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Sunday, June 30, 2013

Mentor Text- Beginning of School

Happy Sunday!  I am happy it is the week-end, but tomorrow I start a few of Summer Academy at my school.  It means getting up early and driving to New Jersey.  I am doing four weeks of Summer Academy spread out throughout the summer, it is a nice way to make extra money and gives me a little something to do!  


Today, I am linking up with Stacia & Amanda from Collaboration Cuties for their weekly mentored text party.  This weeks theme: Back to School Books...I am hoping they will not kick me out of the party because I am not going to share a book, but a poem I use at the beginning of the year.

My first year of teaching I was reading poetry to my students and came across a small book of poems call If I Ran the School compiled by Bruce Lansky.  


My students loved all of the poems and would often ask for me to read them again and again.  One of the poems is called: I Can't Wait for Summer by Kenn Nesbitt.  It is a fun poem that has kids thinking about summer, but realizing they have many more days until summer vacation.  After I read it to my class, I put a note in my beginning of the year file to read when school started.  I read it in the fall to my class and they thought it was mean because summer vacation was so far away.  I used this poem as a jumping off point to talk about all we are going to accomplish in the days between the first day of school and summer vacation.  We then created lists of what we wanted to do this year.  I became a different way for us to set goals for the year.

I Can't Wait for Summer
by Kenn Nesbitt

I can't wait for summer, when school days are done,
to spend the days playing outside in the sun.
I won't have to study. No homework, no tests.
Just afternoons spent on adventures and quests.

Instead of mathematics and writing reports,
I'll got to the park and play summertime sports.
Instead of assignments, report cards, and grades,
I'll get to play baseball and watch the parades.

I'll swing on the playground. I'll swim in the pool
instead of just practicing lessons in school.
The second the school year is finally done
I'll spend every minute with friends having fun.

I hardly can wait for the end of the year.
I'm counting the days until summer is here.
It's hard to be patient.  It;s hard to be cool.
It's hard to believe it's the first day of school.

Don't forget my 100 Follower Giveaway and my Bloglovin Giveaway.  The Bloglovin giveaway ends in just a few short hours.  I don't want you to miss out on all the fun prizes!



Have a great night!

Rosie

Saturday, June 29, 2013

July Currently

Happy Saturday!  I hope you are all having a wonderful Saturday!  I am excited to be linking up with Oh Boy Fourth Grade for her monthly Currently!  


Listening- I love the Food Network.  I often have it on in the background when I am working.  I usually don't even care about the show that is on.

Loving- I made it through the first week of summer vacation!  I am loving not having to grade papers and worry about lesson plans.

Thinking- I am working a few weeks of summer camp at my school throughout the summer and I am stressing about what I am going to do with the kids.  Next week I am working the games portion and I need to plan some fun games for students ages 3 through grade 7.  I have some ideas, I just need to put it all down on paper.

Wanting- I am a planner and I love to see the big picture.  God does not work that way.  I just turned 31 and I know that God continues to work in my life, but I want to know what is going to happen next!

Needing- This goes along with my wanting.  I am trying to take control of my life, but I need to just calm down and just give God control.  I need to sit back and enjoy the ride.  I am not sure what tomorrow holds, but I know who holds tomorrow!

Tips, tricks or hints- When I started blogging I thought I needed to blog every day and keep up with every linky party out there.  I soon realized that was not possible.  I think it is ok to not blog one day and just enjoy family and friends.  Your blogging friends will still be here the next day!  Take a break and enjoy life!

Don't forget my 100 Follower Giveaway and my Bloglovin Giveaway.  



Ends July 3rd


Ends July 1st

Make sure you enter my giveaways!  Also, be on the look out for my newest product in the next few days!  There will probably be away to win it too!

Rosie

Friday, June 28, 2013

Five For Friday!

Hello Blogging Buddies!  I hope you all had a great week!  It was my first week of summer vacation and I was very excited not to have to wake up at 5 am to go to school!  This week was an exciting one, so here I go with my Five for Friday!




Thursday was my birthday!!!  My brother and I ventured down to Yankee Stadium for the Yankee game.  I am not a Yankee fan, but the tickets were free (thanks to a fabulous former co-worker) and I wanted to see the new stadium.  The game was pretty uneventful, but my brother and I enjoyed ourselves!


Our amazing seats!


John and I



On Thursday, I announced my 100 Follower Giveaway!  There is still plenty of time to enter, so make sure you do!!!



I also have a Bloglovin giveaway going on right now.  Yes, two giveaways at once!  I love to give things away!  You can also click on the picture and be linked up to over 150 other bloggers who are also giving things away!




My sister and new brother-in-law are in visiting this week-end.  We had a wonderful dinner tonight and tomorrow we are going out to celebrate my birthday!  She is not a teacher, but reads my blog sometimes.  So this is a shout-out to Sarah!







I started a facebook page this week!  I am not sure how I am going to keep up with blogging, facebook, TpT and life!  Only time will tell if I can do all of it!  Click on the icon to like my page!


Well, that is all for tonight!  I hope you all have a wonderful week-end!

Rosie





Thursday, June 27, 2013

100 Follower Giveaway!!!




It is time for my 100 FOLLOWER GIVEAWAY!!!!!  I am so excited to be offering you the chance to win some fabulous prizes.  The best thing about this giveaway is that it starts on MY BIRTHDAY!!!  So as a birthday treat for everyone...I am putting my TpT store on sale until Sunday!  

I have elevan fabulous bloggers who have so generously donated to my giveaway.  Please visit each one of them because they are awesome!  
















a Rafflecopter giveaway

Please enter and visit these awesome bloggers!  I cannot wait to pick a winner next week and be able to bless someone with all of these prizes!

Rosie

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Show Us Some Blogloving! Giveaway to Bloglovin followers!


Hi fabulous followers!!

You have probably heard by now that Google Reader is going away on July 1st.  Well, Google Reader may be going away, but I don't want YOU to go away, so I hope that you will consider following my blog through bloglovin! I know that change is hard...so we thought I might sweeten it up for you a little bit!

I are doing a giveaway for all of my fabulous followers that take the leap and switch over to bloglovin.  You may have already switched over!  In that case, this will be an easy entry!

If you have not yet switched or are not following my blog through bloglovin, then there are a few easy steps to follow.  You can go to our sidebar (that's the column on the right over there that shows our followers) and you can click the button that says Follow this Blog with bloglovin.  Or, you can go into the Rafflecopter below and click the link in the first entry, and that will take you to our blog on bloglovin.

You will need to set up an account with bloglovin so that you can follow me.  Please be sure to leave your bloglovin username in the Rafflecopter entry.

If you want to go ahead and move all of the blogs you follow from Google over, you can go to this link and it will take you through the super easy steps.  BUT, please go to me bloglovin link and make sure that you are following me through bloglovin.  To be sure, make sure that the blue button at the top of our bloglovin page has been clicked (it should be gray with the word following- if it's blue, please click it to follow!)

So, if you follow me by bloglovin, please enter my giveaway!!  I will be picking 2 WINNERS and each winner will get their choice of 2 UNITS FROM MY TpT STORE!  :O)


Rosie
 get the InLinkz code

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Tried it Tueday

Hello Blogging Buddies!  I hope you all have had a fantastic day.  I enjoyed relaxing and working on some projects in the comfort of my own home.  I am linking up with Fourth Grade Flipper for her Tried it Tuesday!  


Well, today I took the plunge and started a facebook page for my blog!  I used the fabulous directions from Collaboration Cuties to get started and set everything up.  It was a lot easier to do then I thought.  I am hoping to provide updates, have flash freebies and facebook only giveaways.  Only time will tell how well it will take off.  I would love it if you would LIKE me on facebook! Click the image below to LIKE me!

Well, that is all for tonight!  I am working on my fabulous 100 follower giveaway that goes live on Thursday.  There is still time to donate just CLICK HERE.  Have a great night!

Rosie


Monday, June 24, 2013

Must Have Mondays- Travel Edition

Today was the first day I did not have to wake up super early and go to school.  I did not miss my hour and a half drive on a Monday morning.  I actually slept until 9 am, which I do not do, even on the week-ends!  I didn't leave my bed until about 11 am when I needed to change some laundry for my mom.  It was super nice and relaxing.  I am hoping to do more of throughout the week!

I am still looking for people to donate to my 100 follower giveaway.  If you would like to donate CLICK HERE.

Today I am linking up with Sabra from Teaching with a Touch of Twang for her must have Monday. 



Today's edition for me travel items!  I took a quick trip to Florida this week-end to support my brother at a Reintegration Yellow Ribbon workshop.  I flew out Friday evening and came home last night.  It was a quick trip, but a good one for my brother and his fellow soldiers.  It was also nice to meet some of his buddies that my class wrote to while they were deployed.  I love to travel and a few of my travel must haves are:

A backpack

Head phones

Rolling suitcase with four wheels

My ipad or computer


These are four of the things I always have with me when I travel!  What traveling adventures are you headed on this summer?

Rosie






Saturday, June 22, 2013

Five For Friday...a day late (again!)

Happy Saturday!  I am enjoying a quick trip to sunny Florida this week-end to support my brother and his service in the United States Army Reserve. This has been a long week of saying good-bye to my students, enjoying end of the year activities and packing up my room.  I feel like Monday was weeks ago!  I am once again linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for their ever fabulous Five for Friday!



1. Extra Field Trip- Our school had a contest earlier in the year where the students sold lines in a program for a fundraiser.  To get the students to sell more they offered classes prizes for how many they sold.  Well my class won the contest by selling 180 Boosters.  We received every prize that was given, including the Grand Prize of an extra field trip.  My class went to a local park for lunch and to play.  It was hot, but the students had a fantastic time.  


I told Jorge, he looked like he was in jail!


Swings were a big hit...I even played on them!

2. End of the Year Yard Sale-  This was our 'Y' day in our end of the year count down.  The students took the extra tickets they earned and placed them in cups that were by certain prizes.  We then drew a ticket for the winner of each prize.  Some of the favorite prizes were: a little football, a Chick-Fil-A water bottle, books, Yankee Stadium picture and newspaper and a small purse.


The tables of prizes.


Deciding how many tickets to put in a cup.

3. End of the Year Celebration- On our last day of school, we had a party where I gave the students gifts, played some fun games and ate wonderful food.  I decided to do some minute to win it games...they had a blast!  I also let them clean their desk with shaving cream, which they loved too!


We tried to get a cookie from our forehead to our mouth without using our hands!  I definitely got cookie crumbs in my eye!


Fifth graders loved playing with shaving cream!  Our principal walked in when were cleaning our desks.  I was grateful it did not come up in my evaluation!


They blew me away this year!

 

Signing beach balls because we had a BALL this year!



Playing another game where we had to fan tissue paper fish with plates into a basket.

4. 100 Followers- I hit 100 followers this week.  I am planning a fantastic giveaway and I am still looking for donations.  If you would like to donate click HERE to fill out the form.  I am hoping to go live on Thursday!

5. My Class- It has been a rough year, but I made it through.  I was sad to see my students go, but I told them they will always be special in my heart because they were my first 5th grade class!  We had our ups and down, but I think it was a great year!



The Girls


The Boys (minus one)


Group Hug


Attempt to take a group picture...not so successful!

Well, I am off to enjoy the rest of my week-end in Florida.  I am excited to get back to regular blogging and making some items for TpT.  Have a great rest of your week-end!

Rosie