December Currently...

I am a little late to the PARTAY, but its really better late than never at all I always say!!! 
I am so excited to link up with Farley for the December currently!  I wish I could hang with Farley sometime in real time...don't you?  I'd bet I'd be laughing my jingle bells off, ya know!!  I digress, back to the Currently!!!
Can I say how cute this month's currently is btw...I love the font, I love the graphics, I just love love love it!! 

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I am listening to my dryer roll and our aquariums run water through the filters. My children are nestled all snug in their beds and no Farley, I don't judge you one bit because my four year old snug and warm in MY bed as I type this...However,  I am a white noise fanatic...Can't do total silence, it is almost frightening...Maybe it makes me feel alone or enclosed...I have no idea, but something like this or a ceiling fan must be on in my house at all times...I know, total weirdee...

I am loving that all my babies are asleep.  Sleep is like contraband in this house, well it is for hubs and me anyhow...My kids like to put it on embargo and refuse to take part in it most nights.  But, it might be time for me to sleep but I have blogging to do and its my motto "I can sleep later!"

So I am taking a personal day on Friday and alls I can say it "MIGHTY WOOT WOOT!!!!"  I am going to take everyone to their usual places and I am going to shop and drop!!!  I am going to get hubs and my little Abby finished and then pick up the smallish things for the rest of our immediate family!

I want to increase my blog followers and also followers to my TPT store  http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Shearer-ly-Sadler-4th-Grade  I love blogging and selling on TPT, but I just can't see to do anything to raise my readership...If you want to help me then sign on to follow me on bloglovin and get to my store!!!

I need to finish my Christmas shopping which is the main reason for the personal day Friday.  I haven't been absent in a while so my kids were a little antsy today when I told them I would be out. 

Hubs and I haven't been married all that long, eight years, but we have a Christmas tradition...Each year we go and pick out a live tree.  This was not something we did when either of us were children, but it is something we wanted our children to remember and carry onto each of their families!  this year instead of buying a cut three, we are having one dug for us and will plant it outside our house after Christmas.  Hubs wants to leave a 2013 ornament on it all year round so we can collect these trees and photograph the kids next to them.  Sounds sweet huh?  I am really excited about doing this, and so is our oldest daughter.  She is four and has asked us numerous time where the Christmas tree is!!!  Shes so funny! 
So I am literally falling asleep atk to e keyboard, so night night and will talk with ya later!!

Whole Brain Teachin' BABY!!!

OK!  So my BFF and I did a presentation yesterday for our staff over Whole Brain Teaching...It was awesome!  Our staff had a good time, the remained engaged, we gave our prizes, we laughed...Just some good clean staff meeting fun!  I had been doing some WBT stuff in my room for a little while, up until Becky and I went to the Kentucky Reading Conference back in October.  We were kinda bored really and were contemplating leaving.  But, it was a day without students or children, so we stuck it out.  Boy are we glad we did.  We both teach classes who are talkative to say the least.  We were blown away by these two graphics alone...

 



Our staff was as well. It was the best  presentation I have ever done!  My BFF and I make a great team!!  She is yin to my yang, my spaghetti to this meatball, she is the calm and I am the storm :) 

 

Today, I don't know if I was coming off a presenter's high or what, but I was on fire in my whole brain classroom today, AND so where my big kidlings!  I was super withit today and was patient and used every moment as teachable moments.  They got the Guff counter today and were so funny!  At first they asked me to please stop when I was putting the guff counter points up there.  I asked who they were asking to stop and they said, "YOU!"  I said, "I am not the one complaining now am I!"  So they looked at the child who was complaining and in almost unison said "PLEASE STOP!"  I just turned and erased the guff points.  The whole rest of the day was spent with students monitoring each other's behavior and more than once I heard "please stop" and wasn't able to react because the students themselves handled the situations.  I almost and I stress almost don't want holiday break to get here very soon because I don't want the momentum to run out and have to reteach all over again come January!  You know what I am talking about!  Check back soon...I just did a major photo and video dump from my iphone and ipad so I can take pictures of these kiddos in action!  I am such a proud teacher today! 

Go Sharks!!!

Tomorrow its SALE time!!!

I have two winners in my new product giveaway!!  They are Ursula G and Christie K.  I will be sending an email out to you both shortly!  You are receiving my editable summary pennants as well as three other items of your choice from my store!!  Way to girls!!!
 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tomorrow will start my After Thanksgiving  Sale at my TPT store!  Click the banner to look around.  I will be adding products each day (Prayerfully) so check back often!  Thanks to all of you that follow me and if you don't, I will be most grateful if you did.  Having this blog and my store to share my craft with other teachers is a blessing.  Likewise, I am blessed to have met some really wonderful people through them!  Happy Holidays my friends!!

Don't forget to shop on Monday and Tuesday for even more savings!  Use promo code CYBER at check out for an additional 8% off from TPT!!!!

I love new teachers!!!

One of the best things about my job as a 13 year teacher (I'm not a veteran until I hit the 20 year mark) is new baby teachers!!!  I have had 2 of the most awesome student teachers ever, a teacher intern (who is now the preschool teacher of my daughters) and I have hired a few as a school council member!  I love how every year, they just get better and better.  I read Kayla Roots blog and she just passed her praxis and is completing her student teaching and I have fallen in love with some of her products.  I think based on her project work alone, I would hire her if I was a principal or she interviewed for my council!  She is having a celebratory giveaway over at her blog...This is what you could win!  I have entered because I am such a digital graphics NERD!!!

Here is link to the giveaway!

http://mrsrootteaches.blogspot.com/2013/11/sharing-my-happy-with-giveaway.html?showComment=1385587366438#c5934830573460732164

It has one day left!!

Love the new little activity...

Hello everyone!!!
I just posted the cutest little activity that you can do year round in your room.  It is completely editable for any book you choose to use it with!!!
Pennant Flags for Summarizing!!!

 

I customized it for one of my reading groups who is reading Sounder.  This is how it looks, I laid a Melonheadz graphic down and changed the title to suit my novel.  My students each summarized a couple chapters and will hang them up after break!  I am looking forward to how they will turn out! 

Here a picture I took of the student page I edited for them to use with Sounder...

 

We will post them like bunting as we finish each chapter summary.  It made for a fun way to come to discussion groups and there is a legacy for what we have accomplished as readers this year!  Makes me proud!

 

I want to give one away as well as 3 other items in my store  because I am so thankful to you as my readers.  Here is what I will do!  Because I am in such a giving mood, I want two winners!!! This will not last long and I do not have much to do to enter to win!  I have been entering a lot of giveaways here of late and they can be exhausting but the prizes are so well worth it!!!

 I will post my winners on Black Friday!!!

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Happy Thanksgiving my dears! 

Longish post and a freebie...

Hello out there...I had to blow the dust off my blog today to post it has been so long!  I feel so bad about that.  Each time I sit down to work on plans, grade papers, or create something for my class, I think of my blog and those of you that read it and I just feel bad.  This is one thing that I do not want to just quit because my plate is totally full.  Blogging is so much fun and I have met some wonderful folks so far! 

A peek at life since October (I think that was the last time I wrote a real post)

I went to the Kentucky Reading Association conference on October 21 and went to an AWESOME whole brain teaching seminar.  I love when I go to conferences and I can walk away with something I can implement immediately and costs me nothing!  I was able to go back and give whole brain teaching a try and I really love it.  It really suites my style of teaching and I am not afraid to try something new...So I created these whole brain teaching rule circles and I have them posted in my room...I go over them everyday to remind students of my expectations.  Click here to download them...I love them.  I am giving them to my whole staff when I present the first week of December.

I had a huge success with my two multiplication task card products I posted, I created one for division.  I have had such a wonderful experience teaching division to my students this year.  I hadn't really read closely the standard for division until this year and I wish I had of.  Boy do I wish I had of.  I have been trying to force the US standard algorithm for division down my kids throats for years, and it turns out with Common Core they don't need it until like 6th grade.  It pays to read the standards vertically and not just horizontally!!!  My students REALLY get it, the concept that is, and they are doing division with such a wonderful foundation.  I really feel like I taught this group something...that is such a wonderful feeling for a teacher!  So to celebrate this momentous occasion, these task cards will be half off until this time tomorrow night!  

My second daughter started preschool late last month...I can't say enough about our county preschool program.  Her teacher was one of my interns years ago and she treats both of my girls like her own.  Yes, both of my girls are in her room.  She told me it was her first time having siblings!  My oldest is in her last year of preschool and takes care of her sister at school.  She looks out for her and includes her in everything, but the great thing is that my youngest daughter is so independent that she doesnt really hang on my oldest daughters coat tails so they play some together and a good portion of the time they play in different circles.  I am just so fortunate to have such a wonderful teacher for them both! 

Well, enough about me!  I wish each and everyone of you out there the happiest of Thanksgivings...I am so thankful for your readership

UnWrap Your Freebie!! Love from the Creative Chalkboard and Creative Clips...

If you know me, you know I am kind of addicted to graphics and anything that is FREE!  If you don't follow Krista Wallden, you should.  Here is a link to her little "UnWrap your Freebie" Love A Thon she is doing for the holidays and I am loving it!!!
http://thecreativechalkboard.blogspot.com/2013/11/unwrap-your-freebie-2.html
Her stuff is so cute! 

Tobi :)