Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, friends!  I hope that you have enjoyed spending extra time this holiday season with your family and friends--I know I certainly have!  

In just a few days we will be ringing in 2017 and heading back to finish up the school year.  Enjoy a 20% off sale from me in my TPT store to celebrate all of the new possibilities that a new year brings...

I pray that your new year is filled with hope, love, and joy! Wishing you all the best!

Happy Thanksgiving!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to you!!!  

I hope and pray this week is full of rest and refreshment for you! Because I am GIVING THANKS for all of you, everything in my TPT store will be on sale for this entire week!  Click HERE to stop by and see.  Lots of Love and Happy Turkey Day!

Science Experiments and More!

Sunday is here again, and I must admit...it's been a bit of a heart-breaking weekend of football losses around here.  Our GA Bulldogs lost in the final 4 seconds of their game against Tennessee on Saturday, and our hometown high school team lost Friday night, ending their run at an undefeated season...true confession--we are absolute football fanatics around here and are a bit insane about rooting on our favorite teams!

So when it was all said and done, Sadie and I distracted ourselves with a little fall decorating around the house.   Combined with the scent of our new pumpkin candle, I'd say we are officially ready for the fun of fall--in spite of the heartbreak of football LOL!

While I had some down-time this weekend, I also wanted to let you know about some updates to one of my Science resources--now complete with 40 experiments to use all year long with your students.  

We absolutely love doing once-a-week labs in science class!  If you are looking for something new to supplement your science curriculum and ways to incoporate elements of writing and higher-order thinking, I wanted to invite you to check out this 72-page treasure.  Click HERE to see more. 

Hope you have a GREAT first week of October, friends!

Fall is in the air...

Hi, and happy Monday!  The air around here is beginning to feel a little crisp in the late evenings and early mornings.  While we haven't yet put out our fall decor at home, I was in the mood to give my TPT store a little seasonal spruce up.  Stop by and see lots of new goodies there...

Also, if you haven't already, please be sure to download and share this FREE fall devotion pack--perfect for home or school!  I'd love to hear and see how you are using these ideas with your own little ones!!!

Blessings for a great week as we head towards the end of September--full steam ahead!  

Happy Labor Day!

Hi, teacher friends!  And Happy Labor Day!

I wanted to let you know that I am running a Labor Day sale in honor of all the hard work you do all year long!  Enjoy 20% off everything in my teacher store on September 5th and 6th!

Also, I wanted to let you know that I am continuing to work hard on my Growth Mindset companion packs for my popular Bloom's Taxonomy resources.  There are already lots available, but there are still more to come.  See a few examples of these below.  

Please check back often to stay updated on these new additions.

Hope you enjoy your Labor Day holiday with LOTS of family, fun, rest, and relaxation!!!  

My Mouth Is a Volcano!

Whew...my birthday was Monday--as was Open House--and I have to admit, I've been dragging a little this week!  My class and family were both so sweet and gave me lots of fun surprises to make the day special, but boy, I was so TIRED before Tuesday even rolled around!

Thanks, Miss Kitty's Class, for this hilarious pic...it pretty much sums up where you'll find me tonight. LOL

And can we take just a sec to talk about Instagram???  The perfect blend of teacher tips, teacher photos, and teacher hilarity...I love it!  If your not already following me on Instagram, just click the image below to see my Instagram posts and updates. 

Wednesday is here, and Labor Day is just around the corner!  I just LOVE school in September...high school football on Friday nights, college football on Saturday afternoons, and by then, our 4th graders have settled into a lovely school routine!

I wanted to share with you an adorable book that I read aloud in class today.  It was shared with me by a colleague and by students absolutely loved it! 

Find it on Amazon by clicking HERE.  It was such a GREAT read-aloud for back to school, but could also be used to teach a variety of topics thoughout the year--manners, self-control, empathy with story characters, onomatopoeia, etc.  There are also many CUTE and ENGAGING pins on Pinterest with additional activities.  Click HERE to see some of those.  My students loved making predictions throughout the story and understood that for Louis (the main character) THE STRUGGLE IS REAL!  Blurting out is such a temptation when kids really do have so many great ideas!

This book reminded me also of Barry Tuckerman in our current novel read aloud, Gooney Bird Greene.  

He has has something to say about everything!  But, at least, he does remember to raise his hand LOL.  

We are loving the Gooney Bird Greene books, so I am including the link for them HERE as well in case you are interested in finding out more about these light-hearted, fun stories from Lois Lowry.   

One last thing...while perusing on Amazon today I did find one more MUST-HAVE.  Look at these adorable Emoji stamps.

I am adding these to my shopping list ASAP!  Click HERE to see them for yourself.  I am already brainstorming a list of ideas--student motivation, writing activities, student learning inventories and surveys, my classroom treat box, etc.  

Enjoy the rest of your week and your Labor Day holiday!  All the best!

Coming Soon...

Happy Saturday!  Just a quick update for your weekend...

I've been busy adding classroom-themed Growth Mindset Posters to compliment the themed Bloom's Taxonomy sets in my TpT store.  I'm so excited about how these are turning out.  

There is such power in teaching our children to have Growth--rather than Fixed--Mindsets, and I hope you love these as much as I do.  There are MANY MORE sets still to come, but I wanted to give you a little peek at what I'd been working on.  Click HERE to see them in store.

Enjoy your weekend!!!  All the best! 

Maps and Globes, Oh My!

Hi, and Happy Wednesday!  How's it going for you in "Back to School" land?  We are rocking along pretty well!  2 weeks in and counting...we are officially on our way!  (And praise be, my feet didn't even hurt when I got home today LOL)

Our Social Studies year always starts with an introductory unit on "Understanding Maps and Globes."  This prepares students for what is to come in Social Studies throughout the rest of the year, as well as gives us an opportunity to dig right in to some fun and meaningful hands-on learning!

Many of you have messaged to ask me questions about my Maps and Globes unit, so I thought I would share some helpful info and insights into how you might make this work in your classroom.  Here are a few pictures and captions just to help tie it all together...

 This unit is broken into sections such as Assessments and Literature Connections, however it is not necessary to move through the unit in any exact order.  You may pick and choose what works best for your own learners.  For example, we always begin with making our "Passports for Travel" and reading from "Around the World in 80 Tales."  

You don't have to start here--it is just a great attention-grabbing starting point!  We visited "Canada" together by way of our SMARTboard, read the story of "The White Bear," and made bookmarks complete with strands of polar bear fur, AKA white yarn. 

In case you would like to see some of my other Social Studies materials, simply click the picture below to link to related items in my TPT store.  

I have discovered that there's nothing like world-wide travel to awaken the imaginations and dreams of our students!

As Jeanne Bendick says, "Questions are more important than answers...if I were a fairy godmother, my gift to every child would be curiosity!"

Give your Monday a BOOST!

Hey, friends!  Just a reminder that TPT is giving us one last chance to save for Back to School with their one day BOOST sale!  Be sure to use the promo code OneDay to save an additional 10% off of the many stores that will be 20% off already.  Have a wonderful week, y'all!  

Back to School Room Reveal!

Hi, friends!  Hope you are having a great back to school season!  

Of course, I'm sure it's as busy and exhausting as ever, but I wanted to take a second to share some pictures of my classroom with you.  Our classrooms truly are like a "home away from home" for us and for our students, and this one holds a little piece of my heart for sure!  Hope you enjoy the tour...

Thanks for stopping by the Brain Train for a sneak peek!!!