Sunday Scoop

It's Sunday!  Coffee, Meet the Press, and Sunday Scoop are what's going on right now with Teaching Trio's linky.

I'm really excited because this time of year means . . . classroom reveals!  I'm scheduling mine for this Tuesday, so be sure to check back then for a tour.  But that means I need to upload about 2.63 million photos.  I'm hoping the wifi on my camera will work.

We are using EngageNY for math this year, and I bought some PowerPoints from TpT that go perfectly with the lessons - they just need to be tweaked and cutened up a little.  I'll probably veg with some Real Housewives and work on those.

I'm planning on making a famous American headband game, and I'm excited to begin working on a new project.  I got the idea when our principal had us play a game where she wrote an occupation on a Post It, stuck it to our backs, and we had to figure out what it was by asking others yes and no questions.  Wouldn't that be a fun game to play with famous Americans?  So, I'm going to be putting some Educlips clip art to good use.

And . . . I'm planning on taking some time to relax.  My summer is pretty much over - I have a meeting on Monday, inservice on Thursday and Friday, and school will start on August 3.  I'm a little sad to see another summer slip by, but I am excited about meeting a new crop of thirders in just one week!

Sunday Scoop

It's Sunday . . . and time for The Sunday Scoop with The Teaching Trio!

Let me offer a piece of free advice.  I have heard of people who buy Command strips (you know, the kind that kind of look like Velcro), but they make a mistake and buy the wrong kind.  You see, on the package it is clearly labeled how much weight the strips can hold, but some people don't pay attention to that.  So when they get home, they notice that they have the wrong kind, but they figure that the picture really isn't THAT heavy, so they'll just try and see how it goes.  And the picture hangs just fine!  Then, about 30 minutes later, they are sitting catching up on Real Housewives of OC while simultaneously pinning and they hear a horrendous crash coming from their kid's room.  And when they go in, not only did the Command strips not hold the picture, but on its way down said picture took out two other pictures, a lamp, a laptop, and a jar of colored pencils.  So, I think we can all learn from these people's mistakes and remember to READ AND ABIDE BY the weight limits on Command strip packaging.

You're welcome.

It's hot here.  Y'all.  It is like "walk out and gasp for air" hot.  I don't know if you've experienced West Tennessee summers before, but there's a Southern saying that goes along the lines of, "It's not the heat.  It's the humidity."  And that's really true.  So, hydration is my friend - for me and the plants around here.  

My summer is almost over.  We have TWO WEEKS until the kids will be in our classrooms.  I've had a really incredible summer, but it's been a lot of work, and all of those little "to dos" I'd planned haven't gotten done so much.  So, I'm going to try to clean out some cabinets and drawers and wipe down the cabinets.  I find that doing jobs like that, that I really dread, are SO much easier if I call someone and chat while I'm working.  Anyone else?

And, I'm super happy to blog today!  I'm using a new planner that I've seen a lot of TpT'ers who went to Vegas talk about - I think that Teacherpreneur was gifting copies - and it has tons of pages for planning social media, products, and blogging!  It's available for $5 on TpT here, for those of us who had to live vicariously through Periscope that week.

And . . . that will launch my last full week of summer!  

The Sunday Scoop

It's Sunday, and that means it's time for a late Sunday Scoop with The Teaching Trio!

I went up to school today to get a jump on copying, since we start school 3 WEEKS FROM MONDAY.  Wha??   PLUS, we're down to one copier and it's kind of jacked up - it will only feed paper in from the multipurpose tray - so I took some time to camp out in the copy room today. Not a ton of fun, but it feels great to get it done!

Anyone else turned into a night owl over the summer?  I have got to get back onto a semi-normal schedule, or I'm really going to be hurting when school ours roll around for real.

This Pocahontas unit.  THIS UNIT.  I have picked it up and put it down about a bazillion times, but it is finally done with a lowercase d.  I printed it out today to do a final proof, found some minor stuff to fix, and as soon as I get that done and pdf'ed, it'll go in the store!  Be sure to follow me on social media - I'll be hosting a flash sale when it's listed!!

Y'all.  Periscope.  Periscope has taken over my life - in (what I hope is) a good way.  Thanks to Angie at Rulin' the Roost, Belinda at Third Grade to the Edge and Becky at Cookin' Up Success in Third Grade and their fabulous Periscope Teacher Challenge, I gave up and jumped in.  It is truly awesome.  If you haven't tried it, just do yourself a favor and download the app, follow me (I'm @CathyWhitehead1), and then go and follow my followers and followings.  Just in the past two days, I have learned more from others on Periscope than I have in the past month - I have a great camera on my Amazon wish list (thanks, Alyssa from Just a Primary Girl), I'm planning on making glue sponges this week (thanks, Angie at Lucky Little Learners), and I've gotten great ideas and tips for TpT products.  I've actually gotten to where I keep my planner by my phone just in case I need to stop and take notes.  I broadcast a scope earlier today with quick tips for your classroom library, so be sure to check in and view it!

Enjoy the rest of your Sunday, and be sure to check back Tuesday when I'll have a guest blogger handling Techy Tuesday this week!

The Sunday Scoop

It's Sunday - and it's time for a long overdue Sunday Scoop with the Teaching Trio!

First, why is it that you can try on a pair of shoes, fall in love with them, and then when you order another pair in a different color from Amazon they fit differently?  I'll never understand it.

This Pocahontas unit is hanging over my head.  I think I've got some writer's block, but I'm determined to finish it this week!  I have a student-led conference package I really need to start.

I'm planning on using Engage NY as my math curriculum this year.  We're transitioning to a new assessment in Tennessee this year, and I hear that this program is perfectly aligned with the standards for the test.  I'm planning on doing a preliminary look to see what materials or manipulatives I might need, then download and organize the modules in my Dropbox.

And speaking of materials and manipulative - I began my very first Donors Choose project today!  I thought about requesting books, but my room is overrun with them, and I honestly have plenty of Scholastic points.  So, I created a project for a class set of Kindles!  I found refurbished ones for $64 each, and with Kindles you can buy a book and then load it on up to 6 devices.  So, if I want a class set of something, I would only have to buy the Kindle version of the book 4 times to deliver it to up to 24 students!  The project is around $1,500, which I know is a lot, so if anyone has any tips for getting it funded, let me know.

I'm heading into my last week of TNCore coaching for 3rd-5th grade social studies, and it's truly bittersweet.  I've been very busy, and really don't feel like I've had much of a break, but I have LOVED every minute of training.  I've worked with almost 100 Tennessee teachers, coaches, and administrators so far, and I've learned something from every single group.  Plus, I've been able to connect with the best group of teacher coaches from across the state.  It has been an absolutely fabulous experience, and I'll be sad to see it come to an end this week.

I hope everyone has had a fantastic Father's Day!  If you still have your dad, be sure to hug him tight.

The Sunday Scoop

It's Sunday, and that means it's time for The Sunday Scoop with The Teaching Trio!

Yes, state testing begins tomorrow.  Then we have school-wide STAR testing Thursday and Friday.  And next week will bring the social studies field test.  God bless us, every one!

I am still - STILL - without a washing machine, so it's back to the laundromat I go today.  This is now over two weeks with two teenagers and no machine.  Kill me now.  We have decided that if it's not fixed by Wednesday, we'll just buy a new one. 

I've booked a fall break trip to Disney, and I'm so VERY fortunate that a neighbor and parent of a former student is also a Disney travel specialist!  All I have to do is give her dates and tell her what we want to do, and she handles the rest, for the exact same price as booking it myself.  This is just my second time to DW, so her help is invaluable.  And, y'all, this woman KNOWS Disney.  If you're thinking of planning a trip, check out her Facebook page.  She is the bomb.  (Does anyone say that anymore?)

Last, I've decided to take the plunge and redecorate my room next year.  No, I'm UPdecorating my room.  I'm using a lot of what I've already got, just adding in some new details and colors.  At least that's what I'm telling myself.  I've fallen in love with the Hello, Sunshine collection from Schoolgirl Style, and I love trolling Pinterest for inspiration.  I got a few scores at Hobby Lobby and Dollar Tree yesterday, and I'm excited to do some more planning!

Enjoy your Sunday!

The Sunday Scoop

I'm joining the linky over at Teaching Trio for this week's Sunday Scoop.

I've taken the plunge and I'm working with a personal trainer, and meal prep is a must for me.  I have NO time during the week to think about what I'm eating, so prepping the week in advance should help.  Follow me on Instagram to see how it goes this afternoon!

I will never again complain about laundry.  Never.  Y'all, I have been without a washer for - count 'em - 11 days!!!  Yesterday, I finally broke down, loaded my car with 8 bags of laundry and headed to the laundromat.  That was a pain in the you-know-what.  Big time.  Hopefully I'll be with a functioning washer by the end of the this week.  I have a feeling there'll be a whole lotta washing going on.

My sweet hubby got me a new Macbook Pro, and the transition from PC hasn't been too hard.  Just a bit of a learning curve.  But, I'm hoping to really dig into Keynote today and see if I can work with it or if I'll have to break down and get Office.  

I spent yesterday cleaning out the flowerbed and sprucing it up, washing the car, sweeping out the garage, toting aforementioned laundry into and out of the laundromat - basically it was a manual labor day.  So, this morning, I'm looking forward to time with TV, Macbook, and coffee.  

Enjoy your Sunday!

The Sunday Scoop

I'm excited to be joining the ladies at Teaching Trio for their Sunday Scoop linky.  Here's what I'm up to today.

Be sure to head on over to their blog to see what everyone else is doing.

Happy Easter!