I have spent the last few weeks looking at so many awesome blogs with great classrooms. We were finally allowed in our rooms today for the first time. As you can see I entered to find a huge heap of furniture stacked up against the cubbies! It is always interesting to see how many items can be piled on top of each other!
I got a ton of things done today, but I still have a lot to do. It is amazing how exhausting moving furniture can be! By the end of the day I was beat...but the outcome was worth it! I got my bulletin boards done, set up one of my little nooks, and I cleared off the top of the cubbies. Thanks for all of the inspiration out there to get back in and start decorating. :)
At our school a lot of the teachers use paper on the bulletin boards. I went to grab some and was disappointed when I saw that it was damp and discolored! I decided to go get fabric instead. I have never had fabric boards, but I know a lot of other teachers always use it. I think they both turned out really cute.
My computer area is still not set up and the wall behind them I think is going to be changed to use for a focus wall. (Something new for me this year!) The reading area is missing a few rugs/pillows that go on the floor. This is where we do our whole group phonics/reading. The chair directly under the leaf is a very special gift. It is hand-painted by a former parent and fellow teacher. It is amazing! The kids get to sit in this special chair when reading aloud to the class or sharing about themselves when they are student of the week.
I hope everyone is enjoying the last few days of summer! :)
I am VERY sad and a little jealous that so many teachers are working in their classrooms and getting prepared for this year. I can't get into my room until August 8th and most of the days I am allowed to go to school, I will still be working at my summer job or out of town. So all of this wanting to get in my room turns into me purchasing items that I can put in my room once I get there! I know it doesn't really make sense...but it does to me! Unfortunately, I don't have or want to spend a ton of money so I have been on the hunt for deals. I have seen some awesome deals on some other blogs and thought I would share the things that I have found!
These are actually only about 4 inches high each! I found these at Michael's Arts and Crafts. I think they were about $2.00 each. They have little hooks on the bottom to hang items from them. They have little picture hooks at the top to be able to pin/nail them to a wall. They were plain white and I didn't know where I was going to put them in my classroom so I wanted to keep them simple. I put little dashes and dots around the edges, added some ribbon that I already had and they were done!!
Who can't have enough markers?! Usually Walgreen's is not my first choice for markers but this week they have markers for $2.00 a pack and then you get $2.00 Register Rewards. You can basically get 2 packs for $2.00, which is not too bad. Sometimes you can find these cheaper at Walmart and other stores, but I thought this was a good deal.
I know that another blog mentioned this deal a week or so ago. Staples has special deals for teachers. Teachers can purchase 25 packs of highlighters (2 Sharpie highlighters per pack), 25 packages of note cards, and 25 packages of pencils (8 pencils per pack). All of these items are 1 cent! I only bought the highlighters and pencils, but that equals 50 highlighters and 200 pencils all for $0.50!! What a steal!
PLEASE feel free to leave/share some of the deals and steals you have found. I know you are out there shopping too!
The school year is about to begin and while we anticipate the new crew of kiddos I wanted to share a little something that I do at the beginning of the year. Kindergarten to First Grade is a huge transition for parents and kids. The beginning of the year is difficult even for me! A First Grader in August is VERY different than a First Grader in June! For many of our students the transition is overwhelming as expectations begin to increase. The last thing we want to do is scare the students away from their love of learning. A teddy bear can make most 6 year-olds comfy at home, so we use one at school too! Each year I buy a class Teddy bear. AC Moore usually has them pretty cheap. I tie a cute ribbon around his neck to dress him up a bit. This year I added this cute flower...maybe our teddy is a she this year! Each night a different child takes home Teddy and spends the evening playing with him. The student writes 1-3 sentences about what he/she does with Teddy and then draws and colors a picture in the journal. The next day the student bring Teddy and his journal back to share with the class. The kids love taking Teddy home and we love hearing about Teddy's adventures! At the end of the year I pull a name of a student to take home Teddy to keep forever! This years winner looked like he won the lottery! We also share the stories that they wrote in the beginning of the year. This is a highlight of the year for me. The students can't believe that the page he/she wrote actually belonged to them! This is a nice way to see how far they have grown by the spring! I hope your new "BIG" first graders get a chance to cuddle up with your new class Teddy! Click on Teddy's picture to download the letter I use inside his journal.
First Grade Blue Skies is hosting a Linky Party for the things that you LOVE! Somethings in my classroom that I love are the animals and books from Kohls Cares for Kids Program. Kohl's department store sells children's books and matching stuffed animals for $5.00 each. The money is raised for children and community members.
I wish I had pictures from last year that showed them better, but I have a slight addiction to these animals and books. I usually have them lining my bookshelves and above my cubbies. I rotate them throughout the year as our themes and the seasons change.
In the past I have let students who are free reading, read to the stuffed animals. The kids love doing this! Another way I have used them is by making take home packets. The student takes home a book, matching stuffed animal, and a journal. The studens write about his/her favorite part of the story or answer another writing prompt, regarding the book. Then he/she brings it back the next day and share with the class.
Some of the ones I have are Curious George and friends, Dinosaurs from How Dinosaurs Say GoodNight, etc. Eric Carle's Brown Bear, Brown Bear and Polar Bear, Polar Bear, Guess How Much I Love You, and TONS of Dr. Suess characters and books.
Right now they have Clifford and friends. Check them out!!
The books they have are Clifford the Big Red Dog, Clifford's First Day of School, Clifford's First Birthday, and Clifford the Firehouse Dog.
Miss Kindergarten is having a linky party for those that sing in their classrooms! Anyone that knows me, knows that I sing and chant all day long! Unfortunately, I have one of the WORST singing voices ever. I was blessed with talents in other areas, but singing is NOT one of them. However, I love singing at school. The kids could careless whether I am ready or not for American Idol. So we sing songs all the time, but mostly when learning concepts that are new or tricky. I use songs for telling time, money, counting, etc. We all know that songs are one of the best ways for children to retain information!
I usually use songs that I find, rather than creating my own. A really great group for kids is called the Banana Slug String Band. They are these crazy guys who sings songs about science. I have one of their cd's, Singing in our Garden. It is wonderful! My two favorite songs are Dirt Made My Lunch and Six Plant Parts. The kids absolutely LOVE these songs too.
Another really great singer is called Harry Kindergarten. He has his own site on You Tube. This year we used the 3-D shapes video, skip counting, adding, science, and character education songs. The kids think he is hilarious! We switched classes for math this year, based on academic abilities. I would play the 3-D shapes song at the beginning of the class as students came in the room and got unpacked and received their new homework. He now has a 2-D shape song.
Watch the video and then click on his name above to go to his You Tube sight! Check him out!
For me, choosing just one favorite author is similar to choosing my favorite place to eat or a favorite shirt! It is just too difficult! I have to say that as I first began teaching my favorite author was definitely Eric Carle. I loved his artwork and the stories. I still use his stories as often as I can. Each year our first grade team uses Brown Bear, Brown Bear as an introductory unit before we begin Reading Street. We use his book to reinforce rhyming and review Kindergarten skills before moving on. Don't get me wrong, I still love Eric Carle's work, but I have really learned to love another author, Kevin Henkes. I have really developed a love for his book over the past couple of years. Our school often studies specific authors for our Author Study units in Writer's Workshop, however, I started looking into Kevin Henkes' books. He writes about topics that are relatable to the students, while demonstrating a variety of writing techniques and styles. He is a wonderful model author for young students. A few of my favorites by him are:
I LOVE this book for the beginning of the year. I typically read it the first week and then have students compare themselves to Wemberly. It is great coming back to this book later during our author study.
Chrysanthemum is PERFECT for the beginning of the year when the students are getting to know each other. We do a Names Unit prior to beginning our Reading Street and this book is a vital part of that unit!
Growing up I was a Crafty Queen! As I've become an adult I've lost some of my desire as well as the time to "create". Looking at so many amazing blogs and classrooms has inspired me to get on the band wagon again! While at Target in the $1.00 section, I found a package of four write and wipe off strips. Each cardboard piece is double-sided with two handwriting lines. I then took them home and created my NEW sign for Writer's Workshop.
I have gone back and forth about how I have students share their stories in writing. So many people have a place for students to sign-up to read aloud to the class. I decided that I would try it this year. Students who are ready to share their work with the class can put their name on the list, pin their story to the bottom of the bulletin board and await their chance to share their story with the class, during Writer's Workshop!
Take a look around those $1.00 bins, get motivated, and start crafting away!
Ignore the window ledge and blinds at my house! I simply took a bulletin board, covered it with fabric. Then took the four writing lines and covered the edges with fabric. Added a little ribbon to the edges and there it
is ! (In the picture the lines look a tad bit crooked...but in person they look great! I guess I need to keep working on my photography!)
