From the hands of babes

Can I go with her????

I think today is Wednesday...

but to be completely honest, I am not sure half of the time! I hate 4 day weeks.

I know, I know. I should love them!

But when we have 4 day weeks, I get so confused as to what day it is. And to top it off, my watch battery died, so really, I am about at lost as one can get. 

Mississippi is not completely ready for Spring (apparently) because today the weather was rainy and 50 degrees after a glorious 75 and sunny yesterday. Needless to say, no recess. Oh, and the counselor was at a meeting today at County Office, and my class had counseling, so no specials class either.

Have I mentioned that I just returned from maternity leave...YESTERDAY.

So, to help pass the time (of which I was completely oblivious to) we wrote letters to my maternity sub thanking her for working with my class while I was gone. 

Were they perfect? Of course not. But I am sure she will love them!

And.....

Our writing standard this week was composing a friendly letter. BAM. Finished. Done. Thanks.

Bring on Thursday!!

My First Day Back, April Currently, and a Freebie :)

So, after 10 glorious weeks with my sweet Lila Kate, I ditched my lounge clothes, put on some make-up and name badge, and returned to my 21 kinders. My first thoughts when I walked in my room - "What's that smell?" then "Where is my coffee?", and lastly, "Why am I already sweating??"

Welcome to my world. 

The smell - the jellybeans I had forgotten I had stuffed in my bag last night.

My coffee - in my hand :)

Sweating - because apparently it's my body's new thing since becoming a mother. 

I will say, my day was not bad at all!! I was sorta preparing myself this past weekend for some craziness, but my kids were super sweet and did all of their work without complaint. And I must say that my sub had done a great job with them, because they were reading beautifully for the 142nd day of school!

This week we are working on /u/ - medial. So I whipped up this little activity as a can do for my early finishers at one of my centers. Please take if you want/need it!

Read and Draw - medial /u/

And.. here is my April Currently. 

Visit Oh Boy! 4th Grade to link up!

I'm Linking Up!!

 

 

This week's Linky is the noun game - favorite person, place, thing, and animal!

 

 

1. PERSON - Can I have a tie? These are my 2 favorite people!!

 

 

 

Will and I married in June of 2009 and little Miss Lila Kate was born 9 weeks ago! This was taken on Valentine's day (notice her hearts!!)

 

2. PLACE - Charleston, S.C.

 

 

Will and I visited Charleston while we were in college. A little Spring Break trip. Absolutely beautiful and I don't even know how to begin describing the shrimp and grits! Love the lo' country!! This picture was taken on Rainbow Row. Each house is a different color, because back during the war, drunk soldiers could find their quarters by looking for a particular colored house. True story. I learned that on the buggy tour :)

 

3. THING - Here comes my nerdiness :)

 

 

Yes, yes, my SMARTboard is pretty much the most amazing thing I have acquired while teaching! Kindergarten was the last grade to receive them, but Santa visited right before Christmas break with these gifts!! Also, the coffee cup in my hand runs a close second. Not the cup itself, but the coffee that's inside it!! :)

 

4. ANIMAL - Charles Brown Everitt, aka Charlie

 

 

Charlie entered the family in October of 2010. He has been one of the biggest blessings in our lives, besides LK of course. He was our first child. I always tell people that I have a 4-legged child and a 2-legged child. Charlie has been around for everything. He has taken road trips to KY with us. He was the only person home with me when I went into labor! He is the best big brother to Lila Kate!

 

Oh and have you seen this commercial??

 

 

I swear I tear up every time it comes on!! That is CHARLIE! Well not really, but it is a chocolate lab like Charlie!

 

 

 



Reading Street - CCSS

So I am not sure how many of you use the Scott Foresman Reading Street reading program, but my school piloted the program last year and loved it so our district let each elementary principal decide if they wanted their school to use it, and all schools but 1 began the Reading Street journey this year. I have to admit that I LOVE IT!!!! I know some teachers that cringe at the thought of a basal, but I am so thankful for a program that is spelled out for me and so easy to follow. PLUS - I know that I am covering each and every CCSS ELA standard.

I have created a download for all of the high frequency words for kindergarten. I am working on 1st and 2nd grade now.

Check them out at my TpT Store and be looking for the other 2 grades within the next few days!

Any thoughts on Reading Street??

Crafty Saturday

So I have been thinking for a few weeks that once I go back to school, I am going to need something to keep my cellphone in since Lila Kate will be at the sitter's house and I, of course, will be checking it constantly the first few days (weeks?!) to see if something is wrong. After many debates (with myself, because Charlie just licked my chin when I asked his advice) I decided that I wanted an apron. Not a full fledged cooking apron, but a waitress one that just ties around your waist. And finding one was easy. I spent a whopping $1.99 (actually I got 20% off with a coupon) on a tan one at the Hobby Lobby! Gotta love that store! A little decoration on the 2 pockets, and wah la - a perfect teacher's apron! One side will hold the handy dandy iPhone and the other will hold my PBIS tickets for good behavior along with whatever else I feel the need to carry around all day.

Finally...a FREEBIE :)

I've been reading blogs for a few years now, and have asked myself continually - "How do they make all these cute printables?? Are they all graphic designers, too??"

Well, during one of LK's naps a few nights ago, I stumbled upon a tutorial video on using PowerPoint to make printables!! Thanks to Ladybug's Teacher Files for helping me start my journey to becoming a printable genius!!

So, after watching her video three, yes THREE, times, I decided to make a math page on PowerPoint to email to my maternity sub and other Kindergarten team members to work on before Easter break. 

Feel free to grab it. I think it would be great for morning work or an independent center. Just leave me a comment if you download it. Just for the moral booster of knowing someone else appreciates the hard work!

Bunny Addition and Subtraction through 20

Motivation!!

Here I sit on a Thursday night. Most of my teacher friends are on Spring Break trips with their families. I, however, have been on "break" since January 17 :)

Meet Lila Kate!! This sweet thing has kept me well occupied since she arrived January 17. A snow day. Yes, my child would be the one to arrive on a day that we just so happened to not be in school LOL. Needless to say, teaching has been the LAST thing on my mind, but in the past week I have come to the realization that I return to my classroom in just a few short weeks and needed some motivation. Sooo, I pulled up my blog that I have severely been neglecting! And, as I guessed it would, I have been inspired once more to bring out the creative, awesome teacher that I know is somewhere under all the love and adoration for LK that has been filling up my body!

So, thanks to all the blog authors that I follow. You all have given me the motivation I need!!