Lions, Verbs, and Manners - Oh My!

Seriously.  This book has ALL of that!

And the best part is the kids LOVED it!

They were glued to each page, begging me to share the next one!  And the colors/illustrations are amazing!

In this text, the kids will learn about:

* vivid verbs (with all the jungle animals)

* manners (how to deal with bullies

After reading the text, I asked my kids to write a few verbs in their journals.  Then with a partner, they came up with vivid verbs to add more pizazz to their stories.  For example, instead of "run" they used "dashed" or "sprinted."

This book did a fabulous job setting the perfect mood for thinking, collaborating, and lots of great conversation!

Personalized Apple Sign GIVEAWAY!

With the back to school decorating in full swing, don't forget about yourself!  How about your very own personalized apple sign to hang on your door?

What a great way to greet children and their families!

My mom made this one for my classroom!  I've gotten so many compliments on it.  I must admit - it's pretty stinkin' cute (even if my mom made it)!

And she would like to personalize one for one of YOU!!!  Simply enter below and I'll choose a winner on Monday!  I want to give everyone a chance to enter in case you're going out of town on a Labor Day trip.  :)

***NOTE:  Do not post a comment twice (or more).  I approve all comments due to spam.  I will approve ALL comments as long as they're not duplicates.  They will show up after I approve them.***

a Rafflecopter giveaway

GOOD LUCK!!!

Pop for Blends WINNER!!!

Hi, friends.  Sorry, but this post has to be short and sweet.  I've been going nonstop since 5:30 this morning with school, meetings, and Math Endorsement class.  I'm BEAT!

The winner of the Pop for Blends game is...............

Congrats, Tracey!!!

And thanks to all who entered!!!

I will contact Learning Resources and you'll be getting your game very soon!!!

Motivation Monday: Calendar Math and a FREEBIE!

Have you even gotten so frustrated with something because it isn't working for you and you just can't find exactly what you're looking for???

Well, that was me this weekend.  I have been fed up with Calendar Math.  I love it (especially when I taught 1st), but never really figured out how to "upgrade" it for my 3rd graders.  

Not anymore!!!  I was so frustrated that I motivated myself to create my own.  I've created a Calendar Math set that I know my 3rd graders will truly enjoy!  There are enough components to provide a great spiral review as well as keep them engaged!

Here it is!

And I've created a recording sheet to go with it!  You can snag it for free by clicking on the picture below!

I hope you and your students enjoy a meaningful, engaging Calendar Math! 

Classroom Resources from Frosted Flakes?!

That's right!  I'm chowing down on my bowl of Frosted Flakes this morning and this is what I see:

How sweet is this?!  They're color photos of different USA Olympic athletes!  It mentions their name, their sport, and a fact about them.  But wait (I feel like one of those infomercials!), it gets better!  We'll double your order if you call in the next 10 minutes!!!  

Ok, I'm totally kidding and got a little carried away.  :)  Seriously, on the inside of the cereal box (the back of the cards) it gives the "How I Got Started" story from each athlete.  I'm going to cut them out and laminate them.  I can't wait to take these to school and share them with my students!  I may even turn this into one of my writing centers and have them do more research on each athlete.  And it was all for less than $4.00!

Are there any other places where you've seen Olympics activities you could bring into the classroom?  I'd be down with buying more cereal (or whatever) to snag more awesome tidbits like these cards!

"Pop for Blends" Giveaway and a FREEBIE For All!

Here is it guys - a super cute, fun, and engaging activity for your students to use during Reading/Literacy centers!

It's called Pop for Blends! and it's from Learning Resources.  

Here are the rules:

1.  Choose a game piece (adorable little popcorn pieces!)

2.  Spin the spinner

3.  The number you land on represents how many words you must come up with for that blend.

4.  Say the correct amount - you keep the piece!  Say the incorrect amount, you have to put your piece back.  

5.  Beware!!!  If you choose a POP! piece, you must give back ALL of your popcorn pieces and start over!  

Winner - the person with the most popcorn pieces at the end!

There are over 25 different blends included in the game.  And there are multiple ways to play!  This game is a fabulous way to keep the kids engaged in a meaningful activity, as well as teaching them teamwork and cooperation!  It's a win-win situation!

If you would like a chance to have your own Pop for Blends! game, enter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The winner will be chosen August 29th!

And don't forget to snag your blends freebie!

It's a 17-page freebie that includes sorting blends and using them correctly in sentences.  It's a great supplement to the game!  And it's all yours!  Just click the picture to download it from my TpT store.  :)

GOOD LUCK AND ENJOY!!!

R&R Friday (and Giveaway Details!)

Oh, boy.  What a week.  But at least it's Friday!  I'm relaxing with the hubby and dog, watching Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy.  :)  We all need that wind down time and that's how I do it.  

I wanted to give you guys a heads-up on a quick giveaway I'm going to have.  I'm giving away this fun little game from Learning Resources.  

It's called Pop for Blends!  I first got it over the summer and played it with the hubby.  We were like two of my 3rd graders, having a blast!  I'm using it as one of my Reading centers this upcoming week.  I know my kids will LOVE it!  And to sweeten the deal, I'm making a freebie to go along with it.  So no matter who the final giveaway winner is, everyone walks away with something to use in their classroom!!!

Check back tomorrow for more details!

New GA Habitats Pack! (and a FREEBIE!)

Happy Wednesday, y'all!  It feels like it should be Friday already!

Anywho...I'm getting ready to start my GA Habitats unit with my kids and decided to make some activities and assessments to supplement our county's materials.  It includes:

- vocabulary activities

- vocabulary assessments

- a booklet to complete for each habitat

- answer keys for each assessment  :)

Click the picture if you're interested in purchasing it.

And everyone can snag this freebie to go along with it!

Enjoy!

Back to School Expo! (And Discounted Products!)

Have you signed up for the Back to School Expo?!

You should!  There are several great presenters waiting to share fabulous ideas and tips with you!

Click the picture below to sign up!

And on top of that, I'm participating in the vendor hall where three of my most popular products will be offered at a discounted price!  Others will be hosting vendor booths as well!  You can't beat that!

Feel free to stop by and see me!

Hope everyone is ready for school to start
(or is enjoying so far if you've already started)!

Motivation Monday: Teasing Troubles?

Happy Monday, friends!  It's a super busy one for me, so I thought I'd squeeze in a little blog time.  

A colleague shared an amazing book with me today called Simon's Hook!

I had never heard of it until she used one of the book's strategies on the playground.

One of her little girls was called a name by a classmate.  There are many ways to deal with teasing and this book focuses on five of them.  I don't want to spoil it and tell you all of them, but the one thing Mary Ann mentioned was "the hook."  You could read this to the kids, then have them write about possible scenarios and solutions (using the strategies from the book)!

Not only are these strategies great for the kids, but they're great for adults too.  Just because we're "old" doesn't mean we don't deal with some of these same issues.  

Hopefully this book can motivate you and your students to test out new strategies for dealing with teasing.  It's cool to hear the other kids remind each other.  :)  It works!

Friday Funnies!!! (well, not at the time...)

It's Friday.  I can TOTALLY tell.  The kids are antsy, teachers are tired, and the behavior is out of the norm.

But I must share THE craziest thing to happen during my 9 years of teaching.  Get ready.  This is good.  :)

While walking around and monitoring during lunch, a pack of silverware flies across the table and falls at my feet.  I look up to figure out where it came from.  Before I can begin my "investigation," the little guy sitting directly beside me picks up his milk carton.  In true Real Housewives fashion, he splashes some of it in the face of another little guy sitting across the table.  As I am in my "Holy cow!  This is actually happening!" moment of shock, he proceeds to sling the milk carton, emptying the rest of the milk all over the little guy.  :(

As if that wasn't enough, we had the 2nd fire drill (both on Fridays) while we were in the media center for our weekly lesson/checkout time.  Most of the kids did well, but two just lost it.  Something clicked.  We managed to get back insisde in time to go to Specials (thank goodness). 

On top of all this, I'm flying out to Chicago for the weekend for my sister-in-law's 30th birthday.  I really don't know how I'm going to make it, but I'm sure I will.  I hope all of you are able to relax this weekend and wind down from the week.  It is SO necessary.

So I must know...what the craziest thing you've ever witnessed/experienced at school???  Y'all know these kids are endless, unpredictable entertainment!!!

Techie Tuesday: Class Blogs/Sites

Hey friends!  I have a huge tech question to ask.

Do you guys have a class blog/site?  If so, who do you use?

I used to have a class blog, but deleted it because it wasn't getting viewed by my parents and kids.  This year, our admin has asked that each teacher have a classroom blog/site.  It isn't required, but recommended.  

Here's a shot of the Weebly site I've started:

I just started it about 20 minutes ago, so it's NOWHERE near finished!

Please help me out and give me some advice!  I like that Weebly has security features, but wondered what everyone else was using?!  Thanks in advance!

Need Common Core Resources?!

Myself and a few other bloggers have created CCSS Assessment Packs to help ease the transition into Common Core!

Jenaya from Lesson Plan Diva is offering sets for 1st grade!

   

Denise from Sunny Days in Second Grade is offering sets for 2nd grade!

   

I am offering sets for 3rd grade!

     

Mandy from Cooperative Learning 365 is offering the Math set for 4th grade!

Charity from The Organized Classroom Blog has also created two CCSS sites to help you find lessons for each standard!

     

Feel free to pin and spread the word about these resources!  Most of our states have adopted the CCSS and we're all in need of resources/assessments.  I truly hope these resources make your job EASIER!  It's too tough to try and do this alone!

Back to School Sale!!!

Whether you're back to school already or not, we all love a great sale!  

And I'm throwing a sale in my store!
And guess what, you don't have to leave my blog! 

I've opened a new store with one-stop shopping!
Everything will be 20% off from August 11-15th!
Use this code at checkout:  B2SCHOOL to get the discount!

Good luck with starting back to school and have fun shopping 'til you drop!

And on another note - I FINALLY finished the 3rd grade CCSS assessment pack for Math!  Click the picture to check it out!

I'm still working on the Reading one...it's a lot harder trying to make Reading assessments for the upper grades!  But stay tuned!  Fingers crossed to be done by Sunday!

August Newsletter (with your exclusive FREEBIE!)

Hey, friends!  It's the first week of school for me and I can totally feel it!  I'm pooped and feel like I'm playing catch up here on the blog!  

I sent out my August newsletter for those of you who are signed up!  If you're not, you might want to.  :)  There's an exclusive freebie just for you guys and a reminder about several freebies coming your way Saturday!

If you need to sign up, just click the button below and follow the simple directions!

Enjoy!

Back to School Cyber Search!

Hey there, blog buddies!  I have a very special announcement!  :)

I'm joining 11 other bloggers in a Back to School Cyber Search!!!

You'll get 12 free products from 12 different bloggers!!!

I'll be giving away the following product FOR FREE!

This pack is normally $5.00, but you'll be able to snag it for free Saturday, August 11th!!!  This pack could help you assess your students as they come back to school.  You could use this information to group them into Guided Math groups and know exactly how you should plan your instruction!

Sweet Notes :)

Last week during preplanning, I sent out a simple little poem to my kids.  

Within the first 10 minutes of school yesterday, I get the following note/drawing:

And if you can't read the bottom right....he's thanking me with a note for sending him a sweet note.  Melt my heart, why don't you!!!

For those of you who have started back already, I hope all is going well!

For those of you who haven't started back, enjoy every second of it!  :)

BlogHer - NYC 2012!!!

Saying I had a blast in NYC for BlogHer would be a huge understatement!  I got the chance to meet up with some of my best blogging buddies and her some awesome presentations!

Jenaya (Lesson Plan Diva) and I took the quickest flight available after work Friday and high-tailed it to NYC!  After quite the traveling adventure, we made it to the Hilton.  

Saturday morning we got up bright and early, had breakfast, and joined Charity (The Organized Classroom Blog) and Angela (The Cornerstone) for the morning session.  We joined up with Tamara (Teaching with TLC), Mor (A Teacher's Treasure), Crystal (Kreative in Kinder), and Mel D. (Seusstastic Classroom Inspirations) for a yummy lunch and an interview with Katie Couric!!!

We also browsed around the expo where several sponsors had booths set up.  Look who we met!!!

And check out this booth from Duck Tape!  They had this fishbowl, two mannequins, and even a purse made out of Duck Tape!  I never knew they sold Duck Tape in sheets!!!  AMAZING!

This company, Sifteo, had these super cool letter and number tiles!  I want some SO bad!!!

Jenaya and I went out for a little bit of shopping and then back at the hotel later for an amazing chat with all the ladies!  We went out for dinner at this awesome little Irish pub called Pig-n-Whistle.  YUMMY!  

We came back to the hotel to attend a BlogHer party sponsored by McDonald's!  Yes, McDonald's!!!  We created silly hats, ate cheeseburgers, and danced the night away!

BlogHer will be in Chicago next year!  I'm planning on going and hope to see YOU there!

Computer Woes... :(

Alright, y'all.  It's the week before school starts and I'm running around like a mad woman trying to set up my room and get my first week's plans done.

On top of that, I'm flying to NY Friday to go to BlogHer!  I'll be meeting several awesome bloggers up there.  I promise to share pics as soon as I get back!

The worst part....my Mac is acting up on me.  The mouse won't click on things.  It gradually just faded away.  :(  Since I'm SO dang busy, I don't have time to take it to the Apple store before NY or the first day of school Monday.  It will have to be sometime next week. 

So the August newsletter will be postponed.  :(  I'll hopefully get it out by the end of next week.

But here's a glimpse of my welcome sign I made for my new classroom theme!

I'm making little cards with the students' names with little footballs on them.  I'll share a pic when I'm finished!  We have "Meet The Teacher" Day tomorrow and I'm rushing to get everything finished!  AHHH!

I hope to have the Mac up and running soon.  I may have to break down and buy a mouse, but I'll still have to take the Mac in to get it fixed.  :(