A sick (yet productive!) day

Well, I thought I was actually going to make it to Winter Break without using a sick day this year.  Would’ve been the first time in my three years of teaching full-time.  So much for that – the hubby and I are both home today with strep throat and bronchitis!  BLAH.  We went to Wal-Mart to pick up our prescriptions and bought these things…. cough drops, ibuprofen, chicken noodle soup, oatmeal, ice cream, 7 Up, and tea.  I think it's safe to say we’re now prepared., lol.  Despite all the icky, germy miserableness, I found three positive things about today….

1.  I got to eat ice cream (twice) without feeling guilty.

         2.  We were able to watch the daytime episodes of Saved by the Bell and Boy Meets World. YES!

.        3.  Being stuck on the couch all day, I got caught up on some TpT things!

So, I finally finished my second set of Write around the Room Activities.  You can now have a set for nearly every season and holiday.   My kids just LOVE this activity, no matter what their writing ability!  I hang the posters in hiding places around the room, and the kids grab their clipboards, search for the posters, and record the seasonal words.  And, I’ve discovered that they also totally dig the game 4 Corners, and these posters can be reused to make that game seasonal!

Click the pictures below to purchase Set 1 (back-to-school, fall, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas) or Set 2 (winter, Valentine’s Day, President’s Day, spring and summer).  Each set is 32 pages of posters and recording sheet.  I hope you find them useful!
 

 

Tomorrow is another at-home day (doctor’s orders!), but Wednesday I’ll be back at it with my firsties (and scrambling to catch up, of course).  Have a great week!!

Autumn Activities!

Remember when I said I loved fall?  Wasn’t kidding.  Check out my recent grocery store purchases:  

Yum!  Breakfast time now makes me a happy girl! But…guess what else I purchased at the store:

Yep!  My second sickness of the school year.  Sigh.  However, it didn’t stop me from enjoying Fall Festival week with my firsties.  Here are some pics of us on our field trip to the pumpkin patch, and then square dancing for parents in our Western attire!

 

Are they cute or what??  Our 3-day week was filled with autumn activities.  Holiday weeks are so exhausting fun!  In place of our regular curriculum, we did fall read alouds, games, writing activities, and more..  Check out my Autumn Activities Pack to have some Autumn fun in your own classroom!

Click here to get my Autumn Activities!

Catching Up... And a Freebie!

Wow, these past few weeks have been SO busy!  Each time I think of a post I’d like to write, I spend my evening with a school to-do list instead!  The changes in my classroom and curriculum this year sure have required some extra time and effort, but I must say, I am beyond happy with them all!

I already raved about our initial Daily 5 launch, but I feel like I must continue!! My firsties have now built stamina with Read to Self, Work on Writing, and Word Work (in that order), and I am just so, so thrilled with this program.  Comparing these kiddos to past groups who did not do Daily 5, they are much more independent in reading and writing and more willing to read and write, with a calmer atmosphere all around.  For example, we have a writing workshop time separately, during which we focus on Common Core writing genres.  I taught Narrative the last few weeks, the same way I always have, and this time around I was so pleased with what the kids did independently!  Without waiting at my side for spelling help!  Without whining that they didn’t know what to write!  Without turning in work that was obviously done with little effort!  Writing time is quiet and focused…I don’t know how to act!  I am so excited to see how much we will accomplish this year!

Speaking of writing, we began our writing workshop this year by creating our Heart Maps.  Heart Maps showcase what’s in a student’s heart – all the most important things!  Students use these any time in the year when they need writing inspiration.  They turned out so cute!  Here is mine:

Click here to get my Heart Map download.

 Another new addition this year is Math Workstations, inspired by Debbie Diller.  We haven’t completely launched these yet.  We have learned 8 or 10 math games and talked about workstation expectations with an I-Chart (inspired by Daily 5!).  The plan is to put workstations into action this coming week….stay tuned!

One last new addition, definitely needed this year…and a freebie for you!  I could tell from day one that I had two boys who were going to test me with bathroom visits.  We’re talking asking every 20 minutes, all day long.  With the little ones, it’s always hard to tell whether they actually have to go or just want to roam the halls, but I knew we’d have to do something to help them go less frequently.  So, I created Restroom Passes for them - 4 cards for each boy, labeled with their name, 2 for morning and 2 for afternoon.  I laminated the cards and put them in their desk pockets (also used for our Reminder Cards and Positive Point cards).  The boys know that they get these 4 chances each day, and otherwise may not go to the restroom (unless it is a REAL emergency).  We’ve been using the cards for about a week, and they immediately helped!  If you’re having a similar problem, I hope these cards will be useful for you!  

Click here to download the Restroom Passes.

That’s all for now!  Week 5 begins tomorrow… Have a happy Monday friends! :)