Does God Use Pinterest?

Does this ever happen to you... you're surfin' on Pinterest and BAM... you see something that surely must be on your screen through divine intervention?  That's right...  Are you there God? (on Pinterest?)  It's me, Stacy! 

So, I would like to say that I am patient... that I know that building a blog following takes time... like months & months... years & years.  I was feeling all small earlier... {why do we as women do that?!?!?!}  And then BAM... saw this on my screen!  So, I can say 100% that God also likes Pinterest. 

My lesson: love my little blog.. nurture it...and watch it grow.

I Have a Melon Head!!!

My Melon Head is finally here... I placed my order about a week ago and expected it to take MUCH longer than just a week.  It is crazy to think that she got my picture SO right!!!  Sunglasses on top of head, hoop earrings, Starbucks cup in hand, flip flops, jeans, painted toe nails... tshirt and cardigan... YEP, NAILED IT! 

If you've thought about getting your own... now's the time.  Click HERE to go to the Melon Headz website... then you can email Nikki from there and let her know you're interested in ordering your own Melon Head.  She will email you back with a few questions about your style and ask you for a photo and VOILA!  Hope that you have all had a great weekend.  Today marks the end of my fall break.. but marks the beginning of my countdown to Thanksgiving break... and another week off!    

I'm a Dork {I'll Own It}

Man, I <3 a good font.  I have a whole board on Pinterest designed to finding cute fonts.  You can make your own fonts?!?!  Shut the front door!  It is TRUE!!!  As I have gloated said earlier... I'm on FALL BREAK this week and I've had some time to just chill out.  My friend Tara told me about an app on the IPad where you could make your own font... so I thought about it while I was sick, but still wasn't feeling it.  Today the antibiotics have kicked in and BAM...  made my own font.  Here's mine... and it's totally cool for you to download it if you want. 

Stacy's Font

The app that I bought and downloaded was called iFontMaker.  It was REALLY easy.... like, my 4 year old made his own font after I was done.  Because he's a dork, too! Have you made your own font before?  If you make one, stop back by to let me know... 'cause I'm always searching for a new favorite!

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble

I am already ready for Thanksgiving and it's still a month and some change away.  All of the fall holidays really get my creative juices flowing... coming up with ideas that I can do with my firsties.  Last year I did a persuasive writing activity with my 4th graders... I decided to revamp it this year and I am going to try it with my little humans and see how it goes.  I always read 'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving and the kids always love it.  It is one of my favorites, too! 

We are on fall break this week and I am trying to be really intentional with my time off... spending time with my own kidlets, resting up and getting healthy, working on TpT products, tackling Mt. Laundry, and hoping to hang out at the county fair on Thursday evening with my whole crew.

Here are some screenshots of Dear Mr. Farmer... and you can check it out here!

Hope that you all have had a great Tuesday!  Thanks for stopping by... remember you can follow me on TpT and also on Pinterest... I'd love to have some new followers {it kinda makes my day, actually!}.

Have You Thought About TpTing?

Have you bought things off of Teachers Pay Teachers?  I"m sure you have.  I have bought tons of things in the past and friends of mine tried to encourage me to put my things on there.  I was always my biggest critic... much like with the idea of starting to blog.  I will say that in the last month (yep, today is my 1 month bloggy birthday) I have truly become more confident and have accomplished things that I only thought others could do!  I would high five myself... but that would just look awkward, right? :) 

Have you thought of selling your things on Teachers Pay Teachers?  Ready to take the leap?  I promise it is SO worth it.  I am encouraged by my ability to create cute, meaningful activities for my class and others' classrooms.  I don't plan on retiring anytime soon with my earnings, but I can see it paying for my Starbucks addiction habit!  If you're ready to take the leap... or even if you're on the fence.. you can click here to get started! 

Take The Leap

I hope that you all had a GREAT Monday.  I finally went to the doctor... he was all like "I have never seen you look THIS bad!"  and I was all like "Um, thanks?!?!"  Needless to say, I now have some antibiotics... hoping that I look a little less like a Walking Dead extra tomorrow!  :)

-Stacy

Fall Break, Zombies, and a Sore Throat

I am on fall break... I want to scream it from the roof tops!  Well, I would scream it, but my throat is killing me hurting!  I have had a fever for what feels like weeks now.  I am hopeful that having this week off will allow me to rest and get 100% better. 

Friday was a 1/2 day for our students so that we could have the afternoon for parent-teacher conferences.  Our morning started with an announcement from the principal saying that our school was on lockdown while police officers in the area looked for a few bad guys!  It was my first lockdown at school...  and I don't want to do that again for sure! 

Finally, tonight it's time for ZOMBIES!!!  Anyone else out there LOVE them some Walking Dead?  Season 3 premieres tonight... the hubs and I have been waiting on this for months!  We are like kids waiting for Santa!  Can't you picture it? :)

Hope y'all have had a GREAT weekend...  they always go by way too fast! 

Pumpkin Party

We went to pick out a family pumpkin tonight at the local pumpkin picking out spot...  My boys were uber-excited fo' sho'!  While we were there I picked out a classroom pumpkin, too!  I am excited to fill that baby with potting soil and see if it the seeds will start to grow!!!  (Ummmm, I saw it done on Pinterest... so let's just say I'm hoping it isn't a Pinterest fail)

M1 and M2 posing with our pumpkin

I found this Pumpkin Party Pack on TpT and even though it is 2nd grade CC aligned... it overlaps with 1st grade quite a bit... and my kidlets can always use the enrichment.  They would love knowing that they were doing activities designed for 2nd graders!  Want to look at the packet in case you're thinking about doing some pumpkin partying, too?  Check her out at soaringthroughsecond.blogspot.com 

I hope that you all had a great Monday!  If you know anyone who teaches older grades, please have them stop by my TpT store... I made my candy corn exponent sheets FREE this week!  See you soon! :) 

Columbus Day ... and Pouting

Tomorrow is Columbus Day and we are not off like many of you! That's OK... I'm not sad (sniff, grovel)... I'll make it through! :) The good news is that we are off for fall break after this Friday... a WHOLE week off! The fair will be here that week and it works out really well. That way the kids don't come to school all cracked out on funnel cakes and cotton candy. {teachers, too... ahem, cough}

I made a Columbus mini-pack for my firsties to work on tomorrow. We don't really study him as part of our SS curriculum, but I know from switching from 4th this year... that he is a major focus later on. So, I feel like ANY instruction/background info I can provide... will just make their schema explode (can you make their schema explode... hmmmm). Here's the mini-pack I made... check out the link if it's something that you'd like to try tomorrow (if you're at work like me). Hope you all had a GREAT weekend... it sure does go by fast!

 

Christopher Columbus Mini-Pack

My First Giveaway... ANYONE out there love Erin Condren Planners?

I have over 70 followers and I couldn’t be any more excited!  What could I do to convey my excitement you ask?!?!?!  Well, I’m partnering with Tara over at they all fall down and we’re giving away an Erin Condren $25 e-gift card!  Our giveaway starts tonight and will run through next Friday (October 12^th).  You have the opportunity to earn 4 entries…

Follow Stacy’s blog 

 Follow Stacy’s TpT store

Follow Tara’s blog

      Follow Tara’s Tpt store

I LOVE my Erin Condren planners.  I have the teacher planner and the year-round notebook… and they both make me insanely happy.  Thanks for stopping by… please feel free to leave me a comment.  Good luck to you all! 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Three Little Pigs and Beyonce

Yeah, so I'm guess that title made you chuckle... and maybe a little confused! :)  Let me explain... we just finished up our week on Fairy Tales (I "heart" fairy tales).  Our leveled readers all came from Reading A-z this week but I made a 3 Little Pigs mini-pack to use with all of my students.... regardless of their level!  Check out some of their work from the pack :)

 Story elements page... we have just started concentrating on these in small groups and whole group.  They are starting to get the hang of it!

Write a new ending...  
"I would go to New York.  I would get married.  A wolf and a pig married.  A pig love a wolf.  A wolf plan a love wedding.  The three little pigs lived happily ever after"   Melts my heart :) 

 Fact family practice... this is really hard for some of my firsties!!!  Yours, too?





OK, so how is Beyonce connected?  Well, she's not I don't guess.  BUT it rained today and we had inside recess {yay, ,right?!}.  These kids NEED to move... you hear me?  Like shake out the sillies... wiggle around... "Dude, did you guzzle red dye this morning?" kinda way! Enter Beyonce...  my kids learned some dance moves today.  Check out the video we played on the SMART board a few times...  moved all the desks to make a huge dance floor...  made all of us smile...

Beyonce Move Your Body Video

And if you love fairy tales as much as I do... check out my mini-unit... Here's what's included: 

1) Match each pig to the correct house
2) Create a fact family
3) Venn Diagram comparing the original Three Little Pigs to The True Story of the Three Little Pigs
4) Writing "If you could create a new ending for the story... what would it be?"
5) Story elements chart (characters, setting, problem, solution)
6) 2 pages for students to fill in numbers 1-120
7) Put words from the story in ABC order  

You can find the unit by clicking this link: This pig mini-unit ROCKS :)  Hope y'all have a GREAT rest of your week!  Off to check the weather to see if it's supposed to rain tomorrow!  

  

My Classroom Digs

I made the transition from 4th back down to 1st this year...  It was a move that I desperately needed.  It has been a long time since I have taught firsties, but even though I don't get to sit down much... I am going home much happier in the afternoons this year! 

I don't know if I have found my blogging "mojo" quite yet {can you even have blogging mojo?note to self... google blogging mojo!} BUT I am working on it.  As I have said before I have wanted to start a blog for several years, but I was always my own roadblock.  What could I possibly have to say that others would want to read?  After a pretty big health scare earlier this year... and a VERY unexpected death of one of my 4th grade students from last year... I decided that it was NOW or NEVER!  So.... here I am.... I'm glad you're here, too! 

I have snapped a few pictures of my new digs on the first grade side of the school.  I hated to have to move classrooms, but I am finally starting to feel all moved in!  Here are some of my favorite areas on my room:

 {computer station, Clock w/transition times, word wall & storage bins....desk fairy....bunting bulletin board... and what my classroom door looks like}

 {Dino Data bulletin board, my tooth data and birthday display on the closet doors, my bookshelf with numbered storage for reading groups from IKEA, and the back of my classroom}

{my personal bulletin board beside my desk... this is my happy place.. .filled with pictures of my children/family, a photo of our school nurse who passed away 2 years ago, and a picture of when I was in 4th grade... class photo... circa 1989 I think?!?}

Hope your week got off to a great start!  Only 4 more days 'til the weekend, right?  And... yay for October! :) Thanks for stopping by!