Sprucing up the kitchen

Happy Memorial Day bloggers! I hope everyone enjoyed a fun filled day with your families. I spent my morning watching my amazing hubby run the Bolder Boulder 10K. Then we had a cookout and played around the house all day. I love days like these when we don't really have too much planned and we can run on our own time!

Since I'm officially off for summer break, I've decided to take on some much neglected areas of my home that I can improve upon. More specifically, clean up and organization projects. Today I tackled my under the counter nemesis...the tupperware cupboard!

Here is the before picture:



Seriously, now where did that top go?

Here is the after:



It is amazing what two super cheap organizers can do for a cluttered mess. I purchased some plastic baskets for the tupperware tops, one for square tops and one for round tops. Not too shabby if I do say so myself!

Next, I changed up the centerpiece on my kitchen table. Well, I added a centerpiece rather. Lately I've been wiping down the table after dinner and calling it good but since it is summer, I suppose I can muster up enough strength to place a pretty centerpiece back on the table after dinner.

Here is what I came up with:



I just added some rattan decorative balls and fake artichokes from Pier One to an old wooden bowl that I've had laying around. Pretty.

Tomorrow I am heading to an AddVantage math training (all week) and I am so excited. I'll post about it when I am officially a trained expert! Have a great week everyone.

My Summer Projects-nonteaching post

Ahhhh! School's out for summer! My first official day of summer is Monday. I packed my whole classroom up the last week of school, little by little to prepare for my move to a mobile next year. On Friday, I checked out of school after some last minute work in our school's literacy room and A LOT of moving. I can overlook all of the moving though because I got to go out to lunch with some of my favorite ladies from school. I spent this weekend working around my yard, snapping a few photos of my blooming flowers and my new veggie garden (complete with hideous bunny proof fencing and big fat frog to protect the garden.



I have so many mini projects that I need to complete over the summer and while I do have some projects and ideas that I would like to work on for school this summer, I certainly don't plan on spending the entire summer in my classroom. Nope! For this reason, I think I'll go the route of some home decor/organization blogs I adore and post about my projects. You can choose to follow along or come back and visit me periodically through the summer and definitely in the Fall-I'll have a whole new classroom tour as I've moved to a new space!

Yikes! I'd better get those boys outside to water my garden.

OK, now on to my first organization project. You don't even want to see my to do list...sometimes I tend to get ahead of myself. So far, I've tackled my butlers pantry (ya know, that little area between the kitchen and the dining room for storage, etc.) It has stood relatively bare for at least two years and the cupboards have stashed piles of miscellaneous junk. I ordered the Daily Organization system from Pottery Barn and picked up some linen storage boxes from Target that fit the cupboards perfectly. I love it and it was so easy to install. I tend to mull over the idea of buying something for way too long. I've wanted to put the Daily Organization system up for so long so I finally just bought it. My hubby has claimed the first file as incoming and outgoing mail. How cute...a mail station. I'm trying to think of some other stations I can set up in my house. I'm thinking about a lunch station to keep all of my kids lunch box thingies in one place.



Technically, I'm not totally done with the cupboards yet. The fact that the little drawers with scissors, tape, stationary and cards, charging cords, etc. isn't labeled is really driving me batty.

So there you have it. One project down, ten more to go! Happy summer everyone.

Beginning or End of Year Graphing Activity

Hi blogging buddies, sorry I have been missing in action lately. I have finally felt the stress of packing my classroom and getting ready to relocate to a mobile. That, combined with all of the other end of the year fun stuff such as report cards, field day, nighttime concerts and my own son's graduation, I pretty much flopped on the couch and zoned out after my boys were asleep. I have been catching up on my own blog reading all day!

As I was preparing for the Fall by printing out this set of graphs (grab them below) that I have my third graders complete in August, I realized that they might also make a great end of the year activity. In the Fall, I pair my students up by having them pick a dum dum lollipop out of a cute bucket. Then they find their flavor match (just make sure you have two of each flavor and make enough groups for your whole class) and start polling their classmates. It gets loud but who cares! It is a fun and interactive way for kids to get to know one another and review how to take and record data. Here it is the end of the year and we just wrapped up a unit on data landmarks. I think that I will have my kids complete these graphs once more (obviously they will be way more efficient the second time around, right?) but the focus will be on taking data landmarks on their graphs after all of the data collection. For example, I will have each group find the median (middle value), mode (most frequent response) and the big challenge...the mean (average). This will be more data than they have worked with in the past but I think it will be great to see how their small groups attack the challenge!

End of Year Freebie For My Friends!

Happy Monday everyone! Something is on my mind today...my sweet 5 1/2 year old has had a difficult year in private kindergarten. So difficult that we actually moved him with only a few weeks left. Today when I picked him up from his new school, his teacher told me what a kind hearted, smart, sweet and well mannered little guy he was and I totally broke down crying. I realized it had been way too long since a teacher who worked with him had said anything positive about him. I think I'll take this as a lesson when I talk to other parents about their children. These kids belong to someone...they are someone's entire world and they deserve to know how special their kids are on occasion. Thanks for listening...I just had to shout that from the rooftop! My baby is a good, smart boy!

Happy early summer to us! I have 9 days of school left and I wanted to make sure that I sent my darling kiddos off with a special memory book this summer. When I taught first grade a few years back, I always had my parent volunteers bind memory books filled with handwriting samples, photos of special events, and special projects for a great end of the year memento. However now that I teach the big kids, I wanted them to have a mini year book in which they keep track of important events and most importantly, their friends special notes and signatures. I am tying up some loose ends with writing projects this week but next week in between field day and end of the year assemblies I will have my kids work on completing their third grade memory books.

This memory book is geared towards intermediate kids and provides lots of space for them to recall their most memorable moments this school year. I am happy to share it with all of you. I hope you have an outstanding last few weeks of school.



I found out today that I am moving into a mobil (we call them cabins...don't they sound so homey!) next year. I've always been fortunate to be in the building at the schools where I have worked. I would love to hear about how others make the most out the space they are given in a mobil, as well as tricks that have worked for you as far as sending kids in for bathroom use, etc. I struggle with change so I need to plan and think about classroom set up over the summer. I've decided that I will be purchasing all new borders (probably these ones) and fade-proof butcher paper from my local school supply store to make this move more appealing to myself. Maybe I'll throw in a new pair of shoes for myself too! Thanks everyone!

Spelling Sorts

This year I tried something new that I loved! I premade all of my spelling lists for the year in the form of flashcards that can be sorted. I wanted to have a sort available for my students to do each week during Daily 5 time. I had this cute little stand and mini pocket chart lying around so I put it to good use. I propped it up right on top of my Daily 5 tubs which hold my materials. You can read more about my Daily 5 organization here.

At first I was storing all of the cards (36 weeks of cards!) in little baggies, but then I came across this mini file system at where else...Target. I just labeled each tab with a spelling week number and popped the cards in. My kids can change them out each week as I tend to forget. After the cards have been sorted, kids can then take them out of the pocket chart and use them to practice their words in their spelling journals, on spelling tiles, or to give practice tests to their buddies.



My goal for next year is to create another set for later in the week that follow similar spelling rules and patterns but allow kids to apply it to new words.

Welcome Next Years Class in Style!

I recently posted about a few things that I do to prepare my classroom (and keep my sanity) in the Fall. But I also have my current class do some things to help welcome my next years class as well. Every Spring, my current third graders complete a welcome brochure (grab it below) for my new kids, explaining some of the highlights of third grade. I save them to put on my new students desks in the Fall, along with my back to school informational packet and some goodies from me. This brochure is by far my new students favorite thing...it seems to put them at ease to know all of the fun things that they have to look forward to. I usually encourage my kids to write something silly that they liked about me as a teacher this year in the the "one thing you need to know about your teacher" section, although they really don't need that much encouraging after all.

If you maintain a class website or class blog, you could also take a compiled list of the "highlights of third grade" that your current students write about at the end of the year and post them for your incoming kids to read about before school starts. You can view my classroom website post of what this might look like here.

Here is the brochure I use with my kids. In fact, we will be working on these next week.


I create a welcome bag for my kids as well-filled with goodies that I mentioned above. This is nothing I invented, but I did create a team themed letter to attach to the welcome bag. The bags look much better than a plain brown bag. Last year I found some team pennants and mini foam fingers to throw in the bags as well from Oriental Trading. The poem was not written by me, one my colleagues and I came across it a few years back and have been using ever since.


I also have my students write a letter to next years class interactively so that I have a great poster to hang up on my otherwise blank easel at back to school night. I let each student write their name when they sign it so it is a bit more personalized.

Lastly, I ask the teacher of the grade level above me (for me it would be fourth) to have their students write a "what to expect next year" style letter to my kids so that I can pass them on to my current kiddos on the last day of school.

I would love to hear about some things that you do to help welcome your kiddos back in the Fall.

PB Gift Card Winner Announced

Thanks so much for playing along everyone. Drumroll please.....

And the Pottery Barn Gift Card Winner is...



Julie said:


Seriously I adore Julie and we are both third grade blogging buddies so I'm thrilled to be able to send this little gift her way. Congrats Julie. Please send my your snail mail address via my contact button and I'll get your gift card in the mail right away.

Spelling Sorts

This year I tried something new that I loved! I premade all of my spelling lists for the year in the form of flashcards that can be sorted. I wanted to have a sort available for my students to do each week during Daily 5 time. I had this cute little stand and mini pocket chart lying around so I put it to good use. I propped it up right on top of my Daily 5 tubs which hold my materials. You can read more about my Daily 5 organization here.

At first I was storing all of the cards (36 weeks of cards!) in little baggies, but then I came across this mini file system at where else...Target. I just labeled each tab with a spelling week number and popped the cards in. My kids can change them out each week as I tend to forget. After the cards have been sorted, kids can then take them out of the pocket chart and use them to practice their words in their spelling journals, on spelling tiles, or to give practice tests to their buddies.



My goal for next year is to create another set for later in the week that follow similar spelling rules and patterns but allow kids to apply it to new words.

Summer Reading Program

I don't know about you but I am absolutely determined to make sure my third graders keep their noses stuck in a book over the summer. They, eh hem, WE have worked way too hard to "lose" any ground. I want my kids to enter fourth grade feeling like confident rock star readers and not have to waste anytime making up lost ground. I posted a while back about using math calendars to help our kids practice math skills every day this summer. You can read about it here. But my focus today is summer reading.

Now I know our public libraries and our very own school libraries can put together reading lists for students. But how can we ensure our kids will actually pick up a book? I'm not sure really, but I am going to try reading with them. I purchased each student in my class a copy of Wayside School Wacky School that I plan to send them off with on their last day of third grade. I am going to post one video of myself reading aloud of one chapter of the book every day on my class site until the book is completed. I am going to do this using iSight on my Mac. You can view what it might look like (I haven't done it with my chapter book yet) here. This is a video of me reading Pout, Pout Fish with my son Dylan using iSight-just scroll down to the bottom of the post. I am also going to set a date midsummer via email to have my kids meet me a our school park for snacks, a little bit of catching up and most importantly a book discussion. I live so close to school and my own kids can play on the playground while I meet with my soon to be fourth graders. I have an extremely receptive parent group whom I've already spoken with about this summer reading project so I think it will be a success. I plan to email comprehension questions for kids to prepare prior to our book club in the park.

Now, why did I purchase that book? I didn't want to be too serious this summer and I know my kids love this series. The reading level is a good compromise too-not too easy, not too difficult for most, and silly for all! Those students who may struggle can use the read aloud video to follow along with as they read. I will also do a short vocabulary talk prior to each chapter.

Word Wall Team Theme

As you know, I have a team theme in my classroom that has proven to be very successful for me. My kids and families love that we call ourselves Team Randall and there is a definite feel of support and encouragement amongst the "players" on our team. As we all prepare for next year, consider giving your classroom setup an obvious theme to create a cohesive look. If you choose a team theme, I'm your go to gal as I plan to continue using it next year as well. Early this year I created a team themed word wall to go with my classroom look.

Here is a close up...


Here are the letters I made for my word wall. Just cut and paste to construction paper, send them through the laminator and you've got a team themed word wall! I put one letter on each side of the black construction paper.



One more thing I post in my classroom is this huge banner from Oriental Trading. When you order it, you can personalize it to say whatever you want. Mine says "Welcome to Team Randall" and my kids adore it! It only cost $15.00 but it makes a big impact in our classroom.


Don't forget about my giveaway! Click here for details.

Write Night Journals

My third graders aren't required to write a friendly letter but they were a required writing product for them when they were second graders. I have found that while they remember the format, they tend to forget how to apply it when writing letters for book responses, which they are required to write in third grade. I wanted to provide lots of opportunities for my students to practice writing proper letter format as it is an extremely important skill so I created Write Night Journals for my students.

Originally I called them Third Grade Journals, but I liked the way Write Night sounded better so I switched it this year. Each month I require my students to write a friendly letter to a family member (using the paper I include in the folder) discussing important events in school. The first few letters are done with support from me in class. We brainstorm ideas to include in our letters that capture the events of the month. Then I allow my students time to begin their letters. I remind them of the the second grade requirements, so that I don't get any two liners. As the year progresses, they become pretty independent with their letters and we even discuss new requirements that we decide upon as a class, such as underline book titles if you use one in your letter, use commas when listing, and capitalize proper nouns. These are just a few examples that worked for my class as they are conventions that I expect them to use in their daily writing by the end of the school year.

When their letters are completed, they send them home for their families to read and respond to (using the response paper I include in the folder). This allows families to take a peek into our classroom from home and learn about what their kids thought was important for the month. It allows provides my students with the opportunity to have real correspondence modeled from an audience that is important to them. The best part about the Write Night Journals is that students and their families have a great keepsake memory of their third grade year!

I set the Write Night Journal up for the entire year so that each student letter is followed by the parent letter for that month. I tried to have kids add a new letter each month but it was a pain so I decided that it was worth my time in the Fall to prepare the folders ahead of time.

I chose not to grade the letters for content, so I didn't include a rubric. However, I always took a homework grade and a writing conventions grade. I gave families two weeks to read and respond to their students letters. If you are interested in taking a peek at how I present it to families, view this link to a page on my classroom website with more details.

Finally, here is a copy of the student and parent response letter template that I use with my class. Grab it if you can use it! But wait, that is not all I have to say in this post...scroll down for details about my giveaway.




Also, don't forget about my big...


Some lucky winner will receive a $25.00 gift card to use at one of my favorite home stores.



See the post below for details!

200 Followers Giveaway!

Hey everyone, thanks for following my blog. I've reached 200 followers and I'd like to say thank you so I'm having a giveaway. Summer is coming and it is time for all of us teachers to take some well deserved time off of work (at least a week, right?) and do some much needed cleaning, organizing, and of course decorating at our own homes! I always have my eye on something in the latest Pottery Barn catalog, so I'll be giving away a $25.00 gift card to... Pottery Barn! It is one of my favorite places to shop and get inspiration and ideas for my own home.



How to enter this giveaway:
1. Follow my blog-become a follower of my blog, or already be one. Leave me a comment to let me know.

2. Repost-let others know about my blog giveaway by grabbing my button and reposting. Leave me a comment to let me know.

3. Facebook-"Like" my facebook page (on the right sidebar) and leave me a comment to let me know.

This giveaway will end Wednesday, May 11th. I'll announce the winner Wednesday evening.

Thanks so much for your support. I really enjoy sharing ideas with all of you and I am totally addicted to reading all of your blogs!

Getting Ready for Next Year...Already!

OK, it is official. I have started thinking about some things that I would like to improve upon and change up a little for next year. Time4Kindergarten is having a linky party so that teachers can share some of their ideas to help make our transition back into the classroom in the Fall nice and easy.


Here are some of the things that I do every year:
1. To-Do List: I keep a to do list on my computer desktop so that when I am blog hopping, checking email, etc. I can take a bit of time to create/redo something to stash on my flashdrive so that I can take it to school and print it off in color. When one item is completed, I delete it from the list.

2. Print/Laminate: Every so often I bring my flashdrive to school, print off some items such as new bathroom passes or table tub numbers (snag a copy below), and then laminate and cut them so they are ready for the Fall.

3. Classroom Configuration: I start thinking about how to rearrange my classroom for the Fall. I'm having a hard time this year though because I really liked how I set it up this year and I'm not certain that I will make too many changes.

4. Labels: I adhere labels to construction paper folders for back to school night that have my classroom info. and my classroom website address on them. I've got them all printed off for next years group already.

5. Messy Tubs: On the last day of school, I have my current kids use Clorox wipes to clean out their independent reading tubs and a few of my library tubs so they can be stored over the summer and I won't need to clean them in the Fall (other than a quick dusting).

6. Questionnaire: I create a classroom questionnaire for my kids to use to rank certain units of study and management items on how useful they were. I also create one for my parents to fill out for me to help me plan and tweak my plans/ homework packets, etc. over the summer for next year. Ii is always very helpful to see how your parents and kids felt about your homework and classroom management. Sometimes they have great ideas for change that I never thought of!

7. Welcome Brochures: I create a welcome brochure for my current class to fill out for my next years class. They love getting them on back to school night. I always include a section on what units of study we have in third grade, field trips they will get to take, and some things they must know about me, Mrs. Randall. They always say silly things that put my new kids at ease, such as "if she seems grumpy, she just needs a hug and a few more sips of her coffee." Of course, I am never grumpy though! Geesh!

I'm sticking with my team theme for next year so I created these team number labels to adhere to little supply caddies I place on student table teams. Maybe you can use them if you do a team theme as well...


Here is a copy of my bathroom passes. I laminate them and cut them out. Then I stick them in those clear plastic picture frames you can find at Target and Walmart. When kids need to use the restroom, they place the appropriate frame on their desk. This ensure only two students go to the restroom at a time, one girl and one boy. Also, if I have to leave my room quickly for a fire dirll, I can take a quick scan of the desks to see if someone is in the restroom. The frames stand up on the desks and make it easy to see who is out of the classroom.

Categorizing Common and Proper Nouns

Now that all of the state testing is over and we are heading into Spring assessments, the end of the year is so close! I can see it in my kids behavior each school day as they get more and more excited about what lies ahead for them this June. I wanted to make sure that my kids have plenty of practice this last few weeks in maintaining all of those word skills they worked so hard learning this year.

My third graders spend approximately thirty minutes each day independent reading, so I created this word skill task that allows kids to practice categorizing proper and common nouns they see in context. You might include it as part of your independent reading, or morning work, or even word work during Daily 5. Snag it if you can use it!

Summer Math Calendars

Pardon my blog's dust...I tried messing with some html and lost my header. Doh! I'm hoping to get a nice new template soon though.

First of all, let me just shout this from the rooftop real quick...

OK, back to business.

We've all heard that kids who do absolutely no skill work over the summer can sometimes lose up to 6 months of learning. Super Yikes! I'm sure we've also noticed that this really happens to some kiddos. Our librarian always puts together a great summer reading list for kids in our school and the public library also has some great reading programs and incentives to keep kids noses in books. This year I even have some of my own ideas about keeping my class excited about reading this summer (more to come on that in a later post).

I asked myself this question as I was thinking about summer learning opportunities for my kids. There are no easy solutions for keeping our kids engaged in math over the summer unless their parents actively include them in household financial planning, building backyard gardens, etc. Not all kids will have these rich opportunities to use authentic math, so I created a calendar for June and July which provides a quick math activity or skill to practice for each day of the month. I wanted to provide some buy in for my kids as well so I told them that if they got a parent signature anywhere on the calendar(s)  they could come visit me in the Fall with their signed calendar(s) for a special back to school smarty pants surprise.

These calendars were created to maintain basic 3rd grade skills but they may work for high 2nd graders as well. The font looks small here but it is really a normal size.


Only a few more weeks until summer! We can do it!