Five for Friday - Feb. 19, 2016

Today I am linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for her Five for Friday linky party. This was a short week for us with having the President's Day holiday off from school on Monday, but there was still lots happening this week. So here's a peek at my week:

I am working on acquiring a new blog design and name that will be more fitting of my current role. I have decided to rename my blog: Palmetto State Primary to show that I have taught and am teaching the primary grades in our school. I chose Palmetto State since that is the nickname for South Carolina (my state!). You will start seeing this name as the watermarks on my photos so don't be too surprised when you do! I hope to have a new design on my blog soon so please keep checking back!

Since we were off from school on Monday, I got to spend the whole day with my little princess. We had a nice relaxing day and even went to lunch at Chick-Fil-A (her favorite place to eat...and play!). We also got to feed the ducks and geese at the pond behind Chick-Fil-A which is what she is doing in this picture. She could stand there and feed them all day I think but eventually we ran out of bread!

This week our classroom has continued to study biographies. My students are loving learning all about other people's lives. This week we have focused on learning about presidents. Each day we have studied a different president by reading a biography about him. Then we created an anchor chart together of what they learned. I premade the anchor charts and laminated them at the suggestion of Step Into Second. Then my students added what they had learned on sticky notes to the anchor chart. These have been pretty amazing and I am so proud of what they have learned.

To extend my students' learning about biographies, each of my students has chosen a famous American to do a mini-biography project on. They are LOVING these! They have chose presidents, famous inventors, and even a few famous, positive athletes. I hope to have a finished product to share with you soon.

Finally, I made the plunge this week and joined the other teachers using Instagram. I am excited and nervous about where this new journey will lead. If you are on Instagram, please leave me your link so I can follow you too. I have learned so much from other wonderful teachers like you! Please hop over and follow me on Instagram too if can.

@palmettostateprimary
#teachersofinstagram
#iteachtoo

Now head on over to Doodle Bugs Teaching blog to see all the other weekly round-up posts from this week! Have a great weekend friends!

I Made the Plunge!

Well I finally made the plunge and I have become a member of another rapidly growing area of social media: Instagram!

I have seen how many teachers use it in their classroom and as a part of the blogging community and I decided that I would try it out too! I hope that I don't make too many mistakes in my postings, but I wanted to be able to share more from my classroom with other teachers and I don't always have time to make a long blog post. Instagram gives me the opportunity to share a quick picture that I snap with the teaching community and get some feedback as well.


I made my first post Monday about an anchor chart we created in our classroom on President Obama since we are learning about presidents this week. My students loved watching a 5 minute biography on his life from Bio.com and then they were each given a sticky note to write one fact they learned. I was amazed at how much they got from such a short video! I hope you will hop on over to see it and follow me too!

@palmettostateprimary

BTW: I used my new blog name (which is in the works) as my account name since it is more descriptive of my actual teaching role since I have taught kindergarten and 1st grade and am currently teaching 2nd grade.
#teachersofinstagram
#iteachtoo

Five for Friday - Feb. 12, 2016

Today I am linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for her Five for Friday linky party. This week has been BUSY but aren't they all!

Tuesday was the 102nd Day of School so our 2nd grade team decided to celebrate this special day! We used the 102 Dalmatians Disney movie as our inspiration. Everything I did was based on the Dalmatians theme. My 2nd graders really enjoyed all the fun activities and I did too (even though I was exhausted by the time the day was over!).

Our school has implemented the use of Daily 3 for our math block since we returned from Christmas break and my kiddos are jumping right in. They love using our classroom iPads that I got through Donors Choose to practice math facts on MobyMax. I use this as part of my Math By Myself. I am just getting my feet wet with Daily 3 so I would love any input I can get from teachers who have more experience with Daily 3! I especially need to know what are the "go-to" apps for math on your iPads.

My kiddos have just found the new books I got through a Donors Choose grant after Christmas. All of these books are on their reading levels and are nonfiction which is what they have been asking for over and over again! They absolutely LOVE reading them and sharing what they have learned. These have definitely been a favorite among my boys especially for their book baskets.

I made these for my kiddos for Valentine's Day. I thought they were so cute and so CHEAP! I got a pack of 20 Glow Stick bracelets at the Dollar Tree for $1 and then I printed the cute labels from The Teacher Wife for FREE! I love that they are not candy as well since it cuts down on my kiddos eating so many sweets!

Today we will Valentine's Day in my classroom since the holiday is on Sunday this year. Let's just say there has been candy everywhere in my room today! We are planning to party at 1:00 today with pizza, cupcakes, juice boxes and lots of other goodies! Of course it was lots of fun with lots of treats but I am glad it is Friday afternoon and time for a long weekend!

**For my kindergarten friends who have made it to the end of this post with me, I am putting my Lots of Love unit on sale through Sunday night for $1.00. This is normally a $5.00 unit so pick it up while it is on sale if you are interested in saving it for next year.

Now head on over to Doodle Bugs Teaching blog to see all the other photos from this week! Have a great weekend!

I SURVIVED 100 Days of 2nd Grade!

Today was our school's 100th day! So of course I celebrated it as most teachers do with my class. I truly feel like this year I SURVIVED 100 days of 2nd grade. Changing grade levels has truly been a difficult experience for me. I am a creature of habit and I LOVED teaching my Kinders, but all good things must come to an end I guess. In true teacher fashion, I would never let my kiddos know that I miss teaching a lower grade. I do love my class and even though I did not require or even ask my class to create a 100th day shirt, I had a student who did. I thought it was too adorable so I had to share it with you!

It is just TOO CUTE right?!

Currently #2 of Sweet '16

I just wanted to pop in to join Farley for her Currently monthly linky party. These are always so much fun and I love being a part of them whenever possible.

Listening: I love the quiet in my classroom at the end of the day. I can get so much accomplished in a short period of time.

Loving: I LOVE all the funny things my little one tells me on a daily basis. She is always telling us something to make us laugh. This morning she told me I better go wash my hair because it was going to scare someone if I didn't! LOL! I guess it was kind of messy when I woke up!

Thinking: I have so much to do to get ready for mid-year conferences with my students who are struggling. Our school district requires 3 mandatory face-to-face conferences with any child we feel may be at risk of failing a grade, so I need to get all my paperwork in order.

Wanting: I want more time in my day - 24 hours just isn't enough when I have to get so much done between being a teacher, mommy, and wife! Plus I try to work with my church as much as possible!

Needing: I would love to have a relaxing weekend without having so many places to go and things to do. I don't see it in the near future, but a girl can dream right?!

Swooning: I absolutely love my necklace that my hubby gave me for Christmas. He said he was giving me the key to his heart. I wear it almost every day and can't help but remember his sweet words when I look at it.

Now head over to Farley's blog to read the other Currently posts.

TpT Sale!

I just wanted to pop in to tell you that TpT is having their big new year sale! Everything in my store is 20% off and then if you use the code: START16 TpT will give you an additional 8% off. It is a great time to pick up some of the things that have been on your wishlist. I am going to clear out some of mine today. Click on the graphic below to go to my store:

Thanks to PitchClips for the cute graphic!

The BEST Pencil Sharpener EVER!!

Oh my goodness! I got the most wonderful pencil sharpener from Classroom Friendly Supplies before Christmas break to review. My kiddos as well as myself are LOVING it!! It sharpens pencils like a dream, even those cheap Dollar Store pencils that they love but never sharpen right. I am amazed at how pointy the get and how well they hold up to the abuse my 2nd graders throw at them! 


Here is my new pencil sharpener...isn't is pretty?! I love the Cool Blue since it our school color as well.

This sharpener not only looks pretty, but look at the before and after pictures of how well it sharpened these pencils.

As an added bonus, it is super quiet. Of course it might have something to do with the fact it was created by a teacher with classrooms and teachers in mind. I am amazed at the quality of the pencil sharpener. It is heavy-duty without being too cumbersome to move around in my classroom. My kiddos can use it independently after getting some instructions too...which is definitely an added bonus.


This pencil sharpener is unique in the way it sharpens pencils. You must pull out the faceplate and pinch the two black levers at the top to insert the pencil. Then you let go of the pencil and hold the top of the pencil sharpener and turn the knob with your other hand. The pencil moves into the sharpener as it sharpens. When it is fully sharp, the knob will turn freely. Then you just pinch the two levers again to take the pencil out. It is AMAZING!!

I must say that I would definitely give this pencil sharpener a 5 star review! It is amazing and a must have for every classroom. Plus they are not super expensive ($24.99 each...but you can get them cheaper if you buy a 3 pack) and you can order replacement blades when they blade gets dull. It is in one word - AMAZING!! You can head over to their website to order one for yourself (plus they have FREE shipping!).

Classroom Friendly Supplies

This review is my own personal opinion and has not been influenced by anyone else.

Currently #1 of Sweet '16

Ok so I know I am late to the party again, but I really wanted to participate this month so here it goes!

Listening: Since it is Sunday afternoon, we have already been to church and had a nice lunch. Now I am getting to spend some quality time with my sweet little girl. She LOVES putting together puzzles and they are such a great activity that we do together.


Loving: My Christmas break was absolutely WONDERFUL!! I thoroughly enjoyed every minute at home with my little one. We got to do lots of fun things like going to visit the zoo since we were having 80 degree days here in SC even though it was December!


Thinking: I have so much to do to get prepared for next week. I am just feeling overwhelmed with my new position in 2nd grade because it is such a new experience for me. I have never taught anything higher than 1st grade until this year.


Wanting: I want to feel more prepared as a 2nd grade teacher. I feel like everyday I am trying to "swim upstream" as I am learning along with my students.


Needing: I would love more time at home with my little girl. Macy is just growing up too fast. She is now 2 1/2 and changing everyday. After having 2 weeks off with her, I could definitely see how people love being stay at home mommies!


One Little Word: My One Little Word for 2016 is LOVE! I am definitely in love with my little family. I appreciate all the time we get to spend together. I love my students, but I am definitely working hard this year to begin to love teaching again.


Head over to Farley's blog to read more Currently postings!

Teaching 1 & 2 Digit Addition With a Friday Freebie!

For the past month or so, my 2nd grade team has been reviewing 1 digit and teaching 2 digit addition to our students. We began by reviewing what they knew about 1 digit addition (friends of 10, doubles facts, near doubles facts). This lead us right into our instruction on 2 digit addition without regrouping. Once our kiddos had the hang of addition without regrouping, we introduced regrouping which was difficult at first but most of them had it by the time we went home for Christmas break. This week, we reviewed these skills and today we had our cumulative assessment.

1 & 2 Digit Addition Assessment

This assessment is a freebie on Tpt so you can just click on the link above to download if you would like to use it with your kiddos too! Please remember to leave my some feedback if you download! Happy Friday everyone!

Happy New Year 2016!

Happy New Year to my blogging family! I hope you have had a wonderful and relaxing break. I go back to work on Monday, Jan. 4 so I am making the most of the time I have left off. I am so thankful for this wonderful blogging community that I am a part of. I hope in this new year to get back into the routine of blogging with you all on a more regular basis as I am on this new journey of teaching 2nd grade. Happy new year 2016 to you!

Miss M Monday!

Since I have been out of blogging for so long, I just wanted you to see how much my sweet little M has grown. She is now 2 1/2 and talking all the time. I love hearing what she is going to say next. She is just SOOOOO funny!


Miss M was the angel in our church Christmas play. She was so beautiful dressed in her costume!

Christmas Break Is Here!!



YAH! Yesterday was our last day of school before Christmas break and boy am I glad to have a break! My group of 2nd graders have been soooooo busy for the last week! Now I am excited to spend the Christmas holiday with my family and friends. Today we start our Christmas celebrations with my dad's family.


I just wanted to share a picture of how the front of my house looks all decorated for Christmas...of course Miss Macy had to pop in the picture too! I was proud of the way my new wreaths look on my windows!

Merry Christmas to you all! Maybe I can pop on after Christmas and give you some picture updates on what Santa brings Miss Macy!