Liebster Award!  Melissa at http://seebeanteach.blogspot.com/2014   nominated me for this award! How stinking fun! This award is for bloggers who are new to the game and trying to grow their readership!  I have to answer the 11 questions from Melissa, and then nominate 11 blogs of my choice that have less than 200 followers!  That might be the hard part!  1.  Why and how long ago did you start blogging ? I started blogging in 2011! UGH! I actually had to look that up. :( Oh my! I do remember that I was finding some kindergarten blogs on line as I was looking for ideas. So I figured I would start my own! 2.  What one word sums up the heart of your blog and why ? Happy - I hope! 3.  Is there something you learned late in your blog journey you wished you knew before ? I wish I knew how to be consistent with my posts and what to post about! I also should look into paying someone to customize my blog- feel the same as Melissa ! ...

Oh the happiness of a clean cabinet! I moved schools over the summer. We were given time to unpack, but I was shortened by two weeks. They needed to get rid of some "small visitors". I already had plans to go away - so I did. But it just meant unpacking faster and messier than I had planned. I shoved things in the closets to get the boxes emptied. I had started out a little neater, but then they said stay home and away from your room. So I shoved it all in! :-(  It's hot in the building on the weekend. I just couldn't bring myself to go in in that heat. Plus I think I might be getting hot flashes! :-0 So this Saturday I decided I wanted needed to go in! I knew my center signs were in there somewhere! I FOUND THEM!! YEA!! I pulled everything out of the cabinet and "organized" it by topic - abc's, beginning sounds, rhyming, general materials - on the tables. Then I put it all back neatly. I cleaned out too!!! I filled 3/4 of the recycling can! Yee haw...

Well, I promised myself that I would blog once a week. So I was planning on doing that Friday night and it is now Sunday night. Better late than never! I had a few ideas about what I wanted to blog about and decided I would go with what made me sooo happy this year!  At the back to school sale on TPT this year, I bought myself Schroder Shenanigans in Second's Blog Binder. This is the link to her site about it. http://thebalancingacticalllife.blogspot.com/search/label/blog%20binder This link will take you to TPT to get it. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Organizing-BUNDLE-Checklist-Blogging-Binder-AND-Tpt-Purchase-Binder-in-ONE-1195631 Did anyone notice that the font changed??? I don't get it but oh well! Anyway I loved putting it togeth er! It was sooo much fun! Then I laminated section dividers for it and took it to Office Max for them to bind it. I think I could be addicted to that! Even my hubby was impressed that it was so cheap to do! Plus I had a back...

Ok It has been a LONG time since I have blogged! I am really trying to make it a commitment this year! But as I type, I don't think my Currently will be able to be seen! Really - this has been a nice, relaxing day. A few little bumps in it - mostly klutzy stuff. So that's normal! I have some blog posts in my head - so hopefully that will help! OR you will get three posts in one day! lol  Here's hoping!  Oh I think I got it!! Yea me!!! I think I learned a new program too! Google Picasa! Thank you Teacher to the Core for the help! Here's hoping you hear from me a lot this year!

This is a good resource to have for the common core. The way the book is set up is very practical. The matrix at the beginning of the book is very helpful. The skill assessment is a bit hard if you ask me. It would need to be read to the students - at the beginning of the year this would be very frustrating for many of my students. This might be a nice end of the year check - to make sure they are ready for first grade. The pages are set up by the topics of the standards - literature, informational text, etc. Again, I feel there is a lot of text on the pages that my students, at least, would have trouble reading independently. I think I would use them in small groups with my students. I think I would have more success with them. I do like the "I can" statements at the end of the pages. Defiantly helps build confidence. @Carson-Dellosa Publishing Company I participate in the Brand Ambassador Program for Carson-Dellosa and I received this product for free to try and revie...

This is a good resource to have for common core math. I like the matrix that shows what pages go with what common core standard. The assessment in the beginning of the book would be very helpful to group students according to their needs. This would be really helpful if a school district did not have a math program to use. The worksheets are grouped according to the strands of the standards - counting and cardinality, operations and algebraic thinking, etc. I'm not sure these pages will be able to be used independently by kindergarten students. Once students had been exposed to some of these skills I think they would be better at working through these pages. http://quietube6.com/v.php/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vc5ODnASOZQ I participate in the Brand Ambassador Program for Carson-Dellosa and I received this product for free to try and review.

This is the story of my life! Day late and dollar short! I had every intention of starting this on Monday! Honest! Who knows what happened?? OK We all know what happened! Back to School getting ready!! LOL I think this 10 fun things will be hard- I don't think I am that fun! I will try!! 1- I have taught second grade for 16 years! Well, 14 - because I took a year off with each child. Then I moved to kindergarten! It was always my dream to teach kindergarten! Dreams do come true! Second graders do not feel bad!! I loved it!!! But I think my true calling is kindergarten! 2- I am HAPPILY married to the best man in the world! We have been married for 26 wonderful years and have known each other for  30 years! WOW!!! It doesn't seem possible but so happily true! I really believe that we bring out the best in both of us! 3- I have 2 wonderful children! Our daughter is going to be a sophomore in college!!! WHAT?!?!?!?!? She is studying education also - but doing tha...