Currently & Giveaway Reminder!

Here's what's currently shaking on the second day of 2015...

My boyfriend took some time off today since he only had Christmas off and we were both pretty sick. Today, he's watching old movies on Netflix and we had a lunch date. Right now, he's on Rainman. He watched Rosemary's Baby this morning - creepy!

I'm loving that McDonald's finally made K-cups of their coffee! I love McDonald's coffee and now I can brew it at home! So of course, I'm wanting a nice Starbucks ceramic tumbler to hold my coffee! I love a nice big coffee mug but to go to school, I'd love to have one of these on my desk...

Perhaps, I can get one while they are still on sale with a gift card...

Right now, I'm blogging and organizing my desk area to get out of grading. I really NEED to finish up my grading so I can use teacher work day to finish up entering my grades and writing up report card comments. Then, I can use the rest of my day to clean and organize my classroom and get ready for the kiddos on Tuesday!

Stop by Oh, Boy Fourth Grade for more January Currently! Thanks Farley for creating and hosting!


 
Also, don't forget to wish JD's Rockin' Reader's a Happy Birthday! 

Today, my TPT store is featured along with many others. Stop over and enter to win a bundle of choice products, a $25 dollar TPT gift certificate, and 3D Fiber Mascara!

Happy Friday! 

A Bookish November Currently!

It's November! I love getting caught up on the blogging world each month with Oh Boy Fourth Grade's Currently. Farley, Thanks for hosting & making this community a great place to share love and ideas!

So here's my November Life...

I love country music. I love Zac Brown Band. Seems appropriate that I'm listening to the radio while blogging & enjoying both my loves.

Okay, I know I've already blogged about my new "online reading logs" but if you need kids to "log" minutes, check out Learn2Earn.org. It's been a huge motivator for many of my reluctant readers. The conversations kids are having about books - it's exciting me! I love that my students are wanting to read for the purpose of reading (and buying some new stuff for their owlvatars). It's also great for my students who already love reading to share that love with the rest of the team. Additional Perk - I'm also loving the ease of "grading" these logs. Seriously, you can set a date range and it'll tell you the minutes logged and the average response on your questions. It does fiction and nonfiction. As a teacher who ditched logs and then brought them back in compliance with our district's reading initiative - this is awesome! Check out my Online Reading Log post!

In the words of Jack from Love that Dog, "This is the BEST, BEST, BEST DAY!" Today was Donalyn Miller Day!

Scholastic brought her into our school as part of a book talk tour. What?! I'm not sure how our school got so lucky but you better believe I was sitting front and center taking it all in. It's wonderful seeing research and affirmation backing up great things happening in our classrooms! Plus, as a reader and book lover -- she's speaking my language. And she's so nice! My OMG moment was chatting it up for 10 minutes-ish in the parking lot.

Her entire presentation can be found on BookWhisper.com under the heading "Projects &  Presentations." Which is great because my "after school brain" forgot a notepad!

Now, photos to document this awesome day!

 

Enough said. I still have a stack. I'm the slowest grader ever!

 Okay, before I hit up the Nerdy Book Club... I need some new books or series to get into! I just picked up The Fourteenth Goldfish at book fair. But I'm trying to find some other series books that might be new or interesting to add to my Nook. I've finished Maze Runner and I need something else... The One and Only Ivan? Shiver series? What's rocking your reading world?

I'm finishing up If I Stay as my own personal read. I know there is a sequel but I still need to see the movie. I'm one of those people - even though I always, always hate the movies.

 But, speaking of reading.... What are some great picture books that you're using in you classroom this month?

We just read the Ralph Fletcher collection of...

... as part of Realistic Fiction Writing unit. The kids are loving the figurative language and show not tell, plus, even big kids love picture books!

What's your November life like?

Star Spangled Currently!

This is the first breath I've been able to catch this summer! Whew! I've had only about a full week of "real" summer since I've been teaching summer school through the end of June. I've seriously been an absentee blogger. But since I have a few free minutes (and everyone is sleeping), I thought I'd link up with Farley at Oh' Boy 4th Grade for July's Currently.

I love the Fourth of July! I love the summer foods and fireworks. Although, this year, I think we are going to try and see if we can see our local fireworks from our porch instead of fighting the crowds. However, we may cave in and join 100,000 of our neighbors...

Loving!

To get into the Independence Spirit, I've been labeling my planner with  my new awesome Frixion Markers! They are erasable! And the colors are beautiful. Love them! If you have a marker or pen addiction (like yours truly) then you need to add these to your Amazon cart.

Thinking!

I have so much work to do in my TPT store. It's really a sorry sight! I've been working on several novel/genre studies but I'm still in the early stages. My goal is to really buckle down next week and get some new products up in my store! Here's a little peek at one project I'm working on...

Whew! I have a lot of work ahead of me! I hope everyone has a safe and fun Fourth of July! I'm ready to make some breakfast before checking out the movie times for today. Nothing says, "I love this country!" like watching a Channing Tatum movie, right?

Don't forget to checkout Oh' Boy 4th Grade to see everyone's plans for the fourth!

Happy Independence Day!

Currently: February!

The Polar Vortex seemed to take eliminate a lot of my lesson plans and teaching in January. Let's hope February brings some normalcy and classroom love back to Ohio. February brings lots of great things my way... our Civil Rights unit, my new student teacher taking over the classroom, and an excuse to shop on Etsy for cute Valentine treats!

But, since some of those things are a few days or weeks away... Might as well link up with Farley from Oh' Boy Fourth Grade for her February Currently! Seems like the right thing to do at the top of the month!

Listening - I've been really listening to country music a lot lately. I'm trying to get ready for the Buckle Up Festival that's coming this summer. I'm so excited for a multi-day country fest coming to Ohio! Since we're having a really short summer this year - this may be part of my vacation!

Loving - I have wonderful glasses. I wear them everyday and I'm not so much a contact person. But I really wanted a back up pair of glasses since I do wear them everyday including laying in bed watching TV (shhh!). So, I had tried Zenni before and wasn't too impressed with the quality but they were MEGA cheap! With my new prescription I need some seriously thin lenses so I decided to try out Coastal's First Pair Free deal! I'm super impressed. I got an entire pair of glasses with thin lenses, anti-glare, anti-scratch for only $58 out the door! Wayyyyy less than going to store. And unlike my Zenni pair these feel like store bought glasses - not cheap plastic frames! Win-Win-Win!

I went with some with a retro flair....so cute! Right?

Thinking - Last night was pizza night. I love pizza - but now I should probably work out extra hard today. I hate that its so hard to stay motivated in the winter time...

Wanting - I need to change out my wallpaper on my phone! New Cuptakes designs were released for February! I'm obsessed with this app! Look how cute...

Needing - Okay, so many of my students are really struggling with text structures. I'm going to need to do some serious reteaching and RTI work. I've fallen a little off the RTI Bandwagon this year with all our new curriculum - I just can't keep it all up. But it's a new year and I'm ready to jump back on! Do you have any activities you recommend? I bought some task cards which should help. I've really focused on signal words and what the passage is about but it's just not clicking for several of my kiddos...

2 Truths and a Fib...
1. I have been in a hot air balloon. TRUTH.  My old college (Go Saints!) held a big cookout a few years back to welcome the new students and celebrate with all the alums. I went back and they had free hot air balloon rides! It was super scary being up so high and getting into the basket was an accomplish in and of itself since I'm only 5'1. But it was so much fun!

2. I have never crowd surfed. FIB. I have too many control issues to let other people hold me up. I did stand front row of an Offspring concert back in college. That was as adventurous as I tend to get.

3. I can't go a day without tea. TRUTH. I've been actively trying to cut out soda from my diet. But I still crave the caffeine. My favorite coffees from Starbucks are loaded with calories and sugar... so I've been really trying to drink just tea or water. So far so good. I stop at McDonald's or Chick-fil-a nearly every morning to pick up a big unsweet tea. So far so good on kickin' soda to the curb! 

Don't forget to stop by Farley's Currently and leave some others some love!

Currently January: Snowy Roads & Freezer Meals!

It's currently 2014! Wow! It's another year down. Today I had to face the reality that I have to start back to school next week. This two week break has been blissful. My one little word of the year is: happiness. I'm going to try and do things that will make me happy and less stressed out. I've already planned for after break and made all my copies. One step closer to happiness already!

My next resolution is to blog more. So, let's start with what I'm currently up to...

I've been really enjoying all our snowy days in Ohio of late. It's been a beautiful winter. I don't always want to drive in the "white death" but it does look absolutely gorgeous outside. During these snowy days, I just want to camp out on the couch with the furbabies and watch Dance Moms marathons. However, in reality, I need to be going to the gym and starting a work out program! I've let other things over take my life and I need to get back to having some time for myself during the week.

Here's a picture of our front yard from today's flurries:

But, today's snow day and January resolutions to cook at home and try purge all the cookies I've eaten, has lead to some serious meal planning. I've been really interested in freezer meals of late. I want to save time and use my time more efficiently this year. This would definitely make me happier and give me some much needed gym time. I found some great resources online. I can't wait to make Kitchen Escapades' Chicken Parm Meatloaf! Yum!

Looks good huh?

There is also the blog Stacy Makes Cents with more recipes and super easy meals! Six meals in 1 hour? I'm sold! Reviews to come after I do all the cooking and shopping. I'm subbing out a few recipes for others so we're not sick of chicken, although buying in bulk always saves money! But I also want to try this Sausage & White Bean soup. Perhaps, my favorite find with this excel editable grocery list that lets you keep track of a week's worth of meal planning! Check out the grocery list from Miss Information here.

Don't forget to link up with Farley at Oh' Boy 4th Grade with all your current January happenings!

Hope everyone is enjoying 2014 so far! 
Here's to happiness and hopefully more consistent blogging! 

It's Currently Sunday...and November?!

I can't believe the first week of November is already over! Wow! Where has the time gone? I feel like I was just getting my room set up and organizing my library for my fifth graders. September and October have been a blur... So, it's time to link up with Farley for what's Currently going on in November.

Listening: The Piano Guys are an instrumental duo that take current songs and convert them to classical music. It's my favorite Pandora station to share with my class! I'm loving "Titanium" and "What Makes you Beautiful." You should check them out -- they're a great stress relief and their Pandora station is perfect for Writing Workshop! 

Loving &Thinking : November is always the end of the trimester for us. So grades are due. All our common assessments are given, due, and need to be graded. Plus, I just collected 54 essays that need to be in the grade book by November 15th. That's a little a lot stressful! So, I've been passing the time with instagram. I was never very faithful with it or very interested until recently! I love the photo apps and all the cool features and uploading a snapshot or two daily. A Beautiful Mess is my favorite app and although it's a paid app, definitely worth it! I've even splurged on many of the add-ons because I love the cute font and "doodles."

Wanting: Anyone else wanting someone to just come in clean, haul away/ throw away the junk, and then organize your house? For only two people we have a lot of clutter and junk! I personally just want to haul most of our "stuff" to the trash because it's taking over our small space. I  know I just need to take a deep breath, relax and think happy thoughts about it all disappearing.

Needing: Sometimes I need to get out of the house to get things graded and done. Panera is my favorite Saturday and Sunday grading spot. I can get a delicious pastry and multiple cups of coffee. And some how because I'm not worried about my house - I can grade lots of papers in a crowded restaurant! 

Yummy Pin: These roasted green beans are super yummilicious and a proven A+ side dish!  This side dish is a huge hit in our house! Green beans, mushrooms, and parmesan cheese? Yes, please! I also made them as a side dish for our Easter Family gathering and they were ALL GONE! It's fast, easy and thanks to Kalyn's Kitchen there are even step by step photo directions. This green bean medley perfect for Thanksgiving or a Tuesday night dinner.

Don't forget to link up with Farley at Oh Boy Fourth Grade to share your November musings :)

It's Currently October!

It's time once again to link up with Farley from Oh, Boy Fourth Grade to share October's Currently! Where did Septemeber go... really?! This week has been super busy with morning conferences and a curriculum night / open house night for our parents! I'm exhausted! But, my students are rock stars! They are nearly done with their first writing piece - a personal essay! We are also working on a prefix unit and our mentor sentences which are going over extra-fantastic (we studied the hyphens linking adjectives today). Plus, Cynthia Lord comes to our school to talk about Rules in less than two weeks! It's so exciting!

Here's what else is new for October...

So, I've probably been living under a rock but if you don't have the Cuptakes app. It does cost - but it is only .99cents!  It's so much pretty for your phone!  There are 300+ background and screensavers plus they have rotating monthly calendars as well. Here's a few of my favorites from October....

I just love fall!

September Currently & Shoe Crisis!

I'm so glad Fall is on it's way... the leaves will be changing soon, pumpkin flavoring will dominate the dessert world, and cooler weather means hoodies with no jackets! I absolutely love this time of year! So, of course I had to link up with Farley with my Currently for September!

I'm happy to be back to school and getting back into my routines but my exercise routines have suffered a bit already... I need to set up some gym days and definitely drink MORE water than I already do. It was so much easier during the summer. But I've lost about 10 lbs so far so I'm going to keep going and I'll just have to make the time for myself!

Okay, my feet are in crisis mode! They are hurting something awful! Right now, I really want need some new shoes. Many of my shoes are getting that yucky point that they need to be put to rest and they are no longer supportive. I have picky feet however and I need arch support so the flat shoes that are trendy don't usually cut it. I really want a pair of Sperrys but I'm having some reservations about comfort... Are they comfy to teach in all day? I own several pairs of Clarks and those are usually my go to shoes and they also a boat shoe version so I'm torn as which direction to take. Both are super expensive so price doesn't matter at this point. My feet hurt and I need new shoes!  I know they can always be sent back but I really want to find a pair of comfortable slip on shoes. Suggestions?

Can't wait to see what everyone else is up too for September and hopefully find some new blogs to follow! Happy Labor Day!

August Currently & A Happy Greyhound!

August? What?! I'm excited to be going back to school don't get me wrong! But there is something to be said about sleeping in, working out during the day, and catching marathons of your favorite shows. Currently, it feels like fall and it's drizzling here. Shhhh... don't tell Iggy, he's in his harness ready for the Farmer's Market. I have to take him and at least make one loop -- he's the happiest Italian Greyhound on the planet right now! If only he understood that it doesn't open until 9am...He's been my shadow all morning since he saw the harness.  

He started out in the other office chair...

Then decided he wanted to really wanted to help.... Now, I have a visitor!

So, as a team effort we decided to link up with Farley from Oh, Boy Fourth Grade and share our August's Currently! Here we go....

Most of my Currently is self explanatory.... Have I mentioned I'd really like to get into my classroom? The summer I decided to reorganize my library and document all my books, is the summer the floors need redone and then redone again! Seriously! I'm having some anxiety about spending long hours in my room organizing my library and putting my room back together again. I just keep telling myself... Keep calm and pet Iggy.

For back to school, I feel like I have quite a few must haves but here are the tops on my list! Flair pens for grading and planning. I love the bright colors, plus they don't bleed through papers. I also have HUGE handwriting so the tiny tip helps me control my JUMBO WRITING as I'm making comments to students.

Sharp scissors are also a must! I always buy a pair of craft scissors. They cut so much better than cheapo scissors. Last year, a student or someone cut something sticky with mine and ruined them :( This year, I bought zebra ones so I can keep track of them better!

I also like to have some Poster tabs/tape. I've used all sorts of tape on my cement walls... nothing works quite like the poster tabs. It stays up all year without falling down on me! I hang up a lot of posters, etc. I like to have it up and stay up!

Can't wait to read everyone else's Currently after Iggy goes for a walk! He's driving me nuts! Have a happy Saturday! 

Currently... July!

Okay, so where has summer gone? I can't believe it's already July. I need to savor every single day in July because it's my only full month of summer vacation this year. It feels great to say ... VACATION! I'm in need of one, badly!

Now, I must admit, Sunday is usually when I do a lot of my blog work. So, I'm going to have to get it together a little late this week because last night was the Matchbox Twenty and Goo Goo Dolls concert! Rob Thomas looks exactly like he did in 1996. I was impressed! It was an amazing night so needless to say, no blog work was done since I was reliving the 1990's and 2000's.

However, since it is July 1st! Here's a little link up with Farley from Oh' Boy Fourth Grade for July's Currently!

Right now, in my house everyone is still sleeping...even the pups! I'm listening to some music and enjoying the bliss of a nearly noiseless house. Sometimes, you really do need to enjoy the simple things!

Loving my gumball machine! I've been testing it out and if you follow me on pinterest I've been scouting out different erasers to fill it. The only down side is, my very large gumball machine will take quite a large number of erasers to fill it. So I need to get some bang for my buck! I'm hoping to get some vinyl and use the Cricut to create a little 5 cents logo.


I can't wait for July 11th! It really can't come soon enough.... We're finally taking a VACATION! I haven't left the state in over two, maybe even three years. I just need a weekend away from the house, dishes, dogs, etc. We're going to do an extended weekend in Louisville - see some sights like the Bourbon Trail, Louisville Zoo, and Slugger Museum... and eat our way around via Adam Richmond's Guide to Louisville.  Yes, Adam Richmond, the Man vs. Food guy... He knows good food!

I'm most excited about Toast on Market! I love pancakes!... Lemon Souffle pancakes? Yes, please!

Wanting... coffee...nothing new there. I like it sweet and iced. 

Okay, so my craft table/scrapbook table is embarrassing right now. I'm working on some new curriculum stuff over the summer so I had to bring home all my "teacher" books and I have an explosion of crafts, school supplies I've found, plus all my new books. It's really getting out of control fast. It's is going to be a haul to move back into my room! I should probably organize it but I'm not sure where else it can go right now. Ugh... 

Lastly, tips, tricks and hints. I think the best advice I was given was to give students ownership and choice. This is not a novel concept but it really does create a sense of responsibility. I know I'm one that finds it hard to let go but you have to give up a little bit to see all the possibilities and let the kids shine! I'm a fan of book talks and watching book "trailers." I like to make it an event like previews before a movie. I want my students to be excited about reading! This year, all of our book clubs were a huge success when we added what we dubbed our "virtual book pass" where we showed You Tube videos, book talks, and student made videos that explained our book club choices. Finally, the best thing I made this year with the help of the Columbia Reading and Writing Project was my Jot Lot. I made it thinking I'd never really "use" it and I used it ALL THE TIME! It was the perfect spot for my students to post answers to questions/exit tickets as well as leave comments. I was a fan! 

Here's a picture of someone else's from Pinterest... I never took a photo of mine! (I really need to be better about that next year!)

Mine is a poster board marked off by post-it sized squares. Then I numbered each square for my students and that way they could put up a post-it and I could know the student without others knowing... it was great for check-ins and easy! I just gave back post-its or called up small groups if I noticed a problem :) 

Do you have any tips, tricks, or hints that you couldn't live without?

June Currently...

So I'm new to the teaching blog world... so I'm a little late to the party but I did finally finish my currently for June...

If you haven't gotten yours to get linked up, go here, to join the party! I'm so ready for summer! This was my first official day of summer vacation and it has rained ALL day. So, today, I'm hoping and dreaming of a warm pool day, hopefully in the near future. I'm also currently living in my three Old Navy "Vintage Tees." If you love a soft worn-in shirts in vibrant colors, they are for you! I currently have three and absolutely love them! Plus, the more you buy the more you save! They look great with khakis shorts and summer skirts... just sayin'.

Also, any suggestions for a 3rd/4th grade read aloud book? Even though I'm usually a 5th grade LA/SS teacher,  I'm teaching ESL summers school again and have some kiddos back! So I'm trying to do things a little different from last year! I was thinking a Roald Dahl novel perhaps. Last year I read Stone Fox to the kids.  I know tons of great 5th grade novels but 3rd grade novels have me stumped! Suggestions please!

Thanks Oh Boy 4th Grade for providing the template and link-up!

Happy June!