Groovy Educator

 Here is where I save some of my chart teacher toolbox and teaching supply KThis is how our desks were arranged for the first week of school Here are some pictures of how my room is decorated and organized.  I haven't been posting as much because I have been doing eBay in addition to all the beginning of the year activities. I've organized my classroom library into numbered bins.  Bin 5 has books with the number5 on all of them.  Each bin has a theme (e.g.  Bin 17 has nonfiction animal books).  Also I have my AR board on the wall.  In the crates are centers/learning stations.  Under the rug the rug is a cord for the SmartBoard.  I have taped the rug down with some of the decorative duct tape that you can find at Walmart.  In the green bins there are stuffed animals to be used as reading buddies.  Although it's kind of hard to see, there is a green grasshopper board with our science word wall. This is where our whole br...

In my thirteen years of teaching, I have worked at three different schools.  The first school had moderate amount of parent volunteers.  The second school had a scant amount of parent volunteers and the third school has a copious amount of volunteers.  I am so blessed to have such wonderful families to work with.  Our PTA (Parent Teacher Association) is very active and it positively affects the school environment.  Our PTA spoils the teachers by providing a scrumptious breakfast once a month to celebrate birthdays.  They also collect and turn in Box Tops, Campbell's soup labels, and a couple of other items.  For our school carnival each teacher provides a booth (often manned by parent volunteers).  The PTA provides all the prizes and sells the food.  They organize the whole event.  They also create and sell our school yearbook.  This is no ordinary yearbook.  It looks like a high school yearbook for an elementary school (grea...

Okay, I couldn't take it... Here is one more picture before I sign off for the night.  This is taken from a different vantage point than the first.  You can see my smartboard at the front.  To the right of the smartboard is my dry erase board and writing bulletin board.  The door to the classroom is to the right.  Hanging on the wall is a blue mini pocket chart that I use for book checkout.  Underneath the smart board and dry erase board are tubs (the kind you use for dishes) filled with books.  That is my classroom library.  The books are organized by theme.  Just about every book has a pocket with an index card so the children can check them out and take them home.  My philosophy is the more you read the better you read.  So...my goal is to get as many books as possible into the hands of children. I've organized the student desks into a rectangle where everyone is facing in. I like that I can get to everyone quickly and that w...