Word Wall Before and After

3rd grade is growing on me....one of the things that takes up a huge amount of space on the wall but doesn't seem to be very interactive or a tool for the students it was created for.  Here is a picture of my old Word Wall.

I loved the colors.  I loved the student done words.  I did not love that once the word was up, it was never referred to.  Then I stumbled across Mrs. 3rd Grade's Blog and found some inspiration.

Each letter on the word wall is portable.  SO clever!  We can add words I purposefully choose.  We can add words students frequently use and need to refer to.  We can add words we find as we read.  My next step was figuring out where I would put such a thing.  All the walls I had left were low and in frequently traffic-ed places where they probably wouldn't last too long.  I do have lots of giant windows and spent the afternoon trying to figure out how to make them work.  I love the 3M hooks, but didn't want the back of the window to look messy with 26 little hooks showing through the other side.   Then my aha came!

A bucket with paper for adding more words the the rings.

After moving this summer, I had a leftover curtain rod and hooks.  I grabbed a couple of the bigger 3M hooks for the ends of the of the curtain rod.  Attached to each clip is a loose leaf ring.  Then I made a cover letter for each stack of blank paper and throughout the year we will add to it!  I can't wait to see this in action!

Happy Tuesday,

Reading Magic Monday Made It

Monday Made It is one of my favorite parties.  So many great ideas!  

I wanted to share my new reading bulletin board.  It was inspired by Ramona Recommends.  She has a BEaUtIFul library!  This is on the wall in her library--

That phrase perfectly describes how I feel about books and I want so badly for my students to KNOW the it is true!  So I copied her phrase and made it into a banner for my reading area.

Come back soon and see what this curtain rod turned into....

Happy Monday,

Meet the Teacher

I am interrupting my reading marathon to join the teacher blogger linky party.  I shouldn't....in order to complete my summer book-a-day challenge, I need to finish my last 16 books by Monday!  Anyway I love this week of linky parties.  I get to learn about a bunch of new bloggers and sneak inside classrooms across the county...so cool!

Oregon is my home.  I have lived just outside of Portland my entire life.  I love the rainy days and the weird things that go on in Portland....as long as I don't have to participate:-)  I have an adorable lhasa apso named Reese...who is not going to be happy next week adjusting to back to school schedules.

This will be my 12th year teaching. (My first class of 1st graders are seniors!)  During the past 12 years, I have taught 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and a couple years with 2/3 blends.  I honestly don't know if I have a favorite....but I do really enjoy reading with 3rd graders.

Q:  WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVORITES?
Dodgers, So You Think You Can Dance, Leverage, Pinterest, and Reading

Q:  WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOUR WEREN'T A TEACHER?
Play for the orchestra that plays for John Williams or Disney film scores.

Q:  WHAT ARE THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE YOU?
Caring, Kind, Shy

Q:  WHAT WOULD YOU PUT IN THE BLANK, "___________, SAID NO TEACHER EVER!"
"I love having a budget for decorating my classroom, said no teacher ever!"

Q:  IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY AND YOU CAN INVITE ANYONE (DEAD OF ALIVE) TO THE PARTY, WHO ARE YOU INVITING?
Loisa May Alcott, L.M. Montgomery, Kate DiCamillo, Joshua Radin, Sara Bareilles, Josh Groban, Clayton Kershaw, Jackie Robinson, Zooey Deschanel, and Jimmy Fallon.

Q:  IF SOMEONE WROTE A BOOK ABOUT YOUR LIFE, WHAT WOULD BE THE TITLE?
My brother helped with this one....Book Bums.....sharing my love of reading and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Q:  WHAT SUPERPOWER WOULD YOU PICK?
I think I would an ability to take on characteristics of other people.

Q:  WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE QUOTE OR SAYING?

Q:  IF YOU HAD TO SING ONE SONG ON AMERICAN IDOL, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
It's a toss up between Sweet Caroline or Uptown Girl.

Q:  ARE YOU A MORING PERSON OR A NIGHT OWL?
Night Owl....teachers report to school at 7:15.  It kills me!  My best schedule allows me to sleep from 2am-10am:-)

BONUS:  SOMETHING ELSE YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT ME

When I was growing up, my grandmas had a giant jar full of fun shaped or colored soap.  I now have her jar and have started my own collection of soap.

#determinedtoblogmore
Happy Tuesday,