My Favorite Time of Year!

I know as a teacher we all love to go back to school shopping!  It is one of my favorite times of the year!! I'm so excited that TPT has decided to throw a B2S sale!  Of course, I'm joining in on the fun!

Here are some fun Back to School and Fall Items:

You can find these and so much more at my TPT store!

My cart is full and ready! Can't wait to share all my wonderful finds with you.

Hope you're all having a great start to a new year! I'm exhausted. ;)

Meet *ME*

If you've followed my blog for some time then you've already read a couple of my "Meet the Teacher" posts, but with a new year comes, well, a "new" me! :)

I'm linking up with Blog Hoppin for a little 'meet and greet!'

1. I *love* my hubby.  He is the cream of the crop!

{we never take pictures...this one is from June '12}

We celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary this past June, but have been together for eleven years! We started dating at the ripe age of 18! Can you guess how old I am?! :)

2. We have two pups. For right now they are our 'children.'  Nelly {the small one} is five and Milo is four.  They are not siblings but are the best of friends.  I don't think I could ever own just one dog again! Doggie pals are the best!

 

This is the 'dog' couch! :)

3. This is my teacher-BFF.  We all have one and she is mine!

I seriously could not survive the year {or day} without her. She's the bride!

4. I have one major obsession with clothes.  Maxi dresses to be exact. If I was allowed to spend my entire paycheck on dresses, I would.  The are so comfy, most can be worn to work and then dressed up for a date night! {I also love versatility}.  I currently own over 20 maxi dresses, but it's never a bad time to add more to the collection! :)  Local boutique shops are my favorites.

5. I have a love affair with all food.  Italian and mexican are my favorites.

I could live on tacos alone!

6. Okay...I lied. Cookies are my favorite food. 

I'm especially addicted to Monster Cookies.  I credit this obsession to Cara and her fun little domestic blog, Pearls, Handcuffs, and Happy Hours.  I first saw this delightful recipe there and have been making them nonstop ever since.

7. Dexter is one of my all time favorite shows {along side #8}.  

Something about his whole vigil-anti mystique! :) I mean look at that adorable smirk. swoon

8. Friends.  I own every season and every summer I begin watching the series from the very first episode till the last.

It's pretty scary how well I know the show.  I can see a clip and tell you what season and what episode it's from.  Does that make me a geek or weird or just slightly obsessed? 

9. Confession.  I have owned a Cameo for almost a year and have never used it. I don't know if it's the anxiety of figuring out how to use it or just my plain old

LAZINESS.  I know, I know...I need to get crackin'!

10.  My hubby and I are....

EXPECTING! Yay! I am currently 8 weeks along so don't want to get too excited yet, but I just couldn't old back any longer!!! side note: I really want that shirt but it's currently sold out.  Isn't it too cute?!

So there you have it!

Make sure to head over to Blog Hoppin all week long for more teacher fun!

Pretty Colors

Reason #499 why I love teaching kindergarten.... teaching colors!

Frog Street Press came up with these adorable color songs eons ago and they are perfect for helping kiddos learn and remember their colors and color words.  I sing them all year long with my minders and they love them. 

Last year I updated a book that my interning teacher gave me way back in the day to use when teaching the songs/colors.  Well, I've updated it again and added the colors pink and white {as well as the Canadian Version}! :)

These are examples of what the pages look like in the book.  At my school we spend two weeks on colors.  We teach one color a day and have lots of activities that go along with that color.  First, I teach the kiddos the song.  We sing it multiple times {and then more throughout the day}, then we brainstorm things we know that are those colors.  For instance, when teaching the color red we list items that are red like; strawberries, fire trucks, apples, etc...

Then the kiddos complete their red page.  The color in the block letters for the word red {I make them say the letter as they color it in} and then write an item to complete the sentence.  They color that item in the space above the sentence.  i.e. if they say 'I like red strawberries' then they must draw a couple red strawberries.  Easy!

I send home the book once it's complete with a note to parents asking them to use this color book as a nightly reader and/or just to sing along with their kiddo to reinforce the colors and color words.

I'm super excited about our color weeks this year because Cara over at The First Grade Parade just uploaded a wonderful new unit all on colors.  There's lots of fun activities that can be incorporated throughout the week to reinforce the songs/colors we've learned! Don't you just love her titles?  LOVE IT!

How do you teach/reinforce colors in your room? I would love to spice it up even more! :)

**If you've already purchased my packet, please go back and re-download to get the updated version!** 

Currently...late

I guess it's better late than never, right?

I know it's only the 8th of August but this month has already been SO busy! With school right around the corner, I have been doing nothing related to school.  Not sure where my motivation has gone but going to school this week for a training was super hard.  Anybody else going through this?  

Well lets get to the point of this post shall we?!

Listening: I grew up watching 'Regis and Kathy' and then 'Regis and Kelly.'  This summer brought me back to one of my favorite morning shows!  I love some 'Kelly and Michael' and am sad that I will no longer get to leisurely lounge around in my pjs, sip on coffee, and watch 'Kelly and Michael.'

Loving:  Have you heard of Wen Cleansing Conditioner? It will change your life!  I have extremely thick and long hair and I hate having to wash my hair.  It literally takes my over 2 hours to wash, dry, and {sometimes} style my hair.  Wen has transformed my hair and now I only wash my hair twice a week! My hair does not get greasy.  It stays soft, full of body, and light weight for days! It seems pricey but when you're only washing your hair twice a week you don't go through a bottle nearly as quickly and you don't have to buy all those other products to try and make your hair soft, shiny, and full of body.  It does it for you! Okay...moving on.

Thinking: I have been into my classroom 3 times this summer and even though I would like to have it all set up and ready to go...I just don't wanna!

Wanting: I have thoroughly enjoyed my summer this year.  I have done nothing and didn't really go anywhere but it has been so relaxing!  There's also the fact that it rained for 45 days straight here in FL and now that the sun is finally shining on a more daily basis, we have to go back to work.  I am having major beach and pool withdraws!

Needing: pretty self explanatory 

B2S Must Haves: 1. Crayola EXPO Markers!  These babies are amazing.  The write so perfectly and have a great soft grip.  I buy these for me alone.  

2. Sticky notes are an obsession.  I use them for everything.  We use them during reader's workshop, filling in schema charts, and so much more. 

3. Who doesn't love getting a new 'back to school outfit?' Just like when I was growing up, I always go B2S shopping to buy a new outfit, or two or three! 

I guess it's time to go start my day! 

Have a great one!

It's a Blog Hop!

Where has the summer gone?  I'm still in denial that this is my LAST Monday of summer break.  It just can't be!!  I know some of you are already in the back of swing of things but I am just not.

Maybe this little blog hop will get me started! :)  I'm joining some fellow Floridians in a blog hop.  Each blogger is showcasing one of their products and giving one away FREE!  

I'm the 

Today I'm going to feature my favorite product from my TPT store right now.  I'm still in the process of getting all my bags together {I mentioned this is my LAST Monday of vacation right?} so I will post pictures of that in the upcoming days. My 'It's in the Bag' Take-home activities pack is perfect for getting parents involved in helping their children learn in a fun way.  

Last year, I gave my kinders homework once a week AND I sent home some of the take-home bags.  I found that more of my students completed the take-home bag activities than the homework/worksheet.  

I have 19 bags in the pack and am still in the process of adding more.  After revamping my old bag activities, I am so excited to put them all into use this year!  Click any of the pictures to take you to my view the product in more depth!

I am giving one of my take-home bags away as a freebie to you.  It is by far my kiddos favorite bag every single year.

Don't stop now, after snagging your freebie, come back and continue your hop.  There are lots of goodies to be had!


To start at the beginning of the hop click below: