Well we are getting closer to the first day of school and I have really been working hard to get my classroom ready for my new group of students. I am anxious to get my list of students so that I can group them and then place their names on their desks as well as on my front door.  I am now moving towards looking at the teachers manuals....a nice room is good but doesn't mean anything if i don't know what I am teaching. I still have a week and a half to get up to speed so I am sure that I will be fine.

I am posting the photos that I have taken so far to show the progression of my room.....I hope you like them.  (I figured you would rather see these instead of the ones of the teachers editions.) haha!

New School...New Grade Level...New Students

Obviously I am not very good at keeping up with a blog since it has been over a year since my last post...but I am going to try to do better this year.  Well, my first year of teaching was a pretty interesting one and I must say that I learned a lot last year.  This past school year consisted of many many ups and downs but I am happy to say that I made some very good friends and was blessed with some of the most amazing students around.  The school that I was in last year was deemed a turn-around school this year due to the FCAT testing scores...therefore all faculty and administration were removed and placed elsewhere in the district.  I could not be any happier with my placement for this upcoming school year.  I will be teaching 3rd grade at Oakcrest Elementary and feel very privileged to be a part of their wonderful faculty and staff.  I feel certain that this year promises to hold many exciting and memorable moments....and I can't wait to share them here on my blog.  I have been working very hard to get things ready to move into my new room and will posts pictures in the next few days.  Until then...    

Pinterest Creations for the Classroom = FUN FUN FUN

Today has been a wonderful day! I have had so much fun making yet another awesome classroom tool that I found on my favorite website ever.....Pinterest.  If you haven't had the opportunity to check out this site then I strongly recommend checking it out.  Tonight my girlfriend and I made a Teacher Toolbox that we plan to hang in our classrooms.  They turned out so cute and will be very functional!!!  I am posting a picture of the toolbox. I hope that you like it.  

Another Day Closer!!!

Another day closer to having my own classroom!!!! The countdown has begun and  I am getting more and more excited with each passing day.  I am gonna love teaching....going to work is going to mean something to me once again.  Today I got a list of all the different training sessions that I will be needing to attend.  I must say....there sure are a lot but I am certainly thankful for each and every one of them.  Until I was hired I felt so prepared....not so much right now.  Is that normal???  

I have been working diligently to get things ready for my classroom and I think that it is all coming together very nicely. During my student teaching experience I was paired with the most amazing 4th grade teacher.  I learned so much from her and gained an awesome friend at the same time.  One of the things that she did that I thought was so cool was to have the students complete a scrapbook that spanned their entire 4th grade year.  This scrapbook was an excellent way to add some fun to the students otherwise boring writing lessons.  Some of the students took their time on these scrapbooks and left their 4th grade class with an honest to goodness treasure.  I am planning on using this same idea in my class this year and  I am going to kick it off on the first day of school. I will leave this post with a picture of my daughter modeling the frame that I plan to have them hold so that I can take their pictures. On to the next project.....Mystery Person container.

My very first blog post ever

My very first blog post ever.....I am so excited.  

This is a year of firsts for me and I must admit that I am having the best time with all of the wonderful changes that are taking place in my life right now.  The most exciting change that is taking place is that of being hired as a first year 4th grade teacher.  I am thrilled to finally have my own classroom because teaching has been my dream of many, many years (since 2nd grade to be exact.) I have gotten so many wonderful ideas from some of the blogs that I have been reading and that has actually inspired me to create a blog of my own.  I hope to be able to share my ideas this year with other teachers and I definitely will welcome any valuable advice and constructive criticism that comes my way.