Monday Made It! Classroom Reveal!

Hello everyone!! This week I'm linking up once again with Fourth Grade Frolics for Monday Made It! And since I'm all finished with my classroom, I thought I would share my classroom reveal at the same time! All of my decor this year was made by me and I can't be more excited about how it all turned out!! Get ready, because this might be a lengthy post!!

First off, my outdoor bulletin board is all Minion-ized. Since I don't have a Cameo or anything, all of those minions and lettering were printed and hand-cut by yours truly.. I have a blister to prove it! I love the way it turned out and can't wait for the kiddoes to come in and see them!

Inside the classroom, I only have one bulletin board--but it runs the entire length of the room. That big thing gets split into all sorts of configurations, and it ended up looking like this!

Our daily schedule is on the far end, and the larger section is where I will post all of our learning objectives. The white sheets are just laminated posterboard. All of the headers and such were printed on cardstock and laminated with my handy at-home laminator.

This is where my students will chart the number of A.R. Points that they earn. Each time they meet a level, they will move their nametag down the wall. Each level earns a small prize until they get to 100 points--and that's when they get to pick the big prize! A free book from the book order!

Our math fact wall--The kids have buttons with their names on them that they will move to the different levels as they pass them. At the end of the year, if they pass them all, they get to have a Fun Day!

And our class rules take up a little space on this display.

Next up are two bulletin boards that we use daily for Flex Math and Guided Reading. I didn't necessarily MAKE these, but I did put them up!

To learn a bit more about how I run my math groups...click HERE.

 Almost done! Here are just a couple more things that I made for my classroom. LABELS! I love organized materials, so I label things for my kids and for myself to keep us in order. First up is my math carts. These carts store the things we need for math stations. Fact cards, our timed tests, and any manipulatives or sheets we need are in this cart. The kids will be responsible for getting their own things ready for the period and it all comes out of this cart.

And all of our folders needed minion labels too, so I made those as well! 

And I was finally able to hang up some of my TPT goodies, like these  Subway Art Synonym Posters that I got from The Brown Bag Teacher.

And that's about it... I also made some yellow curtains for my room as well, but I forgot to take a picture of them... I'm not very proud of those since I used my stapler to make them!! But you can't even tell because they hang at the top of about a 10 foot tall window.  I've got a couple more things in store, but right now I'm going to enjoy being home with my husband and my girls...because work starts again on Tuesday. Where did my summer go??

See you next week!

Click here to head back to Fourth Grade Frolics for more Monday Made Its!

Digital Storytelling in the Classroom = Building Better Writers

Hello everyone!  It may have been awhile but I wanted to pop in today to show you a fun app that my daughter and I have been playing with during the break..

I am an avid educational technology lover! If it can be used in a classroom, I'm the first to buy it! I use all sorts of techie gear in my room..IWB, document camera, iPods, an iPad and whatever else I can get my hands on!

I have an iPad app called Puppet Pals. It is a wonderful storytelling app in which students can use puppets to tell a story and record it to play back as a video. I think it would great for my ESOL students! Writing is a very difficult task for my kiddies. I have some students that are unable to write more than a paragraph. However, when asked to verbally tell a story, they really shine!

This app is SO much fun! In class, I hope to have students use the app to tell a story. Once their story is told, they can then go back and listen to and write their own story! It's almost like dictation! I'll bet thatMy kids  willbeg to use it during writers workshop. It really helps with generating ideas and keeping a story organized.

As a special treat, here are some stories created by my little one.  If you are looking for a great addition to your toolbox, look no further!

Aren't they fun? The app is free and comes with a few characters but the downloadable content is fantastic! I hope you find the app as fun as I do!

Best wishes,

And pop in to my TeachersPayTeachers store for even more!

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Teachesthirdingeorgia

Snap It Up Saturday! What a Week!

Good Morning everyone! I think it's safe to say that I have been neglecting my poor little blog over the past two weeks. We have had SO much going on that I haven't had time to blink, much less blog. I was trying to hop back on last week but then my mom went into the hospital and scared us all...BIG TIME! But with a lot of prayer and some fantastic doctors, we finally got to bring her home on Thursday. She's still weak but gradually returning back to her old self.

I don't know about anyone else, but my kids at school have been OFF THE CHAIN the past two weeks. I think there must be something in the water. This is by far the most rambunctious and talkative group I have ever had. There are times when I repeat directions four or five times before we actually all get started on a task. It's enough to make me want to pull out all my hair and sit down in the corner and cry. Needless to say, I'll be glad for a fresh start after Thanksgiving break. One Week to Go!!

This week I have a fun little freebie for you. I whipped up a little set of Borders/Frames to use on some task cards I was making and thought that I would share those with you. Just click on the image below to Snap Them Up! I hope you like them!

As always, thanks for stopping in and I hope you will continue to do so. If you haven't already, stop by my Facebook page as well. I do lots of flash freebies and also have a "Just for Fans" tab where you can find something new about every week or so. You can find my page here.

Have a great weekend!

Trick or Treat Blog Hop!!

Trick or treat! This is Lacey from The Fabulous Life of an Elementary Teacher, and I am taking over this blog today as my trick. Keep reading to get your treat!

Some of my blogging buddies at The Teaching Tribune have joined together for this Trick or Treat Blog Hop. You will find many more tricks and plenty of treats as you hop from door to door!

My treat for you is a brand new product that I just posted to my Teachers Pay Teachers store. I plan to use this rounding activity to help my students review before taking our benchmark test in the next couple of weeks. Your students will love playing this rounding matching game :) Click the picture below to grab this freebie!

Now it's time to go "next door" to discover the next trickster and collect another treat! Click on the picture below to take you there!

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a great time Trick or Treating with us!

Snap It Up Saturday! Saturday Morning Scramble

Yikes! What a week I've been having and I am so glad to say that this one is over! You would think it was a full moon again because my class seems to have forgotten all that stuff we did the first two weeks of school. You know, all those rules and procedures. Sheesh!

I think I have the cause pinned down though. You see, we got a new student on Monday, and let's just say this little guy is a trip! Anything he can do to get a laugh out of the class or a rise out of me, he's gonna do it. Some of his antics this week included tying himself to his chair with his shoelaces (not with the ends of the strings, but with the part down near the toe) I'm still not sure how that happened--I'm thinking he unlaced his entire shoe, tied it to his chair, and then relaced afterwards. And then the next day, he felt the need to glue his math assignment to his desk. Needless to say, it is entirely possible for one student to change the entire makeup of a classroom.

But, regardless of his antics, I'm going to love him and teach him anyway. We just have to get to the point where we see eye to eye and he knows my expectations, which are high.

I spent all of last night scrambling to get homework finished for my Gifted Endorsement class and haven't even started with lesson planning for the week. So I guess you could say I'm knee deep in the Saturday Morning Scramble! 

And that's where this week's Snap It Up Saturday Freebie comes in. I have a fun little font for all of you to used and it's called--you guessed it!--Saturday Morning Scramble! It is a fun little whimsy font that looks cute on all sorts of applications and its also Commercial Use Friendly...So yes, you can use it on TPT documents that you sell--as long as you shoot me a quick credit right back here to my blog. Just click on the image below to Snap It Up!!  I hope you enjoy it!

And that's it for today folks! I've got to jump right back into lesson planning and get that all wrapped up. Thank goodness for a fantastic team because we know where we're going and all it takes is a few clicks in my planbook and I'm all set for the week! Have a great weekend and enjoy the day off!

Best wishes!

Randi

World Gratitude Day! Blog Hop and Giveaway

September 21 is World Gratitude Day – a relatively unknown special day, but a great opportunity for us to have a quick chat to those that we teach and love – and tell them what we are grateful for! 

I am grateful for so many things – First and foremost, my family. I have an amazing daughter and a wonderful husband. I am grateful for our home and everything in it--even in its haphazardly organized state. I see my students every day coming from homes that have holes in the floors, no heating, and are infested with all sorts of things. It's just so sad. I am grateful for the joys that I have in life and thank God every day for them.

One of my joys in life is creating. I've always had a knack and a love for making my own classroom materials and I truly love sharing them through my blog and TeachersPayTeachers store. . Every time I blog, I always thank everyone for following and I really hope that everyone understands that I mean that from the bottom of my heart. I love what I do, and do what I love. So in honor of World Gratitude day, I have turned one of my most recent store additions into a flash freebie for you today.

Head to my TpT store to find my a great set of task cards FREE for today! Click the image below.

Then hop around to see some of my bloggy friends and find what surprise they have in store for you! At the end of the hop, please enter our rafflecopter to try to win a $50 TpT voucher!! 

Thank you for visiting! Click below to head over to my friend Cyndie at Chalk One Up for the Teacher and pick up another fantastic freebie!

Have a great weekend!

Randi

Snap It Up Saturday! Time to Slow Down!

Good Morning Folks!
I think that it has been the longest week EVER!! Long days at school + something after school EVERY day this week = one tuckered out teacher. Wanna see what I've been up to?

• Monday- Work all day, gymnastics until 6:00, homework
• Tuesday-Work all day, SST meeting, gifted endorsement class until 5:30, more homework
• Wednesday- Work all day, Faculty meeting, write sub plans, sick kid
• Thursday- Meeting all day, sick kid with my mom, PTO night until 7:00
• Friday- Work all day, homework and grading until 8:00, Blog until 10:00

Is it just me or do I need a little less on my plate? And did I mention I'm in the process of car shopping as well. I'm headed out bright and early in the morning to look some more. My research is done and I'm ready to test drive! So excited to drop the minivan! I'm thinking of something sporty...maybe a Mustang!

So this week, I'm bringing out something from the archives for Snap It Up Saturday! I know I missed last week but I hope this week will make up for it. I actually created this set as a custom set a long time ago for someone needing graphics to go along with the song Head,Shoulders,Knees and Toes. The little guys you see below have been making their appearance in the margins of my notebooks since I was in middle school. They're just fun little doodles that make me smile...You can grab those by clicking below.

I have been able to add a few new items and bundles to my TPT store in the past two weeks. They are things that I have needed for my own classroom lessons. My most recent additions are.linked below!

As always, thanks for stopping in. I hope to be able to blog more soon but with the cray-cray that is my life right now, I just don't have the extra time. I hope you will all stick with me and enjoy the freebies as they roll in. Have a great weekend! I'm off to do more homework..HURRAY!!

Snap It Up Saturday! Super Shape Sort and an Exciting Event!

Hey ya'll! It's me again. I made it through the first week of school and I'm just about to get my groove back! My ADD-ness doesn't like not having a structured day in place in the classroom and I have been uber-stressed! It's starting to fade but I have a feeling it will be back soon!...I have a lot on my plate. I'm a wife, mother, teacher, gymnastics chauffeur, TPT author, blogger, and now I'm enrolled in courses for my Gifted certification and am piloting our new teacher evaluation system at my school. Maybe I should go back for my six-year just to top off my leaning tower of sanity! Not really...I'm not a glutton for punishment.

Anyway, I thought I would stop in and share this week's Snap it Up Saturday with you and let you know about a MASSIVE event that is happening this weekend. Drumroll Please.......

Surprise! It's not a clipart collection! But I hope you'll enjoy it just the same. I just haven't had the time to draw like I did over the summer, so I thought I would share one of my math games that I created for my classroom. It's a fun little shape sorting game for grades 2-3, maybe even some upper level firsties as well! Click on the image below to download the file.

And on to a little more pressing news! This weekend, August 18th and 19th, there is a ginormous (yep...according to my daughter..that is a word) Back to School Sale event happening over on Teachers Pay Teachers! My entire store will be on sale for 20% off, and if you use the coupon code from TPT, you get an additional 8% off your purchase as well! If you've got a wishlist going like I do, now is a great time to stock up! Especially if you have some higher priced goodies in your cart. I know my credit card will be screaming at me on Sunday evening, but I can't wait! There are so many high quality teaching resources available on TPT that it's like being privy to a specialized publisher who creates things specifically for you. Make sure you stop in during the big event and snatch up some back to school awesomeness! 

If you're on the hunt for some fun back to school activities, make sure you swing by my store. I have a whole category of BTS materials and they'll all be available at a fantastic discount! And third grade teachers, there are definitely some deals for you! Click below to visit my store.

Have a great weekend and thank you for visiting!

Snap It Up Saturday! Fun Font Surprise

Howdy! My little adventure to the Walmart yesterday send a little inspiration coursing through my veins... All that pretty back to school stuff, bright colors, and of course the sights you see while inside Walmart are all very inspiring. Some a little more shocking than others...but still inspired. 

I made my purchases in a hurry before the inspiration really struck me...I walked out inspired to head back to school, head outside for some sunshine, and of course...to never....ever...EVER wear spandex pants. No matter if I ever get thin or not, those bad boys will not be on my "To Wear" list. And there you have this week's Snap It Up Saturday! A fun list of Walmart inspired fonts...sure to bring a smile to your face each time you use them.  Here you go!

In this set, you get four new fonts, each one just oozing some of that Walmart love. My husband works third shift down there and tells me about some of the doozies that he runs into regularly. I just couldn't do it. Make sure you click on the image above to snap up this week's freebies! 

Also, make sure to pop into my facebook page as well. I am changing out the freebie over there as well! All you have to do is like my page to get that one as well!

Have a great weekend!

Snap It Up Saturday! Who Spilled the Paint? and a Classroom Update!

Howdy everyone! It's a bit past my bedtime so bear with me for a bit. I just had to make an eleven-o-clock trip to my husband's workplace to bring him some money. I just love it when debit cards decide they don't want to work...don't you? And on top of that, I worked ALL day in my classroom getting ready for the new school year. I've made a little bit of progress and I might be nearing the finish line. I'll share a few quick ideas from my room and then I'll head straight for the goodies!

Math Fact Mastery Board- When my students pass one of their levels of Multiplication facts, they get to move their button (the round things up top) to the area below the fact set that they are in. This helps to motivate them, as well as keeping track of things for me. I made the buttons by painting over some 1 3/4 inch wooden circles and glueing push pins to the back! Then I stuck on 1 inch round labels so I can write their names on them.

Behavior Chart and Magnets- The chart I've discussed before and the magnets were created in the same manner as my math fact buttons. I used red masking tape to block off the sections on my board and trimmed it all out in zebra print. Can you guess the theme in my room? (oh yeah, sorry about the crooked cellphone pictures)

Looking for a quick and easy table storage solution? Crates! I got these at Walmart for about three dollars apiece. They are zip-tied together so they don't fall over, and every table has one. I plan on putting our reading and writing journals in these as well.

Behavior Bucks Storage Chart- I bought these from Vistaprint! They are business cards that I personalized to say Mrs. Smith's Behavior Bucks! Each student will have a behavior bucks card, and can earn punches (I have a star-shaped one) for moving UPWARD on our behavior chart. Once they reach 15 punches, they will receive a special treat! (homework pass, snack from the teacher, lunch bunch, etc)

And now, it's back to Snap it Up Saturday! These week I'm giving away a little sampling of a brand new digital paper pack that I posted in my TPT store this week. It has had a few purchases and the buyers have all been happy. Once again, inspired by my daughter and her love for all things paint related, this little set is called "Who Spilled the Paint?" And they look just like that..somebody dumped out the paint cups and swirled them all together!  Click on the image below to SNAP THEM UP!

BUT WAIT!

Don't leave yet! If you've been following along, you know that I am a member of a brand new collaborative blog called "The Teaching Tribune." We are right in the middle of a BIG giveaway and there is still time to enter to win several fantastic prizes. We've already given away TPT gift certificates, a basket valued at $200, a laminator, and a Quiet Classroom Pencil Sharpener. But the best is yet to come! We still have a brand new Google Nexus Tablet, a custom blog design, and more left to give away! Click below to stop in, read all about it, and enter for your chance to win!

Thanks for stopping in! I hope you enjoy your freebie and wish you luck on winning one of the fantastic prizes from the new blog!
Have a great weekend!