Classroom Reveal

I wish I had more time to blog. These pictures are from the first week of school. I moved to second grade this year and it's been kind of a rough transition. This is what greeted me when I got in my new  classroom. We can never get in the classrooms during the summer. I cleaned and purged for 6 days before we had to be back. It's a good thing I did too, because they had us go to workshops for 3 days before school started. Who does that? 

There was soooo much stuff! I got rid of as much as possible. Finding a whole group area was almost impossible. It's really tight when they all sit down but we make it work. I have 19 students this year. I'm used to about 14-16.  I looped with my class but only 10 out of the 14 came back. Then 3 weeks after school began one of my girls returned but I was already full. So I have 10 old students and 9 new students. This class is very lively and chatty. I don't think I've ever had a class who talk. all. the. time. I don't know if it's because they were all in the same class and were already friends but the talking started up the 2nd week and hasn't slowed since. Plus the size of the classroom is a good bit smaller and there are more students. I am trying to adjust. Adjust to the new curriculum, classroom, schedule.. I've been adjusting so much I've barely been home. I feel like I live there sometimes. Today was actually a pretty good day so maybe we're turning a corner. Yay! I am enjoying getting to know my coworkers. We saw each other in passing and at meetings but never really spent any real time together before. There are 4 of us second grade teachers and it's a good team :)

So I redid the pirate theme (no way was I going to let all that lamination go to waste..)  The only thing I'm sad about is my library. I had a great library in first. But there was nowhere to put it! I thought the magazine holders would fit into the back wall of shelves but they didn't. Too tall. Plus there were soooo many other books I didn't have time to sort and put them in bins like I wanted. So the books are not sorted and it drives me crazy. I can never find what I'm looking for. 

 Found a little spot for my pirate octopus..

 I made crate seats this year. But the kids kept falling through so I had to take everything out and turn it over and put the seat on top.

 My whiteboard, which is actually a shower wall, is pitiful. It never looks clean even after it's just been cleaned. It has several discolorations and marks on it plus two big screws poking out. I tried to cover as much as I could. Also it's not magnetic :(  

 reading area

 teacher corner

 The navy striped bins were from Target. 

Check out my podium. I have always wanted a podium! I covered it with chevron paper and magnetic border to make it cute. That stool was in there too. I used the same fabric that I had leftover from the crate seats.
There are lots of things I like about second grade. But it is almost like starting over. I expect I'll adjust in a little while and it will get easier. My husband has been great. He is so supportive. I love you, Jason!
How has your school year been so far?
T.T.F.N.!

Moving On Up...

I found out in May that I'm moving to second grade. I started at my school right out of college and I have been in the same room ever since. I finally got my room exactly the way I wanted it after ten years.. Now I get to figure out how to move it all into a much smaller room. 

I'm going to miss first grade a lot. I have GREAT coworkers and we really are like a family. It will be strange not to be there, but I'm trying to adjust. I'm probably going to have the same class. That's the good news...and the bad news. Good because I know exactly where they are and I know them. Bad because they know me!! There won't be that initial getting to know you phase where they're not really sure what they can get away with so they have slightly better behavior for the first 3 months. I think I'm going to have to be extra strict. They were pretty good kids though :) 

Going to get started on my room next week. Maybe I'll have some pics up soon..

T.T.F.N! (Joy loves Winnie the Pooh) 

Behavior Dots, Go Math

The countdown has begun!!!
Last night, I was looking at teachertipster.com and found this-  Behavior Dots (Teacher Tipster)

It sounds easy and I know my kids would love this. I might try it out for the rest of the year. The kids are getting that May fever. Whenever May rolls around, my kids always start doing stuff they never would've even tried earlier in the year. Like one of them sat in my chair today. Really?

If you've never watched Mr. Smith's videos, check them out. Not many male elementary teachers out there...









We switched maths last year and now use Go Math! (I'm not a big fan.) There just isn't a lot of review. Anyway, I was scrolling through TPT looking for resources and I found this by Donna Walker.

 Go Math! Common Core Daily Spiral Review
It's awesome. It is such a good review. I wish I had found it earlier. There is one packet for every chapter. I bought all 12. They're only a dollar each. Not a bad deal!
We have been using these for 2 weeks now and I love it. I use side A for a math warm up and side B for homework. Here's an example. So if you use Go Math! and need some additional resources, this is worth the money in my opinion :) 

 

How many days until June 3rd?   

Spring Break!

 I actually have a little time to blog today! Our Spring Break is this week. Hallelujah! My kids were getting on my nerves and I'm sure I was getting on theirs.

We've done a lot since I last blogged but I haven't taken many pictures. We did this little writing activity for Dr. Seuss Read Across America. We read The Cat in the Hat and then the kids responded to this question, "Would you like the Cat in the Hat to come to your house?" I found this idea and the craft idea off of pinterest or somewhere.

There were some funny ones. One said he would like him to come because he didn't want to be in a no fun house. 

This is an activity we did for I'm a Caterpillar. I created it to try to finish part 2 of my craftivities for Unit 3 to put on TPT. I finished crafts for the first half of Unit 3. However, I could NOT find the time to finish it. But I did do a craft for this story. Hopefully, I can finish the entire Reading Street series during the summer. 

 This one cracked me up! "He went to get something to eat and he got a woman."  Technically true, I guess except I told them she got a mate.

Last thing- I finished the fry phrase cards for The Dot. We did that story last week. The Dot is one of my favorites. Next week is Mr. Bones- ugh. The kids are interested in it because it's about dinosaurs but in my opinion the story is dry and hard to teach. I wonder if there is another book about Barnum Bailey that's better. Is it just me or is the story really boring? 

I posted the cards for The Dot on TPT. I did all my own clipart except for the gold frame. Here's the link. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Dot-Fry-Phrases-Reading-Street-1178956

Happy Spring Break! 

Snow Day and My First Math Product!

I live in Alabama. We had an unexpected snow/ice storm Tuesday. I was lucky. I was able to get home thanks to my awesome vice principal. He drove me and another teacher. We picked up my baby girl on the way. She was the only one at daycare left so her teacher took her home. I was prepared to spend the night at school and Joy was going to stay with TyTy. They closed school at 11 but I had to stay with my kids. Parents couldn't get there. People were sliding all over the road. My husband tried to leave his job and nobody could get out of the parking lot. Then he told me how crazy it was and NOT to leave school. I stuck around until 330. Then my vice principal said he would drive me home. So I was able to get my baby girl but my husband had to spend the night at work. Tons of people were stuck on the interstate. 3 friends of mine were driving back from Selma and they had to spend the night in their car. It was CRAZY! 

Someone put this up. Walking Dead/ Birmingham Alabama Can You Tell the Difference? 

This one took me a minute. Oh yeah, it's the one with the snow! 

      Anyway being stuck at home has given me a chance to finish my first math product on TPT! I started working on this months ago and kept putting off finishing it. But finally done! Woo hoo! I made fairy tale mini flashcards. I've made others that I didn't sell because they were Batman/Spiderman and I figured they were probably copyrighted. But my kids really like those, so I decided to make cards for fairy tales.

                                    Here is a link.
 Fairytale Flashcards- mini flashcards for independent practice

          I also hit 100 followers on TPT this week! Gotta start somewhere, right? I love comments so if anyone out there is reading this and wants a free copy of the flashcards, just leave a comment below! I will send one to the first person who comments. I am trying to do one giveaway every time I post something new on TPT. Sometimes I forget.

By the way, I have insomnia tonight. I woke up at 4am and cannot go back to sleep. Why? Why? 

Unit 3 Craftivities Part 1 Finished

I just (like 5 seconds ago) uploaded my craftivities for Unit 3, Pt 1. These crafts cover An Egg is An Egg, Ruby in Her Own Time, and Jan's New Home. It took me forever to finish them. I've been busy, busy, busy. Here is the link if you'd like to check it out.

Well, I can't find the link. It must not be up there yet.

Anyway, I will give one away to the first person who leaves a comment. Just leave your email address.

Happy New Year!

It's up now. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Unit-3-Craftivities-Part-1-1040149