Mrs. Randall's Learning Library

QR Codes

2012-06-27T06:55:00.005-07:00

Are you all familiar with QR codes? I have seen them around but my only schema about them was that you take a picture of them and it (the magic box OR iPhone) would give you information about the product. I followed a great link on Pinterest about what QR codes are and how to use them in the classroom if you have some iPads.

What is a QR code?

A QR code is a matrix barcode (see inset photo) that can be read by some sort of a scanner or smartphone.

How is this useful to teachers?

There is a website called KAYWA that allows you to enter a website URL and it automatically creates a unique QR code for that site. You can print out the QR codes and even laminate them and post them in your classroom. When you want your students to visit a certain website such as your class site, spelling city, etc., they simply take a photo of the QR code with the free ipad app called Qrafter. The app then takes the student directly to the website, alleviating time spent navigating the internet for it. If you want to test this out, install the free app on your smartphone and snap a picture of the QR code at the start of this post. It should take you to my classroom website. So cool!

If this sounds interesting to you, please visit the original pinterest link here. The link provides a quick video about how to use the app in the classroom.

Lastly, my husband mentioned to me that nowadays businesswomen and men often put QR codes for their online resumes or product information directly on their business cards. I headed over to Vistaprint for the tenth time this summer to create my own business cards to hand out at back to school night that have my classroom site QR code on them. Here is a mock up without my info. on it.

Have a great Wednesday everyone:)

Luna Giveaway

2012-06-26T15:29:00.002-07:00

Hi everyone. Happy Tuesday! Amanda over at One Extra Degree is hosting the most amazing giveaway right now. Check out Amanda's blog to learn how you can use the Luna as a resource in your classroom.

Monday Made-It Link Up

2012-06-25T06:46:00.012-07:00

Hi bloggy friends, long time no post! I took a year off from blogging; writing, not reading all of your wonderful blogs. In my year off from writing, I pinned like crazy but just recently decided to start creating some of the cute things I have been inspired by. Seeing all of your amazing creations is so inspiring and I realized how much I missed this community of teachers so I decided to link up with Tara over at 4th Grade Frolics.

Here is what I have been busy with so far this summer:

It seems like the hottest teacher item this upcoming school year is going to be the Teacher Toolbox. I think the original idea may have come from Create, Teach, Share. What an amazing idea! I ended up ordering my 22 drawer toolbox from Amazon and using cute scrapbook paper from Walmart. Ta-Da! It is so cute.

I had some left over scrapbook paper so I up-cycled some Crystal Light containers to hold popsicle stick multiplication facts, etc. I made 5, one for each table group.

Still more leftover paper AND a new addiction to Mod Podge so I Mod Podged the heck out of anything plastic! I started with this two drawer storage unit I use to hold money, base ten blocks, calendar pieces for my Everyday Math Calendar. I think it certainly livens it up!

Lastly, I made this sign. I can't claim to love it. It was actually my first Mod Podge attempt using wrapping paper. It bubbled quite a bit. Not sure if the wrapping paper was just too thin or if I rushed. Either way, it might look cute somewhere in my room. Perhaps I should have just splurged on this super cute one from Etsy?

Sigh. At least I tried! I hope to be back blogging a bit this summer about some exciting changes in my third grade classroom. First, I won't be doing the team theme anymore. While I loved it, I was ready for a change. Next year, my classroom will be Rocking and Rolling because third grade ROCKS! In the upcoming weeks, I'll share a few things that I am doing in my classroom to make this theme evident to my kiddos when they come back to school. I think these two Vistaprint creations count as being made or at least designed by me. The first one is a car door magnet that I will put on my white board as part of my homework board. The second one is actually a window cling so it will appear clear where the white parts are.

Can't wait to show you some of my back to school purchases later this week! Happy Monday!

Halloween Surprise for your Kids

2011-10-29T08:35:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween fellow bloggers! Sorry I've been an absentee blogger recently...you know how it goes with the start of the year, new standards pilots, etc. Time just gets away from ya but I have enjoyed reading all of your blogs lately.

Here is a little treat I created for my third graders for Monday.

I purchased this clipart from Lettering Delights, so I can't share it but you can snag it for $3.00 to use year after year! I found some ghost shaped marshmallows at Target, so I picked them up not really knowing what I was going to do with them yet. At the very least, I could have made rice krispy treats. Then I found the ghost poop clipart and voila! I had a need for cute marshmallows!

All you need are a few items to create these treats for your kids:

I didn't add a poem, but I found this one online somehwhere:

I hear that you've been playing tricks,
So listen, here's the scoop ...
I'm running short on candy treats,
So this year you get Ghost Poop!!

A happy surprise!

2011-09-04T17:40:00.000-07:00

Thanks so much to Dana over at 3rd Grade Gridiron for awarding me this fabulous blogger award! I appreciate all of my followers and I hope to start blogging a bit more frequently once I get settled with my family's new routines.

Daily Five/Workstations

2011-08-28T08:33:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! I hope you have all had a great start to your school year. I've been missing in action from my blog for awhile but you all know how that first week back to school is...super busy. I was absolutely exhausted by Friday! I was finally able to upload my updated classroom tour to my class website. Click here if you want to check out my cabin or past years photos.

Last year I posted my Daily Five bookmarks and I have received a ton of emails asking for an editable version. I'm sorry to say that I don't have the original anymore. I cleaned up my desktop and files over the summer and since I wasn't using them anymore I got rid of them. If you want to view my original post about them, click here. You can also view or download the pdf bookmark. So many fantastic teachers have shared their great ideas with me free of charge so I wish to keep these bookmarks free of charge for you. I would be very disappointed if they turned up on tPt or teachers notebook for sale by someone else. Spread the love people!

I'm so glad those bookmarks were a hit! I posted towards the end of last year that I was more of a Debbie Diller Work Stations fan and so I was going to be using them in place of Daily Five this year. I really loved my book marks though so I reworked them a bit for my third graders this year. Here are my workstation bookmarks. I plan on using paper copies when I introduce workstations so that my kids can physically check off or highlight what they have done to help them get in the habit of rotating through the various activities within each station. As the year progresses and my students are able to demonstrate that they are using their workstation time wisely and being productive, I will switch from the paper version to my laminated version where students can use them only as a reference to ensure a variety of skills practiced each week.

Link to Google Docs Workstation Bookmark

It's all in the details

2011-08-11T07:29:00.000-07:00

I've had my precious family in town for awhile but now everyone has left and I'm starting to get back into school mode. My classroom is nearly finished and I've posted some of the pics on my last post here. I have worked from home on some of the tinier details that make my classroom a special place to be. Here are a few of the projects (inspired by pinterst and some of my favorite teacher bloggers) that I've completed.

Smarty Pants:
I just had to share these Smarty Pants first! Abby at the Inspired Apple shared her cute smart pants on her teacher blog and this is my version of them. I used my son's old 2T size cargo pants. I used heat bond to seal up the bottom legs so that when I do get around to filling the pants with smarties, they won't fall out! How funny are these? Love them!

Name Tag Banner:
My name tag banner was also inspired by Ms. Babbling Abby, although my version is much smaller. She posted a tutorial on how to make a fabric banner but due to space constraints in my classroom, I chose to make a scrapbook paper name banner for the side of my teacher desk. I just printed out cute font letters and used my exacto knife to cut the flags. Then I ran them through my Scotch Laminator. Next I hot glued each banner/letter to yellow ribbon. I love how it turned out! It is much easier to read in person, trust me.

Special Birthday Surprise:
Here are my Birthday Ballon Silly Straws. I saw a teacher do the same thing using giant pixie stix candy Birthday Balloons on pinterest but I wanted to make a healthier alternative (plus giant pixie stix are so not easy to come by.) I came across these silly straws at Target in the Birthday Aisle. The balloon labels came from Teaching in Flip Flops. Thanks for sharing with the rest of us!

Planter Sticks:
These were so super easy and really make a difference! I just found super cute scrapbook paper with these cut outs, laminated them and hot glued them to some bamboo skewers I had laying around. How cute!

Clipboard Update:
A little scrapbook paper and a lot of mod podge goes a long way! I love this cute clipboard.

Imagine:
This pencil was inspired by Pottery Barn Kids, one of my favorite stores! I have this beautiful green wooden pencil stenciled with the word "Imagine" hanging in our playroom. Until my boys are too old for a playroom, this cheap version will have to do for my classroom. I found the felt pencil at the Dollar Tree, then I printed out cute letters, laminated them and hot glued them to the pencil.

Table Group Placemats:
Lastly, this are easy placemats that I created for each table group. I got some fabric and heat bond (I'm not a sewer!) from Walmart and then just cut them to the size I wanted and ironed the seams with the heat bond. They make the tables look homey and they don't get in the way of name tags (not adhered to desks yet, but I tested them out just to check).

I'm getting so excited to head back to school on Monday! If you haven't checked out pinterest yet, please do! You can follow my classroom boards by clicking on the red pinterest button on my sidebar.

A few classroom pics

2011-08-03T06:47:00.000-07:00

I went into my classroom on Monday (sans kiddos) to get some work done before my family comes into town. These last few weeks before I need to report back to school are jam packed so the time is just going to fly. You know how busy teachers are when they head back to school so I wanted to get my room set up so I'm ready for Back to School Night on the 16th. I was super productive and I feel OK with where I left off. Here are some photos of the progress...and pardon the iPhone photos, I forgot my camera:

This is my "READ" sign. I got the idea for this sign from the ladies over at Lesson Plan S.O.S. I bought some cardboard letters from Hobby Lobby and used Mod Podge to adhere cute scrapbook paper to each letter. I love it! I hung it over the door that leads to my team mates mobile.

This is my back wall complete with library, reading table and my reading strategies and CAFE wall. I always start the year off with blank bulletin boards. I often use interactive writing for my reading strategy posters to help my kids anchor the strategies to their own reading. I have found that kids use posters we make together more than store bought posters that are already hanging on the wall when they come back to school. I don't love this set up by any means. There is no "nook" for the kids to snuggle in and read, no fun chairs, etc. due to lack of space in my mobile. I got a few floor pillows from Costco though to provide a few kids with someplace special to read. I'll have two kids per day use them. You can see the pillows laying up against the side of the tall bookcase. No doubt about it though, plenty of wall space for my reading board.

Here is my math calendar bulletin board. It is also a decent size. Each month the calendar elements change so the extra space with definitely get filled as the year continues. I placed my math chart paper off to the left of the bulletin board and left the space up above the board open for adding measurement elements later in the year. The fourth grade teacher who was in this mobile the year before was kind enough to leave her number line up so that was one less thing that I had to put up. I don't love the student computer placement in this picture but seriously there is no other place to put it given where the internet drops are located.

Here is my space...I had to purchase this chrome shelf to store my unit tubs. It is a very tight squeeze behind my desk because of it but whats a gal to do? Check out my neat desk...get a good look at it because that won't last come September! On the side of the tall brown shelf you can see how I store my paper mountains throughout the year (missing drawer is actually at home with me). Rather than using a Monday-Friday system, I made content labels. On the back of the brown shelf is my book recommendation board. The white board is screwed into the wall and will act as one of my word work stations. I seriously used every square inch of this place!

The last photo that I am posting today is of on of the big storage units that came with the mobile. There are actually three, two that are this size and one tall one. This unit is storing more math manipulatives. I also tried to save a little space for school supplies that my kids will bring on Back to School Night (think kleenex boxes and clorox wipes). The top has my treasure box that an awesome parent made for me a few years ago, my wireless tablets and my turn in station for student folders. I think this bulletin board may be used for content anchor charts. I used leftover material for this bulletin board. I used to use only material for all of my bulletin boards when I taught first grade but I am a perfectionist and I hated the way the material wrinkled. Because this one is so small, I was able to get the material the way I wanted it though. What do ya think?

Well that is it for now. I have some things in the works to try to give my classroom a "homey" feel. I can't wait to share some of the details that I am finishing up! How are your classroom coming along? Enjoy your last few weeks of summer!

Homework Motivation

2011-07-29T11:43:00.000-07:00

I am anxiously awaiting my order from Really Good Stuff! In case you missed it, Really Good Stuff recently hit over 20,000 followers on facebook and offered teachers a 10% off coupon code...woo hoo! I only placed a small order but I know my third graders are going to love what I got!

Check out these punch cards!

Last year I ordered two sets of them and I still have some left over to start the year off. I gave each student one punch card to keep in their Friday folders. Every Friday, if students had returned all of their homework for the entire week I gave them a punch on their punch card. When the card was filled, they got to choose something from my treasure box. I loved this because it wasn't a weekly reward, but something they had to work for. They were very popular the first trimester of school but I was able to phase them out the last trimester. I had very few kids who repeatedly turned in late work this past year and I think that the punch card was a good way to get the whole "bring homework back on time" line engrained in them!

Also, if you love blog stalking you may be surprised to learn that there are a ton of educational blogs on facebook as well. Many of your favorite blogs have a "like" button on their sidebars. If you click the "like" button you will receive updates on your home page every time your favorite blogs update a post!

Exposing Kids to Great Authors

2011-07-26T07:20:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday blogging buddies, sorry it has been so long since my last post. I've been consumed with summer fun and I just didn't have anything great to write about...until this morning. Must be the cup of joe I actually got to drink in its entirety before one of my kiddos needed me.

I just finished chapter four of The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller. This book was at the top of everyones summer reading lists this year so I'm probably way behind writing a post about ch. 4, but I'm going to go ahead and do it anyway. Hopefully you'll find it useful.

One statement that Donalyn Miller made in chapter 4 that really resonated with me is that one reason teachers should choose read alouds carefully is to expose young readers to great authors. I assumed she was talking directly to me, a third grade teacher as I go back and forth about which chapter books to read to my class every year. I have a few staples that I use because they lend themselves so well to reading strategies. For example, I always start the year off with How to Be Cool in the Third Grade by Betsy Duffy. Obviously all kids want to start the year off being super cool so this book always sparks personal connections for my kids...but is it a quality author that I would like to see my kids read more of independently.... Yes! This is the new question that I plan to ask myself before I really commit to sharing a chapter book read aloud with my class this year. I plan on getting my hands on some more books by Betsy Duffy so that I can guide students who enjoyed How to Be Cool in the Third Grade to more of her books with a familiar writing style. Hopefully this will increase their comfort level when starting to stray from their old favorites.

I've noticed the trend that third graders tend to feel comfortable reading the Junie B. Jones and Magic Tree House series at the start of the year. It is not always easy to guide them to other incredible series and authors. Two authors that I am partial to are Avi and Kate DiCamillo. I always share Avi's Poppy in January. I think that his style of writing engages kids, especially this book. My class can't get enough, even going so far as to snag my bookmark while I am reading so I just have to continue reading. My class last year got together at recess and made up a chant so that the second I started to close the book, I would be forced to reopen it and read just one more chapter! Now that is what I call engagment! I share this book in January because my third graders are that much more mature and their reading comprehension skills are that much stronger. The Poppy series is a highly sought after series in my room after I share this adventurous story.

I also share the Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo. Most kids are slightly familiar with this story as it was a made into a movie a few years back but I am finding that less and less kids have seen it over the years. I love that it is written in such a way that makes you worry and care about the characters. Kate DiCamillo has a plethora of outstanding books that students can dive into after they are introduced to one of her stories.

I've started thinking about my chapter book read alouds as mini author studies where once we share the writers craft together, kids can determine if this is a genre or author they are interested in reading more of.

Those are my nuggets of wisdom this fine Tuesday morning. I would love to hear some of your favorite authors, intermediate or primary. Thanks for sharing!

Also, look at this adorable stick family sticker that my hubby and I ordered for my back windshield. We were able to personalize each family member right down to the color of their shoes. Notice me, I'm the teacher. I love it!

Woops! Fall Book Linky Party

2011-07-14T11:13:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure how I could have missed this (must be my lack of a whole cup of coffee the other day) but Mrs. Parker has already started a Fabulous Fall Book Linky Party. There are so many awesome blog links already so I'm going to repost my favorite picks and link up with her. Thanks to everyone who linked up. I just placed an amazon order for a few new books I can't wait to share with my new third graders this Fall.

Click on over to check out or link up with Mrs. Parker.

Here are the titles I share the first few days of school as well as how I use them:

1.

I love this picture book by Mark Teague to get kids talking about their own summer vacations. The main character in this story tends to embellish his story just a tad and this does not go unnoticed by kids.

2.

I picked this book up on a whim as it was wrapped and I couldn't preview it but I just had to have it because of the illustrations. They are so super cute. It turned out to be a fabulous book about teamwork and never giving up on your dreams. Great way to inspire kids in the Fall.

3.

I use these two while I am introducing independent reading procedures in my classroom. They open up the door for discussions on what types of reading environment we want to have in our classroom.

4.

If you are familiar with Bucket Filling, then I'm sure these books are a staple in your classroom already. Click here to view my website page about Bucket Filling to learn more.

Lastly, because I teach an intermediate grade I incorporate chapter book read alouds in my reading program as I teach reading strategies. Rather than listing them all as part of my linky party, I thought I would direct you to my class website page where I have a summary of each book that I read and the months that I read them throughout the school year. Click here to view my chapter book picks.

Back to School Books-Linky Party

2011-07-12T16:57:00.001-07:00

The last time I popped into my classroom (last Friday) I finally unpacked my last behemoth tupperware of picture books from my big move. As I was sorting through them, I came across all of my back to school books that I read to my kiddos the first few days of school. I layed them out on my easel ledge so they would be ready in August and I got to thinking that I would love to add some new titles to my back to school collection.

Here are the titles I share the first few days of school as well as how I use them:

1.

I love this picture book by Mark Teague to get kids talking about their own summer vacations. The main character in this story tends to embellish his story just a tad and this does not go unnoticed by kids.

2.

I picked this book up on a whim as it was wrapped and I couldn't preview it but I just had to have it because of the illustrations. They are so super cute. It turned out to be a fabulous book about teamwork and never giving up on your dreams. Great way to inspire kids in the Fall.

3.

I use these two while I am introducing independent reading procedures in my classroom. They open up the door for discussions on what types of reading environment we want to have in our classroom.

4.

If you are familiar with Bucket Filling, then I'm sure these books are a staple in your classroom already. Click here to view my website page about Bucket Filling to learn more.

Lastly, because I teach an intermediate grade I incorporate chapter book read alouds in my reading program as I teach reading strategies. Rather than listing them all as part of my linky party, I thought I would direct you to my class website page where I have a summary of each book that I read and the months that I read them throughout the school year. Click here to view my chapter book picks.

I would love to see what your favorite back to school books are. Please link up if you want to share.

Don't forget to vote

2011-07-01T08:40:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone, just a reminder to click on over to Really Good Stuff to vote for your favorite classroom blogs. Use the link of the right sidebar please. Thanks again to the super sweetie who nominated my blog as a favorite!

On a sidenote, I always start to really miss my kiddos from last year about this time. As an end of the year gift I gave each student in my class a chapter book to read over the summer. I am setting up a book club play date at the park at our school to briefly chat about the book and spend a little time together to catch up before they move on to be big fourth graders. I emailed parents about this idea prior to school ending and they were all on board. After the fourth of July, I'll send out an evite to my kids via their parent's emails to attend our summer book club. I'll provide some snacks and drinks to make it extra special. I think it will be a blast! Has anyone ever tried this before? This will be my first time hosting a summer book club for my kids so I would love any tips you have to offer. Have a great weekend!

Classroom Photos...its coming along!

2011-06-30T15:14:00.001-07:00

I popped into my classroom today just to scout out where I wanted to put my new math station tubs. Since space is limited in my mobile, they ended up on top of my taller book cases. I think third graders will be able to reach them pretty easily still. Take a look...I have cute labels that I printed out but I forgot to bring them today. As you can see from the picture, I have settled on having 6 math strand tubs rather than the 10 or so that Debbie Diller suggested in her book, Math Work Stations. I decided to do the 6 strands because I am going to be doing a standards based grading study this upcoming year and these are the math strands from which major grades are taken.

I love how the tubs I found for my math work stations (Target Dollar Spot) totally match my book tubs! My only gripe is that they don't have lids because I liked the idea of posting "I Can" statements to the inside lid. I will be easily able to fit math materials and laminated math talk cards in these tubs though.

This next photo is of my self created storage space. Being in a mobile, I realized I really needed some storage space for my unit tubs and strategy lesson materials. I purchased this tall chrome shelf from Target for approximately $35.00. I have to say that yes, I have spent too much money on storage for this move into a mobile and I'm not thrilled about it. On the flip side, the chrome shelving is extremely sturdy and will look lovely in my garage when I am able to move back into my school building. On these shelves you will see my green unit storage tubs (where I store materials by unit). I only have about half of them here at school. I plan to tote the other ones to school as the unit approaches due to space limitations. You will also see two clear storage totes on the top shelf. I house my files here by month. I have the first four months of school files at school currently, two months per tote. The wicker basket on top is empty but I thought it was pretty. I'm sure I'll find a use for it. The black magazine holders are extra large. I got them from Walmart years ago. They are perfect for organizing my mentor text collection by writing trait. I also have some extras for content/supplemental texts. I had a parent go through and take a book inventory of each mentor text and content text tub for me. The inventory is in clear plastic sheet protectors which I tucked in a binder. You won't even believe how easy it is for me to locate texts I need for a lesson! I love this system and wasn't willing to give it up this year due to space. I made it happen! My only gripe with this area is that the chrome shelf is pretty wide and there isn't much space between my desk and the shelf which means I need a desk chair without big bulky arms on it so I can slide in and out easily. You can't see it in this photo but my desk is right in front of the chrome shelf. After looking at this shelf in the photo, I think it looks kind of industrial but in person the shiny chrome looks somewhat modern...its not so bad.

You might notice the photos of my boys and the extra ribbon laying around on the shelf. I am going to thread that ribbon through each shelf. I just haven't gotten around to it yet. The ribbon has various sports themes on it to correlate with my team theme. I'm going to get two plain white frames to replace the current ones and hang them on the small patch of wall next to the shelf and window. Oh, I forgot to mention that metal filing system on the shelf. That houses my most often used multiple copies such as spelling papers (link to past post and spelling printables), Super Book Project rubrics and calendars (another link for some printables), field trip info., etc. I am going to make a nice sign for the front of it.

Well, it certainly is coming along! My next step is to hang my curtains and shop for new fadeless paper and borders-always a favorite thing of mine! I can't wait to see all of your rooms this Fall!

I've got this idea...what do ya think?

2011-06-28T13:38:00.000-07:00

I've had an idea floating around in my head for about a year and I've finally done something about it. I am looking for some thoughtful feedback about my idea before I present this information to my administrator. Thanks for your time blogging buddies!

Here goes...

I wanted to create a blog for the teachers in my school to use as a tool for teaching students how to write about text. I created a prototype blog that I would like to present to my administrator and hopefully the staff at my school. Obviously I'm not too attached to the title, etc. but its a start.

I called the blog Meridian Book Bits (my school name is Meridian Elementary). I chose "book bits" because the summaries or recommendations will be "bits of info. about books". Too corny?

I wrote a sample introduction and created static pages along the sidebar defining the various genres. I also included a page for teachers, listing some possible ways to use the blog with their classes. I think that at this point, teachers will have to be the only ones with login access, meaning students may post from school only. They will be able to comment from home though. I thought parents would like to be able to comment as well. I envision primary kids creating a written recommendation or summary as a class and then having the teacher post it. Intermediate students can post on behalf of their class, small group, or as individuals. Teachers can then use the posts as formative learning or use a grade level rubric if they desire. I wouldn't want this to replace any required classroom work, just be an additional publishing format with an authentic audience.

I created this by myself but if this sounds like a good idea, I'd like to present it to my admin. and then go from there. Hopefully, if I can get teachers on board, they will have their own amazing ideas to lend to the blog. Please let me know what you think. I really could use some feedback so I don't embarrass myself. Is this something you could see your self using, regardless of grade level? Do you think teachers would view this as a neat tool or just something tedious? Any suggestions? Thanks so much!

Here is the link to the blog prototype:

Meridian Book Bits Blog

Been searching for these all my life!

2011-06-26T08:08:00.000-07:00

Awhile back the fabulous Deanna Jump from Mrs. Jump's Class posted about these awesome markers that she uses on her anchor charts. If you've seen any of the photos of her anchor charts then you know they are outstanding. She really knows how to make a great visual for her class. So, needless to say I've been on the lookout for Elmer's Project Popperz for quite some time. I've looked in all the usual places, Target and Walmart office supply aisles to no avail. I was beginning to think that my local "go-to" shops just didn't carry them.

But alas, I found myself browsing the student school supply section in Target, the aisle with all of the materials kids might need to make a clasroom presentation and I spotted them. Right next to the large poster board! What a score! My kids were like, really mom? You are that excited about markers. Yes, yes I am!

I can't wait to take them for a spin in the Fall!

Also, in case you missed it...Ms. Voss from Voss's Vine shared a great tip with me! These outstanding and super cute organizers (in all shapes and sizes) are available online at Joann Fabrics for a very reasonable price. Believe me, I've shopped around. If you've been thinking about some new storage for your classroom, take it from me you will LOVE these.

My "must haves" for Fall

2011-06-24T18:06:00.000-07:00

Let me set the scene in my house this evening for you all...

My hubby walks in the door from work with a stack of catalogs. I ask "anything good come in the mail?" He says "Nope. Just a bunch of catalogs." Hello! Those are the bomb-dot-com in my opinion. Every time my Really Good Stuff catalog arrives I pour over the pages with such intensity, hoping to find something reasonably priced that I just have to get for my third graders. I know I'm not alone.

With all of the reductions school districts have had, I have received a few emails from teachers who are moving up or down to teach third grade for the first time. I thought I'd share my "must haves" for the fall to help give them some ideas. Every now and then I included a link for you to check out a related post or photo. I hope this helps!

1. Making Words Kit-this kit is pricey but do you even know how many times I've created letters to go with my Making Words lessons? I'm willing to fork it over for this bad boy. Perfect for use on the document camera and then so portable, the kit can be thrown in Daily 5 or literacy work station tubs. Links: Daily 5, Literacy Station Organization

2. Letter Tile Stand-OK I just want the set of stands, not the letters. Last year I was lucky enough to find a company that collects and distributes old scrabble tiles. I got a set of 400 scrabble letter tiles for free, all I had to do was pay for shipping which was less than $3.00. They are awesome and just begging to be used with these stands in my spelling and/or word work station.

3. 10-Drawer Mobile Organizer-I purchased this organizer last year (much cheaper from Amazon) and it was so useful. I have some 3-drawer files near my desk for my own copies to hand out to kids, but I kept this tall organizer right next to my media station. It held large quantities of extra copies for the year that student helpers could access such as spelling tests, math homelinks, Mini-Mustang notecatchers and rubrics. My kids got in the habit of grabbing what they needed from the drawers without my support. Glorious freedom!

4. Borders-Cute borders for your bulletin boards. I probably didn't need to even mention that but honestly, look at the cuteness!

5. Oriental Trading Book Baskets-Baskets, baskets, baskets. A teacher can never have too many baskets. No really, that is a true statement. Link: See my new baskets getting all set up for this coming fall

6. Binders, binders, binders. A teacher can never have too many binders. De ja vu! Links: Team Binders,, Guided Reading Binder and Reader's Notebooks

7. Zenergy Chime Trio-OK so maybe this isn't a must have exactly, but all teachers must have some way of getting their kiddos attention. When my kids are on the carpet, I use a little bumble bee maraca but when they are at their desks or working in groups I use an old restaurant bell (ya know, of the "order up!" variety), however what I really want is this Zenergy Chime Trio from Really Good Stuff. I imagine it must sound similar to the three chimes that are played in the movie Grease before the principal makes her announcements. That makes it a must have for moia.

8. Supportive/cute shoes-A great pair of shoes. Ya got to have a great and supportive pair of shoes when you stand all day long. Literally. All. Day. Long. I love my Danskos. I have lots of them. Might I suggest this adorable tapestry clog for the Fall?

9. Water Bottle-Finally, a huge refillable cup o water. This needs to sit on your desk. You might want a second for your reading table. Possible a third for your easel and carpet area. I'll leave that one up to you.

I hope you found some of this helpful! Happy weekend! I'm off to watch Fantastic Mr. Fox. One of my third grade book club groups chose this text this past year and we all loved it. It had been a while since I read it and I've been dying to see the movie. I don't know why, the books are always better!

A few changes to my classroom...photos

2011-06-23T18:21:00.001-07:00

I went in to my classroom today for the last time in June. I am officially taking a break until end of July(ish) before I go back to complete my set up. If you follow my blog, you know that I made a big move to a mobile before school ended and I have been fretting about space and setting up for some time now. Finally I just went in to school and some ideas just started flowing. Take a look at my last post (click here) to see some before shots.

Today I feel very accomplished. I set up my book shelves and switched out my old white book tubs for some new colorful ones. It brightens the whole room up.

Here are some photos...remember, my classroom is still in transition mode (BIG TIME). It looks so bland without any bulletin boards!

This first photo is my chapter book library. Isn't it pretty all dressed up in its new colors? I'm loving it. I just need to label the tubs now and they'll be ready. The shelves on the far left house my multiple copy books for reading groups. You may remember that in my old classroom I had mega storage near my reading table so this is a serious downgrade but I still have what I need.

This shelf houses my students independent reading tubs and reader's notebooks. I had my kids store these under their cubbies in my old room. That is not an option in my mobile. How perfect is this shelf though? I'm pleased with the way this worked out.

This tiny shelf houses some of my extra supplies such as rulers, glue, scissors and my Daily 5 bookmarks. It just fits so perfectly here. Not sure how I feel about the light brown wood next to the dark brown wood of the shelf though. Maybe that problem is too little to worry about for now. Maybe some spray paint?

I had major issues with my reading table set up today. I moved it about ten times before I settled on this. Luckily a friend of mine was at school today as well and she set them up for me in this way-Thanks Shelly! I got these cute cube chairs at Target to add color and whimsy to the space. Also, sometimes I have up to 6 kids in a reading group and I didn't think I'd be able to stash 6 regular chairs around this table. The cubes slide underneath and out of the way when not in use, creating a tad more space for readers to spread out on the floor. Pardon the messy table.

Last photo of the day...I need to get one more of these chrome shelves to store math tubs and I'll be all set. Three will fit just perfect on this wall. Right now I have math tool kits and math manipulatives on them. The blue tubs against my desk house my literacy work station materials.

Lastly, I created and purchased these on Vista Print today (thanks for the idea Miss. Powers). The first one is a large car magnet to place on my metal door to welcome students. The second one is a small car magnet to place on my whiteboard, where I record homework for kids to copy into their planners each day. Can't wait to get them!

I love the personal touch these signs will add to the classroom. I hope everyone is resting and enjoying their break in the midst of all of your professional reading and teacher projects. Happy early Friday!

Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere. ~Chinese Proverb

Classroom in Transition

2011-06-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

This past May, I moved all of my stuff to a mobile before school ended. I recently went in (with my two boys) just to check out the space and I couldn't help myself...I just started moving shelves around and unpacking some of my bigger tubs. I absolutely love peeking into other teacher's classrooms so I thought I would share my "classroom in progress" pics with all of you. I snapped these shots so that I can document the major transformation that will take place by mid-August on my classroom website as well. If you want to check out my classroom tour from this past year, click here.

So that you know what you are looking at, I wrote little captions under each photo. Here are the shots I took:

This first shot shows about half of my stuff. The size of the mobile is obviously smaller than my classroom so I had to take some tubs home. I labeled them very specifically though so that I could find things I needed at home and bring them in during major units.

My lovely easel. I'm going to create my group area over in the corner you see in this photo, near the window. That big kidney reading table needs to go though...I'll be using trapezoid tables this year to conserve space. I can't wait to show you all the finished product, I have some fun space saving ideas my kids are going to adore!

Desks stacked on top of each other...you know how that goes. You can also see my little red desk caddies that I relabeled in May to prepare for the Fall.

These hooks are going to work for backpacks, but does anyone know where my kids should put their jackets in the Winter? Anyone? Bueller?

These two tall brown shelves came with the mobile. I positioned them to create a reading nook. The tall one on the right will house my students independent reading tubs. The other will house the start of my chapter book collection. Notice the bland white tubs? Yeah, they are going to be leaving soon!

These shelves are mine, purchased from Walmart a few years ago for $15.00 each. I lined them up on the back wall to house my reading tubs. I haven't put the middle shelf in yet though.

Ahhhh, the teacher desk. It is a good size but has less storage than my old desk. I'm going to put one computer on my desk and try to keep it relatively clear so kids can work there as well.

Three storage units. Not too bad as far as storage. I'll dedicate one entire unit for student use. We'll store our math materials and text books here.

I got this chrome shelf at Walmart to store my math games last year but this year I am adding another unit (this time from Target) beside it to store some math manipulatives. I put the one shelf in front of my desk but ended up moving it before I left. Decisions, decisions.

Lastly, look what came in the mail for me today! Fun and colorful new book tubs! I've had my white tubs for so many years and to be honest, they held up fine but I wanted a consistent color scheme with all of my tubs. My IR tubs are the same colors-purchased two years ago. I debated whether or not I should buy the book tubs from Really Good Stuff or not. They were so pricey for as many as I needed. I found these at Oriental Trading. I am thrilled with the quality and payed way less. Woo hoo!

I'll keep you posted on the progress that I make throughout the summer, although I can't promise I'll be going in to school too many times, I am supposed to be on break (hee hee hee).

Math Work Stations...for 3rd grade

2011-06-18T09:18:00.000-07:00

First off I would like to thank whoever nominated my blog as one of your favorites in the Really Good Stuff classroom blog contest. I am thrilled to know that you find my blog useful! I am so very thankful that I found this tremendous community of educational bloggers who continue to inspire me every day.

There are so many great book studies going on right now but I couldn't be a part of them as I am working my way through a rather technical book about standards based grading-which by the way is extremely interesting and changing the way I've thought about grading for some time now! I did order The Book Whisperer and Math Work Stations and I read them in no time flat. I thought I would focus today's post on my reactions to Math Work Stations. I hope you find it useful, especially if you teach in the intermediate grades.

I have been reading Debbie Diller's Math Work Stations book for the past two weeks. I read her Literacy Work Stations book when I moved from first grade to third grade a few years ago and I loved it. I loved the idea of adding to stations rather than switching them out on a weekly basis. One of the key elements that Ms. Diller mentions in both of her books is that teachers must use the materials they put in their stations in class either as part of a mini-lesson or direct instruction prior to placing them in a station. The more we model, the better our students are able to practice with the materials appropriately. This also makes it very easy when you add materials to a station because the kids are already familiar with it and typically need a brief reminder (at least in third grade).

I use the Everyday Mathematics 3 program in my classroom (the 3 stands for the third revision of the curriculum). I have used it for many years and I am very aware of how much time I am going to be able to realistically devote to math stations...so I am making some adaptations to make it work in my own third grade classroom as I dive in this Fall. With all new things that teachers implement into their classrooms, much tweaking and change undoubtedly occurs as the school year progresses so please just take this post as my initial thoughts on how to integrate math stations as a useful new tool for my kiddos.

Storage and tub contents:

Debbie suggests approximately 10 stations, give or take some depending on your class size. I plan to start the year off with six, one for each mathematics strand. I am learning about standards based grading and plan to move towards grading achievement in each strand of math and reporting that out to parents in lieu of a traditional letter grade for an entire test. This makes sense to me as the checking progress tests (end of unit tests given in Everyday Math) test students progress and mastery on skills within these 6 strands. I am in the process of moving from a giant new classroom to a not so giant mobile and so making new tubs fit is going to be a challenge but one that I find necessary. I made these simple labels (grab them below if you use Everyday Math curriculum at any grade level) for each tub. The first unit of math in third grade is a complete review of all second grade skills in each strand, therefore I think I'll be able to add to each station tub quite quickly during the first weeks of math. I have lots of math books that I was worried about finding a home for in my new mobile but Ms. Diller suggests adding them right into the math station tubs...all I will have to do is determine which "math strand box" to place my book in after I read it to my class. Finally, if you are familiar with Everyday Math you may know that the program offers so many outstanding games that are built right into the main lesson. After I teach the games, they can be stored in the appropriate tub for future use. This is a change from how I have previously stored math games (see photo below) which I actually loved as well. Due to space, I've decided to relocate the games to the "math strand tubs" I am creating when appropriate. I'll let ya know how this idea works out. As the year progresses, I will make math talk cards with key vocabulary and "I Can" lists to tape to the inside cover of each tub (suggested by the author).

How I stored my math games last year:

Labels for my "math strand tubs": You may think these are simple labels and you'd be right! I am trying to redo my labels so all fonts match and are clearly visible without super cute clipart. I am going for a cleaner look...also I think due to space and clutter overload in my new smaller space.

Time frame:

I've decided that doing math stations only on Friday is simply not going satisfy me, however I just can't imagine being able to get to them on a daily basis. So I plan to use them on those days when the math lesson is shorter or when the cooperative group work doesn't take as long, or when students are asked to play a math game that I have already taught. If I've done a good job including other activities throughout the units, then I think I'll be able to use them often enough (2-3 times per week). In her book, Debbie provides amazing colorful photos of sample management boards teachers can use to show students what math stations to go to or if they will be meeting with the teacher on a specific day. These type of management boards are fabulous and work wonders with early primary kids but I moved away from them last year during literacy stations to give my big kids some freedom and choice and they loved it! I did create bookmarks to ensure students moved through my literacy stations rather than continuing to go back to the same one day after day. I may need to do something similar or perhaps use some magnets on my wipe board for those students who I want to meet with....still thinking this one through.

I don't have any photos yet of my tubs as I haven't been back to my mobile other than to take a few photos of the space and move some heavy shelves into place. I am very visual though so I will post some pics when I have some available. I would love to hear your thoughts on how you plan to implement math stations in your classrooms this Fall!

Sprucing up the kitchen

2011-05-30T17:17:00.000-07:00

Happy Memorial Day bloggers! I hope everyone enjoyed a fun filled day with your families. I spent my morning watching my amazing hubby run the Bolder Boulder 10K. Then we had a cookout and played around the house all day. I love days like these when we don't really have too much planned and we can run on our own time!

Since I'm officially off for summer break, I've decided to take on some much neglected areas of my home that I can improve upon. More specifically, clean up and organization projects. Today I tackled my under the counter nemesis...the tupperware cupboard!

Here is the before picture:

Seriously, now where did that top go?

Here is the after:

It is amazing what two super cheap organizers can do for a cluttered mess. I purchased some plastic baskets for the tupperware tops, one for square tops and one for round tops. Not too shabby if I do say so myself!

Next, I changed up the centerpiece on my kitchen table. Well, I added a centerpiece rather. Lately I've been wiping down the table after dinner and calling it good but since it is summer, I suppose I can muster up enough strength to place a pretty centerpiece back on the table after dinner.

Here is what I came up with:

I just added some rattan decorative balls and fake artichokes from Pier One to an old wooden bowl that I've had laying around. Pretty.

Tomorrow I am heading to an AddVantage math training (all week) and I am so excited. I'll post about it when I am officially a trained expert! Have a great week everyone.

My Summer Projects-nonteaching post

2011-05-28T15:42:00.000-07:00

Ahhhh! School's out for summer! My first official day of summer is Monday. I packed my whole classroom up the last week of school, little by little to prepare for my move to a mobile next year. On Friday, I checked out of school after some last minute work in our school's literacy room and A LOT of moving. I can overlook all of the moving though because I got to go out to lunch with some of my favorite ladies from school. I spent this weekend working around my yard, snapping a few photos of my blooming flowers and my new veggie garden (complete with hideous bunny proof fencing and big fat frog to protect the garden.

I have so many mini projects that I need to complete over the summer and while I do have some projects and ideas that I would like to work on for school this summer, I certainly don't plan on spending the entire summer in my classroom. Nope! For this reason, I think I'll go the route of some home decor/organization blogs I adore and post about my projects. You can choose to follow along or come back and visit me periodically through the summer and definitely in the Fall-I'll have a whole new classroom tour as I've moved to a new space!

Yikes! I'd better get those boys outside to water my garden.

OK, now on to my first organization project. You don't even want to see my to do list...sometimes I tend to get ahead of myself. So far, I've tackled my butlers pantry (ya know, that little area between the kitchen and the dining room for storage, etc.) It has stood relatively bare for at least two years and the cupboards have stashed piles of miscellaneous junk. I ordered the Daily Organization system from Pottery Barn and picked up some linen storage boxes from Target that fit the cupboards perfectly. I love it and it was so easy to install. I tend to mull over the idea of buying something for way too long. I've wanted to put the Daily Organization system up for so long so I finally just bought it. My hubby has claimed the first file as incoming and outgoing mail. How cute...a mail station. I'm trying to think of some other stations I can set up in my house. I'm thinking about a lunch station to keep all of my kids lunch box thingies in one place.

Technically, I'm not totally done with the cupboards yet. The fact that the little drawers with scissors, tape, stationary and cards, charging cords, etc. isn't labeled is really driving me batty.

So there you have it. One project down, ten more to go! Happy summer everyone.

Beginning or End of Year Graphing Activity

2011-05-22T12:26:00.000-07:00

Hi blogging buddies, sorry I have been missing in action lately. I have finally felt the stress of packing my classroom and getting ready to relocate to a mobile. That, combined with all of the other end of the year fun stuff such as report cards, field day, nighttime concerts and my own son's graduation, I pretty much flopped on the couch and zoned out after my boys were asleep. I have been catching up on my own blog reading all day!

As I was preparing for the Fall by printing out this set of graphs (grab them below) that I have my third graders complete in August, I realized that they might also make a great end of the year activity. In the Fall, I pair my students up by having them pick a dum dum lollipop out of a cute bucket. Then they find their flavor match (just make sure you have two of each flavor and make enough groups for your whole class) and start polling their classmates. It gets loud but who cares! It is a fun and interactive way for kids to get to know one another and review how to take and record data. Here it is the end of the year and we just wrapped up a unit on data landmarks. I think that I will have my kids complete these graphs once more (obviously they will be way more efficient the second time around, right?) but the focus will be on taking data landmarks on their graphs after all of the data collection. For example, I will have each group find the median (middle value), mode (most frequent response) and the big challenge...the mean (average). This will be more data than they have worked with in the past but I think it will be great to see how their small groups attack the challenge!

End of Year Freebie For My Friends!

2011-05-16T15:27:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday everyone! Something is on my mind today...my sweet 5 1/2 year old has had a difficult year in private kindergarten. So difficult that we actually moved him with only a few weeks left. Today when I picked him up from his new school, his teacher told me what a kind hearted, smart, sweet and well mannered little guy he was and I totally broke down crying. I realized it had been way too long since a teacher who worked with him had said anything positive about him. I think I'll take this as a lesson when I talk to other parents about their children. These kids belong to someone...they are someone's entire world and they deserve to know how special their kids are on occasion. Thanks for listening...I just had to shout that from the rooftop! My baby is a good, smart boy!

Happy early summer to us! I have 9 days of school left and I wanted to make sure that I sent my darling kiddos off with a special memory book this summer. When I taught first grade a few years back, I always had my parent volunteers bind memory books filled with handwriting samples, photos of special events, and special projects for a great end of the year memento. However now that I teach the big kids, I wanted them to have a mini year book in which they keep track of important events and most importantly, their friends special notes and signatures. I am tying up some loose ends with writing projects this week but next week in between field day and end of the year assemblies I will have my kids work on completing their third grade memory books.

This memory book is geared towards intermediate kids and provides lots of space for them to recall their most memorable moments this school year. I am happy to share it with all of you. I hope you have an outstanding last few weeks of school.

I found out today that I am moving into a mobil (we call them cabins...don't they sound so homey!) next year. I've always been fortunate to be in the building at the schools where I have worked. I would love to hear about how others make the most out the space they are given in a mobil, as well as tricks that have worked for you as far as sending kids in for bathroom use, etc. I struggle with change so I need to plan and think about classroom set up over the summer. I've decided that I will be purchasing all new borders (probably these ones) and fade-proof butcher paper from my local school supply store to make this move more appealing to myself. Maybe I'll throw in a new pair of shoes for myself too! Thanks everyone!

Spelling Sorts

2011-05-15T12:52:00.001-07:00

This year I tried something new that I loved! I premade all of my spelling lists for the year in the form of flashcards that can be sorted. I wanted to have a sort available for my students to do each week during Daily 5 time. I had this cute little stand and mini pocket chart lying around so I put it to good use. I propped it up right on top of my Daily 5 tubs which hold my materials. You can read more about my Daily 5 organization here.

At first I was storing all of the cards (36 weeks of cards!) in little baggies, but then I came across this mini file system at where else...Target. I just labeled each tab with a spelling week number and popped the cards in. My kids can change them out each week as I tend to forget. After the cards have been sorted, kids can then take them out of the pocket chart and use them to practice their words in their spelling journals, on spelling tiles, or to give practice tests to their buddies.

My goal for next year is to create another set for later in the week that follow similar spelling rules and patterns but allow kids to apply it to new words.