A Pinterest Inspired School Project!

In my classroom we love making class books!  My kids love making them and they REALLY love reading them!  We've been mastering syllables lately so I combined 2 ideas from Pinterest to create a new class book!

Here is my inspiration:

Source: larremoreteachertips.blogspot.com via Emily on Pinterest

Source: emmi.co.uk via Emily on Pinterest

We have a binding machine at my school but the pages always fall out of our class books and it is SO tedius putting the pages back into those plastic spirals!  I decided to give this (free) option of binding a try!  All you need is a paperclip (or a few) and rubber bands!  It didn't work out as well as I would have hoped, but so far, it's holding up pretty nicely in our classroom library!

As you can see, I had to improvise and use small paperclips (I'm totally out of the jumbo right now)!  It still worked ok and we just had to talk about why it's important that we do NOT mess with the special binding! :)

A DIY Valentine's Day Treat!

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!!  As a lot of you know, I teach intervention (reading and kindergarten).  Because of this, I haven't planned any Valentine's "parties" since my students will already be exchanging cards and treats in their homerooms.  I still wanted to do something small for my kids so I decided to make a little Valentine treat!


I saw this idea a long time ago for teacher appreciation week and I loved it! Who doesn't love s'mores?!


Make Your Own S'more Goodie Bag (supplies are for ONE bag, multiply as needed)
2 graham cracker squares
1 jumbo marshmallow
1 miniature Hershey bar
1 gift bag
1 gift bag tag/label

All of my supplies cost $10 and I made 24 bags!  I found the Valentine's gift bags in the Target dollar spot.  (Where else?!)  I made my own labels on Word and it was super easy!  The front of the label says "We need S'more students like you!"  The back of the label has instructions on how to prepare the s'more:

"Place one graham cracker on a microwave safe plate, top with chocolate and a marshmallow.  Microwave on high for 12-15 seconds or until marshmallow doubles in size.  Top the marshmallow with the remaining graham cracker.  Press slightly to secure.  Enjoy your gooey chocolate treat!"

Here are my supplies all ready to be assembled:

 Folding the labels during parent-teacher conference night:

 The finished product:

Such a fun and easy treat for the students!  I also had a few extra supplies left over so I could make a s'more for myself, yum!

We're also reading some Valentine's books today/this week....

 

I hope you like Papayas.....

Because according to the Bump, Baby Carson is going to be the size of a Papaya for the next 4 weeks!  That's no fun!  To be honest, I don't think I've ever tried a papaya.  They sound yummy and tropical, but this picture makes me not want to try one anytime soon!

 

 

How far along? 22 weeks!

Total weight gain: I would say 5-6lbs.  My belly really started to show this week and even my "big" pants are getting pretty tight! 

Maternity clothes? Not yet but in the VERY near future.  I scoped out some jeans at Target but I want to check around..... (scroll down for a new bump picture!)

Stretch marks? no

Sleep: Sleeping great still....just a bit cold thanks to this Ohio weather!

Best moment this week: Telling my kindergartners about the baby.  They're BEYOND excited!  (Scroll down to see details...)

Miss Anything? A few times this week I wished that I could go get a delicious HOT Starbucks drink.  I know I technically can, but I'm not going to.  Also could go for a dip in a hot tub right now.  (Starting to notice a pattern?!)

Movement: Carson used to move mostly in the evenings but now he moves all throughout the day.  This past Sunday, my mom and sister were able to feel him move!!!

Food cravings: At this VERY moment: salty snacks.  I think I might eat some Chex Mix. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!

Gender: Baby BOY Carson!

Labor Signs: No

Symptoms: Nothing new.

Belly Button in or out? innie...hopefully forever....eek!

Wedding rings on or off? on still...very loose this week due to the COLD weather!

Happy or Moody most of the time: Super happy! I can't help but smile when I feel Carson moving around in there!Looking forward to: Getting started on the nursery.  I think we have finalized a paint color!

 

Does my shirt look psychodelic on your computer too?!

 

So this week I finally decided to tell my kindergartners why my belly is expanding.  Last week we read Our Teacher's Having a Baby and it went RIGHT over their head.  I honestly thought it would be loud and clear, but it wasn't so I had to come up with a plan B.  I got another book Biscuit and the Baby.  Before reading the new story to my kiddos, I wrote a special morning message.  I told them that I had big news for them and gave them one clue (a drawing of a baby).  Of course, they had NO idea what the baby was.  Guesses included snowman, toy in a stocking, clown, etc.  I never said I was the best artist, ok?!  After the failed guessing game, we read the book and I told them to think about what the clue might be.  They came up with the idea of a baby, but it took them quite a while longer to figure out what that meant.  When they finally got it, they were SO excited and had so many questions.  We practiced tally marks and made guesses on whether I am going to have a boy or a girl.  (Most voted boy so they'll be excited to find out they were right when I tell them tomorrow!)

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!

A Very Pinteresting Post!

Classroom B (afternoon) Update:  If you read my post from Monday, you'll know I didn't have the best day.  Thank you for the very sweet comments I received!  The days have gotten MUCH better maybe because the student who threw up still hasn't come back to school.  I think my kids are starting to adjust to their new schedule and staying a full day at school.  So far we've been doing a lot of reading and word work activities.  Today we talked about jobs and responsibility and everyone received a classroom job.  We read Mr. Griggs' Work and Firefighters A to Z.  Tomorrow we're reading Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes and talking about our names and the letters in our names.

Now since it's Wednesday, I'm linking up with Michelle of The Vintage Apple this week to share some fun Pinterest finds of mine!  This week I'm focusing on my Home Decor & DIY Board. 

Love the colors in this room!  So simple and chic.  I'd probably add a pop of color with the pillows!

Source: roomzaar.com via Emily on Pinterest

Awesome gallery wall idea!  I love the shelves....no need to worry about hanging pictures straight!

Source: twotwenty-one.blogspot.com via Emily on Pinterest

Organization!  Wish I had somewhere to do this....

Source: iheartorganizing.blogspot.com via Emily on Pinterest

Wrap twine (or yarn) around mason jars, spray paint, remove twine, insert tea light.  Gorgeous!

Source: markmontano.typepad.com via Emily on Pinterest

Window Seat = <3

Source: catalanoinc.com via Emily on Pinterest

This is the paint color I just bought for our living room!

Source: decorpad.com via Emily on Pinterest

I need this blanket NOW!  So comfy :)

Source: elmueble.com via Emily on Pinterest

Make sure to click the button on my right sidebar and follow me on Pinterest!

FREE Scholastic Books!

Hey Teacher Ladies (and Teacher Men a.k.a. my silent stalkers):

I just got 10 free Scholastic e-books for my classroom!  Thanks to Mrs. Patton's post, I realized that Scholastic was having dollar deals on e-books through September 20th AND there is a coupon code to get $10 off your order.  I was able to order 10 books for $0!  If you're interested, go here and use the coupon code 10THANKS.  No catch, just pick your books and use the coupon code!

I was able to get a bunch of great resources for my kindergarten intervention class.  Here are the titles I ordered:

• ABC Poem of the Week
• 101 Thematic Poems for Emergent Readers
• The Big Book of Classroom Poems
• Guess-Me Poems & Puzzles: Alphabet
• Just-Right Plays: 25 Emergent Reader Plays Around the Year
• Month-by-Month File Folder Word Walls
• Reading Success Mini-Books: Sight Words
• 25 Emergent Reader Mini-Books: Favorite Themes
• I Can Write my ABC's: Mini-Books
• Fun-Filled 5 to 10 Minute Literacy Activities for Young Learners

Favorite Books!

I'm linking up with Jen of Runde's Room to share some of my favorite books.  If you know me, you know I love reading and I love to instill that upon my students!





Childhood Favorites – I had SO many favorites when I was young.  Before I could read on my own, I loved listening to my mom read The Story About Ping by Marjorie Flack.  I also used to love to listen to I Love You Forever by Robert Munsch, but my mom hated it because she cried EVERY time (now I feel the tears welling up, too)!  In my early reading years, I loved reading Amelia Bedelia books.  I also loved Ramona books by Beverly Cleary.  For some reason, I got into the scary books, too. (Goosebumps, anyone?)  I have always loved (and still do) James Marshall. 

Classroom Favorites – This really depends on what grade I’m teaching.  I love a lot of the typical popular authors: James Marshall, Dr. Seuss, Mo Willems, Marc Brown, Eric Carle, etc.

Reading to my Own Children Favorites – I don’t have any kiddos of my own (yet), but I can only imagine they will have a ridiculous library of books.  I’m sure I’ll read the classics as well as fun, new stories.

Professional Favorites – I have a lot of these.  Some of my favorite authors include Marie Clay, Fountas & Pinnell, Debbie Diller, etc.  If you can’t tell yet, I’m a literacy freak! 

Guilty-Pleasure Favorites – I wouldn’t consider all of these guilty pleasures, but they’re definitely my personal favs.  My bookshelf at home is filled with James Patterson, Sophia Kinsella, Harlan Coben, etc.  I have some others mixed in there, but those are probably my three favorite authors right now.  I know it's not a book, but People magazine is my TRUE guilty pleasure.....addicting!  I might ask for a subscription for my upcoming birthday. :)