Giveaway update

Not really here to make a post, but I wanted to let you know about a great giveaway going on right now. There's two chances to win (K-2 or 3-5). Go check it out! This is a new blog for me, and it's so precious!

My Summer Bucket List

I've been eyeing this linky for a while now, but I wasn't ready to think about it because summer seemed so far away. Now that SOLs are done and there are only 9 days of school left (well, 8 for me since I'm taking a personal day on Monday as we drive back from a wedding), I've got summer on the brain BIG time!

1. Read, read, read! I've already started this some since I've been helping give tests. Perfect way to keep from stressing as you see your kids rush through and not use all the strategies you've worked with them on all year. Anyway, I don't have enough time to read on my own during the year, which is even more true now that I have a little guy to chase around. Summer is my time to read as much as I can for me. I'm lucky to get through 2 or 3 books for me once school starts (although I've read more like 6 this year since I don't have papers to grade). These are the current books on my shelf, although I plan on adding more once I make a few trips to the library (and maybe some yard sales)!

I'll want to add some Elin Hilderbrand and Emily Giffin to the mix as well, but this is what I have for now. Just finished two Hilderbrand books that I LOVED! I also need some fun, easy reads to mix in. That's what the library's for, though, right?

2. Make more products for TPT. We'll see how much I actually get done. But I definitely want to make 2 or 3 more literacy center sets (summer packet may be completed before I leave for break). I want a summer, fall, and Halloween set, and then I'll start making year-round sets for different literacy skills that can be purchased. That's the plan. However, number 3 might get in the way

3. Spending time with these two men!

Since Steven is now a teacher, too, we get almost the entire summer together! Plus Keagan has gotten so playful, and I love spending as much time with him as possible. Hopefully we can make lots of trips to the beach, pool, park, etc! I may even use my personal blog more that gets pretty neglected as I share adorable pictures from the summer (once again, this is a plan...don't hold me to it!). If you want to keep up with my personal life, you can follow me at The Dalton Gang. I do at least post once a month and will try to get better!

4. Puerto Rico

Steven and I will be spending our anniversary week in Puerto Rico this year, and I've been anxiously awaiting the trip ever since we booked our flight in January. We're flying on Airtran's tab because they had to  bump us to a later flight last year. Then we are renting a condo just outside of San Juan for the entire week. I'll miss my little guy, but I'm sure we'll be plenty busy exploring and having a blast! I've never been out of the Continental US, so this is a big deal for me! It completes one of my 30 before 30 bucket list items, too! Maybe I'll go snorkeling while there and mark another off my list. I won't mention when I'm going, but I'll definitely post pictures when I get back!

5. Put together a VA blogger meet-up. If you have any great ideas on where we should go or when would be a good time, let me know! I'm free basically the entire month of July, so I'm thinking sometime during then. I've been wanting to do this for a while and can't wait to meet some of these girls!

Those of you who are already enjoying your summer, the rest of us are ALMOST there!

Five for Friday

It's time to link up again for the last day of May! Tomorrow begins my birthday month, anniversary month, the end of school, AND later in the month vacation! But first, let's focus on what has been going on this past week.

Today was basically the last day of testing (two more classes for math). Praise God!! I haven't had much of anything else going on at school the past two weeks because I have either been sitting outside of testing sessions helping monitor bathrooms/offer help when needed OR I was testing a small group/individual. Of course, I could have spent my time more wisely when I was outside of the testing sessions, but I did catch up on reading blogs!

I did, however, take a little bit of time to start working on my summer literacy centers. I still have a LOT of work to do, but I'm hoping to get them finished by the end of next week. Maybe teachers who are in school as long as I am can use them for the last week. Or maybe they'd be perfect for summer school. OR for those of you who are already out and will be back to school in August, you can use them then! Here's a sneak peak. I'm using Krista's clipart again. I just love it!

We were actually able to get little man back from the beach, although I think he's going through Pawpaw withdrawals. I can't blame him after spending an entire week having a blast there and then coming back home where there's no pool or beach. At least we'll be able to make plenty of day trips since Steven and I will both be home all summer.

 

 Since Monday was Memorial Day and we had it off, we went to a cookout with some friends. The kids had a blast, and Keagan was no exception.

This weekend, we're going to the wedding of a very good friend. Sarah Jo was my college roommate, but she is also the reason that Steven and I even met. They were high school show choir partners here in Virginia, and he actually had a little bit of a crush on her (which is the reason he made a trip to GA in the first place, but that's another story for another day - maybe on our anniversary!). Anyway, being that we were roomies for 3 years, there are a lot of inside jokes. One big joke had to do with going camping on your honeymoon. Well, guess where's she's going for her honeymoon? Bonnaroo - in a tent! We decided we HAD to do something as a joke for her. So I used my creating powers and whipped up some fun little "fortune cookie" quotes. Then I added "in a tent" to the end of each of them. Here's a preview (and I'm assuming she doesn't read this blog, but I guess I am taking a chance).

Next week, I should have at least a few pictures because we'll be back to doing something (although I'm done pulling groups for the year). It's time to do more running records, and then we have Field Day Thursday and Friday. Do you split field day between upper and lower grades? 

Must Read Mentor Texts - Blood on the River

Yay! I'm finally linking up with Amanda and Stacia!

I love this link up idea, but so many times I don't feel like I can really participate since I only teach reading now. However, I realized I use a TON of Social Studies texts when I read with my kids (they're probably some of my favorite books), so I decided to go ahead and join in at least for those. I still don't have many math or science, but I can participate when I feel it works for me!

One of my favorite Social Studies texts to use when I was teaching fourth grade was a book called Blood on the River. 

Sounds gross, right? But I've already hooked my boys from the beginning! See, in Virginia we teach VA History in 4th and/or 5th grade. Blood on the River is a mostly factual book about the Jamestown settlement, which is a HUGE part of VA history. It is told from the point of view of John Smith's 12-year-old apprentice. Warning (and you may have already guessed this): this book is NOT for the faint of heart. It doesn't wrap things up in a nice little box. It's VERY up front and honest from describing the slop buckets they used on the ships to discussing how some settlers dug up dead bodies during the starving time (although that's only mentioned in the epilogue). But I love it because it paints a real picture of how things were when the settlers came to Jamestown. It wasn't all pretty and easy, and the book really stuck with my kids every year! I even recommend the read for yourself if you just want to learn more about Jamestown. It's fascinating!

I struggled to choose a word, but the reason I chose control is because Samuel (the boy) had to learn to control his temper, much like John Smith. Also, there's a constant battle over control within the settlement (gentlemen vs. John Smith) and the land (Chief Powhatan vs. English). You literally won't be able to put the book down!

Now, have a fantastic Memorial Day! I can't wait to pig out and have fun with friends later this evening. Then we only have 14 more days of school left until summer break is officially here!

Testing, testing...

I feel like I've been pretty MIA for the most part, but there hasn't been much to say. We're most of the way through testing, but there's one more week to go. Reading SOLs are over, and I'm nervous about the outcomes. They definitely increased the rigor this year! I'm just hoping our school did enough to not be under review. I hate to think of it that way, but I know our math dropped significantly last year after they increased the rigor, and it's just scary! I know most of my kiddos did their best, though, and that's all I can ask.

After this week's testing (math), I will start helping with final running records for the year. I love being able to see how far my kids have progressed! Of course, I've been doing them throughout the year for mine since they were already behind. But I haven't done many since March, so it will be nice to see where they end up.

Also, if you haven't already gone to TN and donated a minimum of $20 to help Moore, OK, I HIGHLY recommend it! I donated this morning, and there are over 500 products that came with the bundle! You have until May 28 to participate. And don't forget: 100% of the proceeds go toward helping Moore, OK. The products you are receiving have been donated by over 300 different sellers. It may take me all summer to go through the amazing items! Good thing I don't have to download and sort through every single one that way. My computer wouldn't have enough storage!

I'm Helping

Guys, I have been struggling with this whole Moore, Oklahoma story. I mean, anytime I hear about how a tornado (or any disaster) destroys an area, it touches me. But this one has gotten to me more than any other. When I heard about the school and those children, I just cried. And it didn't help that my little man is away from me at the beach all week. So I couldn't hold him tight like I wanted (and like I did after Sandy Hook).

I chose to donate a product along with MANY other sellers on TN. There's already almost $1500 worth of products that have been donated. If you donate, you will receive my Magic Tree House - Twister on Tuesday pack (along with a ton of other great stuff). I debated whether it would be appropriate to donate this, but I know that I would want to make my students more aware of tornadoes because you know that's what is on their minds right now. I hope you will donate!

Giveaway updates during testing

We're more than halfway through the week, and testing started today. That means I am sitting in the center area helping make sure only one person is in the bathroom at a time. Fun stuff! At least I have a computer to keep me entertained. Anyway, as I was catching up on blogs, I ran across this great giveaway! We're on day four. Go check them out!

Kristin is also having her 400 follower giveaway! Lots of great bloggers are giving away winner's choice from their store.