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Winter Olympics P.E. Activity!

How many of you have to teach your own Physical Education class? Don’t get me wrong, I love P.E. and being an active person it is “my thing”; but sometimes thinking of activities to do can be difficult. 

Circuits during this time are a great way to get students to burn some energy.  They are a quick and easy set up, the kids love them, and they don’t require much planning.  So…with the 2014 Winter Olympics coming up I created a short and easy P.E. circuit activity.  It allows the students to learn a little bit about some of the events in the Olympics and get a good workout in as well.  Grab it in our store for only $1.00!

Enjoy!

FLASHBACK

Remember the square dancing we had to do back in the day? The line dances? The Virginal Reel? What were some of your favorite P.E. activities?

Follow the Trail Product Swap!

I sat down today on my computer, trying to find some writing ideas that matched Common Core State Standards. Well...today was my lucky day as I stumbled across this AMAZING "Hike" being done by some fabulous teacher authors.  They swapped resources, tried them in their own classrooms, and documented how it went. Let's just say my cart is filling up and I am crossing my fingers that I might actually get lucky and win these resources!

If you haven't seen this yet...here is a link to one of the participants on the "Hike" so you can get started too.  Create, Teach, and Share reviewed a really cool resource for interactive math journals done by Rundes Room.  I wasn't even looking for math things today but am so glad I found this. Looks like I'll be trying something new in math next week! So don't wait...follow the trail and find some goodies!

Martin Luther King Freebie!

Has anyone else ever had trouble figuring out activities to go along with a standard?  My team and I have been struggling to work in CCSS 2.RI.8 and 2.RI.6 specifically.  Well, we decided to combine our two standards with our social studies unit and Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Killing two birds with cross-curricular planning! After a lot of research, we finally developed a great packet.  You can find it here!

Last but not least, in honor of the amazing work that Martin Luther King Jr. did, here is a fun freebie for your students.  What are your plans for MLK Day?  

New Years - Getting Organized!

In 2014 I want to be more organized. Working a full time job, being a new mom with a husband that is currently traveling about a week each month, it is a necessary resolution. There simply is not enough hours in a day to get it all done - holler if you feel me!

At school, my ultimate goal is to clean up at the end of the day. It is so very easy to meander back to the classroom, sit down, and invite a colleague to chat.  I'm sure you've all seen this - it rings a little too true for me!

Let's get real- I'm not saying that sitting and conversing with my beloved colleagues is not an important part of the day, because I do love them. Mostly though, I want to get home and snuggle my baby boy and try to make something for dinner that doesn't come from Trader Joes' freezer section! I'm thinking: talk with coworkers WHILE cleaning. That seems reasonable.

Other organizational goals for school in 2014:

• Reorganize my book library. I might take some home and rotate a smaller selection throughout the year. It seems that students aren't accessing the entire class library as it should be and too many books are feeling left out.
• Give students *slighty* more time to clean up. I have been praised multiple times for the "pace" I set in the classroom. Students wrap up an activity, know what we're moving on to, and get after it. I do not like to waste time or give students time to think about getting off task. It's one of the best classroom management techniques out there- keep 'em busy! However, this tends to lead to some sloppy clean ups.
• To fix this problem - I will put on a song they can jam to (around 3 minutes) and by the time the song is over they must be done cleaning. They must clean the entire song, but no longer. We'll see how this goes. I.MUST.REMIND.THEM.IT.IS.NOT.A.DANCE.PARTY!

What are your 2014 organizational resolutions?

Though this took place last week, here is a link to where other teachers have shared their New Years Resolutions for Organization.  There are some great ideas on there - check them out!