Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Back to school and a tour...

Ohmiword!! I cannot believe it has been over 2 weeks since my last post!! It's also been about that long since my last blog stalking session! I'm not quite sure how I managed to survive! The end of the summer came quickly and let's just say I wasn't giving it up without a fight! There were a few last minute trips with friends and family. There were a few shopping sprees. Not to mention a few days pool side. But at last, it's back to the grind.

I officially returned last week, but didn't get to see my kiddos until Monday. These past few days have been a blur of catching up, reviewing, assessing and practicing! We've been so busy, I haven't had much time to take pictures of all the action. So, you'll have to make due with a little glimpse into my little classroom...


Welcome to my home away from home. This is a view of my desk with my claendar wall and a few bulleton boards behind it. Like I've said before, my room is super teeny and I have to share it with their foreign language teacher. I'm so jealous of all of you out there with writing tables, word walls, meeting areas...


Here is my beautiful reading corner. You can see many of my Made it Monday projects here! The kids think the love sack (AKA the big red pillow) is the coolest thing inthe whole world!


The cubbies (without name tags). I snuck these pictures in before I arranged the desks. This is where the kidlets store their backpack during the day.


Another view of my bulletin boards. To the left is my color chart and rules. I store my centers and daily supplies on the small shelves underneath. The black bin is for our OWL books and the blue (the only thing I didn't spray paint this summer, hehe) holds our journals, some manipulatives, and crayons. And try as I did, I was not able to resist turning my lanterns into owls.  He's got his back to you, but they are used for center work. Yup, the kids go to whatever numbered owl I say and sit on the floor. Gasp! I know!


A few days later I was able to get my "Whooo" has a writer's eye? posters up. The kids are already referencing them as they write! Hallelujah!!


Ah, my closet! I am a NEAT FREAK! I spent some time at the end of last year rearranging everything. I'm still not happy with the top shelf. To be honest, I never am. The second shelf holds most of my misc supplies for art, measurement, counting, dressing up... The third shelf (now) is stocked full of kleenex and Clorox, two things I absolutely cannot live without!! The bottom shelf is where I store my centers. I have two bins, one for math and one for literacy. I keep the corresponding response sheets in 2 three-ring binders behind my desk. On the floor, I have my large bulletin board displays in a rolley (yes, it's a word) container.


This is what my closet looks like when the door is closed. I have a chart to track their math facts progress, some buckets (not pictured) to be filled, and a behavior sticker chart at the bottom. 

Now it's your turn to link up and show off your space!




Since I can't show pictures of my kids actually doing their activities, I thought I would just let you know what I'm using...


I have always and will always be an Anna Brantley fan. I have most of her centers! Right now, we're working through her Back to School math. During Language Arts, I'm concentrating on reviewing the alphabet, assessing and introducing some reading comprehension strategies.

Next week, we will be working on some of my centers!!




In my spare time (HA) I managed to transfer all of my gazillion files to a new laptop AND complete my common core "I can" statements for first, second and kinder. If you're interested, you cancheck them out at my TpT store.

On a final note, I'm super duper close to reaching 100 followers. I've got some great prizes lined up from some fabulous fellow bloggers. So, put the word out! Let's get this giveaway going!!

Hope your first week/second week/last week of summer is going well!

Best wishes,

Friday, August 10, 2012

Calling all shopaholics...

As I'm sure many of you already know, TpT and numerous teachers are having a HUGE Back to School Sale this weekend! 




I am so excited to stock up on so many goodies for this year! If you're going to be taking advantage of the savings, hop on over to my little store! I have plenty of NEW owl and pirate (yes, I said pirate) themed items, Back to School centers, plus some common core posters that are sure to come in handy! Make sure you enter code BTS12 at checkout to receive the additional 10% off!!






In celebration of this awesome event, I've linked up with Blog Hoppin. For those of you who REALLY love shopping, set aside some time NOW and check out all these wonderful store who are also participating in the sale!


Also, thank you so much to all of my new followers! I've almost hit 100 and have managed to round up some good freebies for my upcoming giveaway! Be on the look out!

That's all for now. Short, sweet, and to the point!

Best wishes,

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Giveaways, donations, and a sale... oh my!

T - 14 days!! I honestly cannot believe how fast this summer has gone by! Although I really have been enjoying this expensive creative summer, I'm definitely looking forward to getting back into the class! I miss the friendly faces, juvenile jokes, and brilliant breakthroughs! Plus, now that summer's almost over, it means TpT is having a SALE!! If you're anything like me, your wishlist is overflowing with purchases ready to be swipped up at a discounted price! I somehow managed to week my list down to 17 items. We'll see how many Hubbs will actually allow me to get away with. So mark your calendars for August 12 and 13!


I will be marking everything in my store 20% off! I know a lot of other teachers are doing the same, too. So put that Starbucks down and save your change for a few more days!

Here are some of the fabulous products you can find in my store...





















And announcing my newest creation...




It includes a poster for each standard, written in kid friendly language, and corresponding graphic. I made them with a simple border to they could be the perfect match to any classroom theme. I hope you like 'em!

Believe it or not, I didn't show you all of my products. So head on over to my TpT store and check 'em all out! There's even a few freebies you may want to get your hands on!

I know you think you're on picture and link overload now, but you're not!! Bare with me! My sweet bloggy friend Mrs. G. at Teach on a Limb reached 100 followers and is having a giveaway! My Owl and Polka Dot Calendar and Classroom Super Pack is one of the fabulous prizes up for grabs. So hurry on over and enter! You have until Friday.


And finally, speaking of 100 followers... I'm sooo close! And in true teacher blog tradition, I'm planning a giveaway! I'm looking for a few lovely ladies to generously donate some of their goodies and be a part of this historic event (LOL, I'm a big deal in my mind...  not really)! If you're interested in teaming up, please email me at rjohnson@agminassianschool.org.

Okay, I honestly can't think of anything else to include. Aren't you glad?!?

Best wishes,

Monday, August 6, 2012

Made (way too much of) It Monday...

Ohmigoodness! I have got to stop blog stalking and pinning! You all have WAAAYY too many good ideas! This is what I was able to accomplish this week...



The grossly popular seat crates. I tried to resist, but couldn't. I have such a tiny room that I always thought, "there's no space." I finally realized that these would be great in my reading corner. Just wait until I can get into my room and set it all up!!

The tattle monster was another great pinterest inspired project. Hopefully this will eliminate the mindless tattle telling that goes on day-to-day. There's a poster I'm going to print and laminate that goes with it, too.



Here's my no name board. I forgot to take the little pieces of paper out of the clip before I took this picture. Whoopsie!


Here's my writing process pencil. Again, this is one of those ideas I have seen over and over, but thought I didn't need it. Now that I've come to my sense, I'm excited to laminate this and post it with my writing process posters!

Last, but not least, this week I wrapped up my latest TpT product. May I present...






Aren't they just adorable?! The first 5 to say they are will get 'em for free!

As if that wasn't enough, I'm almost finished with my Common Core packet. Be on the look-out (you know I like giving things away)!!

I know it's late, but there's still time to link up and show up whatcha got!




Best wishes,