A shining example

I "found" a website today, that I think everyone should know about!  The Cornerstone is a collection of activities and ideas shared by Angela Watson.  The only way I can describe her is INSPIRED!  One can easily spend an hour lost on her site, and leave feeling renewed and excited about teaching (and the joy of life in general).  I. Love. It.     You will, too.  Check her out!

Classroom decor Linky Party

 First Grade Blue Skies is hosting a Linky party that is all about classroom decor.  I love Linky Parties!  This one was actually kind of hard for me, though, because I am taking a *huge* pay cut this year, and I have told myself over and over how happy I am with what I already have!  Truly, though, I am super happy with my classroom colors/decor.  This will be my third year with the same stuff, and I'm not tired of it yet!  You've probably seen from my classroom pictures that I have a blue, green, black and white theme, with polka dots.  I love it!  It's very me. :)  

Still, I guess it never hurts to dream!

A new calendar set would be nice... with cute polka dots, of course!

matching monthly headers

monthly calendar tiles for each month of the year... with story prompts on the back of each!

Notepad "paper" poster... to laminate and write down our circle rules together.

And I may as well dream big if I am dreaming.... I have always wanted these little chairs for my library!  And they're at such a great price right now.  Bummer.  Oh, well.  The kids love my library as it is!

I want to create a new rug area this year.  This rug would be SO cute!

This year I'm going to be using a Hollywood theme.  Wouldn't this be the cutest Author's Chair?  This I really do wish for!

And of course, a red carpet for my little superstars!

That's all.  Really.  Well, that and about a bazillion other things for the kids and I to actually USE, but that is for another party, I suppose.  :)

Did that really just happen??? and a free game

Last night was one of my strangest yet.  I spent several hours in the emergency room and had to be put under to have surgery.  You would think something terrible happened to me, but no, not really.  I ate fish for dinner, and got a bone stuck in my throat.  After two hours of trying everything on the internet, that little guy was stuck in there even better than before.  I couldn't talk very loud because the vibrations caused the fish bone to poke further into my throat.

So, I decided to head over the hospital.   I had been swimming that day, and cooking fish.  My hair was in a frizzy pony-tail.  But, did I think to change my clothes, put on some makeup, or wash up? Oh, no, I was solely focused on the fish bone stuck in my esophagus.  So, it would only stand to reason that my Dr. would be the father of my students  (he has the cutest little twin boys!) from last year.   I was lucky enough to have a lovely yellow stain all down my shirt from a nectarine I ate while trying to push down the fish bone.  How embarrassing!

When going out in public, it is best for a teacher to always be prepared.  Even in the ER, you just never know who you are going to see!

In honor of my lovely surgery, I have made these cute fish sight word cards for my son.  He is currently practicing Kindergarten sight words, so they would be a great beginning of the year activity for your kiddos.  They can be cut out, laminated, and attach a magnet to the back to use for a fishing game.  Or, just cut into cards and laminate for flash cards, war, you name it.    My little guy has been terribly worried about me (I got to drag both kids to the hospital with me, and they saw me as I went under and woke up).  I thought this might help us to laugh a little, and commemorate the experience.  I also wrote him a little emergent reader about a mom who gets fish stuck in her throat.  Haha!  This, I won't share.  I'm sure no one wants a bunch of calls from parents whose children are afraid to eat fish!

Have a lovely day!  Mine will definitely be fish-free! :)

K fish HF words

Touchpoint Math Giveaway

Teaching Happily Ever After is having a Touchpoint Math Giveaway.  While I have never used this with my students, I think it would be great for RTI!  Head on over to her blog to sign up!

Rules and Procedures can be Fun!

Every good teacher knows that the best laid plans will fall apart without a good set of classroom rules and procedures in place.  It is important to think out these procedures ahead of time, teach them explicitly, and give your students plenty of practice!  

I like to play this little "game" with my students whenever we have a free moment throughout the year.  It helps them to review my expectations, and to be successful.  They also love it, because they get a chance to be in the "spotlight" for a few minutes as they demonstrate their rule.  I cut all of the little words into strips and put them in a jar (with label).  I keep a checkoff list, and allow random students to show off their knowledge of our procedures.   

Showing Jar Game

If nothing else, this list might help some of you newer teachers to think about what YOUR classroom procedures should be, and have a plan! :)

Enjoy!