Monday Made-It

It's Monday and that means it's time for another Monday Made-it Linky Party with 4th Grade Frolics! 

I had a busy day today and that meant I got stuff done for my classroom

 & for home!

This past weekend I finally finished up a project I have been working on for quite awhile this summer - my Math Vocabulary Word Wall cards for grade 3. They include 240 words, definitions and pictures for Math Expressions curriculum.   You can purchase your own set in my Teachers Pay Teachers store!

Today I went to FedEx Kinkos to print these bad boys in color!! I quickly cut them apart and dropped them off at school to get laminated in these last few weeks before school starts! I can't wait to use them in my Math instruction this year!

Next up was a cute little shirt I whipped up on my embroidery machine today!

Last week we were asked if our daughter would join the junior Olympics gymnastics team at our gym!! After lots of thought, prayers, and tears {in hopes that we made the right decision} we agreed to give her the opportunity! She excitedly said YES, YES, YES!! 

So this morning I stitched up a cute tank top that she wore proudly today!

Congrats little gal! We can't wait to watch you train and compete!! You've worked really hard for this opportunity!

You can check out some of my craftiness in my store: Sweet Swag By Sarah

Kylie and I ran some errands this morning & afternoon. We stopped for a bit at my school to drop off laminating and do a little straightening in my classroom. I was able to finish up my favorite bulletin board in my whole classroom as well! 

Check out this Pinterest inspired #Instagram board! 

I plan to change out the hashtags throughout the year and have students provide artwork and pictures to fill the board!

I also had time to get a good start on a project I've {wanted} to do for awhile!

We have to repaint out hallways...well, truth be told, we don't have to but we want to!  However I have an awesome giraffe measuring chart I've used since the kids were little! I'm sad to see it go, but I definitely don't want to lose all of the memories of how fast the kiddos grew! 

So, I ordered up some vinyl numbers and measurement hash marks. I picked up some stain and a board at the local hardware store and set to work!

Today I stained the board and let it dry as I ran my numerous errands. 

Unfortunately it needs to dry for 72 hours to ensure the vinyl sticks! So...check back next week for a Monday Made-It to see the finished project!!

 
 

 

Teachers Pay Teachers: {Math Vocabulary Word Wall}

I can't believe it - I'm finally finished with this little gem!

I've been working for several weeks on creating word wall cards for all 240 words in the grade 3, Math Expressions curriculum.  Each word card has the word and definition.  Most cards show an image or example to help the word "make more sense."

I used some in 2nd grade {that were created by the fabulous Going Beyond the Core} last year and they were so helpful in the day-to-day instruction and review with my students.

I hope that you will find these as useful as I find them in the classroom!

Be sure to grab yours here - Math Vocabulary Word Wall - and pretty please, leave me some feedback!

Monday Made It {Recovered Cushions}

Once again I'm linking up with 4th Grade Frolics for a fun {Monday Made It} post! 

Here's the final project, but I'll show some "in-progress" photos as well!  Two years ago I found the cute idea to make cushions for my milk crates and use them as seats around my table. I've loved using them, but each year I realize they get really dirty and I need to recover them. 

This year I was lucky enough to find some lime green fabric that will go perfectly in my "blue and green" ocean-themed room! My friend had the fabric and let me have some to make my new cushions! I think she probably saved me a few $$ from all the other stuff I would have purchased had I gone to Jo-Ann's looking for "just fabric" for this project!!

First up: I had to take the old, stained, blue fish fabric off of the cushions. I left the bottom layer of denim in place as  it secured the foam. 

Next, I cut the fabric down and got ready for a lot of folding and stapling! 

Four cushions later and they were ready to head to my classroom! 

I don't know about you, but my Summer is just flying by!! It's fun creating new goodies for my classroom but I'm going to have to start getting the "curriculum" ready to go! 😉 

What about you? Are you ready to head back to school? 

Monday Made-It: Seatbelt Pillows

I'm excited that I finally had time to do a "Monday Made-It" and link up with 4th Grade Frolics!! 

I have a road trip coming up soon and my friend thought it would be so fun if we had those cute seatbelt pillows! We are going to make the trek from Minnesota to Florida with my two kids and her two kids! 

Imagine: {2 moms, 3 girls, 1 boy, and a 20 hour car trip each way}

I've been working on making some fun things for our trip to keep the kids busy! Next week I'll share more about the road trip games and goodies we're bringing along. This week I want to share about the comfy stuff!

Last night I decided it wouldn't be too hard to whip up the pillows and I mostly had all of the materials at my fingertips. I started by making the pillows for the girls, out of some leftover Frozen fabric I had lying around my sewing room. 

I basically made a giant rectangle and left a 4" opening at the bottom. Then I stitched 3/4 of the way down just left and just right of center to form the two pockets to stuff. This leaves a flat portion in the center to wrap around the seatbelt. 

When my friend showed me pictures of these on Pinterest she found a super cute one with a pocket for your iPhone. So I went a little above and beyond and picked 2 of my favorite fabrics and made a cute chevron pocket on the pillow I was making for her and I to share {whenever we weren't driving!}! 

Of course I couldn't forget my little man! He would be lost in this sea of pink, purple and Frozen! I had just enough of this fun Superman fabric left over to make him the perfect seatbelt pillow! 

Now I better run and get back to prepping for our road trip!!

TpT Seller Challenge: Dare to Dream

I am a bit behind, but I am loving this TpT Seller Challenge as it's getting me motivated to work on my blog, TpT Store and more!!

Last week's challenge was a "Dare to Dream" challenge and we were asked to share why we sell on TpT and what are dreams are for the "business!"

When I started selling on TpT it was mostly to make a little extra spending money as I had fun creating things I needed or wanted for my own classroom. That is still my primary goal, but as I have more time to create I've realized a few other goals: 

More Time with my family

Meeting new teacher friends

Travel $$

To let my creative juices flow

I've had so much fun "meeting" new teacher friends through Instagram {follow me @teachermomoftwo} and hope to meet some of them one day at the TpT Conference in Vegas!!

What are your hopes and dreams for what you're doing? Maybe you're a teacher blogger, blog follower, teacher, or business person! Share your hopes and dreams in the comments below!!

 

Who Wants to Read?!

Everyone wants their kiddos and students reading all year round! I don't know about you, but my kids love reading books on the iPad {just like their Momma!}! 

Last night, a teacher friend of mine came over to chat and catch up on the thrills of summer and shared this {AWESOME} app with me!  Have you heard of "Epic?" It's an app that is FREE for educators and has hundreds of hundreds of awesome books available for students to read! 

After getting my kiddos set up with their accounts this morning, they've been reading a ton ~ choosing from titles like Scaredy Squirrel, Berenstain Bears and more!

As they read it tracks the amount of time they have read, number of pages flipped, and number of books read. Students can earn badges for reading books, rating books and more. My son was super excited when he unlocked new avatars for his profile picture! 

Each child gets to personalize their account with their own interests in books, age, and types of books - picture, chapter, early readers, ABC books and more!!

What are your favorite apps for having kids read? Share them in the comments!!