Blog Lovin'

So I'm trying to figure out Blog Lovin'...

I have to admit, I'm not trying as hard as I could! Click on the link above to follow my blog on Blog Lovin'!

Thanks for all the support! 

I'm hoping to start sharing all the great Kindergarten resources I've been investigating! 

**If you haven't heard, I'm transitioning from 1st Grade to Kindergarten next school year!** 

I'm also leaving a building that I've taught at for the last two years so this will be a year of change! Anywhoo...nothing much else to say except thanks for following!

Mary

Some News and Random Purchases!

News # 1

This has been a restful and productive summer! I've started taking classes towards a 4/5 endorsement. I'm currently licensed for grades Pre-Kindergarten through Third. This endorsement would allow me to teach 4th or 5th grade as well. 

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE little people but this is something that I felt would expand my content knowledge and make me a better teacher! I'm liking the classes and I am learning so much already! Does anyone else have similar licensure? Is anyone else taking classes this summer? If so, what are you taking!?

News # 2

I'm excited to announce that I have accepted a position in Kindergarten within my school district! This will not be a huge change for me as I've previously taught Preschool as well as First Grade but it is still a little scary! I'm going to miss the wonderful people I've worked with for the last two years! The staff at my new placement are phenomenal! I'm looking forward to working with and learning from them!

Random Purchases I Want You to Know About!

I want to start this section out by saying that I was not asked to recommend these products, review these products, nor were these items sent to me for free. I willingly purchased these from Really Good Stuff and want to recommend them to you all because I just think they're great! Click the pictures to be taken to the Really Good Stuff website to check them out!

Purchase # 1

The first product is an "All About Today" pocket chart. It takes all the things I usually discuss during calendar and places it all in ONE pocket chart! I love it and I haven't even gotten it in the mail yet!!! Ha ha!

It has a space for the current month, the date (today, yesterday, tomorrow), the number of days in school (including one more, one less, ten more, ten less), and a weather tally! I can't wait for it to arrive!

Purchase # 2

Again, I wasn't asked to review or recommend these items. They were not sent to me willingly. Click the pictures to be taken to the Really Good Stuff website to check them out!

The second purchase is a "Our Birthday Graph" pocket chart. I love that it is set up in a format that will get my littles familiar with the concept of a graph! We can practice counting, comparing numbers, the order of the months of the year, etc! I'm so stinkin' excited about this!

Click here to see the product on Really Good Stuff's website

Now it's time for you to share something exciting with me... I don't care if it is about school or not... Let's talk about what we're excited about!!!!!

Mary

Sunday Share

I'm trying out my first "Sunday Share" post. My dear friend DeAnne at First Grade and Fabulous does such an awesome job at sharing other bloggers amazing products and ideas and I want to do the same!

 I follow Kristin's blog (First Grade - California Style) and she is very similar to me this school year: we both lost our blogging mojo and are trying to find it once again! 

She is also feeling that wonderful "no more stress" feeling of Summer and has created an AWESOME Number of the Day pack. I think you should go check it out! 

I'm also loving DeAnne's Math is a Hoot! pack! It is FREE on TpT too! You NEED to check it out!

And...if you're interested in something that is free of mine, check out my Apple games posted in June of last summer. Click here to be taken to the posts and the FREEBIES!

Is there a product or idea that you would like to share? Is there a blogger that I should be following? Let's get this Sunday share going! :)

Mary

I Might be "Insane"! :)

Just a warning... this post only has a LITTLE bit to do with education… :)

I started a new "tradition" for myself! I've decided that at the conclusion of each school year, I am going to buy myself something that I've wanted throughout the year! It is almost like a "Congratulations for making it through the school year!" gift. Well...this year someone might call me insane!

 

Click on the picture if you want to visit Amazon.com to check out the program!

Yep! That's right! My "Congratulations" gift is INSANITY! Ha ha! Throughout the year, I was working out with a colleague using the Insanity program. I was EXHAUSTED each time we were done but I was actually seeing results! As the end of the year came, she and I totally slacked off due to work obligations and I truly missed the exercise and fellowship!

I ordered the Insanity program on my "teacher work day" and began working out the day I received the package in the mail! 

This really is the TOUGHEST workout I've ever done but I'm hoping that it leads me to being in the best shape physically and mentally when I go back to school in August!

What do you do to relax and recharge during the summers?

Mary

Putting the "b" and "d" Confusion to "Bed"!

So I've got next school year on the brain lately (trying to do as much as possible now before I lose motivation!) and I began thinking about things that I wanted to make sure my students know right away. As I thought about it, I focused in on the "b" and "d" confusion that many of my students this year struggled with. I hope I've come up with a solution! Click on the pic to download the Google Doc!

It's called: Put Your b's and d's to Bed! Students simply sort the b's and d's on the correct bed! There are a few worksheets included for further practice! I hope you enjoy the freebie and find it useful in your classroom! I used DJ Inkers clipart and fonts as well as some clipart from Scrappin Doodles! 

Make sure to let me know whether you were able to download! I am still learning how to use Google Docs/Drive correctly! :)

Mary

Emergent Books Galore!

I have to admit. I am getting a little obsessed with creating emergent readers! They are so much fun to create and even more fun to use with a classroom full of eager students! :) I made a few more emergent readers in the past few days and wanted to share.

The first one is a color book (another one of those books that I had found in a folder and updated! - no pictures this time... I tossed it without thinking!) made using DJ Inkers WONDERFUL clipart and fonts! 

 I used a book like this with my preschoolers around Saint Patrick's Day to review color words and the colors of the rainbow. Since I am in a "first grade brain" now, the plan is to use this book in the beginning of the school year.

You can find it over at TpT here. Here are a few pictures of the book in case you're interested.

Simple books like these are just perfect for any child Preschool-First Grade! This particular book is great for learning color words, building fluency, and building confidence and joy in reading! 

The second book I want to share is a simplified version of my Shape Description Book that is on TpT for FREE. This one is also free! I made it for Preschoolers and Kindergarteners. The text is simple and students are encouraged to try to draw the shape on their own! Click on the picture to download the Google Doc!

I didn't want PreK and K teachers to feel "left out" or that their students can't have a book to make! If you can use this free shape book, please download it. If you LOVE it and find success with your students, TELL YOUR FRIENDS to visit my blog and get their own copy! Enjoy!!!

Have a great Tuesday blogging buddies!

Mary

Hibernation Books Past and Present!

While cleaning and packing up my classroom for the summer, I came across something that made me smile!

I found one of my first forays into creating resources for my classroom! Inside of a folder marked "Bears" from my years teaching Preschool, I found a book that I had made about animals that hibernate.

I remembered making it! I had started out by typing the sentence, "The _________ will hibernate." Then, I printed out coloring pages from the internet and cut them out. Can you see where I'm going with this? You're absolutely correct! I glued those pictures onto the typed pages! I couldn't find the  cover page I made but I took pictures so you could enjoy them! 

The pages almost seem primitive to me! I do remember my little preschoolers LOVING to "read" this book! It inspired me to make a new and improved reader using all the awesome clipart I've acquired in the past year! I put it on TpT. Click the picture to check it out!

I took a few other pictures of the book in case you were interested in seeing them. The product has a printable/projectable book AND a black and white version so students can color it and keep it in browsing bags! I'm pretty proud of this product and I'm finding that making emergent readers is A LOT of fun! 

I'm always looking for ways to increase my students' fluency and confidence. These readers are perfect for Preschoolers to First Graders! Waiting to use this reader until Fall will be REALLY difficult! I'm very excited! 

Mary

Antlers Forever and Common Core Standards!

So far, I’m keeping my word about blogging more! 

My hubby and I ran several errands yesterday and ended up in Cabela’s. For those of you that don’t know what that is, it is a large outdoor sports store that specializes in all things guns, hunting, camping, etc.

I can’t lie. I wasn’t jumping for joy when we pulled up to the store because as most of my good friends know, I am NOT an outdoorsy person! I eventually found my way to the children’s section and started to enjoy myself a little bit! J

I found a really cute book folks! It is called “Antlers Forever”. It is written by Frances Bloxam and illustrated by Jim Sollers. It is about a young moose who doesn’t realize that his antlers will fall off every winter and grow back each spring. It features rhyming words and a really funny scene where a wise owl tries to help Frances by “screwing his antlers back on”! I snatched the book up right away because I thought it would be PERFECT for a science lesson!

The book even has a section in the back that teaches you about how and why moose antlers (even adults!) fall off and grow back each Spring! I’m telling you, this is a GREAT book! I've included some pictures so you can have a little preview!  Here is a link to the book on Amazon so you can check it out!

Also, in my commitment to blog more and share more, I have typed up the Kindergarten and 1^st Grade Common Core Standards for my own personal use but thought someone else may benefit from my format! 

If you can use them, please download them! Click the links to download the Google Docs!

Both documents include the ELA and Math Standards! I hope they are useful for you! OH!! And let me know if I made any mistakes!

First Grade Standards

Kindergarten Standards

Hope everyone is enjoying (or very close to enjoying) their summer breaks!

Mary