Three Little Words to describe our classroom

Hi friends! If you read my first post yesterday, I mentioned that I was able to get canvas on sale at Joann's and it sparked some inspiration! As you read my blog, you'll notice that I am completely sold on Arts Integration as a way of teaching- not just a few lessons here and there but everyday. I started my blog to share those ideas because I know that students who are creating, collaborating and evaluating the Arts ( poetry, dance, drama, visual art and music) are developing critical thinking skills and an appreciation for learning. I just went to a fabulous Arts Integration workshop this past week that focused on using visual art in the classroom and I will be sharing ideas from that experience this next week. We also talked about how to share the creating process with others and parents because many times the process of creation is undervalued and just the product is recognized.
      This got me thinking that I want share my core values and beliefs as a teacher who uses the Arts somewhere in my room.When others walk in, I want them to know what is important to me as teacher. I also want my students to understand my hopes for them and to see these beliefs put into practice within the classroom.

So... I decided to think of three words that I thought would encompass the type of classroom I want for my students.

I thought of "inspire" first because obviously every teacher wants to inspire. We definitely aren't in it for the money! However, I also want my students to inspire others and have the desire to make a difference.

The second word I thought of was "create". This really is about my belief that students should be creating in the classroom. Students should be doing something with the information we are giving them. Creating stories/poetry, art, dance, music and drama that demonstrates their understanding. I also like thinking they are "creating" memories in our room. The meanings could go on and on.

After that I was stuck! I called my friend for help. We were coming up with words and then out of nowhere it came to me... "imagine". I love it! I wanted "think" but "think, create, inspire" just didn't sound as powerful to me. Imagine fits perfectly because in order to create, one must use their imagination. I also like that it can by synonymous with "think". By the end of the year, I just hope that I have taught my students how to think.

So that is how I came up with " Imagine, Create, Inspire". The three words can stand alone or they fit  well together because the three words actually describe the process of creation. When someone "imagines" something and has the motivation to put that idea into action, he or she "creates". When the creation touches someone emotionally, that person will hopefully become "inspired" in their own way.

I added foam stickers, spray painted the canvas black and then when it dried, I sprayed it with glitter. 

When I peeled off the letters, it wasn't clean and I wanted some color so I spray painted the foam letters.

This is a canvas that I'm going to hang on my wall. I think I am going to brighten the blue though.The words Imagine and Inspire are pink so it will be a nice contrast! I may be adding more to these... any suggestions? What words describe your classroom?

Newbie blog hop!

I am a newbie blogger so this blog hop is at a great time for me! I'm also breaking a rule and posting twice tonight! Well, I didn't see the blog hop until after I posted so it's really not my fault! :)



This is all you have to do if you're interested in joining! Click above to go to Grade Three is the Place for me!


1. what state you are in

2. your current teaching position

3. your teaching experience

4. when you started blogging

5. 

share a blogging tip / blogging resource



1. I am in Arizona. I have lived here my whole life!
2. I currently teach first grade and have always taught first grade. I love it! I was offered a couple other positions this summer and just can't leave my first grade classroom.
3. This will be my eighth year teaching. I have a passion for teaching reading and using arts integration.
4. I started blogging at the end of February 2012 as a way to share ideas with other teachers. I have grown so much since I started reading blogs and connecting with teachers.
5. I have learned a lot from the Ladybug's Teacher Files. She has lots of video how-tos!

Shopping Shares

I went shopping! It's really bad I need to stop; I've spent way to much money. I wanted to show some of the items I picked up/ made over the last few days.

First, I picked these up at Party City. I love bright colors in the classroom! I have  a super star theme but my classroom is mostly tied together with bright colors.

Aren't the poofs cute? I could have also chosen these polka dot lanterns. It was so hard to decide but eventually went with the poof. Lol!










I also got these beads. Did you see the idea on Pinterest about giving your students beads to wear during the day when they do something kind or helpful? They turn the beads back in at the end of the day for a note home. I totally want to do this because it will force help me to remember to send more positive notes home.

I saw this idea on Pinterest also. I thought it was genius! When students leave for the bathroom, they place the sanitizer on their desks to help the teacher remember where they are ( I can't be the only one who forgets that a student just asked to go to the bathroom and then wonders where they went!) and to remind the student to squirt with sanitizer when they return. Other students can also look for the bottle to see if someone is already using the bathroom. 'Cause if someone is... they better not even ask! :)

I picked these foam cubes up for $1 at the Dollar Tree. There are so many possibilities! Number dice, letters, word families... but I'm thinking sight words! They could be used for roll-a-sight word... I'll let you know when I figure it out!

I also got these foam sticky letters and some canvas from Joann's. All the canvas was on sale! I got three 11x14 for 9 dollars!  I'll share my projects for these items tomorrow!

Back to School Freebie!

Hi Friends!
I just got back from San Diego. It was so fun! My dad takes us to stay at the Hard Rock in dowtown every year. We got to go to the beach, Sea World and Legoland. At Legoland, everything is really made out of Legos! Here are my boys in the Egyptian themed part of the park.

My dad even gave us a night out by ourselves! Priceless!

Now on to the freebie!

I was blog reading tonight and saw such a cute activity from Amanda at Teaching Maddeness.

She uses dum-dums to group her kiddos on the first day for a friend interview. Just make sure you have two of each color dum-dum in a bag, pull them out to make partners and the kids get to eat the dum-dums during the interview! I bet it helps with their listening skills if they have something to do when it's not their turn! She teaches second so I needed an interview sheet that would keep the students on track as far as which questions to ask since they can't read yet.

I made this interview sheet to go along with her activity. Thanks for the great idea, Amanda!

You could have them write or just complete orally.

  I am so sorry I had to post it to TPT but Google Docs wasn't working :(
Click the picture if you want to try this when you go back! Let me know how it goes!

Ready to Print Word Problem Labels!

I hope everyone had a fabulous Fourth of July! I spent the last four days at my Aunt's beautiful cabin in Northern Arizona. It was wonderful! There's a pool, golf course, kids rec center, tennis, fishing, a playground and a horse ranch. There's so much to do! My boys have a blast every year!

At the end of my last post about math notebooks, I mentioned that I use address labels for my word problem lessons. I wanted to explain how I use them and why.

When I started pre-making word problems, I copied and pasted each problem a bunch of times on a page. Then I would have to cut them all apart before a lesson and have the students glue them into their math notebooks. This was easier because at the beginning of first and all year through Kindergarten, it took the students forever to write a problem. Not to mention it wasn't legible once they had finished! Why care if the problem is in there? Well, I think it's nice for parents to understand the problem and see their child's thinking and approach to a variety of problems.
Last year, one of my teammates suggested we use labels for our word problems so we wouldn't have to cut them, glue wouldn't be stuck between pages and to save prep time. It helped so much!!!
I loved using them. I had them pre-made for each type of problem and could pull them out whenever I needed. We implemented Common Core last year so we really needed to focus on the various types of addition and subtraction problems and it was great to have them done in advance.

I used the pre-made labels to teach a specific type of word problem. For example, when I introduced change unknown word problems, I used the pre-made labels to focus on change unknown word problems for two weeks so students could practice their strategies and become familiar with the structure. Once students had practice with the change unknown problems, I would build on that with longer lessons. We might act out change unknown word problems, create our own for others to solve or work with buddies to help each other solve and share strategies.

I have a word problem labels pack that includes over 60 word problems on label templates so all you have to do is print! It has word problems for each type of addition/ subtraction problem as listed in the Common Core. If you are interested in problems already made into labels, click here! to go to my TPT store.

I'm off to San Diego on Sunday so I won't be posting for awhile unless I get some posts written before then! Have a great weekend!

Math Notebooks/ Calendar Journal

Hey everyone! I wanted to share a few things before I go on vacation! :)

First, I just finished my classroom rules chart based on Whole Brain Teaching. I have the rules for a freebie if you'd like them click here.( I left these as a Powerpoint file so you could edit them but my font won't be there. If you want the ones I created with the font, just leave your email in the comments.)
This was totally pinterest inspired from The Polka Dot Patch. I just love it!                                                                                              

  Next, I wanted to share my math notebooks which include my calendar journals. They have been # 6 on TPT for the last two weeks! I was so excited to get such great feedback. I use these notebooks in conjunction with my SMART Board Calendar.





I started to put my notebooks together last week. I still need to make a cute label for the front but the insides are done. Here are some pics.

                                                                I start with a three prong folder.

Next, I put my math tools page in the front pocket ( click here for the math tools page freebie) and a page protector for the calendar journal of the month. I used a page protector so I wouldn't have to waste paper on these everyday. The students will use fine tip dry erase markers to compete the pages. For the first 6 weeks, I help the students with these and then gradually let the students take over. I think it helps to write the months and days of the week so students see the spelling and practice daily.  Every month, I will just copy the next month's calendar journal and slip it into the page protector. Easy Peezy!



After the calendar journal, I added a few of the pages from Mrs. Meacham's website. I love her website. Before I knew about blogs, I just spent hours stealing her ideas!  If you've never been to her site, I suggest you check it out!

This is a days in school chart from Mrs. Meacham that the students add to everyday.





I don't do much for lost teeth so a few years ago I figured the least I could do was graph their lost teeth on the calendar. They love to add their initials to the month when they lose a tooth!






The last insert is a ready made calendar for each month. ( also from Mrs. Meacham) I copied all the months already and added them to the notebook so it will be one less thing to worry about at the start of the new month. Isn't getting ready for a new month stressful!


After all the calendar inserts, I added wide ruled loose leaf paper for problem solving.Since implementing CCSS last year, I have focused so much more on word problems the various types of word problems as well as strategies to solve them. Next post I will tell all about the labels and how they made problem solving so powerful! Have a wonderful weekend!!

Turn up the Music Linky!

  So I wanted to join this Linky because I know music aids with retention of content but also makes learning fun! I teach at an arts school so music and movement is very much encouraged!

I love to use music with transitions. In the morning, as students come in and get settled, I play " It's a Beautiful Morning" by The Rascals.

It just makes me happy to start the day with that song!
At the end of the day, I play Celebration by Kool and the Gang. You know, to celebrate our learning that day and because it's time to go home!Nothing like ending the day with a dance party!

During clean up, I use the Dora Clean Up song. I like this one the best. It's the most up beat clean up song I could find!

 I have a CD helper who turns these songs on for me. Here's the playlist poster I made to help the students remember the tracks.

During the day, I love to play videos from Harry's Kindergarten on You Tube. He has so many educational songs I just love. Check out his videos! I especially love the doubles songs and subtract with a pirate!

I also love songs by Have Fun Teaching. My students love the Counting by 5's song. They dance and don't even realize they're learning!

Link up to share music from your classroom!