Classroom

I have been slowly been working on my classroom, then the will to do it came and here is a peek.....

Yes, one is higher than the other, my coworkers and I were worn out.....(that will fixed soon)I will be back soon with more pictures. I have parents that can use power tools (Spackle is my friend) so projects are coming in to life! Be back soon!

Monday Made It .....Sept 3rd Edition Freebie

Join in Here

Just a quick share for you.......

I made these for my coworkers. Print out on cardstock & laminate. Then use clothespin to show where you are. Below art is empty, so that once laminated you could write on with dry erase .....for those extras I may have forgotten.



If you download please please leave a comment, as I wondering if there is anyone out there :) Will be back soon.....as soon as I stop treading water.....

InLinkz.com

Week In The Life | Ali Edwards

This is school related I promise! Every year I document a week in my life with Ali Edwards. When she host the week during school, I always do one to document a school day. Here are some of mine from year's past.(Excuse the clutter shown, I was documenting the cramped spaces, can't wait for this year's, and even next year's as I have so many things planned ....would have done this school year but with mom's health got pushed way side)

It is a very fun way to document your life (which most of us live at school LOL)

 Next week is this year's week, let me know if you plan on joining in, have questions etc. Click on the link under the picture below for more info from Ali's Site.

Week In The Life | Ali Edwards

Dr. Seuss is on the loose

I love love this week, as it is devoted to reading......Plus for whole entire week my love of Dr. Seuss comes out!

Prior to finding teacher blogs I thought we rocked the week, but NOW...between them and pinterest I have  a couple of pictures to share (I never remember my camera, so forgive the pictures)
Our building as I have said in the past used to be a HS (where my mom went) JH (my sisters and I went to K-6th here) and now Prek-3rd, this was the old trophy case. The gal I work with changes it with different themes over the school year. I added the banner. I had Dr. Seuss Scrap paper I was saving hoarding. So I used my new cameo to make it.

Linda Lou Who (her official Dr. Seuss name) my coworker, stalked Kohl's so we could get all the characters a few years back. I was ecstatic when the Lorax AND Horton came out together. (My top 2 favorites IF I was forced to pick) I love love the quote from the Lorax  "Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not."  So I found THIS idea for Truffula trees! She used directions from Martha Stewart, but I am a very visual person, so I searched for more detailed how to's on the pom pom's and found these! So here is what I did on Sunday at work.

Now after 3 Major basement floods wouldn't you know the one thing I needed (the old tree section from my childhood) is MIA....So will have to work on that for next year....Love these ideas that work out so easily and fun to do. There you have some ideas if you need them.

 Here is my All Things Seuss pinterest board if you need some last minute ideas.

 I am prewriting this Sunday night, as our Family Reading Night is Monday so my day starts at work at 7:10 am and I don't get home for good (got to come and let dog out in between) until usually about 8 pm...exhausted....so I will share some new ideas from that soon! (I hope) Thanks for taking time to let me share with you!

A few Classroom pics

Along with school, life has been so crazy busy I am finally getting around to the projects for the classroom.

First this is something I did at the beginning of the year, as you know Labby is my "mascot" so I have a few
dog themed items in my room.

These are under my whiteboard with these in them.

Then on top of my cabinets

Various Dogs and Dog "themed" books

Now for the whiteboard, I was constantly writing the schedule up on the board so I had some magnetic picture frames (4x6) used some thistle girl, LD, graphics and viola

Here's a little better close up of what is in each frame

The magnets at the top are from Vistaprint

Now the project that has dual purpose .....One to decorate and 2 for the kids to use!
I came across Deanna Jump's Guided Reading 101: Printables, Strategies and Word Work here I fell in love! Then also I loved Brenda Frady's Beanie Baby Comprehension Posters here. So I combined the strategies ....but then came the search for all of the beanie babies, and how to get them on the wall! A trip to Walmart, had me looking for Command Clips but @ 4.50 a piece ....then I turned down the storage aisle and my wheels started turning. Those drawer dividers that are 3/$1.47 kinda looked like cages.....Here's what they looked like ......

 Add black & silver paint, a little suitcase lock, and you have cages for the beanie babies!

Here are what they look like up (forgive the slanting and tilting my room averages around 80 degrees so I battle keeping things on the wall, the command hooks stay for the most part but tape is another story)

There you have some of what I have been working on, of course we have been warned Massive budget cuts are coming, so I will probably will get this finally the way I like it, and either have to move out or not have a job.....OY.....Thanks for stopping by.....Let me know what you think!

Gentle reminders....

I have been feeling really in the dumps about how my room is compared to others (see classroom label) I admit I was jealous. Don't get me wrong, I love my job, just not the 100+yr old  building sometimes. But as I tell my students jealousy can come back and bite you. I was catching up on the blogs and Mrs. Berg posted her's. I am going to zip it from now on. Take a look at what she has to deal with. Sometimes it takes a gentle reminder for us to get things in check. (Thanks Mrs. Berg for reminding me to be grateful!)

First Grade School Box

Classroom in progress

Yesterday had to go in and get another batch of summer reading material ready to send out. As luck would have it, they were working on my room. The paneling is gone, the cabinets back up (without the big gap) and freshly painted ! Today they are waxing, so while I had the chance I measured the inside of my cabinets, and shelving....and of course took some pictures...They are putting it back together Friday.
So any ideas...LOL...Lovely wires huh? We were talking and noted, I fought those by the flag the entire year, and the old tech guy said they were mandatory ....Noted that were connected to NOTHING...let new guy know...I have to keep shades pulled, a) east light hot enough with 22 computers, b) glare on screens! Now Where is Debbie Diller when I need her? If you want to see what was like last year, click here !

Some pictures of my room

So I can remember where to put it all. Yet again this summer, my room is being worked on! My building is very old(My mother went to school there LOL) and one of my walls is getting replastered (thank you the white stuff on everything was getting bad) So everything is currently sitting in my garage ....This is only my second year in this room, it has been the home ec room, special ed room (when I started it was converted to this and I was assigned to the room) then it was a speech room...Last year (09/10) it was a tight fit as they still had the lower cabinets in ..they got taken out last summer and slowly I am decorating it.....

For a back history, in March 2010, I went to IL Reading Convention and one of the sessions talked about Reading dogs. Well  they mention they sell life sized stuffed animals for just this purpose....Last Summer, I started my search for a "mascot" for my room and came across these Storytime Dogs and I was hooked. I have a Black lab at home so the I ordered one....

Meet Labby 

Here is the rest of my room 

 

Saw this in someone else's lab and had to have it, they lost the 

first one, so I ended up paying $50 for it:) Kids LOVE it!

 

I didn't know until I uploaded this, but the letters on the board

are from when I did the scrabble tile lesson :) Love the 

poster above, had it made for coworker and I ....

Stay out of the doghouse by following the rules
you will start to see the posters from Discover Intensive Phonics
(shown here below board) the teachers do the lessons in class then
they bring students down for the computer time on it. Great Program!

Why yes that is a washer and Dryer in my room (no

where else to put it)

Ignore the very messy desk! Yes those are mop heads

in chair...it was a rare day, they usually do them before and after school.

 

A close up of the curtain fabric (thanks to facebook, friends found it for me

then my aunt picked it up for me :) Note the Dog ate my homework :)

See those blue bins, those are all the Reading A to Z books 

We use them for Summer Reading and Take Home books. 

The copier is right outside my door, so it is easier just to leave them .

There you have it. Now you see the cabinets and shelving (by washer and Dryer) that is my storage for the room. Please feel free to pretend this was your room what would you do? The wall with the paneling is the one that is going to be done this summer, so if all goes well I will still have my cabinets, and more wall space.

Any and all ideas for decorations, organization would be much appreciated! Thanks