Mystery Box Giveaway!!!!

Who's ready for a fun, new kind of giveaway?? Well, are you as obsessed with Ipsy as we are? I mean, you've got to admit, it's pretty amazing.  

Who doesn't love a little surprise something in the mail? We sure do! 

And it seems like most of the developed world does too! Monthly Subscription Boxes are all the rage -- and just about every kind of company is hopping onto this wagon!  You can even get a monthly subscription box for a fisher lover... or your dog! How's that for cool?

So some of us bloggers got together and thought, "Why can't WE do this?" Obviously we don't have the inventory to have a subscription box... but we can't resist a little mystery box!

Special thanks to Melonheadz for making our "box" and to Teacher to the Core for designing the graphic!

Each month, the bloggers above will host a giveaway of special goodies AND digital products! What kind of goodies, you ask? It's a mystery! But we'll be sure to put some of our favorite teacher goodies in there. If you win, a special mystery box filled with our favorites will arrive at your door! You'll enter by visiting, following, and leaving a comment on each of the blogs. The more blogs you follow and comment on, the better your chance to win! Admit it. You're totally psyched. And you should be! April's box is ready to ship!

What amazing goodies could possibly be inside this box?? One lucky winner will soon find out! Will it be YOU? a Rafflecopter giveaway

Near and Dear: A Place for Peace

I am taking place in a VERY special fundraiser with Abby over at Third Grade Bookworm this week.

Last year this month she lost a very special student, Ruby, to Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Her family has not been able to purchase a headstone for Ruby and Abby has stepped up to make this possible. 

As of right now she has generated about half of what she needs. 

Click here to read more about Abby and Ruby's story. 

Please consider a $20.00 donation to receive $130.00 worth of products from seller's such as yours truly. Here is a sneak peek of what you will receive:

Abby's story is a testament to the love that we feel for "our kids" long after they are our students. That is why I knew that you teachers would get this. Please unite with me in bringing peace to Ruby's family in the form of a headstone to mark her place of rest.

Why I Cry Every Year on Earth Day and You Can Too!

Every year for Earth Day I like to read one of my top 5 favorite books of all time: 

Bill Peet Website

The Wump World on Amazon

No matter how many times I read this book when the little wumps cry out "wump, wump!" and are forced into their underground hole, I cry. 

Boo-hoo cry in front of all of my students. I am a BIG softy when it comes to little critters.

Last years kiddos cried right along with me. 

This year I've added this writing activity to the mix. 

I am going to have my kiddos choose something from nature and write about how the world would be different without that one thing. 

 I will probably choose the elephant, I always do. 

You can grab the freebie directly from Google Docs. 

And you might want to check out last years Earth Day post for some fun, paper free, interactive ideas. :)

Now, I'm off to remember what I'm teaching next week. Wump. Wump.

My Pinterest Boards are Now Worth Following!

I spent some serious time this week organizing my Pinterest boards. To have one board called "Math" was a nightmare. I could NEVER find any of my ideas. 

Here is a screenshot of part of my organizational magic: 

All pins in their proper places. (Although moving pins from board to board has helped my CLEAN laundry pile grow to over 3 feet high!)

So now that I'd be proud for you to, click on over and follow one of my boards. :)

Amp up your Line Plots!

I wanted to share a fun activity that I used to increase the rigor of a simple line plot last week!

First, I gave my students 16 addition and subtraction problems and asked them to solve. (They folded a piece of paper into 16 squares to save on copies.)

The sums and differences became the points on our line plots. 
After they created their line plots, I gave them 3 questions to answer in what were SUPPOSED to be COMPLETE sentences. 

I created freebie for you folks so that you can try this activity with your own class. Click here or on the images below to download. :) 

 (You will notice that there are only 8 problems, the only reason MY class had 16 was because I accidentally taught them all to fold paper into 16 squares rather than 8. I had already admitted I was wrong once that day so I just went with it.)


Happy Plotting! :)

Tax Break Sale!

Today only enjoy 15% at my TPT store! 

Thanks to Tammy at Live Love Laugh Kindergarten for the cute graphic! 

Interacting with Money

I always have a personal list going of things I want my students to absolutely be able to do before leaving second grade. One thing on my list is counting money!!!

Here are some interactive games that I have used in my classroom to help with this important skill, but don't require a lot of time, effort or preparation on your part.

 Enough Money?

Coin Madness Addition

I just pop these bad boys up on my SMART Board and call kiddos by table to break up the hum drum of their math practice time.

If you do not have access to a SMART Board, I have also left some of these games running on my classroom PCS in the morning and just let kids rotate through. 

I don't LOVE that there are links on the sides, but the games are top quality, so I make sure that my kiddos are attended when they use this resource.

Until next time . . .

Monthly Mishmash Link Up and First 3 Get Free!

Tonight I'm linking up with Mrs. Wheeler's First Grade Tidbits to share a couple of products from my TPT store that are perfect for the month of April! :) 

My Story Problem Task Cards for April are great for helping kiddos S-T-R-E-T-C-H their minds a little (or a lot!). They address several CCSS for second grade math. 

You should also check out my Spring to the Core! Common Core Math Centers for Second Graders. There are a total of 6 centers in the set which address a wide variety of standards from graphing to place value.

The first 3 people to comment get both for free. 

Please don't forget to leave your e-mail address when you comment. :)
 

Working on Words with a Smile

If you are like me, you sometimes get bogged down trying to plan your literacy block. I use Daily 5 in my classroom and while it is an easy model to follow, I sometimes run out of ideas. (I am a math girl after all.) That is when I turn to my friends. :)
 
Kate Daniel at Second Grade Sparkle has this SUPER, AWESOME Word Study Mega Pack. 

I have some kiddos who needed some serious 911 long vowel help. But most long vowel activities are B-O-R-I-N-G! So, in comes Kate's SUPER friendly and fun long vowel sort! 
There is also an answer sheet that goes with it!

AND, I also had some jelly beans who needed help with diphthongs . . . they can SAY and READ all of these words but their spelling was a nightmare . . . like awrownd instead of around . . . seriously. SO  we worked on one of Kate's FABULOUS booklets . . . . 

I have used parts of this set in my daily reading groups and I've even thrown some activities out during word work AND I still haven't even used HALF of this set. It is MEGA. I will DEFINITELY be pulling this out at the beginning of the year next year with my struggling readers and spellers.

This is definately the kind of resource that you would pull out from year to year. 

Click here to check it out at Kate's store. AND . .. while your clicking, check out Kate's blog, Second Grade Sparkle (it's one of my faves).

Grocery List Freebie!

This evening I am sharing something totally not related to teaching. This grocery list organizer is based on a few that I saw floating around on the web but just didn't quite do what I needed them to, or didn't have the cute factor.

Click here or on the images below to download from google docs.

This list helps me because I STINK at grocery shopping, I spend the whole time going up and down the length of the store because I get by items by the order they are on the list. 

I think I am going to eventually make a list with a section for each aisle at my local store. . . . would that make me a total crazy? 

Have a great week everyone!