iPad Intro

Well, our school year is up and running! It's been a crazy couple of days, but I am anxious to get my students ready to use the iPads. So, we started with iPad rules. I found this adorable set for FREE on TpT! You can find them here. I printed and laminated them and displayed them in my classroom. Now they are there prominently displayed, so I can refer to them as needed.

After going over all of the rules, we took out our iPads and practiced carrying them. We talked about how they should be used at our desks (never too close to the edge) and around the classroom (never left on the floor or unattended). The students were disappointed that we didn't get to actually use them, but I promised them that we will later this week :)

First Day of School 2015

Today was our first day of school, and just like every year it was exhausting! We did not have any "specials" (PE, Music, Art) today, so that makes for a long day for both the students and me :) We were able to get a lot done though which is always a good thing! Best part of my day though was coming home to this.

My oldest daughter put this together for me, and it has all of my favorite things in it. Of course, she made sure to throw in things that match my classroom too! Love that kid!

Classroom Reveal

This is it! I've been frantically preparing for my first graders. It didn't feel like I even had a summer this year. It was very busy with our daughters' AAU Volleyball Nationals in Florida and our oldest daughter's high school graduation and party.

Normally, I like to start coming back into my classroom mid-July to start setting up and planning at a nice easy pace. Unfortunately, this summer, our building was undergoing MANY projects. The classrooms and hallways were all painted, and all of our carpeting was removed and replaced with tile. We also had some exterior drainage and landscaping work done. Oh, and did I mention that I had to move classrooms this year? So, not only did I have to pack (and unpack) everything, I had to figure out how to make it all work in a new space! I had about two weeks to get it all done.

Today, was the teachers' first day back, and tonight is our Supply Drop Off. Students get to come see their classroom, meet their teacher, and drop off their supplies. My room is looking pretty good considering the quick turn around. The above picture is looking in from my door. I apologize for the darkness of the picture. I forgot to turn all of the lights on! Oops! My classroom is in the basement, so there's not much natural light anyway. I have 27 students this year which is the most I've had in a long time! I have their desks arranged in five groups of five or six students.

One of the adjustments I had to make was going from having lockers to having hooks. I prefer lockers, because it keeps things looking tidy and it hides all of the clutter. So, I needed a place for students to keep their gym shoes. I have numbered the baskets, and the students have been assigned a basket. The clipboard on top of the shelf lets them know which one they've been assigned to. There's room for two students per basket. I got the baskets from The Dollar Tree. I had to go to a couple different stores to find enough red ones, because they had to match my theme, of course!

I am lucky in that I have A LOT of cabinet space in this room! But, I wasn't happy with the entire back of my room filled with boring cabinet doors, so I made the doors into my word wall. I'm really happy with how it came out! Ribbon is from Hobby Lobby.

This is my calendar, Reading Focus Wall, and carpet area. The cabinet that the whiteboard is sitting on has my iPads in it!! (Post on that coming soon!)

My spelling words, trick words, and amazing words wall.

My job board. I prefer to have only a few classroom jobs with two students per job.

Yep! More cabinets! I told you I was lucky! The posters on the front are my I Can statements for all of the subject areas.

The storage drawers on the counter hold my math manipulatives and my listening center books/cds are hanging on the rack next to them.

Well, that's it for the tour of my room! I'll save my desk area for another time (once I've cleaned it up a little!)

Getting Started

I'm so anxious to get started with my classroom blog! Please ignore the blah design for now. I have just hired someone to design my blog to match the red, black, and white theme of my classroom! Unfortunately, she's so good, that she's booked until the beginning of November :( I can't wait to start working on the design concepts, and it is really going to bother me that my blog won't look "pretty" for a couple of months. Stay tuned for my classroom reveal. It's finally starting to come together...