Resources That Keep Me Afloat

"Just keep swimming...just keep swimming..." There is something about February that really knows how to rock a teacher's world. Or really, it's a combination of somethings. I mean state testing, benchmark testing, parent teacher conferences..the list goes on an on.

I'm Teaming up with the Owl-Ways Be Inspired gals to show you some of the resources I grab for week after week. The ones that help keep my head above water. Why are we talking about this today? You may have heard the word on the street...and I'm happy to confirm the rumors are TRUE!! TPT is 3 MILLION teachers STRONG!!!! And naturally, celebrating the milestone with a huge site wide sale!! Which means, now is the time to stock up on everything you need to help make your teaching life feel a little more smooth sailing til May! ;)

My Common Core Writing Galore packs pretty much save my butt every month when it comes to keeping things happy and engaging at the writing center.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Common-Core-Writing-Galore-All-Year-1094092

{I recently bundled them here but I also have each individual month}

The last time I took action shots of these was December. So keepin' it real, those are the ones I'm going to share. Each card addresses a required C.C.S. Writing Types for 1st-3rd.

 I keep all of the cards in this basket. When my kids are at the writing center they pick a prompt they like and haven't worked on yet and write about it in their journal. There are 24 prompts in each pack.

 I love that I can set them out at the start of the month and know that my writing center is taken care of for the whole month. Also, I like that I can guide my kids to practicing the type of writing they need to learn to do, but still give them choice about what they're writing.

These two are also FAVES of mine for this upcoming Spring!

{Science Units: Plants, Weather, and Matter}

{Spring Flash Fluency}

The next items on my list comes from my uber talented friend 

Tracy from Creekside Teacher Tales

 

Tracy always puts the most creative spin on everything she makes! She created this genius thing, otherwise known as Buddy Binders. I started using them after Christmas Break and found them perfect for early finishers. I snapped a few shots of how I've set this one up.

 

I house each game inside one of these laminated manila folders. The smaller tub inside holds all the materials needed for the games. When my kids finish their work a little early OR they get done with their "must do centers" during stations, they can pick a game to play from the tub. If it's an independent work time, they know they need to pick a game to play by themselves.

{This gal took this to the carpet to work on after she finished her morning work.}

During station time, they can buddy up! 

{These two "buddied" but still wanted their own boards, haha!}

It's such easy prep on my end because they're used again and again. At the end of the week I give one of my kids the very special job of washing all our boards with the *Magic Sponge Eraser* which helps with some of the marker build up on the laminated pages. 

Also, here is a quick Instagram of us reading Tracy's Thanksgiving e-book. She includes an audio with her voice in all of her holiday e-books. The look on my kid's faces when I told them I knew the author was priceless. Keep an eye out, I hear she has an Earth Day book in the works!

 My sweet friend Katie from Queen of the First Grade Jungle

 I started using these Busy Teacher packs last year when Katie was still teaching first grade. Luckily, she continued to make them for second. They make perfect follow up activities, homework, and sub plans! I dug through the archives to find some "action shots".

Small Group Instruction: Working on a skill together at the teacher table.

Sub Plans: When I blogged about my Sub Tub, a BT reading response was in the mix.

 Whew. Lots of pictures. I hope they helped show how these items. If you made it to the end, I want to give you a chance to win an item of your choice from my store! Leave a comment telling me a resource you'd love to have from my store! I'll randomly pick and announce a winner on Friday. Don't worry if you want to snag that item while it's on SALE Thursday-- you just get to pick something else!  

My entire store will be 20% this Thursday & Friday for the big sale!

 

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