Do You Utilize Teachers Pay Teachers?

I am so sorry that I have neglected this blog so badly! I have a separate blog that I use in my classroom to communicate with parents and to publish student work. I spend A LOT of time working on that blog and well... as you can see, I have not posted here in a very long time. That is my goal for this year - to be better and sharing and growing through this blog.

 

Do you use Teachers Pay Teachers? I really had not jumped on that wagon until last school year and I must say I LOVE IT! I am very cautious about what I buy and I always download the preview and ask questions before purchasing - just to make sure it meets my needs. This summer, I have been working hard to get my Teachers Pay Teachers store going. You can check it out {here}! You can also look at the pictures below to see a little preview of some of the items I have to offer.

Can You Zig It?

Chalk it Up!

The Grass is Always Greener

Whole Brain Rule Posters (FREE!)

Seaside Sorbet

 

Fire Safety!

I think we are technically a week behind, but next week our first graders will learn the ins and outs of fire safety. The father of one of my students, who happens to be a fireman, will  be joining us to talk about what to do in the event of a fire. We will be reading several great fire safety books including these:

We will also be making a Firefighters Brace Map through out the week and completing {this} Firefighter bubble map. What activities do you plan for Fire Safety Week?

iPad Storage in my Classroom

Last week,  I received FIVE new iPads for my classroom. Here are a few pictures of how I decided to store my devices for easy access and organization.

First, I purchased two sets of Sterilite organization drawers. The iPads fit perfectly in the drawers - even with cases. These are the 81/2 x 11 size drawers. I purchased them at Target, but I know they are available many places - including Amazon.

Next, my husband drilled 3 holes in the back of each set for me. This is where the cords will come out of the drawer, allowing them to plug in to the power strip. We made the holes just big enough to get the USB portion of the plug through the hole. This will prevent the cord from slipping out.
My husband also mounted the power strips to the back of the drawers for me. This just helps keep the cords a little more organized.

Now they are ready to go! I plan to decorate the inside of the clear portion of the drawer - just to make them a little more attractive and match the zebra print decor in my classroom! Each drawer and iPad will have a label so my students know exactly where to put their iPad back when it is time to clean up.

Habitats and Apples!

This week we wrapped up a two week study of habitats and we started a two week apple unit! Students learned about wetlands, rain forests, deserts, ocean, and the forest. We talked about the conditions of each habitat as well as the animals and plants that live there. We utilized a great (new to our school) internet resource called Pebble Go! We also used a variety of library books and other websites to research. We finished our study by working in teams to make habitat posters.  We also used a great habitat student book from C&C Teach First. I highly recommend checking it out!

  

 We started off the week by completing the first two steps of a K-W-L chart about apples.  This will help guide the rest of our apple unit as we go into next week.  We also read one of my favorite apple books, What's So Terrible About Swallowing an Apple Seed by Harriet Lerner and Susan Goldhor. In the book, Rosie accidentally swallows an apple seed and her older sister, Katie, warns her that an apple tree will soon grow inside of her stomach. Rosie begins to worry about all of the things she won't be able to do because of the branches that will grow out of her ears. There is a great place in the book to stop and let students predict what problems Rosie may encounter. The students enjoyed the book and came up with some very creative problems!

Here is a peak at the first two parts of our KWL apple chart.

Beginning, Middle, and End

This week we focused on organization in both reading and writing. Students practiced retelling stories with beginning, middle and end (with details!). Some of the books we read include:



Caps For Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina

The Paperboy by Dav Pilkey  

 and

Daisy Comes Home by Jan Brett

During Writer's Workshop we focused on writing a story with a beginning, middle, end and what the characteristics of each are. On Monday we used a graphic organizer to plan our story that we would write during the week. On Tuesday we ONLY wrote the beginning of our story and shared it with our shoulder partners. On Wednesday, we added the middle of our story and we wrote our ending on Thursday.

My kiddos helped me create this anchor chart as the week progressed (Tuesday- Thursday) and I was pretty impressed with their thinking.

I have seen some great ideas on Pinterest to help students identify common language that writers use at various points in their stories. I can not wait to expand our learning next week using some of those ideas! How do you teach beginning, middle and end to your students?

Ready for our new student!

I announced to my first grade friends that a new student would be joining us tomorrow and they literally were squealing with delight! It made me smile to see them so excited to welcome a new face into our "family" and I wanted to do something a little special for new little guy. So... I decided we would make him a welcome book. Each student drew a picture of him / herself, and a few things they wanted to share about first grade. I am going to bind the pages together and we will present it to our new friend tomorrow morning.

Youu can grab a copy of our book page {here}
Check out this sweet little darling's favorite part of 1st grade.
melt.my.heart.

I hope this will help our new friend feel welcomed and maybe learn something about our classroom environment and expectations!

Clip art courtesy of Scrappin Doodles

A Peak Into My Classroom

Well, the new school year is officially underway. I am three days in and must say that I LOVE my new group of kiddos. I am scared to say too much too soon...but this year has started off pretty great.
Here is a little peak into my classroom and a few things we have done in the first few days.

Student "tech table" with 2 netbooks and 3 iPod touches. 6 iPads will be housed on an identical table next to this one.

Leveled Library



CAFE menu above leveled library

Guided Reading table complete with five crate chairs. Student journals are stored inside the crates and ready to use during Writer's Workshop!

Personalized chair with Willard "wispy" W and zebra table (a gift from a fabulous Student Teacher!)



David Goes to School craft



Complete with writing about our classroom rules.

What Writers Write anchor chart.

A work on progress: I am hanging these helpful little hooks in each student's cubby. Then, the students will wrap their earbuds around the hook for safe keeping.