Progress!

I have been able to spend the past 2 1/2 days in my classroom, finally---after having SO many different ideas go through my head this summer, and seeing all the wonderful rooms out there.  It's been nothing less than stressful.  My own kiddo started FIRST grade Monday!  Ohmiword...  does it ever get easier sending off your little ones?!?!?!  He was so excited because he gets to ride the bus this year to and from school.  We are lucky to have someone in the neighborhood that watches kids.  My 2 year old decided to be ALMOST potty trained last Friday.  I was secretly hoping to have him do it this summer, but he had other ideas.  (my 6 year old was potty trained at 24 months-miraculously!  Cause I did nothing with him to speed it along!)  Well, he was dry all weekend and even woke up dry Monday morning and I could see that light at the end of the diaper tunnel....  Till I picked him up from his first day of "school."  He refused to go for them....  :*(  He isn't a good transition kiddo.  It took him WEEKS to get used to daycare last year.  He just loves his momma! ;)

Add the home stress to the fact that tomorrow is my first inservice day back and Thursday is also another inservice-but there's actually a session in MY CLASSROOM!  (not to mention I am somewhat responsible for the session with another first grade teacher...)

ah.  sorry for all that.  It's nice to get it out there---and I'm sure there has to be SOMEONE somewhere that can relate or know what it's like.  All of you can relate to that back to school stress.  :)

Here's some pictures of what is going on in my room.  It's not completely done, but it's "sit-able" for an inservice!  {sorry the pics were taken with my phone... so they aren't that great}

  This is my new "clip chart" that I'm trying out this year.  I still have to work out the logistics of it, due to our switching classes---but I think I have a good start. UPDATED:  Click on the photo below to find this clip chart on Teachers Pay Teachers.  I added a white background option and certificates for those who exceed expectations within the file!!!

I am planning on having the kids put their clip up at the beginning of class.  There are pink containers on the table there for each class (homeroom, math, reading).  I plan on making it the kids' responsibilities to come to me if they had to move their clip (either up for a bead or down for a "talk" or note home, etc.)  When they leave my room, they will remove their clip and place it back in the bin.  {that's the idea right now anyway}

Close up.  Students will get a pink, blue or purple bead if they move up.  We will be using BragTags, so it will go right on that chain.  {More about BragTags down below!}

As you can see, I've embraced the owl obsession that started with my room last year!  =)
My word wall-I completely redid, which was such a big time consuming project!  My word wall is up in the back of my classroom.  I leave all words up all year due to having such a range of students.  I color coded this word wall to match the Dolch list.  I don't have an up close pic, but the preprimer words are outlined in red, next level is orange, next is yellow... etc.  It really made it colorful and I can envision using the word wall by having them find certain colored words in addition to other things I would have them do!

(I somehow lost my X owl...  and the color printer is down at school and I'm out of ink at home!  I'll just tell the kids he flew the roost!  hee hee)

Here's my job chart.  It is behind my desk.  (sorry for the horrible lighting on these...)  The nests are the jobs, and the owls are going to have their names.  I'm not sure which owls I'm going to use yet.  I created one last year (and forgot) and just made new different ones this week...  ;)

 (I *think* I'm leaning towards the owls above)

I like these colorful owls, but I am already using them in their cubbies and also in the bulletin board below...

 My BragTag display!!!  (I'm just missing the BragTags to hang.  School doesn't start for us for another week.)

This display is half of a bulletin board in the front of my room.  Below each owl is a push pin where their chains will hang.  It's all within reach of the kiddos-which is important! :)

Speaking of BragTags!  I just started a fabulous giveaway for them!  THREE lucky readers will get 35 tags and 35 neck chains.  Click on the pic below to go to the post to enter!

 I wanted to also share a random worksheet/flip book that I keep handy.  It is a great thing/tool to have for substitutes to do with students.  I do at least one with my kiddos early on in the year and then it's always a go-to tool for those last minute sub plans or even for when I have to write sub plans.  Just choose a book for the sub to read and then have the kids work on that!  (or I even have my kiddos pick their own book to read and complete it, if it is towards the end of the year-or work with a partner to complete!)  Click on the picture below to grab yourself a copy.  It's important that when you print it out, to leave it the way it comes out so that you just put it right into the copier to make sure that it copies correctly so when you fold it, it makes the booklet right! :)  (you also need to double side copy)

Don't forget the BragTag giveaway!  It ends at midnight September 1st!!!!!!!!!

BragTag Giveaway!

I am SO excited to be using the BragTags that I have been reading about out there in blog land.  I have been working long hours the past 2 days in my classroom and have finally created a space where my kids will be displaying their BragTags, when not wearing them.  They will not be taking them home mostly in fear that it won't return to school.  I am super bummed that I did not snap a picture of the bulletin board where the tags will hang.  I have been in overload trying to get my room ready for an in-service on Thursday in MY ROOM!  Sunday and Monday were my first two days in there sans little people (that make a MUCH bigger mess than they should...).  I will have pictures. UPDATE!  Click HERE to see pics of the bulletin board and more of my room!!!

My first grade team and I decided to get the Motivation Pack.  Starting in first grade, we group kids for reading and math groups and switch them around to different classes.  Because of that, I will be seeing a LOT more students than the 22 I have on my list for my Homeroom!  Thankfully, they have sets that accommodate a larger class size.  What that means to us, is that I'll be able to use them with all the students I see!  The best part is that many of them are personalized with our names, so the kiddos could get the same tag from 3 different teachers, but it is okay--cause they are a little different! 

A little side to the BragTags-I'm also attempting the "clip chart" behavior system (pictures will come later with my BragTag display pic! Click HERE to see pics of it!!!) with my firsties this year.  When/if they get above green, I will have the coordinating "pony" bead that they can add to their necklace!  I can already envision the necklaces at the end of the year, looking all colorful and filled! 

Kim, over at imagestuff.com (the makers of BragTags) is super sweet and is very fast when asking questions and/or ordering!  That customer service makes the whole concept of the BragTags even more exciting!  I just love ordering from companies that I love!  :)

Check out some of these great pics for Red Ribbon Week!  I am IN LOVE with the monkey!  Isn't it the cutest?!

This is the one that "sold" me on BragTags last year.  I gave them to my kids at the end of the year as a little gift (cause we weren't using them all year).  I wrote with a sharpie on the back <3 Mrs. Roost 2012. 

Have you seen enough??????  Guess what!  THREE lucky readers will win 35 BragTags and 35 chains!  The contest is simple.  You need to follow imagestuff.com's blog and my blog!  Simple as that!  Contest ends at midnight September 1st!  I'll announce the winners Sunday, September 2!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Therapeutic Thursday Link Up

 So what do you do to de-stress during the year?  Two years ago I found a great app called "Couch to 5K" where it gets you ready to run a 5K.  I found it to be awesome for stress relieving.  (However, I didn't make it past week 3, cause it ended up getting cold)  I would take out my baby OR the 4 year old in the jogging stroller, cause I liked the company.  Once my 4 year old turned 5 and could ride his bike without training wheels, both would go with me.  I would do this 2-3 times a week if I could and it was only for 30 minutes.  I would plan a dinner that would go into the oven for at least that amount of time and then hit the road to run.  {I also need to add that I am NOT a runner.  Yeah, I played field hockey-but running had been SO incredibly boring to me.  This app also plays music while I run that I choose.  There's also a voice that tells me to walk, or run, or that I'm half way done!)

View the app that I have HERE  (I couldn't get the pic to copy for me...)  It's called Ease into 5K now.

Then last year started, and I lost track of how to find time to run.  I also found last year to be extremely stressful.  I am finding a hard time balancing teaching first graders, while also having kids at home the same age.  So, I started to reflect a little this summer, and I think that I need to try this app again, finding time at least 2-3 times a week.

Another stress-relieving thing I like to do is drive home (well, to pick up the kids-but they are a 20-30 minute drive) and turn the music up loud!  I drive a lot of back roads, so I don't have to worry about looking funny!  lol

Last, I love to have retail therapy!  But, oh man... that can really hurt the wallet!  I'm a bargain shopper and love to find deals at CVS and grocery stores, but had lost time to do that too, once I had number 2!  I've currently fallen in love (a little later than most teachers!) with the LOFT!  Where the heck have I been on these deals?  We even have  LOFT outlet near us, and I actually get BETTER deals at the real store at the mall!

I can't wait to find new ways to de-stress.  I think the key is to find time for myself.  I start to feel a little guilty when school comes around because I feel like if I take time for myself, I'm missing time spent with my kids.  I need to come to the realization (and BELIEVE IT) that I need that time to myself to ENJOY my family and life more.  I'd really like to find a ZUMBA class that is at a convenient time (not to mention find some ZUMBA buddies!  It's always more fun with a friend.)

Speaking of retail therapy----make sure you enter to win a free piece of jewelry of YOUR choice (up to $100!) from Lia Sophia!   My awesome friend just started selling (who was a teacher who is now a Dean of Students at another district-cause she's THAT awesome!)  Check out my post HERE or on the pic to enter and read about it.

 What could be better than winning some new 'bling' for back to school?!

Thanks for hopping by!  Make sure you check out the other fabulous blogs for their tips for relaxing!  Click on the picture at the top to take you there!

Technology Tuesday Link Up

 Okay, so I missed Monday... :(  Almost missed Tuesday!  This will be short and sweet.  I wanted to let you know, if you don't already, about this fabulous site called Sign Up Genius!  The site really is GENIUS!  It has saved my life with coordinating parent volunteers to getting donations for class projects!  It's free and SUPER easy to use!  Click on the pic to go take a peek!

Ways I used it:
Donations and volunteers for our Harvest Party
Donations for items for my 5 senses unit that I did (needed random items like cotton balls to rice)
Parent Volunteers for our First Grade Field day (needed parents to run games)
Parent sign up for having lunch with their first grader (on field day)

This year, I'll use it the same plus-add times for parents to sign up to be Mystery Readers!  It'll save me a TON of time by having the slots out there and parents can just choose what works best for them!  Oh, and the site can send a reminder email!  Woohoo!

Thanks for stopping by!  Check out Blog Hopping for more great ideas too!  (click on the picture at the top of the page) Don't forget to check out my amazing Lia Sophia Giveaway that is going on NOW!  You could win a free piece of jewelry (up to $100!!!!!)  Read about it here!!!!

News, Freebie and teacher BLING!

I'm linking this freebie up to Freebie Friday on Blog Hoppin'!  Welcome Blog Hoppers!  Thanks for hopping by! :)

 Lots to post about today!  First, thanks to all who entered the Samson's Classroom giveaway!  It truly is a wonderful site.  Here's some good news.  My followers can get Samson's Classroom for their very own classroom for the L.O.W. price of-------- TEN DOLLARS!  That's right!  $10!  You have until August 28th to grab that awesome deal!  {Regular price is $80!!!)  Use the code: RTR  {As in Rulin' The Roost when checking out and it'll take the amount to $10}  What are you waiting for?!  GO!  {But, make sure to come back!  Cause I got some other fantastic news down below too!!!}

Let's skip to the TEACHER BLING!  Have you heard of Lia Sophia????  OMG.  My good teacher friend has now become an independent sales adviser for Lia Sophia, and I tell ya.  I'm in TROUBLE!  Well, now you might be too.  Being the awesome person she is, she is GIVING AWAY a piece of jewelry (up to $100) of your choice to one of my fabulous readers!  I'm sooooooo jealous!  I mean, I didn't even get anything!! :(  lol  I got the rafflecopter up and running-so enter now!  The contest will end next week!  {Thought the extra time with school starting everywhere would be appreciated since we allllll know how crazy the beginning of the year is!}

Check out these pictures (of course the pics don't do the jewelry justice!):

 By the way---here's some other awesome news about it. If you order through her website and mention my blog you will get $5 off your order!  Oh-and wanna have a party?!  If you book a show and mention my blog or contest or her Facebook page, you'll get a free piece of jewelry too!  {and the pieces she gives away are between $50 and $100!!!}  Don't live near PA?  Have a catalog "show" and get the SAME deal!!!!!!   Amanda says that most people who have a show usually get $200-$300 in FREE jewelry!  I have a feeling I will have some seriously fabulous fashioned followers out there, if you weren't before!  ;)  Check out her Facebook page here:  https://www.facebook.com/amandalia19

OKAY OKAY.  Now the freebie.  I was trying to think of a math game to play with my kiddos that has lots of variations to it, yet it's simple enough for them to learn and remember.  Enter-the old game of "War" or "Compare."  We all played it.  Our kids play it now (and even in the classroom--and also if you have some of my math stations!)  I created a fabulous freebie for you too.  You'll need to grab it from my Teachers Pay Teachers store due to TOU (term of use) with the graphics.  It's a basic game of compare, but I added some "cuteness" to it with some apple kids.  I also included directions for kids, directions for you and also a set of black and white masters.  Click on the picture to take you to my store to grab a copy!  Thank you for following me and supporting me through this crazy journey!

Now-----here's the rafflecopter!  Don't forget to enter to win some bling for back to school (or to have for conferences or back to school night?!?!?!?)
 a Rafflecopter giveaway