New Year, New Grade, New Classroom. . . OH MY!

     This summer has been full of workshops, gardening, riding my bike, and finding out that I'm moving to a new grade level!  This means that not only am I moving classrooms (a lot of work in and of itself), but I get to learn a new curriculum this year.  The same year we're introducing a new technology initiative.  And going further into the Common Core.

     My new fourth grade teammates have been wonderful.  Last year, they did "expert planning," where each person planned one subject for the whole grade level, resulting in each one becoming an expert in her subject.  Because of the changes in the reading and math curriculum this year, our team of six has divided in to two groups of three; one will plan math and the other will plan reading/language arts.  I'm know I'm going to learn so much from them!

     Now, on to my new room...  It's the same size and basic shape as my old room, but I'm going to have more students and bigger desks, so everything will need to be up against a wall in order to give us room to spread out and work in groups around the room.

This lovely super giant piece of furniture will (hopefully) be removed soon!  

 

Standing in the doorway, looking across the room toward the other door leading into another classroom.

My wall o' bulletin boards.  Soon to be a math board, student work wall, and data/daily objectives wall.

Still at the doorway, looking toward the front of the room and the ActivBoard.

Front corner:  teacher books, student coats/backpack hooks

Other end of the student hooks, cabinet and sink, doorway.

     And now for some close-ups!

A super cute wall sticker I got from the dollar store!  I stuck him to my filing cabinet to make it less industrial and office drab-looking.

My new small group area in front of the student work wall.  The red fabric is coming down--I need a new, calming color.

I have at least 8 boxes of books I'll need to sort through and decide how I want to organize them this year.

     I will post pictures as I decorate, arrange, and organize.  Please leave me some feedback and let me know what you like!

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And Now for a Guided Tour

     I have confessed my addiction to Pinterest on here before, but I don't think I explained exactly how much I use it in my classroom.  As I met fellow staff members in my new school, I was repeatedly asked what my "theme" was for my classroom.  I explained that I don't really have a theme, I just like neatness and color.

     Then I looked at my classroom the other day.

     I realized that I DID, in fact, have a theme.  Everything in my room was inspired by something I saw on Pinterest.  And I mean EVERYTHING.  From the bedsheets backing my bulletin boards and the ribbon border, to the clothespins clipped to ribbon for how we go home and where we are in the writing process, it all came from my fellow teachers that I follow online.  I gotta say thanks!

     Here are some specific elements {so be prepared for a LONG blog post}:

Made from a Wal Mart magnetic calendar.  I made my own numbers and velcroed them in place.  It's hung with binder clips and push pins.

Gotta love numbered clothespins!  This jobs chart was made with labels stuck on circle accents.

"Show Me the Evidence," for helping with that transition to Common Core

How We Go Home, again numbered clothespins make everything easier!

Clock numbers

As you can see, I'm at recess right now     :^)

Behavior Bingo on the front of my desk.

I'm not sure I like the header.  I may end up changing it at some point.  You know, when I have time {because I have so much spare time once the school year starts.}

Morning routine sign, with a dull/sharp double pencil bucket, and 4 lunch choice buckets.  Under this shelf are the 3-drawer containers where students turn in their work.

I took all the versions of this sign that I could find and combined them into one long list.  I couldn't decide which ones I wanted to use, so I used them all.

     And now for the tour:

Standing by my desk. looking at the "front" door.

The cabinet doors have a pocket chart for the week's spelling words and a place to track our writing progress.

I love that at this school I can hang fun things from the ceiling!  I found these items in the party supply section of Wal Mart on clearance.  I'm still working on tissue paper poms to add to the corners.

The tables along the wall will be where all workstation supplies can be found.  I'm thinking of investing in some table skirts; that area under those tables is a great storage space.

Each student table has a basket with notebook paper and an envelope for table tickets {earned through cooperation and teamwork, and spent on coupons that the team must decide on and redeem together (bring a stuffed animal, lunch in the classroom, etc.)}, and a box with supplies {glue sticks, sticky notes, erasers, etc.}

classroom library, with a lot of wall space for displaying anchor charts and student work

My personal favorite area of the room:  our Wonder Wall, where students can use sticky notes to post questions and observations on things they wonder about.

more anchor chart displays, and my singing bird clock with the singing bird mechanism removed     :^)

    

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What Time is It?

     When is recess?

     How long until lunch?

     How many times have you gotten questions like these from your students?  Don't you wish your students would come to you already knowing how to read an analog clock and answer these questions for themselves?

     Using "Clock Numbers" around your classroom clock is a great way to scaffold that learning and allow students to use them in real-world situations.

Use numbers like these around your classroom clock.

      I have numbers around my clock, and students use them as a reference for telling time when they need to sign out to use the bathroom, when they sign up to go to the library, or when they need to fill out a behavior form.  As the year goes on, I will replace the 15, 30, and 45 with the following:

     This will allow students to see the relationships between the numbers and the words used in every day situations {quarter after 11, half past 3, etc.}.  Once these word cards go up and students begin using them accurately, the other numbers {05, 10, 20, 25, 35, 40, 50, and 55} will come down.  By the end of the school year, my goal is that students will have had practice telling time without any labels on the clock. 

     By using this knowledge in real-world situations throughout the year, our telling time lessons in math class can be mostly review, and we can focus on the dreaded elapsed time.

Find this pack in my TpT and TN stores!

     As a special treat, I'm having a sale just in time for school to start next week!  I'm joining Teachers Pay Teachers in their Back to School sale on August 12 and 13. 

     I'm offering 20% off all my products, and TpT is adding another 10% off, for a total of a 28% savings! {When you take 20% off my products, then 10% off the remaining cost, the total savings is 28%--I know, crazy math!}  All you have to do is put in the promo code (BTS12) when you check out for the extra 10% savings.  I will also be running a sale in my Teachers Notebook store those same days! 


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Slow, But Steady Work

     It's time for an update on my classroom-in-progress. . .

     I have to wait until Tuesday, when I'm back on contract, to laminate all my signs and labels, so I've only been able to work on some of the "background" of my room.  

     I used disposable hospital trays on my chairs.  They are really easy to drill through and attach to the "X" on the bottom of each chair with zip ties, and best of all, they were FREE!  Many hospitals would probably be willing to donate 25 or 30 trays for your class. . .all you have to do is call and ask!  Everyone at my old school used these trays in different ways, but I like to use them for unfinished work or for gluey things that need time to dry.  They are also where my munchkins put their snacks and water bottles in the mornings when they unpack.  The snacks stay handy so there's no getting up in the middle of math to get them, and the water bottles aren't taking up valuable desk space and sweating all over student work {they're also not rolling all over the floor}. 

     I've added cream colored flat sheets {super cheap-from Wal Mart!} and border to my bulletin boards.  I also put border on one of my dry erase boards.  I decided to go with some flat, wide border that is black with dark gray stripes on one side and dark gray dots on the other.  I like the way it mirrors the look of my ActivBoard.
 

My ActivBoard in the middle, with my calendar board on the left and my objectives board on the right

Dry erase board behind my reading table

More bulletin board shots

    

I have a random long, skinny bulletin board on one of my walls, so I've decided to use it as a "Wonder Wall," where students can put sticky notes with their questions and things that they wonder about.  These notes can be researched and/or discussed as time allows.  I'm hoping it will keep my munchkins interested and engaged in what we're learning in class.  It will also be a great place for students to put their random questions that have nothing to do with what we're studying {you know, the ones they interrupt/disrupt class with. . . the ones that always seem to interrupt a lesson when you're being observed. . .}

I used four different kinds of patterned cardstock to make a colorful background, and hot-glued black grosgrain ribbon to it for a border.  As soon as I can laminate, there will be white letters (backed by black) that say "I Wonder. . ." along the middle of the bulletin board.  {Pay no attention to the sticky note--it's just a reminder to myself of what I'm doing with the board.  I have them stuck all over the room because if I don't write it down, I'll never remember anything!}


I REALLY liked using the ribbon for the border {an idea I found on Pinterest}.  It makes a nice, clean line to frame the board, and it's nice and small.  Regular bulletin board border would take up the whole board.


I'll be back next week with more updates and {hopefully} more signs hung and workstations set up!

**UPDATE**

I got a few questions about my objectives board.  It's an idea I got from Pinterest.  

I used 8.5 x 11 document frames from the dollar store, and inserted the labeled backgrounds.  They're hanging on the board right now with pushpins, but I'll be attaching them more securely with velcro soon {THANK YOU for the idea, Amy!!}.  Leave a comment with your email address and I'll send you the backgrounds.

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New Year, New School, New Classroom

     It's been a while since I posted anything because I've been super busy getting my new classroom ready and making the most of the rest of the summer.  It's exciting to be starting with a blank slate--moving in and arranging furniture and making new bulletin boards, but it's also a lot of hard work. 

     Here are some "before" pictures of my new room.  When I'm done with it, I'll post some "after" pictures.

The view from the "front" of my new room.

Storage!

All the tubs are from the teacher who was moving out.

Yes, there are 2 doors into my classroom.

My future teacher corner!

From left to right: small group central, reading focus board, math focus board.

My future classroom library corner... now filled with things to be moved to another classroom!

On another note, my Teachers Notebook store is hosting a giveaway!

    Just go to this page and scroll down until you see my logo in this box.  You have to have a Teachers Notebook account (don't worry--it's free!), but you can enter to win my Classroom Handbook!  There are always LOTS of sales going on at TN, and TONS of freebies and giveaways. 

Hope the rest of your summer is FABULOUS!

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More Summer Fun

     When you were a kid, did you ever wonder what your teacher did after all the kids were gone for the day?  Or better yet, what she did over the summer?  It's sometimes hard for kids to picture their teachers out of context, and it's always fun for me to ask my munchkins to think outside the box {or rather, outside the classroom} and find out what they think I do when I'm not at school teaching.  One of my back to school activities this year is going to be to have the kids share what they did this summer and write about what they think I did.  {more on that in a later blog post.}

     So, what AM I doing this summer?  Besides going to workshops next month, doing DIY projects around the house, and making recipes and crafty things I found on Pinterest, I've been busy relaxing and having fun with Wagner, my dog.

 Wagner loves to relax in the air conditioning.

He also loves to watch the Today Show.  Especially when they show animal videos.

 

 

 

 

     Earlier this week I went with nine of my teacher friends on a white water rafting trip.  That's right... White. Water. Rafting.  I was leery of it at first, having never done anything like it before, and realizing that I could be seriously injured {or worse}.  Once we got to Outdoor Adventure Rafting on the Ocoee River, I started to feel better because they were very professional and took WONDERFUL care of us.  We got a safety lesson, our helmets, paddles, and PFDs {NOT a life jacket, it turns out!}, then loaded the bus.  Then we went rafting.

      We had 5 people on each boat, and went through several class 4 rapids.  It was so much fun!

     A special thanks to our guides, Taylor and Donnie, who took such great care of us out on the Ocoee River.






     We laughed the whole time, even during the scary parts!  I would go back and do it again in a heartbeat!  We were able to eddy out and go swimming in one of the calmer parts of the river, but the fun part was getting back into the boat.  One thing I learned is that it's really hard to swim upstream and pull each other into the boat when you're laughing hysterically. 



     On another note.....

 

     I'm really excited to reveal my super-secret crochet project I've been playing with.  I haven't told ANYONE about it because I wasn't sure I could get the pattern to work out correctly.  I was cleaning out a closet a couple of weeks ago and found some skeins of variegated yarn, and I decided to see what I could do with them, and here it is--my new bag!  I've never made anything before without using a pattern, and I had to try it a few times {and take it out again} before I got the hang of it.  I love the way the spacing of the colors makes a plaid pattern on the sides.  It's the perfect size to take to the library with me and use for selecting new books to read {I heart the library!}.

  I promise that next week's blog post will be more school-oriented, but I'm having trouble staying focused with all the fun going on!

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