Menu Monday & Monday Made It

Every new (school) year is a time for new beginnings, new students, colleagues, parents, and lesson plans.  This time of year always makes me think about what I am going to do differently to make this year even more successful than the last.  I have made one big New (School) Year Resolutions...

Be prepared.  This is easy when it comes to making new lessons, but when it comes to having my home life and my school life prepared (at the same time) it becomes difficult for me.  I often spend mornings scrambling around....dressing kids, making lunches, ironing clothes, and on and on.  My plan for this year is to make Sunday a planning day.  I have typically done this with my lesson plans, but I also want to do this in all areas of my life.  I am going to highlight a different area of my life each week.  Hey, I am hoping this keeps me on track!  Accountability...is key...right?!?!

AREA 1:  MEALS
Today, after church, we bought the Sunday paper, I clipped coupons, planned meals, and went shopping.  It was a good day.  I felt like I really accomplished something!  I used to menu plan (back in the spring), but life took over and that came to an end.  It's time to get back on board!!  The best way for me to stick with  this is to post it for all of the world to see!! :) MENU MONDAYS are here!!

Do you meal plan?  How do you handle it?  Where do you get your meal ideas?  What makes it easy for you?  Leave me a comment and share how you handle meals for the week!

In a few weeks, I hope to give you an update on how things are going with meal planning.  I hope to have a binder going of our favorite recipes...stay tuned!!! ;)

AND...

My husband has been super busy lately making a TV stand for his "man cave."  He asked that I share them with you all! He made his TV stand out of two pallets, some wooden legs and 4 wheels from Lowes.

Take a look...

Kim

A "Tweet" Little Note!

Just a quickie tonight, folks!  A cutesy new letter to send home with my special friends.  Over the years, I have discovered that some of my parents do not know who the special education teachers are in the building.  We send home notes saying who the homeroom teacher is, but rarely do we let them in on who will be servicing their child's most special needs.  I thought this would be a cute way to give some positive communication right from the beginning!

Here is a link to my parent letter that I am sending home with all of my special friends.  Enjoy!!

Kim

Newbie Blog Hop!

I am joining up with some fellow Newbie Bloggers.  

If you want in on the action, link up below and answer these questions!

~ what state you are in

~ your current teaching position

~ your teaching experience

~ when you started blogging

~ share a blogging tip/blogging resource

1.  I teach in Kentucky!!  #UK  #BigBlueNation

2.  I am special education teacher for grades 3-5.  I teach in the collaborative and resource settings.

3.  At the end of this year I will have 8 1/2 years of teaching experience!  I have been a special education teacher the entire time.  I received my Bachelor's degree from Murray State in Learning and Behavior Disorders and my Master's degree from the University of Louisville in Special Education with an emphasis in assistive technology.

4.  I started blogging off and on a few years ago.  I had a blog for mostly my family and friends to read.  We do not live close to our families so it was a good way to keep them caught up.  I started teacher blogging at the beginning of the year.

4.  My tip is...you don't have to follow all of the rules.  Just go out there and have fun!  Learn as you go and don't be afraid to just be yourself!

I love the tips from Teaching Blog Addict.  They really helped get me started with blogging!

Kim

Teacher Clothes :)

My husband always kids me about "teacher clothes."  Of course he is talking about apple sweaters and bus t-shirts, but in From Blood to Books Linky Party lots of teachers are linking up to tell about their favorite teaching attire.  I joined in on the fun...here.

Here are the guidelines...

1. Tell me your favorite store(s) that you like to get your "teacher's fashion".

2. What are some of your favorite accessories?

3. What type of shoes do you teach in? (i.e. heels, flats, wedges, etc.)

4. Do you have a "go-to" item in your closet? (i.e. sweater you wear weekly, shoes you wear daily, etc.)

5. Have you ever had a fashion "uh-oh" at school? (i.e. heel broke, button popped off of blouse)

And here are my responses:

1.  

&

The Limited

At all of these stores (with possibly the exception of Dress Barn) you can get a percentage off of your purchase when you show your teacher ID.

New York and Company and the Loft are a great places for all things teacher-y.  I love the Limited's pants.

I just discovered Dress Barn.  Honestly, I thought it was "too old" for me, but I went in there last weekend as a last resort for new pants and I found a lot of cute pieces.  I am definitely adding it to my stops when shopping.  

Oh...and one more store....Kohl's.  They have great stuff and usually great sales!  

2.  My favorite accessories are scarves, bracelets, earrings, necklaces...you name it.  I ♥ accessories.  A funny story I must share about a scarf-----I was wearing a scarf one day with a lot of fringe.  A little guy came up to me and started playing with the fringe on my scarf.  He said, "I don't like this stuff."  Me, "What?  The fringe."  Him, "Yeah, the strings.  Do you have any scissors so I can cut it off?"   Ummm....no! :)  Leave it to the little guys to tell you like it is!  Here's a hint...most clothes are not kid approved!  And...another hint...do not try to dress like the kids.  I've seen this happen and it doesn't work!  Don't do it! :)

3.  Shoes...a bone of contention in my building.  I typically wear wore dressy sandals during the warmer months and flats during the winter, but last year there was a big "flip flop controversy."  Many people had trouble distinguishing what makes a flip flop a flip flop, so this year NO SANDALS, unless they have a back.  Oh well.  Just gave me a reason to buy new shoes!!  This year I will be wearing flats, I have wedges that are pretty comfortable (with back of course), boots (in the fall and winter), and sandals WITH backs!

  This is one of my favorite places to buy shoes.

4.  A Go-To item?  I don't necessarily have something that I wear weekly, but I would say that I wear black dress pants a lot.  They go with everything, easy to wear, and no one can see if I drop a marker or my coffee on myself! :)

5.  I haven't had a fashion uh-oh...knock on wood, but I have to be very careful about how I dress at my school.  We have a pretty strict dress code for teachers (and students).  Teachers are "encouraged to dress up."  No jeans (ever), no sleeveless shirts, no tennis shoes, no denim (including skirts), all shoes must have backs, and the most important rule...the 3 B's!  No boobs, belly, or behind!! :)

Male teacher in my building must wear shirts and ties, dress slacks, and dress shoes.  Gym teachers are allowed to wear "golf attire."  So, I am sticking to the rules...I do not want to be the one that breaks any of them....so I guess that just means I have another reason shop more often!! My husband will love that! ;)

My best advice for shopping for new teacher clothes:  

Just say NO to these:

Happy Shopping!!!

Kim

Finally!!!!!!!!

Tomorrow is the day I can finally get into my room!! I will be spending all day there cleaning and rearranging furniture and helping my intern!!! I have my camera, so be ready for some post construction/pre-decor photos later!

Yippee!!!!!

WOW!

I saw this picture yesterday over at Sped-ventures and all I could think was WOW!!! What if everyone with a disability didn't realize they had a disability? What if they thought they just had "different shoes?" What an inspiration this man is!  He turned his disability into an extraordinary ability!  How many of us can say we can do something like that?

My hope for my kids this year is that they learn to work beyond what others say they are capable of doing.  I want them to feel successful and be successful despite any disability!  I am ready to change disABILITIES into ABILITY!

And...this is to my friends out there that have children with "different shoes"   Believe in your children.  Help them to succeed.  Trust in your child's teacher.  Work together to make success happen!

Kim

B2S #4---and Word Work Wednesday

I am trying something new...Word Work Wednesdays.  Our school is new to the Daily 5/CAFE this year and I am in love with Working with Words Activities.  This is so perfect for my special education students.  They need so much extra practice with their sight words and this gives them ample opportunity during the day to work on the words that they need the most help with.  I am creating so many Word Work boxes right now...I just can't help myself.  I have scoured the internet (and Pinterest) and found so many wonderful ideas.  I want to use them all, but I won't, I know to only introduce a few at a time...but man, it's gonna be difficult!  It's just so dang fun!!!

So, here is my Work with Words activity for today...

MYSTERY WORDS

Materials:  index cards, glue, crayons, envelopes

How to:  Make cards with your desired words (use glue to write the words)
When glue dries, place cards inside envelopes and use a crayon to make a rubbing

And here is a button for you to grab and link up YOUR favorite Word Work activity below!!

So follow me...and link up!! What are you waiting for? :)

<a href="http://mrshsresourceroom.blogspot.com"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-wXh8aqgWwxk/UCHTbmx3l1I/AAAAAAAAAdY/7C79YF7R9HY/s160/2.jpg" /></a>

Catch Up Time! & B2S #3

Internet is back on!!! Wooo hoooo!!!

Today was my first day back at school--without kids--at PD!!  It was a great PD! We did lots of math make and takes.  I will share some of those jewels with you later this week!

So, today I have two days to make up for!  First up,

 

This is my first time to link up with 4th Grade Frolics and I was so disappointed yesterday when the internet went kaput!!  Without further ado, here is what I made:

So, they are not exactly education/school, but they are something that you could adapt and make something cute to hang in your room.  My kids and I made these to hang in their new playroom.  

Materials:  11x13 canvas (2), letter stickers, fingerpaint

HOW TO:

Place stickers on canvas using your favorite Bible verse or quote

FINGERPAINT!!!!!

Let dry and remove stickers!

My kids were proud of their creations!!

As for today...

I think the first day back to reality deserved a Starbucks for breakfast!! :)

Here is a little freebie for you to go along with my behavior daily points sheets.  I am going to start sending this note home with my students this year when they make poor choices.  This SMART CHOICE sheet gives the student ownership of their behavior and informs the parents of what has happened at school.

SMART CHOICE SHEET

Enjoy!

I hope those of you that are back to school are having a wonderful year!  As for the rest of us, our time is coming....quickly!!! I have been loving the pictures of classroom setups and I can't wait to get in mine and to get busy!!  This Friday!!  Can't wait!! I am starting to get nervous about getting everything done, but it is what it is!  Kids are coming on the 15th ready or not! :)

Kim

:(

Today I was ready to link up with Make It Monday and bring you another B2S Blowout, but unfortunately our Internet is out. We have only been "hooked up" less than a week. AT&T is sending dispatch tomorrow. I hope by the afternoon tomorrow I will be able to post what I meant to post today. It is too difficult to do from my phone, so...stay tuned...

Kim

Show Me Sunday Link Up--Time Fillers!

I am linking up with Show Me Sunday at 3-6 Free Resources today to bring you some fun time filler activities.  Sometimes, it doesn't matter how detailed your lesson plans are or how structured you are with your time, there will come a moment (or two or twenty) when you need fill up some time while you wait for an assembly, or in the lunch line, or waiting for the restrooms.  I think you get the picture.

Here are FIVE of my favorite time filler activities.


1.  This activity will increase your students’ vocabulary as well as fill time. Start by writing a word on the board that contains four letters. You can start with anything. Then, challenge your students to come up and change only one letter of the word to make a new word. If someone has an answer, have him come up and make the change. Then have another student come up and change the word again. See how many different combinations your students can come up with by changing one letter at a time with no word repeats. Also, give them the opportunity to ask for a definition of any of the words that they may not know throughout the activity.


2.  I like to have a read aloud going at all times.  I like for it to be a chapter book that some of my students may not have the ability to read on their own, but could comprehend if it is read to them.  I allow the students to listen to the story and draw a picture of what is going on in the story.  If the students draw each time they listen to the book then they have created their own story board and they can go back through the pictures to retell the story to you at a later time.


3.  Vo-BACK-ulary:  Divide your students into teams.  The first person on the team sits in a chair backward (in a way so their back is not against the back of the chair).  The person behind the student in the chair writes with his/her finger on the back of the person in the chair.  When the student in the chair thinks they know what the word is that was written on their back they jump up out of their seat and race to the board to write the word on the board with a marker.  The team must be able to give the definition of the word to get the point.  The students take turns sitting in the chair and being "it."  


4.  BANG:  A bucket is filled with cards.  Some cards have your spelling words written on them and some cards have the word "BANG" written on them.  Students sit in a circle.  The first person draws a word out of the bucket, reads the word, hides the word, and then spells the word.  If the student spells the word correctly he keeps it, if you not it goes back into the bucket.  If a student draws "BANG" out of the bucket he must return the card to the bucket along with any cards they have accumulated during the game.


5.  1 thing I like/1 thing I would change:  I pass out sticky notes or index cards to each student.  Each student writes down on thing they like or have learned that day or that week and one thing they would have changed about that week.  I think this activity gives your students a time to have their input into your classroom community and gives them a feeling of ownership.


Hope you can use some of these to fill-in some of that extra time! :)

Kim