I've Been a Busy Girl

After putting transmission fluid in my car--oh yes I'm that BA--I've completed my set of classroom labels.  Let me know if you have any requests for others :)


Classroom Labels Part 2

Classroom Library Label

Classroom Library Label Library Checkout

Really Good Stuff

For those who don't already know about it, reallygoodstuff.com really does have just that: really good stuff for teachers.

How is it that we don't know about these things!

Studyjams.com!  Sing-along songs, videos, lessons, and more by scholastic for math and science by subject.  GOLD MINE!

Glogster! So cool!

Glogster is a great resource for so many things: class posters, webquests, student projects, etc.  Check out this Iditarod Webquest on Glogster for inspiration!

Favorite Teacher Pages

As a first year teacher I get a lot of inspiration and ideas from other teachers, and blogs and class websites are a great way to do that!  Here are some of my favorites!

First Grader... At Last! by Sarah Cooley

Teacher of the Fricken Year! by Rosie Kaplan

Mrs. Shannon's First Grade Class

Mrs. Dunning's Fairytale

Mrs. McBride's First Grade Class

Planet Esme

Tunstall's Teaching Tidbits (kudos for the alliteration :)

And my very favorite:

The Learning Pad

StoryCorps: Sharing real stories in a way children can relate

Loving this new website, StoryCorps, they have started an initiative to animate the stories of survivors and their families from 9/11 as well as other stories, using their own voices.  The series is up for an Emmy, and for good reason.  The stories are touching, the animation is great, and the voices are real.  A great resource for educators K-College for a social studies curriculum, or for simply sharing quality audiovisual material in the classroom.  My favorite story so far is John and Joe, brothers who both died in the 9/11 attacks.

New love: Buying books for dirt cheap!

My new favorite site on the web: Goodwillbooks.com.  Search by author or title and find books for your classroom for sometimes only pennies!  Even better deal than Amazon.com's used prices, though these are pretty amazing, too.  Amazon is great if you can get more than one book from the same seller or get free super saver shipping to reduce shipping costs.

Writing Workshop Website

I found THE BEST teacher website for the writing workshop and other ideas:

The Learning Pad

Please check it out, the teacher has a year of fully developed writing workshop units, lessons, classroom pictures, the website is a must-see!

Amazon Book Lists

I am very passionate about using quality literature in the classroom.  This is why I have dedicated much of my free time to making Amazon lists of quality literature.  Here are my lists:

Teaching Activities/Games

Art

Award Winning Books

Bullying

Classroom Community/Diversity

Classroom Furniture/Supplies

Classroom Management

Curriculum Development

Development/Attachement

Differentiation

Earth Science

ELL

Individuality/Character Development

Language Arts

Math

Poetry, Rhyme, and Song

Professional Development

Science

Social Studies/History

Substituting

Traditional Tales

Writing

Wonderful new website!

Check out Planet Esme, a website by the author Esme Raji Codell, that includes: priceless booklists of various genres, tips for new teachers, a book-a-day blog, etc.

Online resources for teachers

The Best of Legends: This website explores some of the most well known legends, fairytales and folklore and could be used by teachers to gather information about these genres.
Windows to the Universe: This website focuses has great information that can be used for teachers or explored by students on mythology, the solar system, the climate, and more and has resources such as games, journals, worksheets, etc.
The Iris Center: great resources and webinars for teachers in the form of self-directed "modules."
The Associations for Direct Instruction: whether or not you believe in Direct Instruction, this website has some great tools for teachers (take a look at the video section).
Songs for Teaching: A collection of just that: songs for teaching all subjects from math to special education.
Teacher Vision: A website with resources from lesson plans, tips from veteran teachers (of course these need to be considered with a trained eye), themes, printables and more.  There is a section for new teachers with some good insight from experienced teachers for behavior management.
The Ultimate Site for Student Teachers (blog): a cute blog created by experienced teachers with resources for student teachers.  It's parent site, Teaching Heart, also has some good resources.
KU Center for Research on Learning: has a multitude of research-based videos and other materials.
Trelease on Reading: A website from the author of Read Aloud handbook, with chapters from the book and other great resources.