January 2016 Currently, Mini Blog Hop and Giveaway!

Happy New Year everyone! I can't believe that 2016 is already here! I'm totally looking forward to the potential it has for me! I'm linking up with Farley for her awesome Currently, PLUS doing a mini blog hop with a couple of NM Bloggers to bring YOU some awesome prizes and freebies. Check them out below!

First, let's get down to business with Farley's Currently:

Listening:
I was just listening to Landslide (covered by the Dixie Chicks) with my daughters and it had us all tearing up. It is such a timeless song that can mean so many different things depending on the stages of your life. I keep thinking about how they're growing up and how scary it is to think about them both being out of the house in a couple years. That will be a big change for me because I truly have built my life around them.

Loving:
Needless to say I have really enjoyed my break and am not ready to give up wearing my PJs all day and having the time to create. How many days until Spring Break?

Thinking:
I barely slept last night, not because I was up partying, but because my mind was swirling with so many ideas and possibilities and risks that I'm about to take this year. It left me unsettled, yet excited. It also left room for those pesky doubts to creep in. My goal is to banish self doubt in 2016 and believe in myself and what I do and what I'm capable of.

Wanting:
I think I say this almost every month. I want more time to plan, create, and learn but also more time with my girls. Cliche alert: It really does go by so fast!

Needing:
I need to calm my brain and the only way to do that is to figure out what I want to do, make a plan, write it down and get started. I'm a little impatient and sometimes I jump in the pool before I even check to see if there is any water in it. I need to be patient with myself and my progress.

One little word:
My little (but mighty) word this year is BE. We were actually talking about one word resolutions this morning and my family thinks I'm a weirdo for choosing the word BE. I like it because it is a word that can grow and change and morph into what I need it to be. I can BE amazing, or strong, or talented or kind. Or I can just BE in the moment. BE present.
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Well, my friends, this Currently was a little more philosophical than usual, but I think the New Year does that to you. Now that I've dried my teary eyes, I can focus on some fun stuff!

My NMBlogger friends and I teamed up to give you a mini blog hop with prizes and freebies. There are only 2 other stops so you TOTALLY have time to hop around for a minute or two. First, enter our giveaway! Who doesn't want a $30 TpT gift card?? Scroll All.The.Way.Down to grab a cute little winter freebie from me too!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Now hop on over to my buddy Laura from Tchr888 by clicking the button below! Read her post and grab a freebie while you're at it!

Grab this cutie patootie penguin freebie! It features word problems with up to four double digit addends. It also has space for students to show their strategy, explain in words and write an equation. My kiddos will be working on these when we get back from break.

click here to get your freebie

12 Days of Giving FREEBIE

Happy December everyone! Have you heard about the Global Glitter Tribe Blog's 12 Days of Giving? We're featuring 12 awesome freebies because we believe that we are stronger as a teacher community when we support each other.

I whipped up this little freebie when I realized that my students are struggling with understanding how to solve word problems. Click the pic to get this FREEBIE!

This product features 16 task cards with double digit addition and subtraction with a holiday theme. They all have QR codes that students can scan to check their answers. My students love using an iPad (or other device) to scan the QR codes. I love that my students are getting immediate feedback. Here's a sample:

Just like all my other task card sets, it also includes a student recording sheet and answer key. I use task cards in a variety of ways. Sometimes, they are simply placed in a zip top bag, along with the recording sheets and placed in a math center. Other times, we play Scoot and kids get to move around the room from desk to desk to solve the problems. Sometimes I post them around the room scavenger hunt style. Their favorite way to use task cards is to do Quiz Quiz Trade.

Check out some other awesome freebies featured on the Global Glitter Tribe Blog by clicking on the button below. Did I forget to mention that we're also doing a GIVEAWAY? Oops! I guess you'll have to check it out on the GGT blog!

Global Glitter Tribe October Linky

Trying to find time to blog during soccer season is like trying to nail Jello to a tree! Needless to say, it's almost the end of October and I'm finally getting around to linking up with the Glitterati on the Global Glitter Tribe's blog. Get on over there and link up too! Keep reading for lots of goodies and even a FREEBIE!

It's easy to link up, just grab the template, add in your answers and then plop it into your blog. Don't forget to link back to the Global Glitter Tribe Blog.

Here's mine:

Totally Inspirational:

I've started learning more about Growth Mindset and I'm totally intrigued by what it can do for students. The other day during our Number of the Day discussion, a student made a mistake in the equation she was presenting. She felt a little embarrassed but I made sure to heap on the praise because she was able to recognize her mistake and correct it. I told the class how I just saw her brain grow double and she just beamed! Immediately I saw more students take risks in their mathematical thinking with just that one comment I made. I found this awesome bulletin board (sorry about pic quality) on Pinterest that makes so much sense! I'm thinking about how to adapt it for my 2nd graders.

Responsiveness:
Normally I've always led the Number of the Day discussions in my class. This year I decided to shake things up a bit after the first two months. I let students come up and write their work on the board and lead a discussion about their thinking. I have discussion question prompts on the wall they can use if needed, but I really love when they challenge each other. My favorite is when they say, "Prove it!" and the leader can actually explain their thinking to the class. They also started asking the other students who agrees with the leader. The kids started having the most amazing discussions! It was painful and awkward at first, but their discussions have really started blossoming. Here are the questions I have posted on my wall. I got them from Guided Math in Action and made them into posters. Read more about the questions from this post and click the pic to download them for free.

Igniting Passionate Readers:
Even though I just teach math, I still have a substantial classroom library. Fast finishers can always grab a book to read for a few minutes. Plus, my homeroom students get to go book "shopping" each week for books to keep in their book bags to take to literacy class.

This is the fiction side, which makes up half the library.

What really gets kids excited about reading is when I unveil my new monthly theme bookshelf. Each month is a different theme such as holidays, science topics they're studying with their science teacher or special authors. These books are always the most popular because they're only around for a limited time. It creates a hype about reading that is contagious! Here's my October selection:

Bridging the Gap:
Since I teach math all day, I get to really hone in on the math skills my students are struggling with or doing well with. One way to bridge the gap is to meet with my students in a small group each day. Meanwhile, the other students are engaged in math stations. I like to differentiate my stations by having different levels for students. An easy way to do that is to assign certain tasks to certain students. They are just as fun as the other stations, and often look almost the same, but may have smaller numbers to work with or more basic skills (or review). One example is my Batty for Telling Time leveled task cards, which include three levels. You can also mix these cards up for a fun Scoot Activity or Quiz Quiz Trade. It's a bargain at only $3!

Enjoying My Time:
Who doesn't love binge-watching your favorite shows on Netflix? I've recently finished watching Orange is the New Black and Sons of Anarchy and stumbled across Bones, an old show I never got into until now. What I love about Netflix is that I don't have to watch commercials or even fast forward them. I watch while I iron and fold laundry on Sundays and it makes the task much more enjoyable!

First Day Tried and True Linky Party

I have mixed feelings about back to school time. On one hand, I'm refreshed and energized and ready to GO! On the other hand, I really did enjoy my lazy mornings on the back patio with a cup of coffee and my doggie. Sigh. Summer is never long enough!

Well, I'm linking up with Chrissie from Undercover Classroom and Sarah from Education Electrification for First Day Tried and True: A Back to School Linky Party. There will be tons of tips from teachers who have survived their first day (some of us over and over and over) and came out tired but smiling! Read through to the end of my post for a freebie and a giveaway!

The first day of school is 100% crazy. You have 20-something little angels looking at you with a wide range of expressions on their faces. You also have just as many parents looking at you the same way. The first day of school is always a whirlwind of supplies, rules, getting to know you activities and hopefully, lots of smiles and fun.

You have to set the tone for the entire year and it happens in the first 10 minutes! No pressure, right? I used to start with sorting school supplies and many anxious and lingering parents trying to "help". It wasn't how I wanted to start the year, but I didn't know what else to do. A couple years ago, I did something just a little radical...I kissed the parents goodbye!

Let me explain just a bit. My students are instructed to line up in a prearranged spot each morning. Of course, there are parents wanting to come into the classroom instead to talk to you and drop off supplies and make sure you know about their peanut allergy, etc. It was so stressful for me and I started the day frazzled. What I do now is to lock my door and put a sign on it that says I'll meet them in the lining up area at a certain time. I actually leave my classroom and hide out until the designated time, about 5 minutes before the bell rings. This gives me time to talk to parents and make sure the kiddos know where to go.

When the bell rings, the kiddos line up and I go down the line to talk to each one. I give a high five or fist bump to each one and tell them how excited I am that they're in my class. Then I tell all the kids to turn and look at the parents and blow them a big, fat, juicy kiss and say goodbye. This usually solves the problem of parents hanging around.

Now is my favorite part. I tell all the kids to hang up their backpacks and bags and DO NOT UNPACK them. They are to meet me on the carpet while I play a fun song such as The Happy Song. Once everyone is sitting down, I spend about 10-15 minutes just talking with them and telling them a little about myself. I also like to show pictures of my family and my dog so they see me as a real person. Then I ask them to give me thumbs up if they're excited, scared, nervous, happy, etc. and I let them know I feel all those feelings too.

Then, I pass out a few pages from my Back to School Memory Book that are very easy for them to work on while I do attendance, lunch count, etc. I also play some classical music quietly to set the tone. This is the perfect time to start sorting supplies. While they are coloring and drawing in their books, I will call a few children at a time to sort out their supplies into buckets on my small group table. This takes the chaos out of supply sorting and allows me to take note if anyone is missing any supplies, while all students are engaged in a fun activity. I always have a few buckets of crayons and colored pencils at each table at the beginning since all their supplies are still packed.

My Back to School Memory Book and First Week Activities pack (on sale for $4!!) is full of fun pages that you can mix and match to keep kids meaningfully engaged and you less stressed the first week of school. There is a student created bulletin board, get to know you surveys and graphs, and lots of pages for a memory book that makes a really sweet keepsake that I save for the end of the school year. The kids love to see how much their spelling and drawing has improved!

If this looks interesting to you, you can download a free sample here. Also, if you leave a comment about your First Day Tried and True Tips and your email, I'll randomly choose a few people to win my Back to School Memory Book and First Week Activities!

Check out other teachers' First Day Tried and True Tips:

An InLinkz Link-up

Back to School FREEBIES link up

I'm trying to pretend that I don't have to be back to school in less than 2 weeks. However, there are so many reminders that BTS15 is coming, ready or not! I will probably spend a ridiculous amount of money at Target today, so why not share some awesome FREEBIES! I'm linking up with Differentiation Station Creations for a great Back to School Freebies Linky Party.

I have a FREE sampler of my Back to School Memory Book and First Week Activities pack. The FREEBIE contains a few fun pages to keep kids engaged while you establish classroom rules and procedures. It also gives you a sneak peek into some of your students' reading, writing, cutting and pasting skills.

If you like this and would like the entire 35+ page pack of activities, you can grab it on sale for only $4!! It's more than enough to cover a full week of getting to know your students. Check out the preview of the full product:

Includes fun prompts such as "A Good Teacher..." and "All About Me"

Includes activities to help students get to know each other and talk about classroom expectations.

Create a fun student-made bulletin board!

Check out their graphing skills while getting to know them!

Head on over to Differentiation Station Creations for more Back to School Freebies!

Five for Friday: Thanks and 2 FREEBIES

I'm linking up with Doodlebugs for FFF this week and feeling so thankful!

 I am super thankful for my supportive husband, talented daughters, and loving/crazy family. My husband lets me get away with just about anything and allows me to be my true self. I also couldn't be more proud of my talented daughters, who are growing up to be such amazing young women. I am also blessed to have wonderful parents, siblings, and grandmothers! My life is full of amazing people!

 I am extremely thankful for my job. I would be a liar if I told you that each day teaching is sunshine and rainbows, but I do love my job. I am almost always excited to start each day knowing I have some great lessons planned and getting to make such a huge impact. My students are amazing, sweet, and funny. They make me want to wring their necks and give them hugs at the same time! They also make me laugh and give me hope. I also have two awesome principals who are supportive, fun and care about kids.

 I'm thankful for all the opportunities I have because I get to live in this great country. I'm thankful for all those who helped paved the way for my freedom.

 These are things I could live without, but would rather not have to: coffee and technology. My favorite part of the day is sipping on my first cup of coffee and gearing up for the day. I also love that second cup to keep me running half way through the morning!  Technology has opened up the world to us. You have a question? Google it! Want to know how to fix something? YouTube videos! Want to connect with people from around the world?  Blogs, email, Skype, FaceTime, Facebook, and Instagram right at your fingertips.

Finally, I'm thankful for Teachers Pay Teachers! It may sound silly, but when I "discovered" TpT a few years ago, it drastically changed how I teach. My lessons improved, my classroom management improved, and my organization improved. I also found the educational blog world to be a vast collection of tried and true resources made by teachers! Now, I'm selling my products on TpT and helping make things a little easier on the budget for my family. I feel so blessed that I can pay for a new soccer uniform or cleats for my girls without having to stress about the money. The best part is that I get to use my creativity to help my family. What is better than that? Well, to show my thanks, I have two freebies for my elementary friends:

for my 2-3 grade friends

for my 3-5 grade friends