Student Posters

For the first week of school I wanted to try an art activity since I knew that so many of my students loved illustrating. Last year I had each student complete an individual profile and then cut out adjectives that described them from magazines. The biggest thing with this activity is that creating the profiles took longer then expected but students loved finding words throughout various magazines and newspapers. Here is what they looked like last year.




This year we went more artsy. I had students begin by tracing their hands and adding detail to them. After that they stood on their paper and traced their shoes which they LOVED! Most of them took off their shoes and added the detail to the poster. Next came the tricky part. In the middle of the feet and hands came the rest of our body and my students made their own art here. I never gave specifics here so that I could see where they wanted to take it. I got so many different ideas and students got to see those with amazing illustration skills, those happen to be the ones who needed positive attention. Check them out!


What activity do you do to introduce your students?

Reward Chart to the Rescue!

By the second week of school you already know who in your classroom is going to challenge you the most. I knew mine by the second day this year. Teaching a multigrade has already had some major challenges (lesson planning, meeting with the other grade level, etc.) so I knew that behavior would have to be the least of my worries. I talked with a great friend of mine who is a 4th grade teacher in my building and got a reward system to try. I wanted to share to see how you guys keep your behaviors to a minimum in your classroom! I introduce you to the rewards chart.


I know you what you are thinking! What is that? It may be the largest BINGO chart you have ever seen! The white paper is actual chart paper so there are 520 squares on the chart. At the top of the chart lies the alphabet and the left side is lined with the numbers 1-20. Here is a closer shot on the right!




How it works is rather simple. I carry around a clipboard where ever I go and when I see a student going above and beyond they receive a star next to their name. A student can also receive a star for bringing back a signed agenda daily or homework, you get to decide! At the end of the day we do a signing celebration where the students who received stars get to initial a box of their choice. 2 stars = 2 boxes. Once the chart gets full, rewards are next! The teacher gets to draw a letter and a number to determine who got the reward. I plan on pulling at least 5 boxes the first time we complete a chart. As a teacher you decide what the rewards are and how many boxes you pull.

 My students LOVED this as soon as I introduce it. When I call out number of stars at the end of the day many of my students clap for one another. It sets a positive environment and sends them home in a positive mood too!

What do you do to promote positive behavior?

Saturday Success! (A week in review)

Here are my top five things that made my week. Some classroom related and some not!

1. This is definitely the top of my list.. I survived the first week of school!!! This year is unlike any of my previous first weeks. Teaching a multigrade is very different and students are still adjusting to the new setup. I can only hope next week improves.

2. I  survived a week without my husband. He was out of town this whole week and it was just my two year old and I and everything the first week of school brings!! I am happy to report that my daughter and I made it.

3. Scooter's coffee on Thursday made my day! After such a long Wednesday I earned myself an extra shot of espresso too!

4. My principal sat down with me and helped relieve some stress for the year. My goal is to leave the school building smiling everyday no matter what happened.

5. I had dinner at Village Inn. This is usually a Sunday ritual with my family but after surviving the week my husband felt that we should celebrate. I love having breakfast at anytime of the day!

What successes did you have this week?

Team Building Wednesday

Today was our third day back at school and I am completely exhausted! Why is it that the first week of school is so exciting and tiring at the same time? I am teaching a multigrade this year for 5th and 6th. We will be doing a lot of small groups and working in teams so I did a team building activity. I split the class into groups and each group received 20 note cards. They were given 7 minutes to brainstorm and create a tower. The tallest tower was declared the winner! Here are the towers some of the groups created!

After the creating the towers the class discussed the strategies they used and how they worked as a team. We talked about what worked and didn't work. As a whole I think that they built some team strategies and ways to brainstorm as a group. I hope this helped prepare them for future activities together.



What do you do in your classroom to build teamwork?

Toddler Collage

My two year old was always bringing home new craft items from daycare. I loved them all but didn't have a way to display them anywhere. After pinteresting (that's a verb, right?) for ideas I found myself liking the collage idea. My husband and I had received a few cute art gifts for our wedding that I never found a place to hang so I created this collage.

I shopped a couple of Hobby Lobby sales for tiny clothes pins, frames, and spray paint. I spray painted the clothes pins so they stood out with the frames and this is where I hang her artwork! When she brings home new artwork she decides if she wants to put it up on the wall or not! She loves seeing her work on the wall and I love the way it is displayed! The collage took me maybe 10 minutes to create and then hanging it was a breeze!

Hope your Monday was fabulous!

Saturday Success! (A week in review)

Here are my top five things that made my week. Some classroom related and some not!

1. My daughter started wearing big girl pants to daycare! She is two and my summer goal was to have her potty trained by the start of school! Way to go!

2. My classroom is all set up ready to go with owls everywhere! I even created desk tags and schedule cards to go with it.

3. My class list has changed three times since Tuesday and I am happy to say it is permanent and ready to go for Monday.

4. I have become more confident in my teaching abilities and decided to take on the school newspaper as well. Getting my name out there.

5. I found a cute new hairstyle to use during school from The Small Things Blog. Check out her hair tutorials! Saved my hair!

What were some of your successes this week?

Back to School

Teachers are back in session as of yesterday and I got to spend a much needed amount of time in my classroom. This year I will be teaching a multigrade for 5th and 6th so most of my time was spent bringing over 6th grade books into my room. Two different curriculum/standards for the year and I am feeling a little overwhelmed. So here are two things I was very excited to get done in my room!

My daily schedule cards are owl themed just like the rest of my classroom! I created these cute cards and laminated them so I can use them next year. Really excited about them! You can find these great schedule cards on my TpT store - The Ever Changing Classroom!

Check it out: The Ever Changing Classroom

The one I was most excited about to get posted was "The Early Finishers Board." I got the materials from Shelley Gray at Teaching in the Early Years She created this board for primary and intermediate classrooms. All you need to do is set up the seven folders and your students do the rest. Each activity has multiple sheets so the student can take their own card and glue it in their "Early Finisher Notebook." I am excited to try this out in my classroom because I had a problem with students telling me, "I'm done, now what?"

What are you most excited about in your classroom?

Are you ready?

Monday, August 13th

School is knocking at our doors telling us summer is gone. I have been looking at my calendar each weekend thinking, "I can get this done before summer ends." I kept adding to my list until I realized that school starts back tomorrow. How can I finish painting my basement or take my daughter to the park every morning at nine? I have now hit school mode and I hope all you teachers are getting there too!

I started preparing for my classroom and decided upon an owl theme this year. Who knew owls were so cute? I will be sharing pictures of my classroom this week as it all starts coming together. I love the feeling of starting with a blank canvas each year and getting different results!

Teachers, are you ready for school?