TeachersPayTeachers Gift Card Giveaway!!!!

It has been a CRAZY week.  We started back to school on Wednesday and it has been three days of get-to-know-each-other games, slide presentations over rules and procedures, handing out books, covering books, storing mountains of tissue boxes, hand sanitizer, and clorox wipes...you know the drill!

It's the weekend and we need a WELL DESERVED break!  What better way to relax this weekend than with a Back to School Freebie and Raffle?!?!?

Enter the raffle below by following my blog and commenting on your favorite back to school activity.  

Click on the picture below to get a Book Fair (Reading Fair)project FREEBIE (for a VERY limited time) until Sunday!!!!  
(Please leave feedback!)

Book Fairy

I just got back from an amazing reading conference where I came back to my classroom packed with an armful of books, freebies, and ideas!  And now I am busily preparing to implement them into my classroom!  

One of my favorite ideas, and one of the easiest, is the idea of having a "Book Fairy" visit your classroom!  As teachers, we all know our students' hobbies, likes, and interests.  So finding books for your students is as easy as picking a book off your bookshelf, sticking a book fairy card on top of the book (they will know it's from you), and sticking them on their desk for them to find.  

They may not read every book you recommend, but they will be encouraged to at least try.  And eventually, they will read at least one of the books you suggest!

Click on the picture below to download your FREE Book Fairy cards!

Still Celebrating...and Planning!

 

 

 

So...it's that time of year when you are getting ready for back-to-school!  Supplies are being purchased, classrooms are being readied, and those calendars for the upcoming school year are being handed out!  I like to fill in my planner right away so I at least FEEL like I am organized and on the ball! (If only!!!!)

 

 

So here is the 2016 Yearly Planner and Calendar!

Free for a limited time!

 

 

 

Just print it, 3-hole punch it, and stick in a binder!

 

 

 

Oh...and if you need the rest of 2015,

click HERE for last year's planner!

 

Happy Planning!

 



Boggle or Bust!

I have hopped on the Boggle Bandwagon and I am loving every minute of it!  My 4th graders are very excited about this new classroom activity and it has gotten pretty competitive in our room! 

I changed it up a bit from what I have seen around and made my own to add more letters, thus creating more columns and rows.  

We start a new Boggle Bash game each week.  Students have all week to fill a sheet with 25 words.  They know I tally the sheets by how many letters they use.  So they need to fill up their sheet with bigger words to win...the three letter words aren't going to get you the win!

When they are finished, the put their sheet in the Boggle Bash Box (a wooden toy mailbox - I think it is Melissa and Doug - that I purchased at a garage sale and painted).  The following Monday, I tally the sheets and declare a winner.

What does the winner get?  

They go crazy over a simple bottle of Powerade!

This week's Flash Freebie is this Boggle Bash game.  It includes the heading, letters, answer sheets, and directions.  

In case you were wondering, I use a Calendar Pocket Chart from Carson-Dellosa which fits everything perfectly.

Click on the picture below to get your Flash Freebie!

Classroom FREEBIES that are a MUST HAVE!

These are some of my new favorite FREEBIES that I think every A+ class can benefit from!

How do you get your students to write A+ sentences?

How do you get your students to turn in A+ work?

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How do you get your students to have A+ reading responses?

 

How do you get your students to treat each other with A+ respect?

 

 

How do you get  A+ student participation?

 

How do you get  A+ test results?

 

Our Family Fav Toys

Our family got some fun new toys this Christmas season and in holidays past.  Here are some of our favorite learning toys that can be played with at home or in the classroom!  These have been tested and approved by my own kiddos!  (and they can be tough critics!)

 

 

First up...and probably our #1 favorite...is our Snap Circuits!

This is the set we have...

It comes with a book that gives step by step instructions on how to create awesome circuits.  This is my 8 year old daughter doing it all by herself and getting my 1 year old son involved as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next up...our Learning Resources Gear Set.

We have the Light and Actions Set, however there are many different sets to choose from.

Again, my 8 year old can pretty much put the gears together on her own.  Sometimes she will ask for adult help because it can be challenging...but isn't the challenging part the best part?!?!?  How else do they learn???

 

 

Our set comes with an electric gear turner which my son absolutely LOVES!

Not all the sets do include this...so if you are planning to purchase...do your homework!

Our next favorite thing is our Laser Maze Game.

My 11 year old daughter actually prefers playing by herself and just making laser beams even though the game is met to be competitive between more players. 

   The idea is to get the laser beam to reach your target using a series of mirrored angles.  It is hard to see the beam in the pictures, but the piece with the red button on top is where the beam comes from and she is directing it to her target pieces below. 

Finally, our last favorite toy is the Lego Fusion.

 

The idea is to build a Lego home, take a picture with your iPad, and it uploads and becomes a virtual reality.

 

All they need to do is download the Lego fusion app, snap a picture (the app gives you hints), and play!

 

 

If I had all the funds I could ever hope for...I would buy each of these in bundles for the 4th graders in my room!  They would make AWESOME centers!  But for now, we settle for playing them in our home!

 

 

 

 

 

For our Friday Flash Freebie, let's ring in the New Year FROZEN style! 

 

 

 

This is a fun and easy prep writing craftivity...Perfect for New Year's Goals and Resolutions!!

 Students will write an essay on their goals for the year using the quote, "It's time to see what I can do to test the limits and break through" as a reflection. This Unit has student templates to fill in as they go through the writing process to get their final published piece perfect!

 

 Also included are templates that can be copied to make your very own "self-portrait" Elsa or Kristoff holding your essay!

Everything you need is included so prep is as easy as making some copies!

Common Core Aligned

 

Enjoy!