Printing on Washi Tape and Cutesifying Your Calendar {Tried it Tuesday}

I've not yet joined in on the Tried it Tuesday fun this month, so I thought today's post would be the perfect fit for Holly's link up. 

Yesterday I posted about my new teacher planner and I got several questions on my blog and on Instagram about the labels in the pictures. 

Not labels or even stickers. That is washi tape that I ran through the printer. It is a match made in heaven - washi tape and my favorite fonts!! Woo Hoo!! 

This was not my idea, so to get the whole scoop on how to do this you need to visit A Girl and a Glue Gun. While you are there reading the tutorial you should follow her blog. She is funny and so creative. I love to see all the neat projects she comes up with. 

It was super easy, so of course I had to do a LOT of it. I did find that it worked better on true washi tape (it's more like paper) than the Scotch Expressions Tape. Don't get me wrong, the Scotch tape is super cute, but it has more of a plastic, smooth finish and the ink rubbed off a little easier. 

What else do I use to cutesify my planners? 

More washi tape. This one was preprinted, so I used it to block out Christmas Break.

I like using washi tape in my EC Life Planner too. I use it to mark big events or sometimes just to make things pretty. Stamps and stickers to make things fun. The photo sticker and rectangle stickers in these pics are from EC, but I use all different types of seasonal stickers and just fun things I find here and there. I used to be a scrapbooker, so I like to use some old scrapbook supplies to jazz things up. I use mine as a sort of mini journal, so it's fun to add some color and personality to it. 

I plan on getting a little more creative with my teacher planner this year, so I guess that means I'll need to buy more washi tape. Darn.... 

Do you decorate your planner or calendar? What are you favorite decorating tools? 

Ultimate Pencil Swap {Tried it Tuesday}

Pencils were ruining my day. I started the morning out grumpy because no one had a pencil, so we were searching the floor, my desk, and book bags to come up with enough pencils to start the day. 

In the past I have tried the sharp and not sharp cups, spoons taped to the end of pencils, and even lead pencils without any success. 

About a month ago I was browsing office depot and saw these pencils. I've used the Staedtler pens, so I knew they would be high quality. I picked up a pack, but they were a little pricey and I didn't want them walking out my door. That's when the Ultimate Pencil Swap idea was born. 

I sharped those amazing pencils, put polka dot flags on them, and put them in a cup on my desk. 

In order to use one of my pencils I have to keep something of yours at my desk until the pencil is returned. Simple enough. It freaked them out at first. I really think they believed I was going to keep their stuff! It made not having a pencil fun as we joked about snacks I might eat or odd things kids swapped out. 

Now that we've been doing the swap about a month I don't even deal with pencils. It is the student's responsibility to swap and they know just what to do. It makes for one happy teacher. 

The best part: I still have the 9 original pencils I started with. First. Time. Ever. In the history of my teaching career have I kept 9 pencils that long!! 

I'm linking up with Holly at Fourth Grade Flipper. 

How do you deal with the no pencil syndrome? 

Favorite iPhone Photo Editing Apps {Tried it Tuesday}

I love taking pictures and I'm finding more and more often I'm taking them with my phone rather than my DSLR. I've been playing around for a while with some photo editing apps and I thought I'd link up with Holly to share some of my faves.

First up, Camera Awesome my Smugmug. This one has to be the all time easiest for a quick fix to make your pictures look fantastic. 

Before

After

The picture says it all...wow! AND just in case you need a little something funny to brighten your day read the screen while the app is processing your photo....

The app also has some more advanced editing features, but I find that the awesomize button usually does it for me! 

Next up, is my go to when I want to add something quick and cute to a pic before posting it on Instagram or sending it to a friend - A Beautiful Mess. 

I love all the cute doodles and writing you can add to customize your pics! 

Finally, I've just started playing with Rhonna Designs and I'm really liking it so far. 

The stickers in this app are a little more polished and a lot of them have the chalk look, which I love. 

What are your must have photo apps? 

Art for Kids {Tried it Tuesday}

Do you need a quick, fun art idea for your kids? My fantastic friend Alison from Rockin' and Lovin' Learnin' shared the site Art for Kids several weeks ago and as soon as I saw it I knew I had to give it a try, so I'm linking up with Holly to share with anyone else who might not have heard about the great site!

This site is amazing!!! There are tons of kid-friendly tutorials on how to draw all sorts of things. There are videos and step-by-step pictures, but my favorite part is the pdf at the end of each entry. I just pull that up on the Smartboard and all my students can draw at the same time. 

Back in the winter when we were stuck inside for recess this was one of our favorite activities. Here are a few pictures of things my students have drawn. 

Have you tried this site? How do you like to use it in  your classroom? 

Vera Bradley Large Laptop Tote {Tried it Tuesday}

I tried a new teacher tote bag, so I'm linking up with Holly from Fourth Grade Flipper to give you the scoop! 

It's no secret I'm addicted to bags. I guess eBay knows too because they are always sending me emails with bag deals. Oops! A couple weeks ago I got an email advertising up to 60% off Vera Bradley. Sign up me for that kinda deal! 

I had to check it out even though I didn't really need anything. And then I found this laptop tote that I fell in love with and I just couldn't resist! 

The laptop sleeve is very cushiony and it's in the middle of the bag. That is my favorite thing about the bag because it divides it into three sections. That gives me a place for my planner, pens, make up case, and wallet on one side and then my school stuff on the other with room left to spare. 

What I love:

hard, flat bottom (it stands up on it's own without anything in it) 

zipper pocket on the outside

slide pocket on the outside

slide pocket on the inside

3 sections on the inside

nice padding for the laptop 

the color!!

What is your favorite teacher bag? 

Organizing Guided Reading Using a Thirty-One Round-About Caddy {Tried it Tuesday}

Anybody else think it should be Friday already?!  

We are expecting 2-6 inches of snow tonight, so it looks like I may get a little nap in tomorrow! Anyway, I wanted to stop in and link up with Holly from Fourth Grade Flipper for an organizing tip. 

I recently bought a Round About Caddy from Thirty-One. As soon as I saw it in the catalog I knew it would be perfect for using in the classroom. 

I decided to use it to add a little extra organization to my guided reading area. There never seems to be enough room for all the supplies we need and sometimes those supplies need to be portable, so this was the perfect solution! 

There are two of these narrow pockets on each side of the tote. They are perfect for holding a couple pairs of scissors each!

The bigger mesh pocket on the outside is perfect for highlighters. 

The inside is perfect for holding glue bottoms and collecting trash during cutting and gluing activities. 

Do you have a round about caddy? How do you use yours? 

Super Fun Brain Break {Tried it Tuesday}

It's Tried it Tuesday time! I'm linking up with Holly from Fourth Grade Flipper to share a fun, new website I discovered. You have been warned: this is addictive! LOL 

I don't know about you, but my kiddos need all the brain breaks they can get right now! They are very wiggly, talkative, and anxious for break! 

My sister found this amazing site called Silk - Interactive Generative Art. I pulled this up on my Smartboard the other day and lined the kids up so they could each take a turn adding to our drawing. 

Here are a few of our creations. 

It works great on the Smartboard and has this very nice, soothing music! Ahh....

There is a secret to making the pictures look more like snowflakes, which would be perfect for this time of the year! 

Click the control circle over on the left. See that slider bar in the middle? Slide it all the way over so that it says 6 fold rotational symmetry. That will make the snowflake-like drawings. 

What are some of your favorite winter brain breaks? 

Trash Basket {Tried it Tuesday}

Trash basket? You may be asking yourself who needs to write a post about that, right? Well I may be the last person ever to jump on this bandwagon, but it has been so handy for me that I decided I must share! Therefore, I am linking up with Holly from Fourth Grade Flipper for my Trash Basket Tried it Tuesday! 

I inherited this basket when I moved into my classroom. It sat on a shelf for 4 years, until this year when I started using real glue!! Gasp...it has been a difficult adjustment for me, but now we just roll with it! 

I'm loving Interactive Notebooks (and starting to love real glue more), but I was not in love with the mess all that cutting left in my room. My kiddos are not the best ever at getting all their trash in the can and up out of the floor. 

I was inspired by some post or pin, that I now cannot find, that had an individual trash can for each group. I decided to just pass my empty glue basket around and let the kids put their trash in it. 

Works like a charm! The floor is less messy and there aren't 23 kiddos up making a meandering path to the trash can! 

Book Finds for Struggling Readers in Upper Elementary {Tried it Tuesday}

A couple months back I was having trouble finding books my struggling 4th grade readers would enjoy. This particular group is reading somewhere between a low 1st grade (with a few lower) to high 2nd grade range, so I was having a tough time finding things that look like they were "big" enough to be cool and keep them interested. 

I made a big order, thanks to my principal, on Scholastic and we've really been enjoying our new books. We've had the books about a month and the kids have definitely picked out some favorites, so I thought I'd share them for my Tried it Tuesday with Holly from Fourth Grade Flipper. 

Sorry for the major glare on that last book. School lighting just doesn't cooperate for pictures sometimes! 

We love Fly Guy! I can't get enough of those books to satisfy my kiddos! I'll have some kids with 3 in their book bags at a time. These are perfect for some of my lowest readers.

Magic School Bus is a classic, of course, but this version is a little easier to read and the kids are starting to discover how much fun they are. 

The Weird School series by Dan Gutman is the perfect chapter book series for those 2nd/3rd grade level readers. 

What parts I've read of Roscoe Riley Rules are hilarious! I'm actually planning on doing this one as a fun read aloud with the class in the next few weeks. It would be a good chapter book for beginning or middle 2nd graders. 

I ordered several books in the Rookie Biographies series and I was pretty impressed. They definitely have a lot of great information and are very readable. They have about a paragraph on each page, which is nice for some of the more advanced readers because they don't zoom through them so quickly!

The Boris books were so popular that I couldn't even find one in the library to get a picture of! It seems like every day I have a kid tell me he's finished with his Boris book and needs a new one. This series has been especially popular with the boys and that is usually the toughest crowd!

These books have literally changed my reading class. Everyone begs for silent reading time and they are just devouring these books because they are interesting on their level. I'm thrilled with the progress we're making and how their attitudes about reading have changed! I'm just hoping I can keep enough books to keep their interest up! 

What other books would you recommend for my reading friends? 

Student Desk Drawers {Tried it Tuesday}

Hi everyone! I'm back to link up with Holly from Fourth Grade Flipper for Tried it Tuesday! I love reading about all the different things teachers are trying in their rooms. 

A new thing I tried at the beginning of this school year was desk drawers. I'd seen the idea of using the lid to a copy paper box as a desk drawer on Pinterest. I thought it would be worth a try, so I sent out an email to all my fabulous coworkers and within a few days my room was full of box tops! 

Since I teach 3 different ELA groups each day, I wanted a convenient way to store their journals, vocabulary folders, and writing notebooks. Instead of carrying these materials from class to class and losing them, my kiddos just keep their stuff in the desk drawer. That part of it makes my life so much easier because I'm never holding class to wait on a student who has forgotten a notebook. 

After 9 weeks of use by 4th graders they are still holding up nicely. You can see from this picture that they are sometimes a doodle magnet, but that's no big deal for me. 

The inside looks pretty neat too. There are only 3 folders, 3 notebooks, 3 composition books, and one file/privacy folder in each drawer. The kids have done a really good job of being respectful of each others "stuff" in the drawers. 

My favorite part about it is that my homeroom kiddos can no longer stuff those desks full of papers and junk that shouldn't be there. Since there is not extra room in the desk no one can leave "goodies" that might tempt those with sticky fingers... 

Have you ever used desk drawers. What did you think? Any tips for me?