Monday Made It!

 

This was one of my favorite things to do last summer and I am off to a super slow start this year!  I am hoping to get back to it because after looking at all of the amazing projects linked up this week I have started a project to do list! 

 

 

Made It #1

I saw this on Tara’s blog and had to do it. !

 

 

I added this super cute Instagram link to my blog courtesy of The Tattooed Teacher.  Not only is it super cute, but it’s FREE and so EASY!  Go get it now!

 

 

Made It #2 & 3

I am slightly OBSESSED with Cara Carroll’s new fonts.  They are so stinkin’ cute and their names lake me laugh out loud!  I am also loving chalkboard backgrounds.  So, I combined my new obsessions and made a postcard to send home to my new class inviting them to Meet the Teacher.

 

 

Then I made this little cutie to tape onto a bag of popcorn and give to them at Meet the Teacher.

 

 

Hopefully next week I can get my craft on and do something that doesn’t involve my computer! 

 

Five for Friday June 14th

 

I can’t believe it’s Friday again and time for another Five for Friday.  Summer is flying by and I feel like the new school year will be here before I know it.  With that being said, I feel like I got quite a bit done this week to be ready for our very first common core units! 

 

 

1.  I finally finished my S.U.P.E.R. Sentences unit that I have been working on for months!  This unit includes some of my favorite strategies and activities for helping kiddos write super sentences! You can click on the picture to check it out and because it’s Friday and a special day for me (you will read more about that in a minute!) you can get it today for 20% off!  Just click on the picture to check it out in my store!

 

 

 

2.  If you stop by my store make sure you grab this new FREEBIE!  It’s a cute little pack to learn/review parts of speech! Click on the picture to download it!

 

 

3.  I have looking around a lot online at Math journals and math workstations trying to decide how I want to structure my math time next year.  I would LOVE to hear from any my blogging buds that use math journals or workstations. If you have a post on your blog about it and you could leave the link in a comment I would be so grateful!

 

 

4.  On a non-school note, my family is obsessed with Duck Dynasty!  We DVR every episode that comes on and sit and laugh so hard.  I love that we found something fun that we all want to watch together!

 

 

5.  Lastly, this is a special day for me.  16 years ago today, I became Mrs. Wood.  I am so blessed to have married a man who has a heart for God.  I know without a doubt that I would not be the person I am if God had not put him in my life.  I am so thankful for him.

 

 

Happy Friday everyone!

S.U.P.E.R. Sentences

I FINALLY finished!  This new product has been months in the making!  I wanted to make sure that I got everything just right.  I have used these sentence writing strategies and activities for years and I wanted to combine them all in a pack.  This 50 page unit will have your students writing S.U.P.E.R. sentences in no time!  It includes posters for 5 ways to improve your sentences.  It is common core aligned (L.1i Produce simple, compound, and complex sentences) and is loaded full of engaging activities!

To celebrate that I am finally finished you can pick up my S.U.P.E.R. Sentences pack in my TpT store.  I t will be on sale today and tomorrow for 20% off! 

Now, time to get to work on the rest of my to do list for the day!

A Few of my Favorite Things: Morning Must Haves

This morning I am linking up with Across the Hall in 2nd for their Favorite Things  summer linky! 

I like to think of myself as fairly low maintenance but there are a few things that I have a hard time doing without in the morning.
 

 

1.  Coffee:  I don’t need anything super fancy.  In fact, I prefer my morning cup of joe over Starbucks any day.  Just my good ol’ coffee pot, Folger’s Breakfast Blend, and Kroger’s crème brulee creamer and I am good to go!
 

2.  My morning Bible reading:  I made a commitment to get in the habit of reading every morning this summer.  I need to be more consistent with my morning quiet time!
 

3. Trader Joe’s Spa Face Wash with Tea Tree Oil:  this stuff leaves my face squeaky clean and it makes me feel like I just got a facial! 
 

4.  My Clarisonic:  Hands down best purchase I’ve made in a very long time.  I treated myself to this brush last summer and I have not once regretted it!  It has made such a difference for my skin!
 

So, that’s it.  I don’t require much to get going in the morning but without these things I just couldn’t get off on the right foot!
 

Head on over to Across the Hall in 2nd and link up!  Can’t wait to see everyone’s favorite things!

Common Core Lesson Planning and NOT Having to Reinvent the Wheel! CCSS 3.SL.1

Yesterday I posted my goals for June and one of my goals was to plan as much as humanly possible for the new common core standards and gifted cluster model.  Well, I am on my way!  I sat down today with printouts of all our districts curriculum frameworks. 

Our first framework for ELA is titled “Collaborate and Communicate.”  Score one for me!  I already have a whole unit to help get my kiddos on their way to mastering the third grade speaking and listening standards which is what this first framework hits hard!  So, I pulled out my “Table Talk,” unit, gave it a little facelift and it’s good to go!

I am excited to kick of the year with this unit.  What a great way to set a foundation for a skill that will be utilized all year and in so many content areas. 

Then, I was checking in on all of the blogs I stalk and I found this gem by the amazing Amanda at One Extra Degree.  Depth and Complexity Icons are a great tool to use with gifted kiddos and this will blend perfectly with our Table Talk learning conversations!

You can click on the picture above to check out this amazing product in Amanda’s store!

Now I just need to pick some text to get all of this started with and the hard part of unit 1 planning is done! 

I love feeling like I have been super productive today!  Now. to keep up with the productivity I am off to make a yummy dinner that comes from another one of my blogger favorites, Cara Carroll at the First Grade Parade!

Have a great night everyone!

June Monthly Goals Linky

Today I am linking up with “I {Heart} Recess,” and I am putting my June goals out there in blog world.  I figure that if people actually read them it might help hold me accountable!

Personal:  I signed up for a summer Bible study with some friends and let me tell you, it is much needed.  We are going to be reading Unglued: Making Wise Choices in the Midst of Raw Emotions.  I need to be more consistent with my Bible reading and quiet time this summer and this study will help hold me to that.

Family:  My goal this month is to get everything on my agenda done before the girls are finished dance for the day (they dance A LOT) and my hubby gets home from his basketball camps.  That way I can be fully present with my family….something that you all know rarely happens during the school year!

Health:  This is the summer of getting back.  Getting back in the gym.  Getting back in my jeans, and getting back in my work pants.  I can’t afford to buy a new wardrobe and at the end of the year I was wearing elastic waist skirts every day.  It is so hard to maintain a consistent fitness schedule during the school year, but no more excuses!

School:  Soooo many changes are coming next year.  New curriculum and the new Gifted Cluster Model.  I have a lot of work to do!  My goal is to sit down for a few hours each day when my girls are at dance and hammer things out.  I have also learned to make notes in my phone when inspiration hits at a red light, at the gym, or at the grocery store.  I can never seem to remember my brilliant ideas an hour later when I get home! Oh the joys of getting older!

Blog/TpT:  I really neglect my little blog at the end of the school year.  My goal this month is to be more consistent and to develop meaningful relationships with other new bloggers.  I was so inspired to start blogging because of the relationships that some of the veterans have.  I want to find a little group of fellow bloggers to connect with and help support and encourage.

Read:  Reading is never a problem for me.  I {heart} reading!  I am going to get through all my read for enjoyment books this month so that next month I can make a reading goal about feeding my mind.  I need to add more nonfiction to my life!

Okay, so they are out there in cyber world now.  That means I have to do it right????  Blog entry….check.  Next up, working out!  Bring it on June! 

 

Wait….What???..Summer’s Here?….and June Currently

The end of the school year seriously snuck up on me, and before I could blink….it was over.  I seriously don’t know how it happened.  Maybe it was because I was not only busy with all of my third grade end of the year stuff, but I also had my “end of an era,” stuff to deal with.  My first born promoted to high school.  And so, it is the end of an era.  No more coming to school with mommy, stopping by my room to get things signed or just to say hi, and seeing each other in the halls.  Now, she will be going to Daddy’s school and for the next 4 years he will be the one to see her around campus, get to know her friends, and have to dish out cash because she forget that something had to be turned in ! 
 

 

A few days before promotion, they held an awards banquet and dinner dance for the 8th graders.  I couldn’t believe how many times this girl’s name was called.  My husband and I kept looking at each other and thinking, "Whose kid is this?”  I was not the most stellar student in junior high and I certainly didn’t have the confidence that this kiddo possesses.  Not only did she finish the 8th grade….she rocked it!  Proud parent moment for sure!
 

Promotion Night
 

So, that was it.  The school year came to end with a bang!  Then summer officially started, on the calendar anyway.  I don’t think I am going to count this past week as my first week of vacation.  We were running around like crazy and I haven’t had time to catch my breath!  It was filled with the usual appointments that we needed to catch up on, but then I had to throw in some training for next year, and there was some fun stuff too!

 

We saw Taylor Swift in concert on Tuesday.  Man, that girl can put on a show! 

 

 

Thursday I spent the day at a training for our new Gifted Cluster model.  I will be working a lot with the third grade gifted kiddos next year.  I added these two to my summer reading list.  If you’ve read them I would love to hear what you think!

 

The rest of the week was dance filled!  My Caity and her duo partner rocked it and came in 3rd overall for their age division! 

 

In other news, my Bachelorette watching bestie is out of town so we had to watch and then send each other our picks.  Here is my list:

Yes, I watch the show…it is my guilty pleasure….don’t judge !

 

And now for my June Currently and then I promise it will be back to the usual school blogging.  It is going to be a busy summer for me.  I have to prepare for lots of changes coming my way next year!