make it monday: sight word sticker books.

I know this will take up a lot of your copies, but I think this idea is way too absolutely genius not to do it.  You can also make even smaller versions and double sided print (even though this takes a lot more time and effort) so you can fit in on less sheets of paper if that is an issue in your school.

SIGHT WORD STICKER BOOK!

This will obviously work better with younger students, but I’m sure you can adapt the idea for higher grades, as well.  The basic idea is that each student has their own “book” of sight words with an empty space next to them.  As they master each word, they are given a sticker to put next to it.  I don’t know about your students, but my first graders are easily motivated by a simple sticker.  I suggest laminating the books since this is something several of them will tote around all year and will want to bring back and forth between home and school to show off.  I also suggest using specific stickers so children cannot add their own when you are not looking (I know some will be tempted to do that, and since the true purpose of this book is to easily assess student progress, it would defeat the point). 

And because these books are so portable and easy to flip through and mark, they are things you can easily pull children for during transition or quick lull times like the computer lab, library, etc.

for me friday: door silencer.

I know this is a small thing that does not make a huge difference in the long run, but it is “For Me Friday,” and I am going to write about it.

I cannot tell you how many times my teaching has been disrupted or I have lost my train of thought because of a slammed door.  Whether intentional or accidental, the loud, sudden noise of it throws me off, and I know it has scared my younger students on several occasions.

I ran across this idea via a friend of mine who is using it in her newborn daughter’s room to alleviate the stress of trying to sneak the door open and close while the baby is sleeping.  I don’t see why it cannot be transferred to the classroom, though.

It is made out of thick fabric and elastics that hook on to either side of the doorknob.  It is thick enough to prevent noise yet thin enough to allow the door to completely close.

Now for me, this is one of those things I think I would rather buy than make… they are $8 on http://www.etsy.com/listing/93606628/latchy-catchy-the-original-door-jammer?ref=v1_other_1, and shipping is free.

If you have the time, however, I am sure it can be easily made using supplies such as hair elastics and a swatch of thick fabric.  Making it yourself would especially be cost-efficient if you need to make several of them.

I cannot wait to try this!

thoughtful thursday: door message.

You can bet I am going to have something like this on my door when students walk in to my room for the first time.  I am sure I will change some of the words and ideas, but I am just in love with this thought.  I want my students to know how important they are to me and that they are the reason that I am there.  I need them to know that when they step inside the door of the classroom, they are forevermore anything that they want to be.

wonder wednesday: scrabble wall.

I’m not sure how feasible this is, but you can bet it something I am going to try to get going in my classroom ASAP.  If it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out, and I will try it in my niece’s and nephews’ rooms.

Wait for it…

A SCRABBLE WALL!!

This will probably work better with older students, but after working with younger students for the majority of my experiences, I have faith that this is something they could handle if they were taught how to play properly.  I can think of countless uses for this Scrabble wall.

• Word Wall: If you don’t want to use this as something interactive, use your own creative juices to make it work as the word wall in your room
• Sight Word Center: Ummmm, hello?!  What better way to practice sight words than to send kids back there and have them play a friendly game of Scrabble?  You can modify this based on needs, either just using one week of words or have all the ones learned so far as options.
• Center Game: Why stifle students by making it only a sight word game?  Let them build their own vocabularies by playing what they can create with their letters.  A virtual station could be set up using a classroom computer to have a Scrabble dictionary pulled up.
• Ticket Out the Door: Let each student get a chance to practice on this wall daily by making it a “Ticket Out the Door” activity.
• Thematic Wall: I plan on teaching in units, and this wall would be a great way for children to add words that revolve around that unit as we discover more about the topics encompassed within.
• Classroom Community: This would be great at the beginning of the year, but it would also work throughout.  Student names could be arranged on the wall, or favorite sports, colors, games, books, etc. of each child, and the class could guess who is who to bring them closer.
• Phonics Practice: For younger students still working on phonics, small groups can be pulled back with a teacher, and nonsense words can be made on the board.  Children could practice sounding out and writing these words.

These are just some ideas off of the top of my head, and I’m sure I could come up with many more.  I just love the idea.  You can really arrange it for any purpose you need in your room.  That being said, I just thought of the idea that if you created it so it was not merely a Scrabble board, tiles flipped and used on the other side as Dominoes for several math activities and games.

I know it is a big project to take on and could get pricey, but we are teachers.  We are thrifty.  I know if we put our minds to it, we can each think of ways to create this without spending a cent (think cardboard boxes, styrofoam, paint, velcro…).  It’s for the kids 🙂  You know they will all want to be in the room with the larger-than-life Scrabble board.

tidy tuesday: muffin supply trays.

If you are like me (and most educators), you love, LOVE, love love love organization.  I cannot begin to express how much I love organizing things.  That is my favorite thing to do in my free time.  Anyways, I have seen every type of supply storage solution you can think of, and several I could not think up and figure out even after seeing them.  It seems to me, though, that the most effective way is to give each table their own set of supplies.

Now, this becomes tricky because I tend to shy away from traditional seating and fully intend to set up my classroom with tables and areas of all sizes that my students travel to as needed.  That being said, I would still like to utilize this idea and place the appropriate supplies in each area as to promote student independence and efficient functionality in the classroom.

“This idea” involves muffin or cupcake trays with cups of supplies in them.  Magnets are attached to the cups so they will hold secure in the trays but can also be removed if needed.  This allows the supplies to be mobile, easily allowing students to carry multiple or just one supply wherever they need it to be if it is not already there.  It also keeps the supplies organized and clearly visible with the use of clear cups (a problem I have noticed with baskets), and the use of the tray holds the supplies stable at the tables.

make it monday: notebook envelopes.

I saw this idea on the heaven-sent Pinterest (probably one of the most revolutionary things to ever hit education).

It can be used for many different organizational purposes (which I am obsessed with), but my favorite suggestion I have heard from them comes from our instructional coach at the school I am working at.  She thought they would be great to include in math journals.  I took this idea and ran with it.  How great would it be to have these in journals to hold manipulatives we are currently working with, notecards with formulas for older students, little calculators, whathaveyou.  Not only will it save time by not having to pass out these materials at the beginning of each math lesson, but it will also hold students responsible for their materials and give them the opportunity to safely carry them home for further practice.  They can move all about the room to work in various settings and have everything right there with them!

Now I am sure there are several ways to make and alter this idea to fit your needs, and I have to admit that I have not actually made one yet, but I fully intend to soon enough.  I will copy what the original creator wrote about it, though, as well as provide you with a link to her site about it.  She used it in a travel journal.

“My favorite inclusion is a manila catalog envelope that has been cut and the bottom, folded and stitched into the book so as to form two envelopes, concealing when opened two small coin envelopes inserted between them. I’ve added a wrapping closure to keep everything secure.”

http://cindyleaders.blogspot.com/2010/05/amazing-versatile-expandable-travel.html

calming jar.

We have several students in our class that suffer from anger management problems.  They are all sweet as sweet can be, and then out of the blue, something will set them off, and they will become so angry.  Sometimes their anger makes them cry and flail around on the floor.  Other times it causes them to scream, disrespect teachers and classmates, and destroy furniture and classroom surroundings.  I hate to see this happen because I know something is hurting them inside.  I hate to send them to time out because I know this will just give them more time to simmer in their anger and grow even more livid sitting there thinking about it.

That is when I discovered calming jars.  While they do not always work, it is a good way to give the child an opportunity to calm down, control the time he or she needs to take a break from what is happening, and to think about something else other than the situation that just occurred.

A calming jar is a mason jar or old peanut butter jar filled with water, glitter glue, glitter, and food coloring.  When students become angry or need to be taken out of a certain situation, they can shake the calming jar.  They are supposed to sit there and utilize the calming jar until the glitter all settles and they are feeling as calm as the glitter.  If they need more time, they can shake the glitter up again.

While this could lead to children acting up to use the calming jar or saying they are not ready to spend more time away from instruction and activities, remind them that it is a privilege that can be taken away if it is abused.  On a completely opposite note, it will not always work.  I would like to always give them the option, however, to let them be in control of how the situation will be dealt with.  I want them to know that I have the faith that they can pull themselves together and overcome whatever is going on.

I have not perfected the creation of the calming jar, but I will go ahead and post the instructions I have found for making one.  I will update if I discover any other ingredients or methods that produces an even better one.

How to make a Calming Jar:

Materials: glitter glue, hot water, glitter, food coloring

Procedure: Mix 1 tbsp. glitter glue with 1 cup hot water.  Increase the sizes of these depending on the size of the jar.  Mix in a small tub of glitter and a couple drops of food coloring to match the color of the glitter glue.

 

behavior rocket ships.

The behavior rocket ship is something another first grade teacher on my team introduce my mentor teacher and I to.  It is a rocket ship on a piece of paper that has different levels with each part of the day written in each level.  You give one to students who are having trouble with behavior.  As you discuss it with them, you talk to them about a reward they would like to have for coloring in every two sections, the whole thing, whatever is necessary.  Then, throughout the day, the children get to color off each level if they followed all the rules after one warning for that subject.

While it causes minor problems with the children constantly asking if they can color their level in, it is so far the only thing I have seen work with some of our toughest students this year.  In order to alleviate the need to ask if they can color in a level, I suggested to my mentor teacher that we give them stickers to mark off each level instead, and one of us would just put the sticker on their desks after each subject if they earned it.  We have not tried it yet, but I definitely think it is something that could work.

I was nervous about these because I thought once the other students in the class saw them that they would want their own to earn rewards each day, but we have been using them for months now, and no other student has ever said anything about them!

Like I mentioned earlier, you can start out giving rewards for every level or two that is colored in, and as time progresses and behaviors become more controlled, you can increase the amount of levels between rewards.  I think one of the most important parts is letting the children having a say in those rewards.  I think the other most important thing is leaving the children in charge of their own rocket ships.  They need that constant reminder and responsibility in order for it to be effective.

cheap ice packs.

I’m sure I will constantly be posting cheap ideas, but here is one my mentor teacher has recently started doing that I just couldn’t wait to share.  I am student teaching in first grade, so children are always complaining that something hurts or someone hit them or their eye or sore or what have you.  I have taught in third grade, too, and I know the older students are always complaining about injuries as well.  And what fixes almost every single injury an elementary school student has ever endured?  Ice, of course.

Now we all know we cannot send a constant stream of students to the nurse.  First, it wastes learning time.  Second, the office will start to wonder what is going on.  But let’s be real… none of us really wants to spend any of the tiny salary on twenty ice packs.  So here comes the genius part: wet, frozen sponges.  If you have heard of this or are doing this, don’t ruin my fun, please.  The sponges are drenched in water, put in a ziploc bag, and are placed in the freezer or refrigerator.  They form solid ice packs that I have never heard a child complain about.  They stay cold for just the right amount of time, and sponges are sold by the dozen at the dollar store.  It is a winning situation all around.

catch up.

I know I have been slacking so much with this blog… I have barely even gotten it started!!  I promise I will pick it back up and go full speed ahead now that the semester is winding down.  Thanksgiving break is almost finished, but I only have two more final portfolios to turn in and then I am finished for the year.  That means I can spend time exploring wordpress and making this blog the best thing it can be.

I have come up with endless ideas for the classroom over the past couple of months.  If you are not on Pinterest, I highly suggest joining it now.  I cannot begin to tell you the amount of great, easy, CHEAP ideas I have gotten just for simple things in the classroom you never think to get creative with like marker storage.  You can bet I will definitely be sharing these ideas as I get on board fully with this blog.

Anyways, since I have already mentioned the marker storage… here it is.  An old wine rack with cheap plastic cups, perfect for sorting and storing crayons, markers, colored pencils, etc. as you please 🙂 The possibilities are endless.

Just an idea of things to come.