Labeling Books

 I take a lot of pride in my classroom library.

I have been blessed with several funded {donors choose} projects which have added new books to my classroom.  I've also scoured gift shops, spent a lot of money at Scholastic, and raided my own childhood book collection.  I want my students to have a cozy, literature-rich classroom.

I did have to do some shuffling of books. I looked through my library and removed any books that might not have third grade appropriate content (boy/girl relationships, middle school issues, etc).  Those books are living in my garage.

We use AR testing as part of our Reading Ranger program, so {ar bookfind} has been my best friend.  It's a free website that lets you look up the book level, quiz number, and summary of over one hundred thousand different books.

I record this AR information on sticky labels that I put on the inside cover of my books.

With Reading Rangers, we also have books color coded by level.  These levels are grouped together and we all use the school's assigned dots.  Luckily our school provides the dots for us:

I also have my library organized by grouping similar books together. While I respect the Reading Rangers program (even though it's not perfect because nothing is), I feel it's my job to create real readers.

When I go to the library, I don't go in looking for a 4.1 level fiction book that's worth 2 points.  I might go in wanting a book on animals.  

So that's how my library is organized: bins with themes.  Inside there are books with a wide range of levels to best meet the needs of all my readers.  To help my students remember where the books go, I put sticky labels on the outside of the books that match the book tubs:

I've had conversations with other teachers who love to tell me that my organization system is wrong.  It's not wrong, it's just not what they're doing.  

One of the benefits of working at home means I can do a few books on commercial breaks.  One of the unintended consequences of working from home is help:

I've had a productive week labeling books and these beauties are ready to get into the hands of my students:

Happy reading! Show me your class libraries!

The Process

Bulletin boards might be the bane of my existence.

Tip 1: Measure Twice...

Make sure you buy fabric in the correct size:

I thought I snagged a twin sheet at Goodwill, but it appears I bought a table cloth.  Oops.  Luckily I'm only out a few dollars (and hopefully my mom can reuse the fabric for some quilts).

Tip 2: Teamwork 

It's just easier this way.

Tip 3:

Use fabric.  It's more expensive, but doesn't fade.  I was able to grab some inexpensive fabric (under $10 for three yards) for attempt two.

I used green mesh (Joann's clearance center) to make the border.

To make the cacti arms, I cut up manila folders and wrapped them with mesh.

I attempted to create a quasi-envelope layer and stuff mesh inside, but it was time consuming and only moderately successful.  I eventually switched to just stapling mesh right to the wall to cover the manila folder. 

I added pipe cleaner spikes and the tops of fake flower bouquets to make my cacti bloom.

I decided both sides of the bulletin board needed traditional cactus arms, so I repeated the process.

I bought pastel colored card stock and printed mini cacti to glue on clips.  

 

It's on our first day plan to color these and write their names on the potted portion.  I'll then laminate and attach to the board.

I snagged these precut banners and stickers at Target:

It's slowly been a work in progress.  The banner will say "Our class is SHARP!" when I'm done.  My goal is to finish it today, but we will see if that actually happens.

Not pictured: The cats aggressively smelling everything and knocking glue sticks on the floor.

I'll be finalizing my bulletin board by Friday, so stay tuned.

 

Inside Edition: Back to School

In about two hours, two dozen sweet and terrified third graders will enter my classroom for the first time.  I'm fortunate enough to already know a few of their sweet faces because they're the younger siblings of last year's awesome group.  But twenty of them will be brand new and it's up to me to convince them that third grade will be amazing.

There's a lot of work that goes into this whole back to school process. Welcome to the Inside Edition.

First, there's the unloading of vehicles.

Being a teacher means you can drive onto the playground to make unloading easier.  It's the little things in life.

Getting into the building is another step.  My stuck key caused a twenty minute delay in starting my day.  If that doesn't say welcome back I don't know what does.

 

There's unloading of boxes and re-establishing my library.  There's also new books to label, thanks to Scholastic's end of the year sales.

There's hanging bulletin boards.  More on that process {here}.  I have two inside boards and one outside board in the pod.

There is the process of opening boxes and organizing books, especially if you're as lucky as I was and got to change rooms.

There's the miles line long at teacher supply stores:

20% off all items meant forty minutes in line.   However, I scored some great clearance deals so I really can't complain.

Back to school means carefully creating colorful "meet the teacher" flip books which require fights with the copier, stapling, and assembling these packets:

But don't be cocky and only make the number on your roster.  That roster is going to change several times, so you're best off making an extra eight copies to be on the safe side.  

If you're lucky, your administration and PTA love you and show appreciation with food.

Our first contracted day back we were gifted with a breakfast spread from admin and Capriotti's from PTA.  The next day surprise cupcakes were in the lounge.

Food makes things better.  

There's the task of decorating the top of the wardrobes:

Not only does it look cute, but it disguises from the fact that I'm storing one of those under the bed organizers up there.  It's where I keep bulletin board borders, letters, and fabric.   

There's also the task of getting a calendar to label important dates (school holidays and birthdays).  Not only does it make the kiddos feel special when seeing their names on the board, it serves as a visual reminder to me to make sure I've got the coveted birthday chair cover out the morning before their birthday.

It would be the height of hubris to assume all technology would behave appropriately.

I've already had my computer re-imaged and submitted three work tickets.  My projector's remote is also missing, but I've got a yard stick and we'll figure it out.

There's also the creation of student mailboxes:

I don't know why it took me nine years to figure out that I should just put all their names on the center tabs.  They're also organized alphabetically by first names because that's easiest for kids. 

Don't forget about establishing a teacher corner for copies, supplies, and that treasured bin of pre-sharpened pencils.  

I lucked out this year and borrowed a coworker's five year old to sharpen several hundred pencils.  It should last us a few weeks.

Let's not forget about the treasure box and mermaid tail!  (Stay tuned for an upcoming blog post detailing the tale of creating the tail.)

I don't have letters up yet, but this blue bulletin board will say dive into reading.  

Other various tasks include moving tables, finding desks, hanging lanterns, setting out chairs, labeling first day treats, meetings, collaborating with others, and you know, writing lesson plans and prepping copies.

I took the weekend off from going into work, but I've got a long list waiting for me when I get to work.  

Happy first day!


 

Twas the weekend before school started...

It's the weekend before school starts and my classroom isn't 100% ready.  I did my best and worked really hard...but it's not all the way done.

I'm okay with this.  I'm not going in to work this weekend.  Monday morning will be here soon enough.

It took nine years to get to this point, but here it is: my to do list, as a teacher, will literally never end.  There is always something else that could be prepared, perfected, tweaked, or created.

I've spent a lot of time in my classroom over the past week and a half.  Not all the days had working air conditioning, so I am thankful I have a classroom fan.  I'm thankful our teachers' union fought (and won) for us to have a contract day to prepare our classrooms.  I'm thankful my administration gave us additional work time.

I got asked why I wasn't done with my classroom yet.  Well...

1) My room wasn't really ready for me to move in with a logical plan at the end of the year.  The leaving teacher made it inconvenient for me for a variety of reasons, so I walked into a mess.  I hope that teacher is happy at a new school.  We all deserve to be happy and like our jobs.

2) I checked in on the new teacher in my grade level and helped him out with classroom logistics.  He's a great guy, really enthusiastic, and wants to be a team player.  I also went to see the new first and fifth grade teachers, as well as the 3-5 humanities teacher.  I didn't just say hi, I welcomed them and asked if there was anything they needed.  I gave one a tour of the school.  I took the time to listen.  That matters.

3) I took the time to collaborate with my grade level.  I helped some hang bulletin boards (it's really a two person job), shared lesson plan ideas, and wrote first week plans with my work wife and our new teacher.  I didn't want to just hand him plans, but instead we invited him in to share ideas with us and have the opportunity to ask questions.  I didn't have much support my first few years in the classroom, so I want to make sure others have a different experience.  Being a new teacher is hard.  Being a first year teacher is hard.  Being ARL is hard.  Let's not make it more difficult by shutting down communication with each other.  We've got a game plan going into the school year and are going to share the work load.  I get to devote my planning time to creating some awesome ELA plans with my work wife while others get to work with their strengths as well. 

4) I made sure to leave at a reasonable time each day so I could see my hubby and pets.  

My classroom is clean, my lesson plans are done for the first week, and my copies are ready.  I have my first day outfit picked out.  It's as good as it's going to get until 7 am on Monday morning.

I overheard a conversation about what teachers wanted from their students on the first day.  One mentioned having their new students know all of their procedures.  Another mentioned setting up the notebooks and diving into a math lesson on the first day.

Um, that's not the route I'm taking.  My goals for the first day are for my students to feel welcome, safe, cared for, enthusiastic, encouraged, motivated, and eager to return on Tuesday.  I want them to know that third grade will be an exciting and challenging time.  

Math for the first two days will focus on exploring math manipulatives, learning the procedures for Number Talks, tackling multi-step problems as a table, and practicing how to have discussions about math.  We'll set our notebooks up on Wednesday (giving families time to gather supplies) and dive into Engage NY then.  


So since I'm not in the classroom this weekend (but totally support the teachers who are!), what exactly am I up to?

Friday I left at 3:40 pm without guilt.

I had about a dozen girl friends over Friday night for a Lularoe and Lipstains party.  We had tacos, bean dip, veggies, cookies, and margaritas.   I snagged some cute back to school outfits and more importantly, had some friend time.

Saturday I slept in (if you can call 8 am sleeping in), got my hair cut, got supplies for a craft project, and helped a friend with wedding favors.  She's got just over 3 weeks until her big day and I love that I get to play a small part in it.  Plus it was really sweet to see her and her future hubby working together on favors.

Saturday night is spent in pajamas with the hubby, watching movies, making a classroom banner, and doing small chores on commercial breaks.

Tomorrow will include a breakfast date, a grocery trip, finding the missing box of picture books (because my first day books are in there), crafting, a nap, and some at home pampering before an early bed time.

I may or may not be done with my bulletin board banner by Monday morning.  Truly, does it matter? Will my kiddos remember if my board is blank one day and says "dive into reading" the next? No, probably not.

I checked with my admin because if it was super important to them, I'd have it done.  It will be done by next Friday, but isn't a first thing Monday priority.

My plan for Monday is to arrive around 6:45 am with Starbucks in hand. They're doing construction right outside our school and at the nearby round about, so I'm giving myself extra time to deal with that situation.  I've got to make a sign for picking up students, but that involves a manilla folder, a stapler, and a yard stick.  I've got to finish my Smart Notebook for the first day because it calms my anxiety and keeps me on track while teaching.  I've got to make sure my anchor chart paper is ready and pick up the breakfast cooler.

I meet my new students at 8:55.  I've got to make it until lunch (11:25-12:05).  From there, I need to make it until specials (12:45-1:35).  Then I've got to make it until 3.26. 

I'll leave around 4:30, after making sure my mentor texts and materials are ready to go for Tuesday. 

I might even be able to label a few more books or check a few more items off my never ending to do list.

This will be a good school year.

Twas the weekend before school started...and I felt fine. #yearnine



 

Positivity

Wednesday marked the official back to school date for CCSD.

It was a rough start:

My key got stuck in the door and no amount of pulling, twisting, or turning could set me free.  I texted the custodian. I called the office. I put out a help on Facebook. I texted my admin.  20 minutes later, I got in.  I gave up and walked all the way around the building, checking several other doors in the process.  Nothing says welcome to work like not being able to get inside.

However, I shook it off.  It's going to be a good year.

I'm excited for third grade.  I'm excited for a mounted projector, twenty five kids (not forty), new curriculum, a new grade level team, and kiddos that (ideally) still love their teacher.

Almost everyone I talk to is positive about this school year and I hope it stays that way.

I've got a lot on my plate and want this to be a good school year.  I don't have time for the grumpy comments from negative people.

For me, last year was a wonderful end to my fifth grade streak.  I had three dozen amazing kids and super supportive families.  They made a lot of growth and really blossomed into young men and women.  I am proud of them, I will miss them, and I really tried to keep my mouth shut about how much I adored them because the rest of my grade level had really, really rough years.  

However, some of that frustration from last year's kids trickles into this year.  I get it and I've been guilty of it too. However, we've all got to channel our inner T Swift and just

I'm working on my first week lesson plans and already heard grumblings about things kids couldn't do.  We haven't met them yet.  How do we know they can't do something if we don't give them the chance to try? How can we scaffold our instruction (or directions) to give them the opportunity to be successful?

In my mind, this is me shunning the negativity:

However, I'm at work and need to use my adult coping strategies.  So instead, I find my inner Leslie Knope and know that a teacher's attitude makes all the difference.

Let's have a great year everyone!

Let's Try Again

TpT's annual sale happened a little early for my liking this year.  Many of my fellow educators were not quite ready for the annual sale, so I'm throwing a bonus encore! 

Today (CCSD's first contracted day back) through the weekend, my whole store will be 10% off.  

Happy shopping!

Random Acts of Kindness

Rule 11: 

Surprise others by performing random acts of kindness.  Go out of your way to do something surprisingly kind and generous for someone at least once a month.

(Ron Clark's Essential 55)

My skills are not found in the kitchen, so baking goods for others is out of the question. I'd rather not poison loved ones.  That kind of defeats the whole random acts of kindness plan.  Instead, I'd rather spend my time creating something.

The premise is simple. With a $20 budget, I'll select one person each month to surprise with some sort of craft project.  I won't just be selecting my friends but rather try to truly tune into all the events at school.  I've got the first three planned out and a few other possibilities swirling around my brain.

August's candidate: Mrs. A

Mrs. A works at my school site but isn't a classroom teacher.  She's our speech pathologist and doesn't always feel like part of a team.  It's got to be hard essentially being a one person department.  Her oldest is starting kindergarten (at our school) and a close work wife abruptly retired at the end of the school year for a continent move.  Plus she's a super awesome person.

She likes lady bugs, so I decided to make a wreath incorporating one.  To keep within my self-imposed budget, I went with a smaller sized frame and waited until burlap was on sale.

The supplies:

Wire frame 

1 roll of tan wired burlap (it holds the shape better) 

2 mini rolls of patterned burlap (chevron maroon and black)

1 wooden lady bug

Floral wire

hot glue gun 

The crafting itself was rather quick because of the size, my procrastination (I don't want to label any more books right now), and that I've done a good dozen of these wreaths by now. 

I also included a small note explaining the gift.

 

I made the base of solid burlap first and then wove in the patterned parts.  I used a hot glue gun to attach the lady bug and let the wreath sit overnight.

 

I'll be keying into her room this morning and leaving it on her desk. I'm fairly certain she'll be in today but all teachers in our district must report back tomorrow.  

What small gestures can you do to spread #rule11?