Not so beginning of the year!

I'm I'm I am so excited! I have been blessed beyond belief with a low class size this year! I started with 17! ........dropped to 14! .....then got a new little guy three days ago, and he's so good! So now I'm at 15! It's been wonderful! Our district is really pushing writing and guided reading (which I have always loved) and my low numbers have really helped with management.

Although, I have been a procrastinator about blogging! I want to share some fun things we have done so far! Sorry for the hodge-podge of subjects!

Starting with the beginning of the beginning.... 

Every summer the custodial crew takes ALL our furniture out and waxes the floors....so every summer I have to set ALL of my stuff back up! Which is a love hate topic of my life! Some summers it helps me get a little more organized....but then sometimes I bite off more than I can chew! Haha!

This is the view of my loft from the door. 

This is my favorite purchase from this summer! It now holds all my guided reading and math items I might need. And it rolls so gracefully! It was from ikea.

 

I copied this idea from another blog (I'll have to link it late!) and I am so excited about it! I am training my first graders how to use it this week! 

These are some of the first week of school graphs and charts we do so I always get them ready during staff development.

Here we are "exploring" the manipulatives.

Here is a little journal writing! We are practicing "Cool Blue Capitals" with our fancy blue felt-tip markers!

We had some special 3rd grade super heroes visit our class and share poems they had written!

They were so proud!

Let the math games and stations begin!

For open house we totally copied a Pinterest idea! We made portraits so our parents could find our chairs! They looked so cute!

Last but not least......this is me and my family in our "First day of School" pic! Man, we made some beautiful girls! (I'm allowed to say that, right!?)

Week one, check!

Well, we all survived the first week madness!  I love starting a new year and getting to see the potential that is coming!  Granted, it can be scary to see the surprise challenges and obstacles that can make it harder!  My goal is to have a positive attitude everyday and work my hardest to push each one of my new kids as far as they can go.....(which feels almost literal at times!)

Here are a few snaps of our first few days of school....

We warmed up our brains with a little number review and manipulative exploration! 

The we learned how to "shop" for books before "Read to Self". 

We worked on "Stamina" (practicing reading independently while following classroom expectations)

Building "Stamina" can be challenging.  We compare building "stamina" to working out at the gym. I make the analogy that if you work out wrong at the gym your muscles will build wrong and look funny (gotta bring it down to there level, remember).  And if you practice reading wrong then you brain will not learn it right.  

Something new I've been working on are ABC tracing cards.  I went to a workshop this summer and read in one of the books of a study done with tracing cards and the rate of letter/sound recognition success.  

My little girls were eager to be the first ones to use them! 

 Next step is laminating and putting them on a ring! I'll tell you how they work later!

You can snag them at my Store.  ABC Tracing Cards\

 











You can also grab my ABC Beginning sounds Clipart pack ABC Clipart
 

Getting back into the Groove!

Used the new school laminator today!!!! Had so much fun I thought I should make a freebie!

Go to my TPT store to get my cubbie numbers for free! I'm going to also make a second set and put in on a ring for my student helper of the day.  

 

Number Cards Freebie!

Back to School Give Away!

Ok, I have never done a give away before but I would like to try!  I know a lot of us have already started school but I still want to share with y'all! 

 

I am giving away my Back to School Clipart Pack

 

 

and my Morning Meeting Must Haves.

 

 

The way to qualify is to follow my blog, and leave a comment through rafflecopter.  I will then pick TWO lucky folks!  (I am crossing my fingers this works right, since its my first giveaway!!!)

 

This offer ENDS September 13, 2013! Thats Right! Friday the 13th!  LOL!  I will announce the winners within 48 hours!  I will then contact the winners via EMAIL.  Good luck! And hope you enjoy checking out my blog!!!

 

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And On the 7th Day.....

Well, I don't know about y'all but I made is 7 WHOLE SCHOOL DAYS before my first melt down, LOL!  (And yes "y'all" I am a Texan!)  Surprisingly enough, it really wasn't school itself, but all my after school obligations with my girls!  AND, a not so fun trip to the municipal court to pay for a few tickets (all dismissable ladies! don't judge)
So, I took a few pics of some of our first week graphs we have made.

Day one we make a transportation graph and talk about it.  I swear I never cut the butcher paper long enough!

Then we did a birthday graph (Teachers, you know we really do this for us!!!)

 And my favorite, the eye color pie chart!!!!  This idea came from Abby Lee's Kindergarten blog.  My gradelevel did it last year when I was in kindergarten but you would have never known by the reaction from my first graders as I put the last piece up and it made a circle!  (AND 17/21 where here in kindergarten!)

 

This is a quick snip of our CAFE Strategies board.  Granted, I wish we had gotten to more strategies but I just can seem to find the time.....It is crazy at the beginning of the year! 

Last year I decided to try homemade book bags because I was tired of bying boxes and I loaned my totes to a coworker and decided to let her have them.  So, I asked parents to bring an old (child sized) Tshirt and I did a little cosmetic touches to them and TADA!  The kids love that they have their own personal book bag that is made out of a shirt.  And the best part so far is that it is REALLY fool proof when I tell them to go get their bag.  I don't have to wait while they look on every label to try and find theirs!

One of my students favorite things right now are the pointers.  I have purchased cheap stir sticks from Hobby Lobby, Dollar Tree, and other places then put them in a pen organizer and let them grab one when they head to work on Daily 5.  Trust me, this is a HUGE motivator to read.....(as well as a distraction for some, lol)