Wonder Woman!

I hope everyone survived Halloween! This year the staff decided our theme would be Super Heroes. I wasn't very inspired by the theme originally, but after brainstorming with some coworkers, I came up with a costume that my students got a kick out of, and I wanted to be sure to share!

I am coming across as the most Wonder-Obsessed teacher on the face of the earth, but my class loves the story, so I'm really running with it this year!

I'm posing in front of my "WONDERful" student bulletin board outside the classroom! Although it kind of looks like I have a black eye, I still think it turned out pretty well. Any chance I can sneak in how cool reading is, I take it! :) 

I loved seeing the other costumes of our staff, too! Everyone got really creative, and I especially enjoyed Super Janitor (top right). 

Preparing for a WONDERful Year!

Wonder by R. J. Palacio 

August (Auggie) Pullman was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to a mainstream school—until now. He's about to start 5th grade at Beecher Prep, and if you've ever been the new kid then you know how hard that can be. The thing is Auggie's just an ordinary kid, with an extraordinary face. But can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, despite appearances?




Over the summer I read Wonder by R.J. Palacio, and LOVED it. Loved might even be an understatement. I obsessed over it, and told everyone who would listen about what a great book it was. Needless to say, I decided to incorporate the story into my classroom this year. 

My crafty self started with some classroom decor (to get the students excited and thinking about the book early on).  The large middle canvas is what the book cover looks like, and the other canvases are quotes that I pulled out from the book.

 Turns out my grand plan worked! When I introduced that Wonder was going to be the first read aloud of the year, I heard shrieks around the room, "That's the book on the wall up there!" "I heard about that book!" "My sister told me to read that book!" Wow, I didn't even have to talk this book up, it already had a great reputation. Instead of giving a brief introduction to the book, I did a lesson that I had always wanted to do. 

This lesson really did make an impact on many of the students, and some of their comments and discussion gave me the chills! After the great discussion I began reading the book. A few days (and a couple chapters) later, I felt that the students were engaged in the story enough to begin the positive reinforcement plan! 

The WONDERful positive reinforcement plan is a way for students to recognize when their peers are doing something right. This has been a great addition to my class this year. Students make stronger connections to the book and are more mindful about their choices. This plan strongly encourages "Choosing Kind" and "Building Monuments." Check out my Teachers Pay Teachers store to find out more about the plan! 

I have also created a fourth grade Common Core Close Reading activity to go along with the book. I plan to introduce precepts as well. I believe these activities can be used in other grades, too. Hopefully there are more to come! These two activities go along with the quotes I incorporated in my paintings as well as my behavior plan. 

Click here to purchase this from my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

Click here to purchase this from my Teachers Pay Teachers store. 

I look forward to implementing these activities in my classroom, and I'm curious to see how they work in yours! Please comment with any questions or ideas! Have a WONDERful day! 

First Week of School

Well, the name tags are made, the mailboxes are labeled, and the piles of items to cut and laminate are slowly dwindling down. 

I survived the first week of school! After moving classrooms this year, I never thought the day would come that I'd actually get to lay in my bed and relax. I kept my classroom pretty similar to last year (work smarter, not harder, right?), but I'll post some pictures of the subtle changes I made this year.

Moving in -- early stages...

...and after about five 12-hour days, it's finally getting somewhere! 

Job & Absent Student Board

Front of the room! 

Math Posters! 

Common Core Bulletin Board!

Reading Corner!

Welcome Board...took about 1/8 of the time as my last year one.  

Birthday Pillow! When it's their birthday, they get to sit on it for the day! 

In Class/Not In Class Board

Other than the fact that I'll probably despise chevron by the end of the year, I'm pretty happy with the room overall! Look forward to my next post about classroom management and my positive reinforcement plan Wonder (R.J. Palacio) themed! 

Classroom Decor

Ah the time has come.

Bust out the Cricut cartridges, dust off your stapler, and set aside some time to plant yourself in front of Pinterest in an attempt to make your classroom even cuter than the year before. At least that's what's on my agenda this week.

The past two years I've taken pictures of my classroom, so that when I go back in the following year, I know exactly how to set it up, and what exactly I need to tweak. So right about now is my time to take a look at what I used last year. Here are some pictures of my classroom last year!

My reading nook! Notice the book bins don't have labels yet. To establish a sense of community in my class, I have my students organize and label the bookshelves. 

Dumbledore quotes are the best! 

I LOVE painting! I took some classics and some popular children's books and painted them on canvases. This is one way I promote reading in my classroom!

My Left Brain, Right Brain canvas is possibly my favorite craft! It has a little bit of everything -- acrylic paint, water color, melted crayon, etc. It's also a great visual for students.

The front of my room!

Birthday Wall! 

Literary Devices Poster -- once I remember where I got them (from Teachers Pay Teachers), I'll give credit! 

Front of my room

There are white pieces of paper because that's where the student work goes, and there were no students there yet! 

Students keep their extra materials in those bins above their cubbies. 

I can't find the picture of the totally finished bulletin board, but this is the iHelp board where I post the weekly student jobs!

My Welcome Board! .....that stayed up all year! Oops! 

I bought some fabulous chevron fabric for my bulletin boards this year, and I'm working on some new book cover canvases! Once my classroom is all ready, I'll post some pictures up here, so stay tuned!