Flash Sale!!

Everything in my store is only $1.00!!

Tonight only!

 June 24th 5pm - 10pm EST

Get your goodies now!!

Behavior Management

First, I want to tell you that I have something BIG planned for you all tomorrow. BUT you need to be a follower of my Facebook, Twitter or TpT store to hear the announcement.

Seriously you don't want to miss it!! {And I am so excited about it!}

Now, onto behavior management.  Since I started teaching (a whopping 3 years ago), I have used a clip chart to track students behavior.  Here is an awful picture of it:

Each student has a clothespin with their class number on it.  All the students begin their day on the color green.  If a student shows positive behavior, they move their clip down to blue.  If they show more positive behavior, they move it down to the superstar.  The same goes for the other direction.  If a student is showing behavior that is not so positive, they move their clip to yellow, then orange, then red if the behavior continues.  

The students only move their clips one block at a time.  For example, if they are on green and do something good, I'll say "move your clip down" and they move it to blue.  However, if they then show a negative behavior, I will say move your clip up and their clip only goes to green.  The clips move a lot during the day, which show the students that their behavior is important all day long.

At the end of the day, the students fill out their behavior charts.  They have a weekly or monthly calendar with smiley faces.  Each student must color in their smiley face for the day that corresponds to where their clip is at the end of the day.

As you can tell from the picture, I use a lot of positive reinforcement in my class.  It is a rare day when a student moves past yellow.  If I see a child behaving incorrectly, I will praise the students around him/her for doing the correct thing.  It usually gets their attention!

At the end of the year this year, I decided to toss my clip chart.  It was falling apart and completely faded.  I wanted to stick with the same concept though.  The only thing I wanted to change was to move their clip up for positive behavior and down for negative behavior instead of vice versa.  I also wanted to add some word reminders on the posters.

Here is the brand new clip chart:

Yes, on my kitchen table.  I don't go into school much during the summer.  And, yes, it's polka dots!

You can grab it in my stores: 

{TpT}

{TN}

Phew, that was a lot of information.  Are you still with me?  Don't forget to check my Twitter, FB or TpT Store tomorrow for a BIG announcement!

Book Bin Labels

Yesterday I blogged about my Guided Reading binder being my most prized possession.  Today I'm here to tell you about my favorite part of my classroom - my library!  Apparently reading is my favorite!  I arrange my library and rearrange it...and rearrange it...and rearrange it.  Well you get the picture.  I want it to be the best it can be for my kiddos!  I just want them to love reading, that's all! 

I have posted many pictures about my classroom library.  Here is one post.  I decided to make new labels for my book bins because only my non-fiction bins had pictures on the labels.  I often have students who are very low readers so I've decided to make ones that do have pictures.

I was also inspired by a post over at Classroom DIY.

Nicole from Teaching with Style uses plastic badge holders for her book bin labels.  That way she doesn't need to laminate them, but can switch them if she needs/wants to.  Genius!  So I created my new book basket labels to fit perfectly in the badge holders she suggested.  These are the badge holders from Amazon:

Here they are:

You can grab them in either of my stores.  It's on sale in my TpT store for tonight only!!

{TpT}

{TN}

Reader's Workshop Binder

My prized possession in my classroom is my Reader's Workshop binder.  It has all the data I need and it's all in one place.  And it's BIG!  You can't really tell from the picture, but this baby is huge.  I think it's  a 3-inch binder?

Here's the cover:

I got the beautiful cover from somewhere in blog-world, but for the life of me I can't remember.  If it's yours or you know who made it, let me know so I can give them credit!

On the inside cover, I have two pages back-to-back in a sheet protector.  The front side is my students names and their levels during each month of the school year (no pic for privacy).  The back side has correlation levels:

We use Guided Reading Levels, Rigbys and DRAs in our school.  This chart helps me keep all those numbers and letters straight!  A colleague made a pretty colored one for us for next year though!

Next, I have a pocket for each student.  Their names are on the tabs on the right.  In the pocket are any assessments I do with that student.

Behind the pocket, I have a chart that shows how the child is progressing throughout the year compared to where they should be.

{This kid did great!}

After that, I have a CAFE menu for each student.  I place a check next to the ones the student has mastered. 

And finally, I have my anecdotal notes for each child.  I take notes on an Avery label and then stick in the binder later on.

You can get this chart in my {TpT} store for free!

So that's what my Reading Workshop binder looks like!  What's in your binder?

Manic Monday Freebie!

Students go home so many different ways and it's hard to keep track of them all especially in the craziness of the end of the day!  I've created posters (with name-tags) to show which way each student goes home after school.  And it's free!  If there is something you want me to add, please let me know!  

Click to get it from my {TpT} store for free!

And I'm linking up with Classroom Freebies' Manic Monday

Go check out all the other free stuff you can grab today!  Aren't Mondays in the summer the best?!?

Morning Routine

A couple of weeks ago, I posted about the Morning Routine in my classroom.  One of the tools that I use for our morning routine are the posters below:

I use words and pictures as I have some students who have difficulty reading, especially in the beginning of the year.  I had a few people ask for the posters and...well...apparently I didn't save them on my computer!  Silly, silly me.  So I created some newer (nicer) ones to share.  They are on sale until Sunday night so check them out!

{TpT}

{TN}

A Birthday Celebration!

I'm teaming up with Mrs. Bainbridge for her blog's first birthday!  She is having a huge giveaway with lots of great prizes (including one from me)!  Click the picture to head over to her blog and enter!

I'm giving away my Writing Mini-Offices.  They seem to be a big hit in my store!

Head on over to *Mrs. Bainbridge's Class* to see what else you can win!