Winding Down the Year, and a Freebie!

As I read through blogs this weekend, I noticed how many schools are just starting testing. That would have been my school last year, but this year our last day is May 30! (Students' last day is May 28!!) We are off for Memorial Day next Monday, which means we only have 7 days of school left! Two of those days we will be testing for our state math test, and one of those days is Field Day! So, I'm left with 3 days and 1 half day. I'm kind of FREAKING OUT!! I totally have everything under control. I really don't want my kids to be burnt out from all the testing, so for our last two days of math review, I have planned some fun games. I'm pulling back out all my task cards and center games from the year to review, but I just didn't have enough to get through two days.
So, I set to work this weekend. I created a Fraction Task Cards set, which you can find on TpT for only $1.50!! I still haven't completed our Geometry review with the Geometry Task Card set I made last week, but the Duck Dynasty review was a HIT!
I knew I still needed some more review, so this evening I set to work on a Money Task Card set. My students needed practice in counting money, making change, and comparing money amounts. I know the end of the year is a SUPER busy time for everyone, so in celebration of the end of the year ......the task cards will be FREE in my TpT store for about the next week!! So, grab it while you can. All I ask is that you leave a rating after you download! Just click on the picture to grab it!

Have a great week ya'll!! 

This One's a Life Changer (for Reading Passages anyway!!!), A Freebie, and The Water Cycle.....

Hello Blog Land !! I have been SO bad about blogging lately that I'm beating myself up about it. Since the hubs and I have moved into our new house, it just seems like one thing after another that seem to tie up my evenings and weekends, but I just wanted to tell you all about some AMAZING things that I have been testing/trying/changing with my group, and I LOVE THEM! (My kiddos AND these ideas!)

First -- the UNRAVEL strategy. Please note -- I am NOT claiming this to be mine, and if you Google "Unravel strategy for reading" you get about 1.3 million hits! I am telling you how I have used this amazing strategy to improve my reading scores, and my science scores. Virginia is one of the LAST states to get on the CC band wagon - as in -- we haven't! HA! (Those of you who aren't fans of CC might be jealous - but it just makes it harder to find resources for some subject areas.) Our state test (SOL - Standards of Learning) in reading is VERY heavy on non-fiction passages - as are most reading tests. Our school uses the SFA (Success For All Foundation) reading program, so our students get fabulous exposure to fiction and nonfiction alike - but they don't have much practice with cold passages. Insert "UNRAVEL" ! This is a method/process developed to help students decode those cold passages.

The only problem is that SFA is a scripted program designed to last 90 minutes. I still have to teach a *small* Language Arts block - so WHEN do you practice UNRAVEL? During Science of course!!!!!! We use reading passages from Interactive Reading and Notetaking for our interactive notebook. These things are AHHHH-mazing. They come with a teacher guide, ready made questions, and a passage that breaks down each SOL into informative passages. I used to go over these passages with students as a whole group, and work toward having students be able to find important ideas on their own. Now - I pass out the Unravel task cards, and let the students get to work! This is what we do: Students underline the title and number the paragraphs on their own. Then, as a class, or partners, we read the questions (Supplied by IR&N). Students then circle the bold and italicised words, and read the passage. Right now, we are reading as partners, but in the future I will have students read individually.  E stands for Eliminate wrong answers - and since this isn't a multiple choice test, we just eliminate information that might not be important. The last step, is the most important. This is where students look back for the answers. I have them underline the answer they have found, and voila - they have underlined the most important ideas from the reading. Seriously -- my science scores have gone up tremendously compared to years past, as well as compared to their first test scores at the beginning of the year. So, for YOU.....here it is for FREE!!!!!!!!!! Just click HERE to be taken to the Google Doc that will have 4 cards per page - perfect size for students to have in their pencil pouch! 

Also - right now in science we are studying the Water Cycle! I LOVE making things for students to watch and learn, so we created a water cycle in a bag! 

First, each child gets their own zip lock bag. We put a piece of wet brown paper towel into the bottom to represent the soil from our earth. Then, using Sharpie markers, we drew a sun, clouds, and a water source. Some students chose to draw a pond with trees around it, while others drew a boat in the ocean. We taped the bags into the window, and waited for the magic to happen. The next day, students came in to observe their bags, and were SO excited to see the water had evaporated. Of course the water was trapped inside the bag, and they quickly came to the conclusion that the tiny droplets they were seeing were in fact condensation. Their favorite part was flicking the bags and watching the precipitation rain down. It was awesome!! We will be adding in our vocabulary words "evaporation, condensation, and precipitation" after we have observed the bags for a few days. 

Life has been wonderful, but super busy!!! I am so happy to have blogged again. I am reading all the blogs I follow as I do my cardio at the gym. If I could do the eliptical and type- I would be able to blog there too! How is your year going? Has the hustle and bustle slowed down? Or do you feel like it won't ever stop?! 

Thanks for following my blog, and enjoy the Freebie!! 

A Freebie for Fifteen Followers!!

I just got an email, saying that I have a new follower on Bloglovin' - which brings my current total to 10. Add that to my 5 followers on Blogspot, and I'm at 15! Woo hoo! :) (If Pinterest lead you to this awesome blog -- follow me! I love freebies!) It's the little things in life that bring the most joy!
So, to celebrate, I'm giving you all my latest creation for F-R-E-E. I was playing around in MS Publisher, and created a morning work recorder sheet for my Math Board I will be creating!

Just click HERE to be taken to the Google Doc! 

I had some inspiration for this- Originally a pin on Pinterest led me to this blog. My friend Valerie over at AskingForSeconds shared her WONDERFUL sheet she uses (She managed to get hers down to 1/2 a sheet-- it's in her TpT store HERE). Her's was great for 2nd grade -- it has tally marks, odd and even, Hundreds Tens Ones, and AWESOME things for 2nd grade. I teach 3rd grade- and my students are responsible for going to the Hundred Thousands place and difficult multi step word problems, so I had to add in some 3rd grade skills that I know students have trouble with. I was also excited, because this was the first classroom related object I made with MS Publisher. I'm not a fan of MS Office in general - but this one, I'll keep for cute things like this! 

I get to go into my classroom tomorrow to work, and I am SOOOOO excited. I was allowed to sneak in for a few minutes today and arrange some furniture. I had this hideously ugly falling apart bookcase

The back was one of those cheap cardboard pieces -- the case is a hand me down, and I love the size. I wanted to make it work! 

About an hour later, and two rolls of contact paper from The Dollar General ($2.75 each) - I have this beautiful shelf! I'm in LOVE! 

When my classroom doesn't look like something exploded -- I will post some photos! 

Make it Monday!! and a Freebie!

Wait- it's Monday?! Where did my weekend go? I was SO excited to cross off some items from my "Pinterest To Do List" for back to school! Since I'm not allowed in my classroom, I figured I need to have everything finished and ready to go for my first day in my room!

For Monday Made It, I'm linking up with Tara over at 4th Grade Frolics!


If you remember Friday, I spent the whole day with Momma. After we went to the doctor, and took care of some other things, she helped me create some totally awesome bulletin boards for my classroom!! This project cost about $20 for two bulletin boards! I was super excited! I present to you, Make it Monday -- bulletin board style!

 I have had this idea for a while now -- and I have seen it on several blogs done different ways. Several I saw used glue, or tape. I decided to use my staple gun. One of the blogs I first saw it on YEARS ago was HERE.  First, I went to Walmart, and found these twin sheets for only $4.00 a piece! I was SO happy because the turquoise color is PERFECT for my room this year. They only had it in a fitted sheet, which I thought would be okay -- I really had to make it work! If you plan on making your own, stick with the flat sheet! I also picked up some staples for my staple gun.
Then, Momma and I climbed in the Avalanche and headed to Lowes. I was on the hunt for Foam Board. You can find it in the building section -- this is the stuff they put on a house under the siding for insulation. I suggest you get the foam board with the coating on each side, not just the plain foam. It was $10 for something like an 8 or 9 foot board. I knew it would fit in the Avalanche, if I moved things around. Wait - I didn't want ONE board, I wanted TWO! So, I borrowed the cashier's box cutter, and cut my board in the checkout line! Simply score the board down one side, then the other, and fold! I was able to bring home two smaller pieces that didn't require any rearrangement!

I faced the foam pieces so that you can see what each side looks like -- one side is silver, and one is white. Next, I took my gray flat sheet, and laid it down, placing the foam piece ontop. If you only wanted to use one sheet, you would have to undo the hem in the sheet. I bought two, so I knew I would have some extra fabric. The next part is sooooo easy. Very neatly, pull tight and fold the fabric over. Use your staple gun to staple down the fabric! This was MUCH easier with Mom to help keep the fabric smoothed out! 

We went around each side, and on the fourth side, we cut off extra. I wanted some open space in the center to put my mounting tape. (Scotch 3M mounting tape). 

I thought the fitted sheet would be just as easy. Boy - was I wrong. Oh so wrong! Thankfully - my Momma is a patient woman, and we made it work! I HAD to have that color -- and she understood that! I ended up cutting out the corners and elastic on the fitted sheet. 

Not nearly as neat and pretty as the gray one! We flipped it over, and saw a problem!! 

My bulletin board had flabby skin on the front! 

Mom and I smoothed and pulled, and smoothed and pulled, and restapled along the back and.......

All is well in bulletin board land! I am SO happy with these two boards! I cannot wait to hang them on my wall! I only have one bulletin board- so this REALLY opens up some options for me! I cannot wait to hang these up! 

Also -- to celebrate my Liebster nomination, as well as making it to 5 followers on Bloglovin' I'm going to add in a Freebie! This is a poster I created to teach rounding, using the idea of a mountain! Do you like what you see? Go on over to my TpT store and download it! Rate my product, and let me know what you think! Check out the other freebies I have there too! 

The Countdown is On!

So, I spent the week at the Amazing Race Technology Camp, which I organized for our district. What a week!!! It was great, but exhausting! I go back to work August 5th....WAIT! It's ALMOST AUGUST! I am SUPER excited to get back into my classroom. This is the first year we are NOT departmentalizing. For the past several years, I have taught just math and science. (Our school is a SFA school - so EVERYONE teachings Reading. Language Arts is a separate block that encompasses writing, grammar, and word study. )  I loved teaching math, but I missed teaching Language Arts, and now I get to have that time back with my students! There are so many wonderful opportunities for projects and integration of technology that I haven't been able to do, and I am SO ready to get my Language block back!! (Not to mention, the pressure of the State math test is now only for ONE class instead of ALL the third grade classes!) 

With all of these changes, I decided I needed to revamp my classroom, and add in more math centers and update my language arts for more individual practice items for when I do small group instruction. I have been busy printing on cardstock, and organizing these things for when I went back into my classroom on August 5th. Then, our building got an email -- August 5th would be in our classrooms, the next two workdays would be GONE -- SFA Reading Training since we are upgrading to the newest edition. Wait -- WHAT?!?! ONE WORKDAY BEFORE STUDENTS COME FOR REGISTRATION!!!! Commence Operation Freak Out! One day, to set up my classroom from SCRATCH! I wanted to cry :( This would be a no biggie if the building was open -- but it's not. Closed for cleaning! So, one day after my summer camp this week, I called our maintenance department, and got an appointment with the laminating machine! I didn't realize exactly HOW much I had accumulated that needed to be laminated!

Holy Laminating Batman!! TWO ROLLS!! I'm afraid to unroll it and start cutting because I don't think my little house is big enough to hold all this laminating! I really NEED to start cutting! 

Check out those classroom Labels! Are they not the CUTEST!!!! My room this year is going to be black and pastel, so when I found these chalk board labels for my classroom, I was stoked! They have the prettiest pink writing and teal border! Do you absolutely love them?! 

If you love them as much as I do, check out Ms. Third Grade's post where I got them HERE! You will notice I linked her name to her blog, and the labels to "HERE" -- because I want you to see BOTH! She gives away amazing freebies, and has some great post and ideas. I may be partial because I'm also a 3rd Grade Teacher, but check her out! 

SO --- I was FREAKING out today, thinking I only had ONE day in my classroom before my 20 wonderful kiddos show up to meet me and drop off their supplies, and honestly, I was FREAKING out-- and then I got this WONDERFUL email from my principal: 

I emailed her back, immediately, telling her THANK YOU and how relieved I was. Two days is better than one! I will just need to be in SUPER PRODUCTIVITY MODE! 

I am looking forward to looking for some classroom supplies tomorrow - hoping to catch some sales! I am looking for some lamps (I despise the florescent lights in our rooms), the supplies to make my own bulletin board, and some organizing bins. I purchased some notebooks at the end of the year last year for Class Journals, and I look forward to designing the front covers for those! 

As a side note -- has anyone repainted or refinished their bookcases in any way that could be done in one night at home? I really need to update my shabby bookshelves! 

Editable Back to School Organizing Papers- Freebie!

As we are all getting ready to go Back to School, and think about getting ourselves organized and ready to start a fresh new year! Right now on my blog I only have 2 followers, and I'm going to celebrate that with some FREEBIES!!!!!! The better news -- when I get up to 20, I will do another FREEBIE AND a giveaway! Today, I am offering not 1, not 2, but 3 Freebies!!!! Each sheet that I have for you today is in a Google Doc, but if you choose File----> Save a Copy, then you will have a copy to edit and put in your students' names.

Today, I was thinking about things I have done in the past that make my life easier, and my classroom run smoother. The first, and my favorite, is my behavior sheet! I changed this one to be one sheet for the whole week, although in the past I have done one sheet per day. To use the weekly sheet, each day a student breaks a rule, you write down the rule number under the day. To use the sheet as a daily sheet, write each subject or time block down in the spaces, and write down the number of the rule they break and where. This is GREAT documentation for RTI Behavior Plans, and to notice patterns in your children's behavior. Are they misbehaving only during reading? This will track that for you!

 Behavior Sheet 

The next sheet that I LOVE is my Child Information Roster. Parents fill out information on Back to School Night, Open House, Business Day, or when ever you sit down for your first meeting. This is one document to keep in your Teacher Binder that contains the child's name, mom and dads name, birthdays, health problems, and anything else about your students you might think is important. It keeps me so organized because I don't have to run to the office to get a phone number! This preview snapshot is only the first page, be sure to click on the title to download!

Child Information Roster

Gradebook

The last freebie for the night is my Gradebook. I love having my Gradebook with my Teacher Binder, and I have found this simple form allows me to add my students' names, and 10 assignments  There is a spot for the date, as well as the score, and the description of the assignment at the bottom. It really keeps me organized, as each subject area gets its own paper. 

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog! Remember to follow me to get access to great freebies, as well as to check out some really awesome 3rd Grade Things!