Back in the Swing of Things

So I've been off the "grid" if you will for a while and returned to lots of great things! 

I decided I would finish up my label for my team gifts I made earlier in the Summer and just leave off a name.  

Then I started thinking I wanted to make toppers for all of the fun treats/ surprises I had planned for my class.  Well I'm glad I waited to make them because Cara Carroll over at The First Grade Parade created the most adorable back to school survival set which included toppers.  So for an easy $6.00 she has saved me hours of creating!

So now I don't feel so guilty going to the cabin and relaxing for a few days!

What We Apparently Won't Tell You...

There I was.  It was 7:00 in the morning.  I sat down at my computer opened up cnn.com to see what happened in the world while I was sleeping.  And right there at the bottom of the screen was “13+ things your child’s teacher won’t tell you”

Intrigued?

I was.

Here is the link to what they posted were the things teachers won’t tell you.

Number 2, 6, and 10 are my personal favorites…

What are some things you “won’t” tell parents?

Now Trending!

Since I embraced the blogging world this summer I have been shamelessly blog stalking/ following any blog out there to get any ideas I can!  I have found a lot of common themes that a lot of people are talking about. 

1) The Daily 5 & Café

2) The Spectrum Behavior Chart

3) Policies and Procedures

4) The Target Dollar Spot

5) Decorating on the Cheap

I think I have blogged about 3 out of the 5 already.  My blogging bucket list is almost complete!

Today I wanted to focus on number 3, Policies and Procedures. 

When parents first meet me they ask me what my rules are for my classroom.  I tell them I don’t have any rules, we just follow our school rules.  The rest is all taken care of in policies and procedures.

I mentioned previously that CCSD had us take New teacher trainings (which by the way I completed 4 years ago).  Well in the very first New Teacher Orientation they had Harry Wong come and be the keynote speaker.  We all received a copy of his book  The First Days of School.  Mine has a lot of sticky notes which I review every summer the sticky noted pages.  Not that it isn’t a glorious book but I have to prioritize my time!

His book is broken up into 5 units.  The unit I re-read EVERY summer is Unit C- Classroom Management. 

It goes over having your classroom ready, how to introduce yourself to your class, how to arrange and assign seating, when and how to take roll, an effective grade book, an effective discipline plan (rules and consequences & rewards),  and how to have students follow classroom procedures.

In his book he gives a list of many of the procedures to rehearse with students.   Here is my list combined with his list. 

Each summer I look at my previous year’s document to see if that is really how I still want that procedure to be done. 

Only I’m moving next school year so a lot of these will have to be done once we go back for teacher report day because I don’t know what the school wide procedures are.   This is where I have to insert the reminder to myself that I can only worry about the things I can control. 

What are some of the procedures you practice with your students at the beginning of the year?

A Walk Down Memory Lane

My 1st year of teaching CCSD had us attend these new teacher workshops.  In one of the workshops the instructor gave us a sheet with the word S.W.I.P.E.D across the top.  It stood for Stealing With Integrity and Pride Every Day.  I feel like that's pretty much what I do.  Except I don't like the connotaion of stealing.  I am inspired by lots of people, places, things.  I get inspired watching commercials for heavens sake!

Having said that, my 1st year of teaching I worked with an amazing team.  I found that I changed so much during that year because I literally lesson planned with everyone!  I wanted to see what everyone was doing (We had 9 first grade teachers at the time) and how I could tweak it to be my own.  Well Amy & Yvonne had cute little While you were absent folders.  That actually had a much longer poem on the front about the duck and quack quack we're excited you are back.  And the poem went on from there about the work you missed and it was adorable but too much text!  

Then after I first discovered Teachers Pay Teachers, I came across this freebie from Kindergarten Works. 

Again the wheels start turning... I need a little face lift to my absent folders.  I loved the colors and the brightness of the ones made by Kindergarten works. 

After getting my masters degree in TESL, I have a hard time putting lots of text on anything.  (Besides my blog posts)  The population I work with typically do not speak/ read English.  I need things to be simple and consice so the kids can explain them to their parents. 

So after all of those things this is what I came up with. 

I feel like my little kiddos would be able to explain to their parents this is the work I missed and I have to bring it back to school on Wednesday (for example).  I am also confident in my ability to write the days of the week in Spanish so I could also write the date it is due in Spanish and hopefully they would get the idea. 

And again I love my full/ Half sheet shipping labels.  No need to laminate, no need to glue stick.  Pop that bad boy on there and I am done!

Pom Pom Trial

So I've seen these all over the place.  At parties. On blogs. Just about everywhere.  And I knew there had to be a way to make them versus buying a kit from the craft store.  So thanks to Pinterest I found this beauty. 

From the Godmother of Crafting herself, Martha Stewart. 

 

My only complaint is, I really need step 3 to have maybe one more photo before step 4.  I need to know do you pull toward the middle for all of them.  Do you do half of the stack one way and the other half the other way.  I just need to know these things!  Since I am not good at following directions and getting the same results, I just have a hard time when it comes to paper folding.  (I can't even fold an airplane properly)

But for all intents and purposes it didn't turn out too bad for my first time.  I used 20 sheets instead of 8 because I read someone else's comments on this that 8 sheets wasn't full enough. 

Here are my results.  

More of a pointed cut

More of a rounded cut

My tips are the following

*Perhaps use 11- 15 sheets

*Use a scoring blade to make the folds more defined (the further in I got into my pom the less defined the folds were)

* I just used a rubber band to secure the middle, no floral wire needed.

Remind 101

This is not an infomercial!  I actually just found out about this from another blog over at Mrs. Standford's Class  In her post on July 10th (today) she shared this amazing app/ website.  So no worries if you don't have an iPhone or a smart phone you can handle all of this web based.

So basically you sign up with the site Remind101 it literally takes less than 5 minutes! 

Then it gives you an option to print a flyer to pass out to parents.  I know I'm planning on printing mine and putting it in my parent information folders for Back to School Night.

I'm definitely excited about this little gem!  and it is F-R-E-E.  My favorite kind of item!

Parent folders

I realize all I keep doing is posting pictures of the graphics I'm going to print onto labels to place onto all of the things in my room.  But I'm sure I'll do a finale post when all is said and done. 

Considering this is pretty much just a journal for me I don't really mind posting all of these photos that might be pointless to others.

So here is the graphic for my parent information folders.

I am in L-O-V-E with half sheet size shipping labels.  They literally can dress up any cheap pocket prong folder. 

While organizing all of my teaching supplies I stumbled upon all of these pocket 3 prong folders that I did not use last year. Thankfully I was able to purchase these last year when Staples let me buy 100's (literally 100's) on their 1 cent deals. Not so much this year. Maybe it was little old me that did it in for everyone else. But believe me they still get most of my business so they get their money one way or another!

Having said that, I do not have to purchase any new pocket prong folders this year.  I use them for all kinds of things in my classroom. Namely
* Parent information folders
* Data Folders
* Writing folders (If I don't get my donors choose folders funded)
*Reader's Theater
*Fluency Folders
*Math Notebooks

Literally the list could go on and on. 

So as I design and create/ label these lovelies I will post. 

--Mel

P.S. I must say it is a whole new summer of designing since discovering teaching blogs/ scrappin doodles/ free fonts/ Print Candee.  I feel naive for not knowing this whole world existed!