Friday, September 13, 2013

Classroom Reveal

Linking up with

I don't know about you, but it has been a whirlwind since school started on September 3rd.  Thursday night was Back to School Night, and since I had my room all spiffied up (again), I thought I would take my classroom reveal shots.  I have used quite a few strategies and decorating schemes that I originally found on Blogs.  I am not sure where I found most of these ideas, but you will notice some chevron fabric which I LOVE and the NOISE sign.

This is the area behind my desk.  I love my letters lamp that I got from Kohl's a couple years ago, even though the plug behind it is an eye-sore.  I also have my Read Chart here.  I made it this year, instead of buying it, to save a buck.  I think it turned out perfectly.  You can almost see one of the lines already has twenty stickers...that student read all those books this summer!  I count their yearly reading from June-May, so that they can have an accurate total of how many books they read in a year.  Here are some other fun things- an electronic hole puncher, which was a birthday gift from my husband a few years ago,  a Jack Russell Terrier calendar in honor of my pup, and my stuffed animal corner with my favorite...BEES.   Under my Work Expectations poster you can also (sort of) see a collage and birthday card that a student made for me.  She made numerous copies of my picture from the yearbook and collaged it with pictures of Beyonce, because we share a birthday.  Isn't that fun; I feel so loved!



  
This is my sideboard.  It is right across from the bulletin board that you just saw.  You can see that I had some fun with clothespins.  My NOISE sign I made with clothespins and ribbon because I thought it would be easier to turn the letter around.  I have only had to turn letters three times so far.  Hopefully this trend continues!  At the top of the board are comma posters that I made.  Even though they are a little hard to read from students' seats, they are still a good reference.  You can also see the film photo frame.  Inside, I have put pictures of my advisees and their interests.  Two of my purchases from VistaPrint are also displayed on this board: Absent Postcards and Agenda Magnet.  To read more about my VistaPrint finds check out this previous post.

I also decided to do jobs this year.  Here is a close up of my signs.  I use Rick Morris' student number concept, so that is why the clothes pins have numbers, not names.  This will make for a more seamless start to next year.  Other than adding a few clothespins to account for a different number of students in each class, they will already be made.  And a quick shout out to my wonderful mom and sister who helped me color 60 clothespins :)

Interested in these signs?  Let me know, I'll email them to you.  



I also used clothespins for my passes.  How simple and less germy for sure.











For the front of my room, I have decided to show before and after photos.  I think that this is the most significant change I have made.  I love the cohesion between the two chevron covered boards.  I got the figurative language signs from TpT.  Check them out here. All the other posters I have made.


These 6+1 Trait posters are in my TpT store. Also, don't miss my fancy hot pink pencil sharpener.  So far it totally lives up to the hype!








Now I am off to enjoy a lovely weekend.  Make sure to take some time to relax and rejuvenate on your days off.





Wednesday, September 4, 2013

September Currently


So, today is my birthday.  I had a very special day at school, with one student not only remembering my birthday, but making brownies and bringing me a gift of books for my classroom library (oh and let's not forget the collage of my face mixed in with Beyonce's-who shares my birthday).  In addition to all that fun, two classes sang to me and countless students and teachers wished me a happy birthday.  On that note, I am already loving my new pencil sharpener.  I got the awesome new hot pink one.  It really does work!  I have never had a sharpener that was so effective.
It is also my second day of school.  To help break the ice yesterday, I had my students do a September Currently.  Then I read through them and the kids had to guess who wrote it.  It was quite fun.  I can't wait to have them try it on their blogs (which I haven't yet set up).  I thought that it was only fitting for me to get in on the action.

Because I am thinking of "plan, plan, plan(ing)," I better go do that now.  It has certainly been a busy couple of days, and I still have much to do tonight.

Link up at Oh' Boy Fourth Grade's Blog.  If this is your first time joining a "currently" you might need a tutorial (like I did).  Find a great one at Chickadee Jubilee's Blog.