Showin Off My Stuff!

Ever feel like you have a million things to do?  Of course, you are all teachers!  I have so much to do, but really wanted to join this linky party.  It was posted about 3 days ago, but I'm joining anyway!

Christina from Bunting, Books and Bainbridge wants to see our stuff for Back to School.  Well, I think she just opened up a can of worms!

Thanks to Erica's heads up, I ran to Big Lots to grab some goodies for my classroom.  Can you tell what color theme I am going with this year??

These crates will be used to house student book bags when they are not in use.  Don't worry, I have a pink one at school!

These bins will be for books in my classroom library.  I already have some bins from The Dollar Tree, which you can check out here.  These are a little bigger, which will be perfect for non-fiction books.

I think I am going to use the bins on the left for classroom materials such as pencils, crayons, scissors, etc.  The boxes on the right could be used for game pieces or flash cards.

 Not sure what I am going to do with these bins yet.  Any ideas??  I just couldn't resist the matching colors!

These small containers will probably be used for materials as well.  I had planned to use the ribbon {on the lef} for a border on my bulletins boards, but I don't think it is wide enough.  On the right is washi tape because, well, washi tape is just fun!

I had a helper while I was taking pictures and just had to share!  He was both scared of the bins and intrigued by the camera.

There is a chance that I have an obsession with storage containers!

Optimum Organization

Organization?!  Did someone say organization?!  I'm pretty sure that is my middle name.  My mother may beg to differ.  Actually she probably wouldn't.  So when I heard Ladybug's Teacher Files and Fun in Room 4B were hosting an organizational linky party, I got all sorts of giddy!

I know Kristen shared her Teacher Toolbox as well, but, man this thing is genius!  It is the best thing I have ever made.  It has a little drawer for every small teacher supply imaginable!  I purchased the toolbox from Lowe's and prettied it up!  I always have my supplies right at my fingertips, without having to dig through a messy drawer to find the exact thing I need.  

You can find a template over at Elizabeth's blog, if you want to make your own!

Another of my favorite organizational items came about after I discovered Teachers Pay Teachers.  I had lots of cards and game materials for my Guided Reading groups, but no way to organize them.  Okay, okay, technically I had elastic bands around them.  Um, boring!

That's when I discovered these small accordion files...

...and these bins that they fit perfectly into!

Score one for the Dollar Spot at Target.  I kept some of the accordion folders intact, which lets me sort the cards if I need to.  In the others, I cut out the insides, so it is just one large pocket.

My last organizational items are a work in progress.  I really like the concept of them, however, I need something slightly different.  These bins have helped immensely in keeping paper clutter off my desk.  When I make copies or choose books to read, I place them in the bin that represents the day of the week I plan to use them.

The only downside is that the paper doesn't stay standing in the bins, but curls up instead.  Maybe plastic drawers or trays would work better?  I'm on the hunt for something that works well for me.

Go link up with one of these lovely ladies, so I can learn more organizational tips!

The Hold-It-All Notebook

So, anybody go to meetings?  Yeah, me too.  I needed a way to keep track of all my notes in a simple way.  PBIS, RTI, IEP, Faculty Meetings, Professional Development, PTF, SIT.  I didn't want multiple notebooks since I really didn't use that many pages per committee and that's a lot of notebooks!  Insert the Hold-It-All Notebook!  Here is how I do it.

I start by picking out a notebook I really like.  Meetings are easier to go to when I have something pretty to look at.  Then I use sticky labels to label every 10 pages or so, depending on how many sections I need (I am very OCD and have to have the same amount of pages in each section).

Here's a close-up of my labels:

Oh, and it was cold out today:

Desk Be Gone!

This post has been moved to my new blog, The Colorful Apple.  Check it out here!

End of the Year Assessments

It's crunch time!  The end of the year for us is coming quickly (18 days and counting)! 

That means lots of end of the year assessments for the kiddos.  One of the big ones is determining their Reading Level.  In our school we can use both DRAs and Rigbys to assess our students.  Unfortunately, our grade level only has one set of Rigby assessments to share among 6 teachers.  It's hard to get your hands on it!  We each have our own DRA kit, however, so I tend to use that throughout the year.  The kit only has one book for level so I'm kinda outta luck if I need to re-test a student on the same level.

Teacher's College to the rescue!  They have at least 2 Running Records for every Reading Level.  It comes with  a student copy of the text, a teacher copy, a rubric for calculating fluency, comprehension questions with a rubric and sample answers.  It's great!  I believe each running record is an excerpt from a children's book, but I haven't gone through all of them yet.

I organized all the levels in a binder because, well, I just love binders.  I made a cute cover for it and forgot to take a picture :(  But I did get pictures of the rest of it to show you.

I used these dividers (I love them!).  Although I did work at Staples for over 7 years, I am in no way advertising for them.  I just think these are the best for me!

I labeled all the tabs by level:

In the front of the pocket, I put the teacher copies of the running record:

In the back of the pocket, I put a copy of the sample answers:

(although the Reading Teacher said she prints out a copy of these for each kid and just highlights their answer)

And behind the pocket, I put the student copy in a sheet protector.  That way when the kids gross grimy hands are touching it, the paper doesn't get wrinkled and dirty and I can re-use it.

It's been a real life-saver at the end of this year and it's nice to hear some different stories being read aloud!

Finally!

2 weeks of extra morning duty?  Done!

Short observation?  Done!

Long observation?  Done!

Evaluation meeting?  Done!

Report cards?  Done!

Conferences? Done!

Phew!  So glad the past two weeks are over.  Yep, all of the above happened in just two weeks.  They have been super busy/crazy!  The above list doesn't even include professional development, IEP meetings, faculty meetings, etc.  

I did get the nicest compliment from a parent last night.  My classroom is next door to a 4th grade room (don't ask) and many of my old students are in that class.  At parent-teacher conferences, one of my previous parents stopped me in the hall and asked me if I had my roster for next year yet (yeah, right!).  I nicely responded, no.  She then said, "Well when you get it, let me know.  I really hope my daughter is in your class!"  Aww... it made me feel so good!

I'm also done with my newest product and I'm super-duper excited about it!  I've been working on it and tweaking if for awhile.  I created an organizational calendar for all you busy bloggers and TpT/TN sellers out there!  It has monthly calendar pages as well as pages to take notes, write your stats and set goals.  I'm going to make mine at Staples tomorrow!

{TpT}

{TN}

I'm sooo close to meeting my TpT goal for this quarter!  Just a few more days - I think I can do it!

It in the Cards

I wanted to add on to my Fluency packet last night and instead ended up creating a 36-page set of long and short vowel sorts!  It was a bit much to add onto my Fluency packet so I created The Long and Short of It.  It comes with flash cards, headings for sorting and recording sheets for the students to use.

Get it from my {Tpt Store}

Get it from my {Teacher's Notebook Store}

Here's a sample of my Sight Word Flash Cards too:

Get it from my {Tpt Store}

Get it from my {Teacher's Notebook Store}

I got the cute clipart for both from Graphics from the Pond and KPM Doodles!

And I got these cool fluency phrases from Abby over at Ms. Alley's 2nd Grade Class.

So my dilemma was how to store all my adorable new flash cards??  I want to be able to access them quickly during my guided reading groups.  I found these cute mini portfolios and bucket from Target.  The accordion files fit perfectly in the buckets.  And they're bright colors!

I cut out the "files" from one of them and it is just like a large, durable envelope.

I kept the files in this one to separate my vowel cards.

I LOVE them!  And there's a little extra room for cards that aren't in a portfolio:

Not Really a Dollar

I just found a new blog through Pinterest.  Amanda over at Mrs. Terhune's First Grade Site!  I thought I was organized, but WOW!  She has some awesome pictures of her organization in her classroom.  I was especially impressed with how prepared she is ahead of time.  One thing that helps her stay organized for the week is the All-Purpose Teacher's Organizer from Lakeshore.

But, $49.95?!? Dang, that baby is expensive.  No thank you.  Thennn it was Target Dollar Spot to the rescue!  They had almost the same exact bins.  They didn't come with the fancy wire rack, but I think I can handle keeping my bins on the shelf thankyouverymuch.  They also had only 4 colors, but, hey green is my favorite color - I got two!  They don't have those labels either, but I made my own!  (which, I think, look better)  Here they are!

And a close-up:

Oh, and one other thing.  They weren't a dollar!  Apparently the "dollar spot"  also includes items that are $2.50.  What's up with that?  But $12.50 is wayyy cheaper than the Lakeshore ones!

I'm so excited to start using them!

My Progress and Another Chance to Win

As you may know, I've been hard at work de-cluttering my classroom.  I started with the closets and am about halfway through that project.  Don't worry!  I haven't given up.  I just need a decent amount of time to put into it (and the help of my teacher friend).  We will get back to work on it on Monday!  

However, I did conquer my teacher's desk project!!  Check it out, I completely got rid of my desk and I could not be happier.  

This is the inside.  So much stuff.  So messy.  And so not mine.  (still leftovers from the teacher that I took over for 3 years ago)

And now it's completely empty!  Woohoo!

Okay, I'm pretty neat.  But not this neat!  This was after I started to clean so it's not a good representation of my old dumping ground.

The front view.  Takes up a lot of space, huh?

 Anddd wah-lah!  Desk gone.  New table in place.  I LOVE it!  I added the drawers to the side to store my stuff.  I really like the small drawers because it's so much easier to organize and find stuff.

Here's the front side.  I bought the stools from Christmas Tree Shop because they're easier to move and store.  And I like the colors.  My kids absolutely love them!  It's so funny, they beg to use them and rush to be the first one to sit on them.

I was a little nervous about getting rid of my desk, I'll admit it.  But so far it's been great.  It ensures that I don't have too much clutter and I use the table all the time to meet with the kids.

I also posted two posters to my TpT store today (remember how I can't draw anchor charts to save my life?).

One I am going to use to teach Sensory Images during Reader's Workshop:

And the second one I am going to use for teaching my students how to write small moment stories.

And that leads me to another way to win my giveaway!  I always come up with extra chances AFTER I publish my post.  Oh well.  Anyways, I'm giving away a $25 gift card to Teachers Pay Teachers!

If you rate one of my products on TpT (free or not), leave me an extra comment on my Giveaway and a Freebie post.  Good luck!