Just Popping In

Hi friends!

Just popping in to show that I'm still alive. I have just one week left of graduate school & then I can finally get to work on prepping for back to school. It'll be here before we know it!

This has been my life lately:

I'm too lazy to get out of bed and do my homework from my desk. HA! Thankfully, we have professional development coming up in a few weeks so I will be forced to start planning.

Okay, I won't lie. I've also been online shopping. VS Swim had a huge sale so I snagged some mix & match pieces. Don't mind the terrible quality, I took pictures off my computer screen to send to my cousin:

I also launched my career as a Stella & Dot stylist.

This is a company that I've been following on fashion blogs & Instagrams for about a year. I'm so excited to be able to share these gorgeous pieces with other women.

Click below to be taken to my website where you can see what's new this summer:

STAY TUNED: By the end of the week or next week, I'll be giving you a visual walkthrough of how I use my planner to lesson plan :) Mainly, show I can show you how gorgeous Erin Condren things are.

See you soon!

My First Stitch Fix!

IT CAME.

I have been waiting a month for this baby to come in the mail and I couldn't be more excited!

For those of you who don't know - here's the scoop on Stitch Fix. It's a website where you fill out a survey about your style, sizes, what fits you like - a "style profile". Then you pay $20 for a stylist to read your profile, stalk your Pinterest fashion page & pick out 5 items for you. Then you try everything on at home. That's the beauty of this. How many times have you gone shopping and thought - oh I wish I had my scarf/cami/tank/pants/shoes to try on with this?  NOW YOU CAN. And the stylists even make it idiot-proof with styling cards like this:

You also fill out information about price ranges you are comfortable with for different types of clothing (accessories, pants, dresses, tops, outerwear, etc). They stay in your budget and that $20 styling fee? Yeah, it goes towards the clothes in your fix that you want to keep. AND if you keep everything, you get a sweet 25% discount.

As of now, Stitch Fix has clothing, jewelry, accessories & bags. Everything I got in my fix was clothing! Here's my reveal and review :)

First, we had this amazing dress! Not going to lie, I have a couple similar to it (obviously my stylist got my vibe!) but this one is chiffon and long enough to teach in.

This was a KEEP.

Modeling the dress with my new wedges! Don't mind the forlorn dog.

Next was this blazer. Not a fan. It felt very "grandma" to me. Definitely out of my style comfort zone. But I do appreciate my stylist giving me something out there to try!

Third was this cute tulip print top that I PINNED two weeks ago! How crazy is that?! I'm telling you, these stylists pay attention. And use your Pinterest board if you provide the link (which I'm recommending if you haven't caught onto that yet).

The price was a little higher than I would have normally spent on a top, but c'mon I pinned it. How often do you actually BUY something you pin, amiright?!

This was a KEEP.

Fourth was this adorable top. By the way, sorry about the hair. Long days in first grade, you know how it is. I love this color and this is such a versatile top. I can wear it with shorts in the summer or with a cardigan for teaching!

This was a KEEP.

Last was a pair of skinny pants. Let's just say they were a little too skinny ;) Nobody needs pictures of that!

If you're interested in trying out Stitch Fix, click here. That's my referral link - if you liked my recommendation and decide to try out Stitch Fix using that link, I'll get $25 in credit (enough for another fix!).

I had a BLAST getting a Stitch Fix! My style profile is updated with some summer wants: maxiskirts/dresses that actually fit my 5'2" body, printed shorts that don't clash with my ghost legs and more printed tops! I've already scheduled my next one for June 17th so stay tuned :)

Linking up with Maria from KinderCraze for her Stitch Fix Link Up!

Shop Til You Drop

Happy spring!  While I could not be happier that snow is ending, my allergies are going to be the end of me.  I don't think I've been able to breathe normally for the past 2 weeks.

Today I want to talk about some of my FAVORITE products I've purchased recently from Teachers Pay Teachers.

These are amazing labels from First Grade Glitter and Giggle.

As you may remember, I went through a long process of redoing my classroom library. That tends to be a necessity when you are a first year teacher with over 400 books. Oops. However, I organized my books by theme/character NOT level. I have a ton of leveled books filed away in a cabinet (due to lack of shelving in my classroom) so I pull books for my kiddos. I'm really not a huge fan of that whole situation.  One of my summer projects will be buying MORE of my beloved neon book bins from Really Good Stuff and organize the books from my file cabinet into those.

I'm interested in getting MORE good leveled readers.  Any suggestions??

If you've been reading this blog for awhile, you know how much I love Susan Jones' products.  This one is no exception!  I've struggled with figuring out how to incorporate money into the year when it's not part of the Common Core for 1st grade. This unit is PERFECT! When we come back from spring break (Monday), my grade level is starting data and measurement. We will be taking a mini break from our curriculum in that unit to focus on money for a week. I couldn't be more excited to use this great resource!

One of my other favorite TPTers is Haley O'Connor. I have purchased plenty of her products in the weeks I've been away from blogging. However, this is one of my favorites!

This product is everything I have ever wanted for the end of the year AND THEN SOME.  I can't wait to see how much I love it when it's time to put it to use.

I absolutely adore this seller.  She makes the BEST no prep packs I've found on TPT, hands down. Everything is Common Core aligned, not to mention adorable. I bought this packet, printed it, stapled it & sent it home with my firsties for spring break! I'm anxious to see how much they got done!!  I have her fall and winter packets and am trying my hardest to wait for a sale for the spring packet. (read: I have an addiction to TPT).

However, hands down my favorite product I bought over the last month has to be…

Let me just say, WORTH EVERY PENNY. I'm not going to sit here and pretend I'm Teacher of the Year or anything - I need help with guided reading. It's one of those things where I know I'm helping the kids but I know I could amp it up a little, too. This is seriously an incredible product.  Go look at it.  Not to mention, it's on sale right now.  Thank you sooo much Rachelle for helping a new teacher out!

Now, I don't want you to think that I'm just spending money on teacher things on my break. I still have a life outside of school! Today was an incredible sale at Express (all dresses 30% off!) - not to mention I had a coupon. I got $50 off of this gorgeous dress.  I decided it was a must because of the sale and the fact that we have spring pictures Friday. Yes, the awkward ones where all my kids are on risers and I stand next to them. Please tell me I'm not the only teacher out there who has to endure this.

Next up? I'm basically spending the rest of my break watching Breaking Bad on Netflix and eating. Definitely need to start thinking about getting back into a regular schedule.

I'll be back in a few days to show you WHY I need your help with organization.

Have a great weekend,

Shelby

MIA.

It's been insanely too long. Prepare yourself for an ultra long post. My internet has been super bizarre and slow. It seems to work on every other device in my house EXCEPT for my MacBook.

I have done a lot in the almost MONTH hat I have been absent. Let's sum it up in some pictures:

This basically sums up my last month. An explosion of STUFF. We finished up our character unit with character book clubs; that's all the stacks of books nicely marked with Post-its. The obscene amount of lamination are all of the Cara Carroll goodies that I got printed. One of my student's parents cut it all - BLESS HER. There was even more of that hidden in my cabinet as well.

Anchor Charts Galore!

This puppy was for working on our opinion writing. We did book reviews to finish up the unit. It was crucial to have a good chat about not giving away the entire book in a review. That is a VERY hard thing to do when you are oh-so excited about the book!!

 This is for our new unit in Lucy Calkin's Units of Study - we are on Unit 4 where the kiddos are writing realistic fiction pieces. They are LOVING it!  I have a problem where I only draw redheaded stick people. I blame it on never having enough ginger role models as a child :)

THE LONG AWAITED LIBRARY REVEAL! Guys, I can't even contain my excitement. This is the BEST thing to happen to my classroom since all the wonders over the summer. Seriously, this brings me so much joy. I love organization. I love color coordination. I love books. This is a combination of all of those things.

The bookshelf is still the same ol' scary one I bought off someone's yard for $10. The bins are from Really Good Stuff. They are the same as my kiddos' book boxes. I never thought to use them for my library until I saw some on Pinterest! The labels are from TPT made by the lovely Danielle Mastandrea. I also have her math manipulative labels (a summer project), book stickers (another summer project) and word wall cards (actually up in my classroom).

Don't mind the 3 bins without labels (seriously, they are driving me insane). I'm ordering them! The books in there (in case you're curious) are Fly Guy, Pinkalicious and all of my National Geographic Kids books.  If you have ANY questions about my library or how I organized it, please comment. I am happy to share. I've already inspired one of my teammates to redo her entire library, too. Oops!

 Now onto things that are actually happening RECENTLY. This has been the most insane week. We had a snow day Monday, our first grade dress rehearsal/musical on Tuesday, field trip on Wednesday…today was the first day I've actually had a normal schedule! Soooo nice.

This was how we spent our morning yesterday. AH-mazing. My kids were in tears, they were laughing so hard at this show. We came back for a little lunch in the classroom and did some opinion writing about the show. We also did Venn Diagrams comparing the book and the show. Annnd I forgot to take pictures of it!

This was my life today. In preparation for report cards, I am figuring out some ways to take data on my kiddos' progress. Praise the Lord for Susan Jones. Seriously. I would DIE without her amazing TPT products, especially this. All of the papers all over my desk are from that packet :)  Can't wait to see what all my kiddos have learned!

Annnd here's a little bit of my personal life, if you're interested.

This is my fab sister. We went tubing at a little ski resort type thing in Kansas City last week. It was for people with special needs & their families. There were SO many incredible people there. We had a BLAST.

This is my super fun outfit for the Mardi Gras themed wedding i went to last weekend!

Here's the deets on the outfit:

Top: Express, Necklace: Francesca's, Skirt: Delia's (old)

Thanks so much for catching up on my life! I hit the TPT sale last weekend HARD so I am hoping to do a (super delayed) post this weekend about what all I bought.

Have a great last day of your week!
Shelby

Reason #3743 Why I Have a Shopping Problem

Seriously. It's real. I used to just be shoes. Then children's books. Then Teachers Pay Teachers products. Now (apparently) it's jewelry.

Let me show you all the goodies - both school and non-school related - that I scooped up this weekend.

PRAISE to the Super Bowl sale holders. Forreal. I can't walk away from a sale. Basically, it just gave me a reason to chop a chunk out of my wish list without feeling guilty.

Here's what I bought and my opinions. Click the links to go to the product.

Dang, Cara Carroll has outdone herself! This is incredibly legit. I had been pining over this for awhile but felt like I didn't need it since I teach 1st (is that weird?!). However, a couple of my firsties are struggling still. There are so many games, activities and fun ways for your kiddos to practice different CVC words. It's amazing how MANY things are in this product. Definitely worth the money.

Another great Cara Carroll product. This packet has all the same activities and games as the CVC packet, but with CVCE words. I think this is great for 1st grade to keep practicing silent e throughout the year. I can't wait to get this printed and used in my classroom!

YAY FOR THIS. I've been wanting this since it came out! I really want to give my kiddos some extra practice with digraphs. My favorite part of this packet is that it has both beginning AND ending digraphs. I think we forget (at least I do) to give them examples of both kinds of words.

The last thing I bought was this great product from Haley O'Connor. I LOVE her products. This is a spin on the game concentration with CVC words. Definitely printing this out ASAP so I can get it going in my classroom with my struggling kiddos.

All I need now is to print off an obscene amount color copies on card stock. Any tips for this? I usually just send it to Office Max, but I know it's going to be ridiculously expensive. I'm sure a lot of bloggers print a TON of color copies & laminate them - so how do you afford it? I only have 100 color copies/year at school, so I couldn't even print all of this there. Thoughts??

As far as jewelry, here we go. I went a little crazy at Stella & Dot online.

I'm really excited for these to get here so I can get my bracelet stacking on.

What do you think? How'd I do on my shopping?

Shelby

A Whole Lotta Nothing!

So…it's been awhile.  I got shingles.  And I missed some school.  And I basically spent 5 days watching Grey's Anatomy, writing sub plans & praying-to-God that my kids wouldn't be setting my room ablaze.  When I finally got back to school, I was up to my elbows in papers and grades.  I spent the weekend getting caught up and I finally feel like I'm back to my usual prepared self.

So I have some random things for you.  A sort of update on my life:

First, here's a top/necklace shot:

Top: Express, Necklace: Francesca's (no longer available)

This was inspired by MK of Outfit Posts (she's fabulous - go stalk her immediately).  I loved how she played with a top and necklace of similar colors.  I own an obscene amount of cobalt blue so that was my go-to.

We also did a fun reading/writing activity two weeks ago.  And by we, I mean my students and the substitute teacher (bless her!).  We are focusing on characters in Reader's Workshop and opinion writing in Writer's Workshop right now so this was perfect!  I had all the kiddos pick their favorite character and then I made some outlines so all they would have to do was color them:

If you can't tell, these beauties are Pigeon, Moose (from Z is for Moose) and Froggy.  We had a wiiiiiide range of favorite characters also including Arthur, Skippyjon Jones, Pete the Cat, Junie B. Jones, etc.  NONE of my firsties picked Llama Llama (can you believe it?!) so I picked him and (luckily) created this model the day before I got sick.

I wish I had taken pictures of the kiddos' work - they are hanging on the bulletin board in our hallway!

We also celebrated the 100th day yesterday!  My team & I are very tight so we decided to have 4 different activities for the 100th day and have the students rotate by class to each room.  So I taught the same lesson 4 times to all the classes.  We did a writing activity about what we would be like when we're 100 years old.

They. Loved. It.  We had a nice talk about things that happen when you're 100 and they had some HILARIOUS ideas for what they would be like.  These included things like: being retired, having no teeth, sewing, gardening, being the head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, having their own house and have a walker.  Soo precious!  I especially loved some of the details in their drawings.

What are YOU doing for the 100th day?

That's That Stuff I Like

Happy Monday!

I'm dedicating a post to some of my favorite things - teacher clothes and anchor charts!

When I first started this blog, I had hoped to do some style posts.  Teacher clothes are a beautiful and complicated thing - trying to look fashionable yet accommodate standing up all day/bending down/sitting criss cross on the floor etc.

Here's what I wore + my style inspiration (J's Everyday Fashion):

Top: Express, Pants: Target (old), Flats: Steve Madden via DSW

I'm pretty proud of myself on matching this look.  Please ignore my shadowy background vs. this obviously professional blogger look.  I definitely could use more accessories, but that's my big goal for my next paycheck.  I'm lusting after tons of gorgeous jewels at Stella & Dot.  Their Spring 2014 line just came out today!

As far as this outfit for teacher wear, it was perfect!  I love Express portofinos for school because the v-neck feels feminine without being too revealing and the shirts are insanely comfortable.  They're a little pricey, but well worth the quality!  They're on sale right now for buy one, get one $29.90.  {Disclaimer: my blog has around 12 followers so no, I'm definitely not getting paid for saying any of this.  I just love a good deal.}  I love the colored pants with a print!  One of my students asked me if they were jeggings - HA!  Shoe-wise, flats were a MUST - it's still somewhat snowy in patches of the parking lot.

I do have to give a shoutout to my girl Darcy for inspiring me to link my outfit like a REAL fashion blogger.  If you are looking for fashion ideas, definitely check out Darcy's blog (linked above) - she's a good friend from college and now in the real world :)

Back to teaching.  I whipped up an anchor chart really quick today during my plan.  As I've mentioned before, we do EnVision Math (anyone else out there?!) and our topic right now is about number patterns to 120.  This will help us build some background before starting place value.  We worked exclusively with the 100s chart today to notice patterns in the rows and columns.  I think this will be a great thing for my firsties to refer back to :)

{those gorgeous letters for the board header are here}

Please ignore the really bad not straight line--actually please don't look.  My OCD is freaking out.  This was attempt 2 after I drew too many lines the first time (grr) and I refused to make a 3rd one.  Also sorry that my 1's look like lowercase l's.  Ha!  But I love this puppy and know my kiddos will get a lot of good use out of it :)  And it's another great thing in my room to point at when they ask questions.

What do you think of today's style?  Do you use EnVision Math?  Do you use a hundreds chart to help teach place value?

Can't wait to hear what you have to say!

Shelby

The Week That Was

Hope all of you teachers out there had a good first week back!  I am linking up with Doodle Bugs again this week to show you what we were up to in Room 102.

{ONE}

We started our character unit study in Reader's Workshop this week.  We created this anchor chart:

{of course all my little darlings had to worry about why the girl on the side doesn't have a face}

I added to it each day as we learned the ways we can learn more about characters: actions, likes/dislikes, dialogue.

I used several mentor texts as well.  We used a Froggy book (Froggy Goes To Hawaii) for actions because there are so many actions!!  We used Chrysanthemum for likes/dislikes - one of my absolute favorite books!  Dialogue was an easy choice - Junie B. Jones!  I have all of the Junie B books and she's easily my favorite book character.

{TWO}

We began our 3rd unit in Writer's Workshop as well.  SO excited for my kiddos to start persuasive writing.  I made this anchor chart yesterday; this was inspired by Spotted in First Grade.  

I cropped my kiddos names out but it says "Writing Goals" & after each goal are post-it flags with their names.  My firsties met with me one-on-one & we discussed which goal would be the best fit for them.  I  put their name by their choice for what to work on.

{THREE}

One of my newest students gave me this as a present yesterday:

It was so nice I didn't have the heart to tell her I'm a KU fan.  One of my little sweeties saw the whole thing & is a diehard Mizzou fan (and knows I hate them!) and I was SO PROUD of him for not spilling that I like KU to her.  Not sure what to do with this now - ha!

{FOUR}

We started Class Dojo!  One of my good teacher friends at school uses it with her kindergarteners & loves it.  I really wanted to try something new with behavior management and this was perfect!  I felt really inspired to do it after reading this post from Erica Bohrer.  If you're thinking about using Class Dojo then this is a MUST READ for all the ins & outs.

{FIVE}

This one is just about me - I did some shopping today and am super excited!  It's been awhile since I've shopped for myself and I love finding new things for my teacher wardrobe.  Here's some of the great things I got while I was out this morning.  Click the links to find them online :)

Green Sleeveless Portofino, Polka Dot Portofino, Black Scarf

Sorry the picture quality isn't the best but I DID take it with my NEW iPHONE 5.  YAY!  I'm so happy to have upgraded to a faster phone!  I already love it, especially the fingerprint login.  So cool!

Also - I do realize all of these clothes are from Express.  I used to work there.  I have a problem.

Hope you have a great weekend,

Shelby