Thursday, June 20, 2013

Last Day and Brand New Freebie

Today is the last day for staff and then summer vacation is finally here!  It's been a roller coaster ride.   I have so much planned this summer there will never be enough hours to get it all done.  I do want to celebrate with the last day of school with a freebie I created.  I can't wait to post these in my room for the start of the next school year.  I really love them, and I hope you will too!








Tuesday, May 28, 2013

My Latest Brainstorm- Look, Say, Cover, Write, Check Wipe Off Books!

Thursday night I was in bed trying to fall asleep.  My mind was racing with things I wanted to make for next school year. (It's sort of an avoidance technique...avoid what needs to get done before the last day of school by thinking about what you want to do for September!)  I was thinking about how I wanted some activities for my students to do at the guided reading table while I was working with one student at a time.  Suddenly, it hit me!  If I bound the pages just right, I could make a booklet for them to practice their spelling or high frequency words that they can write on, wipe off, and covers the word they're practicing!  Somehow I managed to wait until morning to put the thing together.  It works like a charm!  The directions and an editable file are now in my TpT store.


Saturday, May 18, 2013

Too much to do! New Short Vowel Packet!

The end of the year is quickly approaching.  There is always so much to do!  We have our state science test next week that the AIS teachers have to help administer; our end of the year Fountas and Pinnell BAS; end of the year post tests for our SLOs; my artifacts for my APPR still have to be reviewed; and I still need on my more walk-through observation.  I'll be glad when everything is checked off my list!

I'm so excited to be working with kindergarten students for the remainder of the year.  Working with K students comes in a close second to working with first grade AIS students.  I wanted to make sure we really hit the short vowels and practiced cvc words, so I made a new set of beach themed cvc activities.  My students love them!  The packet is now available in my TpT store.  I would love if you checked it out.  If you do, you can download the sound mat for free when you click the download preview button.

Here are some pictures of what's in this fun set!










Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! Don't Miss the TpT Sale!

Wow!  It's May and it's already teacher appreciation week.  I can't believe that the school year is quickly coming to an end.  It seems like we were just trudging through snow and now the trees have most of their leaves.

Teachers Pay Teachers is having a huge teacher appreciation days sale.  My store is participating and you get 28% off all my items when you use the promo code TAD13.  This sale runs May 7th and 8th, so hurry over and check out the great deals.  I just added reading logs for first grade.  I've also made the first sight word packs for K and first grade free during the sale.  If you haven't checked them out, here's your chance.





I hope every teacher has a wonderful week.  Thanks for all you do!




Monday, April 22, 2013

Earth Day Freebie!

Happy Earth Day!  I hope your Earth Day is bringing you sunshine and warm weather.  It looks like we're going to see some sun and decent temps.  I have a small Earth Day freebie for you today.  It's a little graphic organizer perfect for prewriting or center work.  You'll find in my TpT store.  Click this link to go to my store to download the freebie!



Thursday, April 18, 2013

Earth Day and Earth Day Task Cards

I can't believe Earth Day is almost here.  April has been a strange month with spring break and testing.  We've had a few warm or almost warm days, but it still doesn't really feel like spring here in Upstate NY.  The boys and I did pick some daffodils last night to bright up the dining room, so I guess spring is starting to bloom a little bit.

I wanted to share with you my new Earth Day Literacy Center Task Card set and let you know about a great linky party happening at Confessions of an Undeniable Dabbler.  She's having a linky party for just Earth Day materials.  Check it out here!

Here's my Earth Day set available at TpT.




Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Congrats!

Congratulations to Colleen.  She was the winner of my first giveway.  Colleen, I've sent you an email!

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Backstage Passes Freebie

I love my backstage passes too much not to share them with you.  My kids loved them, and I hope yours will too.  Visit my TpT store to pick them up free for a limited time, and don't forget to enter my giveaway for an item of your choice from my store.



Saturday, April 13, 2013

Update on Testing Motivators and My First Giveaway!

I really wish I had remembered to take pictures of my students yesterday. They were thrilled with their test survival bags that were filled with their treats, water, and backstage passes. They loved the candy of course, but they thought the backstage passes were as they would say, "epic." I'm glad they liked them because they were my favorite part of the kit. I took their school pics and put them in the picture spot.

I thought it would be fun to run my first giveaway. I'd like to give a lucky winner the opportunity to win her/his choice of products from my TpT store. All you have to do is check out my products at TpT and become a follower of my store. The giveaway ends April 16, 2013. The winner will be announced here and notified by email.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Testing Prep Pack: Rock the Test

I wish I was a great blogger. It's been a wish of mine for a long time. Here's the thing though, I just can't seem to find the time to do it well. So I will have to settle for mediocre for now, until I figure out a way to manage my time better or find something to give up that frees me up to blog more often.

I did want to share with you my new pack that I made to help psych up my reluctant learners for our upcoming state tests. We've been on spring break for a week, and now we have just a week to go before the tests. I plan on using all these materials to gear them up. My fifth graders are always, always motivate by food. Their tween appetites amaze me! They're going to love the survival kits full of motivating messages and treats.

I've been invited to my first linky party! So once you've checked out my packet, check out some other fabulous products from other amazing teacher authors.

 

You can find the linky party here!