BEST. YEAR. EVER!  

I hope you all have the best school year ever this year!  I am hosting a $10 TpT gift card giveaway during the sale!  Giveaway ends on Tuesday, August 2nd at noon!  All you have to to is visit my Facebook page to enter.  Click here or click on the Facebook link above.   GOOD LUCK!

Bah Humbug Christmas Writing!

Hi ALL!

First off... HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

It's been a while since I posted... a looooonnng while to say the least!  I've taken a new position at my school, so I feel like a brand new teacher all over again!  Plus, I don't like to write (I can say that now b/c I'm just the math and science teacher, NOT writing- woot ;D!).

Ok, so this post I am about to write will totally contradict what I wrote above b/c this post is about children WRITING!  Don't get me wrong, I don't like the act of writing myself, but I LOVE to read students' writing!  Especially when they do creative writing- Oh...What Fun to read!

Even though I'm not the writing teacher, I had my 3rd graders write Christmas BAH HUMBUG (Click to find it in my shop!) stories for two reasons.  First reason, I had a lot of the same students in 2nd grade and they asked to write these stories AGAIN!  Yes, I repeat, they wanted to WRITE AGAIN!  They REMEMBER writing these stories last year!  How can I say no to that?! Secondly, I really needed an updated hall display!!!!!!

I posted pics below b/c pictures "tell" more than words and did I mention, I don't like to write?!

This first pic is from this year (2105).  Don't be jealous, I REALLY do get the lucky fire extinguisher spot!


This next pic is from my last year when I taught 2nd grade.  This picture shows off the display just a bit better!!



PS:  If you want to find me on Instagram you can find me at Abc123is4me or click the link at the top of this page!

Well, if you're still reading this, a GOLD STAR for you!  ;)

Thanks for your time and I hope you have a wonderful holiday season!

Dare to Dream!

I'm a dreamer!  I dream all the time.  Sometimes my dreams are realistic but lot of times that are not!  You can probably all relate to that!

When I opened my TpT store back in March 2013 I dreamed of all possible ways I can spend my extra earnings.  My dreams took me TpTing fulltime on the beaches of Hawaii- HA!

Like most, my store didn't take off so fast!  In fact it wasn't until the 2014- 2015 school year that I was making some decent money.  Now remember, "decent money" has a different definition for all of us!  Let's just say, if I wanted to buy a new car, I could easily afford the monthly payments.   What I started making in a month is what some make in a week or even in a day... OH MY!  Could you imagine?!

I knew I couldn't compare myself to others so I just focused on MY GOAL for my TpT earnings... A NEW KITCHEN!!  I search Pinterest all the time for kitchen ideas and pin them to my board "Kitchen Ideas"!    If you like white kitchens, you might want to check it out, if not, STAY CLEAR!!

So, last year I had a kitchen guy come over to give me an estimate.  I was SO close at going through with it until BAM, I need a new roof- boo!  Unfortunately, I could't choose between the two :(.  Oh, and I couldn't get just any roof, I had to get a metal roof (chi- chang!) due to the low pitch of my roof- WHATEVER!  So, now my kitchen is on my roof and you sometime see me up there eating- JUST KIDDING!

Now, why stop at a kitchen, I'll take a new bathroom, too!  Why not!  HA!  TpT is getting me closer to achieving my dreams but I need to keep at saving for hopefully just a little bit longer :).

Now, I would love to know... What is YOUR dream?!

Makeover Madness!

I have joined a bunch of teachers on a #tptsellerchallenge for the next four weeks!  Week one is a product makeover challenge.  I actually lucked out because I redid this product cover just yesterday!  One of my favorite clip artists came out with a safari clip art set and I had to snatch it up to help redo my Researching and Presenting Research Using QR Codes- African Animals product!  I LOVE how it turned out!  To celebrate my product cover makeover, you can grab this product ON SALE this week! 

Happy Summer!,

Northeastern Regional TpT Seller Meet-Up! #TPTFLOCK

This past weekend (May 2), 
I had the opportunity to attend the first 

Northeastern Regional TpT Seller Meet-Up 

in Binghamton, NY!  This meet-up did NOT disappoint!  

First, I was on the look out for Jennifer Jones from Hello Literacy!  My first ever "big" TpT purchase was made at HER store!  What TpT seller doesn't need tons and tons of new fonts to work with (my all time favorite being Type Hype)?  Check them out!

Here is my selfie with her... maybe just a little too up close on me, but oh well :).

Here is a picture of the awesome presentation that she presented that was helpful to all TpT sellers, both novice and veterans!  
Side note:  I wish I knew where she got that dress from!

However, before I saw Jennifer Jones, I was starstruck when I saw Amy Berner!  I was like, I know that face from the forums!  I had no idea she'd be there, too!  She took notes throughout the whole day to take back to TpT headquarters!  It's awesome to know that our suggestions/ideas are really valued! :)

The meet-up truly was AMAZING!  Not only did I spend the day talking and learning with others, I received a number of awesome swag gifts throughout the day.  Like somebody shouted out,

"It feels like we're on Oprah!"

Check out the gift tables! The first picture shows prizes donated from numerous TpT sellers, Etsy Sellers, business, etc.!  SO MUCH COOL stuff!  The second picture shows the gift exchange items we brought to exchange with another seller at the meet-up.  We each brought something that we truly love using in our classroom-- What a great idea!

Now check out almost all of the swag I took home!

Here is a picture of two friends of mine that teach and sell with me!  I'm in the middle!  To left of me is Melanie from Purposefully Primary and to the right is Kelsey from Kiddie Kreations by Kelsey... check out their stores! :)

I CAN'T WAIT until next year's Meet-Up!  I hope to see all my new friends there again plus some new faces! Until then, maybe I'll see you at the TpT Conference in Vegas this July?  I hope so!  Look for me :)

Christmas FREEBIE Giveaway Hop!

Ho, Ho, Ho!

Now who doesn't like a FREEBIE resource from TpT? I sure do! That's why I hopped on board the Christmas Freebie Giveaway Loop (Click on my Instagram icon above to join in on the fun!). Not only will I share my freebie with YOU but I will grab all the other freebies along the way, too!

Now, I don't want you to get TOO excited about my freebie unless you have iPads for your students to use. I know, not yet. Hopefully one day you will, so wishlist my item for the future. Who knows, maybe Santa School Board will grant you a class set ;-). If you do have iPads, GREAT! Download know...  What are you waiting for :-)?!?...

CLICK ON THE PIC BELOW!

Thanks and Merry Christmas!

Tsu... Giveaway!

Hi Y'All!

I jumped on board and am part of the Tsu social media!  You can find my page by clicking on the link:

 CLICK HERE!  

I'm happy to be part of this blog hop to promote it!

A teaching strategy that I like to share with you is a behavior management one.  It's nothing fancy, just simple and effective!  You say...

PUT YOUR FINGER ON YOUR NOSE IF YOU CAN HEAR ME.

I've been teaching for over a decade now AND just started saying that this year!  And, WOW!  It's so simple to say and tells me what I need to know- WHO IS OR IS NOT LISTENING ME?! lol  It's a quick way to let me know who needs a special invitation from me to listen ;).

Thank you for "hoping" to my blog!  I hope you decide to enter the Giveaway.  There is A LOT of great stuff to win!  Check it out...

Before I go, I'd like to thank Celeste, from The Education Highway,  for setting up this blog hop! There you can find a link to enter the Giveaway!

Thanks a bunch for stopping by! 

An InLinkz Link-up

And This is Why I Don't Call off!

Ugh... The dreaded substitute planning has snuck up on me for the first time this year!  How many of you HATE planning for a substitute?  Who would rather come in sick... sick as a dog?  How many of you have pulled off teaching with no voice, absolutely NO VOICE!  I bet many of you have b/c we all know...

IT'S EASIER TO GO TO WORK SICK THAN IT IS TO PLAN FOR A SUBSTITUTE!

Now, what's that on my desk?  Hour and Hours and HOURS of substitute planning!  Ahhh!

Now, I can't complain that much... I'm lucky, VERY lucky!  A lot of times there are two retired 2nd grade teachers (I am 2nd grade) who will come in to sub only for 2nd grade.  So, that means, I have a good chance that I will get one of them AND my day will go on as normal.  Such a good feeling!!  Unfortunately though, my sub plans don't get done with a snap of a finger :(.

Before anybody wishes me back to good health, I am not sick! lol.  I have a training day for iPads tomorrow that I'm actually pretty excited about!  I will get to learn more about how to get kids using iPads during math class.  Hopefully I will learn some fun ideas to share!

Until then, I wish you good health in the months to come b/c like you, it's no fun planning for a substitute teacher... no matter how good they are! :)

Until next time!,

Welcome to my redesigned blog!  I am SO excited to share my new blog with you all!  My last blog, while cute, just wasn't me!  I decided I needed a little bit of sparkle and a little bit of my favorite color purple to jazz it up!  Thanks to Blogs Fit for a Queen for the redesign!  Oh, and I can't forget about my custom made avatar from my FAVORITE clip artist on TPT- Sarah from Educlips!  THANKS SARAH!!

Now that the school year is in full swing and I'm into my routine, I plan to focus more on networking- something I just devoted a little time to and never fully understood.  I just have to tell myself, "This is all a learning process!!"

Please help me get started by connecting with me on the links above!  I'll definitely follow you back!Thanks so much for stopping by!! Have a great week with your class! :)

Giveaway Time!

Another one of my TpT friends is celebrating a birthday by hosting a GIVEAWAY!  Happy Birthday Countless Smart Cookies!  

I'm beginning to think I'm lazy b/c I just had a birthday and NO giveaway!  Well, to tell you the truth, I'm just scared of giveaways!  There's lots to learn, but until I learn, I will participate in others ;)!    Countless Smart Cookies is doing THREE giveaways.  I'm in the 1st to 2nd grade level.  Check it out!:

If you'd like to enter this one or all three, you can visit Countless Smart Cookies blog!

Thanks!! :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Powerpoint Gaming!

Powerpoint Gaming is hosting a birthday Giveaway (7 in fact!) that I'm so excited to be a part of!  My store is included in Giveaway #3:

There's a lot to win if you enter all the Giveaways or just this one!  Click on Powerpoint Gaming above to enter!

GOOD LUCK!!

Officially Back at School!

So... two days down and 178 to go!  But, who's counting ;-)!

I had a great first two days with my class!  This year I have 22 students in my class.  

I LOVE EVEN NUMBERS!!  

Don't you?!  It makes pairing them off oh so easy!  Not only do I have an even # of kiddos, but I have an even # of boys and an even # of girls.... FOR NOW- life is good! LOL

Anyhow, as you know, lots of work goes into getting your room ready for the first day!  This is a picture I took about a week before the start of the first day.  Kind of looks ready but all the wall decorations weren't up yet and some stuff wasn't put away, but I'm sharing it with you because I know I love to peek into other teachers' classrooms ;-).

PS ON THE PIC:  Take a look at my curtains.  They are cute but they've been hanging there for 10 YEARS.  I need something new... a bright burst of color perhaps?!  I'd also like for them to go all the way across the rod.  Any ideas of where I can find cute curtains...going once, going twice?!  If you can head me in the right direction (That means I decide to purchase them!) of already made ones or a person who can custom make me cute ones, I'll give you any one thing FREE from my shop!  You pick!  I'm SOOOOO desperate! 

Ok, I need to focus now!...

So, the first two days came and went just like that!  I did some fun activities that I got from a purchase from Babbling Abby specifically for 2nd grade.  Check out her back to school products if you haven't started school yet and still need some ideas!

Oh, and I, myself, have a great back-to-school FREEBIE!  I made schedule cards with clipart from my most favorite clip artist- Educlips!  

If you're interested in this FREEBIE go here: Schedule Cards. Don't forget to leave me some sweet feedback if you download.  I'd love to hear from you!!

I'll end this post with the most recent pic of my classroom with some kids having FUN with a getting to know you activity!   Seeing the students so engaged makes spending countless summer hours prepping my room, OH SO WORTH IT!

Thanks for stopping by and GOOD LUCK with back-to-school! :)

Tips and Tools for Back-to-School

I am so excited to join my PA blogger buddies in hosting Tips and Tools for Back-to-School. 

Where did the summer go?!  Some of us have been back already!  Others of us will begin very soon!  If you're like me, you might be stressing a bit.  So much prepping to do to get a primary classroom ready!  To help you with your back to school preparations, we each have a tip to share and a tool for you to use when you return to your classroom.

Establish your classroom management system right away! 

I have been teaching for over a decade now and over the years classroom management had always been something that I wanted to keep improving on!  Last year, I decided that I needed to go in a whole new direction.  I always did a stoplight approach, but I was getting nowhere as the same old kids were always moving their names.  Instead of catching kids doing the wrong thing, I decided to do the opposite.  I decided to catch them doing the RIGHT thing and rewarding them for their positive behavior :).

Since my students always tend to do best when there is a little bit of friendly competition, I decided to cluster desks together into pods and assign each group a color.  Groups work together to earn points for positive behavior.  Since I started this (mid-year last year), transition times have never been so good!  Can you say... less talking ;)!

Group Signs

My FREEBIE tool for you are the signs I use to label each pod of desks.  I label each group with a color.  Groups are usually 4-5 students large.  Depending on the size of your class, you may need to use all the colors provided or just some.

This is an example of a sign hung up in my classroom.  The pod of desks are not shown, but are below the sign.

To snag this FREEBIE, click on the link below.  Feel free to leave me some sweet feedback if you downloaded it.  I'd love to know who you are :)!

Classroom Management FREEBIE Sampler!

If your interested in learning more about my classroom management system, click on the link below!  This download includes a detailed description of the system, a place/way to record points earned, and also a variety of reward coupons for students to choose from!

Behavior Management Plan 101

Thank you for stopping by my blog today!  I hope that you enjoy the FREEBIE!  If you would like to be the first to know about new posts, giveaways, and blog hops, follow me on Bloglovin' by clicking the image below

Abc123is4me on Bloglovin'

 Don't stop reading here!  We have more tips and tools for you.  

Just follow the link to visit my blogging buddy Angie at Rulin' the Roost. 

She's one of the top 3 sellers in PA so you know she must have something awesome to share with you!

Have fun hopping!,

PA Blogger Meetup 2014

Two posts from me in one day?  How can this be?!  LOL.  I'm just so excited because I was able to meet up with some fellow TpT sellers and bloggers in Hershey, PA today!  I love Hershey, PA!  Hershey has outlets and of of course, chocolate!  You can't go wrong visiting this town!

I was a little nervous at first making the hour and half ride to meet people I've never met before!  It was like that feeling you have when you go on a first date! LOL.  However, I am SO happy that I made the trip because I truly met some fantastic people!  They were SUPER nice and fun to learn from!  Here is a picture of us...

From left to right is Angie from Rulin' the Roost, Wendy from Readwithmeabc, me, Andrew from Mr First Grade, and his wife!  

Here's another picture of me and the lovely Wendy who took the time and effort to organize this meet up!

She even made us all these goodie bags!  How cute?!

Even though I was nervous about making the trip to Hershey, I'm SO glad I did.  I learned lots (especially about Instagram!) that I can't wait to put into practice.

Our next meet up won't be until next summer...  I wish we all lived closer :(.  Until then, I'm excited to keep in contact with them in the virtual world as well as other TpT sellers and bloggers that I meet along the way :).

Christmas in July Sale & A Giveaway!!

Hi All! Happy Christmas in July! Hop on over to my store, http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Abc123is4me, for my Christmas in July sale! 

Also, I'm excited to be a part of this awesome Giveaway! 

Enter here: http://agracefilledclassroom.blogspot.com/ . The top prize is a $30 TpT gift certificate! How awesome is that?! Good luck!

Back to School... Kind of!

Hi All!

It's been awhile since I last posted.  Where does the time go?!

My classroom has had its yearly summer "bath" the other week, so it has been ready for me to go in and do my thing!  Now, what teacher in their right mind would want to go into their classroom to set it up when they still have a month and a half of summer break?  Well, that's me! LOL

Before you think of me as a nerd, I have a good excuse!  I leave soon for a trip to Mexico with my boyfriend, and when I get back, I leave for a cruise to Alaska!  By the time I get back from all these trips, it will be back to school time, and I didn't want to be stressed to get the room done!

Anyhow, I'm blogging because every year I want to change up the layout of my room somehow. I've been in it for 11 school years, so it's nice to make changes!  I had no set plan going into my room the other day BUT then I saw it!  What is it?  A picture.  A picture from where?  A picture from Pinterest, of course!  As I was pinning some of my TpT products I came upon this picture of two filing cabinets put together to be used as a magnetic board.  Why have I never thought of that?  How awesome is that?  The big ugly filing cabinets have been put to use!  Below is not the picture I saw on Pinterest; it's my filing cabinets!

This is of course a work in progress!  The filing cabinets picture that I saw on Pinterest had a cute border around it.  I'm not sure I have enough room for that, but it's a possibility, of course!  When I get my classroom completely set up, I plan to post a few pics.  I love to see pictures of other classrooms, so I'd love to share mine!

If you're still on summer break- enjoy!  If you're not, I hope your year has began with a great start!

Thanks for stopping by!  Until next time...

Researching With QR Codes

Want your students to research using QR codes?  Below is the hall display of my students latest QR researching project- Ocean Creatures Theme.  Have your students do the same! :)

In this blog, I am going to try to take you step by step on how to use my QR Research products in your classroom!  My goal is to help out those teachers who have iPads for student use but may not feel comfortable with using them... been there myself  ;-)!

I did not get iPads for my classroom until midyear.  One of the first things I fell in love with was what could be done with QR codes!  If you don't have a QR app downloaded yet, there are several free ones to choose from.  I went with QR Reader.

I decided that since the standards state my students must research and they must research digitally, why not use QR codes to help them do this?  Since animal classification is covered in science class,  I decided to go with an animal themed research project in order to make this possible.    There are many different themed animal research products that I've come up with, but decided to blog about my Ocean Creature theme since it's my best seller!  If you'd like to see all my QR themes, please click here: QR Research

All of my QR Research products take you step by step through the process, so no worries if you're a little nervous getting your students started on such a fun project!

So here we go!

First, I had my student pick the top three ocean creatures that they were most interested in researching (a signup sheet for students is included with each product).  From there I determined which animal they were going to research.

Now the real fun begins- researching!  Each animal comes with it's on graphic organizer sheet with two QR codes on top.  All students have to do is use their iPads to scan the QR codes.  The QR codes then take them to kid friendly websites that help them fill in their graphic organizers...

I gave students the option to work together during prewriting if they had the same animal...

Next, student used their graphic organizers to make a draft copy of their research paper.  You will need to set your expectations for them as far as number of paragraphs and/or how much detail they should include.  Draft copy themed paper is included in all my QR code products!  See picture below...

And of course, revising and editing comes next :)...

Final Copies!!!

Now, if you're nervous when it comes to technology, the next part might seem scary, but it's SO FUN!  If you notice on the first final copy picture above, there is a QR Code attached to the paper.  Students partnered up and videotaped themselves reading their final copy research papers.  My products suggest you use the Croakit! app to record their voices as they read.   Croakit! is an excellent app, but since then MailVu was brought to my attention. Mailvu allows them to create a video of themselves reading their reports- how fun!  No matter which app you choose, they are both FREE!  Helpful hint- If you can't find either app in the Apple Store, just touch "iPad Only" and change it to "iPhone Only".  No worries- both are there :).

Here's footage of them creating videos...

After students videotape themselves, Mailvu (or Croakit!) will send you a link to their video (or voice recoding).  You will then have to do some behind the scene work to get the QR codes made and printed off.  All of my QR code research products come with an informational sheet on how to do this :).

Still wondering if this is for your class?    

Use your iPad to scan the QR code below to watch one of my students presenting her report.  She was SO proud of all of her hard work!  

Also, check out all my QR research product reviews- both teacher and students around the country LOVE IT!  And, I'm sure you will, too! :)

If you ever have any questions, feel free to ask me at the end of this blog post or click on my e-mail link above.  I'd love to help you out!

Happy Teaching!,