes that it is simply food coloring!  I always tell them that they were moldy eggs and ham.  They never believe me!

3.  One of our centers this week had the students read a book by Dr. Seuss, write down their information about who the character is, the setting, and the problem.  Then the students used a great app called Storykit to take pictures of the character, setting, and problem within the text, record their voices, and insert text.  They turned out super cute!

4.  My dad turned 62 this week!  Happy belated birthday to my dad! I hope he had a great day!

5.  Last, this week I signed up for an amazing giveaway and am so excited to be a part of it!  I know that I already blogged about it, but I shared the information with my grade level this week because I can't even believe how many amazing bloggers are giving items away!  Click on this picture to get more information on how you can enter to win over $100 worth of items!

Happy Saturday!

-Michelle