Groovy Educator

This year I will be teaching First Grade after two years out of the classroom.  I feel like a new teacher full of enthusiasm and giddy excitement.  I am on to a new adventure at a new school.  With a new school, there is a new classroom which is my empty palette.   Here is my new room! In the past I've done a lot with trees, animals, cows, owls, stars, dots on turquoise, etc.  (I have been teaching about 13 years.)  For some reason though, I am beyond excited about this theme.  I LOVE the ocean / nautical theme.  It is so versatile and has so many cute sayings!  Once I have my room decorated I will add more pictures.   In the meantime here is a link to my pinterest board where I am collecting fantastic ideas.   https://www.pinterest.com/lowerysloft/ocean-nautical-classroom-decor/ What is your theme this year and why did you choose it?

Can you believe it is that time of year again?  Even though I am not in the classroom right now, I feel the energy from this time of year. This post is dedicated to the End of the Year Class Parties.  I am going to share a few ideas and then I would LOVE, LOVE, LOVE for you to share more ideas in the comments section. My favorite party was an indoor picnic.  We moved all the desks out of the way and brought in blankets to sit on.  Parents brought in sliced watermelon and other fruits.  We ordered pizzas and set up an assembly line on the counter.  It was a parent picnic so the kids sat with their families. Afterwards we went outside and did relay races and free time.  The reason we sat inside to eat is because it was extremely humid so we wanted to limit our outside time.  We came back inside to cool down and shared about how our classmates are wonderful.  It was so much fun. Usually I brainstorm a list of ideas with the kiddos and then...

SALE 20% off!  Check out my best sellers the Mad Minute and Class Yearbook.

Since I've been working on growing Lowery's Loft LLC, I changed my TpT store name to match my business name.  So even though this Groovy Educator is still groovy, you will seem more Lowery's Loft LLC as I transition somewhat.  I will still keep the Groovy Educator Blog and the Groovy Educator Facebook Page but more and more will be Lowery's Loft LLC. On a side note, I marked down some awesome items in my TpT store AND made some FREE!  Feel free to check it out.   Teachers Pay Teachers Store

Often I think critically (without even realizing it); I'm known for "over analyzing" just about everything.  I feel it is necessary to visualize different scenarios and the possible outcomes.  This skill helps in many situations from planning a wedding/event to deciding which route to take home. Recently in the evening, I was driving (by myself) over to my mom's house to dog sit while she went on a short trip.   As I was nearing her house there was a group of men walking down the middle of the road.  I quickly started weighing my options (thinking critically).  I could drive up to them and wait for them to let me pass and then they would see a single lady pull up to a dark house alone, I could go home, or I could turn onto the block before I reached them and circle back giving them more time to get further up the road without seeing me get out of my car.  Of the three scenarios, the last one is what I chose and it worked out well.  The first opti...

Why is it that inspiration strikes when I should be drifting off to sleep?  Tonight I have finally updated my websites:   www.GroovyEducator.com and www.LowerysLoft.com .  You can see my post about these sites on my Lowery's Loft Blog if you are interested. As I have already mentioned on Facebook , I am backed up in my blogging.  Life happens sometimes and apparently, I lost my "groove" for a bit... For the past few months I've had the joy of working part time as a Reading Interventionist.  This has been a joy because I get to do what I love, help children read, yet at the same time I still have ample time with my own little one. My commute is about thirty minutes and during the ride to and from work, I daydream about blogging.  Once I get home however and I become "mom."  By the time I get a chance to sit down at the computer I'm exhausted.  Tonight I am making time for this... Please note that I have not researched any of these ideas yet...