Monday Made It: July 20

It's time for Monday Made It with Tara over at 4th Grade Frolics!

Unbelievably, I only have one more Monday in my summer vacation after today. I return to work officially on July 30th. :( I much prefer the "unofficial" work day. You know, the one where you stop by school, move a few things around, unpack your desk, sip your Starbucks, and then leave after a few hours to go home and read a good book!

This morning's post will be short and sweet; I have two days of training for Blackboard this morning. Have any of you used Blackboard? If so, I'd love to know what you think!

On to the MMI...I finally finished the bookends that I saw early in the summer right here on MMI. I tried to find the original post, but was unsuccessful. If this was inspired by you, please let me know so I can give you credit!!

This is the beginning. The ampersands (love.that.word.) came from Michael's on sale, and the wood was from the scrap pile in the hubby's workshop. Love.that.man!

 A word to the wise- this project used almost that entire bottle of paint you see in the top right corner. The hubby says I should have painted water on the wood first so that it wouldn't soak up so much paint. Who knew?

 I decided to try to paint the edges in a different color. Can you see that edge? Ummm hmmm. I wasn't feeling it either, and I was in too big of a hurry to wait for the paint to dry so I could tape it off to get a clean line. So, I did what any teacher/mom on a deadline would do....

 I painted right over that orange with blue! My need for neatness has been satisfied. Ahhh...

 Next, I Mod Podged the entire piece of wood. Then I painted Mod Podge on the back of the scrapbook paper that had been cut to size, lined it up, and smoothed out the wrinkles using a stiff plastic grocery bonus points card.

 Repeat the procedure on the top and then put a layer of Mod Podge over the whole thing to protect it.  The white film you see will dry clear and make the entire thing a little shiny!

 Attach the ampersands with some good old fashioned hot glue, or you could use E6000. I prefer the hot glue because it's faster and doesn't stink nearly as badly!

 Here's the view from the end. I love the way the scrapbook paper adds a pop of color!

The final product: an inexpensive project that will help you feature books from your classroom library!

If you made it all the way to the end of this post, head on over to my TpT store where my top selling bundle is about 40% off.

How many more Mondays do you have left of vacation? (Just know that if you say 3 or 4, I may have to hate you. Just sayin'!)

Head on over to 4th Grade Frolics to see what all of your blogging friends have been making. You may find something you can't live without!

Five for Fraturday: July 18

Well, I find myself following in the footsteps of one of my favorite bloggers ever- Kristen over at A Teeny Tiny Teacher with a Five for Fraturday post instead of Five for Friday.  Oh well, migraines happen and when they do everything else grinds to a halt. Thankfully, I'm feeling much better today. So here we go!

This will be my view tomorrow. I mean minus the hairy legs because clearly I'm not a guy, and I shave my legs and everything practically all.the.time. Well, at least in the summertime. ;) My little ol' family is going tubing. This will be the first time for my three boys. It's sure to be a blast!! Although perhaps not so quiet and serene as this picture!

I am offering my American Heroes Bundle which is on the largest number of wish lists for almost half price TODAY only! Now is your chance to scoop it up and start getting prepped for the beginning of the year!

Here's a sneak peek at one of my Monday Made It projects.  I need to get busy since I will be tubing tomorrow afternoon! I'm making bookends for the media center. I got the inspiration early in the summer from someone who posted on MMI. If it was you, please let me know so I can give you credit!  I am thinking I will combine paint with scrapbook paper attached with Mod Podge.  It will probably be determined by the amount of time I have to work on it.  Check back on Monday to see the results.

If you've been reading my blog this summer, you know that we are trying to get our house ready to put on the market. Here's an update of the bathroom floor. Projects like this go so slowly when my hubby is working on them in the evening after work when the boys are in bed. However, the end is in sight! The floor needs to be grouted and sealed and it will be finished!  Praise the Lord for a handy hubby!!

Our bathroom only had tile halfway and then carpet in front of the sink. #disgustinggrossandnasty

This looks so, so, so, so (to quote past kindergarten students) much better!

Last, but not least, I indulged in a little back to school retail therapy.  I had some gift cards to Loft and had lots of fun at the 50% off (including sale items) sale. Everything I purchased was on the "clearance" rack except the white cardigan.

For some reason the cardigan looks pinkish...I promise it's really white.  Those white pants are divine!  All of this is totally work appropriate yet comfortable which is an absolute must in my book! I didn't pay 1 red cent out of my own money...woo hoo!! Loft has 60% off online right now. You should check it out. ;)

Then I headed over to Gap because it was right next store with a BIG sale sign in the window. I couldn't just pass that by now could I? No gift cards here, but they were also having a 50% off sale including clearance. I spent $50 there and left with this:

 This is my "Meet the Teacher" dress. It has pockets people. POCKETS!!  Plus, it was only $25. I'm going to throw a light cardigan on with it, cute ballet slippers, and BAM! I'm dressed for the big event. I'm thinking I will wear an orange cardigan. What color do you think would be perfect with it?

 This looks really wrinkly and little out of focus. :(  However, it's in the blue family, has a cute ruffle detail on the bottom, and the collar is rolled a little.  At $7 I couldn't pass it up!

My last purchase needs to introduction. What teacher doesn't love a maxi skirt?!?! They make dressing easy-peasy, lemon-squeezy! Am I right? 

Also, Gap is having an online sale and there's a code on Retail Me Not for an extra 40% off. They have a super cute light denim jacket for 17ish dollars. Click on the picture and it will link you over to Gap.

What are you doing to prepare for back to school?

Monday Made It: June 22

Today's first Monday Made It was inspired by Abbey over at A Teacher Mom. Just click on her button to see her fabulosity!

Monday Made It #1 is a patriotic wreath that cost less than $6.50 total.  My kind of wreath!! I bought the flip flops and "America" star at the Dollar Tree. Are you noticing a trend in my shopping habits? I'm afraid I would be easy bait for a stalker!  Anywho, the ribbon was 70% off at Joann's and I had a 40% off coupon for the straw wreath.

The Supplies

As it turns out, I should have memorized Abbey's supply list a little better. If I had, I would have remembered that she used a block of wood and not a wreath. Those flip flops absolutely wanted no part in the roundness of that wreath. So, I traded the wreath for a block of wood. Abbey's was a square, but I improvised with a rectangular piece of wood that was in the shop floor. It worked just fine.

The Amended Supplies

You simply glue four flip flops down in a plus shape.  Then you come back and glue the other four in an "X" configuration. My $1 star had a little rope hanger already attached at the top. I simply threaded by stars and stripes ribbon through that to create a long enough hanger for use on the front door.

The Centerpiece Being Attached

Tada!  The final product hanging on our front door. It makes me super happy and was easy, peasy, lemon squeezy!

The Finished Wreath on the Door

My next MMI involves shopping at one of my other favorite school stores...Target! Do you ever stop by your media center to pick up "just a couple of books?"  And then leave with a stack that towers so high you can barely see over the top?  Yeah, me too. In order to make that trip back to the room a little easier to accomplish (and a lot safer for the little people that you can't see over the stack of books) I bought 4 large baskets in the outdoor section for $5 each at Target.  I made a tag to attach to the basket reminding friends where the basket belongs.  

The Finished Product

An Up-Close of the Tag

For some reason, the colors on the tag came out a little muted. It has a diagonal stripe in the background with rainbow colors like the basket. There's a super cute dragon on the bottom. Our mascot is the Knights, and we have a castle in the media center. I thought the cute little dragon fit right in. ;)

Love the colors!

Do you think the money spent on the baskets was worth it? I'm hoping they'll see lots of use!

The last thing on the agenda for the week is the newest addition to my American Heroes: Georgia Edition. James Oglethorpe is the topic of the latest lapbook. Second grade in Georgia is required to teach a series of heroes that impacted Georgia in some way or originated here. Some of those heroes like Martin Luther King, Jr. have scads of materials and resources to choose from on TpT. Then there is James Oglethorpe. If you search for him on TpT, there are a total of 5 products that pop up.  These lapbooks help second graders continue to develop their fine motor skills within an academic purpose. My students have loved each and every one of these that they have created. They take ownership in the product, develop research skills, work cooperatively, and learn a ton about the person. I hope you will take a moment to check out the lapbook if this is a topic you teach.

Currently ON SALE!!

These are the other lapbooks currently available in my TpT store:

Jimmy Carter Lapbook

Jackie Robinson Lapbook

Martin Luther King, Jr. Lapbook

Or you can purchase all 3 in a bundle at a discounted price!

What did you make this week?  It's time for me to start blog hopping to find out!  

Memorial Day Sale

Don't be a hater....my last day with students was this past Friday.  I know, you want to throw rotten tomatoes at me, but just remember that I started in early August when you were still lazing your days away at the beach.  Did you put the rotten tomato down? Good. And if it makes you feel any better, I have work days all this week.

In celebration of my last day of school with students, I am throwing a little sale in my Teachers Pay Teachers shop.   My top three sellers are below. Please take a moment to check them out!

NUMBER 1 SELLER

on sale for $2.40!!

Actual Product Feedback:

On  April 28, 2015,  Kimberly S. said:

Thank you so much! I really used this product!

NUMBER 2 SELLER

on sale for $2.40!!

Actual Product Feedback:

Gina777  (TpT Seller)

I loved it! Lot of paper, but worth it! Students really enjoyed it and retained/learned a great deal.

May 3, 2015

Don't we all want products that we can actually use in our classrooms? I know that I have bought products that didn't live up to my expectations once I opened the file.  My lapbooks are products that you will use over and over again because they help students not only learn the content, but they also provide the opportunity to continue to develop fine motor skills which is still practice needed by many second graders!  I also have a lapbook for Martin Luther King, Jr. and a bundle at a discounted price with all three of these lapbooks included.  The price for the bundle is $5.60 - less than the price of a combo at your local burger joint!

NUMBER 3 SELLER

on sale for $4.00!!

I created this unit to coincide with the 102nd Day of Second Grade. The kindergartners celebrate the 100th day of school, and the first graders celebrate the 101st day of school with a Dalmatian theme. The only 102nd day of school theme I could find on TpT was Dalmatians, and let's face it. None of us wants to hear students say been there, done that!  Hence, this unit was born!  However, it is filled with zoo animal research, writing, and math that relates to second grade CCSS standards and could be used at any time during the year. It has technology built in through the use of QR codes and website addresses if you lack devices to utilize the QR codes. It is differentiated through the use of various graphic organizers, and it contains a report "frame" for your struggling writers.  In a nutshell, this is a TKES dream lesson!! Those are just some of the reasons this is one of my top selling units.

I hope you'll take the time to peek in my shop. It keeps growing all of the time!  I am working on a new geometry unit.

FREEBIE!!



If you made all the way to the bottom of this post, you deserve a reward! Click on the picture link above, and it will take you to my shop where you can pick up this freebie for plane and solid shapes.   It is currently my #1 freebie.  Enjoy!