Snap shots

So in our performance zone in our district, we have a facebook page (which you can follow here).  Our school is clearly overachievers when it comes to anchor charts since we've got over a hundred pictures in our album.  Of those, about eight are mine which gives me some warm and fuzzy feelings.  

Here are two snap shots that haven't been previously mentioned on my blog:

Our QR code:

I was a little hesitant at first but this was actually super easy to create.  I turned my welcome letter and info packet into a PDF, which I then uploaded into dropbox.  From dropbox, I did "share link" and emailed the link to myself.  Then, I copied the link and went to one of the numerous free QR code creators and pasted in the url.  After triple checking from various devices, I printed on pink cardstock and stapled it outside my door.

I'm not sure how many parents have downloaded the welcome letter but it's a good strategy for those with smart devices!

Phonics instruction:

We were doing a power point presentation on the 6 types of syllables (CLOVER) at the beginning of the year.  My students were still working on getting the main idea into their notebooks, so I was modeling what to write down by using the smart board markers with the power point:

Just an easy way to give explicit instruction on exactly what you want your students to put in their notebooks :)

Welcome

I've remade a sign like this for our fifth grade hallway, but I love this teacher's version:

(Why wouldn't I, it has polka dots!)

It's great to post in the hallway to remind students of exactly what is expected when they enter your room :)

Combating First Day Jitters

Naturally, a few weeks into summer, I'm starting to think about the start of the school year.  Last year I created some cute welcome notes to help my students feel at ease and welcome in our new classroom.  After all, fifth grade can be a scary place!

While some of the ideas are modified from things on Pinterest, I am still rather proud of the cuteness that occurred in my classroom.  

First things first, every student needs a shiny new pencil to help them show off their best work!  So I found the image, dicut a lot of large circles, added two hole punches and stuck a brand new pencil into their treat.  Time intensive? Perhaps...I think I accomplished the whole assembly process during an episode or two of the Office.  But my students loved them and I'm glad I made them, since many munchkins forgot a pencil on their first day.

Plus a pencil...

Of course, I am not above bribery during the first week.  While I tend to wear a black dress on the first day when we read Ms. Nelson is Missing, I also make sure they feel included with treats like these during the first week:

That's right, we are bursting with excitement!  During standardized testing time, we are bursting with knowledge :)  I cut these out and attached them to a few mini packs of Starbursts.

A slightly healthier option is going with a bag of Lucky Charms :)  A nice, dry cereal snack for the first few days while everyone's tummies are readjusting to the school schedule (and needing to wait to eat!)

Good luck on your first day smartie pants!

To encourage reading, I found these cute freebies on TpT.  The image is small, but they are colorful bookmarks that say: "Hey, I just met you and this is crazy, but here's a novel, so read it maybe" 

I love the first weeks of school almost as much as I love summer :)

Ms. Vice