Where Have You Been?

Hey there. Sorry I haven't been around much lately but I have been busy for the last few weeks trying to get my classroom ready for my students. The air conditioning is not working too well so it was rough in the heat but somehow I pulled it all together and thought you might like to see some of my projects.

The theme in my room is Pete the Cat so I did a board with shoes that have the names of our students on them. This is not quite finished but you get the idea. The banner looks really nice and brings out the colors in the room.

I have lanterns hanging over each set of tables and Pete is hanging off of them with a label. This is an easy way for children to identify where to go.

I redid the bucket seats that I made last year because they were used each and every day and were pretty filthy by the end of the year. I saw these fabrics in Walmart and could not resist them since they match the room perfectly. Each seat only cost 2.00 to redo and it was a huge improvement. I covered these right on top of the original fabric, using a staple gun! Easy.

My husband was sweet enough to make mini anchor charts for me and I have one on each set of tables for the children to use when needed. They are color coded to match the color of the lantern hanging above it. This makes it easy to keep all materials in the right place. The anchor charts are covered in duct tape as an inexpensive way to change up the color. I cannot wait to try these out.

I did a lot of reading on "discovery bottles" and made a wide variety of them for various concepts. I will do a whole post on this. Most of my bottles have colored rice in them but a few have colored popcorn which is another fun item to use. I think the kids will adore these and they took very little time to put together. Now let's not discuss what my kitchen looked like!  Be sure to hot glue the lid so nothing can spill out... not a step you want to forget!!!

I used Voss plastic (not the glass) bottles because they are sturdy and it is easy to remove the labels. I made a color coded label on top so students could identify them easily. Each bottle has a recording sheet to keep them engaged and they could be used with a partner. I made lots of them because they look so colorful and appealing. 

Our district has been providing PD on growth mindset and I made some things to hang in the room to support the ideas I want to work on this year. IKEA has beautiful frames in a variety of colors which will make these stand out in your classroom. They are just a few dollars. 

I also made some small cards that will trigger conversations at our morning meeting related to growth mindset. I think it is well worth the time to talk about these ideas and build understandings. 

Well that is just a hit of what I have created but part 2 of this post is on it's way shortly. 

How is your room shaping up? I have a tiny room with old furniture so it is nothing glamorous but I am hoping our students will still find it appealing. I cannot paint walls or furniture but we all do the best we can with what we have.

I hope your year is wonderful and you build a community of learners who work well together. 

Can You Believe It?

Tpt is busy helping teachers get ready to go Back2School and one of  my Chalkie friends created this darling sale button to rock your teaching world. My entire store is on sale and guess who has a few new products? Yup, do not fall on your face.
Check these out girlfriend:
Click on a picture to "shop till you drop."

I hope you find some packets that will help to make your year easier. I work really hard to make these packets worth your money and filled with content that is useful for young learners. Please click right here for my Teachers Pay Teachers Store and remember all of this has been carefully aligned to the CCSS.

Have a wonderful start,

Fran Kramer 

Literacy Gems: Make Learning Fun

Can you believe it? I actually created another packet that I really love. How many of you have been making letter gems to use in your classroom? They are all over the internet. I decided to make a packet that used these gorgeous gems to make word work throughout the year more fun for the kids. As an extra bonus I threw in a few math activities just because... Do you want to check this out? Take a peek at this.

In this packet I show you how to make the gems with photographs to help support my directions. They are easy to make and hopefully you won't go crazy and make endless amounts... just sayin'.

I also give you advice about organizing these treasures (maybe I was a pirate in a previous life) so they will be easy to manage.

This packet also included cards (many, many cards) that provide students with word work practice that is more fun and more engaging than what I typically provide. Who knew it could be so much fun? Lots of skills are covered, from letter identification to cvce words. Sight words are included and building sentences is included too.

Many teachers have told me they like having related response sheets and I recommend using this for assessment purposes or homework. Good idea, right? Use them anyway you want. They too me a long time to create but I plan on using this packet throughout the year. I might have to make more sets of gems which are quick and easy to do my way. * This packet has word and vowel gems in case you need them. You can't have too many!

I am going to let my students use these gems and cards with a partner. I really believe that students grow faster academically when we allow them to use a collaborative model. These cards lend themselves to this and would make partner work so much more engaging. So if this "floats your boat" click on the picture below and it will take you right to the TpT mall so you can shop. Yup the sale is on until the end of today so what are you waiting for?

CLICK BELOW

Happy Teaching friends!

What's New In My Store With A FREEBIE!

Hi there friends. I have been working on several products for my TpT store over summer break and I finally have a few to show you. This is Spotlight on Numbers which can be purchased in my TpT store. Take a look at these pages to get a sense of what is included. 

My students are addicted to bingo daubers and will do anything to get one in their little hands. Does that sound familiar. Daubers are beginning to show up in lots of places now but I particularly like the ones in Dollar Tree and at the Target Dollar Spot. I found Darice Bingo Markers in a Teacher Supply Store and they were fairly inexpensive. You can purchase them at Amazon too. 

Here are some photographs of this product so you can see  actual pictures in "real life." Students make their own Number Book which focuses on numbers from 1-20. It has been carefully aligned to the Common Core, just so ya know!

I thought it might be fun for you to have an actual page from this packet as a freebie and what page could be better than one with my friend Pete the Cat! Right! When you click on the picture below you will be able to download this document. Please do not forget to leave me a comment too. Thanks for being a friend.

If you would like to purchase this packet at my TpT store grab it while the sale is on right here. Thanks so much for doing so. 

Now if that looks great for Back to School work check out this related packet:

This is the Alphabet version of this packet and I open up the year with this packet. It is perfect for the beginning of the year. If you grab it today or tomorrow you can have it for just a few dollars while the sale is going on. Are you in? Click here to get this product.

Cheers to the start of another school year. Remember that they come in as preschoolers and go out as first graders. Don't forget to reassure them and let them play. School can be scary for many of them but they are lucky to have you as their teacher. Teach like your hair is on fire!