Fabulous Finds Shopping Spree!

I'm linking up with Elizabeth to show you some Fantastic Finds and a sneak peak into my newly redesigned classroom!  Head on over to Fun in Room 4B to link up!


So, I stalked Walmart {3 of them close to where I live} to find these ice bins to use as book bins for my students with Daily 5 Read to Self.  I think I ended up with 27 of them!  And I got every single one they had {in all 3 stores}!  Now to figure out where to house them...

Of course, the Target Dollar section got attacked by me - as always!  I found two purple small pocket charts, stamps, dry erase boards with primary writing lines (Daily 5 Word Work), pencils, stickers, and playing cards for math games.

Back at Walmart, I grabbed these two black bean bags.  I liked them because they were NOT fabric {lice}, but were a cool plastic material that hopefully won't house any crazy bugs. :)

And to reveal the beautiful baskets that I found at Dollar Tree...I also give you a sneak peak into my newly designed classroom!  Check out those baskets...LOVE the bright colors on black!  This is a preview.  I'll be back with pictures of my entire classroom in the next week or so.

And on to Vista-print.  If you haven't played around with this website yet, what are you waiting for?  Fabulous finds for cheap!  Here are a few of the things I purchased.

These are actually business cards that I made into Fantastic Friday tickets!  This is a way to rewarding students for good behavior all week.  I got 250 cards for FREE!

10 pieces of letterhead - I smudged my personal information out at the top and at the bottom. Got these for FREE too!

I ordered these to put on the backs of any new books that I purchase for my classroom - FREE!

These are business card sized magnets that I ordered to give to my parents at Open House.  I smudged it out but under my name is my email address and phone number.  At the bottom I listed the class website link.

Three personalized self-inking stamps...LOVE!



A pen that has my name on it and school's name!  Cute and matches my room's pink and lime green color scheme!

This is a close-up of the inside of the pen.  Under my name is the name of my school, but I smudged it out.  Did I mention this pen was also FREE?

Whew!  What do you think?  I love it all!!!  Head on over to Elizabeth's Fun in Room 4B Linky Party to join in the fun!

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Tell Me More, Tell Me More...Linky Party

I'm linking up with Amy Lemons over at Step Into Second Grade for her Tell Me More, Tell Me More Linky Party.

In the words of one of my sweet bloggy friends, "Let's talk about me for a minute."  Here are some interesting, weird, quirky, and hopefully fun things to learn about me.  AND to keep it a little more interesting, I embedded a cool pin from Pinterest to go along with each interesting fact.  Enjoy :)

1. First and foremost, I am a Christian.  My family goes to church every Sunday and we love having God as the center of our lives.  I LOVE this verse.

Source: via Jamie on Pinterest



2. I have a fabulous husband and we have a little boy who will be starting 1st grade this year!  Crazy how the time flies.  Fun part is...he'll be in the classroom right down the hall from me - one of the many perks of being a teacher in the same building as your baby {well, maybe not a baby anymore}.  BUT I am contemplating making this to put on my nearly 7-year-old's bedroom wall...

Source: google.com via Roberta on Pinterest


3. I am a Mac Geek.  Yes, in our home we have 2 iPads, 3 iPhones, a Macbook Air laptop, an iMac desktop, and even an Apple TV.  It's safe to say we could keep the great Apple company in business for years to come.  I'm pretty sure the pin below is the coolest thing ever - see, I told ya... gadget geek...


4. I have a friend {I won't call her out online, but she knows who she is} who speaks the blogging lingo.  For example, I can text her and say, "Check out The Teacher Wife's D5 Posters" or "You might be interested in Third Grade Thoughts Word Work Trio" and she totally gets it.  Now my husband... not so much.  He thinks we bloggers are our own little secret society :)




Source: 3rd-grade-thoughts.blogspot.com via Jamie on Pinterest 

5. I love the blogging and TPT world and probably definitely spend way too much time doing it, but I LOVE learning, collaborating, chatting, and discovering new things.  Education is my passion and with passion comes hard work.  I LOVE the quote below:











6. I love working out.  I have not had the time to this summer as I've been super busy finishing up my classes and preparing for presentations this summer, but during the school year, I love to exercise.  I wear a heart rate monitor that counts my calories when I work out and it makes me feel SO good to leave the gym knowing I burned 600-700 calories in an hour.  Awesome!




7. I love to read.  It's my "happy time", an escape into another world for a little while.  I read at night after the hubby goes to sleep.  I read in bed on my iPad.  If you have not tried this, you should.  I was one of those people who said, I think I need to feel the actually book in my hands.  Well, once you read a book on your iPad or other handheld, you will never go back to paper.  Convenient and awesome to read in bed without disturbing the dear hubby by having a light on.  Next on my reading list:




8. Quirks...I can't leave these out.  They make me me.  I won't drink out of a cup at a restaurant (must have a straw).  Most of the time I even ask for my drink in a to-go cup.  I won't sit on the inside of a booth at a restaurant either.  I'm a very picky eater, no slimy, mushy, weird textured foods.  I can't sleep unless I'm on my right side with my hand under the pillow.  I hate teeth.  Don't really like feet either.  Spiders make me scream, as well as mice.  I'm a night owl and can easily go on 5 hours of sleep.  My classroom is immaculate, while my house is a mess.  Laundry can pile up for days...don't bother me!  AND Pinterest says it's A-OK :)



Well, that's me in a nutshell.  My favorite clothing attire is jeans and a t-shirt with hair in a ponytail, little to no make-up.  I'll end my post with another pin that I just love and it totally fits the moment.

Source: facebook.com via Jamie on Pinterest


Now, it's your turn!  Let us know a little about you.  Link up with Amy Lemons by clicking the button below.  Have a great night!

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Monday Made-It....on Wednesday!

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For those of you following along, my presentation today went great!  No technology troubles and everyone seemed to enjoy!  So thanks for the prayers.

Now for my Monday Made-It.  I know it is NOT Monday, but I did make this on Monday so I'm linking up with 4th Grade Frolics....on a Wednesday.  :)

Before:


The plastic drawers, scrapbook paper, sponge brushes, and Mod Podge all came from Walmart.  I had every intention of using the Mod Podge to adhere the paper to the drawers, then I watched the video from Kinder Craze and decided to ditch the Mod Podge and use the tape!  I think they look pretty darn good!  So quick and easy!

After: 


If you have a Monday Made-It, click the button below to link up with 4th Grade Folics and share with us!


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Common Core Math Quick Assessments: 1st Grade Edition

Whew!  I am finally finished with the Common Core Math Quick Assessments: 1st Grade Edition.  I know there are many, many people waiting for this as you are beginning to plan for the upcoming school year.  I appreciate all the emails, comments, and messages.  I tried to get it done as quickly as possible.  Thanks for your patience.  You can check it out {HERE}.  It's the same format as the 2nd Grade version.


All four domains are covered for 1st Grade CCSS!

For my 3rd Grade friends, the 3rd Grade Edition should be up in the next couple days (hopefully tomorrow).  Thanks and I appreciate all your support through emails, TPT Q&A, and comments!  You guys are awesome :)
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Number of the Day/Daily Fix It {Freebie}

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Just sharing a FREEBIE this afternoon!  Use this printable as morning work or however it suits your needs. The top half will accompany your study of the calendar each day and the bottom half can be used as a Daily Fix It or DOL. I will be placing these in dry erase pouches for my students to complete each morning as morning work. Then we will check it, erase it, and do it again the next day! Hope you can use this in your classroom! :)

Click the picture below to download for FREE!


Graphics by: KPM Doodles and Fancy Dog Studio
Fonts by: www.kevinandamanda.com, http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Tracee-Orman

This printable was inspired by two fabulous ladies: The Teacher Wife and Lory Evans.  You can check out their versions by clicking their names.
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August Common Core Writing Activities

Writing.  Writing.  Writing.  Seriously one of my weaker areas in my instruction.  I decided I needed to go straight for the standards and start from there!  So here's my plan:  Each month, I am going to try to hit all 3 types of writing found in the Common Core PLUS the shared research also found in the Common Core.  I wanted it to be fun, creative writing, engaging, and authentic.  In the first month (August), the students will be writing about one summer event (Narrative), they will be writing a letter to their classmates telling their opinion of which classroom rule is the most important (Opinion), they will be creating a brochure to give to Kinder students to explain playground safety rules (Informative/Explanatory), and they will be researching and writing a letter to new students about the school and community (Shared Research).  Real authentic writing that is themed and fun!  I love it!

I have outlined the entire year of writing activities with each month being themed and with each month containing these four types of writing found in the Common Core.  I will be posting them as they are created.  I'm pumped and ready to teach writing bigger and better than I ever have!

Click on over to my TPT store {HERE} and join me :)


Those of you waiting on the Math Quick Assessments for 1st and 3rd, they are in the works I promise, but I needed to get this little unit done so that I'll have it when school starts back.  I got started and just couldn't stop until it was done.  I also have a classroom that I haven't touched....But we won't go there!  :o)
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New Blog Design - LOVE IT!

Oh my goodness!  Check out my new blog design - so excited!  I chose a pre-made design by Dreamlike Magic Designs and I love it!!  If there is someone out there in Blogland that has the same design, please forgive me.  I searched and searched through many, many, many blogs trying to make sure I wasn't duplicating a design from anyone.  I didn't find this one anywhere.  So if this is like yours, I am super duper sorry!!  If not, YAY and I hope you love it :)

This is my first post with the new blog design, so I hope the signature works down below.  I'm excited to see it!  AND if you have my button, please grab the new one to the right.
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