Operation Classroom Decor

Operation Classroom Decor was a success! The large shelves, brick, and bulletin board-less walls made this year's decorating a unique challenge, but somehow it all came together!

Leveled classroom library and my "fake" bulletin board--
just some fabric and a boarder pinned to the wall! 

Yes, I love green and blue :)

I can't wait for this room to be filled with my minnows! T-minus 6 days!

A Great Text for Close Reading

I have tirelessly perused the internet and picked the brains of colleagues in the hopes of finding the answer to what I thought would be a simple question: What is close reading?

Last year I tried several different strategies in the hopes of getting my students to see just how exciting it can be to really dive into a text (it's the English major in me :) ), but frustration was getting the best of us all and I found myself shying away from close reading.

Luckily, one of my good friends recommended the text Falling in Love with Close Reading (Lehman & Roberts) and now I could not be more excited to give it another try! The authors break the process down into 3 easy steps:

Read through lenses 

Use lenses to find patterns  

Use patterns to develop a new understanding of the text

That's it! The book goes into detail with examples of how to teach students to close read which makes it all seem doable and exciting.

(I do not own the rights to Falling in Love with Close Reading, of course, but I do highly recommend it!)

Below are signs I've designed for my classroom based on the close reading ritual outlined in the book: 

Click HERE for these FREE signs!

I can't wait to get started!

Responsibility Cards

     I learned this trick during my student teaching semester and it has worked wonders ever since! When students "forget" to turn in a homework assignment, few are likely to remember that they still need to complete it, and fewer still want their parents to know that an assignment was not turned in. The solution - Responsibility Cards!

     This not only lets parents know that their child is missing an assignment, it also serves as a reminder to students that they must complete the missed homework that night. 

     Want this for your classroom? Click HERE!

Homework Club!

Last year I spent quite a bit of time at the end of every month sorting through homework records in order to reward those who handed everything in. After searching tirelessly on Pinterest, I came across The Homework Club and oh how I love it!

The idea is simple: Everyone is in the club at the start of every new month (or marking period). If ever a student does not turn in a homework assignment on time they are no longer a club member. Any student who remains at the end of the month receives a homework pass! Pretty simple, right?

I have found that having the students manage this system makes it most effective. If they do not turn in an assignment, it is their job to remove their pin number from the Homework Club board. This helps them to take responsibility for their actions. Overall, my students seem to really enjoy this system and so do I!

Rocking Chair Makeover

Making an old rocking chair such as this one look new can seem like too big a challenge for someone with little artistic ability, but you can do it! Here are a few tricks I used to turn this red rocker into the perfect addition to my new classroom. 

Our class mascot Clark relaxing on the old chair!

What you'll need:

Printer paper

A pencil

A printed image (explanation to follow)

Paint!

Step 1: Paint a base color. 

I chose to go from red to white. The bright white really lightens up the windowless Fish Tank classroom of mine and allows other colors on the chair to pop!

Step 2: Print the image you want to transpose onto your chair. 

I happen to LOVE the Harry Potter Series and I am certainly a reading/writing type of gal, so I went online to find a JK Rowling quote to include on my chair. I chose: "“Words are, in my not-so-humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic." Awesome, right?!

Once you've chosen your quote (or picture - black and white works best), print it out in the style you like. The image should be the exact size you want it to appear on your chair. 

Next, flip the paper with your image over, take your pencil and COMPLETELY shade in the back side. That's right, nice and dark! 

Finally, place the paper (image side up) on your chair where you want it drawn. Simply trace the image on the paper with a pen. You may want to tape the corners down to keep the paper from moving. When you life the paper up you will have a perfectly drawn pencil image. Yay!

Step 3: Paint it!

Now that you have the outline drawn on your chair, all you have to do is paint it! Sorry, I don't have a trick for this part, but it certainly should be much easier than painting it freehand! Paint pens are helpful as well (I bought mine at AC Moore).

Here's my final product: 

Good luck and happy crafting!