Liebster Award

I am so excited because my blog has been nominated for the Liebster Award by Mrs. Bartels School Family's blog!! This award is for new bloggers, with less than 200 followers, to let us know that we are appreciated and to help our blogs get moving!!!

Here are my responses, and questions for other fellow new bloggers!!


11 Random Facts About Me:
1. I had 5 wisdom teeth removed instead of 4!!
2. I am related to Robert E. Lee. He was my great, great, great, etc. uncle!!
3. I love using exclamation marks at the end of sentences!!
4. My husband and I met in middle school!!
5. My favorite movie is Grease!! The first....not second!!
6. I play Fantasy Football on 3 different leagues!!
7. We bought our first house in June!!
8. I love yellow!!
9. I would love more than anything to be an interior designer....but I don't have the slightest clue where I would begin or what I would design!!
10. I am jealous of fabulous photographers!! I want that skill!!
11. I hate swimming in the lake!!

11 Questions from Mrs. Bartel:

1. What is your favorite classroom "tool"? My ELMO document camera. It saves copies, makes foldable a ten times easier, and is just an all around wonderful invention!

2. What is your most successful classroom management strategy? I use positive management instead of color cards or clips. One thing I do is have my students spell out a mystery word with good behavior. Once they spell it out, they get the reward.

3. When did you start blogging? I started blogging in August this past year.

4. What grade do you teach and how long have you taught this grade? I teach third grade, and this is my second year teaching it!!

5. How do you incorporate technology in your classroom? I have my document camera, projector, laptop, and IPad. I let my students use it or see it being used every chance I get!!

6. What is your favorite professional book? Ron Clark's: The Essential 55!!

7. What do you like to do in your free time? Lay on the couch with my husband and puppies, or go for walks. I do like to cook, too.

8. Do you give your students a present for Christmas? If so, what is it? I have not done that in the past, but I do like the idea!

9. Do you have traditions or rituals in your classroom? If so, what is it? I can't really think of anything off the top of my head. If I think of one, I will add it later!!

10. What is your favorite book to read aloud? James and the Giant Peach and Thunder Cake! My first grade teacher read Thunder Cake to me, and I loved it ever since!!

11. What is your favorite subject to teach? I love my guided reading groups. I love differentiating reading and doing fun things with each group based on their needs!!

11 Questions from KinderKapers:

1. How long have you been blogging? I started blogging in August this year. Only 4 months!!

2.  What inspired you to start blogging? I am so impressed with how teachers blog, and I thought it might be fun! I also wanted to advertise my TpT store!!

3.  What is the best thing you've learned since you started blogging? It takes time to build support and followers!! Patience!!

4.  What is your best childhood memory? Going fishing at the lake across the street from my Grandparents house! We would take our Donald Duck fishing poles and sit on a big rock and just enjoy the scene! 

5.  How many states have you visited?  Colorado, Florida, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, N. Carolina, S. Carolina...so 10!

6.  What is you favorite book to read to your class? Thunder Cake! My first grade teacher read it to me and we made Thunder Cake. I just love it!

7.  Favorite teacher? My first grade teacher! She played the piano for me at my wedding!! My brother had her, too. I did clinicals with her while in college! :)

8.  What is the best part of being a teacher? Summer! Just kidding! I love seeing my students have lightbulbs go off! It is so exciting to watch!

9.  Do you have a real tree or fake? Real...all the way! We cut ours down from the mountains!

10.  Favorite Christmas tradition? Hmm....probably cutting down our Christmas tree. That is kind of a Thanksgiving/Christmas tradition because we do it the day after Thanksgiving!

11.  Dream vacation? Either Italy or France!!

11 Blogs I Am Nominating:

1. Learning and Teaching for Life

2. Dancing in our Teacher Shoes

3. A Teacher Without a Class

4. Mrs. Christys Leaping Loopers

5. Curious Firsties

6. Ms. Huttens Buttons

7. Pencils, and Crayons, and Books, Oh My!

8. Foxwell Forest

9. Joy in the Journey

10. In That Room...Adventures in Second Grade

11. Little Piggy Reads

11 Questions I Have for my Nominees:

1. Why did you decide to start blogging?

2. What piece of advice would you give to a first year teacher?

3. What is your best memory of teaching, so far?

4. Year round school, or not year round school? Which would you prefer?

5. What has been your biggest challenge in teaching?

6. What is one of your most favorite lessons/topics to teach?

7. What do you do to keep school life and personal life separated?

8. When did you know you wanted to be a teacher?

9. What is your favorite subject to teach?

10. What is your best classroom Managment advice?

11. What resource do you use most to find teaching ideas?

Please leave a link back to your blog when you have answered my questions! I look forward to reading about you! Thank you to Mrs. Bartel for your nomination of my blog!!

Thankful For Linky Party...

Thanksgiving is right around the corner!! Right in the home stretch!! I am linking up with A Year of Firsts Thankful For Linky Party!! A lot of people have been participating in the Facebook thankful party, so this is my quick version!!

Starting with.......

1. Family!!

When it comes to support, love, compassion, teachings.....my parents win!! My mom will bend over backwards to make her children happy and did a fabulous job raising 3 kids!! My dad helped guide us to be responsible adults and disciplined within our responsibilities!! Even today, at 24 years old, I still look to them for advice and support when needed!!

My brother and sister!! My older sister and I have gotten a lot closer lately, which has been pretty cool. My younger brother....don't mess with him, or I will take you down!! :) my brother is the one in the red shirt. The guy on the end in black....he is extra. He belongs to my sister. I refer to him as "the pain." My sister refers to him as her boyfriend!! :) Gray shirt...you will read about him later!

When you get married, there is always the fear of the "in-laws." I never had that fear. My in-laws are awesome, and I'm so glad to be a part of their family!! Not just the parent-in-laws and sister-in-law, but the whole family.  They all accepted me and treat me as if I have been a part of their family the whole time!!

Here is the rest of my family (moms side). My Nana....pretty much the best...my aunt (has helped me a lot through teaching), my cousins (helped me learn to deal with gross boy noises and stuff).

I can't forget my dads side of the family.  We don't get to see them as much, but they are still a part of who I am today. My 3 aunts and 2 uncles, and my MawMaw and PawPaw (who passed away a couple year ago).

2. My husband!! My husband and I met in 6th grade. We dated for 8 months, but unfortunately ended our very serious middle school relationship after that.  We remained friends up through middle school and high school, and then proceeded to go to college together.  The summer between freshman and sophomore year, we started hanging out and it just seemed right!! My mother says she prayed him into my life since middle school.  Mom knows best!! We got married on New Years Eve 2010, and have already experienced so much as a married couple!! He is everything I am not.  He helps keep me sane and helps keep me happy! I can't wait to see where our lives go together!

Alright....the rest won't be as long!!

3. My puppies!! We have a 13 year old golden retriever lab, and a 1 year old beagle-australian shepherd.  They are my children.  I love them both to pieces!! It is the best feeling to come home and be greeted at the door by a cute little face that is so excited to see you!! OHH I love my puppies so much!!!

4. My job.  Yes, it drives me crazy some days.  Yes, I think there is to much extra "stuff" put on teachers that burns us out. Besides that, it is a very fulfilling job!! 

5. This really should be first...Jesus Christ!!! He has blessed me beyond what I deserve, and has opened doors that have been to wonderful things!! Thank you, God, for the many blessings and challenges you have placed before me!!

These are the top 5 things I am thankful for. Other things include:

--my house

--a husband who keeps track of our finances to the "t"

--music

--great friends

--food/water

--WEEKENDS!!!!

What are you thankful for??

K'Nex in the Classroom Teaching Tip...

I am linking up with Miss Kindergartens Teaching Tip Linky Party.  My tip is specific to teaching math...more specifically Geometry!!

Today in math we started Geometry!! We are being "guided" (AKA told...) to use Math Investigations. I don't know if your system uses this program or not, but it is VERY different from your conventional way of teaching and learning. It isn't bad....but there are parts that are just not good!! Investigations really encourages students to look at multiple ways to solve problems, and it involves much higher critical thinking then your paper pencil way of doing math. Like I said.....has some good and bad parts!! It's taking some adjusting!!

"This is how I learned it, and it worked for me!!" This is the biggest argument you hear...I'm guilty too!! 

So anyways....we started geometry today using an Investigations unit from Georgia.....makes sense....we live in North Carolina!! :)

The first lesson was VERY basic. What is a square? A rectangle? What is an attribute?

My students picked this up pretty quick.

I decided to introduce my Math K'Nex as a way to extend the first lesson! What can I say.....I won the kids over!! They loved it!

We  talked about how if you make a square, all 4 sides will be equal. You know this because all 4 sides will be the same color rods. It's a GREAT visual for kids to catch onto attributes. The angle is where the 2 rods connect with the connector (vertex). Parallel lines run straight beside  each other like a railroad track.  We will get more into  it tomorrow. This "tip" is one that can really help students catch on to their shapes and shape attributes. A great investment for teaching math!!

On another note....a tip on laundry!! Don't let your laundry basket start overflowing.  8 loads of laundry later, and I am caught up!!

Looking at the Positives of a Sick Day...

So I took a sick day today because I have laryngitis, and a stuffy nose that just won't clear up!! On top of that....my lips have been chapped and up pops a cold sore!! I am having deja vu from last year, this same time!  Last year, I woke up with 5....repeat that.....FIVE....cold sores; a week after I had just gotten rid of 2!!  I threw the covers off of me, started crying like a child, saying "I DON'T WANT TO GO TO SCHOOL TODAY!!!!" My husband looked at me like...really?? I also had laryngitis at this time!!  I went to the doctor, and they gave me these magic pills that help get rid of those horrible little bacteria creatures!!!

 

Today wasn't as dramatic.  I simply woke up, took a shower, and just thought....."I really don't need to go to school! I need to rest!!"  Made my calls, emails, typed plans (I guess I need to invest in an emergency sub folder), and went RIGHT back to bed!!

 

So....I decided to use this time to make another novel unit for the story Stanley, Flat Again!  My students LOVE Flat Stanley! We have even been working on the Flat Stanley Project (FlatStanley.com) in our classroom with Korea and France!!

 

 

Teachers Pay Teachers

 

Click on the link above to go to my TPT store to check out the unit!! If you decide to purchase, please leave feedback!! Any feedback is welcomed to let me know what should be added, removed, changed, etc. With feedback, you also get extra TPT store credits!!

 

I hope you enjoy my sick day creation!! Tomorrow is Friday....hopefully I can make it work in the morning!!

 

 

 

Oh Happy Day.....

Tomorrow is a teacher workday!! Hallelujah!! It is so difficult to teach with little to no voice!!

Because I am so happy...I'm hosting a 15% sale in my TPT store!!!!

15% off Sale TPT Store!

Go check it out and don't forget to leave feedback!!

Currently Linky and Teachers Helping Teachers Linky!!

I am linking up with Oh Boy, 4th Grade's November currently!!

Here is my Currently:

1. Clock ticking: I woke up due to the lovely junk in my respiratory system, and went downstairs to get a cup of warm honey water!!! So now I sit here blogging, listening to the quiet sound of the clock ticking. It's much better than the sound of me coughing my brains out, like 20 minutes ago!!

2. 2 four day weeks: Tuesday is Common Core training (*whoohoo*) so no kids!! Next Monday is Veterans Day so no kids OR work!! FINALLY!!!! Not to mention....then we run in to Thanksgiving week....2 day week! Can I take a moment to say how much I truly love November??!!!

3. I want to go back to bed: pretty self explanatory!! I want to go back to bed and sleep! Which I will as soon as this post is published!!!

4. Want this cold to go away: it's that time of year.....snotty noses, scratchy throats, coughing mucus, cold sores. Isn't fall just GREAT?? This should be turned into a country song!! I choose....Brad Paisley to sing it!!!

5. Nice warm shower: I look like a hot mess because I woke up coughing, and so my hair had to be held back to keep out of my face. Therefore, my hair is greasy!! Not to mention a warm shower just helps open up my head!! Don't I sound just beautiful??!! (Ps...this would totally be verse 2 to my country song)!!

6. Music: Jim Brickman piano music!! He is so wonderful!! I had the piano player (AKA my first grade teacher) at my wedding play his music. It is so beautiful!! I have a station on Pandora totally dedicated to his music, an I play it when my students are arriving to school, during independent work time, and any other time I need a sense of peace in my classroom!!

There you go!! My November Currently!!!

ATTENTION ALL YOU AWESOME TEACHERS OUT THERE!!! Want a way to help out teachers who have been effected by Hurricane Sandy?? Head on over toThe ESOL Odyssey to donate some of your TPT products or Teachers Notebook products!!! This is an easy way to help out fellow teachers in need, get back on their feet with teaching!! Click the link above to head on over and start donating!!

Thankful For Linky Party

I am linking up with Stories by Storie's Top Ten Things I Am Thankful For Linky party!!

Here is my list: