Every summer the internet does me a great favor by showing me all of the AMAZING things that I just HAVE to be doing in my room to make me a better teacher.  I read about how to implement the latest and greatest idea and about why it will make my students the top of the list (which, I know by the shear nature of me having a blog, I am contributing to in no uncertain terms) Well, THIS summer I saw the most FABULOUS, MIND BLOWING, MUST HAVE for my classroom.  This Teacher Tool Kit.  Here it is when I made it this summer after seeing it on Pinterest (which, could NOT be more addictive during those summer time hours)  Awesome right? The intention was to use this instead of a teacher desk.  This would free up some space in my room and allow me to have not one but *two* rugs.  Instant love. Here is what it looks like in my room now. So, was it worth the time it took to spray paint the box and cut the labels (which you can find the template on Elizabe......

Here is something I blatantly stole found on Pinterest.  It is a Homework "Little Black Book" and it is from the Scholastic Blog Teacher Alycia Zimmerman .  I LOVE this idea and it really is working in my class. I have a black binder in my homework station.  It has 30 dividers in it, and a record form (again, that I just took from Ms. Zimmerman)  When a child doesn't do his homework, he fills out the record form and goes to Study Hall to do the missing work (my school has a "study hall" in place in the cafeteria at recess...which I know not all schools have.) It is wonderful because now I not only have a record of missed assignments, but the REASON why it was not completed.  Then, come Friday for the Weekly Reports or during parent conferences, everything is documented, in the child's own writing. Another thing I took from Pinterest is the idea to cover my file cabinet with contact paper.  Here was my inspiration pin   and here i......

Over the summer, I discovered the amazing timesucking resource known as Pinterest .  I quickly became addicted and found myself pinning idea after idea after idea.  After about a month of pinning, I decided that I should actually *make* one of the things I was pinning.  This post is dedicated to two of those early projects.  This is *the very first* Pin that I aspired to recreate for my classroom.  I saw it and knew that it would be perfect for my classroom.  Since Vista Print was having a sale (and my love of Vista Print grows), I immediately hopped on it and created this poster, which now hangs on my wall. Now that we are 1/3 of the way into the year, the banner is not clean and white anymore.  It is filled with many of the things we have learned this year in 5th grade.  The students remind me daily that we need to add something to this banner.  (Since my mind can't remember ANYTHING anymore it seems!)   They really like h......