Grab Your Goodies! It's Time for the Big Sale!

Made it through another Monday! Hope you had a great day. Were you wondering about the big Teachers Pay Teachers sale? I sure was! Well, the big day is almost here! I will have all my items 20% off from Wednesday, February 26-Saturday, March 1. I'm extending it just in case you forget to check out on time! (Don't laugh . . . it's happened to me!)

I thought I would link up some of my products so you can quickly grab the goodies you want for your shopping cart! If you have feedback to provide, do it now so you can get credits to use for your purchases! I know my cart has $115 worth of stuff in it right now! Yikes! Hope I have some credits built up! Have fun!

An InLinkz Link-up

Traveling to Dublin, Ireland with Bella & Harry!

One of the best things about being a teacher is that I get to read children's books all the time! Some of the newest books I've come across are the 'Bella & Harry' books. 

Bella and Harry are 2 adorable Chihuahuas who travel to many interesting places and learn about the customs, history, and landmarks of that place. It's been really fun learning about other places, especially with the Olympics going on. The kids hear names of places, but don't really know where those places are or anything about them.

The newest book, 'Let's Visit Dublin' is just in time for St. Patrick's Day. In this book, Bella and Harry, take children on a trip to learn about myths such as leprechauns, fairies, and giants. Children will learn about the custom of kissing the Blarney Stone to obtain the gift of gab. They will see just where Dublin is on a map and learn about the physical features of Ireland, The Emerald Isle, and much more.

My kids are loving these books and can't wait for me to get more. Check out the other titles at BellaAndHarry.com. There are interactive games, worksheets, and teacher's guides to go along with most of the books as well. Tons of fun and educational to boot! 

Have a great President's Day!

                  

Look How Accountable My Kids are During Buddy Reading

Well, I told you I would give you an update of how our 'book buddies' were going and I thought a picture or two is worth a thousand words. Check out how engaged these kids are! I am so excited about how they are doing! They have really risen to the challenge!

Now that I've given it a go, I thought I would answer some comments I received in my previous post. So, here's what I've found out . . . so far! 


1. Elizabeth asked about how long it takes the kids to write responses. 

The kids haven't had any trouble writing the responses, at least yet, and I think that is because of a couple things. One reason might be because they are writing on a post-it and there isn't a lot of room to write. Also, they have a buddy working with them and my kids have been great at helping each other with the responses. At the end of the round, I have the buddies share their responses on the microphone. (They LOVE to share and it seems like they always do a better job when they know they are going to share.) I then have the kids staple the post-its together and put them in my note basket so I can take a peek at them later. (Just between you and me, they are never going to see those post-its again!)

2. Mrs. McElhinney asked if I have a list of books for various reading levels. 

I searched all over the internet looking for lists of books that address reading strategies and found a ton of great lists. Then, I picked out the picture books I already had in my book baskets to use in the buddy bags. Even though the books aren't ability leveled, they are working out great and the buddies are helping each other out when one of them gets stuck!

Have a great day at your party if you aren't snowed in! I'll be thinking of you on your crazy day! Hope you'll be thinking of me!

Trying to Keep My Kids Accountable While Buddy Reading

A couple weeks ago, my principal came into my room and the kids seemed to be doing a fabulous job at Daily 5 while I was teaching reading groups. I got a good evaluation, but also had a comment about a couple of boys buddy reading, who weren't bothering anyone, but who weren't really engaged either. Well, I don't know about you, but that just isn't okay with me!

So, I decided to come up with a way to get them actually reading with each other AND actually thinking about their reading. This video will give you an idea of what I have in mind.

I'm planning on starting this in my room tomorrow, so I will let you know how it goes. I think it is going to work well . . . but as you know, things don't always go the way you plan!

Have a great week and be warned . . . February 14th is coming and not only is it party day, but it's Friday . . . oh, and it is a full moon! Yikes! Hang on tight, it might be a rocky ride!

'Everyone Loves a Gift Certificate' Giveaway

It's true, isn't it? Everyone does love a gift certificate. Especially teachers! If you do love gift certificates, then this is the contest for YOU! You can win: 

• a $25 gift certificate to anything on {Teachers Pay Teachers} - 2 winners!
• your choice of any single item from my {store} - 2 winners!

Here are some of the new items I've added recently if you haven't had the chance to visit my store lately! Of course, you don't have to choose one of these, you can choose ANY single product you want!

Have fun looking around and best of luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

                         

Kids are Funny!

This winter has been rough, but we actually 'almost' had a normal week of school last week. You always think you want snow days or 2-hour delays, but it really messes with the rhythm of your classroom! 

On one of our 'normal' days, I had my kids using their little {Reader's Notebooks} to create images of their reading. This picture just cracked me up. Do you know what this little girl was trying to show me in her picture? (don't read it yet!) 

Get your head out of the gutter . . . she was showing that the girl  in the story had an idea! Too funny! 

So, who do you think will win the Super Bowl? I am hoping the Broncos . . . You know how we Hoosiers LOVE us some Peyton Manning! To celebrate, I decided to put {my store} on sale, so be sure to come over and clean out your shopping cart!

Oh, and be sure to check out this {SWEET Link up} for February Freebies! 

                        

If you haven't checked out the {Who's Who and Who's New Blog} yet, you need to put that on your list of things to do! There are amazing posts that go out each and every day and you will not want to miss out on all the great information!                                

Playing Minecraft Games to Writing Minecraft Stories

So, every day when I go to school, I have kids telling me all about their adventures on Minecraft. Well, I had no idea what Minecraft was, so I decided to do a little research. 

Well, I found out about it and decided to make a writing packet for my kids to write about their adventures instead of just telling me about them every morning.

We all know that teaching the CCSS is important, but we have to motivate the kids to actually do the writing. Well, this Minecraft pack really got the creative juices flowing! 

I had a mom helper help me with the cutting, so it wasn't too bad! LOL! I got a sectioned platter (from Dollar Tree, of course), so the kids could dump the different pieces out and see them better.

If the kids can't decide what characters they are going to use, they can spin a spinner to help them choose. The kids have a guide to walk them through the writing process. Check out this short video and see the spinner in action. Oh, and check out the excitement!

The kids use this reference sheet to walk them through the writing process.

The kids find the background that is 'just right'!

Aren't these pictures great? 

K is a bit excited to tell me all about her story.

I'm telling you . . . the key to great writing is MOTIVATION!

And, what is more motivating than Minecraft? Get your Minecraft Crazy Kids writing now and get ready for excitement! If you'd like to pick up your own copy, just click the {pic}!

Primary Research Projects and Back to School!

Well, I made it through my first day back after 3 full weeks off for winter break. I know you probably don't feel too sorry for me, but let's just say a 45 minute nap at 4:30 was desperately needed this afternoon! Actually, the kids were great and jumped right back into our routine. It was like we were never gone!

Before break, my team and I decided to do a research project since we had been reading the book 'Greetings from Route 66' in reading. So, of course, I had to get it organized to make it work for our kids. Each of the classes chose different states and the ones my kids ended up with were {Illinois}, {Kansas}, {Nevada}, {North Dakota}, and {Virginia}. Here's the way it went:

Easy-to-read, small booklets for kid to use to research their state.

Easy-to-read and easy-to-assemble booklets to help students research their states.

The kids did a great job and had a wonderful time researching their state with their groups. If you'd like to give it a try you can check out the {pack with all 5 states} or pick up the pack for your favorite state {Illinois}, {Kansas}, {Nevada}, {North Dakota}, or {Virginia}.

Do you think I should make booklets for other states? If so, what states should I work on next? 

Thanks for stopping by! Oh, and don't forget to check out my new blog {Who's Who and Who's New} to read a new educational article by amazing educators each and every day! I have learned so much already and we just got started January 1, 2014!