First Grade Common Core

OH MY!! Have you seen this? I have goose bumps and am beyond excited!

This is a workbook for the First Grade Common Core. They also have one for Kindergarten and it looks like there might be one coming for Second through Fifth Grades in the future as those grade levels have pages set up.

This book is A~MAZ~ING! I was looking at their free download and feel in love. As a brand new teacher this is just what I need! If you are switching to CCSS you need this too.

What's included?

This book has a TON of activities for your students all aligned with the common core. Some of the pages are even in color which means I can copy them onto cardstalk and print them as my classroom objectives. This book is going into my easy pile.

Cut and paste... check

Handwriting... check

Art projects... check

Writing prompts... check

PLUS... the worksheets are so simple I can use them as emergency sub plans. I know that no matter what my kids do that day they are still learning and are on task with the standards.

Oh this one with my core mapping book will make my life so easy!! Can you tell I am excited?

Day 3 - The End

This morning, I dragged myself out of bed and got dressed for another day. Lesson plans were written and ready to go. I hugged 2 kids goodbye and wished them a good day at school. I turned to hug the third one when he said my tummy doesn't feel so good. I tried to quickly step away... I knew what was coming. BUT he still managed to vomit all over me.

First thought: "YAY! I don't have to go to work today!"
Second thought: "Poor baby! Does he have a fever?"
Third thought: "What are my kinders gonna do without me? Another new teacher will only add to the chaos!"

Okay so that was probably the wrong first thought to have. I did call to see if I had any backups who could take a sick little boy. None available. I probably shouldn't be happy about it but I was. Kinda - I miss the kinders. I worried about them.

I called in sick only to find my child dressed and ready for school. Ummm... why are you going to school?? "I LOVE my teacher! I can't stay home, I will miss multiplication!" He begged to go so I let him.

It was a good thing I did not go to work today as my little two left to walk to school they were attacked by the neighbors dogs. AGAIN! Ugh! I saved them before they got bit  but they were really scared. I don't blame them.

It seems like incident #4 is the magic number as EVERYONE has been at my house today. The police. The sheriff.  Animal Control. They have been interviewing all the neighbors, pulling all the records (this is #9 if you add in all the reports from all the neighbors), and preparing a criminal case.

It has been quite the adventure today.

The police department says the kids should not walk to or from school until the situation has been neutralized.  Which means I can't work if I have to drive them to and from school. So I was gonna have to call and say "I can't work the rest of the week" when I got an email saying the position has been cancelled and the teacher is FINALLY taking over her own class.

So now that the saga has ended... tomorrow I will have some new posts about some exciting things! Oh and I will have all day tomorrow to catch up on the homework I am behind on.

I will miss my students. I truly LOVE being in the classroom but I am NOT an early-childhood kinda girl. =)

Lesson learned!

Day 2 - At a loss for words

I worried all night about my lost kid only to find out he DID get on the right bus but the bus driver let him off at the wrong spot. Somehow this is my fault.

Today, I sent a kid to parent pickup per the tag on his backpack. He was lost for awhile as no parent came to pick him up. He was suppose to walk home. No note came from the office or parent. Thankfully he never left campus just was at the wrong pickup spot.

I would just like to point out I did not lose the child who showed up in my class today with no paperwork, no last name, no backpack, and no tag to tell me how she goes home. I asked her. And then sent her that direction. She got home perfectly fine. 

I was told that this is unacceptable. I have lost a child each day for the past two says. Yep this is also my fault. They called an emergency staff meeting to discuss this issue, I was not invited as I am not a teacher.  I will be informed tomorrow of what happens next.

I woke up at 4 am to make lesson plans. What sub wakes up at 4 am to make lesson plans? I got to school at 7:30 to clean my room for the day and to cool it off. My room is not authorized for air conditioning so when I arrive each day it is over 90 degrees inside. My room is not authorized for janitorial services or maintenance or pest control.

We had ants and a spider and a coach roach visit today. Did I mention one of my kids is deathly afraid of spiders? His scream was heard by several others who came running to see the issue and found him cowering in the corner while I cleaned up dead spider guts.

Shortly thereafter a woman appeared in my room and said she was to be in my class the entire day to observe the children. She just didn't know which child she was observing. Funny how she had a teacher observation sheet she was completing when she was observing the children.

She never left my side. She was suppose to go to lunch but surprisingly (NOT!) she was taken off of lunch early to meet with me. When she wasn't with me... the principal, speech therapist, and OT just suddenly happened to not be doing anything and were available to help.

Of course, that is when my kinders who had been doing so well suddenly completely forgot everything I taught them. And then the rest of the day was chaos. Complete chaos.

I cried when I got home. I am sore and tired and I don't want to move. AND I have had enough. I don't want to go back. Not ever. Not to this class or any other class. I am tired of being taken advantage of and disrespected.

I am a teacher not a babysitter.

It is not my fault if the attendance is not turned in by 9 am when I asked for a roster 4 times and did not get one until 2:30 pm. It is not my fault that the attendance turned in is missing the last names of 5 children. I do not know their last names. You should be thankful that I know all their first names after only 1 day.

I am tired of writing "lesson plans" that teach nothing. I am not allowed to teach anything specific. I have no rules (they got nixed first thing this morning). I have no discipline plan (I am not the teacher). I have no student information. I cannot send home notes with the students - even to tell the parents that they need to send in a snack each day for their child. I have no access to any curriculum materials.

So we read, we color, we sing songs, we redirect constantly, and then we start all over. Sometime this week, all the classes will be restructured and new kids will be sent into my room and others moved to another room.


So maybe I am not at a loss for words. I am tired, sore, and in tears.  THE END!

I passed & survived Kindergarten!

This SHOULD be a short post as I am beyond exhausted. Kindergarten teachers are now my heroes. OH MY WORD! The stories I can tell

Up first though... as many of you predicted

I PASSED!

<insert happy dance here>

And not just barely but with a 293/300!

I ROCKED that test!

Only 1 more to go!

Kindergarten... oh where to begin! I am in a temporary classroom. It is normally a storage room that had tables, some chairs, and a desk thrown into it to make it look like a classroom but yea.. its not. The parents all know that both the room and I are temporary. 

The kids know it to and that is where the trouble began. Plus EVERYONE was in my room today to make sure I could handle it. By everyone I mean... the guidance counselor, the social worker, the special education teacher, the academic coach, the principal, the deputy superintendent, and a few volunteers. 

They hired a teacher over the weekend and even SHE was in and out of the room. She will be all week long. She is on campus just not teaching. I have some thoughts on this but I will behave. I will keep those locked in my head and not type. 

With soooo many people trying to tell the kids what to do it was hard to get them to do anything. I am not suppose to teach them any specific rules just generic ones that can be changed. I am not to set a schedule or routine. The kids have no cubbies, no belongings, no place of their own, etc... and it resulted in utter chaos. 

Complete CHAOS!

DANGER!

DO NOT ENTER!

RUN FAST!

It was so bad the new teacher is scared to take over. I gave up after lunch and said we are doing things my way. Six hours later my kids can stand and sit quietly. We cannot work at tables. Oh and lunch was 10 minutes! Kinders eat with their teacher the first week. So an aid walks them to the playground afterwards for recess and that is our quick lunch break. 

Lesson plans were a flop. 

Magic playdoh no good with these kinders. My boys at home love it and Miss Piggy ate some and wanted more. My middle tried it and spit it out so evidently edible playdoh is only good for dogs.

Kissing Hand failed miserably. Too long for these kids. Went to No David (it was in the room thankfully!) and that worked well. Pete the Cat was a success. Self portraits failed. Music failed. Songs and movement failed. 

Playing with manipulatives FAILED! One kid is deathly afraid of spiders and what are the manipulatives in the room? SPIDERS! I ended up teaching them the WBT rules anyways. SHHHH! Don't tell!

Oh and one of my kids didn't make it off the bus. I put him on but he didn't get off and the bus driver lost him. The mom was frantic, the police was called, I was sent home. I am the temporary teacher so was not needed for the situation. If I was the teacher, I wouldn't have left. I am hoping he is okay. We shall see tomorrow. 

Speaking of lost kids, mine got lost walking home and had to ask a police officer to direct them in the right direction. Sigh... Does this mean I am a horrible mom? I sent 2 teenagers to help walk them home and all 4 boys got lost. Kind of ironic that my own kids were lost and needed the help of the police. 

There are police officers assigned to every school on the first day to deal with lost kids here. I guess this happens a lot! SCARY!

My feet hurt, my body hurts, and I am tired. I need to buy new shoes. Comfy ones. 

I still have to write lesson plans for tomorrow But I think I will do that in the morning. We are primarily going to learn how to walk in a line. That should only take another 6 hours to accomplish!

First Day of Kindergarten Plans

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! To each and every one of you who left such amazing comments full of experience and wisdom! I read every one... several times and then formulated a plan.

First stop Wal-Mart. I figured I would spend about $50 on some "essential items" for the first week. Then I went to Barnes and Noble for a few new books as I doubted I would be able to find any "Back to School" books in our local library or the school library.  About $150 later....

What I bought at Wal-Mart: Desk Plates, Name tags, pencils, erasers, a jump rope, playdoh, pencils, sentence strips, file folders, goldfish crackers, band-aids, sandwich bags, folders, black ink, and postcards.

What I bought at Barnes & Noble: The Kissing Hand, Pete the Cat Rocking his School Shoes, and Miss Smith's Incredible Storybook. Just a note here.... book in the store cost DOUBLE what they cost online. I was SOOOO not happy!

I pulled somethings I had from home... air freshener, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Chicka Chicka 123, and tempera paint.

I made cake mix playdoh AFTER I bought some cuz I heard about magic playdoh. But then as I was bagging the playdoh I recalled the "must be store bought rule" - I am gonna go with the theory that since they aren't eating it and it shouldn't be leaving the plastic bags, we are good!

This is my "going home tri-fold board" made out of a file folder and duct tape. The last column is for daycare riders but most kids I know hate this term so I am debating what to call it. I was so tempted to write "other" until my youngest said "does that mean I can fly home?" Ummm... nope! Still not possible.

So many of you recommended this linky party and I can't thank you enough! Seriously, if you are looking for some FAB-U-LOUS ideas for any level of elementary school classroom I recommend you check out this site. My third and fourth graders have been LOVING everything that I have come up with for my tiny Kindergarteners. They have also insisted upon trying out every book, coloring page etc...

So my first day (two days!) lesson plans are below. I made mine in a checklist format as I have no clue what our schedule will look like. When do we go to lunch? Do the kids have a rest period? How many times a day for recess? So... this is the best I could do with the given circumstances.

This is basically a list of all the great ideas I received in the comments yesterday and from the various blogs I stalked. Clicking on any of the pictures will take you directly to their site for expert advice!

~ Greet Parents & Students at the door
~ Name tags – names and how std is going home
~ Stack supplies on back counter (will deal with at lunch or after school)
~ Backpacks go on back of chairs.
~ Stds can pick a seat anywhere (first day only)
~ Magic Playdoh – Did yours turn colors? It did?! Wow! That only happens if the person using it is going to have a great year.
~ Attendance
~ Announcements
~ Lunch Count
~ Teach morning routine – how to come into class, what to do, where to go. Practice ala Daily 5. Go out and come in.
~ Hickety Pickety Get to Know You Movement/Song

Hickety pickety bumblebee, 

won't you say your name for me? 

(Child says name.) 

Let's whisper it! 

Let's clap it! 

Let's cheer it! 

Repeat with next student. 

~ Teach signals for being quiet
~ Teach WBT Classroom rules
~ Teach bathroom procedure - Bathroom Breaks
~ Coloring Page

~ Teach lineup procedure
~ Snack
~ Teach how to come to the carpet and sit during storytime
~ Read Pete the Cat Rocking my School Shoes

 

~ Teach how to use crayons and pencils
~ 2 options – draw yourself rocking your school shoes or draw yourself doing something at school while rocking your school shoes
~ Teach how to put away supplies
~ School Tour – Find Pete?
~ Classroom Tour
~ Guidance Counselor visit? Principal visit?
~ Read the Kissing Hand

 

 ~ Make Heart handprints

~ Lunch/Recess
~ Rest
~ How to ask for help
~ Read Desk Fairy

 

~ Talk about how to keep desks clean
~ Read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

 

 ~ Make first name letters 

~ Take First day of school pictures

So this is an insanely long post already and I have things to do to get ready for tomorrow. I promise to be back with my Pete the Cat freebies that I made as a Thank You!

More tomorrow if I am still alive!

Portable Scoreboards

I am changing my plans a little so that I can link up with Tara at 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made It. Each Monday this summer, she is encouraging teachers to post the creative things that they are making for their classrooms.

Admit it! Summer is here and instead of relaxing our creative juices are flowing and we are just itching to make something from pinterest.

Did you all see my last post on scoreboards from WBT? I so love this but I wanted something to have in my sub bag to take with me at the beginning of the year. My students think my sub bag is filled with magical wonders.... like new colors of expo markers (why is this exciting?), stickers, a new book, and maybe a game. Oh and they LOVE Angry Bird Bandaids. Those I swear are magic... it fixes any owie and they instantly stop crying.

Anywho... I wanted some new tricks to start the new year. Yes, I could simply draw a scoreboard on the board but where is the magic in that? It would be like a magician showing the audience a rabbit without first pulling it out of a hat. It's just not right I tell ya!

So when I was out shopping I was looking for a small whiteboard to stick in the magic bag. I found this one at Treasures 4 Teachers. I love the lime green on the corners. It makes it more fun and fun = MAGIC!

I was so excited about this project that I couldn't wait to share it with you!  So I got out some electrical tape and made my board and then drew on a smiley and frowny face to show you my idea. 

 But my project isn't done! I am planning on replacing those little faces with velcro dots. Then I have all different kinds of frowny and smiley faces that I am going to add to this. I have marshmallows, trees, beach balls, hearts, etc... all laminated and ready to be added. This way my scoreboard is ready for any holiday!

I also need to finish up my teacher v. students, boys v. girls, leaders, etc... words that can be used instead of one of the icons. So cute, so versatile. I love it!

Just as with anything there is always more ways to do something. Check out this lanyard scoreboard from Prayers and Purple Elephants!

Just as with my scoreboard she created multiple scoreboards to keep things new and exciting for her students. She also lays out the various levels she uses with her students. What a great post and idea!!

And while I am looking at cute and creative scoreboards... look at this Halloween from Mrs. Crooks.

What are some creative ways that you use the scoreboard? Do you have some amazing pictures to share with us? What levels do you use with your class?

Can't wait to here more from you!

10 Things Guest Teachers Need

I survived my first day of substitute teaching.

I was so nervous that I did not sleep the night before. I kept thinking of all the things my fellow blogging teachers would want me to remember about walking into their classrooms. I had this idea of what I should do and how I should do it. 

It didn't happen that way. 

Nothing was as I thought it would be. 

I arrived an hour before the students, 40 minutes before my scheduled start time. I wanted plenty of time to get settled in for the day. I needed every second and probably another hour would have been wonderful! But alas, there were kids who needed me... 

Let the chaos commence!

 I decided to share with all of you the things that I wish I had. 

1) Please post a schedule in your classroom and/or have one in the sub folder. I have no clue what order to do things in without one. I eventually founded posted at the end of the hall. This is great as the parents know where to locate all the information on the parent board but a sub may not know about the parent board until late in the day. 

2) "What is a de..duc..i..blic (deductible), Mrs. Pooooland?"

Please keep all of your personal items in a safe place out of reach of children. Little ones may be searching for reading materials and your tax returns just might make for good reading. I stacked this along with overdue bills and a diary in a nice pile on the desk with the stapler on top.

3) Please place all materials for the day in an easy to locate spot. A sub tub is great. I so wanted a sub tub. With the help of another teacher, we found some things. I found the lesson plans under a diary, the math worksheets were at the bottom of the "to be graded pile", I found some transparencies in the reading center but not the right ones, I never did find where  her centers were. I am sure they had to be in there somewhere but we skipped those. I looked, I couldn't find them. 

4) Please leave a detailed list of what you want. Thankfully I have been trained to read these lesson plans and am familiar with the curriculum. So I was able to read those lesson plans and knew the IE218.9 is a math assignment. If it was another sub... umm... good luck!

5) "Mrs. Peelond, I can't have that or I will die."

"Mrs. Poohand, I can't have a band-aid I just bleed forever." 

"Uh-huh its true. You will have to call 911 and everything. We should do that!"

"Mrs. umm... what's your name? Do you change my diaper or do I go to the nurse?"

Please explain your policies for going to the nurse, issues to expect and with whom, and where to locate the special nurse passes. I need to know if a particular child is not potty trained, allergic to the strawberries we are serving with breakfast, or has a bleeding disorder and needs to be sent to the nurse immediately if she pokes herself with a pencil. 

6) I need to know what areas are off limits to students. 

7) Seating charts are necessary. Pronunciation of names would be even better!

8) Every child should have a pencil and/or there should be a box or something of them somewhere. I know now to look for pencils first!

9) Please do not write on your lesson plan "science/social studies (find a resource)" - yes I skipped that too. Besides we had an assembly to go too. 

10) . "Mrs. Poolaid, do we HAAAAVE to do another worksheet?"

Please leave something fun for the kids to do I know there is a lot to accomplish especially this time of year with testing but if all you want them to do is worksheets, there are bound to be behavior management issues. 

Okay... so I know not all classrooms will be like this but I thought I would make you a cute little checklist (also available at TpT) just in case Mrs. Pewland ever visits your class.

I am working on creating my own "sub tub" for my some day classroom. I will eventually be adding all the "lessons learned" to one kit full o' fun!

I also created a Guest Teacher Pinterest Board with a lot of great ideas and resources!

The first grade team was amazingly helpful in ensuring that I had everything I needed throughout the day. I couldn't have done it without there quick thinking and help. The nurse made me a copy of health risks for the room. 

Despite everything, I loved every minute of it. 

Who cares if the kids were all "off" and that the PE teacher was so tired of their antics that she brought them back early. For the day, they were my kiddos and I even mastered all their names by the end of the day.

We laughed, we learned, and no one went to the hospital! 

A few kiddos even hugged me on the way out the door. Somehow, the simple hug and a "I can't wait for you to come back Mrs. Peeplawn!" is all that it took to win me over. I will miss those little guys!

Now all that's left is to figure out my last name again!

A Piggy Puggle Muddle

Hi Everyone! How have you been enjoying my featured teachers/guest bloggers and all their freebies? Anyone miss me?

I am so happy that I set this up as this week as it has been a whirl-wind of week! I procrastinated on my homework and will NOT do that again. I decided I would have enough time after my job interview to do it. And I would have if I didn't get the job.

BUT I DID! 

Which is AWESOME! 

or EPIC! 

or SOMETHING!!

Instead of waiting for 12/13 school year, I was hired to start substituting immediately as in Friday the 13. They created a special orientation class just for me which is why I wrote the worst paper ever as I had to read 200 pages on how to be a sub and fill out 57 pages by the next morning. I did it and wrote a 1500 word paper.

Same day my taxes came in but only about half of what it was suppose to be. At this point, I am just grateful for anything. We immediate went and bought the rental car we have had for the past two months. Well... immediately after I found out I got the job. So we are once again a one car family again. YIPPEE!

Which brings me to the piggy puggle muddle. What on earth am I talking about?? 

 

Have I told you all how much I adore my husband and how spoiled I am? If not, I am gonna share with you another story. My birthday is in May and my hubby's in June. I have this problem every June that my husband spent so much money on me during the month of May that there is nothing left to celebrate him with. I have asked him to stop but he ignores me. 

It's like when I asked for a smaller engagement ring, he said I can have that size of a diamond or a bigger one but not smaller. I kept it as he knew I would. At that set the precedent for our relationship. I never get a chance to spoil him. 

So... I decided that this year... I WOULD WIN! My husband loves animals. We both do and so wish we could move back home and live on the ranch. Someday...

Anywho... the only way to actually do something for him was to do it prior to May and when he wasn't expecting it. So after orientation yesterday, I drove 200 miles to get him this.... 

His first dog was a pug but I couldn't afford a Pug. So I bought a Puggle! (Did anyone notice she matches? Black dog, red collar... anyone still in doubt about my OCD? She can shed and it will blend into the house!) She is 7 weeks old and 6 inches tall (the boys measured her with a ruler). That is a cat collar and its big on her. LOL!

After picking her up (and wondering where the 3AM Teacher lives as I know I drove past her house), we went shopping. She found herself a bed and went to sleep in the car. She loves her bed and crawls into and sleeps. Even in the car or the bathtub (where she sleeps until I go and pick up her crate).

So after all of that, I went to pick up my brother in law (he carpools everyday with hubby) who fell in love with her (his first dog was the same pug as hubby's. duh! They are brothers... didn't think of that at the time and thought it was weird she reminded him of his first dog as well. In my defense, I had driven 300 miles by this point and was tired!).

And then we went to go get hubby. He called and wanted to know what I spent all the money on... ummmm... gas and groceries? He would find out in about 10 minutes. The kids already spoiled the surprise and hubby had called to check on them and they were complaining they had to clean the house before Mama brought home a puppy. Bad children!

Hubby brought friends to show off his new puppy when he got off of work. He was so excited... I was wondering why there was a group trailing him (didn't know the secret was given away yet!). Then he asked how I managed to get a dog for so cheap (I drove half-way to California!) and when were we taking her shopping. 

Then I told him ummmm... already done! See... Pup and puppy package. She even went to the vet and got her first shots. I am awesome and through!

When I picked her up the first time and snorted at me like a baby piggy. So I called her Miss Piggy all the way home. I wanted to let hubby name her but the name stuck like crazy glue. So she is a Miss Piggy Puggle.

Which brings us to the muddle part. I just took a job and will no longer be home all the time to train her. The boys can't do it but she does seem to be house broken (no accidents yet!).

So... I am off to get my homework done first! Anyone know someone who learned English as a second language that I can interview by email? I don't know anyone and it is my assignment this week. 

Then... 3-6 catch-up, TpT uploads, freebies, and possibly a sub kit! We shall see.  Next week.. I have more featured teachers/guest bloggers to share with you. Can't wait!

Nurses Office

Previously I shared with all of you the hall passes I created. I created one for the nurse but sometimes one needs to provide a little more information when sending a child over.

I plan on using the pass I made for routine visits (medications).

I was searching for ideas for Vistaprint when I stumbled across a great idea! A teacher had made a postcard Nurse Pass (and yes I lost the link! I am trying to get better at saving them for all of you. If this is yours please let me know so I can give you credit.).

It is adorable and has lots of room for me to write "student says his tummy is hurting" or whatever the case may be. The original had the teacher's name and classroom number on the front. Since I do not have this information, I left that part off.

This is a great idea for Guest Teachers to keep in their bag of tricks. No more searching for a pass when you really need one.

What do you use for nurse passes? Do you have special procedures in place for sending a student to the nurse? Do you treat them first?