The Creative Apple

I'm a little late linking up with Blog Hoppin for their Classroom Digs, but I have a good excuse :) Tomorrow is Open House and I've been getting things ready like crazy. I'm going to be a day late on all of these... but that's okay :) I've waited so long to show off my classroom. As you probably already know, I moved grades and subjects this year. So, I started off with a clean slate.... literally. It has taken hours upon hours to get my room the way I want it. I still have a few things to finish, but I'm in first day of school mode right now.

Classroom Digs

This is the view of my classroom right when you walk into the door. I made a sort of 'foyer' by placing a long short bookshelf in front of the door. I like this :) You can see it a little better from the picture below.

This is the shelf where I will store my Word Work bins. So far, I have two that have something in them and two that are empty ;). I also have my dictionaries and supply bins here.

This is right beside my door. It's a place to house kleenex, sanitizer, and student supplies. I got this shelving unit from Ikea and I LOVE IT! Such a space saver. The reminders board is where I have the students write if their transportation changes or if a teacher has a note to me about a behavior check.

Love my genre posters from Molly {Lessons with Laughter}. They are so cute and my letters made with my Silhouette are awesome!

This is my homework board made with vinyl letters from my Silhouette and washi tape. I just love it!

This is where my 'I Can' statements will go. I usually have all my standards posted and highlight the ones we are working on, but there are soo many with ELA. I will be using my 'I Can' statements found here. They are gray/white chevron with a cute frame. I also love how my alphabet from Kristen turned out.

This is my reading area.. please ignore the paper with the spray painted frame on it.. hehe. I {LOVE} my lantern light and curtains.

These are my book baskets that I purchased from Really Good Stuff. I simply created some really cute {& simple} frames, placed two hole punches in the top, and tied a white ribbon. I love how simple they look and the size of the baskets. These are the large rectangular ones.

More reading baskets {notice I ran out of the white ribbon with these.} But, that's okay! At least it's not on the same shelf. The top of this shelf is where I will have my spotlight books. RIght now, it's two of my favorites and a back to school.

This is my CAFE board that is right beside my small group area. I have decided that I WILL allow the students to write the cards. This is a biggie for my since I like things nice and neat. We shall see how this goes!

Figurative Language posters from Molly... love

This is my small group area. I have everything I will need here. Including great new stools from Ikea. They are awesome!

I love my little caddy I made to house our small group supplies so every student can have access. I'll throw in some pencils & dry-erase markers.

I love this storage cart from Michaels. It is where I store my Word Work supplies, extra post-its, and my CAFE board strategy cards. I still have a few drawers to fill up.

I'm not too crazy about this {nor am I done with it} but I think I can make it work. I really hate the green since it doesn't go with any of my decor but it was all I had. This is where our spelling words and vocabulary words will be. Like I said, I'm still not done and I'm hoping it will look a little more pulled together once I am finished with it.

These are my book boxes for both of my classes {I teach 2!} Both classes will share the same book box. That's an entirely different post that I will have to do later. I use a number system and I love it. It also helps with students sharing.

This is my writing area with my VOICES board. I will put strategy cards here on the board as we discuss them. On this board, I made the ruffle border with white fabric. It was a pain in my arm, but I love how it turned out.

Love this freebie.

This is my dry-erase board that I made. It was a Monday Made It that never made it to Monday Made It... lol I actually just went back to link up to my post about it when I realized I never did it... Oops! Anyways, I will post a weekly quote on this board each week. I'm so excited about this.

This is my mess of a teacher are with the trash can over flowing!

The front view of my teacher area. You can view the wreath tutorial above my bookshelf here. I really like the way it turned out. I also love my Thirty-One Wall organizer beside my filing cabinet. If you need one of those, I can hook you up and get it directly shipped to your house. I'm a consultant so let me know if you are interested. Heck, you can even host a party and get it for free. We don't have to be neighbors... you can do a catalog order :) For real though, if you are interested let me know {terri.renee09@gmail.com}

I also love my picture frame with no picture :)

This is the view looking towards the front door.

This is my whole group / Smartboard / Document Camera area. I'm soooo excited about having a document camera this year. Hopefully I can play around with it tomorrow :)

This is my Word Wall. The letter headers are free in my TpT shop.

This is the view of my classroom from my desk.

Open House... ready to go!

Love my informative flip book... ignore the blue paper. That is not part of it.

I hope you have enjoyed looking around my room as much as I love being in it. I think it's important that you and the students both want to be in the classroom together and I think I accomplished that this year.

Labels: Class Photos, Teacher Week '13

Well, as you are reading this, I am either getting ready for work or already at work. I can't believe my summer is over! To say that I am ready is a complete understatement. First of all, it went by waaaa-ay too fast. AND.... It's impossible to get ready for the new year when you change grade levels. It's even more impossible when you change grade levels and subjects! I still have so many things I need to get done {including finishing my binder posts here.. sorry ya'll... life happens. I will get it done.. eventually} that I'm not sure how it's all going to work out. To make the week a little better, I will be capturing my week with pics. You can view photos throughout my week by following along on my Instagram. I just love Instagram... it's so much fun! I might even throw in some #sharewhatchawear because I just love clothes!... and I may have lost a few pounds ;)

On a happier note, I am going to try my best to post each day and link up with the authors of Blog Hoppin for Teacher Week '13 because.... well.... because it's just fun!

This brings us to today... Monday!

Let's Talk About Me

I usually don't like to talk about myself that much. I guess that kind of explains my personality. I'm a very shy person and didn't talk that much while I was in school except to my friends. I was not good at meeting new people and I'm still not. I guess that explains my lack of friends outside of my family. With two kids, a husband, a job, housework, and every thing in between... who has time? I'm a home body who would much rather hang out at the house. First and foremost, I love my Jesus and all the blessings he has given me. He has stood beside me during some difficult times in my life. Secondly, I love my husband. I am so thankful that God sent him to me :) Third, I love my family! I am beyond blessed with two sweet boys and a wonderful extended family.

When I tell people that I grew up with or went to school with that I'm a teacher, the look on their face is priceless. I was NOT the best student in school. I hated school {when I was there} so it's quite funny that I spend a lot of my time there now! Many teachers say they knew they wanted to be a teacher when they were little. Although I did play 'school' with my three sister a lot, I wouldn't say I wanted to be a teacher, but I always had a love for school supplies... now that makes sense :)

It wasn't until I took a job as a secretary at an alternative school that I realized I wanted to go into elementary education. 5th grade is my heart and I'm so glad I'm moving back there this year. With 5th grade, you either love it or hate it... I SO love it :)

Lastly, I wanted to share some things that I must-have because I think it explains a lot about who I am.

#1- COFFEE... enough said.

#2- my iPhone