Monday, June 8, 2015

Monday Made It

One of the best things about summer is Monday Made It, a weekly linky party hosted by 4th Grade Frolics!  Isn't it funny how we all look forward to summer but then we can't wait to get busy making things for next year?
 
My first "Made It" project was updating my Teacher Binder.  You can see the binder I made last summer if you look HERE.  This binder kept me together all year.  I think I held up better than my binder did because it was showing some serious wear & tear.  I loved having everything in one central place so it was time to make a new binder for a new school year!  I cleaned out the old one, printed off my calendars, punched holes in my favorite lesson plan book, and got everything organized!
 
A new binder and a fresh, new cover... 

 
My "To Do" list right in the front...
 
Monthly calendar pages... 

Scope & Sequence
(updating these monthly planning pages is one of the things on my "To Do" list!)
Now that the binder is ready, I can get on with my many other school projects!
 
 
On the count of three...1...2...3... please turn your head to the right so you can see the herb markers I made for my garden! Why this picture won't rotate is a mystery!  Anyway, the little metal chalkboard markers are from Michaels craft store.  I used regular old chalk to write the names of my plants but then it washed away when it rained.  Thought I could just apply some Mod Podge over the chalk to seal it in but when I brushed it on, the letters all wiped away!  I guess I need a spray sealer to do the trick or some of those fancy markers that look like chalk.
 
 
My last "Made It" is a yummy one!   I baked nine dozen cookies for the Outreach summer campers to enjoy this week!
 
 Hope you have a great week!
 
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Friday, June 5, 2015

Five for Friday

Even though it's summer, I'm glad it's Friday!  I always look forward to seeing everyone's Five for Friday, the fun linky party hosted by Doodlebugs Teaching!
 
I spent last weekend in New Orleans for my 50th birthday.  We had a wonderful time  discovering so many interesting restaurants and unique foods in the Big Easy. We even took a food tour where we were able to sample all of the regional favorites.  Take a look at our guide holding the huge French bread loaves used for the Po-Boys!  

Coincidentally, it was the annual Oyster festival...Oh my! And our little hotel was very thoughtful helping me celebrate my birthday! A great weekend!


One good thing about summer is having time to blog a little more.  I posted pictures of my Craft Room/office workspace and you can read more about it HERE.   I've got another post in the works to show you my resource room.
 
I've been working on my teacher workshops this week.  I'm headed to Tampa in July for the One Goal Conference to present my Books You Can Count On workshop so I'm putting the finishing touches on it as well as finalizing my travel plans.  Plus, I just submitted two proposals for preschool conferences next winter.
 
It hardly feels like summer here in Georgia...tons of rain and lots of cloudy days.  But here's the beauty I saw from my front door the other day when the rain ended... 
 
I looked for a cute cartoon to wish you a relaxing weekend. Couldn't find the right one so I settled on a picture of this furry creature plopped in the middle of my foyer.  It's the Big Kitty!
 
 
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Thursday, June 4, 2015

Thrifty Thursday

Everyone's favorite kindergarten guy, Mr. Greg, is hosting Thrifty Thursday at  The Kindergarten Smorgasboard.  Mr. Greg shared what he did HERE with some finds from the Dollar Store.
 
 
As much as I love the Dollar Store, I love a good teacher yard sale even more!  A few Saturdays ago, I discovered a yard sale where a sweet, young teacher was getting married, moving to Ohio, and selling all her stuff! Almost everything she had practically was from Lakeshore and her prices were great.  Actually, her prices were incredible!  Here's what I got...
 
I paid around $50 for everything you see!
 
Math resources including Fruit Counters, Shape Sort, fun Number Mats, and a set of Number Playdoh Stampers ...
 
Word family, writing, and literacy resources...
 
 
 
 
 Brand new package of Science bottles...
 

 Sturdy organizers for books...
 Thrifty never looked so good!  I've bought enough at Lakeshore to know I got a great deal
Are you a thrifty teacher? Do you shop at teacher yard sales? 
 
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Wednesday, June 3, 2015

My Craft Room & Office

I'm pleased to join Lucky Little Learners and Schroeder Shenanigans in 2nd for their linky party where teachers are talking about their home office spaces!  It's so much fun to take a peek into everyone's work area! 

I'm lucky to have two spaces where I can work on school stuff.  First, I'll take you on a tour of my Craft Room, located in our basement which was already finished when we moved in our house in the fall of 2008.  This windowless room had four white walls, ceramic tile floors, and a ceiling mounted light fixture. Here's the view from the doorway now...
 
We purchased  the cabinets unfinished from Lowe's and my husband installed them.  I painted the cabinets ivory, sanded the edges a bit, and lightly applied an antiquing glaze on top.  The countertop is just a standard laminate...extremely durable and easy to wipe clean.
 
When we were designing the space, we contemplated putting in a desk-height section for me to sit at but decided the counter-height would be best.  I'm so glad it's one long countertop to work on versus having two different levels.  The counter-height is perfect!  I usually stand up while I'm doing  most projects but I also have a tall chair from Ballard's Outlet that's quite comfortable if I want to sit.
 
 
At the end of the counter near the door I have my binding machine (a $5 yard sale treasure!), Cricut, personal laminator, and paper cutter. This area gets lots & lots of use!
 
The lower corner cabinet door turns inward to reveal a Lazy Susan!  It certainly helps to maximize storage for supplies I don't use as frequently. 
 
One of my upper cabinets holds an assortment of cardstock.

 
Another set of upper cabinets house containers of scrapbooking supplies and various embellishments. I'm amazed how versatile so many of my papercrafting supplies have been when I'm working on things for school.

The tall pantry style cabinet at the far right of the workspace has been a great spot for hiding wrapping paper, gift bags, tissue paper, and boxes.
 
Above the workspace is where I keep acrylic paints, my hot glue gun, and other craft supplies.
 
This cabinet holds my scrapbooking magazines, Cricut supplies, and boxes of binding coils.
 
On the countertop, I keep my Washi/crafting tape, Scrabble tiles, and buttons in several old French jars. The ribbon collection is organized on an antique wooden spice rack.
 
Odds & ends of ribbons are in these plastic storage jars from Hobby Lobby.  I super-glued them to wooden candle sticks just like I saw on Pinterest.
 
A few personal touches around the room offer inspiration as I work.  A favorite wedding photo is displayed on the countertop.
 
My bulletin board has a meaningful assortment of trinkets.
 
And a wall of framed artwork created by my son when he was in kindergarten and elementary gives the Craft Room a burst of color.
 
I work in the Craft Room when I'm cutting and laminating TPT products, assembling center activities, making anchor charts, and so on.  Anytime I know I might make a mess, I work in there.  And it's the perfect workspace anytime I need to leave things out to finish another day.
 
On our main living level, I have a small office where I do computer projects, lesson planning, and blogging. 
 
My desk is a huge, sturdy, old fashioned piece of office furniture.  It was purchased over 15 years ago from a church yard sale for $30.
 
The handcrafted entertainment center was repurposed by adding shelves and now holds my teacher resource books and files. I love how much I can store behind these doors.
 
 
I hope you enjoyed the tour of my home workspaces!
Thanks for visiting and be sure to look at more teacher offices by clicking here !  
 

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