My September SLANT Box!

I came home last night to this envelope of goodness. Ignore the water bottle in the background. It is just a water bottle. Focus on the envelope. It says Air Mail in French. For real.

 I was matched up with Dawn from Apples, Owls, and Peppermint Mochas. She is a super sweet teacher from Manitoba, Canada. She sent me the BEST gifts! 

 Hilarious sticky notes and coasters, fun erasers, a grape (my first!) Scentos Marker, a really cool sustainable ink pen, a fab owl bag, and an AH-maizing journal. Hey Girl indeed. 

Such a CUTE notepad! 

I HEART this adorable owl bag. 

 There are no words. 

Dawn nailed it. She really surprised me with these fantastic gifts. Totally made my week. 

If you want to have this same wonderful experience you should check out the SLANT Box on Jameson blog, Lesson with Coffee.

You won't be disappointed. 

Finally a post! October Currently...

Wow! October 3rd ALREADY! I have been a total blog slacker lately. To redeem myself, I am linking up (albeit a few days late) with Farley from Oh' Boy 4th Grade... for the October Currently.




I am listening to the FAB The Big Bang Theory. I have seen most of these episodes multiple times and still crack up at each one. I heart Sheldon.

I am loving my sweet group of kiddos this year. I have been out sick all week and they have been so well behaved for their substitutes.

I really have WAY to much to do to be sick right now. Ugh. Fingers crossed I am better in the morning.

I so want to feel totally better! Being sick is tough, but when you have 23 little friends waiting for you to get better, you can never get better soon enough. Whoa, really didn't mean for that to rhyme.

My district has started using Power Teacher for EVERYTHING this year. Unfortunately, it rarely works. Makes it pretty difficult to get grades done.

Time for a fun treat! There is a wonderful giveaway going on over at  The Primary Chalkboard. You should really check it out!

Budding Bloggers Linky Party

     I've linked up at I {heart} Recess for a Budding Blog Linky Party.  if you are new to the blogging world and have fewer than 200 followers you can link up too!  It's a great way for us to 
get to know and support each other. 

Here are my answers:

     
     I started blogging after being inspired by my fabulous 3rd grade students. I want to share our classroom experiences with others and share some (hopefully good!) ideas as well. 

     My favorite subject to teach is reading. I love to help students who claim to "hate to read" find the right book (or article, blog, poem, etc) that grabs their interest and never lets go. 

My teaching style is very nurturing and consistent while maintaining very high standards for myself and every single student. I look at every student as an individual with gifts and talents to share. Every student is capable and will show growth in my class. I have very clear and consistent standards that everyone is expected to follow, but I also know that my students have extremely different needs and I do everything in my power to differentiate my instruction to meet those needs. 

I am an advocate for every one of my students. I am going to do everything I can to help them learn whether it be getting them the modifications they need, getting them set up with AG classes, shaping and supporting a behavior plan, getting their family set up with food or getting them glasses. I do whatever it takes to make my students feel successful. They know that we are a family in our classroom and that we respect each other for who we are as individuals and as a classroom community. 

    Three interesting facts about me: 
I am 6 feet tall. 

I was diagnosed with Type I Diabetes at the age of 11. 

I am scared to death of clowns. Even typing that freaked me out a little. I (obviously) will not be posting a picture for this fact. 

     My meager lil' TPT store can be found at http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Amanda-Applegate

I am looking forward to reading your answers! :c)

1. Why did you start blogging?

2. What is your favorite subject to teach and why?

3. Describe your teaching style.

4. Give three interesting facts about you.

5. Do you have a TpT store? If yes, please post the link.

Why I Teach

        I believe that teaching is the most rewarding, positive, and powerful career that one can be fortunate enough to have. Teaching is so much more than curriculum and standardized tests. Teaching is an adventure every single day. Teaching is being a good listener and a shoulder to cry on. Teaching is knowing how to get 24 eight year olds to be quiet by simply raising your hand. Teaching is knowing when to use your “teacher voice” and when to just observe the magic that is happening around you. Teaching is taking advantage of the opportunity to learn something new every single day and sharing that with others. Teaching is being able to work yourself to the point of exhaustion one day and being excited to do it all again the next. 

        I find rewards in teaching every single day. That moment when a student suddenly understands how to solve the dreaded multi-step word problems. The moment when a parent tells you that you changed their child’s aversion to reading and now their child asks to stay up 15 minutes later than normal so they can finish the chapter they’re on. That moment when your most difficult student ever (seriously, I could write a book AND an after school special on this one) tells you that you were the first person to ever believe he was smart. 

He came into my class of 28 in October with a huge chip on his shoulder and no respect for anyone who crossed his path. He spoke of gangs, weapons, and drugs like other boys talk about cartoon characters, toy cars, and candy. He had an IEP for literacy and was brilliant in math. He broke most every rule, got suspended numerous times, and intimidated his classmates. I knew I could help him. 

We eventually formed an understanding of each other. He needed to be treated as a 9 year old. He needed to know it was okay to be successful and that he was so capable of being whatever he wanted to be.  He began to understand how much I cared for and believed in him. He began to enjoy school. The day I sat next to him on the playground steps and told him that he scored 4’s on his EOG we both got tears in our eyes.        

        He came back last year to tell me that he was doing really well in 7th grade and still wanted to be a lawyer when he graduates from college. It doesn’t get better than that.  

SLANT Box goodness.

Oh my gosh, I have had SO MUCH FUN with the August SLANT Box exchange. I was matched to send treats to Terry Stouffer from First at Bat and have really enjoyed getting to know her.

Thank you to Jessica from Joy in the Journey for all of my fabulous August SLANT box gifts. I have really enjoyed getting to know her and she did such a good job picking out things that I love and needed for my classroom. She sent me adorable owl reading certificates and  cut outs since owls are one of my favorite things. She sent really pretty ink pens and markers which is fab because I love writing in different colors. Some cute star stickers, popcorn (one of my favorite snacks), and a beautiful hand made card with a very sweet note. Everything was in a plastic container with a turquoise (one of my favorite colors!) lid.

My SLANT box came wrapped in the CUTEST polka dot wrapping paper! 

So clever! 

All of my fab treats from Jessica!

I can not WAIT to find out my SLANT Box matches for September! If you sign up it could be you! Check out the SLANT Box sign up at Lessons with Coffee to get started.

First day Back!

Today was the first day back with students. They came in VERY excited and raring to go. Many of them actually brought in most of the supplies from the supply list, which is always a nice surprise. I started the morning with neat and organized piles of each supply on my front table. 10 minutes later I had a supply MOUNTAIN. I have had years were hardly anyone brought in the supplies we had requested, so, having a mountain of supplies is a wonderful problem to have. As I sit here writing this post, I realize that I should have taken a picture to share...oh well, maybe tomorrow. Um, yeah, that mountain of supplies is still looming, casting a beautiful supply shadow over the the pile of papers I didn't put away either.
:c)

Crazy Cool Giveaway!

This is an AH-MAZING giveaway! Check it out.
I Teach. What's your super power?: You Won't Believe This Giveaway:

From Icky to FABULOUS in 3 Easy Steps

So, lots of us have these clear plastic countertop drawers in our classrooms, right? Right. I have a few sets of them that I have had for YEARS and they have definitely seen better days.

Icky. 

Yucky.

I needed to do something about these, stat. My fantastic friend Julie, (who teaches kindergarten, brave soul!) recently texted me a picture of her clear plastic drawer makeover and, holy wow, They looked AH-MAZING! I was impressed, inspired, and excited. I got right to work gathering my Julie-suggested supplies.

I am sure this is what Fiestaware fruit dishes were meant for.

Scrapbook paper from Mardel. ADORABLE.

Once I had everything gathered up I "measured" the paper by just sticking it into the drawer and folding the sides in until I got it were I wanted it. I then cut the paper to size and painted the watered down glue onto the printed side. The paper molded nicely to inside of each drawer and actually was easier to install than I expected. I painted more glue onto the backside of the paper and VIOLA! Totally new (looking) drawers!

So crafty.

The wonders of contact paper

I am always looking for ways to "fab up" my classroom. I figure I pretty much live there during the school year (and a bit in the summer!) so why not make it as fabulous as I can? Last summer I painted the back wall and added curtains. This summer I decided to tackle the hideously boring cabinet doors. The cupboards are painted a blah beige that looks dirty no matter how many Clorox wipes I use.

Blah Beige at it's finest. 

I had planned to paint the cupboards but I really didn't want to was worried that the paint wouldn't dry quickly enough since our building can get SUPER humid, especially in the summer. My wonderful Aunt (love her) suggested that I try high quality contact paper instead. Hmmm...interesting. I searched on Amazon and found some beautiful turquoise and white chevron, grey and white chevron, and a funky grey and white geometric design. You can find them here: Macbeth Collection Contact Papers. The best part? There is a promotion of buy 4, pay for 3 plus free 2 day shipping. I heart Amazon Prime.

TA-DA!  Please excuse the blurry photos, I was shaking with excitement. 

I am really happy with the results. The contact paper was easier than expected to apply. The hardest part was lining up the chevron pattern. Luckily, the paper is very forgiving. I could reposition the paper as needed and it kept its stickiness. 

Well, that's it for now! I have my first work day of the new school year tomorrow and I my goal is to finish up as much of my room decorating/rearranging as possible. Wish me luck!

Well Hello There!

This is my first voyage into the world of blogging and I am SO EXCITED (and a teensy bit nervous) to get started! I regularly read many different "teacher blogs" and have become very inspired to start my own. I love the idea of sharing stories, ideas, lesson plans, photos, etc. with other educators and blogging seems like a fantastic way to do this. I am really looking forward to getting to know other educators and to share my 3rd grade adventures! 

Drumroll Please!

It is finally here. The day I have been looking forward to for months. It is the debut of my WONDERFUL, BEAUTIFUL, INCREDIBLE new blog design. I must say I am in LOVE. Chirsti from Designs by Christi did an AMAZING job bringing my blog vision to life. I am so excited to be starting my "blog-sperience" with such a fab new design. I am looking forward to sharing my 3rd grade adventures and getting to know many more fantastic teachers along the way. Thanks for stopping by! 

New Blog, New Look

I am so excited and anxiously awaiting the debut of my fabulous new blog design made by the TALENTED Christi Fultz of Ms. Fultz's Corner and Design by Christi. She has made the process of designing my blog so simple and easy, I can not say enough good things about her. If you are in the market for a fresh blog look or are just starting out on your blogging adventure ( Like me! ) head on over to Design by Christi to check out her amazing designs. I can not wait to see my bright and shiny new blog!
Hope everyone is having a relaxed and restful Sunday!

Talk Soon,