Wednesdays Are For Blogging!

It's Wednesday...one of my most favorite days of the week simply because I love blogging on Wednesday.  It is definitely the best day in blog-land.  So let's link up with Jamie @ This Kind of Love and What I'm Loving Wednesday and Michelle @ The Vintage Apple and Oh How Pinteresting Wednesday! 

 

Today I am loving something really inspiring that you really need to check out.

 

Prayers for Lane Goodwin

 

Lane is a 13 year old boy from Beech Grove, KY.  Not too far from where I am.  He has Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma stage IV, a form of brain cancer, for the third time.  The support for this kid is AMAZING, and it gives me goosebumps every time I look at the Facebook page. 

 

People from all over the world are giving Lane a thumbs to support him, and let him know that he is in their thoughts and prayers.  I have seen people as far as Brazil, and tons of celebrities giving Lane a thumbs up!

 

Johnny Depp

 

Brett Michaels

 

Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood

 

Luke Bryan

 

Anderson Cooper

 

Paula Deen

A group of local farmers

 

The list really goes on and on.  I have also seen celebrities like Katherine Heigel, Dwight Howard, Rashon Rondo, Anthony Davis, The Colts, The Cardinals, The Disney Characters.  I could go on and on, but there are so many pictures on there, it would take me forever to find them all!

 

We even snapped a pic for Lane at the salon on Saturday.

 

But you should definitely give a look-sy because I guarantee it will make your day better!

 

Here is what I am loving from Pinterest this week:

Just day-dreaming...

Source: weddingdaypin.com via Elyse on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Elyse on Pinterest

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Source: pinerly.com via Elyse on Pinterest

 Put magnets on the back of puzzle pieces.  When the class does something well or has a good day they get to put up a puzzle piece.  When the puzzle is done they get a reward.  LOVE this!
 

Source: pinterest.com via Elyse on Pinterest

Source: boatshoesandbowties.tumblr.com via Elyse on Pinterest

Source: fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net via Elyse on Pinterest

 Happy Wednesday!

Don't forget to check out Prayers for Lane Goodwin!
 

Happy Fall Y'all!

Have you noticed my absence?

 

Did you even miss me?

 

I came down with the sickness. 

 

The bug that has been going around at school.  It was like the flu, only mine came with as AWFUL headache.  Luckily it was on a Sunday, and only lasted 24-ish hours.  But that certainly explains why I was SO tired last week.  I didn't think I was going to make it!

 

But I am back, and I am feeling better, not 100%, but better!

 

Have you been outside? 

 

It feels awesome! 

 

Yesterday morning it was 40 degrees!  That's cold enough for a sweatshirt! 

 

(Don't get me wrong, I LOVE warm weather...but this summer was so hot, cool weather is nice for a change!)  Ask me if I still like it come November!

 

I rang in the fall season babysitting my favorite kiddos on Saturday night.  We made witch hat cookies, and did a Halloween painting craft.

 

 

The witch hat cookies were an upside down fudge stripe cookie, a squirt of orange icing, and a Hershey kiss on top.  So cute!  Although the picture I saw on Pinterest looks way better than mine.

 

 

For the craft I painted their feet like candy corn, and had them step on a piece of paper.  Then I wrote "Trick or Treat smell my feet!" along the side.  It was a lot more work than I intended.  After painting their feet, I had to carry them over to the sink, wash and dry their feet off, pick them up again to put them back down on the floor, only to realize I missed a spot of paint on the bottom of one foot, wipe up the floor, put them back up on the counter, wash their feet again.....you get the picture.  There was a lot of heavy lifting and moderate wiping of the floor.

 

Thanks Pinterest for providing me with ideas for a night filled with kid friendly fall fun.  :-)

Unfortunately, neither of those things were on my fall bucket list...whomp whomp.

But I do kind of, sort of get to cross one thing off.

 

Elyse's Fall Bucket List 2012

1. Go on a nature walk (take the camera!)

2. Bake apple dumplings.

3. Eat caramel apples.

4. Bake yummy pies.

5. Drink hot chocolate.

6. Go to a football game.

7. Go to a soccer game. (My family is definitely a soccer family)

8. Make chocolate chip pumpkin bread.

9. Paint and decorate pumpkins.

10. Have a bonfire with s'mores.

11. Go to the Fall Festival. (That's a big one here).

12. Have friends over for chili.

13. Drink apple cider. Maybe spiked? Hehe

14. Try a new fall recipe from Pinterest.

15. Make a fall wreath.

16. Wear a fall scarf.

17. Get out and wear fall boots.

18. Count my blessings and give thanks.

My mom made chocolate chip pumpkin bread, and I ate it.  That counts right? And I don't have to make it! 

 

 Other things are in the works as we speak.

Have a great week!

And Happy Fall Y'all!

 

WILW and OHP!

It's Wednesday!  That means I am linking up with Jamie @ This Kind of Love and What I'm Loving Wednesday and Michelle @ The Vintage Apple and Oh How Pinteresting Wednesday! 

 

Today I am loving that 45 degrees out!  Ok I am not really loving the temperature when its THAT low but it's nice to have some fall weather!

 

I am loving these colored  jeans pants from The Limited that I am wearing to school today!

 

 

They are actually my mom's but I am borrowing them for the day. :-)

 

I am loving that I am trying something new this morning..green tea.  I have never been a big fan, but I am out of coffee.  GASP!  I have to have something, so green tea it is!

 

Here's what I am loving on Pinterest:

 

P.S.  Did you know that you don't have to have an invite to join Pinterest anymore?  I saw yesterday where it just says "Join Pinterest" at the top of the page instead of "Request invite".  Popularity will do that to ya I guess.

 

I am loving Pumpkin flavored food!

Source: somethingswanky.com via Elyse on Pinterest

Source: cookiesandcups.com via Elyse on Pinterest

 I am loving scarves!

Source: basiccravings.wordpress.com via Elyse on Pinterest

How this one is tied! 

 

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 And how this one is made...So cute!

 

Source: skreened.com via Elyse on Pinterest

 I am loving this novelty shirt!  Who doesn't love Mean Girls?

 

Source: sisusa.blogspot.com via Elyse on Pinterest

I am loving this crafty pumpkin!  I bought 3 fake pumpkins to decorate this weekend!

 

And as always I am loving my life with a cherry on top!

 

What are you loving today? 

 

Classroom Tour Part 2

I posted yesterday about the front half of my room, and now we are moving on to the back half...my desk area!

My desk. It's looking a little bit neat....

Behind my desk. My sister made me that sign for Christmas last year. Isn't it cute!?!

My ways to say goodbye sign!  My favorite one is Chop, Chop Lollipop.  I say that a lot!

Birthday Balloons with crazy straws!

Classroom rules.

Substitute Binder from Rachelle @ What the Teacher Wants! I just made this at the end of last year so I haven't got to use it yet, but I can't wait to take a day off so I can use it!

My bookshelf. I want to put these in bins eventually, but right now I don't know where I would put the bins. So there they sit, along with my very hungry caterpillar.  When I only have 25-30 minutes with each group there is not a whole lot of time for reading stories anyways.  And I deifinitely am not letting my students touch these books for their own use...I am picky about my books. :-/ 

My movies are on the bottom shelf.

Construction paper is on the bottom, along with helpful books. Monthly drawers are on the top. I keep holiday themed matrials in these drawers.

I also made these labels on my Cri-cut!

I keep my Reading Groups cart by my desk. I have to go to a different room for my Reading Block's Flexible Groups because Lori already has a group in our room. I keep all of my stuff on a cart so I can take anything and everything that I might need down to the other room with me. I have now been dubbed "The Cart Lady".

I think I will snazz it up a bit with some cute fabric or something!

Off to the side of my desk is my computer. Well really it is the student's computer, but right now it is mine because my real one is broken. See it wrapped up to the right middle of the picture? Sad day.

This is my favorite part of the whole room! The Where the Wild Things are bulletin board. My friend Courtney made this last year when she was in this room, but she got a new job, so she left...and I decided to keep this beauty!

Here is a detail of it...LOVE!

Well do you like the room?

 

Do you think it's a mess?  Because we really are trying very hard to organize it.  There is just SO much stuff in there!

 

We make it a little better each week. :-)

Classroom Tour Part 1

I have been meaning to do this for a while now, but I knew it would be a post that would take a long of time to write, and I also didn't have my classroom situated enough to take pictures of yet. 

 

But now I do!

 

So here it is!

 

I really do love this room!  It is forest themed and Lori has had it this way since long before I got there.  The kids love it!

 

This is the view from the door.  Notice the seat sacks.  They are a life saver when you have tables...otherwise the kids have their stuff scattered everywhere.  Pet peeve alert!

 

This shelf is directly in front of the doorway.  The kids come in, grab their binders, and go sit down.  These binders have everything that they will need for the day inside of them.  But that is for a ENTIRELY separate post! 

This is the view from the door when you look to the left.  The desk behind the green pocket chart is my desk.

This is the table where I teach my little groups.  It was the table that you see in the first picture, right when you walk in the door. 

 

The green things laying on the tables are "parking spots".  This is where the students "park" the materials that they will need to be using.  Pencil, glue stick, scissors, etc.  That way all of their stuff is not rolling all over the tables.  Pet peeve alert!

 

 The view of my table from the front.

 

The chalkboard behind my table.  To the right you will see my center shelves.  (I feel like we are on a safari!)

I keep my books for the month lined up along the chalkboard.  So far I have yet to use any of them, but I paid for them, so I want to at least display them if I'm not going to read them! Ha.

I have The Daily 5 posted on the chalkboard behind my tables.  I don't know where I got these from, but if they are from you then THANKS!

I also have a hundreds chart and punctuation posters on the board for reference.  I also don't know where I got these from, so again if you made them, THANKS!

These are my center shelves.  I keep all of my reading centers on these shelves.  They are in buckets by theme.  Silent E, CVC Words, Consonant Blends, Digraphs, Letter Naming Fluency, Flash Cards, etc., etc.  My hope is that my students will one day be able to just grab the center that they are assigned to off of the shelf, however I don't think that will be happening this year since we work in small groups.  I usually have everything already set out for them!

 

I made chalkboard labels for all of my buckets and bins on my Cri-cut.  I just got some chalkboard contact paper and found some fancy frames to cut!  Works like a charm, and if I ever want to change what is in the bucket, it's no biggie!

 

I have crayons on the ledge of the chalkboard to the kids to use.  They are organized by color.  I hot glued magnets to the back of these bins so they would stay up there, but the magnets are already popping off.  So this won't be staying this way for long!

I keep a small desk next to my "teaching" table.  I keep all of my lesson planning materials in (or around) this desk.  I keep my math manipulatives for the week in the green bin for easy access.  I also keep markers for grading and extra pencils on top of the desk.  The papers I will need for the day go in the tray on top of the desk.

 

I do know where I got these cute labels for my pencil buckets...The Ladybug Teacher Files!  I got silver buckets at Target for $1, stuck the labels on there and glued some ribbon at the top and bottom!  Students sharpening pencils is another pet peeve...Maybe even bigger than the other two.  It's WAY easier if they can just trade their broken in for a new one!

All of my worksheets/ copies/ and activities for the week go in these drawers underneath the desk for easy access during the week.  I made the labels on my Cri-cut!

 

Our reading center.

Math and Language Arts centers.

They can play swat the letter with this alphabet tree and the fly swatters in the bucket below.

I keep ready-to-go Math Centers in these tubs on the table.  Then I can just tell the students to grab a certain activity and get to work.  Notice "Capture the Facts" center from Kathy @ First Grade a la Carte.

This is the Poetry Center.  Students can put the strips together to form their poems from their poetry notebook.

 

 

 That is all of the tour for today!  I don't want to bore you too much!

 

Stayed tuned for more tomorrow!