August 2013

My Rockin' Bulletin Board

I've been workin' hard to get my classroom all ready for the little ones!!!

Aimee at Primarily Speaking came up with The. Cutest. Bulletin Board. Ever. So I did what all good teachers do- I copied it. Thank you Aimee! ;-) Plus, it's one of those bulletin boards that you don't have to change out all year. It's not seasonal so it can stay the same until June, ya know!?

{ Confession: I despise changing out bulletin boards. Absolutely hate it. I always thought I would love it (before I became a teacher), and then after falling from ladders/a bajillion paper cuts/and lots of sweat and tear when I have a million other things I need/want to be doing- I just don't like it so much! }

Anyways, my sweet mom came in for a day to help me get everything ready, and we created this adorable bulletin board!

I got a lot of questions about the frames on the bulletin board- so here's how I did it.

You'll need:

-Spray paint- whichever colors you want!

-Frames (I got mine from the Dollar Tree)

-Cork board Con-tact stuff (I got this at Home Depot)

-You won't need the push pins......

Take the frames apart and spray paint them!!!

Pretty!

Use the glass from the frames to trace rectangles onto the cork board.

Cut out the rectangles and you'll have pieces that are the same size as the glass.

Peel off the adhesive, and stick the cork right onto the glass.

Once the frames are dry, reassemble them!

Now, hanging them on the wall at school was a little tricky.

I pulled the stand part off, and hot glued and flat tac underneath the hangy part (???) like this:

That way, I could just push the frame into the wall- and they're actually pretty sturdy.

Now, the one big problem I had was that push pins don't really push into the cork because it's too shallow and the glass is right behind it. :-(

So... to hang up student work, I'll just have to either staple it or use double sided tape. Who am I kidding- the kids' work from September will probably stay up until April-ish. Either way, it looks cute...

I'm planning on allowing the kids to choose what they want to put up there- anything they're proud of or want to share! It'll be a hodgepodge of awesomeness!

(Sorry about the dark pictures...I'm still learning how to use my fancy schmancy camera...!)

The cute little rock star people are from Melonheadz!!! They make me happy! :-) I had them enlarged at Staples!

Do you like changing out bulletin boards...? Am I the only one that hates it...? ;-)

Back to School Sale

If you haven't heard... ;-)

Teachers Pay Teachers is having a back to school sale! I can't wait to do some shopping tomorrow!!!

Thanks for the cute button Traci! :)

Here are some of the goodies you can find in my store!

Enjoy! :)

Guide word sets for 2nd & 3rd grade!

Party Packs

Persuasive writing unit!

Perfect for the beginning of the year to introduce your kids to opinion/persuasive writing! ***Be prepared to get a pet, though!!!***

EDITABLE Acceptable Use Policy Posters for iPads and iPods!

Literacy & Math Centers!

Place Value Fun

Chinese New Year Literacy Activities

Math Racers!

Addition

Subtraction

Multiplication

Division

And-

Guide word activities for upper grades!

Hope you're having a great weekend! :)

Monday Made It: My Recovered Guided Reading Chair

I'm so excited about my new chair! I've seen so many pins floating around on how to give a computer chair a little facelift! So, I dragged hubby to the thrift store, bought a chair for 20 bucks, and got to work!

BEFORE:

(Eeek!)

and AFTER!!!

Here's how I did it! {Apology in advance for not taking pictures as I did this- I wasn't really sure it was gonna work, ya know?...}

You'll need:

-Fabric (I used one yard for the seat, and four feet for the back of the chair)

-A screwdriver

-A staple gun

-Adhesive spray

Here's what I used:

Take the chair apart- the seat and back. You'll need the screwdriver and some muscles for this ;-)

Here's the back of the chair. (And please ignore the awful stained hardwood floor....that's my next project...)

I started with the seat (it was easier than the back). I just wrapped the fabric around it and staple gunned (is that a verb!?!) underneath.

And here's the back. I basically wrapped it like a present and used spray adhesive on the sides. It's not perfect, but hey, it was made with love, right!?

I hid the staples underneath the back because I figured they would be the least visible there.

See!

And, like I said, I used spray adhesive to just seal up the sides. It actually seemed to work (I was surprised!)!!!

I'm sad this is our last summer Monday Made It with Tara- I feel like I'm just getting started ;) (Don't worry- she'll still be hosting the monthly MM over at her fabulous blog!)

back to school freebie iPad ipads technology technology project

Getting Your Students Started with iPads FREEBIE

The beginning of the year is quickly approaching, and I know many of us are lucky enough to have iPads in the classroom!

At the beginning of the school year, I like to get my students acquainted with the iPads by doing short, and simple projects.

One function of the iPad that my students use constantly throughout the day is the camera, so I want to make sure they understand how to use it (not that it's hard; but taking the time to make sure they're comfortable with it now will make my life much easier in the future.) So, I have them do the 'iPad Camera' project so they can "get to know" their camera. It's basically a checklist of steps to move through and includes taking pictures of their friends (and we have a big discussion about how it's always polite to ask someone permission before you take their photo), flipping the camera to take a picture of themselves, using the video function, deleting photos, and creating an album in Photos. These are all things that my students are going to need to know how to do later on, so this project is quick, easy, and fun for them!

The second project I have the students complete is the 'All About My Friend' project. Students interview a friend, and then use Keynote to create a presentation to share with the class about their new friend. I want the kids to learn to use Keynote for future projects, AND this activity takes the place of the "Me Bags" I ~~hated~~ used to do. This project is pretty straight forward, but does take a little bit of time for new 2nd graders. I always have my students complete the outline first, since an outline always leads to a better quality final project.

I also included some friendly reminders for this project:

It's always ~~extremely frustrating~~ fun to see the kids learn to navigate Keynote and learn about all of the things it can do. An important question I find myself asking is "How does this enhance your project and purpose?" In other words, do those 5 minute flames in conjunction with dog barking sounds at every single transition really help your purpose...???

Feel free to download the projects HERE! I'd LOVE to hear how you get your students started on iPads! PLEASE please PlEaSe leave a comment with ideas!!! :)
I need 'em!!!!

Alaska!!!

We're back from our cruise from Alaska, and can I just say, if you ever get the chance to visits Alaska, GO! It was absolutely amazing, and seriously the best trip we've ever been on! Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip. :)

We started off in Seattle!