Tattling and Big Books!

Yesterday I posted about some of my classroom management techniques.  I accidentally left out one other thing I have in my classroom.  I have seen the Tattling Turtle in many primary classrooms and love how it eliminates tattling!  I didn't want to spend the money on the turtle so I created my own 'Tattling Teddy'.  My kids love him.  So far, they haven't written anything, but sometimes they tell Teddy what happened (instead of telling me)!  I love the time it saves.  I got the bear at the dollar store and the little note box on clearance at Target (it's actually a desktop trash can). 

Last year I borrowed big books from our school book room, but I didn't have any to keep in my own room. Translation: I never had to come up with a storage solution for big books!  This year I am fortunate enough to have a huge supply of big books that stay in my room!  They were in a storage closet and I wanted them out so we could use them as often as possible for shared reading.  I found that this lamper from Target works great!  Just a tip for those in need of a cheap solution for these awkwardly large books!