3rd Grade Thoughts

Stephanie is the blogger/teacher behind this creative blog.  I tell my 1st grade students how important presentation is when you are writing....her blog header is a great example.  It totally caught my eye! I absolutely love it!

When you get past the header, you will love what is beyond...fun resources and ideas for teaching 3rd grade.   Her most recent post is her Top 10 From 2014.  A perfect place to start to find the wide array of resources she has created and tips she gives for teaching 3rd grade.

Class Management and Organization are some of the largest topics Stephanie covers.  She has a classroom that is so stinking organized...could she come do mine please?!

It is all so neat and tidy...but what about when the students walk through the door? Well she has some great classroom management resources as well.  These posters are great and they come with anchor charts as well.  Not only useful in 3rd grade, but I use them in 1st. 

She also has some wonderful resources for building your classroom climate as well.  I can't begin to show or tell you about everything...you will just need to visit her blog or stop by her TpT Store as well.

Day 19 Fern Smith's Classroom Ideas

It has been a long two weeks.  It seems hard to believe that this was the same amount of time that we just had off for Christmas break.  These past two weeks seemed a whole lot longer.  Don't you think so?

But now it's Saturday morning! And to make this one even sweeter, it's a 3 day weekend!  So what fun plans do you have for your weekend?

To start my morning, I am on the search for more teacher blogs.  It's not hard to find them...it's harder to keep track of them.  Pinterest is great for that.  I always tag my favorites that I want to go back to on my board. But I started my 365 Blog Hop Challenge to get to know more of my blog neighbors and to be able to find them again.

If two weeks flew by, then my three day weekend will be gone in a blink of an eye!  Especially with all that I have to do this weekend....

My weekend will include:

• Sleeping in (I got up at 7:00 instead of 5:30 -- woohoo!)
• Adding blogs to my 365 Blog Hop Challenge
• Staying warm (it's 9 degrees outside right now at 8:30 in the morning)
• Finish grading the assessments I gave last week
• Start my report cards
• Taking pictures at my friend's daughter's 18th birthday party
• Adding more blogs to my 365 Blog Hop Challenge
• Working on my report cards
• Watching the 49ers game
• Finish lesson plans for the next two weeks
• Making the program for our Cheer Competition next weekend
• Working on my report cards
• Paying the bills :)
• Turning the pictures I took at the birthday party into a photo book on Shutterfly
• Working on my report cards
• Catching up on the laudry folding

So now you see how a 3 day weekend can fly by?  Goodness....just looking at that list makes me feel like it's already Monday night!

I think I will get back to the fun part of my weekend...looking for blogs...

This is the one I was hanging out on this morning.  Her blog is called Fern Smith's Classroom Ideas!  Fern is from Florida and teaches 3rd grade. She was even chosen as teacher of the year at her school...so her co-workers know what a treasure she is. She has lots of fun ideas and freebies and items on her blog and in her TpT and Teacher's Notebook stores that you and your students will just love!

I have to admit, one of her posts just stopped me in my tracks...

Read what it says under the picture!

Yes, this is the top of her desk when she leaves school everyday.  This is what I have always wanted to achieve, but have never been able to accomplish!  I just love the 3 hole punch next to it all.  Maybe if I had that on my desk it would help me stay organized...lol.

Nope, organization is just something I have to keep striving for...I don't think it is what I will ever attain 100%.  I just have little windows of hope!  But Fern, you are amazing!!  Not only do you create awesome units and activities...but you probably know where they all are! lol

Finding Places

It's hard to start over in a new classroom that has a different configuration.  It would probably be easy if I was going to an identical room, but life is never so perfect.  And actually, my old classroom wasn't all that perfect.  Now that I think back on it, I've had a lot of imperfect classrooms.  The closest to perfect was the last classroom I had at Ridgewood.  LOTS of storage...I would give one of my kids to get that kind of storage again.  Well, maybe not since we've put so much money into them thus far. lol

But when little things happen that just fit...it's like I'm almost brilliant.  :)

Case in point....

I had two ways I kept my 'stuff' organized.  One was in binders in plastic sleeves for easy copying and storing.  Each month had a different binder.  It is really handy.

Then I also had those Costco milk boxes for storing the things that wouldn't fit in the binders.  It was handy too.  I had a big shelf in my closet that they were all stored on nice and neat and in order.

But then I moved classrooms and didn't have a nice big shelf any longer.  So as I was frustrated yesterday because one of the file cabinets didn't have those metal racks for holding hanging files...I got an idea...

I though that maybe these would fit in there...and looky, it does!  Just right!!  And almost organized too. :)

In the Middle of the Mess

Moving, unpacking, sorting, re-organizing...that is how the last few weeks have been.  Just plain crazy.  And this new school has an alarm system that I can't wrap my mind around yet so  I have only been there while the office staff is there--which of course never seems like enough time.

 But it's starting to look like a classroom.  with a cozy little reading area...

The 1st graders love these chairs. They are covered in that soft corduroy and they are big enough for two of them to sit together.  I found them last summer at Walmart for $10 each.  It has been well worth the money!

 A writing center with all the supplies at their fingertips...well they will be soon enough.

 

Notice my bulletin boards.  They are all covered with fabric.  I love it so much more than the rolls of paper. Even "fadeless" paper seems to fade.  But the fabric stays vibrant and I leave it up all year.  Plus it doesn't show the pushpin and staple holes like paper does.

Then there is the always favorite computer center.  I will have to get rid of these chairs.  They are like 6th grade sized and the three chairs don't fit together under the table...I see problems this could cause down the road.

You see the white tubs next to the computer center? That's my math.  I hate this math.  It takes up so much room for storing it.  But you will see more of these tubs around the room.  They are my hidden storage bins.  Most of them have a little fabric table cloth over the top to camouflage fancy them up.  I thought my last room was bad, but there is less storage in this room. 

This is my meeting area...it's still in progress.  I don't like the way my math wall is coming together yet.  And I'm still missing my little table that goes up front.  My dear husband is sanding off all the old paint and layers of ugly contact paper and repainting it for me.

Here are my desks...I mourn the loss of my tables in my last school.  Perhaps if the levy passes I can get some again.  Desks are dirty (they shove all sorts of stuff in them), they are uneven and most of all they take away the feeling of being a group.  They are all individuals pushed together...not the feeling I try to instill in them.

Next problem....managing all my books.  After teaching for almost 20 years, I have gained quite a collection.  I don't fault myself for this, but I do have to work around this 'problem'.  I guess on the list of top problems--a first grade teacher having more books than her students could read in a year--isn't too bad. :-)

My  husband is also making me an extra shelf for that bookcase so I can put another row on it.  

The math center...still a dumping ground at this point...give me a few more days to tackle this corner.

More pretty fabric to brighten up the blah white walls...

Not the fanciest curtains I've ever made but they make a nice color splash over the backpack/coat hooks.  Behind it is a big shelf with tons more books (my monthly stash is hidden back there...I have to save a few 'new' books to share each month to keep my readers inspired.)  I also have more boxes of things stored up there as well.  Oh yeah, and the 5 sets of Anthologies that go with the Scott Foresman reading curriculum for our district.  They take up half the shelf all on their own!

More books...these come with the classroom.  I'm trying to figure out how to store them for easy use as well.  One of my problems with this classroom is the heating system.  It's baseboard heaters.  So we can't put anything that's not metal near them.  I am trying not to stress out our wonderful building custodian...but I'm also trying to stretch the limits a bit as well!

This is the one and only closet.  It's stuffed full in an organized way.  It should be better as the supplies get used up.  This school isn't one that instills hoarding.  In my last school we were taught to hoard our supplies in our classroom.  In this school, they have a supply room that is stocked and not locked!  So I may be able to clean out a few boxes soon.

"If the Levy passes"....that's how many sentences begin around here.  But if it does, this wall will become a whiteboard.  Then it will be the 'front' of my room because 'if the Levy passes' you will also see a projector hanging from the ceiling from in between those ugly  light fixtures.  Which would be a good thing because I have a document camera (Elmo) collecting dust until it does.

                                     

This is a good sign...empty baskets and boxes!

These are the bad signs....

My desk and my reading table are still full of piles!

Well soon I will be done...I have to be because the new group of 1st graders will be walking in the door in just over a week!

Discovering Pinterest

I have just figured out this Pinterest thing.  It is the current rage!  For each holiday or season or topic I have a Pinterest Board and I'm posting fun stuff on it that I find on the internet.  I figured this could be a useful way to find a lot of things quickly, plus it's a better way for me to keep track of what I found online and where.

I don't know about you, but I get so lost blog hopping and I have no idea where I started and where I'm trying to go.  Then I find some really cool idea and I can't find it again!  So Pinterest is helping me out...hope it helps you too!

Here is my Pinterest Board:  Life in Idaho

Summer Planning

For teachers, summer means rest...

NOT!

I am sure there are some that rest, but I have a hard time kicking back for long.  My mind is constantly wrapping around new ideas that pop into my head.  Many happen during the morning shower...lol...but more often it's when I'm in the garden, or driving in the car, or laying my head down to go to sleep at night.

It's funny how they tend to pop out of my head when I have something to write on or when I sit down at my computer!

But I love Pinterest and my bookmark folders.  They are my saving grace.  I find things and can save them for when I have more time to dive into the depths of my thoughts.

Here is one that I actually first found two years ago...yup, thank goodness they sent me an email the other day to remind me that I had liked the site and its possibilities.

Planbook.com

I have to change school sites for the upcoming year.  It's not as close to home and it's in another town...which I won't have a reason to pop into over the weekend.  Oh, and that school has an alarm system that I don't want to have to disarm...ugh!  So most of my work will be done at home on the weekends.  My DH will be happy about that.

One of the things that drive me crazy is my lesson plan book.  I buy one each year.  I write everything in it and rewrite each week.  I hate having to add everything to every page by hand.  For someone who likes organization and making the best use of my time...it is like a thorn in my foot!

There are few reasons why I'm going to give it a try this year:

1. The lesson plans I set up in Publisher have to be reformatted for the schedule in my new school (so this is the perfect time to try something new)
2. I like to leave my lesson plan book at school...but now school is farther away.
3. I can share my lesson plans with my principal, other teachers or even a substitute if I get sick.
4. It allows me to include the CCSS on my plans.
5. If I have to change something...it is really easy and quick...I won't have to have sticky notes everywhere in my lesson plan book.

So I'm going to try it.  You can try it free for 30 days and if you like it, it only costs $12 for a year of use.  I will let you know how it goes...I suppose I should go get busy on  my lesson plans now :)

I need a new bag

My favorite teacher bag died last year.

This sweet little pup of ours took a fancy to the leather handles. Perhaps it was retaliation for this picture...or the fact that she had a bath.  I'm not sure, but I lost my favorite bag.  

It was just the right size.  Big enough to take home some work, but not so big that I took home more than I had time to do.  So it was perfect.

Now that I have time...I'm searching for a new bag.

So now I'm searching....if you happen to come across my blog, and you have a favorite bag, please let me know what it is and where you found it.

In the meantime...

Pinterest has helped me a bit...Here is a Pinterest page full of Teacher work bags/totes. 

This is what my first bag looked like:

It is the extra-large one.  It's monogrammed with my maiden name and came from LL Bean.  It was a gift from my master teacher and the first class of 4th graders all signed it.  It holds a lot...way too much!  It has a lot of sentimental value, but I don't use it to carry school stuff anymore.  Now it holds a whole bunch of yarn!

I've had an assortment of bags since, including the medium size LL Bean tote bag.  I have even resorted to using one of those reusable grocery bags!

But now I'm ready to be more organized.  One of the things that all my previous bags have had in common is that they were just a big bottomless pit of a bag.  Everything got lost in it!  I hate to admit how many times I've lost those important surveys, evaluations or letters that needed posting in it!

Here are a couple that I found interesting....

This one is from Really Good Stuff.

I like the file idea, but I'm not too keen on the outside pockets.

The 31 Organizational Tote has come up a lot in other teacher blogs:

It comes in some fun designs and fits one of those plastic stand alone files.  It also has some outside pockets....one of my sticking points.

Then there is the rolling thingy...

This is from Educational Insights.  The rolling thingy is a good idea if you are the kind of teacher that takes way too much home with them at night.  Are there teachers who don't take too much stuff home?  Could you give me a tip on that too?

Well...I will keep looking in between doing all the things on my summer bucket list.

Hope you are staying cool where ever you are...it's even hot up here in North Idaho!