Helpful Hints to Save the Day!

Every afternoon we end the day by sharing "Something Good that Happened Today".  Our microphone is used to show the speaker (believe it or not, it is just a fake microphone...a real one would be much more fun!) The students love standing in front of the smart board so that they can be in front of the lights with the microphone speaking.  This keeps everyone calm and quiet right before the dismissal bell.

Germs kind of give me the yucky, icky feeling.  When our bathroom passes started to come back wet, it was a little unnerving for me.  To keep my worries at bay, we have gone to the necklace pass.  That way, students don't have to worry about dropping the passes in the sink (or who knows where else?)  The students simply wear it down to the restroom and back.

My Little Warm Fuzzy Jar  is simply a must in my classroom.  The whole class can earn "Warm Fuzzies" when they display good behavior.  I simply place a warm fuzzy in the jar when everyone is listening on the rug, or standing quietly in a line, etc. When the jar is full, we have a little celebration.  I also hand out warm fuzzies to individual students at times.  For example, if Johnny helps his friend pick up his dropped school box, I will give Johnny a warm fuzzy to keep and take home.  We always talk about how positive behavior makes everyone feel good inside.  Thus, the meaning of the Warm Fuzzy!

And finally, colored cups are an awesome management strategy  to color code our tables.  For years, I taped colored shapes or tags to label each table.  Not anymore......cups are a great visual, they can easily be changed, and cups are cheap!  Cups can be seen from anywhere in the room and no more peeled off tape.  When tables need washed, cups can be removed and returned.  So simple!   Simple equals sanity in my mind.  Have a great week!

Organization Saves Time!

Have you seen those dry erase wall clings at your neighborhood department store or on the internet?  They make a great place at the guided reading table for students to write a word or to jot a thought down.  No need to pass out dry erase boards....they are already at each child's spot.  Students use a dry erase marker and a sock to wipe it clean.  Personally, I enjoy the bright decor it adds to our little reading nook!  

I found this little shelving unit at Sam's club.  It organizes everything the student's need during Daily Five.  Paper, charts, story journals, etc. are available for the students to get on their own.  No more passing things out, the students get what they need as they need it.  Again, love the bright colors and affordable price   that brings organization to our classroom.  Another way to save a few minutes time!

Our calendar area keeps us organized throughout the day.  The daily schedule keeps questions of "What are we doing next?" at bay.  

One of my best finds yet, I found these little book shelves  to keep our writing folders and notebooks in a place that would be easy to keep track of for the students.  The students know exactly where to place their items each day based on the color system.  This saves a lot of time and keeps our classroom organized.
It is the little things that keep our day running smoothly and it is so worth it each day!

Visual Schedule

I love having a Visual Schedule in the classroom.  I place it on our calendar board and every morning during our group meeting we go over the schedule for the day.  I place the cards up on the schedule board in front of the students so that they can watch the activity plan of the day unfold. The first column shows the morning activities and the second column shows the afternoon activities.  As we complete an activity in class, I (or a student) will turn the card over so that only the activities we have left to do are showing to the students.  A visual schedule is an amazing resource for students who need to know the routine and structure of the day and it also gives them some comfort in knowing that they can look at the calendar board anytime to see what is coming next. 

Art Curtain

 I found this creative idea in the Family Fun Crafts for Kids spring issue.  All you need to create this art curtain are 12 by 12 inch 3 hole page protectors, scrapbook paper, jumbo round brads, a glue gun, and tape.  I found the page protectors in the scrapbook album area and I made sure I chose the heavy duty clear protectors.  Next, I found coordinating sheets of paper.  I decorate my classroom with lots of green so I chose these as my colors. 

 Next, I found some decorated large brads.  I placed the scrapbook paper into the the protectors and made sure that the openings all faced the top.  I connected the protectors with the brads (see photos) .  The back is a little tricky.  I hot glued the bottom row to the top (see photo below)  Then I slid some of my son's artwork into the sleeves. 

This cute display can be placed with magnets onto a chalkboard, taped to a wall, or you can attach rings to the top and thread the curtain onto a pocket chart or dowel rod.  You can also add more sleeves to make a larger curtain and use any color or decorating theme you want.  The great part about this project is it took 10-15 minutes!!!!  I am planning on using these in my classroom next year for sure!  (This curtain looks a lot cuter than it appears in the photograph.)