I linking up a little late .... ok two weeks late but better late than never right?!?!  I've been super sick the last few weeks and I'm finally getting busy on my summer to-do list.  My favorite part about summer is getting to really read again.  I have so many books on my to-read list and summer is the perfect time to finally read some of them.

One of the first professional development books that I'm reading this summer is Debbie Miller's "Teaching with Intention".  I'm very excited to link up with the one and only Greg from The Kindergarten Smorgasboard for his book study.  

Here are my reflections on Chapter 1...

Chapter 1 talks about the ideal classroom.  I LOVE the third grade classroom that Debbie Miller talks about in chapter 1.  The classroom was child centered and one where the students were taking charge of their own learning.  It is definitely a classroom that I would hate to leave and one that I would love for my sons to be in one day...or one just like it!

My number one goal each year is to create a classroom environment that will make my students feel safe to take risks and know that they have choices in their learning.  I want people to feel that the moment that they walk into my classroom.

In my ideal classroom, the students are working independently and are engaged in conversations about their learning.  I LOVE working in small groups and while my students are working independently, I'm working with others in a small group.  I also love walking around the classroom and participating in their conversations.  I love asking questions and being there to push them in their thinking.

Anchor Charts

I LOVE anchor charts....the problem is where to put all of them without making my room look super cluttered.  I created this super easy anchor chart storage by just using sentence strips and two clothespins.  I have taught my students that they can easily flip up the anchor charts to see the one that they need.

I LOVE the super cute anchor charts, but I've learned that simple ones get the job done too!  I create my anchor charts WITH my students and one thing that I'm working on for next year is to have student input and writing on them as well.  That definitely will help with my ideal classroom that I described above.

Independent Reading Choice

I passionately believe that the ideal classroom NEEDS to have a welcoming and engaging classroom library.  Most importantly one that offers my little readers with CHOICE.  I don't organize my books in just one way and I LOVE that.  I have books organized by level (they are in the magazine holders with the black dot labels), chapter books (they are in the bins to the left), books organized by genre (they are in the bins to right), and books we are currently reading (they are in the library shelf), and of course big books (they are on the floor in the big blue tub).

It might seem like the books are organized in too many different ways, but it works friends.  It gives my students CHOICE and when we are learning about the different genres it helps a lot.  It breaks my heart when my students come in from first grade and they can't tell me the title of their favorite book.  I work all year to change that and so far each year they always leave with at least one favorite book that they can tell me by heart.

I also give my students choice in book clubs.  They vote on the books that we read and they have conversations about each of the books.  This year their favorites were Nate the Great and Mercy Watson.  I mean a pig that eats toast and has her own room.  Who wouldn't LOVE that?!?!

Organization

I'm the queen of organization y'all!  I don't think I could function in a room that wasn't organized.  I mean I do have piles of stuff, what teacher doesn't, but my room is super organized other then my few piles.

That's super easy...letting go!  I love how Greg described how he is a "guide on the side".  I do that about 50% of the time but I need to learn to let go a little more and let my students take charge of their learning more.  I definitely need some tips and tricks on that one.  I hate to say it but I need control.  I just need to let go more!

Also, displaying student work.  I do great at the beginning of the year and then I notice it's December and my students' work from September is still hanging up in the hall.  Am I alone in this?

Thanks for reading about my reflections of chapter 1.

Make sure you head over to the chapter 1 hosts' blogs to link up with your reflections of chapter 1.

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Stephanie

Ok, so I'm a little late but here is a tour of my classroom.  Better late than never....right?!?!

This year I decided to continue with the bright chevron and polka dot patterns, but I added a lot of black elements for a more simple and clean look.  I still have a few pieces that I'm working on....my husband is painting my storage tubs and I'll share some pictures as soon as he finishes :).

First up is my small group table/desk.  I ditched my desk about five years ago, and I haven't gone back!  I love having all of the extra space in my room and the cute little organizational bins that I use instead of desk drawers.

I got these awesome black stools at Jo-ann Fabrics and my kiddos LOVE them!  My goal is to recover my teacher chair, but it hasn't happened yet.  You can also see the bulletin board that I painted.  I used Behr premium paint from the Home Depot and the name of it is Beluga.

Here is a closer look at my organizational drawers.  The labels are editable and they are from Learning in Wonderland and you can find them HERE.

Another one of my favorite parts of my room, is my new focus wall.  I love that my students use it as a reference each day.

The bunting banner is my favorite and I got it from the party aisle at Target.  I got the gum ball machine and strawer dispenser from Amazon.  They dispense erasers and pencils.  My students were not handling the eraser dispenser very well, so the sign says "no erasers today."  Hopefully, they will earn them back soon.  The pencil dispenser label and eraser subway art are from the very talented Hope King.  The turquoise frame is from Michaels.  Also, you can see my black pocket chart for workstations in the corner.  I had a blue pocket chart that I used RIT dye to make it black.

These are my students' math tubs.  Inside the tubs are base-ten blocks, unifix cubes, and some dice.  Later I add a few more things, but for now that is all that is inside.  I got the green tubs at Dollar Tree.

Here is a quick look at my writing table and word wall.  I'm in love with the chalkboard alphabet that is above the bulletin board.  I found the chalkboard writing decal at Michael's.  It came with two handwriting lines, but I cut it in half and it was long enough to fit the whole alphabet.  The word wall headers are also from Hope King.  You can find them HERE.

Here is my students' favorite part of the classroom...the class library.

I only made a few changes this year, I tried to open up the space a little more by taking away some of the shelving.  I also FINALLY found a big book tub.  I was in love with the one that Reagan Tunstall has but I never could find one.  One day, my husband suggested looking at a Supply Store and I found one!  I got this one at Tractor Supply and my hubby spray painted it for me.

I also added a "please read" section to the library.  These are books that I will use during our class read aloud time and that I want the kids to read before hand.  They can read them independently or with a buddy.  It gives them more background knowledge before the lesson.

Last but not least, I wanted to share my table groups.  I changed two main things this year.  Last year, I had huge supply tubs on the tables and they always got in the way.  I found these small pencil trays at Jo-Ann Fabrics and they matched my colors perfectly.  They work great and they can easily be moved out of the way during group work.

I also wrote numbers on the desk this year with a sharpie marker.  Since I teach in a Dual Language classroom, my kids are constantly moving desks and it's easier than writing their names and moving the desk around.  It is perfect for our class!

I hope you enjoyed looking into my classroom this year.  Please visit Just a Primary Girl's linky party to see other wonderful classrooms.

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Stephanie

Welcome teaching friends!  I'm beyond excited to start off this weekly blogging party.  My family and I are moving this week and I wanted to leave you guys with some exciting tips and a few freebies from a few of my blogging friends.  They are going to share their experiences with moving and a few organizational tips to help after your classroom move.  They have some AWESOME tips and freebies planned for you guys.

Here is what this week will look like ....

Day 1 (July 1st) - Tips on how to organize your new class library from ME :)
Day 2 (July 2nd) - Five Tips to Make Moving Easy from Mrs. Dailey's Classroom
Day 3 (July 3rd) - Before and After Moving Tips from Teachers Are Terrific
Day 4 (July 4th) - Organizing Math Centers and Manipulatives from Anchored in Learning
Day 5 (July 5th) - DOs and DON'Ts of Moving from My KinderGarden
Day 6 (July 6th) - Storage and Organizing Tips from Planet Happy Smiles
Day 7 (July 7th) - Link Up with your favorite Organizational Tip or Pin

So, first up is my post about organizing your new classroom library.  I hope you enjoy it!

I've moved to four different classrooms, and last year I moved from First Grade to Second Grade.  I moved from being in a downstairs room to being in an upstairs room.  It was a difficult move!  Thank goodness my school has an elevator!  My only request for this school year was to not move again!  I'm very blessed to be staying in Second and I will have the same amazing partner!

When I moved into my new classroom, I was a little overwhelmed because there were a lot of classroom books!  In all my years of teaching, I have had to deal with hardly any books so it was a good surprise.  I just had to figure out how to organize them.  A lot of the classroom books were already leveled, so I decided to have a section of leveled books for station time.

I found these book boxes in the Target Dollar Spot and they are pretty sturdy.  They lasted all year and are still in great shape!  I will definitely be using them again.  I printed out some labels and glued them on using Modge Podge.

Then, I put Modge Podge over the top to seal them down and I had a box to put all of the level 18 books.  They dry on clear and the students aren't able to peel them off.  Perfect! When the kids were picking a book during stations, they clipped their clothespin to the outside of the box.  It helped them put their book back in the correct box.  I'm sad because I don't have a picture of their clips, but I will definitely remember to take one next year.

Here are the labels that I used for my book boxes.  I hope you like them and can use them in your classroom.

Thanks for joining me for Day 1 and I hope to see you back tomorrow for Day 2!

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Stephanie

I've been in the process of moving rooms over the last week and it's caused me to do a lot of rethinking in a lot of areas.  I'm moving to Second Grade and joining the Dual Language program at my school.  I have been teaching self-contained First Grade for four years now and I felt like it was time for a change.  I think this is the most excited I've been to start the new school year.  Don't get me wrong I'm more excited to spend the summer with my two little boys but I'm also looking forward to a fresh new start in Second :).

One of the first changes I looked into was labeling.  I'm always the teacher with the cute name labels and tubs but it takes me too many hours each August y'all :(.  Plus with twice the number of kids (44...two classes in the DL program), I just don't have the time.  So I decided to label my math tubs with numbers instead of names this year.  That way each group of kids can share tubs and I don't have to find spaces for 44 math tubs :).  Right now my room is mostly polka dot with stick kids and I'm in LOVE with Ashley Hughes' kid bundle and I picked it up during her Deal of the Day...check it out if you haven't yet.

So I came up with this set of number labels.  I made two different sets one is a color pattern and then one is a solid color every 6 numbers.  I also included blank labels for you to write in student's names if you are still interested in labeling with names :).

I also added two features that I think are pretty neat.  I added a student number chart in 6 different colors for you to post your student's number and I also included a black and white version for you to print on your favorite color of cardstock.

I also made the same version in a separate chalkboard version.  I love it so much I might have to rethink my polka dot decor and change to a chalkboard decor :).

So I am super excited to host my first giveaway and it ends tomorrow, Monday, at 8pm central standard time.  Here is how you can earn three entries and I'm giving away three copies (your choice of polka dot or chalkboard).

a Rafflecopter giveaway I'll be announcing the winners on Monday night.  Good luck :). 

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Stephanie