Fun Finds

Yes, I am still on vacation... and I'm blogging again!  It's addicting.  I really need one of those cute new shirts that TBA is selling!

Anyways, back to my fun finds.  Let me just say that garage sales in my hometown ROCK!!  The Goodwill stores are also like a gold mine!  Below are just a couple of the treasures I found while making my rounds yesterday....

I have never seen index cards like these before!  The use for index cards is endless so I thought these would be great because of their writing lines.  I'm still trying to figure out what I will use them for, but for $1, I couldn't pass them up.  Any ideas?

I got this game at Goodwill for only $3... it is awesome!!  It's called Zingo.  It is basically a Bingo game, but with a twist.  It comes with 8 player cards (double-sided... green is easier and red is more competitive).  To play you move the dispenser forward and then backward and it spits out two yellow tiles.  The first player to call out the word (and that has that word on their card) gets the tile.  The first player to fill their card is the winner.  What I like most about this game is that it has the picture and the word, so even my non-readers should be able to look at the picture and identify it while still seeing the word written.

(Here is a link to buy it at Amazon: Zingo- Bingo with a Zing!  The other games on there by this company look great, too!) 

I got other great deals on some games and books, too!  I love a good bargain!!  I'm still trying to figure out how all of these things are going to fit in my suitcases.  I'm considering abandoning the game boxes and retrieving them on a future trip home when I drive!

--Mrs. Pollard

My Ikea Trip

I know I said I wouldn't blog while I'm on vacation, but I made a trip to Ikea and wanted to share a few of my finds. Since everything I bought had to fit in my suitcases I was a little limited... but that also kept my spending under control (which my husband appreciates).

I feel like I can always use a timer for something in my classroom and this one was cute and only $1.99!

Also for only $1.99 this little duster will be perfect for the kids to clean up little messes.

I plan to mount this somewhere, possibly on a side or back of a shelf. The bar was $1.99 and each container was 99 cents. I will use one container for sharp pencils, one for dull pencils, and one for extra erasers.

For 99 cents, I couldn't pass up this two sided frame for classroom pictures.

Well, this is an exhausting task on an iPod so that's all for now. (Please excuse any typos.)

Relaxing....

So, Tuesday was my last teacher workday and I hopped on the plane back home Wednesday morning. I'm going to give myself a relaxing break from working on school stuff to enjoy my family and friends. I got to meet my 2 month old nephew!!! I can never really stop thinking about school so I'll be brainstorming along the way and get back to blogging I July.

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer vacation!

Mission Organization

Over the past three years I have tried many different ways of organizing things in my classroom.  I feel like I've finally settled into what works for me.  One thing I'm very excited about using next year is a hanging file system for the wall.  (A few months ago, Primary Perspective blogged about these amazing hanging files.)

I found it at www.mardel.com.  It's called a 'filetastic'.  The best part is that it comes in black and zebra.  (I hate the traditional red and blue of pocket charts.)  You can also get some super cute file folders at this website.

There are 12 pockets on this file.  Here are what I plan to use them for:

1.  multiple class record lists (put a post-it on the last one saying it's the last copy)

2.  extra new student packets (like you give at the beginning of the year)

3.  lunch folder (we have to turn in daily slips with our lunch count)

4.  attendance folder

5.  behavior notes (generic forms to fill in as needed)

6.  medication logs (we have to administer and track medication in the classroom)

7.  P.E.Ps (so they're always available)

8.  curriculum & planning (grade level documents-- word lists, curriculum maps, etc.)

9.  professional development (handouts & record of what I attend)

10.  important documents (things I'll need to refer back to later)

11. Pizza Hut Book It certificates

12.  other (random stuff I don't know what else to do with)

--Mrs. Pollard

Last Week of School

The official countdown is on.... 4 1/2 days left!  I still have loads of paperwork to finish up in the next week, but I also have 23 little ones to entertain who are just as anxious for summer.  We'll be starting the week with Babbling Abby's Popcorn Adjective unit, making Father's Day tie books (I'm sorry I can't remember which blog I found this on), and a memory book from The First Grade Parade.  We will also have our end of the year awards this week.

Although I'm not doing a full-blown camping unit this week, we will talk about camping and complete a few activities.  I'm sharing these camping activities with you for free!

Click {Here} to Download all 3

--Mrs. Pollard