Back to School Giveaway!

Yes!  You read that right!  Back to School, y'all!  It's right around the corner for me.  We go back with kids on August 24th.  When do y'all start?

I'm gettin' all ready for Meet the Teacher Night!  It's such a fun/hectic evening...that is, until I made an fun/organized way to do it!

I created a system to get all of the vital information I need, while still being able to interact with parents and create a memorable evening for the families.

There are seven stations that include things like contact information, transportation, and fun things like a photo booth and a 'Make a Wish' station for the parents to tell me what they hope for their children this year.

 Would you like an awesome Meet the Teacher Night product to help make your night a success?  Read this post to find out how!

To help get us ready for this school year, TPT has announced it's Annual Back to School Sale!  It will be from August 3rd to August 4th!  Visit your favorite stores and start filling up your Wish Lists now! (after reading this post, of course! ;)

Every year, I try to find a way to have a fun Meet the Teacher Night where I can collect ALL of the important information from parents I need, and still make sure I greet everyone and give them equal time to chat with me about their kids.  So, last year, I came up with an idea.  I got to thinking, how do I make sure I see my kids everyday during instruction?  Centers!

Meet the Teacher Night Editable Stations

Why not transfer that into my Meet the Teacher Night?  I decided that I could make a little poem that could guide my parents and their children through a few centers that would take them through all of the things I need to make sure and get them to do before they leave!

(This year, I made an editable version in case you'd like to do this system, but have different needs than what I have listed in my centers).  

Unfortunately, last year, I wasn't a blogger, nor a seller on TeachersPayTeachers, so I didn't take many pictures of how fun and cute it was!  (Bummer!!)  BUT - I can at least show you what I used, and I promise to take pictures next year!

Here is a photo a buyer sent me!

After parents sign in (on a sheet also included), they pick up a poem.  This is their guide through each center.

Meet the Teacher Night Poem

Also included, is every form/item you will need if you use the poem as I wrote it.  

Email cards and Make a Wish Cards

These forms are editable versions if you'd like to change them up a bit.

Information Sheets - No Prep or Editable

I wanted the locations of the stations to be obvious to the parents and kids, so I printed out these cute tags and hung them around the room.  (You can hang them from the ceiling, tape to the wall, or put on a dowel rod like shown in the picture at the top of the post).

Cute station signs to hang in designated areas.

The station signs are SUPER cute and add lots of color if you glue them to the center of paper fans like these!  You can get these in any color at Party City for a whopping $2.00! Click the picture to be taken there!

Fans from Party City - Glue station signs to the middle of them and hang!

Then, at each station, is a table topper like these that tell the parents exactly what to do!  I have included a ready to print version as well as editable versions.  I have 7 stations in total, but you could certainly do more or less!

Table Toppers - fold in half hamburger style to sit on tables/desks

One of my stations is a photo-prop area where the parents get with their kids and dress up in props and take a funny picture using their device.  (Of course, if you have an awesome friend, husband, wife or kid that would be your photographer, you could have someone man that station and take pictures for you).  Then, they email them to you and you can do whatever you like with the pictures! (Think end of year slide-show, pictures for the kids' lockers, Mother's Day gifts, etc.)

As many of you do, I have already hit up the local Dollar Tree and Target Dollar Spot searching for fun photo booth props.  BUT - I included a LOT of printable ones in the packet, so you don't NEED to buy any at all!  Here's my loot, though!

I have two other versions of this product as well. 

Click each picture to be taken to a preview of these as well!

        

I'd love to see what you all do for Meet the Teacher Night!  Please leave comments telling me how you entertain your parents and kids while gathering all of the important information you need to obtain that night.

HOW TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY!

I'd love to give this item away for you to use on YOUR Meet the Teacher Night!
Here's how to enter!
1.  Go to my TeachersPayTeachers store and follow me by clicking the green star!
2.   Under my "Ask a Question" tab on TPT, comment with what number follower you are.
3.  Go to my Facebook page, like, share, and tag 2 friends in my GIVEAWAY post.
That's it!
I'll choose a winner on Thursday, August 6th, 2015.
All entries are due Thursday, August 6th, 2015 by 11:59 CST.
Good luck!
(Contest is now over).

Fixed My Vegas Bag!

If you read my July Currently post, you will recall my bland, yet adorable bag that I ordered from Zazzle for my upcoming trip to Vegas. I asked for your suggestions on how to cuten it up, I listened, and I fixed it this afternoon while the twins were napping!

It began with my logo and was ok, but it was just....missing something!

So, I added some coordinating quatrefoil design fabric to the handles, a ruffle around the top, and a cute flower!

I also lined the inside and added pockets for my phone, (that's a MUST) a pen, and anything else I may need access to quickly!

I took about a cajillion photos as I was working because I was going to take you through the whole thing, but come on, we are an instant gratification world.  I know you just want to see the finished product!  And I'm not a sewing blogger. :)

Well, there you have it!  I'd sure love to hear your thoughts on it!

July Currently

July!  Why, oh why, are you already here??  Well.  I guess you can stick around because July is going to be a big month for me.
Speaking of it being July, it's time for "Currently" with Farley from Oh Boy Fourth Grade!

Add caption

I am currently getting ready to go to Vegas!  I have never been to Las Vegas, and I've never been to the TPT Conference, a blogger meet-up, etc.  So far in my TPT/blogger journey, it has just been me and my computer!  I am SO excited and feel so grateful to be able to get to go and meet up with like minds!  Thank you husband for being cool with me going!

I have several people on my rock star list that I hope to meet - Annie Moffatt, Amy Lemons, Cara Carroll, Deanna Jump, Nikki from Melonheadz, and hopefully lots of 4th grade bloggers!

I have been making preparations for my trip and reading several blogs from people who have gone to the conference previously to get an idea of what I should take with me.  Everyone has had fun suggestions of helpful things to bring, so I have been ordering lots of things online.  I have been so excited over the last week because of all of my goodies coming in the mail that I have ordered to take with me!  

I ordered some business cards from Vistaprint to take with me that have my contact info as well as QR codes people can scan to be taken to my social media sites, and there's even a code for a FREEBIE!

I ordered two cute buttons from Zazzle to take with me with my logo.

I got a bag from Zazzle as well, because I read there are lots of goodies I'll be gathering over the couple of days I'm there and to be prepared with a bag!

 

And I ordered a cute Tervis tumbler with my logo on it through their Tervis "customyzer."  If you haven't gotten a Tervis yet, I am telling you to get one for next year!  I never leave home without it - I have a few and they are in constant rotation when I go to school. (BTW - I have no affiliation with Tervis, just a happy customer).

So those are my Vegas goodies!!  I am so excited! BUT - my bag is lacking something.  I don't know what it is.  What can I do to it to cuten it up, y'all?  I love the logo, but it looks bland for some reason.

Leave me a suggestion or two please!

What is missing from this bland bag, y'all?

Make Your Masterpiece! Math Spiral Review

Last year, I began creating my OWN math spiral review each week for my grade level.  I wanted something that aligned with our standards in a rigorous way, and I wanted something quick and simple that I could use daily, as well assess somehow at the end of the week.  Thus, my spiral review was born!  I worked on it ALL year last year.  We had used spiral reviews previously and they were never really what we needed.  Our campus even purchased one last year for us - I looked at it and immediately found several instances where it wasn't actually aligned to our standards.
This summer, I have gone back to the reviews I created during the year and completed the ones I managed not to save somehow, and then over-hauled it to make it as user-friendly as possible.  I made some changes to it, completed it, and have it ready for YOU!

You can use this in a few ways with your students.  I used it as morning work.  So the kids came in and worked on it independently, and then during the first few minutes of my math block, we would quickly go over it.

It can also be used as homework, as small group work, or put in a daily math center. 

For each week of the year, there are two sheets.  The first one is a Monday through Thursday practice sheet with 4 questions for each day.  The second sheet is an assessment over the skills covered throughout the week.  The questions are similar the ones asked during the week.

 As you can see, the questions asked during the week match the types of questions asked on Friday.  This will give you good data on which skills students have mastered and which skills still need more work.  It can very easily be good information for you to use to drive your small group instruction.

If you are interested in this, I have a 3 week FREEBIE of this product that you are welcome to download and try out by clicking HERE!  If you like it, please purchase the full school year by clicking HERE!

 

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TPT Seller Challenge - Makeover Madness and Dare to Dream

I joined the party a little late, but I completed my week 1 seller challenge and my week 2 seller challenge, so here they both are!

Week 1 challenge is Makeover Madness.
My makeover was an easy choice.  I made this awesome subtraction practice unit when I first began on TPT, and it hardly EVER gets looked at, let alone bought! I have looked at it over and over and thought, I should really redo that….and then I don't.  I am a checklist person, and once that item is off of my checklist, I am pumped to get started on the next thing.  So, going back to something I already completed feels like working backwards!  Anyway, here is my MAKEOVER MADNESS!
I changed the frame, background, clip art, font, and even the title!

I put it on sale 20% off today and tomorrow if you'd like to get it for your classroom!  Just click on the picture!

Week 2 challenge is called Dare to Dream.
The challenge is to blog about my dreams and goals for my TPT business.

I have twin 4 year olds, and while I obviously have 14 years left to save for their educations, college is going to be CRAZY expensive by then.  I know while I was in school, my tuition went up every. single. semester.  Seriously - we need a law to stop that madness!!

I would also like to live beyond the old paycheck-to-paycheck routine.  While my district is well paid, and I appreciate what UEA does to ensure we get fair raises, I still wouldn't survive if I missed a check for even one month!  It would be nice not to have to worry about money and be able to focus that energy on more positive things!

I would love for my TPT store to afford me to be debt free!  Before my twins were born, my husband was finishing up school and when the twins were born, he began staying home to care for them, so we have been on ONE check for the last 5 years.  Y'all.  It is ROUGH.  I LOVE that my kids didn't have to go to daycare, but the credit card companies are now my number one fans because of the amount we have had to charge and the fact that we can basically only make minimum monthly payments.  BLECH!

And last, I'd LOVE to get to retire from teaching early.  While I do LOVE teaching, I love my family and the time I get to spend with them.  I want to be able to help out my kids when they start having families and I want to see the world with my husband!

Those are my dreams!  Thanks for reading this little ol blog of mine.  I hope you have time at some point to poke around and see what else is going on in my teaching adventure!

Thank you to these four fabulous women for hosting this seller challenge!!!  It is so much fun!

One Item That Means the World to Me

Hello!  I am linking up with Miss Monica at I Heart Grade 3 for her Weekly Summer Link-Up.  This week, the topic is, "One Item That Means the World to Me."

How, oh how, can anyone narrow it down to ONE item?? I interpret this as a tangible item.  What do I choose?  My college degree? Our home? My Bible?  My Macbook, which I couldn't do any of my TPT/bloggy stuff without?

I thought and thought on it, and I decided that the one item that means the world to me is my wedding ring.  When I thought about it, my ring is a symbol of the things that I hold most dearly to my heart - God, love and family.  My ring represents my love and commitment for my husband, our marriage made strong with the help of God, my family who celebrated us as we wed, and my family that was created because of our love.

This was fun!  I can't wait to see what the topic is for next week! Thank you Miss Monica!