Motivational Monday {Linky Party}

Sara at Smiling in Second Grade, Kimberly at The Learning Tree, and Danielle at Classroom Cupcakes are hosting a fabulous new linky party called Motivational Monday.

Isn't the picture just so lovely! It definitely gives me some motivation to get through the day!

With the hurricane brewing on the horizon this linky party is perfect to add a little boost to my day.
This morning we took a little trip to the beach to see what was going on. Here are some pictures of the big waves during low tide, 12 hours before the storm is really expected to hit at high tide during a full moon when they are expected to be 3 times higher. Yikes!

 (big huge waves out at sea that...)

(crash over the wall all the way across the street)

It was crazy! All the roads leading down to the beaches are closed and there are police everywhere. We aren't taking this lightly which is a good thing. I'll be glad when it is over! Hope everyone stays safe out there!

Now for the motivation because we all know we could use it! Here are some of my favorite quotes that get me through even the toughest days!

Well there you have it! I hope you have some motivation and positive energy sending your way this Monday! Head on over to one of the host's blogs and link up! I can't wait to see what you have to share!

Leaf Man and Hurricane Sandy

This week we read the book Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert.

I just love this book! The children can really relate to Fall and love looking for all the objects and creatures in the pictures. After reading, we decided to make our own Leaf Men. It was so much fun! I gathered some of the best leaves off the ground and we got down to work. Here are some of our creations!

 (a puppy)

 (a leaf man)

(a leaf child)

This was such a great activity to let the children go and have fun creating. I loved how every one came out so unique and has such personality. The children did such a wonderful job with them! It was a highlight of the week for sure. 

It is so sad to think that after the next couple of days "fall" could be over. These hurricane winds are most likely going to blow all the beautiful fall leaves off the trees. So many of the leaves haven't even changed color yet. It is such a shame. 

Hopefully the hurricane won't do too much damage and everyone will be safe and sound. I am all set and braced for the weather. I am just hoping we don't lose power for 5 days like with Irene. With blogging, that would be no fun! I would have to take a day off school just to catch up on all the great posts! Keeping all my East coast friends in my prayers! Stay safe!

Where Do You Get Your Graphics? {A Linky}

There is a very fun linky party going around the blogosphere hosted by Second Grade Math Maniac. It's the spectacular Where Do You Get Your Graphics linky party.

What teacher blogger isn't obsessed with clip art right? I am not at bad as Shauna who has a whopping 624 clip art folders. Yikes! But I am still young. I have many more years to catch up!

Here are some of my favorite clip art sites!

1. The 3am Teacher

 Love her blog! She always has the best clip art sets and always gives away such wonderful freebies!

2. Melonheadz

Her clipart is so full of personality and every piece is so unique. Love it all especially the personalized Melonheadz.

3. Dots of Fun

 Tammy's clipart is my newest obsession. Go show her some love!

4. KPM Doodles

Love how everything is so skritchy scratchy yet beyond adorable!

5. Scrappin Doodles

 What can I say besides this website is filled with the cutest clip art you will ever find! The faces are precious!

So there you have it. My top 5 clip art sources. There really are many many more wonderful ones. I could stay here all day naming them for you but then I would be responsible for you going broke from a clip art addiction and that wouldn't be fair now would it? Happy clip art shopping!

Very Special Weekly Wednesday Freebie!

I have a very special surprise for you all for this week's edition freebie!
I tried my hand at making some graphics for you all! My clip art didn't turn out the way I wanted to be able to share with you all but my frames did! So I am sharing 10 frames for you all to use! My terms of use are very simple. Either post my blog button or give a shout out with my blog's link on your credit page. I hope you enjoy them! I look forward to making many more to come!

Tell Me Something Good Linky Party

♪ ♫ Tell me something good ♫ ♪
Great song that inspires a great linky party!
I am linking up with Jennifer at Rowdy In First Grade for her Tell Me Something good Linky Party.

 
Something Good At School: I just learned that I will be going into Kindergarten on Halloween to participate in their fun activities. It's in a district where they actually can go full out and celebrate so I'm very excited! I will be sure to let you know of any fun activities I see!

Something Good At Home: This isn't really something to do with home but last week I was very upset to find out that X Factor was all messed up from the World Series. Tonight they are replaying that episode. I am very excited to watch! Those young teens are so talented! And Pretty Little Liars was on tonight! Oh snap that show was intense! I love it! But I can't wait until January for the season premiere. Why must they taunt me like this! I cannot take it! Do any of you watch it? Please tell me you do! I need to vent! 

Go link up! I love to hear all the good news in life when negativity is all that seems to surround! 

Come back tomorrow for my super special Weekly Wednesday freebie! I have a great one planned for you all!

First Year Bliss Linky Party

Michelle, aka The 3am Teacher, is celebrating her 1st blogiversary this week. If you don't know who she is, you must be living under a rock! She is one of the most talented artists that I know and just a genuinely kind individual. I know she has helped me out immensely on my journey as a blogger. If you are not already a follower of her blog, head on over and get following!

Michelle is hosting this fabulous linky party called First Year Bliss Linky.

All you have to do to link up is share your favorite memory from your first year of teaching. It's that simple! Everyone has a memory to share! It will be so much fun sharing these great memories! This linky is super special because everyone who links up gets a special surprise from Michelle and one lucky winner will win an item from her TPT store! What a great prize! Michelle has enabled voting on links so go back and vote for your favorite memory.


Here is my favorite memory...


Now today is exactly 2 months since my first post as a blogger. Certainly not anywhere near a year. However, I have been so overwhelmed with the amazing support I have received in such a short time. I would have never imagined that the blogging community would be so welcoming. (What was I thinking, of course you all would be welcoming!) The day I reached 100 followers was the biggest milestone my little blog has hit so far. I really wanted to celebrate with a giveaway however I didn't want to celebrate alone. I just decided to take the plunge and reach out to some of my favorite bloggers, many of whom had never even seen my blog. I was so stunned by the results. Every single person that I contacted was more than willing to donate some fabulous prizes to my giveaway. I couldn't believe how generous these bloggers were. I was just so impressed with the kindness that there is in the blogging world. Everyone always seems to focus on the negative, but here, it is so positive and such a friendly community. I have never felt so at home in my life. I cannot wait to hit more milestones and celebrate with you all in the future. I know that I will always have your support and friendships to guide me. Here's to another great 2 months of blogging and many more to come!
 
Do you have a favorite memory to share? I'm sure you do! Head on over and link up! This is going to be a great one! I can't wait to read them all!

We Have A Winner!

Drumroll please.....
The very lucky winner is:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Teacher Kirra!

She is an Australian teaching English as a Foreign Language in Mexico!
She is a brand new blogger out there so show her some love!
Here is a link to her blog: TeacherKirra:MaestraKirra
I will be contacting you shortly as well as the bloggers who are donating prizes.
Kirra, start planning what prizes you want!
There's lots to choose from!

If you didn't win, don't fret!
There are some other great giveaways in the making!
You won't want to miss out on!

The Giveaway Ends Today!

I just want to give a shoutout to all my new followers! Thanks so much for following! I hope to provide you with many resources as well as learn a great amount of new information from you all!

This is just a quick reminder that my giveaway ends at midnight tonight! Hurry on over and enter before it is too late! Someone is going to be one very lucky winner! Maybe it will be you?

Weekly Wednesday Freebie #8

Can it really be that I have been at this Weekly Wednesday freebie thing for two months now? That's crazy! Today's post is short and sweet! I have a super busy day today! Gotta get through this week! Is it Winter break yet?

Here's a fun little ghost game for you! Hope you enjoy!

(Click the image cover to download)
 And because I'm being a little cheater pants, I'm also linking this post up for Freebie Friday and a Manic Monday. My days are all mixed up this week. Something new Sunday on a Tuesday, Freebie Friday and Manic Monday on a Wednesday. What will be next?

Something New Sunday & Monday Made It

Marie over at The Hands On Teacher created this amazingly fun new linky party! It's called Something New Sunday.

This is definitely going to be one of my favorite linkies! It is a monthy event which gives you plenty of time to find some new things. It's a place to link up a new activity, recipe, clothes, basically anything new! The sky's the limit!

And it is also time for Monday Made it for November from Tara at 4th Grade Frolics!

For my something new that I made I am sharing my new obsession that I found via Pinterest.
What do you get when you mix nail polish, vase filler gems, super glue, and jewelry ring blanks?
The answer: Some seriously amazing new rings!

Here is the original source from Pinterest:

 (via knittingyogini)

And here are my versions:

Super pretty right? I know what I am making for Christmas and birthday gifts this year!

I hope you enjoyed this Something New Sunday and Monday Made It post. I had so much fun making them I just couldn't wait until the next linky to share!

Everyone go link up too because I want to see all the lovely new things in your lives too!

Thanksgiving Holiday Picture Book Linky Party

Books, books, and more books! My house is slowly but surely filling up with books. Pretty soon I am going to have to build an addition just to store all my teaching stuff. It's a problem but a necessity obviously! 

Chrissy over at First Grade Found Me is hosing another fabulous picture book linky party for Thanksgiving! 

And Tammy from 1..2..3..Teach With Me is hosting her book of the month linky party.

Here are some of my favorite November/Thanksgiving books! It was so hard to narrow it down to even this many. I am a book-a-holic! Here are my top 10 books!

1. 10 Fat Turkey's

This is a hilarious book that your class is sure to love! It reinforces number sense too which is a plus! 

2. The Littlest Pilgrim

This is an adorably sweet story of friendship which children can relate to.

3. A Plump and Perky Turkey

A fun and humorous book with a great rhyming pattern! 

4. Thanks for Thanksgiving

A great book to talk about what you are thankful for.

5. The Night Before Thanksgiving

Another wonderful book in the The Night Before collection! 

6. Thanksgiving is for Giving Thanks

Another great book about giving thanks.

7. Thanksgiving Rules

A really cute book that pairs perfectly with a writing assignment on what is one of your Thanksgiving rules.

8. P is for Pilgrim

This book is geared toward an older audience but is great to use regardless. 

9.  I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie

An adorable Thanksgiving twist on There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly.

10. Fancy Nancy: Our Thanksgiving Banquet

Gotta love you some Fancy Nancy!

I hope you found some great books to use in your classroom in November for Thanksgiving! I can't wait until the next Linky! Thanks so much for hosting Chrissy and Tammy!

Fall Math Work Stations Review

Last week I was given the wonderful opportunity to test out a new set of work stations. I was very excited and jumped at the chance to test these out. Here is the wonderful product I was given to review.

Kimberly at Funky First Grade Fun created her first ever set of Math Work Stations and might I say she did a phenomenal job with them. Here are her Fall Math Work Stations:

The stations include:
1. Place Value Match (10-20)
2. Batty/Cat's Meow (addition +1 game boards)
3. Moon Madness/Magic Math Hat (subtraction -1 game boards)
4. Silly Spider (clothespin addition)
5. Silly Spider (clothespin subtraction)
6. Spooky Time (telling time to the hour and half hour)

I tested these stations out in a first grade classroom this past week and they had so much fun playing them. Here are some pictures of the centers in action! 

(Silly Spider Addition/Subtraction)

(Gone Batty/Moon Madness)

 (Place Value Match)

(Spooky Time)

These centers were just perfect to use in first grade however I am sure they could be easily adapted for Kindergarten or Second grade as well. The children had so much fun playing these activities and loved the cute clip art. The centers were a huge hit! I know we will be playing with them again soon! 

If you are interested in purchasing a copy of these Fall Math Work Stations, click here to find them on TPT. You won't be disappointed! 

Thank you so much Kimberly for this opportunity to review your math work stations. I look forward to your next set of math work stations which I'm sure will be just as amazing!