A tip on Tuesday!

Hey all! Are you having a good week? I know most of us are back to work now with just the small few that go back after Labor Day! I WISH! 

Things have been super busy over here! I wanted to share a few things with you that I have been finding useful these past 4 weeks of school! 

1. Table Numbers

Yes, it seems silly and many of you use table numbers, table names, or colors, or something! I have always assigned groups to a number but never really did anything with it. This year I do quite a few things with my table numbers! I only have 4 groups of desks so tables 1-4. Each table has a job for the week. It keeps the 6, 5 or 4 kids sitting at that table working together to complete their daily job!

But I feature one table each day on the board. This featured table gets to do a few things:

1.first to pack up at the end of the day

 2. be the first to leave at the end of the day

3. it is their day to book shop

4.They have the recess tags to play on the playground for the day. 

5. They get to help with the class rules each morning

I think I am leaving something out...But anyways, I think having a featured table of the day has been so helpful.

Homework Club

Thanks to Christina from Bunting, Books, and Bainbridge and her FANTASTIC Homework Club unit, my kids are really turning in their homework...or so it seems

Some kids are out:( They used their oops pass, which I created and you can get HERE for free at my TpT shop

Students place their homework in their pocket. It has been SO EASY to just see who has their homework and who doesn't!

If they don't have their homework, I collect their oops pass and write the date, their name, and what assignment they forgot in a small binder! 
Of course I had to make a cute cover:)

 This way, I have a record of who didn't turn in their homework! Today, I had a kid make up such a lie! She said she couldn't do her homework because her brother had a big accident. He fell off his bike, hit is head, and had to go to the emergency room! 

I said, "Oh my gosh, is he ok? I better call mom and make sure that he is ok!" She got such a "oh no, I lied" look on her face. I asked her what mom would say, and then she told me she lied! Needless to say, I already had her oops pass and she was spending recess doing her homework! HAHA!

I hope these two tips have helped you out in some way! Have a great week!!!

Welcome to my home away from home!

Happy Saturday! I am here to share my classroom here in Hawaii! I am pretty happy with the way it turned out. This classroom is very different compared to what I am used to. So I really had to plan and figure out how to make things work! 

Writing area

 

My classroom supplies area

Math area

Above is my math workshop board.  I will have more on my math workshop once it gets started.

Under the fabric you will find all my math games and manipulatives. My bookshelves are all rusted and old, so I HAD to cover them! On top are my math center baskets!

Reading Area

 I am LOVING all the OHANA pictures that are coming it. My bookshelf is almost full now!

My library that still needs some work:( Under the fabric area all the old basals I wont be using! Had to hide them!

Student Area

In this area I have their Homework Club, Super Improvers Wall, Lunch count, and their baskets for their binders!

Front of the room

This is where I hold my morning meetings, guided reading (since I dont have a kidney table), and afternoon meetings. 

My desk is behind this

Views

 From the back of the room

From the front of the room

So that is it:) I hope you liked my classroom tour. If you have any questions about anything in my room, please ask! 

I am so excited to be a part of the TpT sale starting tomorrow!!!

I can't wait to get my shop on! 

I have spent some time today editing some items of mine and marking down prices! 

And today is the LAST day of my 50% off at my TN shop! 

Enjoy your weekend!

Reading Foldable Freebie:)

Hey all! I am so sorry, but I just can't keep up lately:( We are in week 2 and I am T.I.R.E.D!!! My class this year is taking some work(they are super sweet but lack listening skills and knowing when to stop talking), and having zero planning is tough:( Hopefully soon things will start getting better! 

I was able to take some time out of my very busy schedule last Friday night! I got to hang out with some fabulous ladies!

It was so fun to hang out with Courtney from Teaching in Paradise, Angelia from Extra Special Teaching, and Sara from Smiling in Second Grade. Sara was in Hawaii with her husband and it was nice to have her join us other Hawaii Bloggers! I also think my husband and Angelia's husband are going to be serious BFF's...like, for real!

Tomorrow my kids will be working on some answering questions to demonstrate understanding of text. I made a quick foldable to place in their reading notebooks!

If you would like a copy, just click HERE!

AND don't forget...my Teacher's Notebook shop is 50% off NOW until Saturday!

I will be back soon with my classroom pictures! I can't wait to show them to you! Have a great Wednesday!

What do we have to do again????

My new class, bless their hearts, doesn't listen! At all:( I have to repeat directions over and over, again and again! Sometimes it's like 6 or 7 times! Yes, I know...crazy!!! Most of the time it's because they are talking...nonstop! What has started to help are the tokens I am giving out for the Super Improver Wall:)

Another thing I tried really quickly today was typing up step by step directions on a PowerPoint and projecting it. 

I don't think the wording is right on the title, but I did this really quick...and guess what...it cut back on the asking questions by 90%...I swear;) I think I will be doing this for awhile!

 

On another note, I will be taking class pics of my room to share soon! I am getting other things unpacked and put where I want them! I also am unpacking our room at the house...it's a mess. I just want to get settled so I can start making and creating! 

I am SO glad it is Friday tomorrow! I am meeting up with 2 other Hawaii Bloggers for some evening fun! I can't wait! Oh, and our hubbies are coming too;)

The winner of ANYTHING from my store is...

CRYSTAL from Teaching Little Miracles

Please send me an email of what you would like!

Have you bought your bundle yet??? Only a few more days to snag this bad larry up!!!

  

I am running out of ink with all the printing I have been doing:)

Well, I am off to bed! I hope you all have an awesome Friday!

2 and 5:)

Today was day 2 for me and I am just TIRED! My kids are super sweet, but extremely talkative. One thing I have to remember is they are just babies, 6 and 7 year olds! It took us 2 hours just to label 4 comp books and 4 folders. We put together our binders today and that took an hour and a half! I have yet to do any teaching:(

But I feel setting up the room, rules and expectations with them first is so important! I started with WBT today. Used Class/Yes, Teach/OK, and the scoreboard. We talked about the SIW and will start that tomorrow! 

I promise to be back with classroom pictures and such very soon! I just haven't had a second. This no planning time is not fun:( Oh well! Make the best out of it...right?

You only have 5 days left to grab up this super awesome bundle!

Just 5 more days to get your School Year Bundle!!! I am IN LOVE with mine! One of the units is a 400 page fact fluency for addition and subtraction! This is just PERFECT for my new 2nd grade kiddos!!

Remember to sign up to get the $30 bundle for $25! AND I am going to do something special for you:) 

If you PIN this link, leave a comment with the link for me to see and I will select a winner to pick something from my store! Winner will be picked tomorrow!

Have a great night!

 

really....tomorrow already?

I can't believe it...tomorrow is my first day with my kiddos! I am heading into school this morning, well...just as soon as my husband wakes up;)

We have to bring the rest of my items up to my classroom. I have to finish the room, make copies and then come home to plan out my first week...who am I kidding...plan for tomorrow! HAHA!

This is SO unlike me. I am always planned, organized like 2 weeks before. Next year will be better...right??? 

Anyways, I can't wait to share all my photos with you! 

Until then...have you grabbed your Educents School Year Bundle yet???

If you haven't...this is a MUST HAVE for any 2-3 grade teacher! 24 awesome units for $30. 

One of the fantastic units included in this bundle is from Angela over at Hippo Hooray for Second Grade

This main idea seriously rocks guys! Main idea is a hard concept for soooooo many kids and this just is perfect! 

Here is the blurb on her awesome unit!

"This scaffold unit will take your students step by step through the processes of identifying the interesting details versus the important information, identifying key details {who, what, where, when, why, how}, determining main idea in pictures and in text, and determining the details that support the main idea. (129 pages)$7 value"

What are you waiting for??? Grab it today!

 

Educents School year Bundle-Fractions Mega Pack!

I am so happy to be a part of this huge product!

The different activities in this bundle are from math, word work, reading, games, writing, and SO much more! 

Today I am going to showcase my item that is included in this bundle!

My Fractions Mega Pack!

This is a 124 mega unit on Fractions!
 
Activities and materials include
Over 15 posters to place around the room
I can statements to each lesson
Cut and match activity
Task cards for almost every lesson
I have, who has game
Fraction Smores matching game
10 word problem cards
Fraction name activity
Fraction word work activity
Simplest form sorting activity
 
Topics include:
Dividing regions into equal parts
Fractions and regions
Fractions and sets
Unit fractions
Benchmark fractions
Comparing fractions
Equivalent fractions
Whole numbers and fractions
Fractions on the number line
Fraction word problems

I felt my kids loved fractions as much as I did after they were done with this unit! And they really understood fractions too! 

You can grab the bundle HERE or click on the picture above!

I can't wait to talk about some more fantastic items tomorrow! Have a great Saturday!

Friday Freebie:)

Hey everyone!  It's Holly from Fourth Grade Flipper!  

Today I am bringing you Tonya's Friday Freebie!  

It seems like I signed up for this chance ages ago.  Tonya is one of the first blogs I started following and has the best ideas!  See the form here to sign up to be featured for her Friday Freebie.

I just made this freebie on Wednesday after I was thinking about how I plan on implementing CAFE this year in my fourth grade classroom.  Last year I implemented Daily 5 for the first time and knew I would revisit CAFE the following year if I loved Daily 5.  

Let's just say, I LOVED it (I think the students did too:).

Of course, I need wanted a cute bulletin board to display the CAFE strategies and have been searching for the perfect colors that will go with my owl theme.  Being a little OCD, I finally decided to just make my own CAFE letters and header to match the Owl Chevron Book Bin Labels I recently created.  

It was perfect timing since I can now offer you these CAFE letters as a freebie today!

If you love the owl theme, I hope you can use this freebie in your classroom!  I think some educators  underestimate how a catching header or theme can transform their classroom and motivate students. Sure, it "looks cute" but I know my upper elementary students really do appreciate it!  

How do I know?  

• Students choose the activity at a center that looks appealing and colorful.
• Students ask about a new bulletin board the moment they walk in the room.
• Students give me little gifts that go with my classroom theme.
• Students reference the "cute display" when discussing a topic or strategy.

Yep, you know what I'm talking about! :)  

Embrace the cuteness and know that your hard work in making your classroom "just right" makes a difference!  It not only motivates your students and adds to the learning environment, but the work you put into making the space "just right" shows that YOU care!