Fab Finds and a Couple of Projects for the Classroom!

I've enjoyed a little after Christmas shopping this week and picked up a few fab finds!

At Michaels I got these adorable note cards and Christmas Scentos for 10 cents each! The cards are blank so I could use them for notes or thank yous!!

 I picked up these super cute owl gift tags to make a game with

 

Here they are with multiplication facts written on the back and laminated, they make a great center activity!!

 I also got these penguins and the coasters below (from Mejier) to make games with! The tags were only 25 cents for 25 of them and the coasters were 24 for a dollar!

The Target dollar spot had a few new things including an assortment of alphabet stickers, I use them all the time for making centers and labeling things!

 Heart dice!

 Heart shaped note cards (blank inside) with cute little envelopes!

a pencil shaped notepad and duck tape in my classroom colors!!!

For myself I got these.....

red shoes from Kohls for $8.00!! I have been wanting red shoes this year to match this super soft red scarf I made!

 

And now the classroom projects! I want to start the new year off right, I've had some behavior issues including just the need to renew procedures and shake off that "break" is coming craziness, so I am going to implement a behavior chart. I debated with myself on how to do this, is it to "little kid" how else could I do it, but I need it to be simple and easy to use as well as consistent between my para-professional and I so I decided to go with the clip chart and make it not look so "little kidish" here's how it turned out.....

 I wanted to make sure it included good behavior as well as those that aren't great so that everyone can earn something and I can give it a positive approach!

 Close up of the top, trying to stay with classroom colors here!

These are the magnets with numbers on them, each student will have a number and it will move up and down depending on their behavior. I am looking forward to having something very consistent and easy to track in place!

I also have a couple of groups that overlap in time, one group comes in before the other leaves and I wanted to create a way that exit slips could be given for the first group to work on and turn in without disrupting me while I get started with the next group. I created this board...........

a sheet of foam board from the dollar tree, colorful frames also from dollar tree, and that duck tape from the dollar spot in target and it turned out really well I think! Each student will be given a large sticky note to write their exit "thoughts" on and then post it in a square I will know everyone's done when all the squares are full! 

I am hoping these couple of changes will create a better learning environment when we return from break, I have a couple more in the works but won't be able to get pictures of them until I am back in my classroom!!

Now I just have to get busy with the lesson plans!!