Back to School

Summer is going by so fast!!!!  I can't believe that my students start back in less than a month from now (August 6).  I have spent the last few weeks getting my classroom organized.  There have been some major changes at my school with co workers switching classrooms and clusters.  I have been fortunate to be able to remain in my classroom.  This year I didn't want to do a "theme".  I just wanted to use colors for my classroom.  This year I wanted to use blue, green, and yellow.  I think they are warm, inviting colors and I was able to find several things to use in my classroom with this color scheme.

This is the way my classroom looked when I walked in on July 1st:

I had a little work to do but I was very excited about my plans for this year.  I am going to implement Whole Brain Teaching this year.  The students will have to spend a lot of time talking and teaching each other so I decided to put the desks in groups of 4 so the students have a way to communicate with each other.

I put little flower pots on each desk. I found them at the Dollar Store for 60 cents.  I have 6 groups of 4 so I was able to find 3 green and 2 blue pots so I had to pick up a black pot. (Doesn't that just drive you crazy?) I am going to put numbers on the desks.  I like to use numbers for various classroom management techniques during the school year.  For a discussion question I will say "Number heads together" and I will let all the students in the group talk to each other. The students have to make sure that everyone in their group knows the answer to the question.  I will call out a number to share the information with the class.  The students do not know which number I'm going to call out. This gives every student a chance to talk and it makes them responsible for listening during the discussion.  This also gives my shy students a chance to speak out in class but they don't have to worry about a wrong answer because they have already discussed the information with their teammates.  I will also call out a numbers to get supplies for the group.  Since I have three classes (kindergarten, 1st and 2nd) there is usually a problem with the community supplies in the caddies.  This year I decided to label the supplies with numbers.  When I say "get your crayons out" the students will not fight over which crayon box they will get.  The students will get the box that is marked with their number.  I am hoping this will help prevent wasted time during instruction.  I have the scissors, crayon boxes, glue sticks and pencils labeled with numbers.  I am also going to make the students responsible for keeping their pencils sharpened and the erasers on.  With everything labeled and three classes it is going to help me narrow down students who aren't taking care of the supplies.

This year I am adding rolling carts to the end of each table group.  I am going to use the carts for white boards and markers.  I also want the students to put their vocabulary folders in the drawers.  The students will have to keep their reading books in their desk because they weigh too much for the cart.  The caddies are going to sit on top of the carts.  This will keep the students from playing with them like they do when they sit in the middle of the table. This will also make it easier when I need students to use white boards and markers.  I haven't decided what I might put in the bottom drawer. (Got the carts at Walmart)

I found the cutest baskets at the Dollar Store to use for my books.  I had white baskets last year.  I had to buy about 12 of them to use for the library.  With the new baskets they hold more books so I didn't have to buy as many.  The baskets were $3.  (I have 3 more on another bookshelf)

I love how well my bulletin boards turned out.  I think the three colors I have chosen have worked out so well in my classroom.

I got this idea from Pinterest.  In a previous blog I explained how I made these objective frames.  When you walk into my classroom this is the first board that catches your attention.

I am going to use this board for Super Improvers.  This is another aspect of Whole Brain Teaching.  I will post another picture when I have the board completed.

I also got this idea from Pinterest.  This is my word wall.  I had a white board in my classroom that I wasn't using and I thought this would be perfect for my word wall.  I use different color markers to write the words on the board for my 3 different classes.  At the end of the year I just erase the board.

I haven't had a teacher desk for about 3 years now and I love it.  I have more space in my classroom and it has force me to be organized.  When I am sitting at my teacher desk I always have children around me.  I use the bookshelf for materials I use on a regular basis.  The rest of my materials are in the cabinets.  I also have a 3-tier draw that I use for my supplies.  I haven't missed my desk.

I use this bulletin board for vocabulary words for all 3 classes.  I make this an interactive board for my students.  After we have completed a unit I place the vocabulary words on the board.  The students are now on a hunt to find the words while they are reading.  When a student finds a word they get a paper flag and write their name on it and stick it on the word.  This is my way to make sure that they students continue to use the words and it wasn't a "one time deal".  As the school year begins I will take a picture of the flags on the bulletin board.

This was the almost finish results of my classroom.  I am very excited about this new school year.

Creative Projects

I have spent the last few weeks just enjoying my time with my family.  We did some home improvement projects this summer.  My son went to basketball camp for 3 days and we took a mini-cation to Chicago.  Now my mind, body and soul is ready to prepare for the new school year.

Objectives

I wanted a new way to display the objectives for the week.  I don't have a lot of white board space because of the Active Board.  I found these frames I could use to display the objectives on a bulletin board. (I have also debated on putting these on my classroom door so "visitors" would know what objective we were working on before they entered the room)  I can use dry erase markers to write on the glass.  I got the frames at the Dollar Store for $1.50 a piece.  They were frames for certificates.  I teach 3 different grade levels so I needed a frame for each grade level, one for science/social studies and one for the heading.  I took some decorative card stock I bought at Michaels for a decorative background.  I used Publisher to type the labels for the frame.

 Table Trash Cans

We spend a lot of time cutting things in my classroom especially with my kindergarten class.  The students believe this is the best time to get up a thousand times to throw away a strip of paper.  This year I decided to create table trash cans to eliminate this problem.

I found these plastic planters at the Dollar Store for $1

 I wanted to add a little color to the planters. 

 I found these stickers at Hobby Lobby.  They were originally $2.99 but they were on sale for 40% off.

I added a little ribbon at the top and this is the finish product.

Family Vacation

Well it was time for our annual Dieme Family Vacation!!!! (It really should be a Hollywood movie)  Oh the experiences we have had on vacations from always getting lost and stuck in a bad neighborhood to buying a microwave because our hotel didn't have one.  This is my favorite time of the year.  This year we decided to spend a few days in Chicago.  All my son wanted to do was go to the United Center to see the statue of Michael Jordan but we had a few surprises for him.

I have this terrible habit of completely cleaning the house before we leave town.  I don't mean just dusting and sweeping I mean cleaning out the refrigerator, wiping windows, and mopping the floor.  It drives my husband crazy but I can't stand coming home after a trip and finding the house a mess.  I also handle all the packing for the family.  Now that my son is older he wants to have his own luggage.  I found the cutest suitcase at this local store called Monogramming By Sheri. 

I have found the best way to organize my son's clothes.  I plan his clothes (including pajamas) for the week and I place the items in a gallon Ziplock bag.  It takes up less space in the suitcase and everything is in one spot.  I just take out a Ziplock bag for the day and my son knows what his outfit and pajamas are for the day. I am not searching through his suitcase trying to find socks and matching shorts.  When he takes his clothes off they just go back in the Ziplock bag and we get out the next bag for the day.

After packing and cleaning we made it to Chicago.  We took our son to the United Center so he could get his picture taken in front of the Michael Jordan statue but we also surprised him with a visit to the Lincoln Park Zoo.  It is a free zoo!!!  You just pay for parking.  We didn't see everything at the zoo but we were there for 3 hours.  I would recommend this zoo to anyone. The biggest surprise we had for him was a visit to Legoland.  He had no idea we were going.  We went about 2 hours before the place closed so we didn't have to be the bad parents who made him leave (all of us have had that experience with the crying child leaving the building).  He came home with a couple of Lego sets and I was able to sneak a special birthday present in the car.

Just Getting Started

I am so excited...I'm blogging!!! I guess I should introduce myself.   Hello my name is Reneta Dieme and I teach reading for kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade students.  I have been teaching for 12 1/2 years now.  I can't believe how time has just flown by.  I want to use this blog to share ideas with other educators and get ideas from people.  I will also share some things about my life as a wife and mother.  That is my lifetime career and I love it. So let's get busy!!!


A little information about my personal life.  I have been married to the love of my life for 10 years this month.  I met him while I was student teacher so we have been together for 13 years.  We have an amazing son named Stone Douglas.  He will be 7 years old in July.  My family lives in Bowling Green, Kentucky.  I have lived in Kentucky all my life.  I always knew I was going to be a teacher.  My aunt was a teacher, my mom worked as an assistant, my grandmother was a cook, and my grandfather was a bus driver.  Education has always been a very important part of my families life.  I try to show my son that I am fully involved in his education.  I am the secretary for the PTA at his school (he goes to a different school from where I teach).  I try to attend as many of his field trips and after school activities as possible.  My son also plays basketball, tee ball, and soccer.  This season I had to be the soccer coach for his team.  That was an interesting experience since I have never played soccer.  When we have free time my family likes to travel,go bowling, and fishing.  The last time we went fishing our son was the only one who caught a fish.

Okay that is all for right now.  I will be posting pictures of the projects I'm working on for my classroom this year.