Five for Friday

Hey friends!
I'm linking up to Five for Friday.  Don't forget if you want to check out more blog posts, to click below and you can see what other bloggers have written.

 Where did summer go?  I love teaching, don't get me wrong, but I swear we just got out of school and we are gearing up to get rolling again.  I went to work on putting my room back together this week and had a fun little stack of treasures waiting for me.  There's nothing I love more than opening packages full of goodies.  So, what do you think I ordered?

I have created a new rule for me.  I have bought tons of books, but haven't spent a lot of time reading.  I decided if I'm going to make my kids work on their stamina, I need to work on mine a little.  So, for the next few weeks, I'm spending at least 45 minutes a day reading non-fiction school books.  Yes, I am a little crazy, but we all know once school starts that isn't happening.  If I'm going to try to be a better teacher, I better get on it and start reading all these books.  So far, I've finished Crash Course and now I'm onto Daily 5: Second Edition.  Friends, if you haven't read Daily 5: Second Edition, but you read the first one, definitely read this new one.  There are several changes and honestly, it aligns more with what I've been doing and my thought process than the first one.

This has no purpose.  It's my new "I'm working but need background noise" show.  Plus, if you are in your thirties (like me), you know this was one of your favorite shows.

Oh, boy!  So, not sure if you've heard my laptop story yet, but I had to get a new laptop thanks to an old injury a.k.a spill.  It took me days to add back software, fonts, and clip art.  Can you imagine if everything wasn't backed up to DropBox?  The good news is I'm starting to create again.  Here's an old freebie that I've updated a little.  Hope you like it.

Since I'm only off a few more weeks, my hubby and I went to breakfast this morning.  I love living in a town similar to the town where the Gilmore Girls lived.  There's something great about ordering breakfast, sitting in a window, and watching a small town.  I may just have to take my laptop up there one morning soon to work.  It's just a peaceful little place.

Hope y'all have a great weekend!

Wordless Wednesday

Alright, one of my favorite bloggers is Christina from Sugar and Spice.  I'm joining her Wordless Wednesday linky party.  If you want to go check out some other awesome bloggers, just click the button below.

Here's my picture.  This quote came out of Kim Bearden's new book "Crash Course".  I just love it!  What's your favorite quote from a book?  Leave it in the comments or feel free to post it on my Facebook fan page.

Calendar Math

Alright, I feel like I need to introduce myself.  Seriously y'all!  I haven't blogged in several months.  So, here it goes.  Hi!  I'm Faith.  I have a blog.  If you are new to my blog, I love showing you fun ideas that you can use in your classroom.  Most of the time I try to be funny and keep things lighthearted.  Our jobs and lives are way too hectic to throw in any sort of drama, so my goal is for everyone to leave here with an idea and a smile.  I am so far from perfect and while hopefully my pictures look great, don't forget I've cut out the bag of garbage that needs to go out, the pile of clothes I haven't folded, and the stack of papers on the edge of my desk.

So, if you are new, that's me and if you've been around awhile, then I'm sure you are ready to roll.

If you've been keeping up with me on my Facebook page, you know I've been working on Calendar Math.  Friends, the cover stayed the same, but that's about it.  I updated almost every slide.  I also tried to add in several of the things that my fans asked for like money.  I'm going to be honest, I know weather was requested, but I didn't add it this time.  I may add it later, but by the time I finished dealing with my crazy computer issues, I was ready to be done.  Once I get a few other things finished up, I may go back and add it.  We'll see.

So, one of the questions I've been asked several times is how do I use this in my classroom.  Well, my typical morning routine is morning work and then calendar math.  We have Ladibugs in our classroom, so I use my Ladibug to go over morning work on our Activboard.  After that, I start calendar time.

Now, I'm sure when you see the size of this flip chart,  you will be thinking, "How does she do ALL of that in one day?"  Friends, I don't... at all!  I typically do the calendar slide and my number chart slide every day.  After that, I pick and choose based off what standards we are covering.  For example, if we are working on addition, then I'll usually hit on the the addition slides.

Then, I usually try to pick one or two slides that we have covered in the past.  Sometimes I base this off of something I notice my students struggling with that was on morning work.  Other times, I use it as a quick review or just to spot check.

Typically, when I finish I've covered around five to seven of the slides depending on how much time we spend on each one.  From the time I start until the time I end, I spend around 40 minutes, but keep in mind that includes reviewing our morning work, calendar, a few songs, and I usually go ahead and touch on our math lesson if I have time.  Sometimes, I even throw in a few extra sentences to correct (language arts) or a reading comprehension packet.

Hope this helps a little with understanding what we are doing.  Below are pictures of my Calendar Math packet.  If you are interested, you can click on any of the pictures and it will take you to store.

Have a great Tuesday!