#clearthelist

Have you heard about this movement? It was started by a teacher in Texas with the idea that teachers would be able to support each other with classroom supplies. It has turned into something so much bigger.

Thousands of teachers have been sharing, posting, and tweeting their amazon wishlists for classroom support. So many people, including celebrities, have really taken this on and our helping teachers 'Clear the List'.

I've had an amazon wishlist for my classroom for over year. I've been adding things to the list that I wanted, but just couldn't afford. By the time school started, everything off my list had been purchased by friends, family, and people on twitter. It was incredible!

First items off my list!

On average, teachers spend nearly $500 of their own money on supplies for their classrooms. Some districts will reimburse teachers for the money they spend on supplies, but not all do and the amount reimbursed isn't always equal to the amount you spend. It's usually less.

This movement has really helped alleviate stress for so many teachers around the country, but the people it benefits the most are the students.

If you'd like to support a teacher search #clearthelist on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and find a wishlist for a teacher in need!

FanCACTUS!

Every year I do a classroom theme. I've done Harry Potter, Narnia, and Roald Dahl. My table groups are always named after characters or books, and the first week activities relate to the theme. 

This year my theme is Cactus. My table groups are Barrel Cactus, Queen of the Night, Prickly Pear, and Succulent. 

Everyone received a special cactus eraser on the first day of school, and our first art project of the year was mixed media art. 

I'm also putting cactus facts in my monthly newsletter. 

Overall, I thought it was a great start to the school year and my students seem to like it. 

Not pictured is my new flat panel. I'll post all about that later!

Aside from all things cactus, I decided to try to do more STEAM this year. If you're wondering what STEAM is, go ahead and click HERE for more info. 

In a nutshell, STEAM is learning that includes science, technology, engineering, art and math. I'm trying to do STEAM Fridays, but it's expensive so I've been asking my families for donations. 

Building structures with marshmallows
and toothpicks

We made rockets using paper, tape, and straws.
They loved seeing how far they could launch
them. 

Slowly but surely, the supplies we need have been coming in and my students love the hands on actives we've been able to do so far this year. 

That's all for now! Not sure how often I'll be sharing this year. Having a toddler and teaching has made blogging more challenging! 

So, until next time!

What’d you miss?

It’s been a really long time! I wrote this post back in June 2018 and forgot post it. I’m posting now and will follow up with the upcoming school year soon.

6/10/2018
I realized this morning I hadn’t posted since November! A lot has happened in my classroom since I wrote about this year’s social studies.

On December 5th, our county was ravaged by the Thomas Fire. Being close to the start of the fire, my school was closed for five weeks. Families were evacuated, battled flames, and one lost everything. It was a very emotional holiday, followed by yet more fear and anxiety with the rains that caused all the mudslides in January.

Coming back to school after the fires and dealing with the rain was challenging, as my students were stressed and scared. Still, we tried to make the best of our returning situation. We had our school Spelling Bee, Science Fair, auditions for the school musical, and the 5th/6th grade Outdoor School Trip all by the end February.

Outdoor School was wonderful. We went on hikes and sang at campfires, but again the rains came and we had to leave camp early due to possible mudslides. My students and I were sad to leave, but thankful we were able to attend even for the short amount of time we went.

This year’s musical was The Seussical. I’ll admit, when the drama teacher said this was what she wanted to do I was worried. I’d never heard of this play, and when I started listening to the sound track, I wasn’t sure we’d be able to pull it off. The shortened version we were doing had 18 musical numbers, and being based on Dr. Seuss stories, some songs had tricky wording. Our entire school worked so hard, and on a Thursday in May they performed in front of over 100 people. It was wonderful! They all did such a phenomenal job!

It’s been a  whirlwind of a year.