Goodies in the Mail!!

So who knew the post office delivers on Sunday?!  (They do!) And let me tell you, friends, I was so, SO excited when I saw that white mail truck roll on up and stop at my house!

A few days ago, I decided to make my own planner this year. After much research on TpT and Pinterest, I decided to go with an Arc Planner. I ordered some of the accessories online from Amazon, and I'll make the meat of it.  I also went a little crazy ordering some Washi tape-which I've never used before in.my.life. I'm giddy with excitement to use it in my planner. (hee hee)  So...here's what I got:

I'm still waiting for the discs for the planner.  And I have to finish creating the pages, and then I can start assembling.  I'll post pics of it once it's done.

Happy Sunday, everyone!

Currently-on time!

Wait! What? I'm actually on time for a Currently! Yippee! I'm so excited! It's actually still Aug. 1st, here in Oregon.  If you haven't already linked up with Farley at Oh'Boy 4th Grade, be sure to do so (even if it isn't Aug. 1 when you do).

Listening: So, believe it or not, I have Sports Center on. (The hubs is still at work)  There is absolutely nothing on right now, and I just need noise-other than the AC.

Loving: I still have one month of summer left. I don't report back to school until Sept. 2. I love that I can still sleep in, even though I do have to start getting into the school mode-so much to do...

Thinking: So, here in Oregon, we have been having record-breaking high temperatures! It's been over 100 degrees the past few days.  Now, I'm used to heat, being from SoCal, but I honestly thought when I got to Oregon, my summer would normalize, and it would be in the 80's, maybe low 90's come August.  This heat is ridiculous! I wish it would just rain!! 

Wanting: I really want to get into my new classroom. This is going to be my first year in this room, first year at this school, and I know I have a TON of work to do to get it to my liking.  I have ideas for bulletin boards that I'd like to get started on, but I don't know what the bulletin board situation is. I also need to get a handle on room organization, etc...you all feel me-I'm sure.

Needing: I brought teacher's guides for each subject home in June, and I haven't looked at one. I really, really need to open those up! 

B2S RAK: Since I'm going to be the "newbie" at this school, I thought I'd drop notes in other teacher's mailboxes as pick-me-ups with kind words. Also, give my kids random notes throughout the year-just because.

So there you go! Now, be sure to link up here.

Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy your Sunday, and have a wonderful week! And best of luck if you are starting next week!

A Real Vacation (while on vacation)

Happy Monday, Friends!  I recently got back from my little vacation.  I met a couple of my teacher friends from my old school in CA, up in Seattle.  It was great seeing my old buds.  I have missed my friends a lot.  We went hiking at Multnomah Falls-amazing! The most treacherous hike I've ever done! I almost didn't think I was going to make it, but I did!  And that made me proud of myself for accomplishing something I would not have done on my own. Here are some pictures from the hike.

We had to cool our feet off in the stream. It was so cold, but extremely refreshing!

         
In Seattle, we did a lot of urban hiking. (and I mean A.LOT!!)  All in all, it was great to get away.

                                     

I still have a month before school starts, so I'm not really in the school frame of mind just yet.  I'll blog more once I start getting ready.  Until then, have a wonderful week, whatever you are doing.

Are you Periscoping?

Quick post today. Have you gotten on the biggest new social media craze? If not, you need to! Dive right in to Periscope. It's addicting and time consuming, if you let it be-which I have been lately...ohmygoodness. Must stop. Will stop.  Luckily for me, I'm off to Seattle and Portland for the week, so I won't be tethered to my phone or iPad. But, I highly recommend checking it out. It really is a ton of fun, and you can learn a lot from all those wonderful teachers out there in Periscope land!
                                                     

Have a wonderful week.

                   

Welcome Back Me!!

OMG!! Heavens to Betsy! Where have I been??  I'll tell you...NOT HERE blogging! Duh!

So, I don't know what happened to me-wait, yes I do! Last year, I had such a class! (I don't mean this in a good way, either). (insert "wah, wahh, wahh")  I had 3 boys who should NEVER have been put in the same class-E.V.E.R.!! So they sucked out TONS of my energy! (total Boo!)

That was problem numero uno.  Then, my darling husband who had started a new job last June, proceeded to lose that said job the beginning of December. (not his fault, really)  However, said darling husband landed himself a new job in February!! Yay! Except, this new job was in Oregon, so here lies problem numero dos: we packed our condo up, put that money pit on the market, and said "Hasta la vista, California!"  (But I came back to California after a week in Oregon setting up our rental house, as I had to finish out my school year with that "terrible, horrible, no good, very bad" class.)  I was living out of a suitcase at my super wonderfully sweet friend's house for three months. Yeah...that was F.U.N.

Sooo...that's why I was majorly MIA for 8 (ohmyword!) months.

                                                 

But...here's the thing. I've been rejuvenated and inspired! Have YOU been on Periscope yet? If not, you must give it a try! And find me and follow me. (@jmeln) I've been "periscope-sucked"! On there WAY.TOO.MUCH. oh boy...my iPhone6 battery isn't great to begin with, but now...yikes! It's all good, though, because it's so much fun!!  And all those AWESOME teachers have inspired me to get back on this blog! So here I am!  Thank you, Periscopers! Thank you small fish teacher tribe. Thank you third grade tribe.

All that being said, I hope to give it the ol' college try, yet again! 

See you soon! Have a wonderful weekend, friends!

It's Written in the Stars (err, Moon...)

Happy Tuesday, Friends.

Just a super quick post-I'm trying to blog more. Even if it's a quickie. This I learned from answering those questions for the Liebster Award last weekend! ;)

Anyway, we are studying about space in science in my class. I wish I could come up with some really cute stuff, but alas, I can't.  However, I am giving a quiz on Friday, and I thought I would share it-in case anyone needs a quiz. I just created this. I tried to make this work for Common Core. I think it works, but I won't promise anything.  I hope you can use it.

Click here to get the quiz. Earth, Sun, Moon Quiz

This quiz covers what causes day and night; seasons; Earth's axis; and the Moon.
You can click the picture to get the quiz, too.

        

Five for Friday...wait, I mean Saturday

Well, it's Saturday, and as usual, I'm a day late. But, better late than never...I'm linking up with Kacy from Doodlebugs Teaching for Five for Friday. Here's what I was up to this week.

First off, we had an inservice day on Monday. No, my district couldn't give us that day off, and extend the weekend since we had Tuesday off, oh no. We had to go in to work. Ugh! And the inservice wasn't even useful! (well, it was useful to vent with others about how awful our district has rolled out Common Core!)

Report cards went home on Thursday!  Thankfully, I didn't get any evil notes from parents on Friday, complaining about the new report cards or their child's grades. 

I had my students partner read one of our stories.  Then, I had them work in their table groups and discuss the questions on the strips.  Afterwards, they worked on their own to answer the same questions on a worksheet.  I'm hoping by discussing with others first, those that may not understand the question will, and they will have an easier time answering the questions.

We were studying the seasons and what causes them, so I whipped up this cause & effect sheet for the kids to work on. They had to find causes that had to do with seasons and the effects of those causes.  I think they did pretty well. I just didn't have any pics of finished products. Sorry!

Okay, friends. I found these mustaches at Target in the Halloween discount rack. I had to get them for "Movember".  I want to give them to my kiddos, but I don't have a good idea to use them with.  Please help with any suggestions!! I know it's getting late in the month, as we only have next week. Then we are off for the week of Thanksgiving!!

Thanks for your help!

Thanks for the Liebster Award!

I've been nominated by Lydia at Glamour and Gluesticks for the Liebster Awards.

You may find yourself asking, "What in the world is the Liebster Award?" I know that's what I said!  It's pretty simple.  When a person is nominated for the Liebster Award, first they answer 11 questions about themselves.  Afterwards, they nominate 11 additional bloggers with fewer than 200 bloggers for the award.  It's like a chain award designed to help new bloggers* (see #1) become acquainted with the blogging world.  here are my answers to the 11 questions:

1. Why and how long ago did you start blogging?
       Hmmm...I guess I started blogging 2 years ago.  I started because I loved what I saw on other teachers' blogs, and I thought, I want to do that, too.  I envied those people who seemed to have so many friends from all over because of their blogs.  I also wanted a way to share teacher experiences and get feedback f rom other teachers.

2. What one word sums up the heard of your blog and why?
    I think Reflection.  When I started my blog, I wanted a place to reflect on my day or my teaching and be able to pick other people's minds about things that came up during my day.  I never really thought of my blog as a place to "sell" things, because I don't find myself very creative.  It's more an outlet for me to share feelings of teaching. If I was creative, I would love to be able to share products as well!

3. Is there something you learned late in your blog journey you wished you knew before?
    I am not sure about this.  I wish I had known how to link to linky parties sooner.  I'm excited I know how to do it now, although I am still leaning new things with every linky party I "attend".  I love being about to share with everyone things that everyone else is sharing, too.  Okay, does that even make sense??

4.  What is your favorite pass time other than blogging?
      I love to shop and read.  If I knew I didn't have any other responsibilities in my day, I would curl up on the couch and read all day!  And then I would shop.

     5. How many hours per week do you dedicate to your blog?

        Not as many as I'd like.  These days, I'm lucky if I get 1 post a week in, and lately, I'm not even getting that much in!!  It definitely takes a lot of time to blog, and I am happy when I can catch up on reading all my blog feeds on Bloglovin! Let alone, actually posting to my own blog. 

    6.  What category of blog posts do you enjoy the most?

       I love seeing what other people are doing in their classrooms and how they are teaching.  I think for me, reading other teachers' blogs are a blessing and a curse.  A blessing because I get ideas of things to do in my class, but a curse because everyone does such amazing things, yet I can never duplicate what I see.

     7.  Where does your blog inspiration come from?

         I think it comes from other bloggers.  When I read other blogs, I feel like I need to share things also.  Kind of like the idea of "you get one, I get one".  I don't want to take all the time, I like to give, too.

     8.  Which post that you've written are you most proud of?

         Okay, unfortunately, I can't say that I'm super proud of any of my posts.  But I think I'd have to say my Currently posts would fit the bill.  I'm poud of the fact that I could actually follow the directions and get the template onto my blog!!

     9.  Is there any post you've been planning to do but have been postponing?

       I've been meaning to post about some things I've been doing in my class, but I haven't quite gotten it done yet. I have the pictures, so hopefully, I'll get it done soon.

     10. What is your favorite aspect of blogging?

        I love reading about what other teachers do in their classrooms.  I also love seeing what people use in their rooms-i.e. products they use (and I love buying these things on TpT).  I also love the feeling of community blogging provides, and the friendships made through blogging.  It amazes me that I can be friends with someone I've never actually met, but through this crazy world of blogging, I have friends all over.  That to me is the best thing about blogging.

      11.  Which recipe, project, or idea on my blog would you most likely try yourself?

   Lydia, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your "Teacher Week-Why stay organized?" post. Oh My Goodness! I have never thought about using Drive to store lesson plans! Genius idea! I definitely need to try that. So easy and so organized. I love how it gets rid of the paper stacks (or in my case, all the old lesson plan books) Amazing!

The Rules:
Now that you've been nominated, here are the official rules for accepting:

1. In your post, link back to the blogger who nominated you as a thank you and "shout out".

2. Answer the 11 questions I answered above.

3. Nominate 11 blogs that have fewer than 200 followers each.  have them answer the questions above.

4.  Let your nominees know thay've been nominated and provide them with a link back to your post, so that they can accept.

5. Send your nominator a link to your post so he/she can learn about you.

My nominations:

Jennifer at Teaching with Grace

Pam at Teaching by the Sea

Sara at Frampton's FUNdamentals

Amanda at Teaching in a Small Town

Kady at Teacher Trap

Misty and Kristy at Teaching times 2

Janet at Teacher Times Two

Jen at Teacher Karma

Randi at Teaching in an Organized Mess

Brenda at Teaching...Seriously

Amanda at Teacher at the Wheel

Whew! 

Currently...

Ahhh!!! I truly can't believe it is already November!!  Seriously, where has this year gone? I swear it was just March.  Oye-I need time to slow down. Don't you agree??
Anyway, it's time to link up with the Fabulous Farley for Currently.

Listening:  We had the football game on, but I needed to come upstairs, so now my husband is playing the Wii. So, that's the lovely "beep, beep" sounds that I keep hearing. Not annoying at all...

Loving: It's FINALLY Fall! At least it has been for the last few days. Unfortunately, this cool weather isn't going to last long. It's supposed to get back up into the 80's and 90's by Tuesday, and be that way all week!! Yuck! I just know we are in for a FREEZING winter, and I'll be complaining about all the cold then, but right now, enough of all this heat!

Thinking: Our report cards are due this Friday, so I'm thinking about what I'm going to do to make the next trimester better.  I really felt so lost and incompetent this trimester.  I'd like to get back to my confident teacher self again, because so far, this year really blows!

Wanting: I want to go running tomorrow, because I just bought these AWESOME new running shoes!!  I tested them out this morning by going on a walk/job with the hubs.  They are so.dang.comfy!  They have custom insoles-I swear, I've never had shoes that felt like buttah...

Needing: So, I really...I mean R.E.A.L.L.Y. need to start cooking! I'm like the worst wife-E.V.E.R. I never cook, and we always go out to eat. I'm getting really tired of eating out. But, I also am too tired to cook. You all know what it's like to get up at the crack of dawn, teach for 6 hours, copy, plan, straighten the room, organize, get ready for the next day...who has time to cook? I just want to come home and sleep!  But, I know I need to start cooking meals here. I just need to motivate myself...

Reading: When I'm not falling asleep super early or catching up on recorded shows from 3+ weeks ago, I'm reading Invisible by James Patterson. I love his books because they are such fast reads-when I have the time.  I love mysteries, but a good thriller gets me away from my life for a bit.  

So, there you have it.  I hope you join Farley and let us know what you're up to Currently.

Have a great November!

Five for Friday

Well, today is Saturday, but I was so exhausted yesterday, I couldn't even get on the computer!  So...I'm a day late to link up with Kacy at Doodle Bugs Teaching-please forgive me. Thanks!

This is my FIRST five for Friday, and I'm SO, SO EXCITED!!  Let's see how this goes.

Happy Halloween-yesterday.  We had our school costume parade in the morning. It was crazy, chaotic, but surprisingly, not as bad as years past. Whew! I like to keep my costume simple. Because this year has been so wackadoodle, I've been "under the weather".

One of my grade level teammates. Scary...I know!!

I just started teaching multiplication-finally!  I made this little activity.  I put the kids into partnerships. I had stations around the room. Each station had a bag of counting bears. On the bag it said, "Show a __ by __ array". They had to put the bears into the array. Then on their worksheet, they had to write the multiplication equation the array showed, then draw a model of the equation. It definitely showed me who understands the concept of multiplication.

I'm really bad at carving pumpkins, but I do it anyway, because it reminds of when I was a kid. It's okay to laugh...

While shopping at William Sonoma the other day ... need I say more? Tis the season!

I tweaked the saying because it wasn't the best language...trying to keep it clean. But I really liked this.

Have a great week!