First Day Fun

Well it is official!  I had to set an alarm and get out of  bed this morning and go to work.  I know that I should be more happy about it, but I feel like Judy Moody when she had to go to third grade. (In case you don't get the reference Judy Moody was in a mood. Not a good mood but a bad mood.) I am only on chapter 2 with my kids.  I am assuming Judy will pep up and I'm sure I will too.  

I just loved my summer this year.  It was the first year that I didn't have to work a summer job.  I spent a lot of time with my kids and having fun.  Oh well gotta pay my bills..

First, I want to thank Mrs. Lemons for the great bird craftivity.  

My kids enjoyed "tweeting" about their summer

Second,  I created a first day frame (As seen all over Pinterest.) and took all of my students' pictures.  

I think it turned out really cute.  I have one below to show.

I did get a new student today, a girl thank goodness.  I have 12 boys and now 8 girls.  I am hoping that my numbers get to stay at 20.  This is the lowest class size I have had in 11 years.

I'm off to bed.  It's going to be a long week.  

Wish me luck!

Currently

I am linking up with "Oh Boy 4th Grade"  just click on the picture to go to here blog.

I can't get this stupid thing to center.  Oh well.

Fairy Tale Fun

Sometimes I am a  little slow on the uptake.  I have been soooo excited that there are only 19 students on my class list. (A little nervous too, because the other 3rd only has 18.  I would hope that they wouldn't combine, but you never know.)  This year I have chosen to do a fairy tale theme in my classroom.  In third grade they get to learn about fairy tales and folk tales from around the world.  I thought it would be fun to hook a theme to that.

All summer long I have been searching for fairy tale things to decorate my room with and to use to enhance my theme.  It all seemed very girly.  This made me a little apprehensive how well I could make it work, but my friend assured me that it was a great theme.  I get my class list on Wednesday right before my open house I put up my bulletin board with all of the students' names on crowns.  It looks great.

This morning I am reading another blog and she is talking about how many boys she has on her list. I am thinking I have 12 boys on my list too; 12 boys and 7 girls.  Bam! It hits me 12 boys and 7 girls. Fairy tale theme only 7 girls.  Wow I think I really chose the wrong theme.  I am in desperate need of a way to "dude up" fairy tale land.

I would appreciate any suggestions I can get.

Open House and a Freebie!

Well I am so glad that is out of the way.  This year we had our Open House before the kids came back.  I have to say I really liked it.  Getting my room together this quick was a challenge, but I had to realize that some of the stuff could wait because I want the kids to add their touch to it.

My classroom is going to have a Fairy Tale theme this year.  I really love having a theme that goes along with what I have to teach.  We are all going to be the subjects of the Kingdom of Kuhn.  I am going to call my weekly newsletter "The Kinghtly News"  I that too cute or what?  These are the little things that keep me going.

I have a freebie for you.  It is my morning routine posters.  I have just used clip art from the internet.  I am pretty sure it is free, but I am not making any money from it so you should be able to use it too.  I hope you enjoy my little tour.  I will be posting more classroom pics after the kiddos help me complete it.  I would love ideas for Rapunzel's Tower,

Here is Rapunzel's tower. Don't know what I will do with it yet along with my bulletin board listing the royal subjects of the Kingdom of Kuhn.

This will be the frame that I will use to take pics of the kids on the first day.

I used the poem from The KinderGals for my apples

These were that Magic wands that I made that said, "It is going to be a "magical" year. 
I have seen similar ideas floating around on the web.  

This is my reading area.  I do Daily 5 and last year the CAFE.
This year going with my theme I am doing the FACE of a reader.  The first poster is the magic mirror with the face in it.  (Think Shrek)  Each of the other 4 posters are mirrors with each of the letters of FACE and definitions in them.

I am using this whole group incentive along with my PBIS clip chart that will track individual behavior.  I picked up these cute cupcakes at Michael's and cute sign at 4th Grade Frolics.

This is where my parents started in the room for Open House.

This picture shows my easel that has my "Once Upon a Time" writing board. and my morning routine posters.  You can download them by clicking on the picture.  

Well it's official.  I went into my classroom this week.  It was only for a few short hours, but my summer has official begun to slip away.  It has been a great summer filled with family and fun.  And lots of baseball. (My son is on a travel ball team.) I was able to work this summer, so family time really got amped up. So blessed to be able to spend this time with my two wonderful kids.

I have decided to do a fairy tale/fable theme this year in my 3rd grade classroom.  I was really excited about it when I left school last year, but I have not been able to find really good boy friendly stuff.  Plus there is absolutely no pre-made stuff out there to cheat decorate with.  Oh sure if I went with that incredibly adorable owl theme, the one I had debated about but the kindergarten teacher already does and I have to be original, there would be plenty of stuff that I could just open and have instant cute theme room.  I am not sure why I have to always make things sooo difficult.  Oh well.  I  have pinned many cute ideas and hopefully will be able to implement them soon, tick-tock. I will post pictures and hopefully a few freebies.

I have one more week that I can putz around my room, but that next Monday, the meetings start and then kids come the Tuesday after Memorial Day.  I wouldn't be so stressed, but this year our Open House is the week before school starts.  So my classroom has to be done before Labor Day.  And of course our district gives us 1/2 a day to work in our rooms officially.  Who gets all that done in 1/2 a day? 

I would love to know what theme you are doing?

Life is a Mystery

I was reading Holly’s blog over at Crisscross Applesauce and she was blogging about ideas for a letter detective download from a product swap. 

 

It reminded me of when I taught 5th grade and mysteries were one of the genres that we had to read and write.  I was inspired by Beth Newingham to create detective case files for each of my children.  I would have them dress up like a detective and I took their pictures.  This particular year I had two aspiring photographers who took my picture.

This same year I taught 2, week long detective themed sessions of summer school (4th-8th grade).  I dressed up in this garb and it hooked them.  We had a blast reading, writing, and solving mysteries.

It’s amazing how easy it is to get kids enthusiastic about learning!

Off to a baseball tournament and a chicken dinner in Frankenmuth, MI this weekend.

Nan

The ABCs of My Classroom

Dum da da dum! 

That's the sound of my heralds announcing my accomplishment. It's the "ABCs of Mrs. Kuhn's Classroom."  I plan on doing a fairy tale and fable theme in my room this year and I'm just getting into character.  I have spent the last week working on my classroom handbook and now it is finished.  

I created one 5 years ago and haven't done one since.  My computer broke, I lost all of my files and I didn't want to retype it all again.  I decided that this was the year I was going to redo it. Parents of third graders seemed more interested in the goings on in my classroom.  This time I will make sure that I save it on a flash drive so I never have to do that again from scratch. 

I toyed with the idea of making it reflect my theme, but I decided to keep it generic because I feel the need to change my theme each year.  Hopefully it contains all that a parent will need to know about how I run my class.  

Michigan Blogger Meet Up

Thanks to Maria Dismondy I have this great picture to show from the
Michigan Blogger Meet Up.
 I am number 4 in the back

If you head over to Kimberly's blog Funky First Grade Fun she has some great pics and the to links to all of the participants blogs.  So many great people with some really awesome blogs.

Homerun Showdown

On a completely unrelated topic, I went to go and see my son's movie it opened over the weekend.  Sounds glamorous right.  Not!  We went through hours of waiting in line at a cattle call audition, 4 callbacks, a promise of greatness, a day of shooting, and then we waited for 2 years for the film to come out.  All for a brief pan shot of my son in the outfield.  You couldn't even recognize his features.  He made some great plays while they were shooting.  They must be on a cutting room floor somewhere.    Oh well that's showbiz.  The movie was pretty good though.  It will be coming to video August 21st.

Good to be Back!

I went to the Michigan Blogger Meet Up yesterday and I had such a great time.  I was really neat to meet in person the very people that I have stalked read online.  I had a total geek moment as we went around the table and introduced ourselves.  I introduce myself the woman sitting next to me introduces herself, and then then woman on the other side of her introduces herself.  Fascinating so far I know, just wait.  She's all like "Hi I'm Christina Bainbridge."  I lean forward and blurt out, "I love you!"  Way to keep my cool.  I pride myself on not being starstruck.  I always complain about those weirdos that are fanatics.  Then I go all "Can I have your autograph?"  Not really, but I did feel a bit dorky after I said it.  I was just so cool to get to sit down with people you respect and share ideas about a mutual hobby and passion .

I have been rejuvenated to begin blogging again.  Once school began I become overwhelmed with teaching a new grade, having a new principal, and navigating my way through a new evaluation system.  Blogging went by the wayside.  I also chair our PBIS committee, sponsor and lead our student council, am on our district technology team and sit on the district elementary curriculum committee.  Shoot me now!  Unfortunately, I have added school webmaster to that for this year.  I need to knock it off.  Blogging is going to be my therapy this year.  It's better for me than large amount of chocolate and alcohol.

Happy Blogging!!!

Valentine Centers with Learning Buddies

This is the third set of parent manned centers that we have done with our first grade learning buddies.  We did Halloween themed centers, Christmas centers, and now Valentine centers.  This is a great time when my third grade students get together with our first grade learning buddies.  We had several game centers, a few craft centers, a couple math centers, a Valentine writing center, and of course a snack center.  It was a great day.

Yummy heart cinnamon rolls.




Everybody loves a good cinnamon roll.



Chopstick steal my heart race



conversation heart graphing

heart animal art



Valentine make a word



Valentine Bingo



Gateway to fun!!!

This was a picture post that was a draft from way back in October.  I have been absent from posting my blog since then.  I have had a busy and productive year in 3rd grade.  Thanks to all of you out here in cyber space.  I feel like I have been able to function in my new grade because of all of your wonderful ideas and freebies that you, my fellow teachers, have kindly blogged about and shared.  I feel like everything I do is a total rip off.  Imitation is the highest form of flattery.  You are all so talented and again I thank you for your unknowing support.

  Such a stressful year, but I hope to be posting again soon!

Thanks to The Teacher's Wife, my kids made a haunted version of Even and Odd Street