Monthly Archives: January 2015
Getting Organized!
I love every new year how I think that THIS is going to be the year where I get organized. This year is no different…well, I guess it kind of is because I’ve actually started organizing things. But only because of the snow. We’ve had 3 snow days now and one 2 hour delay so far. I love 2 hour delays because I can get a few things done in those two hours before the kiddos come to school. During our delay last week, I decided to get going on Tammy’s #TeachersGetOrganized2015 challenge.
I’m about 1/2 way done organizing, but I started with my desk (I still need to work on my binders).
Here is the before of my desk:
The Before!
This is by no means the worst that its been, I had cleaned it off just before break, so I didn’t have as many papers and extras to put away, but I did need to get some other things put away.
I got my binders all cleaned off so that when I grab them, nothing falls off! I also got this great pencil/folder organizer at Target (my fav!!). I stuck some dry erase labels I got on clearance at Office Depot this summer so I could label what goes in each section. I also got this great cereal bowl from Target (in the plastic dishes area). I figured it would hold small-ish things. When I realized just how many post-it notes I had, I decided to dedicate this little container to them. 🙂
(Top Left) I got a black wicker basket and it now holds my stickers, a few yoga DVD’s, a timer, and my “for school” apple slicer. (Top Right) I found these great letters at Michael’s. The “K” is for my first name -or- Kindergarten! It is powered by two AAA batteries and it lights up…so cute! I think it was $12.99 and it can be decorated behind the light bulbs (one day when I get a chance!). The “P” was from the $1 spot at Michael’s too. I thought I needed to represent my last name. 🙂
This is the after picture. I still need to work on the drawers and organizing the binders on top of my desk, but this is a start. I’m going to try really hard to keep it this way too. The other thing I did for myself to help keep things clean was to sign up for Planbookedu.com I was able to get rid of my lesson plan book {even though I REALLY want one from Erin Condren} off my desk which freed up TONS of space. I can do all my plans online now and even upload files there! I can see it at home and school and don’t have to lug anything around. SO happy that I am using it. 🙂
I’ll be posting more pictures soon once I get some things organized!
Who’s Who and Who’s New
I am excited to be a new author on the Who’s Who and Who’s New blog! My first post is being shared today, so head on over and check it out! 🙂 I’m sharing an easy way to keep yourself organized! 🙂
New Math Work Stations
I was able to take some pictures of the new Math Work Stations that I introduced today. Normally, I introduce them one at a time over several weeks, but we needed to start with a clean slate today and the kiddos were ready to listen, so I went for it and they did GREAT! Here is a look at our newest work stations:
This is one of A Differentiated Kindergarten’s Spinner Math Fun Galore pack. The kiddos spin the spinner and write the number and corresponding number word.
This is also a free game Marsha has in her Tpt store. We needed to practice addition and subtraction and have some fun at the same time! 🙂
We are studying community helpers so I brought out my community helper greater than, less than, equal to clip cards. The kiddos look at the cards and decide if the picture on the left is greater/less/equal to the one on the right and place the clip on the appropriate symbol below.
This is a little activity I made this past weekend. The children find a baker and read his ten frame. They then find the corresponding number and number word cupcake and base ten block cookie and match them in a group.
We are also reviewing our measurement work and to tie in with our community helper theme, the kiddos are measuring different tools a construction worker might use. They measure the length or height in cubes and bears and then record how many.
We are also reviewing 3D shapes, so this quick game is called 3D Grab a Shape. They grab a 3D shape card and record it on their recording sheet. (This isn’t the actual recording sheet, I just had these left over from the last game {3D Spin a Shape-its also included in this pack} and wanted to use them up).
This game is also from Marsha’s Spinner Math Fun Galore pack. This game is called Spin and Win and these kiddos are working on recognizing numbers in the teens.
The kids did so great with these today! I’ll snap some pictures of the other stations that were not open today and our new Literacy Work Stations. 🙂
P.S. Don’t forget Tweet Chat is tomorrow night with Vanessa Levin from @PreKPages as our guest!
Winter Break
How many of you go back to school tomorrow? I’ll be with you, but I wanted to share some pictures of some work I did last Friday at school to get ready for my K’s to come back to school.
We are going to be learning about Community Helpers the next 6 weeks, so I switched out my Science/Sensory area to a Community Helper sensory bin. I used some well washed rocks from the playground, and got a pack of 5 CAT construction vehicles from Target {My favorite place on earth–other than IKEA!}. I also added some Matchbox construction vehicles and some IKEA community helper people and cars.
I also switched out my sensory bin {using A Differentiated Kindergarten’s January Sensory Tub pack}. There are letters hidden in the bottom and the children will make their sight words as they find the letters.
I also got a new shelf from IKEA. You might remember that last summer I invested in a “rainbow cart” when they went on sale at Michaels. I still really like it, but two things made it not work out so well for us. 1) We couldn’t put our pocket dice in them and they kept getting separated from our Math Work Station, so we couldn’t do our work! 2) The tubs that came with it were difficult for my K’s to put back in. We already have one of these shelves from IKEA for our Literacy Work Stations, so we already know they can hold more and are easy to put away. I think this new system will work so much better for us!
I’ve re-purposed the “rainbow cart” to an area behind my desk. I will use it to stash upcoming Math and Literacy Work Stations so that I can stay on top of switching them out. I think it will help me and the K’s!
Stay tuned for some more new organization! I’m participating in a blog link-up with my friend Tammy at Live, Love, Laugh Kindergarten. She’s created a monthly link up to help get different areas of your classroom organized. First up is the teacher desk area/binders. I bought some cute things at Target over the weekend to help get things in order on my messy desk, so I’ll be sharing those soon. You can participate even if you don’t have a blog! Just post the pictures to Twitter or Instagram using the #TeachersGetOrganized2015 and be sure to tag Tammy!
Also coming up on Tuesday we have our weekly Tweet Chat with guest host Vanessa Levin from @PreKPages. She’s hugely talented and shares amazing things on her Facebook page and blog.
Don’t feel intimidated! Tweeting is really easy…even if you just lurk in the background, I promise you will get some great ideas! You will need a Twitter account {its free to sign up} to join us, but after that, you can use my tutorials to help you:
Tweet Deck is another platform to use when tweeting. I find it easier to use than Twitter because I can narrow my screen easily down to the one conversation. On Twitter, all your conversations appear at once, making it harder to follow along. 🙂 Give it a try and watch for me giving out prizes!! My twitter name is @fuzzlady77, so be sure to tweet me if you have any questions!
Have a GREAT first day back!!
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Kristen's Kindergarten 