Comprehension Strategy Songs



I was doing a little tinkering today and I thought I would share!! Tomorrow is my freebie day through TBA!! I've been so super busy I haven't had time to make anything. So here is a little something a day early. 


Don't forget to scroll down and get in on the giveaway going on!!
or 
Click HERE to go straight to my giveaway going on now and ending on Tues.!!!

Aren't these wristlets and lanyards adorable!?! They would look super sassy for back to school. They would make wonderful teacher gifts!! I plan to get one for each of my kid's teachers. I got the owl wristlet and the owl lanyard that she has in her shop. I got tons of compliments at the Cafe training.

What an awesome day! I learned lots and I have tons to share but I'm off and running for now! I have to tote my three to volleyball with me but I will sooooo report back soon. I had a great day listening to Gail and Joan. They are so very full of humor and knowledge! I felt like I was at the Oprah show. They kept surprising us with free stuff!! Check it all out!
An adorable book about a dog who builds stamina to be all that he so wishes to be!! Dex The Heart of a Hero which my 6 year old is holding as we speak! Click on over and grab it up on Amazon!! I will post the rest of their recommended reads tomorrow!


Wind chimes, a sassy check mark, a poetry book, and other cute stuff were all wonderful perks to a very awesome training!! I'm pretty amped up for tomorrows training. I've never been to Cafe training before so this will be all new and I can't wait.

I promise to come back with a wealth of info. to share tomorrow!! I hope it rocks as much as the last time I saw them. I only got 2 hours last time so a whole day should reeeeeaally rock!! 

Wish me luck girls!! ( and boys - just in case ;)

On Wed. I'm heading to CAFE training!! Whoooop! Whooop! How big a nerd am I that this will prob. be one of the highlights of my summer?!

When I student taught they made me dress up in a funky outfit and go around with someone dressed in a cat costume. My outfit didn't fit and I think it was for a child. I will never forget trying to keep that skirt down and hoping my tush wasn't sticking out. Rock and a hard place, you know. Would I flunk student teaching because I wouldn't play along and entertain or flunk because I flashed the gymnasium my tush. It all ended well and heck who doesn't love Dr. Seuss?!

I'm due for a giveaway here soon. I'm not sure about how to count my followers. My feedburner that counts people following in Google Reader, email, typical followers, etc. says I have 519!! I'm not sure if it counts Network Blogs or not. So, I'm in for a giveaway any day here and I think I'm going to call it a 500+ !!! What do you think?? I'm trying to think up some super fun back to school prizes!!

I know you have all heard about whole brain teaching. We all know that movement and reinforcement are super duper important in the classroom. I have been looking for more and more ways I can incorporate  movement, song, and dance into my everyday teaching. I stumbled onto Teaching happily Ever After and she has an awesome post complete with videos on WBT (whole brain teaching). The vidoes are too cool. I don't know about you girls but I'm a visual learner. I really need to see/hear/etc. a concept in action really grasp it. Hence my understanding it's importance for my students. Hop on over to Teaching Happily Ever After and check this post out!!


When you are done there click on over to the official WBT website and get signed up!! It is free and there are tons of resources and free downloads to check out! Just peak at one of the videos and then tell me what you think!! 

How many of you do something like this in your room already?? 

I do some of this but not exactly like they do. I've been working song and dance in but I love the way these kids are engaged and how they are reinforcing what they are learning. 

Most of you have heard about Sqworl. I keep all the blogs I find organized by grade level on a site called Sqworl. I have posted about this before but there are a lot of new blogs out there since my earlier post. With summer and a new year approaching teachers have been hired to new schools and/or moved to new grade levels. If you are heading to a new grade level it would be nice to be able to click and find lots of blogs all focused on that grade.

I keep my Sqworl list on the sidebar of my blog. Just scroll down and you will see it under my blog button! 
It looks like this.....
I try to update it every time I come upon a new blog. If I have forgotten yours or haven't clicked upon you yet give me a shout and I will add it!!

Happy Clicking!!

Here are the rules:
1.  A blogger who is a "New Kid on the Blog"
(Let's say someone who has blogged 2 months or less and has less than 200 followers)

2.  Post a blogger in your same grade level

3.  Post a blogger in a different grade level

4.  It's all about the button. Find a cute blog button and post it.


1. My "New Blog on the Block" is Little Bits!! Click on over there and check her out! We happen to work together and I know she will be featuring some pretty cool stuff!

2.  Here are some rockin awesome 3rd grade blogs!!! I swear there has been an explosion of 3rd grade teachers taking up blogging! I'm going to rock the boat and put more than 1 ha!(as if this post isn't too long already! :)


I included The 3rd Wheel because she really has her site PACKED full of freebies/downloads/fun stuff!! Just about every post has a download attached. I love that we have similar teaching styles and just about all her stuff is ready to use right in my room!! You must get over there and check her out!!

3. The blog from another grade level that I'm choosing to spotlight is.....



She is having a super duper big giveaway right now to celebrate 1000+ followers and you really should get in!! Also Ladybug/Kristen is very helpful with tutorials to help spruce up and customize your blog. She is always quick to answer questions and offer help. Her videos are really very easy and helpful!!




She is very "sweet" and has been sending very kind comments my way!! Welcome to bloggerland Sweet Life!! Make sure you scroll down and check out her Library Linky party she had earlier this week! Awesome ideas and pics!!


If you're new here please follow along!! 

Leave a comment they really make my day!!

I found a sassy new blog the other day(or rather she found me) and she is having a classroom library linky party! She created her own blog design and it is super cute! Type on over there and link up or say hi and welcome a new blogger on the block!




I just moved to a new room and it is UpSiDeDoWn!!! I'm going to link up using my last years classroom library photos. I'm sure this room will look similar with a few tweaks. 

I have a book buying problem that I managed to tame down a bit last year. I find that I have too many books. Seems CrAzY to say that since I LOVE books but I think the kids and I both get overwhelmed with the organization and upkeep. I sorted out MANY of my books when I moved. I brought home the higher level book that I had used for my gifted 4th graders. I'm now committed 3rd grade for the foreseeable future. 

I wanted to post and let you know I have added a lot of Blog design sites to my Sqworl list. If you are in the market to upgrade, shake up, remodel, or start a blog then you better check these out!! I added about 10 new sites this morning. I sooo have the itch to try this stuff out for myself! Hmmmm... Maybe one day!

I stumbled on to Restaurant.com today. I've seen the site before but never made a purchase. I have co-workers who have tried it and suggested it to me. 

Until the 13th of this month you can type in the 
promo code SUN 
when you check out for an extra 80% discount. 

I just purchased 4  - $25 GC's for $2 a piece 
total = $8!! I grabbed up GC's to a new restaurant in a nearby town. 

Go on and type in your zip code to search for restaurants near you. If you live in the boonies like me you might have to widen the search range. The GC's are saved in your account and don't get removed until you actually use them at the restaurant. I've been told that they never expire. You will have to read up a little because I'm a novice.

Good luck! Let me know how it goes!!

*I will only list items with coupon match-ups and stock-up prices for this section.

 I paid sales tax and I think .08 cents per coupon. 
So, each toothbrush cost me .15 cents!!

11 Bottles of KC Masterpiece BBQ Sauce



84 Boxes of Minute Maid Frozen Treats

Chex Mix and Crystal Light
Total cost was $13.26

It was fun but very time consuming. Since I live out in the middle of the boonies it took me a while to do all the driving. It was worth it though. 

I hope you can link up even if you save on a 2 liter!!

10. I drive too fast. My car is always a mess. I talk too much and I don't care. I love to sing. My hubby and I love reality tv but I could never be on it. We love to camp but only get to go a couple times a year. My hubby is a workaholic but I still love him!

Oral-B Advantage or Cross Action Toothbrushes

Oral-B Advantage or Cross Action Toothbrushes
Walgreens - 2.99 Minus $1 Register Reward (RR)


                                    Minus $2/1 coupon from yesterdays paper
=FREE 
Register Rewards work much like CVS's ECB but Walgreens will only print 1 RR per transaction. So if you want to get multiple toothbrushes here you must do several transactions or walk in with the family. :)

I believe Rite Aid has them too but I don't shop there very often and I'm not exactly sure how their system works. 

I always buy 6ish papers each week so I'm all set on coupons. But, if you are thinking darn it I didn't get the paper and my family of 10 could really use toothbrushes. hehe You could check out this cool site which sells coupons. She is fast and I have never had a problem. 


 I know it seems weird to buy a coupon but the coupon costs .20 cents and shipping is very reasonable. It is like paying .25 cents for the toothbrushes. You have to spend 5.00 for her to ship so you would want to look around the site and search for other things you might like that you know are on sale. I usually look at the ads right away on Sun. and if I need to order anything I place an order on Sun. night. That way my stuff gets shipped out right away on Mon. I usually get my coupons by Wed. / Thurs.  That leaves me plenty of time to hit the sales before they end on Sat. 

If you still think it is weird then consider my Minute Maid frozen treats hit!! I bought 44 boxes of the frozen treats from Kroger for free (or the small fee it took to order them. Wow minimal) My dad liked them so much I ordered more coupons from Dede and we are getting them before the sale ends on the 10th.


So, if you want to stock up for your family or your treasure chest at school then jump on the Oral-B Sale!!

Story Map

Oh, what the heck!! How about this one too!? I use this sheet during D5. The kids go off to do read to self and they can collect their thinking on this sheet and keep track of what page they found the information on. When they come back to share, their thoughts are organized and ready. I can look these over to get an idea of their ability to grasp whatever concept we are working on. BK Construction
.