Happy (almost) Friday!

     Wow, this has been a BUSY week.  I jumped back into the classroom (we still miss our student teacher!) full force and we launched new units in reading (mysteries), math (data & graphing),  and writing (realistic fiction).  The kids were engaged and excited about our lessons and put forth excellent effort!
     Our PTA spoiled us as part of Teacher Appreciation Week!  We received goodies each morning - Mentos (I Mento tell you you are a great teacher!), a Starbucks Gift Card (Thanks a latte for all you do!), a local restaurant gift certificate, and beautiful bookmark.  We are a lucky group of teachers!
     Today we finished our writing a little bit early and headed out to our school courtyard.  The weather was absolutely perfect to spread out with a blank page and a clipboard and compose some "found poems."  Some students wrote simple acrostics and list poems while others worked hard to craft just the right details.  Our visit to this "outdoor classroom" included the discovery that our "school duck" had returned once again (and is sitting on eggs!), as well as a bird dropping a little present right on one of my student's poems.  Just.Great.
Here are some pictures from the week! :)  I will post some goodies this weekend, and who knows….maybe a giveaway/freebie will be in the works!

Teacher Appreciation Sale on TpT!

I love that I am part of the TpT community!  I have loved creating items for other teachers to use and enjoy, but I REALLY love all of the great ideas and activities I've purchased!   My wish list is all filled up and ready to go for the big sale tomorrow, and my own store will be 20% off, as well.  Click the link below to go right to my store and with the coupon code, your discount ends up being 28%…WOW!  A great time to stock up on some end of the year goodies….and some of my favorites from my shop just  happen to be linked below :)

I spent some time tonight creating a printable pack for our little "identifying genres" study this week.  I told my class that since my four year old son knows the difference between fiction and non-fiction, that as eight year olds, we need to "dig deeper" and be more SPECIFIC!  Today they brainstormed as many genres as they could think of and I think they were impressed with all of the "fancy" terms we were using.
Included in the pack are ready-to-go printables that require very little prep - basically books, and if you have them - leftover book orders.  I really want my class to be thoughtful in identifying genres, so there are activities where they have to "prove" that it is a specific genre with text evidence.

Enjoy Teacher Appreciation Week, everyone, and Happy Shopping!  

Back to School...

It's BACK TO SCHOOL this week---well, for me anyway!  My awesome student teacher wrapped up her time with us on Friday, so I am back to the role of classroom teacher.  This means a lot of things--back to talking to myself during planning time, fewer bathroom breaks, and the shift from (somewhat) laid back to jam-packed days planning, organizing, and correcting.  We only have about 7 weeks and change, so my mantra for the balance of the school year is "I think I can, I think I can…" 

Let's face it---May/June - or whenever your "End of the Year" is, is BUSY.  Review activities, assessments, placement, report cards---all of it is jammed into the final month.  It's the "storm before the calm," so it is sure to fly quickly.  

I try to stay on top of things with lots of sticky notes and activities to keep the kiddos engaged and learning--even as the weather warms up and we start to "lose" them.  My favorite activities to wrap up the school year are our MYSTERY UNIT in reading and our REALISTIC FICTION unit in writing.  Throw in some CAMP-LEARN-A-LOT and ICE CREAM, and those kiddos are fooled into thinking that we are done learning and just having fun!  In reality, they are practicing the skills that they've learned this year….mission accomplished!   

I have been updating files and creating new activities---click on the images below to be brought right to them or just visit my TpT store and browse a bit.  There's a BIG sale May 6-7, so fill up your carts now and check out then to save 28%!  

Do you Wordle!?

Today we created one of my favorite (and easiest) projects of the year - our Mother's Day Subway Art designs!  We do a bunch of craftivities for Mother's Day, but this one is so simple - and FREE!  Plus - 'subway art' is all the rage and these are just that!
The students typed words to describe their moms - I saw the usual "helpful" and "kind" {nothing wrong with those traits!}, but this year I saw words I hadn't seen before---humble & modest (Thank you, Charlotte's Web!), stylish, warm-hearted, and cute--among others.  These came out great and I know the moms will just love and cherish them.
I uploaded my planning page to TpT as a FREEBIE for 24 hours - get it quick and please leave feedback.   I also uploaded a new item that I can't wait to use with my class---"How to be a {fill in the blank} Grader."  This is meant to be a book that your students create for your incoming class.  I included two sizes of the book (full and half page) as well as some mentor texts you could use with it.  This fun product is HALF OFF through the weekend.  Enjoy!

BUY ONE, GET ONE!

I am trying to reach a milestone on TpT by the end of April…that's tomorrow---YIKES!
So - I've decided to run a little promotion.  Purchase ANY of my products on TpT and then email me with your choice of a second item for FREE!  It's that simple.  I will email you the file within a few hours (unless it's overnight---then it will wait until the morning!).
Just shoot me a quick email:  afunsecond@gmail.com with your TpT user name (to confirm the TpT purchase) and your FREE choice (equal or lesser value).  Please enjoy your products and if you do, leave feedback.
Also---the GIVEAWAY is still going on!  Scroll down and enter if you haven't yet.  :)

Busy, Busy, Busy!

We have been BUSY in second grade! I really wouldn't have it any other way.  My {fabulous} student teacher just wrapped up day 3 of her "solo week" and I have been busy working on this blog and my TpT products.  In the past week I have created/polished up the following units:  Mysteries, Informational Text Responses, Charlotte's Web, and today - (four hours later!) - Realistic Fiction (a writing unit).  I had a giveaway on FB over the weekend for that Informational Text Response Pack, and have a giveaway running all week for my TpT shop---any products of your choice totaling up to $20.  Enter below (scroll down to the Rafflecopter below) or enter via the Giveaway tab on FB.
Back in the classroom, Miss C is teaching my kiddos all about BUTTERFLIES.   The larvae arrived last week and they have been observing them daily, taking notes, and learning about the life cycle.  Today, they performed two songs for me about the life cycle - one was to the tune of Row, Row, Row your boat (with the most adorable hand motions) and the other was to "Call Me Maybe" (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=call+me+maybe+butterfly) They LOVED performing these songs----SO cute!  The room is all decorated with butterflies and there is so much excitement among the students.
If you are looking for some great butterfly resources, check out Miss C's TpT page.  I've linked you to her great FREEBIE and while you're there---check out her other items and follow her.
Also - just because I have had a great TpT day…my new REALISTIC FICTION writing unit is 50% off for the next two days.  I can't wait to start it with my class next week!

WOW!

I am in awe over these past two weeks.  I have flown past 100, then 150, and now 160 followers on Facebook and am currently followed  by 142 on Instagram.  I upgraded my TpT to a "Premium Seller" account and have more sales in the past week than ever before.  "In awe" might be an understatement.
I have some fun blogs planned for this week and some new product ideas, too.
For now, I am running a GIVEAWAY until Friday at noon.  Enter below for your chance to win $20 towards products in my TpT store.  With my recent creations and updates, you are sure to find something you'll love.  Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway