Classroom Sneak Peek + FREEBIES

Hello, sweet friends! I feel like I have been missing from the blogging world for a little too long. A few weeks ago my family and I were doing a little vacationing. 

We flew into Seattle and spent a couple days there being tourists and enjoyed the town. Then we took a ferry to the San Juan Islands and spent the week enjoying nature, fishing, and EATING, EATING and EATING some more delicious seafood! I tried to unplug as much as possible. As soon as we got home, it was time to start my classroom prep. So blogging has been put to the back burner until now!

I feel like I could work in my classroom ALL year, without kids, and NEVER be completely ready. I am overly organized and prepared and I still feel this way. Here is a little bit of what I have been doing in my home away from home....

 I love to make my kiddos feel special on their birthday. I created these birthday blooms to do just that. I change what I attach them to every year. I have used crazy straws, mechanical pencils, birthday pencils and more. I keep them in this pot all year. When its the student's birthday, they "pick" there birthday bloom from the pot. You can grab your copy of this FREEBIE by clicking HERE. The file is editable too!

I also have a class birthday board. Once the kids arrive I take a group picture of 

all the kids who have birthdays each month. Then I print and laminate them to have up on our birthday board all year. 

I love our Second Grade Makes Us "App"y welcome door! This is from my talented friend, Molly, at Lucky To Be In First.

I finally found black pocket charts! The heavens must be hearing me sing (cover your ears). Seriously though, I LOVE Them. I put my student "I Can" standards cards in them, so I can easily switch them out AND my administration and students will know EXACTLY what we are focusing on.

 I LOVE, LOVE, L-O-V-E my new behavior chart from Learning in Wonderland. Now, I know, behavior charts seem to be a hot topic lately, but it works for my students and I. I like how students can easily improve on their behavior and move their clips up. It provides accountability. My students fill out a behavior chart at the end of each day with the color they are on. At the end of the week, they take the chart home and have it signed. This provides parents with the information they need and cuts down on "how is my child behaving/doing in class" questions.

 I have very little wall space in my classroom, so I have to be creative and use every surface creatively. My behavior chart is on one side of my file cabinet. I love it because it dresses it up AND I can use magnetic student numbers, instead of clothespins that always seems to break during the year.

I was inspired by Amy Lemons to dress up and label my file cabinets. She has a great freebie you can download. I, however, created my own labels that are similar because I wanted the titles to fit my needs. I don't know why I didn't do it sooner. 

I have prepped my first day of school treat bags. I made these labels last year for all grade levels. You can grab the labels for your classroom by heading over to my Facebook page. Click on the Freebie For Fans tab on the left side of the page.

During special activities our students wear name tags (music, art, theater etc.) until those teachers get to know the kids. I also use them if we are going to a special assembly that is interactive and the presenter would need to call on students. 

These are just a few of the little things that are helping me get the school year off right. I will give you a full room tour next week once school is underway. 

I hope each of you are enjoying what is left of your summer or have kicked off your school year with a BANG!