2013-2014 Texas A&M Classroom Tour

This is what you all have been waiting for! The unveiling of Mrs. Sullivan's Texas A&M themed 4th grade classroom! Let's get started, shall we?

One of the many programs that we have at our school is Game On. The school is split into two teams, Rockstars and Warriors. The sides compete in games that are 3 weeks long to earn a super fun pep rally! Ways that you earn points are grades, attendance, low number of office referrals, wearing school shirts on Mondays and Fridays, and much more! This here chart at the entrance to my room is to keep track of students who wear their shirts on appropriate days. (My last year's ELA partner inspired this.) Above the chart is a table to keep track of which team wins what game and a "bingo" - like card to mark off on days that our class has perfect attendance. (Also not my original idea, stole it from the ELA teacher across the hall!)

Loudest and Proudest Fightin Texas Aggie Class of 2026! 

Why all the college decor? My campus is an official No Excuses University Elementary School. Google the program for more information, but basically we as teachers are promising that we aren't going to make any excuses for any student and give them an education that prepares them for college. With that in mind, each classroom adopts a college or university as their theme and creates partnerships with that college or alumnus to inspire students to start thinking about college. 

This is where I post scholarship information and other news articles relating to Texas A&M.

My "whoop" towel and our exit ticket board. Complete with a picture of Kyle Field and some football tickets.

Thursday Folder organization and some classroom jobs. 

Not only do we represent in our classroom, Texas A&M Aggies, but we are all McFee Timberwolves! 

Data boards to show bar graph of achievement within the class. One for Math and one for Science. My ELA partner is St. Edward's. Magazine holders on top are to hold benchmarks and district progress monitoring test.

Homework Club magnetic boards and my Pinterest inspired posters! 

Small group rotation schedule and more Pinterest inspired posters!

 

When you open up the doors, you see the backpack hooks clearly and cute-ly labeled. (I started using a number system last year and then threw it out because of the confusion it caused with 3 teachers. I will not give up! Hopefully it will work better this year with only 2 teachers....)

My interactive bulletin board, Aggie Algebra, to introduced algebraic thinking in the classroom. The colored squares to the right are the small group assignments. I just write on a sticky note who goes where and stick it under the right group. Above are more posters explaining math and science strategies.

SEC=Student's Excellent Creations

This is the pride and joy of my classroom decorations. Each clothespin represents a team in the SEC! 

My focus walls on either side have a pants hanger to hold the current topic's anchor chart and 6 maroon chevron washi-taped clothes pins to hold little posters that are in our curriculum. 

This where the anchor charts move to live when we move onto a new concept.

Behavior beads from Mel D on TPT. Can't wait to use them! 

My organizational style is stacking, so this is my stacking table! Located behind my "teacher desk". 

My objective and product, motivational prints, paper turn in cart, and teacher desk.

Days of the week drawers to the left (need to be labeled!), chair with A&M blanket, desk calendar, and mailbox for sweet student notes(gray mini trash can by computer).

Schedule, noise levels (in my TPT store), "Please Raise Your Hand If You (mustache = must ask) A Question" from TPT, and my cooperating teacher from my student teaching gave me the "Think" "Turn" and "Talk" signs and I just found them! Projector cart has Math-o cards (mental math), polka dot bags are for my Secret Student of the Day (I pull a name at the beginning of the period and if that student is respectful, responsible, and ready to learn the whole time, he/she gets a prize from the treasure chest), "Would You Rather" question cards and A&M basketball for dismissal.

Black plastic drawers hold math journals and science materials. Basket on top hold folders for math and science.

Front of classroom, labeled with stations for the first day materials drop-off! Oops! Underneath my board says "Home of the 12th Man" but apparently it fell, fixing that Monday morning! 

Student supply station. 

First day of school social contract activity, ready! 

Thanks and Gig 'Em!

#SlantBoxes

It's days like these that make me want to kick my over-achiever butt. What am I doing 3 weeks before school starts? While all of you wonderful and SMART teachers are enjoying the last days of your summer and creating inviting classrooms, I am....

- tutoring (because I have yet to take a summer off)

- preparing for master's classes

- trying to buy a home with my husband

- volunteering to teach at a summer camp to get our kids excited about school

- helping organize the very first Bilingual camp for another group of our kiddos

Whew! I'm tired from just writing that....

But, in spite of all my self-induced insanity, I am super-de-dooper excited to be participating in the #slantboxes that was organized by Lessons with Coffee. Look it up and get on the list!

{Chevron} Restroom Signs Posters

You're in the middle of a really great lesson, the kids are engaged, we are moving and grooving through the higher order thinking skills, you see those bright lights begin flickering over each student's head as they begin to have their "Aha!" moments.... and then someone asks to go to the restroom.

At this moment, I feel defeated and in my head I'm thinking, "My dog can wait 8 hours to go to the restroom and you can't even wait until we are finished with my awesome learning activity?!?!?!?"

Confession: Sometimes I say that out loud...

How are students supposed to know when are appropriate times to ask to go to the restroom? What about a system that displays that procedure for you? Here ya go! Restroom Signs.

Get it from my TPT store!

With these cute little posters displayed back to back on your board, who wouldn't want to follow the proper procedure?!?!?

Keep these in a page protector with a magnet on your main white board and flip to whichever side you need. If you are in the middle of an awesome teaching sign, display the "Please Wait". If you are in a non-whole group teaching time, display the "You have permission to go".

Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

Defined limits for the students and a less frustrated teacher, could anything be more perfect?

Chevron Noise/Voice/Volume Level Posters

Last year was my first year in an open concept classroom.

Think: No doors and the only thing separating you from the next classroom is a divider or cabinets that you can see over if you stand on your tippy-toes. 

It was a challenge for sure! I know that it took my awhile to adapt my teaching style (AKA: project voice to the back of the room....that was 100 ft away!) I struggled with not only monitoring my own voice, but also the voices of my students when we were involved in various activities (ex. a rousing reviewing Jeopardy game, or a wild and animated multiplication game of Around the World)

Enter these posters: 

Visit my TPT store to see more!

My goal is that these poster will remind my little friends of the appropriate volume level that we should be talking. Silence is obviously for independent work or testing environment, spy talk is for friend-to-friend, low flow- small group, etc. All the posters are color coded by "feeling" color (meaning: the cooler the color, the quieter our voices; the warmer the color, the louder our voices) and in what setting.

When I get my classroom set-up and decorated, I'll be sure to post more pictures of how I'll use it in the classroom.

Aaaaaaannnnnd We're Back!

So, I started this little bloggy here when I was a wee little teacher with only a year under  my educator belt...... (insert maniacal laugh). Now, with 3 years experience, getting married, and moving to one of the largest school districts in Texas, I feel like I am more prepared to write.

Bear with me as I re-learn how to make onceuponadigitaltime a little more colorful and a lot more entertaining!

Before all of that, FREEBIE TIME! Visit my TPT store to get  my freebie labels for your pencil storage drawers! Stay tuned for more!