Five for Friday

I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for 

Summertime.  It's wonderful, isn't it? Not too much going on around here...and that's JUST the way I like it! :)

Since school's been out, I've pretty much been focusing on creating our FREEBIES for our 7 Week Birthday Celebration.

I certainly hope you've been following along and picking those up each week from our TpT shop!  This week's freebie is still available HERE.

I've finally finished them ALL.  Let's just say if you like hashtags, you'll love next week's fun freebie!  At the end of our 7 weeks of birthday celebration, we'll be giving a BONUS exclusive freebie to our TpT followers.  It won't be posted in our shop for free, but will be sent out via EMAIL to our followers, so be sure to go to our SHOP and click the green "follow me" text beneath our shop name so you don't miss out!

The highlight of this week was certainly my new blog design.  

I am in LOVE with every single aspect of it.  It is totally me.

  Thanks again to Megan at 

I was super excited to discover this new blog...

That's right!  A blog all about Guided Math!  I'm thrilled to have some of my resources in their kickoff giveaway - head over to enter and win lots of goodies!  PLUS, they have a freebie for you to grab - an awesome Problem Solving Discussion Fan.  Click the image below to go to their blog and pick it up. Be sure to FOLLOW while you're there so you don't miss out on future amazingness! :)

My next big project is going to be SPELLING.  A couple of summers ago, I created a spelling program for my classroom since we've never had one.  It took ALL SUMMER long.  I created the lists, pretest lists, challenge lists, differentiated spelling test formats for each week.  It was a chore, let me tell you!

Well, guess what?  The following year, our school created its own spelling program.  HA! {Trust me...that is NOT a laugh.}  Isn't that how it ALWAYS works??? 

I am not happy about it, but this summer I'm going to be creating challenge lists, pretest lists, and tons of activities to go along with these NEW lists. 

I'll post more about this when I start working on it, but are there any "must-do" spelling activities that you think benefit your students on a weekly basis? 

Here's a sneak peek of what I will be working on for each list so far.... I'd love to hear your ideas though.  I know I don't do as much as I should with spelling in my classroom so I'm trying to up my game. :)

And now, I'm off to start cleaning out my closet.  Am I the only one who does that before packing for a trip??  Tomorrow I'll be headed here...  #happyplace

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Classroom Birthday Ideas??

First of all, CONGRATULATIONS to Carolyn, the winner of our Writer's Workshop Notebook Pack from Wish List WINSday!  We've already sent an email your way.  If you didn't win, but would like to pick this pack up at 30% off (that's 122 pages of writing goodness for only $5.60!), head to our shop now!

My brain is already thinking about next year.  I know your brain is, too.  That's how us teachers roll.  So tell me, what do you do for student birthdays in your classroom?  I don't like taking up a lot of class time but I definitely want something to make their day feel extra special.  I mean, birthdays are a big deal - especially for kids!

In the past, I've done a simple treat - such as the large pixie stix.

Or, I've made them birthday cups.  I'm still considering these that I did to celebrate MY birthday last year since it was on the first day of school.  They were so super cute!

We usually start the morning with our birthday cheer (which I LOVE as an alternative to the dreaded-drawn out-can they add any more verses to it-birthday song), let the birthday child wear a special sticker/hat/necklace, and give them their little treat....then we carry on with our day. 

You can download the Birthday Cheer below - If it's a boy's birthday, I let the boys lead and girls repeat and if it's a girl's birthday, the girls lead and the boys repeat.  They love it as a change-up!

So tell me, what is your FAVORITE birthday ritual in your classroom?  Have a blog post about it?  Leave the link below - I'd love to check it out!

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Wish List WINSday! {A Writer's Workshop Notebook}

Hi y'all!  Before we get to Wish List WINSday, what do you think of my NEW BLOG DESIGN!?  Totally in L-O-V-E with it.  It's pink.  And gold.  SO me!  If you have ever considered having your blog designed, Megan from...

She designed my classroom blog at the beginning of the school year and now my teaching blog, and I can say with confidence that she is the MOST AMAZING blog designer EVER!  Not only is she super talented and amazingly sweet but she's also quick and affordable!  Go ahead and put yourself on her waiting list...you'll thank yourself. :)

For the rest of the summer, I'm going to be changing up my WINSday posts a bit.  You'll still get a chance to win a product, but the great news is that if you don't win, you can purchase that product on SALE!

I'll be pulling some of our most WISH LISTED products on TpT to showcase and giveaway on Wednesday.  That product will then be on sale through through that weekend!

First up....

You can read more about our Writer's Notebook HERE.  Enter to win it by commenting below with your least favorite thing about teaching writing.  The winner will be announced tomorrow.  If you don't win, you can grab it for 30% off in our TpT shop through Sunday!

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Week 5 FREEBIE {90+page Stuart Little Companion Pack}

I feel like I'm finally getting my life in order for the summer and will be able to start blogging on a regular basis again!  Woohoo!  Yesterday I blogged over at Owl-ways Be Inspired for the new "Show Us How You Use It Linky."  I'm loving this new linky party!  Each week we take a common object - last week was popsicle sticks and this week is clothespins - and teachers share how they use them in their classrooms.  SO many great ideas are being shared!! Head over there to read more and link yourself up!

But, before you do, be sure you've snatched up our Week 5 Freebie in our Birthday Celebration!

This week's FREEBIE is a 96-page book companion pack for the classic, Stuart Little.

It's filled with reading responses, graphic organizers, writing responses, assessments...and so much more! 

 
I hope you're able to use it in your classroom.  Be sure to follow our TpT shop so you don't miss the next FREEBIE!

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Week 4 FREEBIE {Core Writing: September}

Just dropping a note to make sure you've picked up this week's FREEBIE!

This week we have a writing freebie for you!  Each month this coming school year, we'll release a new Core Writing pack and we're giving you the September edition for FREE this week.

It is filled with writing prompts that address all of the common core standards - narratives, opinions, and expository.  The prompts all use themes that are specific to that month to keep students interested throughout the year. 

The prompts also come in three different formats for flexibility for how you want to use them in your classroom.

In my classroom, I put the prompt calendars for each month in students' take home folders (in a plastic sleeve) so that they have a writing option for homework each night.  This works perfect with my TEAM HOMEWORK approach.  Often students need extra practice with writing but parents don't know what to have them write - problem solved!

The prompts also come in the traditional task card format.  These are perfect to use in centers or for early-fnishers to grab and take to their desks.  They can be laminated and put on metal rings for easy storage!

And, finally, the prompts come in a journal format.  Just grab a few composition notebooks and we've included everything you'll need to create themed journals for your writing center.  Add to the collection each month and your ever-growing center will be a student favorite!

If you didn't snatch up this freebie this week, go get it NOW!  I'd love for you to share the link with all of your teacher friends, too! 

Wait until you see what is in store for week 5...it's something completely different than the first four! :)

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Week 3 FREEBIE - Problem Solving Through the Year: August Edition

School's out for SUMMER!  It's my first official day of summer.  What am I doing?  Working, of course!  But, I'm doing it in my pajamas.  #heavenly  I'm currently working on one of our next freebies.  Have  you been following along with our 7 weeks of freebies for our 7th Birthday celebration??

If not, it's not too late!  You can pick up the Week 3 freebie now.

This is something I will be using in my classroom next year to start each math block.  I'll showcase it on the board, using the interactive Table of Contents to make it a snap...

Students will use their math journals (or one of the two workmats included) to solve a word problem each day.  I think this will be a great way to get their math brains switched on, integrate more word problems into our math, and to spiral all of the math concepts throughout the year.

That's right!  Each day of the week concentrates on a word problem centered around a different domain (operations, place value, measurement (including time/money), geometry, and data/graphing.  Previewing and reviewing these concepts ALL YEAR LONG is the key!


Click HERE to hop over and grab the freebie, and if you love it, look for the other months to come for the 2014-2015 school year!  Maybe even a bundled set in advance??

Be sure to follow Teacher's Clubhouse on TpT so you don't miss out on the next four weeks of freebies!

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Word Superstars {210-page FREEBIE}

I am buried in my LAST week of school over here.  How about you?  How long do you have left?  Or, are you already enjoying SUMMER??   Just a quick post today to make sure you have picked up our WEEK 2 FREEBIE.

This week, we're giving away our BRAND NEW Word Superstars Unit.  It's a fun, quick way to incorporate new vocabulary while reviewing synonyms/antonyms, context clues, syllabication, parts of speech and more!  I plan to use this daily for the first 5 minutes of my word study block next year.  I hope you can use it too!  I'd love for you to spread the word and make sure all of your teacher friends head to our TpT shop to grab it while it's FREE.  It's available for free until Saturday, June 7.

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