Bloomz

I know I already posted once, but I would highly recommend signing up for Bloomz and trying it in your classroom this year!  I'm about to launch it with my parents and am very excited!  Even easier than trying to maintain a blog!

Click HERE to sign up!

Back to School

I'm amazed I'm still awake, seeing that it's after 10pm and it's the Friday of the first week back. I think I could have fallen asleep standing most days this week!

One of my favorite back to school activities that we've only done for 2 years is a "Get to Know  You Activity" for our entire grade.  We use chart paper and stickers.  Students have to walk about and put the choice for each question with a sticker.

Then we show them and hang them in the hall for a few weeks.  So easy and so fun!

Bloomz

I'm so excited to try this in my classroom this year!  A new parent communication app. It is available for free to parents on iTunes and Google Play Store.

  Private to just your parents.  Share pics, make appts, set conference times, send a reminder!   I will update you as the year goes on to how it's going.

Sign up here! 

Ziggedy

Teacher friends:
I got the ok to try this for my classroom this year. So far I have I already have $7 from my own purchases. 

Through Ziggedy, your classroom parents, friends, and family, can support your class through their online shopping at thousands of popular retailers. There is absolutely NO COST to you or your supporters.

I also am an ebates user. The other day when I shopped at Kohl's I was able to use both. I went to ebates first, clicked on Kohl's. Then because I had installed the Ziggedy reminder on Chrome browser (Free, gets my class $5 and lets you know if a site has a donation) I was able to click on that too! For my small purchase at Kohl's, I made over $3 on ebates and over $2 for my classroom! Double win!

Like I said, I would highly recommend putting the remind install on your browser. It's not up all the time, but if a site has a donation attached, it pops up in the top and lets you know so you don't miss one!

Click here to sign up! 

Classroom Library Check-Out System!

Classroom Organizer

Need a great classroom library check-out system? Check out the site that I've been using for the past 3 years!

Put your books into this website and have the kids checkout their books on the computer. You'll know who is picking what and who had a book if it goes missing or damaged.

I love the reports options so I can better track what my kids are reading. We all know it's tough to get track of 20+ kids at the same time!

I was fortunate enough to already have my books inventoried in an excel spreadsheet. However, if you don't it would be an easy job for a parent volunteer to tackle!

I incorporate "Book Selection" into a Daily 5 choice (they can go once a week). This way students are rushed and have time to choose books correctly! Feel free to ask any questions you might have!

Storylords

 Let me tell you about a hidden gem of a resource.  Something that I use every year and the kids love!  Something that any kid who was taught in WI in the 80's and 90's probably saw!

STORYLORDS!

Produced by the Educational Communications Board (ECB) and UW-Stout in the 80's, Storylords has a hero Norbert who works to fight against the bad guy Thorzuul.  He needs to use the skills he learned in his class as well as help from his sister.

Reading strategies covered include:
Activating Prior Knowledge Before Reading
Connecting What You Know With What's On The Page
Knowing When You Don't Know (In Your Head)
Knowing When You Don't Know (On The Page)
Directed Reading-Thinking Activity
Question-Answer Relationships
Decoding Words in Context
Inferring Word Meaning in Context
Story Mapping
Pronoun Anaphora
Identifying Main Idea and Details
Integrating Comprehension Strategies

These quick 15 minute videos are the perfect addition to your reading comprehension skills lessons.  And because they are from the 80's, plenty of laughs are sure to come too!


I included links to the videos as well as FREE posters in my TPT store.

VIDEOS: Click Here

TPT Store FREE Posters:  Click Here

Packers 5K - COMPLETE!

You can't have a name like "Teaching in Titletown" without showing a bit of Titletown!  Yesterday, some of my teacher friends and I ran the Packers 5K.  I am NOT a runner but did Couch to 5K this summer with some of the girls to "train" for the 3 miles.  We had so much fun!  We got to run through Lambeau field before the finish line.

Below are pics from before, during and after the race!

Time for the BIG Back to School Sale!

Get your wishlists ready!  It's time for the annual TPT Back to School Sale!  Sale runs August 3 & 4 so get all the essentials for your classroom needs!

Here We Go!

I started selling on TPT 3 years ago on a random whim while shopping on the site. I only made a few things and it's amazing how much fun I had doing it.

I was blessed that a few things sold really well and the extra income has really helped our family have "fun" money. It's amazing that an item I made (out of school hours of course) for my classroom is now used around the country and makes me extra money every month! For only being uploaded once to my store by me!

Well, two young children later.... I didn't have enough time to teach, manage the house and enjoy watching them grow to make my products up to my standards for TPT.

Now that my kids are getting a bit older, and naptimes are starting to overlap, I'm ready to start making more, sharing more, and helping others do the same.

If you are interested in starting to sell as well, please email me. I'd be happy to help you get started.