Bulletin Board Linky Party

Sunny Days at http://sunnydaysinsecondgrade.blogspot.com/2011/07/look-at-me-few-months-ago-i-had-no-idea.html is having a bulletin Board Linky Party.  I wish I had more pictures of my bulletin boards, but one that I do every year is a silhouette board.  I trace each students head using my overhead projector, black paper, and a piece of chalk.  After I cut them out I glue them onto bright paper.  I don't let the kids see them until they are all cut out and mounted.  Then I hold them up for them to guess who each child is.  It really gets us all laughing.  It is amazing how each child has familiar identifying characteristics.  I also have each child complete a bio-poem about themselves to hang up with their silhouette.  When we do the light unit, it creates a great discussion on how shadows are made.

Smartboard Linky Party

Join the Smartboard Linky Party here: http://www.lutton519.blogspot.com/   Best linky party yet...I love creating Smartboard Lessons.  I can't choose one over the other; they're all my babies!  But...here are some that I spent many hours tweaking:

ABC Order is fun!

My kids like this one...and

Lots of activities in this one.

We do a lot of work on context clues in my classsroom.

One of my newest.

                      R controlled

Ordinal numbers is free and found here: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Ordinal-Numbers-Smartboard-Practice

My Wish List Linky Party

Really Roper @http://reallyroper.blogspot.com/2011/06/my-wish-list-linky-party.html  is having a wish list linky party.  For ten years now I have been wishing for a beautiful, durable classroom rug like this one:

 

As you know, these are very expensive, so I have been trying inexpensive alternatives.  I tried a large remnant which started to fray within a couple of weeks.  Then I bought a bound rug from Walmart and painted a grid on it which looked great for about a month.  I blogged about it here: http://luvtoeduc8.blogspot.com/2011/04/carpet-time.html .  

But then it started to wrinkle and get bunchy so at the end of the year I rolled it up and gave it to another teacher who is going to try and put the edges under bookcases to see if it will stay flat.  I, on the other hand, bit the bullet and bought an authentic classroom rug.  I was lucky to find a factory second, which is the same high quality as the perfect rugs with a minor flaw.  I'm still not sure what the flaw is in my rug.  I blogged about it here: http://luvtoeduc8.blogspot.com/2011/05/what-ive-learned.html.

 I have received the rug; it's beautiful and half the price.  I will keep you updated on how well it works in my classroom.  


The other big item on my wish list is for my classroom to be painted.  A couple of years ago our principal had a two male teachers come in over the summer and paint our entire building gray and white.  The bottom half of every wall, every post, everything is gray and the top is white.  Nothing lines up and it is the messiest paint job I have ever seen.  They actually painted around things so if you move a cabinet its a different color behind it.  AWFUL!  When I came in after summer, I literally wanted to throw up.  They took our elementary school and turned it into a prison.  I spent weeks painting all the trim red to cheer things up, but painting the entire classroom is just too daunting for me.  I have spoken to our new principal about my wish, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. (You can kind of see what I'm talking about in this picture.)

Seat Sack Update

Recently I wrote about how I love my seat sacks but they only last a couple of years @http://luvtoeduc8.blogspot.com/2011/05/seat-sack-feedback-please.html.  I felt that the nylon seats lasted longer than the twill or cotton seatsacks, but I just couldn't find the nylon ones anywhere.  SO...I decided to call the company.  One of their owners told me that they discontinued the nylon seatsacks because they had problems with the material fraying.  We discussed how the cotton seat sacks wear out on the top where the material sits against the chair.  At $10.00 a seatsack (which comes out of my own pocket) it hard to justify buying new ones every year to replace the worn out ones.  She then told me that she had a little secret to share with me; they are about to reveal a new improved seat sack.  The new seat sack will have the same fabric but with a protective shiny layer over it to make it more durable and easy to clean.  She kept my number and promised to contact me when these become available.  She also said to get on their email list or like their facebook site to take advantage of special pricing that they offer teachers.  

Linky Party at www.CFClassroom.com

I love, love, love all the blogs and the wonderful creative teachers that share their ideas.  It so much fun seeing how teachers set up and organize their classrooms and motivate their students.  If I had to choose just one I'd have to say that Lory Evans would take the prize for most generous.  She shares so many of her resources on her blog.