Revisiting Your Teachers Pay Teachers Purchases

Do you ever take the time to revisit your Teachers Pay Teachers (better known as TPT) purchases?  

If not, you really should.

When you sign in, you will have the option of viewing "My Purchases".

On the drop-down menu next to the word sort, you will be given several options.

You can see your most recent purchases...

You can view them alphabetically...

You can also choose "Recently Revised".  I recommend that you do this occasionally.  Sometime there are reasons that sellers must make revisions for typos or even because they add to the product.

If there are any with revisions, it will be flashing "Newly Revised Re-Download".  Underneath, you will see "Description of Revision".  Click on this to see what has been changed or added.

The last is one of the most important...  Click to see if there are any that you forgot to leave feedback on.  This happens to me when I want to use the product before I leave feedback, and the I forget to go back. 

You'll definitely want to be sure you leave feedback.

Why?  As a seller, I really appreciate reading the feedback.  (The more detailed the better.)

Telling me what you like, what works, or what you would like to see added really helps me make my products the very best they can be.

An added benefit to you, the buyer, is that you get TPT Bucks to put toward future purchases.  If you are like me, it's time to start looking around and buying new things for your classroom.  Getting some $$ toward your purchases is like getting a sale, even when there's not a sale!

Head on over and check all of your purchases out and see if there are any revisions or if you need to leave feedback. 

Interactive Data Board for Fact Fluency

Do your students struggle with fact fluency?

Whether it's addition, subtraction, multiplication or division, many students struggle with fluency on a daily basis.

This was an area that we really worked hard on to improve with my students this past year.

And guess what??

Even though they were a lower math group, they all succeeded in learning their addition and subtraction facts to 20.  I was so very, very proud of them.

The first thing I did was to implement this Interactive Data Board.

Display "Whoo Knows Their Math Facts" as a data chart to track students' progress.

 My students really enjoyed getting to see their improvement.  As they learned each fact, the student got to sign his/her name on the leaf for the fact.

To go along with the Interactive Data Board, we also have Brain Math every Monday.

 Have you ever heard of Brain Math?

I hadn't either until a fellow teacher shared it with me.

I started it the very next day after he shared and can I just say...

It was AWESOME!!!

It helped my children so much with their fluency facts for addition and subtraction to 20.

Here's how it works...

Have the students use dry/erase boards and numbers 1-10.

Use your projector system or SmartBoard to show the fluency slides.

 Decide on a time limit.  (I started at 10 seconds for each slide.)

Have the students number their boards.  (Most are 1-10, but some vary.)

The students write ONLY the answer next to the number.

(Be sure you say the number as you change slides.)

On this slide, I would say, "#5" and the students would write ONLY the answer of 5.

We would continue in a like manner every 10 seconds until we reach this slide.

 When we reach this slide, all of the students would put their markers down and then pick up their erasers

As we went over the answers, they would erase any wrong answers.

As we go over the answers, I am walking the room and scanning their boards.  

At a later point (after practicing each set several times), I give an informal test.  

I usually do 4 at one time by having students fold a piece of notebook paper into fourths.  At the top of each section, they write the name of the slide, number 1-10, and then write their answers.  

By the time we get to this step, I expect the students to be able to answer in 4-5 seconds so we go through the slides quickly.

Either have your students exchange papers to grade, or plan on grading yourself.

You can receive your own freebie to try out by clicking on the picture.

To purchase the full packet that includes a whopping 409 pages for ONLY $15 click on the below picture.

Great ideas for the classroom...that's

MY KIND OF TEACHING!!

Getting Organized

I looked, REALLY looked at the calendar this morning and realized that I only have less than a month to get all of my ducks in a row for back to school.  

YIKES!!!!

So, it's time to start getting some things organized.  There are several things I'm going to be doing from the comfort of my own home before actually heading into my classroom to work.

(Which believe me, will be happening in about another week or so!!!)

One of the first (and easiest) things I always begin with is my calendar and lesson plans.

This year, I've made myself an editable calendar.  

This easy organizational tip will only take you a few minutes to a couple of hours TOPS to complete and will put you so far ahead of the game for next year!

First, I will take the school district calendar and add special dates to my calendar.  

I also add the curriculum map of when things must be taught to the calendar.

Whether you do your lesson plans on the computer or you write them by hand, simply going ahead and filling in all the weekly dates, special days, holidays etc.  will make it so much easier when it comes time next year to do those mundane type of things. 

 If you know your schedule add the times and activities.  If you teach special themes add those into the months you teach.  

ANYTHING you add now, will be that much less during the busy school year.  Remember, we want to make this next year all about Working Smarter, NOT Harder! 

Speaking of lesson plans, how do you organize your activities to make it easier during the crazy, busy, school year?

I get everything organized on my computer (again...at home).  

This organization idea will take you longer, but after the initial set-up, it will be a breeze to drop things into your files and make your next school year's planning a BREEZE!

 

Make a folder on your computer simply titled LESSON PLANS.

 

Inside this folder, make a folder titled August. 

Inside this folder, make another folder titled Math.

Next, inside this folder (can you guess???)

You got it... MORE folders!

Label these Power Points, Hands on Activities, Worksheets, etc.

Now, close the folder titled Math.  Copy and paste as many times as needed for each subject you teach.  Change the title to those subjects.

Next, close the August folder.  Copy and paste as many times as needed for each month of your school year and change the names.

 I am now ready for all of those wonderful ideas I come across on Pinterest, blogs, TPT, etc.   I can just drop them into the correct folder.  

I just made my job of planning during the school year SOOOO much easier.  Everything I need is at my fingertips when I make lesson plans.

And I won't forget all of those wonderful ideas I came across this summer!

 I hope this helps you to gather your thoughts and start getting organized for the classroom.  Now, I'm back off to Pinterest, to see what other great ideas I come across!  

Getting organized, and feeling confident about the up-coming school year, is My Kind of Teaching!

 
  

It's Christmas in July!!!

Can you believe that it is LESS than six months until Christmas???  

That's like CA..RAY...ZEE!!!  But oh, so true!!!

I guess technically, we should have done this fun little hop on June 25th, but "Christmas In June" just doesn't have the same ring to it as "Christmas in July" does it??

However, my group of bloggy friends and I have joined together to give you a little fun to beat the heat (or the rain, depending upon your geography).

My store and all of the others in this fun hop, will have all of our products in our TPT stores on sale until Sunday at midnight EST.

As you hop along, you'll also find some great holiday themed freebies (some can also be used at any time of the year!), and a chance to win your choice of products from the stores.  There will be a prize for grades pk-2 and another for grades 3-5.  

If you're not already following all of these blogs and stores, please don't forget to do so.  It will show your appreciation and thanks to these ladies for being so kind and sharing.  :-)

Hidden in each freebie, look for the flamingo hanging out at the beach.  In the sand, he has written the title of one of his favorite Christmas carols.  You'll need the underlined word to enter for the prize drawing!  

I am stop #2 on this fun and different holiday weekend!

 

I know most of you are pros at following our hops, but just in case...

Click on my freebie to go to my store and please don't forget to become a follower while you are over there! 

You'll find that my store is also on sale.  I have been loading LOTS of new products this summer!  (You'll find some more great freebies also!)

Here are a few more of the TWENTY products I made in June.  You'll notice several with similar titles because they can be found in two levels... those of a 2nd/3rd grade level and those more on a 3rd/4th grade level.  

 I've also made some units to help you get started (once again on two levels), some new classroom decor, and LOTS of calendar/newsletter editables.  I usually offer a  50% off savings for the first few hours on all of my new items.  To find out when this happens, become a follower of my Facebook page (where you'll also find a monthly freebie). 

 After you've had a chance to download my "Christmas in July" freebie, come on back (and please become a follower of my new blog) to find your next stop on this hop.

One last reminder, we've got some BIG things planned.  Believe me, it's the best yet.  You WON'T want to miss out, so don't forget to become a follower at all of your stops.

But, most of all...Have a wonderful and fun time gathering up all of these great freebies!

Having a great time, yep, that's just MY KIND OF TEACHING!

End of June sale

Summer is here and June is almost gone (sad, sad, SAD face!)

Are you in an area that is sweltering or in an area like me where you think it might just be time to start building an ark??  

We get rain almost EVERY.SINGLE.DAY!!!

At least once, sometimes more.

We've not even gotten into the pool yet because the rain water is keeping it COLD!

(another major sad face!)

The good news is, all this rain has kept me in and busy working on my TPT units.

I have actually made SEVENTEEN new ones!!

Nineteen if you count the two I am hoping to post today.

TWENTY if I get finished with another to post tomorrow.

WOW!

That really excites me!

A LOT!!!

I've done a mixture of items for my new 4th grade classroom...

 Start off on the Right Foot with lots of fun printables.  

 It doesn't get much easier for YOU than this Easy-Peasy Prep Math Centers. 

 If you are like me, you have a set amount of copies that you can use monthly.  This August Daily Math Spiral Review uses NO worksheets!!! It is also aligned to the big 5 Common Core Standards...DAILY.

 This is a fun game, that my students NEVER tired of, so I revamped it for my 4th graders.

And the Winner is...  it always changes.  That's what makes it so fun.

 Have trouble making sure you are covering all of the standards?  My mini-question task cards will help make sure you are staying on track.  Check out this FREEBIE when you tell your students 

"I mustache you a question."

 I think this will be such a great way to keep questions based on the standards at my fingertips, that I am doing a whole series on I Mustache You a Question.  This one covers all 4th grade Common Core Reading Literary and Information Text standards.

 I've got my first couple of weeks for math activities all planned out with this Place Value in 4th Grade for the Common Core Classroom.  I've already been warned by the teachers that our math series does not cover the CCSS very well and I will need to supplement.  Well, that suits me just fine!!  lol

All of the place value games are included in the big unit, but you can still take a look to see what they're about!  Follow the Clues will help your students with some Higher Order Thinking Skills.

Well, that's an overview of the 4th grade units.  I know they're heavy on the math, but I will be teaching 2 math groups.  One of the highest and one of the lowest, so my unit includes lots of differentiation...I'm going to need it!!

I've got the equivalent of most of these at the 2nd Grade unit, as well as some editable calendars and newsletters.  Just go see my MOST RECENT units to see all that I've posted this month and grab them all for HALF-PRICE this weekend only!

Room Theme Linky

Have you started thinking about your classroom theme for next year?  Last year my theme was all froggy, but this year, since I'm moving up to 4th I wanted to do something different.

I haven't been able to settle on a theme, but I'm really liking just adding to my bright colors.

 These are lots of plastics I got from the Family Dollar.  I just LOVED the ROCK picture and since it had my colors I couldn't resist!

 

At only $1.50 each, I thought these would work great for my students book bins...

 

These are some of the items I got from Dollar General.

 And the rest of the things from Dollar General.  The coat hangers (10 for $1) will be used for the extra backpacks since there are not enough storage hooks.  The food containers were super cheap and in my colors.  I'm SURE I can find something to put in them!!

 I went by my new classroom this week and did my bulletin boards.

 I'm loving the bright colors so far....

Well, that's how my classroom is shaping up so far.  Stop back by in about 5 weeks (yep, that's all I've got left for the summer) and see what the finished product is going to look like.

In the meantime, you can find all of my classroom decor units here.

For more ideas and inspiration, stop by my bloggy friend's first linky party! 

You could also win one of her great room themes.  She has FABULOUS one...don't miss out on your chance to win!

Five For Friday

 

Do you have trouble deciding what to blog about during the summer?  I certainly do, especially when these days are just FLYING by.

Here's a little of what I've been up to...

I joined with some of my favorite bloggers to offer a facebook freebie hop.  I'm sorry if you missed it.  Be sure to like my facebook page so you'll know when we do the next one.  It was a HUGE hit and had some great products that were free especially for the hop.  If you missed my freebie, you can still purchase it here.  If you want to learn how to offer your own freebie or hop, you can read my friend Christi's tutorial.

 I'm feeling the need BAD to get my brand new 4th grade classroom ready.  (I'm the new ADDITIONAL room, so there's NOTHING in it!!)  I'm focusing on four bright colors...lime green, bright blue, hot pink, and bright purple.  I lucked out at the local Family Dollar store.  These are all the plastics I got.  How lucky am I that the colors I have chosen are the popular ones for this year!  

 I also made a stop at Dollar General.  These are only a few of the items I purchased.  (Have you ever considered food storage items?  They are CHEAP and had lids that are my colors!  I'm SURE I'll find something to store in them!!!)

I was also super excited about my first unit for 4th grade, I've finished up for my TPT store.  This is the unit I will begin with my kiddos when we return to school in August.  It's been selling like hotcakes already!  YEAH!  If you have not become a follower of my store, you'll want to do so as I have lots more of these units in the works!

 And the last part of my week (but the MOST important) is spending time with my very first grandchild, Luke.  Can't believe he is already 3 weeks old today!!!