0 MARCH GOOD MORNING WORK (READING) + FREEBIE

Hey friends!  Happy Friday!  I am scooting off to a doctor's appointment in the city and gotta jet soon, so I am going to wrap this one up quickly today :) I wanted to pop in and let all you alls know that I finished up my March Good Morning Work (Reading) packet. 

CLICK HERE to see more.

For those of you who aren't familiar with these ditties, let me give you the skinny.  Every month I create a collection of daily warm ups (25 pages in all) to get your kiddos started off right.  Each page is common core aligned and I am very mindful of crafting rigorous and meaningful pages that your students can do independently.  I also "chunk" my concepts.  In other words, the pack targets a specific set of skills for five days in a row before moving on to cover 3-4 different common core standards.  I have found that this helps my kiddos feel much more successful and it buys you a few "extra minutes" each morning to take care of biz-nas!

This month's covers parts of speech, alphabetical order, commas, pronouns, detained sentence writing, sentence editing, antonyms, synonyms, punctuation, phonics concepts, syllables, and so much more!

I always like to offer up a "Try 'Em Before You Buy 'Em Deal" with these.  So, I have put a few pages up for FREE down below.  If you like what unfolds in your classroom, come on back and snag the whole pack.  Good Morning Work (Math) Pages are also available to try . . . HERE.  

CLICK HERE to download these "tester" pages!

I just put my two President Packs on sale.  They will be available at a discounted price through the weekend.  Click on the pics to check them out!

     

Alright friends . . . the car is packed and I have to go.  I pushed it until the very last second {again}!  Have a wonderful weekend.  I'll see you soon :)

Detail: MARCH GOOD MORNING WORK (READING) + FREEBIE

0 GIMMIE THAT HALL PASS + GOOD MORNING WORK

I feel like I have been rewarded with a Hall Pass as I am takin' a big old breather right now.  They call it Winter Break . . . and I have the whole week off. I know.  I know.  Don't hate me.  

As I take a moment to step back from the hustle and bustle that is school and reflect on my practices, I stumbled across the perfect Linky Party . . . HALL PASS.  To make things even more perfect, it's being hosted by one of my all time faves - none other than Ms. Reagan Tunstall!

P - PRODUCT

My favorite product has to be my Good Morning Work Packets.  These babies have saved my life in the morning and have helped my kiddos become great independent workers.  They are common core aligned and I work hard to create meaningful and rigorous collections each and every month.  I just finished up my March Math Packet (the reading will be available this weekend). If you are new to my Good Morning Work Packets, I have attached some free "try 'em before you buy 'em" pages below.  Try them out with your crew and if you like what you see, come on back and snag the whole pack.  

CLICK HERE to download these FREE sample pages :)

A - AREA

My favorite area in my room has to be my walls.  I heart bulletin boards with every ounce of my teacher being.  Well, it just so happens that my walls love to take staples and I am all about plastering my space with student work.  Make 'em big and make 'em bright is my motto.    

This is tame!  Usually this board is 5-6 deep.
I have a stack to hang still . . . Ms. Dolling has been slackin' :)

S - SIGNAL

My signals are pretty straight forward.  When the reading group timer sounds (a Dollar Store piece of junk), they know to clean their space, stand behind their chairs, and get ready to transition.  I also train 'em early on my "One. Two. Three. Eyes Up." It's just like it sounds and they have this down pat.  This works especially well when they are doing some sort of small group game or whole class activity and I need their attention.  Finally, if someone or a small group is gabbing, I give the "I'll wait."  The other kids freak out and do my job for me when I toss this one out.  It doesn't take long for my babes to get those chattin' kiddos to zip it.  We learned how to do this in a nice manner right up front and this signal is a gem I tell ya! 

S - SANE

My teaching bestie keeps me sane.  If you are lucky enough to have one in your life, you know exactly what I am talking about.  I have mentioned good old Court quite a few times now, but she truly is my partner in crime and the only one who helps me keep my head above water.  I don't know what I would do without this girl.

Alright, I am off to finish the last five pages of my reading version of Good Morning Work.  I should have it up tomorrow or Friday at the latest.  Thanks so much for visiting me today! Don't forget to pop on over to Tunstall's Teaching Tidbits and tell us about your Hall PASS!

Detail: GIMMIE THAT HALL PASS + GOOD MORNING WORK

0 EASTER IDEA + TREATS + APRIL READING

Merry Sunday gang!  Usually I start spinnin' my wheels by the end of the weekend, but for some reason I am full of energy and ready to take on the world today! I think sleeping in coupled with the 75 degree weather forecast has something to do with this newfound feeling. However, the upcoming school week has me all jacked up too.  Have I told you how much I love the week prior to Easter??  Well, I do!  Spring, bunnies, chicks, flowers, etcetera, etcetera . . . it's just an oh so "hoppy" time in the classroom. Hardy-har-har!!  You knew I just had to go there :)

My all time favorite thing about next week is our no-prep egg hunt.  I blogged about this last year, but it was only my third post . . . so, I'll give it to you again!  Below you will find some shots of my class hunting eggs last year.  It's the easiest hunt around (thanks Mr. Brown . . . he came up with it years ago and it has become a bit of a tradition at our school).  It has three simple steps.

1. Bring your kiddos out to a large grassy area and sit them in a line.  Have 10 or so bags of those cheap foil-covered eggs pre-loaded in an Easter basket (don't show those babes yet).
2. Tell you kiddos they get to watch you hide the eggs.  They will surely boo and whine . . . it's awesome!!!!  Then, reveal that basket full of chocolate. As they continue to sit, start runnin' around the field chuckin' handfuls of eggs into the grass.  They will FREAK OUT and think it's the coolest hunt around now!
3. Quickly outline your expectations, remind them about sharing, blow your whistle, and let 'em go!

They absolutely love this and it's so cute to watch them help each other.  Sure, you always have a few greedy babes in the bunch that you have to "remind," but overall, they are so sweet with one another.  

I'm going to switch gears on you a bit, but I am still talkin' Easter in a round about way.  We dove into pronouns last week ('bout time, Mrs. Dolling).  We will be continuing our journey with this fun concept for the next few weeks and I will be rollin' with quite a few centers from my Pronoun Power Packet (photos to come next week).  In addition, I also made an Easter Flavored Pronoun FREEBIE last year that I found hiding in my file.  Figured I might as well let you all know about my file "discovery" . . . maybe you want to snag it for groups too??!!  

   

Moving on . . . I finished my April Good Morning Work (Reading) Packet.  I promised it by next weekend, but I decided to get to gettin' on it a few days ago and I was in the zone!  As I did with the math set that I put out earlier this week, I raised the bar!  As we round this final bend into the last trimester, it seemed only right to put our little firsties to the test.  However, I was still VERY mindful of what I think my babes can and can't do {independently} at this time. Oh, and yes, they are aligned to the common core! 

As always I am offering up the "Try 'Em Before You Buy 'Em Deal."  Click on the link below to get yo-self three free pages to try with your babes.  If you like what transpires in your room, come on back and treat yourself to the whole April Packet.  

CLICK HERE to try these in your classroom!

Alright . . . that's it my friends.  Hahahaha . . . that's it??!!  I wrote a big old dissertation up there.  However, I am hoping that you leave today with some goodies tucked in your pocket that you can run with sooner rather than later :) Oh yeah, and if you are not lucky enough to be on break next week, I put my low-prep Easter Activity Pack and Adjective Bunnies on sale.  Enjoy your Sunday my friends.  My flower beds are calling . . . 

Uh . . . WAIT!  One more thing.  Don't forget about the Growing Firsties contest!!  Boy, am I chatty today, or what??!!  However, I just had to back up and share before I truly E-X-I-T for good.  This ditty ends tonight and there are lots of treats up for grabs! 

Okay . . . I'm seriously leaving now :)

Detail: EASTER IDEA + TREATS + APRIL READING

0 MAY GOOD MORNING WORK + FREEBIE

May Good Morning Work {Math} was actually finished up a few days ago, but I am just now gettin' around to lettin' y'all know.  Things are coming to a close this week and I am all prepped for tomorrow, so now seemed like the perfect time to toss this post out there.  I know you all are busy, so I will keep this short and sweet.  Oh, and the plus one will be home in 10 with Chinese food. The gluten-free bread molded and the tomatoes are overly squishy, so the BLTs I had planned are iz-out! #itscalledagrocerystore

Alright, so this pack is stuffed with so many common core standards it ain't funny.  Seriously, folks!  My goal was to create a collection to test your babes' knowledge of most of the standards they are expected to know when they make the big exit to second.  Check out this crazy list . . . 

• Addition (sums to 20)
• 3-Digit Addition
• Double-Digit Addition
• Subtraction (differences to 20)
• Fact Families
• Unknown Number
• Equal Equations
• Writing Word Problems
• Skip Counting (2s + 5s + 10s)
• Place Value
• Comparing/Ordering Numbers
• Expanded Notation
• Ten More/Ten Less/One More/One Less
• Odd or Even
• Tallying
• Measurement (length + weight + volume)
• Date Writing
• Telling Time (hour + half hour)
• Shapes
• Solid Figures
• Graphing

For those of you who aren't familiar with my GMW, I "chunk" my concepts.  In other words, the pack targets a specific set of skills for five days in a row before moving on to cover 4-5 different common core standards.  I have found that this helps kids feel much more successful and it keeps questions to a minimum. This, in turn, frees up extra time for you in the AM to take care of all the "morning madness."  

Sound like something you may be interested in trying out with your kiddlets? Well, as always, I am offering up my "try 'em before you buy 'em" deal.  Three "tester" pages are up for grabs down below.  If you like what you see unfold in your class, come on back and treat yourself to the whole pack.  

CLICK HERE to get these free pages!

I also have bundled all of my Good Morning Work Math Packets to help save you some precious diz-ough!  If you just found these or have only purchased a handful of them, it is a smokin' deal!

Alright folks, my Mu Shu is getting cold and I gotta jet.  If you wanna take a closer look at my Good Morning Work, click here.  I'll be back tomorrow with a look-see at my week.  On Sunday I will be ready to run with a preview of my May GMW Reading Set!  Thanks so much for taking the time to visit!

Detail: MAY GOOD MORNING WORK + FREEBIE

0 GOOD MORNING WORK {READING} + MOMMIES + FREE STUFF

The pressure was on and I was sweatin' like a mad woman yesterday afternoon, but I managed to get 'er done!   BOOM!  May I present to you . . . May Good Morning Work {Reading}.  

I went out on a limb with this pack . . . switched things a bit and upped the ante on our babes.  It's that time of year where we teachers get our sweeties ready for that all-mighty jump to second. Here's a little look-see at the common core standards this collection targets . . .

• Vowel Teams (ai, ay, ee, ea, oa, ow, oo, oy, oi)
• Punctuation
• Commas in a Series
• Root Words
• Parts of Speech
• Shades of Meaning (Verbs)
• Proper Nouns
• Pronouns
• Antonyms
• Endings/Past Tense (-ed)
• Fact + Opinion
• ABC Order
• Contractions
• Compound Words
• Syllables
• Detailed Sentence Writing
• Sentence Editing 

In addition to morning work pages, these can be used for homework or during any skills review block.  As always, I am offering my "try 'em before you buy 'em" deal.  There are three "tester" pages up for grabs down below.  Snatch those babies up and try them with your kiddlets.  If you like what you see unfold in your class, come on back and treat yourself to the whole pack - they're only 3 bucks :) 

CLICK HERE for these "tester" pages!

My May Good Morning Work {Math} Pack has been out for a few days and I have put together a bundle for both to save you some serious moolah.  If you pick it up this year, you will save even more ciz-ash!!!

     

Wait . . . don't leave quite yet.  I wanted to have a "new" something for Mother's Day, but I just didn't get there this weekend.  Boo!  However, I did put together a little mommy freebie last year that's still available. 

Early May is always nuts for us . . . especially right around Mother's Day.  It's right before Open House, trimester three assessments kick off, and our BIG Rodeo Day falls that Friday before Mom's Day.  It's a killer.  So, last year I came up with a no-brainer quickie to slip in the mix.  It's a low-prep photo card that requires one whole class lesson or center rotation.  The only work on your part is a little cutting and copying.  We also paint pre-made garden stakes (thank you Michael's), but I digress . . .  

One of these days I vow to rock Mommy Day, but I am afraid that this just ain't the year for me :(  However, if y'all do have the time, I have seen some AMAZING new crafts from some top notch bloggers show up this year.  Oh, and Ron Brown has the SWEETEST Mother's Day tune.  If you are hosting a Mommy Day event, there is still time to learn this darlin' little ditty.  

Alright, I don't think I will be able worm out of yard work two days in a row, so I am going to go join the hubby outside.  Thanks for visiting today and have a wonderful Sunday wherever you may be!  I'll be back soon to tell you all about my Summer Vacay Pack and {fingers crossed} my latest creation.  

Detail: GOOD MORNING WORK {READING} + MOMMIES + FREE STUFF