Let's Talk Math

Hello bloggy friends!! 

Today I am talking math with ya! 

At my school the name of the game is NO WORKSHEETS! And, yes, recording sheets are considered work sheets! I don't even try to argue...it's not worth it! 

Really though it's not all that bad. I rarely used sheets in math anyway so there weren't many tears shed on this one! 

So, you ask...what DO you do for math centers??

Here are a few of my math centers (please ignore the fact that some are winter...I've been a slacker taking pics this year. You'll still get the idea...)

Let me start by saying that I do the SAME centers over & over...gasp!! 

No, really...I just change the difficulty, theme, standard, whatever to keep the centers feeling like they are fresh and new. This is a huge WIN for me because I never have to reteach how to do a center after they have learned the game. I do 4/5 centers a week & the kiddos know how to play 10 different centers. This is how I can keep things feeling new but the kiddos know how to play them! 

 This is a roll & ___ game. It may be roll & add 1, add 10, take away 1, take away 2...the list goes on. BUT, because they already know the premise of the game I can change it to whatever I see that they need & they automatically know how to play it.(I think that this game was actually a "Mittens PLUS 10" game...can you say typo?)

 I am a huge fan of getting the kiddos moving so I usually have a "____ the Room" center. It may be add the room, count the room, subtract the room, solve the room....again, the possibilities are endless. I can change it to whatever my kiddos need. Below you can see a "Measure the Room" center. I teach them how to record their work in their math journals so NO WORKSHEETS! Win!!

How easy is it to throw out some 10 frames, manips, & flash cards? Again, the possibilities...

Holy cow...domino centers can last forever! This time I had them doing commutative property of addition. You can do addition, subtraction, +10, -10, +1, -1, ...I could go on & on & on.... ha! Go to the dollar store & grab some cheapie dominoes & you will be set! 

Well, I hope that you found some of this to be helpful!

If you hung on this long I have a cutie freebie for ya! 

It one of my Roll & Add games with the apple theme. So fun for the fall! There are 2 versions so you can differentiate. 

PLEASE leave some comment love if you snag it! 

2015-2016 Classroom Picture OVERLOAD!!

Hello Bloggy Friends!

The 2015-2016 school year is off and running! My students scampered in bright & early on Thursday morning. 

Here is what they saw...

This is taken from the doorway looking in.

This was taken from the back of the room to the front. My door is just to the right out of the pic.

It all look a little naked right now until I get some student work up!

This is where the small group magic will be happening!

My window with the cutie pie curtains that my mom made for me! 

My writing & science boards that hang above the small group teacher table. You can't tell here, but they have polkadot border & solid colored border. I love the layered look! 

My math board...I LOVE the pennant banners! So much cuter than the boring old die cut letters!

I am a Conscious Discipline classroom so I have to have a "Safe Spot". This is where they come to chill out, calm down, & just collect themselves so that they can  focus on learning....

I had the art teacher paint this tree for me. I took pictures of all the families that came to Open House & I will add them to our class family tree. It hangs above our safe spot so that they can be comforted by seeing their families! <3

My naked word wall...

A closer shot....

The other side of my board...I know, boring! It will get filled up!! I promise!

My calendar board...again, LOVE the polkadot layered borders! 

Here is my cutie pie rocker that my mom painted & made a pillow for! Just love it!!

My counter/ sink area. Yep, my mom made these cutie curtains, too! I love them. They hide my construction paper & read alouds! I hate to see clutter!

I got these awesome pencil containers & inspirational sign from Target. They rocked the dollar spot this year!  

This is my door!

This is my job board that also doubles as a name chart. You can get the job cards here.

My reading board...excuse the nakedness!

Social Studies...

This hanging file will hold their personal data folders...they will be tracking their own data. I'll blog about that later! 

My class leveled library...The rainbow carts will hold unfinished work.

These signs hang over my table groups. They all have a different color & shape. I love to squeeze in learning whenever I can. I may call them by color, by shape, or by attributes of their shapes...oh, the possibilities....

My mini lesson area. The red step was made by my stepdad because my board doesn't go up & down and most of my littles couldn't reach the board! Problem solved! 

I put these on my mean, harsh flourescent lights...the lighting is so much softer now. It made a HUGE difference! 

This sign hangs outside of my door with my class list.

I got this banner from First Grade Blue Skies & it is SUPER cute!!

More banner...

The whole wall leading up to my door....excuse the trash can! 

This is leading up to my door from the other side of the hallway...

Well, that's it!

I'll post again when I get more stuff up & you can see the cuteness!!

Thanks for looking!! 

Reflection #3 Now Hiring!

Hello Blog Friends!

Today I am blogging about classroom jobs.

Work it!! 

I have always had classroom jobs for my kiddos. They LOVE to have a job & contribute to our classroom community. To be honest, I LOVE to have the extra help with things around the room.

I don't usually have a job for every student...but, now that we are using Conscious Discipline, every student gets a job so that they will feel like they are a part of the school family. 

Now, managing 20 jobs can be a bit cuh-ray-zee overwhelming! So, I picked jobs that I genuinely need & that are VERY important to the functioning of my classroom.

Here's a rundown:

1. Line Leader- duh, someones gotta get us where we're going.

2. Door Holder- don't let the door hit ya....well, you know!

3. Trash Helper- This person helps with trash in the room & in the cafeteria.

4. Chair Stacker- stack those chairs at the end of the day!

5. Snack Helper- our school provides snack. This person goes to get it & passes it out.

6. Recess Bag- carries out the bag of balls, chalk, jump ropes, etc...we gotta play!

7. Lights- another fave...who knew flipping the light switch could be so exhilarating!?

8. Computer Kid- turn 'em on, sign 'em in, & at the end of the day shut 'em down!  This one takes a very responsible kiddo!

9. Teacher Helper- this kiddo is at my beck and call! There's no telling what this kiddo will have to do! I do make sure that this kiddo has stuff to do every day! 

10.Table Washer- washes those lunch tables...also wipes down class tables when we have spills & such.

11. Fork Collector- collects everyone's forks at lunch & gives them to the dishwasher...gross but they LOVE this one.

12. Sweeper- sweeps the cafeteria after lunch & sweeps the classroom at the end of the day. 

13. Paper Passer- another fave...passing out paper to everyone is AWESOME!

14. Mailbox Manager- this one gets everyone's agenda & homework folder out of the mailboxes & puts them on student desks so that I can fill them out before Operation Pack Up! 

15. Calendar- before the bell rings in the morning, this kiddo puts the new date on the calendar AND...wait for it...gets to write it ON. THE. BOARD!! WOWZA!!

16. Heart Helper- This one passes out the class hearts before morning meeting. Read about that HERE.

17. Cubby Kid- This kid takes care of one of my biggest pet peeves!! He makes sure that everyone's backpacks, jackets, etc are IN the cubbies...not on the floor, not on the counter, IN the cubbies! 

18. Sink Cleaner- We eat breakfast in the classroom so the sink gets GROSS! This person cleans it, strains all the cereal (gross, right?!), & makes sure that the soap & paper towels are stocked.

19. Librarian- I am super picky about this job! This kiddo makes sure that the leveled library is on point! She has to re-file all the books that are re-shopped everyday back into their proper place. 

20. Caboose- Someone's gotta close the door when we leave the room, right! :)

So, that's a run down of my jobs...

I rotate the jobs each Monday so that everyone gets a new job each week. It's really simple, works really well for me, & it is STRESS free! Before ANY jobs are assigned I make sure that I have REALLLLY taught the expectations & procedures for each job. If I see that a job is not being done to my liking I stop the presses & reteach it right then & there! 

So, that's it!! 

If you've hung around this long you will be glad to know that there is a FREEBIE in it for you!! 

Woo Hoo!!

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE leave feedback & click the " FB Share" button or "Pin it" button in my TpT store! :)

It's "A" Day!

Hello everyone!

Yesterday I blogged about my classroom end of year ABC countdown. 

You can read about that here.

So, today I kicked it off with A day.

Today was Animal Art...woo hoo!

Remember, I am keeping things easy peasy cheesy & SUPER low prep. I grabbed these farm animal templates from my awesome friend Reagan Tunstall...ain't she just the greatest?!

These were soooooo easy for my kiddos to cut and paste & the extra bonus was how quiet they were! 

They took this seriously!!

I let them pick from pigs, goats, sheep, and horses.

Here's how they turned out...

I just love those curly tailed pigs! 

(That black horse is a little wonky, haha)

I will have them all mounted on the green butcher paper with the barn...

Just didn't get that far today! :)

Next up?

B Day

Check back tomorrow to see our fun!! :)

Spring Math Freebie!

Hello Everyone!!

I have been kicked back & enjoying my awesome Spring Break!!

Buuuttttt, I still have a little teacher brain going on! 

A few weeks ago I found these in the dollar spot at Target:

Aren't they the cutest Spring-y erasers!

So I made some math centers to go right along with them!

For this one, I put erasers in zip lock bags and put them around the room. They find the bag, count & write the number, then add 10 more & write the new number. So, for example, I would put bunny erasers in a baggy & write an "a" on the bag with a sharpie. That way they will know where to record the info. 

BTW~ I try to make everything a 1/2 sheet to save on copies! 

 In this center they will choose a bag of erasers, measure each item, & record the results. I would have a baggies of bunnies, carrots, or chicks already prepared. I don't allow them to switch baggies (you get what you get...) that way I don't have any confusion & ruckus! :)

Here I will have plastic eggs labeled with sharpies for each of the letters on this sheet. Then put in different amounts of chicks, bunnies, & carrots for them to write & solve addition problems. You can do 2 & 3 digit addition problems...the possibilities are endless! 

Click HERE if you would like a copy of the recording sheets! 

PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT if you like them!

I am more likely to share more if I know that people are actually getting use out of them!! 

Happy Spring!!