Dear Diary, This Saturday I.....

 Hello and LIVE (from not New York) IT'S SATURDAY NIGHT!!!!

Don't get too excited, cause if you are reading this shortly after I am posting it,
your Saturday night is as exciting as mine.

(I will pause briefly as you shed a tear with me.
Later we can light a candle and reflect on what "Saturday" used to mean).

We took the Littles out to eat
(Because I busted a nail while I was cleaning today. So I had to venture out to the mall to get them fixed. Which took time away from the nap that I had planned LAST weekend. I was in no mood to make ANOTHER mess that I was going to have to clean up!!)
Plus my nails just looked too good to be messin' with dishes!!!

We had to pick up a few things at Wally World after we ate.
Chickadee commented under her breath that  the
"Guy behind us doesn't have anything in his cart but beer and cups".

I turned to look at the (pretty cute  young) dude behind us and
sure enough-
Just cups and beer.


I told her, "That's what our cart used to look like."

I turned back and looked down at my cart.
Contents of cart:
Boys Boxer briefs
Shampoo/conditioner
toothbrushes
a new iPhone Charger (Barkley 1    Charger 0)
laminating pouches
and sheet protectors

Let me pour one out for my homies.
One for me, one for Saturday's lost....

Onward....

I had to get my sheet protectors though-
because it's time to get my January binder out of the house office and into the classroom.

I started these this summer and moved what I had in file folders into binders.
I made myself a solemn vow
 (and it was not the one where I promise to never drink again if the "bed spins" would just go away)
This time it was different.
I swore that I would not keep ANY extra copies of ANYTHING.
 JUST ONE.
"There can only be one master."
(Isn't that a movie quote?)

There is just no reason to save all those extra multiples.

So inside of each labeled binder, I have some masters in sheet protectors, seasonal centers, parts of displays...Here I'll show you a few.

The ones that haven't gone to school yet.

A header for Winter Poems that I won't have to remake.

Gingerbread men that are already cut out (leftovers).

One of THE MOST IMPORTANT additions to my monthly binders has been these reading fluency passages.
I started them this year when school started.
Love
Love 
Love them!!

You may remember when I told you about them this Fall. NO?
Well you are in luck- CLICK HERE to check that out.

I found them on Jodi's blog.

Those were the passages from the Fall Pack.
I have already used a week's worth from the Winter Pack and I am putting them in their proper binder.

It is 12 weeks of daily passages!!!
Each week is themed. This week we will be doing the December Holidays week. I will put two passages on the back of this weeks newsletter. Part of their homework is to read this at home. We are working on Retell for benchmarks so I am also having them record two sentences to tell about what they just read. One passage a night, both Mon and Tues night.

They love them! It is the first thing they do when they put their newsletter in their binders is to turn it over and see what the passages are!! (Yes, they are first graders and they have sheet protectors and binders.......I am rubbing off on them.)

For the classroom, I have each passage and it's corrosponding skill page together in protectors so that we can go over the skills after reading it together on the "big screen".

 Did you see the red numbers and letters at the top of the first picture? Those my friends, are the CORRELATING COMMON CORE STANDARDS!!!!
Yet another reason why I love them so much.
Sometimes it's a skill we already know and can practice- and sometimes it's something new
(and then I trick them and tell them- "uh oh! Don't tell anyone I taught you that already- they might want to put you in a second grade class tomorrow because you are already so smart!!!!"
They love it!
They all pretend to close their mouths, lock them tight, and throw out the key-
and then of course locks get picked and they open again,
but they never tell on me:)

Jodi has these in her Tpt store.
You can pick just one theme for a week's full.
You can purchase them by month- 4 themes put together-
OR
You can take the plunge and go for the Winter Pack!
Trust me, you want to take that plunge.
Click this pic to head over and check it out:)

-------------------------------------ME!------------------------------------


As much as I am in the mood to get things together for January-
I have got to finish up DECEMBER!
I've got the Littles cutting out some reindeer tonight.

I have had so many out with either the tummy flu or the head/chest flu that I have
children's work scattered everywhere!
I have piles of stuff that need to be cut.
I have piles of stuff that need to be completed.
I have lists of sweeties who have missed testing and have to be tested.
I have some who were there this whole time and they have stuff in the piles that I mentioned before!!!!

I have not had a full class in three weeks.
I am missing at least 3 but up to 5 each day- it is nuts!!!

Of course I want them to be better so that they are in there learning- but I also want them in there so that they can complete their projects that are missing from the hall display!

LOOK AT ALL THOSE MISSING PIECES!!!

It drives me crazy every time I step outside of my door!
So i figured this weekend that I would get my Littles to do the cutting and I will give my sweeties
Monday to get theirs done- and it they aren't,
I will hire the children of teachers in the building to finish them up:)
They can be so easily bribed! It is amazing the amount of work you have done for you with just pieces of chocolate!!!

Aren't those reindeer adorable??
They are from Stephanie at Falling into First.




She made the sweetest writing activity!

Click Pic to check out full description.

I even turned her Santa's Reindeer Application into my main display!!

{Notice anything fishy with the age???}

{I need to make Miss Squirrels a Santa Hat!}

They had some great reasons why Santa should choose them:

I love that she let him know about her availability!!! Good thing he'll need her on Monday the 24th this year!

We had tons of fun working on several activities from the pack.

Well my cheap free labor for the night has had some major dispute that is going to undoubtedly awaken The Mr. who has to be to work at 3 am tomorrow-
If that cage gets rattled he wakes up, things can get super ugly and I still have stuff for them to do want to spend a little quality time with them!
I hope you are enjoying your Saturday night as much as I am !!
See ya soon!!!