Lots of Back to School Pictures!!

I just finished my second full week of school and man I'm tired.  How do you forget how tiring the first few weeks of school are?  I think if we remembered how it was each year, we might not go back.  HA!

I'm kidding, I would go back ;).

 We spend a ton of time at the beginning focusing on learning how to be peacemakers...not peace breakers.  I think I already shared this activity with you, but I'm sharing again because I love it so much.  This really helps my kiddos to learn how peacemakers act...they get really good at using that language.  I love to hear them say to their friends, "You are being a peacemaker because you ____."  

 We just spent the last two weeks learning all about colors using the story Brown Bear, Brown Bear.

I also use Brown Bear to introduce the routine and structure of our centers to them.  And, we retell this story several different ways.

Here, we partner up and paint one section of our Brown Bear story map.  I use this to introduce paint and paint brushes.

We also have character cards that we use to retell the story with a friend.

Then, they go in the brown bag with the story stapled to the front so they can share the story with someone at home.  

You can tell by the pictures each student is engaged!  :)

 Who doesn't love chocolate?  This is a hit every year...I love how it has color words, characters, sorting and counting (for the students that are ready) all in one.

 We graph how we get to school...see Froggy??  More on this in a later post!

Tons of Froggy fun is coming!

 Ok, so I love these little color cut-aparts from my Brown Bear Unit if I do say so myself.

"Really?!?!"  Yes, because every year I can see SO MUCH progress by the time they have done one of these for each color...that's 10 of these that they have had to color, trace, write, draw, glue, sequence, and spell.

Here's the deal, every year on the first couple pages, I'm like, "Why do I do this to myself...this is so hard", but by the end of the colors, even my kiddos that could not hold scissors correctly and make a stroke have shown some improvement and that makes me happy!  

Are these perfect by the end??  Absolutely not!  Do they all look like this?  No way!  But, the slightest improvement makes me smile and usually there's significant improvement over two weeks.  Practice makes perfect right?! 

 Speaking of scissors??  I have several sweeties who didn't know how to hold scissors or open and shut to cut.  So, this happened!  I did the google eyes last year but this year I wanted to do something that really caught their eye.  Um, it definitely helped...a lot!  All I have to say is "Fuzzy on top", and they immediately switch if need be.

 This (Rainbow Strokes is from Brown Bear) was in writing center...along with some other things from my Write Your Heart Out August/September Edition Unit.  Room 28 (that's me) needed a little practice on strokes ;).

 Here's some of what went in Literacy and Math centers from Brown Bear.

 We are learning how to roll cubes, use bingo dotters correctly, spin spinners, use game pieces, take turns, WAIT our turn, share, use clipboards, use markers...and well, play centers!

I must say it went pretty smoothly.  I do not begin pulling "real" small groups just yet.  I do take the few extra minutes I have after helping everyone finish and get to their next place to work on writing names, or learning how to make a straight line so we can begin to form a letter.  

Every year I ready Bubble Gum, Bubble Gum by Lisa Wheeler and we do this fun bubble gum blowing activity.  We had 4 "bubblers" as I call them and 11 "non-bubblers".  

First we read the story.  Then, we make the faces without the bubble.  Next, we chew and try to blow bubbles.  Last, we add either a bubble or popped bubble and build our graph.

Check it out!

 If you read all of this...Bless Your Heart!

Hope your weekend is wonderful!

Check back soon because I have TONS of Froggy Fun coming to this blog soon!

When?? Do you get it all done??

Hi friends!  I get asked this question a lot!!  "When do you get it all done?"  Sometimes I feel like I don't accomplish anything and then some days I feel like I do so I guess it all balances out.  I'm telling ya...from the time my kids walk in the door we go non-stop all day long...(well...most of the time...we have our days); but we bust it trying to cram all the learning and FUN into 7 hours that we can!  Yes, we have rest time, but I'm busting' it getting folders stuffed, answering notes from parents, looking over work, assessing students, getting out paint and glitter for our next activity, etc...You get the picture.  Non. Stop.  I know you feel the same way!!

So, here's what my daily schedule looks like.

Feel free to ask questions over on my FACEBOOK page.  You can like my Facebook page with the tab on the right side of my blog...or click HERE!

Classroom Reveal!!

I'm back with another link up with Blog Hoppin'!  Today's post is...Where I teach?? I'm so excited to show you my classroom!!  I have not really changed up my room in FOREVER so I knew this year I just had to do something different.  As always, I'm usually "late to the party" so I went for the chalkboard theme...a year or two late!  HA!  But, I absolutely love it mixed in with all the bright colors I already have in my classroom!  And...I knew I wanted to go for  a "home-y" look too since I spend TONS of my time there!  Here goes...

One of my student's favorite spots in our classroom is this space right here...our reading loft.

I added the party banners (from Target party section) to brighten up the walls and the lamp to give it a cozy feel.

 I moved my rug and whole group teaching area to the front of our room this year so we could use our Promethean board during lessons at the rug instead of moving from place to place.  I wasn't so sure about this change, but so far...so good!  I absolutely love my new teacher chair from Hobby Lobby!

 I found the first items of my chalkboard themed classroom from Mardel online.

Then, I scoured TPT for other items.

I fell in love with these motivational posters from Gabby's Classroom which you can find HERE.

 I changed out my alphabet line and my number posters to a chalkboard theme.

I absolutely LOVE these number posters from Hope King!!  They are so bright and colorful!

You can find them HERE.

And, my alphabet line came from A Special Teacher for Special Kids.  You can find the posters HERE.

 Here's my word wall.  I used Hope King's Patterns Galore editable pack to make the words for our word wall.  

 I am loving my writing center!  I picked up several baskets this summer from TJ Maxx to give that cozy at home feel.  I adore the baskets with the chalkboard labels that hold cubes, spinners, papers, etc.  And, check out the tables stools that I found at Family Dollar.  They came in purple, orange, pink, gray, turquoise, and lime green!  The perfect colors if you ask me!  The sticker on the bottom said outdoor table, but it screamed stool to me.

 Here's some close ups of the details at the writing center.

 It was time to replace the BIG OL' gray school clock with this new one...love!

 I got rid of my calendar on the wall...changed some things up and freed up this bulletin board where anchor charts and such will hang this year.

 I've used "cut buckets" all 10 years of my teaching.  I learned this trick from a teacher that I substituted for before I began teaching.  Each table has a small bucket or bin to catch all the trash as they are cutting, gluing and making.  BUT, Rachelle at What the Teacher Wants made these cutie patootie labels that say "Tidy Tub" so I snatched them up and printed them for my buckets.

You can find them IN THIS POST.

 See that banner above the student work display?  Found it at Target in the party section and I had to have it!  I love the bright colors...and the chalkboard circles!

 Close-Up!

 A few more spaces...

 Still Building those Rainbows for great behavior and for being Peacemakers.

Found the original idea HERE.

 The banner came from Mardel online.

I hope you enjoyed touring my classroom!

It's Who Am I Monday with Blog Hoppin'!

It's that time of year again...Blog Hoppin's Teacher Week 2014.  I pretty much kept my post from last year because it just about sums me up!  :)

I added a few photos and changed a couple words.

Feel free to link up with Blog Hoppin' all week!

1. I have an amazing family!  God has blessed me SO very much!  I have a wonderful husband and amazing daddy to our 3 beautiful children!  And, most of you probably know that I have an identical twin sister, Amy Hope.  I also have an older brother.  We have amazing parents that I can't say enough about!  

2.  I live in the South and don't like Sweet Tea.  I'm a Mt. Dew addict and this little drink below (Livewire) is my favorite, but we don't have it in Alabama.

3. I don't wear tennis shoes...ever!  Nope, I'm a flip-flop kinda girl until November then it's boots!

4. I {heart} Christian music...currently obsessed with Christy Nockels and Francesca Battistelli

5. I'm a total "Night Owl"!  I really love to stay up late, IF and only if I can sleep late!  If I can't, then I need at least 9 hours of sleep...10 would be ideal!

6. I secretly love "Good Luck Charlie"...who am I kidding...you might as well throw "Jessie" in there too...and let's don't forget "The Hive"!  Can you say Dork?  I live with 3 children...I don't have time for adult t.v.  I do record The Bachelor & Tia & Tamera.  

7. I don't go anywhere without earrings and eyeliner.

8. I'm obsessed with dressing my girls alike...here's a few examples.  It bothers me if their clothes do not match...for real!  They showed up at church one Sunday not dressed alike and my brother asked if I was sick!  I'll soon have to put my desires aside because my almost 7 year old is already rebelling at the clothes I pick out...Boo!  

9. I am a horrible decision maker.  I get this from my mother!  Where to eat?  Which color to buy?  What to do?  I don't know...don't ask me!

10.  Likes & Dislikes:

Likes: the beach, pink, fall, Christmas, TJ Maxx, Vera Bradley, Brighton jewelry, DESSERT!

Dislikes:  exercising, mayonnaise, meat on the bone (yuck!), bugs, waiting at restaurants, & smoke!