Great Book!

Back again!  As promised, I wanted to share a new book that I found while vacationing in Tennessee.  It is called, The Numberlys,  by William Joyce and Christina Ellis.

This imaginative story is about a group of characters who lived in a world of numbers.  Nothing had a name.  Everything had a number.  There are 5 "Numberlys" who decide that something more is needed.  They set off on their own to make numbers better.  At first their efforts are not so good.  However, after much effort, they create letters.  They end up creating the letters of the alphabet.  From here, the letters combine to make words.  These words name things and the world is a better place.

This creative story has so many different uses.  It is great for separating the difference between letters and numbers.  I plan to use it to show that "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again."  Many times students want to give up so quickly.  If they stick with it, they can accomplish so much.  The building where I teach is economically low.  Families really have a difficult time making ends meet.  Yet the kids come to school each day ready to learn and meet the challenges of the day.  I hope this book will be an encouragement to them.

Just a little side note, William Joyce does Olympic curling and has written and illustrated other titles such as The Man in the Moon; the Guardians series; and the #1 New York Times - bestselling The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore.

In the next couple of days, I hope to share with you some Back to School pics and ideas I will be doing this upcoming school year.



Wow!  Has it really been that long since I last blogged?!  Where has the time gone?  As you can probably guess or maybe experience for yourself, life gets a little hectic with 2 toddlers, teaching first grade and the many other "hats" we wear!

If your students are like mine, this time of year begins the tattling.  Ugh!  I found a book I am going to read to my class this week and thought I would share it with you.  It is called, "A Bad Case of Tattle Tongue" by Julia Cook.

This wonderful book is about a boy who tattles all the time.  Other students begin to not want to sit with him in the cafeteria, play with him on the playground, or be his friend.  One night he has a dream that he really did come down with a disease called "tattle tongue" which turned his tongue yellow with purple spots.  The tattle fairy taught him the difference between a tattle and warning someone of danger.  The tattle fairy teaches him some rules about tattling to use the next time he wants to tattle.

This book is very well written and gives some good guidelines for kids to follow when it comes to warning vs. tattling.

I also want to share the exciting news that I have finished my Morning Work packet for the second nine weeks.  It is Common Core aligned.  You can find it at my TpT store.  This packet picks up right where the first nine weeks leaves off.  I am very excited about how it turned out.  In the coming weeks, I will be working on the 3rd nine weeks packet.  My students have done well with the first packet and have really learned from the content and practice.

Click here to check out this packet.

I will try to blog more often and get you some pictures of things my kiddos are doing.  Have a super week!

School's In!

Wow!  I can't believe how time has flown by!  School is back in session now.  We are still reviewing rules and procedures.  I have a GREAT group of first graders.  They are beginning to settle in.  For some, that means they are ready to learn.  For others, that means it is time to see what they can get away with!

One of the first books I read to the class is a book called, Lacy Walker Nonstop Talker by Christianne C. Jones.  This is a cute story about a little owl named Lacy.  She likes to talk and talk and talk.  One morning, she wakes up and is unable to talk or even whisper.  She realizes her friend is really pretty funny, she receives a gold star for listening, and she is able to learn more when she listens.  At home, she had time to hear a couple bedtime stories instead of just one.  The next morning, Lacy wakes up and can talk again.  She is glad she can talk again but decides to try and listen more.  After reading this book, we had a class discussion on the importance of listening in class.

I recommend this book for the beginning of the school year!  Students enjoy the illustrations as well.

This year, we are going to be bucket fillers.  Many of you may already do this in your classroom.  I just found out about this fantastic book and how to use it in the classroom.  My class has really embraced this idea of everyone having an invisible bucket that can be filled or dipped into.  Last week, we spent most of the time identifying how to fill someone's bucket.  This week, we will be putting it into action.

Have a super "bucket filling"  week!