Letter Puddles

I have found so many amazing crafts to make for this school year on my new LOVE...Pinterest!  Here is my next creation! The ones that I saw on Pinterest had been created using the glittery alphabet stickers from Target but I didn't have any of those. You can see them here Create-Share-Inspire. So, instead I used some of the scrapbook sticker letters I had and scrapbook paper.

Here is your quick materials list and simple how-to directions:

*large, flat glass gems (beads for an aquarium)
*alphabet stickers
* scrapbook paper
*mod-podge

Trace the gem onto the scrapbook paper. Cut on the inside of the circle and then trim to fit the flat side of the gem. Put alphabet sticker on the paper and then put mod-podge onto flat side of gem. Place paper (sticker side down) onto gem and let dry on wax paper.

I made all different types of letters (upper & lowercase) and used different patterns of paper. They turned out really cute! I purchased a craft sorter from Walmart and put the letters into the different holes.

Sorry, the flash made a glare on the beads....

I plan to put the letters onto labels in the bottom of the bins so students can easily return the letters to the right spots.

I plan to put paper and colored pencils with this word work station so the kiddos can write down the words that they build. :)

Making Words

Another Pinterest project complete! While at Walmart yesterday I decided to raid the paint chip section to make the making word ladders that I found. I chose the larger chips with a hole in it and the long chips that have multiple colors on it. The word family endings go on the chips with the hole and then you put letters, blends, digraphs on the long chips. I made different endings to go with different ladders to make sure it wouldn't make any inappropriate words. ;)  Then I made a word response sheet to go with it. As the kiddos make words, they will record them on their sheet and decide if they are a real word or a nonsense word. Here are some pics and a copy of my response sheet if you're interested.

Making Word Families Response Sheet



A Day of Crafting!

Well, after a workshop this morning on Common Core standards, I came back home to my daughter ready to do more crafts! :)  So, we accomplished 2 more crafts I found on Pinterest that I wanted to make. First of all, I had these really BORING clipboards from school and I decided I wanted to decorate them up and make them much cuter.  Here are the directions and some pics so you can see my project as it unfolds. :)

First, I started with my ugly brown clipboards and a variety of 12x12 scrapbook sheets.

Next, apply a layer of mod-podge to the entire clipboard. Be careful to hold the clip up until the paper is on or it will stick to the board.

Next smooth the scrapbook sheet onto the mod-podge and rub out any lumps.

I didn't paper both sides, instead I just folded over the sides and mod-podged them on. (lazy...I know)

Let the back dry for about 15 min. and then mod-podge over the front paper.

Let the front dry for about 15 min. and voila you have a decorated clipboard!!

Here is part of what I did...20 clipboards all together! 

I plan to have my kiddos working from the meeting carpet quite a bit so I thought some fun, cute clipboards would make it easier and more exciting! :)

Second craft of the day....Lollipop Trees!!  I am using my clip chart behavior chart this year and if they get at least one great day for the week they will get to pick a lollipop from the tree. Each tree has 6 dum-dum suckers with the bottom tip colored with a marker. If the kiddo pulls that one they will be the lucky winner of a prize from the prize box as well! 

We started with small styrofoam balls, 2 plant pots and a big bag of Dum-Dum suckers.

Place the ball into the plant pot and starting at the top center, start adding dum-dums in a variety of colors.

Keep adding suckers until all the styrofoam ball is covered.

Here are my 2 Lollipop Trees!

Hope you enjoy my day of crafting! We had a lot of fun and we have made some awesome things for my classroom! :D

I'm so Excited!!

Well, we have finally finished my first Pinterest project that I wanted to tackle. After a trip to Michael's and Walmart we got a couple more colors of fabric and a strand of clear lights and we were ready to finish up. I found a lighted garland on Pinterest and thought it would look adorable if I used colors that would complement my classroom colors and then make it as a garland to hang over my doorway as everyone enters my classroom. I obviously haven't been able to figure out if it will work on my school doorway but I have tried it at home and I think it looks adorable! So, I am posting some pics with directions if you want to try it out on your own. :)

First of all, we bought the quarter cuts of fabric at Walmart and these are the colors we chose. We cut it into squares and then cut the squares into about an 11/2 inch wide strip. These are the strips that you see here.

Then we started tying them around the light strand (50) in random order just making sure the colors were mixed up. We thought it would look better like that, rather than making a specific pattern.

Just keep adding ties until you have the whole strand covered.

Here you see the finished product hanging over the doorway.

A closeup view of it while it is lit up. :)

This is what it looks like with the lights off. ;)

I am really excited to get back to my room and see how it is going to look over my classroom door! Let me know what you think!

Happy Pinning!

Have I mentioned how much I LOVE Pinterest?!?  Michelle's Math in the Middle is hosting a Pinterest linky party so we can all check out each others' boards. I have found so many awesome ideas already and I cannot wait to look for more!!  Please stop by and check out my boards and then link up so we can see yours too! If you need an invite just leave me a comment with your email address and I would be happy to send you one. :)

TeachingWright's Pinterest Page

                                                                                  

Pinterest...

Well, I finally got an invite to Pinterest so I could see what all the hoop-la was about. I have to admit it is pretty AWESOME! I love how you can keep track of all the cool things you find on the internet all in one space. I also love that you can see all the cool ideas and items that other people have found as well! I haven't added a lot to my board yet, but give me time! :)  If you want to check it out comment and leave your email address and I will send you an invite! If you already have your own Pinterest page and want to follow me you can find me here:

My Pinterest Page!