Behavior Management

Have you ever had one of those years where you've tried literally every behavior management trick in the book and nothing would work with your class? Well, this is that year for me. It has been tough because behavior management has always been a strong area for me. My principals would always give me those tough kids that needed that extra structure and follow through, and I'm used to being able to handle it! You can imagine how frustrating it has been to have a class where nothing would work. Yes, I have a few students with some special needs and a few behavior problems, but overall, they are great kids…just the most chatty class in my 7 years of teaching. I found myself getting overwhelmed and exhausted. (Notice the lack of blog posts the last couple months).

I had heard about Class Dojo before but was hesitant to try something new after my students had already been in school for over a month. Well, I can say I'm SO glad I did! Class Dojo has literally changed my life this year. My students are focused, engaged, and always ready to learn. Now I'm thinking, why didn't I use this earlier?

My students loved creating their avatar and are obsessed with earning points! I thought for sure there would be a student or two who weren't motivated by it, but nope! ALL OF THEM ARE! The parents are thrilled that they can check their child's behavior daily, and they love the weekly reports. Right now I have my students cashing in their points when they would like to trade it in for something. They are always aware of their point total and know to tell me when they would like to cash in their points. I have a chart for prizes they can earn but I'm sure I will continue to add more.

Another thing I absolutely love about Class Dojo is that I can open the app on my phone to reward students with points when we leave the classroom for music, PE, assemblies, science, etc.

I'm sure many of you are already using Class Dojo but for those of you who aren't, I hope this gave you a little push to try it! I'm definitely glad I did, and so is my husband! :) 

Animal Adaptation Project

We have been studying animal adaptations in science so I had my students do this fun little project! They had a blast doing it and they turned out great so I thought I'd share it with you! I had them first choose an animal (many created their own which was fun) and then choose four adaptations that their animal would have. During the written portion of the assignment, students described the ecosystem their animal lives in, the adaptations in detail, and what the animal eats. I also had them do a drawing and label the adaptations. Here are a couple examples below. I was so impressed with all of the creativity!

I have the project posted in my store if you are interested! I also created this grading rubric to help!

Click below if you want to check it out in my store.

Five for Friday

It's time for Five for Friday after what seemed like the longest week ever! I'm so happy the weekend is here!

1. Today we had fun working on the arachnid angles activity from the Halloween Centers pack made by Miss Nannini. I love all of her products and so do my students!

2. I've been having fun planning and prepping some of next week's fun for Halloween…pasta skeletons!

3. We even did some Halloween themed imaginative narrative writing! The prompt was to write a story about what would happen if they woke up and they had suddenly turned into their Halloween costume.

4. We also started Class Dojo this week and I am in LOVE! This is exactly what I needed! My students are so motivated and the parents are thrilled!

5. I just had to post this! This made all my teacher friends laugh….

Have a great weekend everyone!

I'm back with a sale!

I'm back after a little break and just in time to celebrate the TPT milestone! I'm joining in on the sale so everything in my store will be 10% off. Be sure to use the code FB100K for an extra 10% off until tomorrow!

I just bought some great Halloween products on sale that I can't wait to use! Have a great Sunday!

September Currently

After this long, crazy week back to school, I'm excited to link up with Oh Boy Fourth Grade for this month's currently!

Listening: Yes, I'm a lucky girl. My husband cooks breakfast for us every weekend! He really should have been a chef! His breakfast is always amazing and he is even better on the BBQ!

Loving: I'm not sure what I would do if today wasn't a holiday. It is SO hard to get through that first week back so I'm definitely loving this long weekend!

Thinking: No matter what time I can sleep in till, I always wake up before seven! It drives me nuts! Especially after an exhausting week, my body needs sleep!

Wanting: I would love it if these kiddos would just adjust after a week. This new class is definitely more challenging than the last few. I have a feeling this group is going to give me a serious addiction to Starbucks and maybe wine too. At least they are cute! :)

Needing: Groceries! I'm just being lazy due to my explanation of my "wanting". 

Goals: I would love to keep up my pilates workouts that I started over the summer. It makes me feel great and I'm in better shape than I've been in years! I just need to push through those moments after school where I feel exhausted because it really does give me that extra boost of energy when the class is done. Also, going to try my best to give myself breaks. I'm always doing way too much and agreeing to take on too many extra jobs! Also, as a newlywed, I'm going to try my best to "not sweat the small stuff". Probably the most common marriage advice ever but so true!

I hope everyone is enjoying their three day weekend!

Back to School Sale

I'm joining the Back to School sale that starts tomorrow! Everything in my store will be 28% off! Be sure to use the code BTS13.

Thanks to Ink n Little Things for the banner! I know I have a bunch of back to school goodies on my wish list that I can't wait to get!

If you are looking to add a little more chevron to your room, check out my posters below and enter the code for 28% off of them and everything else in my store! Happy shopping!

Lesson Planner Pics

Today I'm posting a few pics of my Erin Condren lesson planner since a few of you requested to see it. Here are all of my favorite parts to the lesson planner but of course there is much more!


I had to get my favorite color in the lovely chevron pattern...

I love this page that lists all of the important dates and holidays! It's going to make adding them to my weekly plans much easier!

I love this year at a glance page. I'm going to list the major units for each subject that I plan to cover during each month.

Here's what the monthly planning pages look like.

Here are the weekly lesson planning pages. I LOVE the bright colors!

There are many blank checklists included and of course they are bright and colorful. :)

Lastly, my absolute favorite thing (excuse the blurry pic) are the stickers! There are several pages of stickers for assembly, IEP, duty, staff meeting, furlough, holiday, conferences, and much more!

Those are just my favorite parts but of course there's a ton more like blank pages, pockets, etc. 

I'm so happy with this purchase and it meets all of my crazy OCD teacher needs!