My Sunday Scoop! (And a VERY cool history fact!)

Thanks to Teaching Trio, I'm sharing my Sunday Scoop today:

Do you send a letter to your kids to introduce yourself?  When I first started, it was via mail and I included a pencil.  My district paid for it.  Then, we were told email only.  Cheaper.  So, I've been doing that ever since.  

No pencil of course but it does save money.  I have the pencil waiting for them on their desk when they arrive.  I actually send the parents one letter and then email again and write "For My Fabo First Grader" in the subject line so the child can still feel the excitement of getting their own letter.  My kids used to LOVE getting their letters from their teachers. Now, it's all about their schedules!  Gotta know when lunch is and who's in your lunch period, right?

I've had this freebie in my store forever and a complete set of these are LONG overdue.  After today, it will FINALLY be in my store!  I've added a number line to the bottom and included subtraction.  My kids love to use highlighters so I think these will be a hit!

My walking has almost come to a screeching halt this summer.  Why???  I have no answer!  Most people can walk 10,000 steps to reach five miles.  Me?  Nope. I'm short so I need 13,500 steps before the five miles register.  From March-June, I walked almost 5 miles a day.  Often 7 miles.  I lost 12 pounds!  I'm annoyed and disappointed with myself that I slacked off.  Sigh.

      

Also added this to John's Store:

Interesting Fact: See the picture of Bell holding "something" over "someone" in bed? That "something" is a metal detector (which he created) and that "someone" is President Garfield who was shot. Bell was called upon in an attempt to help save the life of the mortally wounded President using his early version of a metal detector. Surely he could find the slug of an assassin's bullet with his new invention. But to his dismay, the bed Garfield was on was metal so Bell couldn't get an accurate read. He urged doctors to move him out of that bed so he could properly use- and locate- the slug. The doctors refused. Because of their refusal, Garfield died. Many believe if the slug had been found and removed, he would have survived. So now you know!!!

John and Matthew are going to see the Mets play today.  Sarah and I are going shopping...she leaves for Syracuse University in just nine days.  Sniff, sniff. Much to do!!

Want to link up and give us your scoop?  Click on the button!

Have a great Sunday!

Knock Knock Spring! Where Are You?

Happy March! Was hoping to kick off the month with a little sunshine but was greeted with snow this morning. Again! Ugh! At least I know whatever snow falls will melt quickly....I hope! I have to keep reminding myself that spring is just a few weeks away.

I just finished my March Open-Ended Questions. If you want to see my previous entry about the value of these journals and how much I love them, you can read about them here and see responses from the kiddos. (More FREEBIES there, too!)

After a few people inquired if I'd be adding each month to my store (YES!) I now have a year-long open-ended math questions bundle that will save teachers $10. Who doesn't love to save ten bucks? It's like getting THREE months for free. Free is good, isn't it?

Here are TWO free pages/samples from my March Packet. One will be perfect for Read Across America/Dr. Seuss Day tomorrow. Hope you can use them.

In clip art news, John just finished a James Madison and the War of 1812 set.  I so wish I could do this! I love the picture of Francis Scott Key as he overlooks "the bombs bursting in air."  A lot of research goes into his historical sets and I'm thrilled they are selling well now.

Oh, I also have this SIMPLE Dr. Seuss song that you may want to use tomorrow to the tune of BINGO. Honestly, I just put it together a few years ago to heave something but my kids love singing it.

Good luck to all of you who are starting PARCC testing tomorrow. Lots of families are opting out in NJ and I cannot say I blame them.

Have a great day!

February Math Freebie

How much do I love giving my kids open-ended journal prompts?  Sooooooo much! After you grab my two-page freebie by clicking on the pic, you can read about them and see them in action HERE.

I'm getting a lot of feedback that referring to how they're going to be used with the "high" students. Honestly, ALL my students benefit.  After modeling a few, they really take risks and do a fabo job! Differentiation is built right in to these open-ended questions. See for yourself!  (January and December freebies available in my store, too!)

And over in Dandy Doodles land, John just pfinished this:

Have a great day!