Ten Pin Linky - Reading Pins

There are so many great linky parties this summer!  Today I'm linking up with Ashley for her amazing Ten Pin Linky Party!!  This weeks topic is reading pins.

Here are my top 10 reading pins (in no particular order):

I love the idea of having the kids fill out a little book report & tape or glue it onto a brown bag filled with popcorn.  The kids can eat their popcorn while they discuss their books.  So cute!  (Cara did it differently so click the picture to read about the original idea)

I have some students who can't read or who are stuck at level A or B for years.  There are only so many level a and b books out there.  Hailey from The Autism Tank made these books.  The kids match the pictures (there is a small playground picture in a bag with the book).  

I bought this book because someone recommended it to me.  It is PERFECT for teaching predictions (for young kids).   It's super cute.  I will be reading this the first week of school for sure! 

When I first read about this retell center, I fell in love!  I already started planning mine...I'll be doing it a little differently so stay tuned for my post on it later (much later). 

This is a book tasting...about 5 books are set on a platter.  The kids browse the books then choose an appetizer.  They get a total of 3 trays (appetizer, main dish, dessert).  They fill out their order sheet of the 3 books they chose. 

This is a freebie from Teaching to Inspire in 5th.  It's simple but good!  Go download it!

This is the lesson plan format I use for my reading groups.  I love how fast they are to fill out and they are customized for each level.  The amount of time this has saved me in lesson planning is unreal haha

In these inference bags, kids put an item of their choice and then write clues about the item without giving it away.  The class needs to guess what is in each bag.  Great way to make inferences!  

I love these play-doh centers.  My kids LOVE play-doh so these are perfect.

Reading with flashlights?!  What kid wouldn't love this?  

As I compiled this list, I realized that even though I look at my pin boards, I don't really take time to REALLY look...does that make sense?  I overlooked a few of these pins while looking through my reading board to find my "Top Ten" pins so thank you to Ashley who "made" me look closer :) 

*Also, My entire store will be on sale from July 4th-8th 

Monday Made It

I love participating in Monday Made It!  I have been starting a million projects and not finishing any of them. This linky makes me get something done each week!  Thanks Tara! 

Click to Link Up too!

I can't get into my classroom yet so I'm using these weeks to really plan out how I want my room to run with 3 different grade levels all mixed together and what topics I need to buy/make materials for.  While I'm still processing all of that, I made some classroom management stuff this week (nothing too exciting).  

The first thing I made was my class rules:

 I love the look of the buntings so I thought it would be a great way to display our rules.  The colors are brighter than they look (bad cell phone pics sorry!).  I'm going to review the rules daily like they do in whole brain teaching.  We will see how that works :) 

The next thing I made was my clipchart: 

 I didn't put specific consequences on the clip chart to give me more freedom. Basically, slow down is a warning and/or lose some free time (depending on what the child did).  Stop means losing most/all of your free time, possibly going to the principal's office, and/or calling home. 

The third thing I made but didn't print yet are my name plates.  

My students referenced the number line and alphabet on their name tags but nothing else.  They were so big that there was no room to add little behavior plans or student schedules on their desks.  See the big empty spot at the top of the name plate?  That's where I can put student specific things.  

For my students who only need to know their therapies and specials for the day, I'll just add those to the top (see above).  Other students might have spots to earn stars for behavior or a "First...Then" picture cue.  Some students may have their whole morning schedule there.  It all depends on their needs.  All the picture cues will be velcroed on.

If you can't tell by now, I'm doing a colorful, beach/ocean theme next year.  I had the kids vote on it at the end of last year (since I'm keeping some of the students) and this is what they chose.  

I'm off to watch movies in pjs since it won't stop raining!

Classroom Rugs

This is a super short post but I had to share this with all of the chevron-obsessed teachers out there!  I was in Lowes grabbing some things for my mini bathroom makeover and I saw this rug:

Here is a better picture of the color: 

It was between $20-$30. They also had a green one at my store.

So if you're looking for a cute chevron rug, try Lowes!

Blog Lovin'

I'm going to be honest and say that I have no idea how google reader going away will affect me but since I don't want to miss out on any of your wonderful blogs, I joined Blog Lovin'.  It was super easy and took about 30 seconds (seriously).  It even imported all of the blogs I follow for me.  When you have a Blog Lovin' account, click the link below to make sure you are following me!

I'm working on a few freebies so stay tuned :) 

Lining Up & Lesson Plans

This is my first official Monday of summer!!  I am so excited to have time to link up with Tara's Monday Made it again!

My class had no trouble lining up last year UNTIL we got a new student who just.couldn't.do.it.  Everytime we lined up, he had an issue.  Someone got in front of him or he got in front of someone else or someone isn't lining up fast enough.  It drove me nuts!  I decided to have my kids line up in number order next year.  They will always be between the same two people and the line leader will rotate:

 The Line Leader arrow is glued on a clothes pin and gets clipped to whoever is the line leader that week.
{Click the picture to get this for your room}
Okay onto the lesson plans...
I changed my lesson plan template a lot last year because I wasn't sure how I wanted to run my room.  With multi-grade levels, I wasn't sure if I would be able to teach science/social studies whole group or if I'd have to do everything in small groups.  Next year, I'm adding a 3rd grade level!  This is the plan format I came up with (I just slightly edited the file from Ladybugs Teacher Files):

I'll have to make some changes to fit with all 3 grade levels and the schedule (I don't have the master schedule yet) but it's a start!  If you like this format, grab it for free in my store!  I have a few more freebies in the works so follow my blog so you don't miss any!

Ten Pin LInky: Classroom Management

I'm linking up with Ashley again for her 10 pin linky!  This weeks topic is Classroom management.  Without further ado, here are my top 10 classroom managment pins (in random order, click the pictures to be taken to the source):

1.  I really like this reflection page for kids who go to the cool down spot.  It uses a lot of pictures which is great for all kids who are upset (the less words the better).  It also doesn't have writing lines so it's easier to use with my 1st graders and 3rd graders.  AND it would be an easy way to let parents know their child needed the cool down spot.  I guess there is a lot I like about this!

2. The Hall of Fame for the clipchart is a great idea!  It's easy to implement and it gives kids something to work for.  This is also free!  Go check it out :) 

3. I am definitely going to make a compliment jar like this for next year!

4. Lining up was an issue this year in my room becuase of one child.  To make things easier for me and the class, I am having them line up in number order every.single.time.  In order to make this fair, I will rotate the number that starts.  For example, the second week of school the class will get in line starting with #2 and #1 will be the last in line.  The following week #3 will be the line leader and so on.  I made this little clip chart for it that includes posters for lining up. 

 

5. I started using Smart Beads last year when I only had 2 students participating.  I will definitely being using them again!

6. To move away from the prize box, I bought the Best Behavior Catelog: 

7. Next year, I will have 6 students with autism.  That's a lot of individual schedules to set up! I plan on making schedule pages like this for each child.  When something changes, I'll cross it out and write the change.  The aides can set up the visual schedule using this. 

8. I know you have all seen this...This challenge will be introduced DAY 1!

9. I'm terrible at keeping up with newletters and when you add in 3 different grade levels, forget it.  It's never going to happen.  Instead, I'm going to have my students write a letter to their parents every Friday telling them what they learned. 

10.  Finally, I love this substitute binder.

I'm a little late with this so you can be too!  Go over and join Ashley's party!

School's Out!

Today was my offical last day!  The kids left before lunch on Wednesday and the rest of the week was spent moving into my new room.  Moving cabinets, desks, bookshelves, and all our materials downstairs was exhausting!  If the pool was warm enough, that's where I'd be right now but our weather has been oddly cold this year so instead, I'm thinking of ideas for next year.  

Teaching 3 full curriculums (1st, 2nd, and 3rd) is a lot to take on but I'm excited to find creative ways to do it!  I was thinking about my centers when I saw this post tonight at Primary Possibilities.  Those ladies created amazing playdough centers!  My students LOVE playdough.  It's good for their fine motor skills and it's great for kids with sensory issues (I will have 6 students with autism next year and they all have sensory needs).   Playdough centers seem like a great way to work on a lot of skills while keeping kids interested.  Take a look at some of these centers: 

Short Vowels:

Word problems:

Time:

Place Value:

I can't wait to use these next year! Head over to Primary Possibilities to check them out & enter their giveaway :) 

Happy first day of Summer!!

Classroom Decor Linky!!

I'm linking up with Ashley from Just Reed for the Ten Pin Linky!  This week is all about Classroom Decor.

Click the picture to join in! 

Here are my top 10 classroom decor pins in no particular order: 

1. Tire Seats for a reading area {so cute!} This would go great with the Schoolgirl Style road trip theme.

2. This Quote to keep on my desk {Free Printable}

3. I'm really loving the new Schoolgirl Style theme...I'm seriously considering it for next year.

4. This word wall!

5. A classroom timeline is a great idea!  I need to remember to do this next year. 

6. These are made from vinyl table clothes so they are super easy to clean. The kids LOVE the pillows but they tend to have accidents which is NOT good with fabric! This might be a good compromise. 

7. This bookshelf/small group area is adorable! It looks so peaceful and organized.  I'm considering going to a binder system for my units...not sure yet. 

8. I love this desk!  My current desk is awful and I can barely open the drawers.

(Link is broken...sorry!)

9.  I like the added Bulletin Board space here and hooks for the headphones.

10. These are the cutest crate seats ever!  I love the gray with the brighter dots.

I'm all over the place when it comes to picking a theme for next year.  Have you chosen yours yet?

1...2...3...

So I mentioned previously that I would have new grade levels next year and I FINALLY know what they are!  I will teach 1st, 2nd, and 3rd next year!!  I'm SO excited! and nervous because tha'ts 3 grade levels....3.  If you have any advice on teaching 3 grade levels, please leave a comment :) 

This has been a CRAZY week.  On Wednesday, my second graders had a musical and they did SO.AWESOME.  Everyone remembered their lines :) 

Today, we started with a Flag Day assembly complete with a Marine and band.  Then we had our class party.  We planned on doing outdoor water games but the weather has been cool and rainy so we quickly threw together the Hollywood themed party from Sarah Cooley.  

We ended our day by visiting the 5th grade science fair.  One student made a hover chair and everyone got to ride on it!  

I'm sorry for the weird pictures but I can't post student pictures online..well at least not face pictures. 

We only have 2 1/2 days left this year!  I can't wait for summer :) 

June Currently

I'm linkin up with Farley for the June Currently Linky!

I am SO excited for summer but I still have 13 days left of school :(  Don't get me wrong, I love my class and my job but everyone is so done!  

If this is your last week, enjoy your last few days with your class!