I have survived!

The first week was a massive success!   I couldn't have done it without the love and support from my family, boyfriend, teacher-friends, and administration.  This past May when I made the jump to first grade, I was terrified!  I ended the last week of school in my Principal's office...in tears.  Not because I was sad, but because I was overwhelmed.  I had just finished my second year of teaching and now I was moving grades?!  I had finally gotten my feet settled (I have now realized that moving a "new" teacher at the start of his or her career is not uncommon).  Thankfully, I was reassured by my principal and VP that I was going to do great and that they had plenty of confidence in me.  I am EXTREMELY blessed to have such a supportive and loving admin team.  

Week #1 was a small glimpse into rest of the school year.  We had several laughs, a few tears, and a lot of fun.  I have 22 beautiful boys and girls that are eager to learn, 19 of which I already knew from last year.  And man oh man was that a plus.  For my kiddos that were a little anxious about first grade, having a teacher they already knew, interacted with, and recognized was wonderful.  It made the transition that much easier.

Office Buckle and Gloria... you never disappoint when it comes to talking about rules.

My littles got the chance to listen to Dr. M as she read What pet would you get? by. Dr. Seuss.  Such a cool time for them to get to know their principal.

Nothing like ending the week with new friends and new friendship bracelets.

Week #2 is our first full week (last week were half days because of after school assessments) and I'm pumped to see growth, more laughs, less tears, and more of my littles' personalities.  Bring.  It.  On. 

Lord, please help me stay positive when things get rough, encourage me when I feel like quitting, and give me peace when my patience is tested.  I dedicate this year to you.     

Top 5 School Preps

As the anticipated first day of school approaches all of those feelings of anxiety, lack of confidence and being 100% overwhelmed have gone away.  This teacher is SO excited to start this year off.  I am going to share my top 5 favorite school preps that I have been working on.  

{{These are not in particular order}}

I.Getting my classroom ready to go.

So I have been with my Dragons going on 3 years, and every year I change rooms.  I'm crossing my fingers that this will be my forever home.  When I found out that I was "graduating" with my kiddos, I shoved everything into my new room and left for the summer.  I was so anxious about the move that I needed a couple of weeks of non-school related activities.  Now I feel so much more confident going into the school year because everything is ready to go!  

Day 1: I promise there is a classroom under there...

Day 2: It's coming together!  

Momma B came to help me out :)
THANKS MOM! 

Everyday after this was a blur.  I was up there every day for a week working my booty off.  Thank you for my parents, boyfriend, friends, and little bro for helping me out.  

Click on this link so you can see more of my FINISHED classroom 

2. Organizing my classroom library.

Man oh man, this was quite the experience!  I didn't realize how many picture books I had accumulated in just 2 short years.  Last year I organized my books based on board themes (math, science, writing, reading, etc).  Let's just say that find a book was such a hassle and it usually led to frustrated mumbles under my breath.  

These dividers were bursting at the seams!
I didn't have enough of them causing me to
loosely place them in baskets.

BUT this year, thanks to Momma B, I have these amazing magazine holders, turned book dividers.  I have sorted them based on specific themes (fairy tales, first day of school, weather, etc).  Praise the Lord I got this finished!  Finding books will be a hundred times better this year.  Hopefully I can keep it up!

They are made of rather thin plastic,
but they worked out perfectly! 

They will find their spots on the bookshelf soon! 

3. Setting up my Meet the Teacher flip-chart on the Promethean Board.

Every Dragon teacher has a Promethean Board (aka SmartBoard) in his or her classroom.  I have a love-hate relationship with this thing.  Like most technology, it glitches up sometimes and when it does, it does BIG.  But I found this template on Promethean Planet and I decided to change it up some and attempt to successfully use the PB.  It took a while but I am so happy with the results. Our school wide theme is "Dr. Seuss" so I thought it appropriate to go with different Dr. Seuss characters, background, and inspired fonts. 

My favorite page.  The welcome page!  

This page is where I will have all of the parents
and kids sign when they walk in.

Where do we go for Encore (aka Specials)?
Click on the hats to find out!   

Drag the times across and find the magical schedule.   

Move the film strip and magnifying glass
to find out more about Miss. B.

4. Making ELA and Math RtI binders.

Professional development workshops are in full swing.  I went to one recently that was all about RtI, Response to Intervention.  These three words can spark a whole lot of fear into teachers.  Beware.  For Dragon teachers, K-12, we have an online LiveBinder that has tons of research based lessons, progress monitoring, and plenty of differentiation for your kids at risk.  This workshop was a time where we could explore this wonderful resource.  After exploring, I decided that I would make RtI binders for easier access to lessons.  Well, this was an undertaking, but wroth every second.  Excuse me, worth every hour.  I'm excited to have these binders at my fingertips so when I need them, I can pull out already made copies, games and flashcards. 

**Unfortunately, this is only permitted for Dragon teachers.  If you are interested in having an organized, all in one, online, collaborative resource, I would highly suggest you explore this website and present it to your administration.**

5. Launching Dragons in First!

Setting up Dragons in First would not have happened if it weren't the help of my fantastic friend Mrs. Allison and her tech savvy hubby.  Thank you guys for helping me out!

And those are my top 5!  What are your favorite back to school activities?