Austin, Texas SDE Conference for 2nd and 3rd Grade Teachers

Oh my goodness! I had the most amazing time at the Austin Conference! What an enthusiastic and passionate group of teachers! I loved their energy, excitement and questions. Per there requests I will be posting some of my favorite math games and activities! Most of these ideas are not my own, but I may have tweaked them from their original form. One thing I love about teaching, is that we all put our own spin on things! Use what you want! My only request is that if you find something golden, or tweak it to make it better, that you share that back with the rest of us!

~Working Together!
Emalie Lindsey

Austin, TX SDE

Austin, TX Here I Come!

I am super excited to be invited to speak at the Texas Conference for Second & Third Grade Teachers with SDE! Teaching is my passion, and I'm bringing all that passion with me to this conference! 

@emalielindsey2

I've spent this year working with the MSU Internship Academy  where I have learned a LOT! Teaching can be challenging...okay teaching IS challenging! It's difficult to balance the different aspects: planning, grading, analyzing, building relationships, managing the classroom..the list goes on. It is difficult, but it is do-able! For me it is truly about relationships and engagement! 

I love data! I love looking at the pre-assessment compared to the post-assessment! I love thinking about, "How can I teach this standard in a memorable and meaningful way?" I am excited to share some of my favorite activities and techniques with anyone who is willing to listen because I believe that learning should be fun! If I can make my students WANT to be at school, then the learning WILL happen! Attitude is everything! When they are invested, they are growing! 

Please check out the Teacher Resource page as I am trying to update it as often as possible with free resources! If you grab something, I would love a quick comment letting me know what you think! I would also love to hear how you used it, modified it, and made it your own! That is truly how we grow! 

~Working Together, 

Emalie

Scientific Method Poster Set

https://tinyurl.com/y5ls8vza - Science Posters

Here is a link to some free Scientific Method posters. I love introducing the Scientific Method to my new class at the beginning of the year. It ties in so easily, and well, with all the back to school STEM/Team Building activities.

Usually when I introduce this, I will display the steps of the Scientific Method for my students. Then we will begin working through each step discussing a gesture we think matches each step. I love Whole Brain Teaching, and I believe in incorporating all modalities of learning in each lesson as I best can. Creating a review chant or song with gestures and providing a chart to match checks all my boxes! I then use the different chants/songs as line up call backs. Students in my room are constantly reviewing different material throughout the year, but in a fun way. This gives them something to be saying as they are moving through the room, instead of just free talking.

Some great back to school activities to use these posters with include:

Rosie Revere Engineer: - Create hoop gliders or paper airplanes! Discuss modifications as students work to change and make them better. Tie the experience back to their learning for the year! This is a great way to introduce Growth Mindset too!

My Mouth is a Volcano:  This is another great book to use when establishing procedures at the beginning of the year. (Which is the most important thing you will do ALL year!) A great way to do this is to create anchor charts of your classroom expectations for what each area should "Look Like" and "Sound Like".  I love using this book when we are working on our Carpet Time expectations. What will your carpet time LOOK like? What will it SOUND like? This book is perfect for talking about BLURTS in a fun way! Then we create mini volcanos using baking soda cups. Don't forget to tie it back into your Scientific Method!

The Dot:  My kiddos LOVED this one last year! It's a cross modification between the Warm Fuzzies and A House for Henry! We called it Adopt a Dot! There are so many fun activities to go with this Peter Reynolds book, but this one was my favorite last year too! The only prep for this activity is creating the Dots themselves. I highly recommend you yourself do this, or enlist the help of a parent volunteer. I burned myself a few times with the hot glue gun! LOL!  The day before we began the project I walked students through it. Then I invited them to bring in whatever supplies they could find at home that could be up-cycled to create their Dot home! They were very creative, shared materials and advice, and had a blast! There were lots of modifications being made across the classroom which tied in perfectly with our Scientific Method and Growth Mindset!

You can grab this FREEBIE here!

SDE NATIONAL iTEACH CONFERENCE

Viva Las Vegas! I lived. I learned. I laughed. I ate!  I didn’t...win, sleep or come home with any money! I metso many amazing people, made some new inspirational friends, deepened friendships, and ran into some old friends too. Vegas was...well... eye-opening for a home-grown tomato like myself from a small Missouri farm town. 

This was the first time in my life I traveled by myself (okay I cheated and had a good friend with me when I flew out). Let’s just say, this was my first time traveling without my family. A few things I learned along the way from my good friend Cheryl Dick over at Cheryl's Classroom Tips

1. Watch which baggage tram to take or you’ll end upon the opposite side of the airport as your luggage! 

2. Should number #1 happen, don’t fret. Just find the shuttle that takes all the lost souls back to the correct terminal to get your luggage. 

3. Taxi Drivers will try to take you the long way even ifthey say it’s the short way. Do your research ahead oftime to sound like you are a pro so they won’t try to pull one over on you. 

4. If they don’t go the way you ask them to, and it takes longer than you know it should, don’t tip as big. 

5. It’s safer, and cheaper, to pay the taxi driver with cash. This way they don’t have your info and some charge a fee to use a card. 

6. Don’t talk about your room number in the hallway.

7. If you get on an elevator by yourself with other strangers, let them hit their floor first. 

8. If you forget #7 and hit your floor, and the person getting on with you doesn’t, then exits on the same floor as you...don’t go to your room until they go into theirs. It’s just safer to make sure they actually are supposed to be on that floor. 

9. Anytime you leave your room make sure your door closes and locks behind you! 

10. If you want a pretty picture with the sparkly girl’s on the Vegas strip, simply because you like sparkly things, it will cost you money! 😂 (This holds true for the scantily dressed males as well I’ve heard!) 😂 

10. Hairspray on the Vegas strip costs $25.00! Yep! You read that right! $25.00 at Walgreens. So...pack a tiny bottle in your carry on or be prepared to check a bag if you want to bring a big one! 🤣

This was an amazing experience, and I have grown so much in  the 3 days since I left my small town in Missouri. I am ready to be back home, but I can’t wait to do the SDE National Conference again! ❤️ 

"Chairy" Creative!

I can't believe it's been so long since I've been on here. I've been very busy just enjoying my babies this summer! They are at such fun ages, and we've taken full advantage of every day this summer! I can't say that I've completely turned my school brain off but for the most part I'd say it's preoccupied. It's time to start thinking school though as I have lots of changes coming this year! It's my 10th year teaching, but my first year with a student teacher AND most exciting...I'm getting eMINTS training!!! Please leave great sites, activities etc in the comments. Especially if you have Back To School ideas

Anyway, summer is wrapping up and I'm just now linking up with Tara over 4th Grade Frolics for a Make It Monday! 

I'm excited about this project and hope it turns out as cute as I'm hoping it will. So I saw this idea last week on the Make It Monday page, but can't remember who posted it so I apologize. I made a birthday chair from an old folding metal chair.

That got me thinking...I'm always looking for fun little place holders for my students during reading groups. So...a little paint and voila!!!

I'm going to make 5-6 different ones that will stay at the back table. I think they are coming out cute! I just need to get my hands on a few more chairs! 

By the way, I'm trying to post from my iPad and it's being very difficult so if links aren't working I'm truly sorry.  Have a blessed rest of your summer! ~ Emalie

Hello Monday!!!


This has been another amazing week of summer vacation!  We've played pirates, had play dates, gone swimming and just enjoyed each other. This weekend our neighbors are moved. :( My daughter is heart broken. We are tried to ease the transition by trying to talk to her about it a lot, because she's not quite three yet and doesn't understand. So... we threw a "Pupcake Party"!

We had pirate costumes, mustaches and of course cupcakes! (Which my daughter calls pup cakes)

So for my first link up with Tara over at Monday Made It, I'd like to show you my cupcake toppers!

Here they are...

I order my pictures from shutterfly.com I super love the website. If you haven't checked it out you are really missing out. I order books for my kids all the time. Anyway, when you order regular pictures they come with these tiny prints of all the pictures you order.  I love this idea and plan to jazz up the sticks (toothpicks) for my daughter's birthday party. I think with some ribbon and card stock I can make them totally cute! I'll post pictures after her party (in a couple of months) to let you know how they turned out! 

This week I also tried another clipboard. I just can't seem to get them right. It's super cute don't get me wrong, but the edges are sloppy. Ugh! Anyway, for this one I decided to use pictures of my family and wrapping paper. I loved both of these. It would just help if I could actually have the time to go slow instead of rush during nap time. LOL! However, I really liked the way the wrapping paper worked. It's pretty good paper to begin with (day after Christmas sale at Hobby Lobby)! I'll do that again!! I told my sister I'd make her a picture one as well but I need advice. How do you do the sides of the clip board? Do I just avoid them? Wrap the paper around them? What's the best technique? 

Well here it is...

Front side! 

Back side!

My final made it this week was a potato hash with sausage. We live near Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO. Our favorite food to get is potato hash. They use a cast iron skillet, and I know mine could have been better if I'd had one, but all in all it was pretty darn good.  I just used two large sweet potatoes, one large Russet potato, four red potatoes, one onion and one red pepper.  I just added a TON of butter, some salt and some pepper. It wasn't as AMAZING as Silver Dollar Cities, but I think the next time I make it I will do even better! 

Well I hope you all had as good of a weekend as I did! I can't wait to see what you have all been up to! 

Have a blessed Monday! 

My First Made it of the Summer!

I had a fantastic weekend, and was sad to see it end. We did a little of everything! We played hard, but I seem to be the only one really feeling it. LOL! My kids have some friends over right now so that means I have about five minutes to myself to show you my Made Its! Ha! I am having a hard time getting much done, but I just keep telling myself that my babies will only be babies for a little while, so I just need to enjoy them while they are little. This week I only have home made its, no school related ones yet, but I have some in the back of my mind in case I ever have time to work on them. :) 

Okay here goes my first link up with Fourth Grade Frolics 

Number 1: Cleaning up our backyard!

So we've been working this past week on our backyard. We are having to mow constantly, and moving all the toys around is a pain! So... a little rock and VOILA! 

We now have two designated areas for toys! It makes it so much easier to mow, and it was super cheap. Just some rocks we got from my father in law and some cheap filler rock. We had to invest in some water shoes so the kids could walk on the rocks but I actually really like it! When our kids are grown we are going to make it into a relaxing area with a fire pit. LOVE IT!!

Next..

I can really count it as a "Made It", but I redid a small outdoor table for my kids. We bought this table last year at a garage sale, and the top was pretty beaten up. So... a little chalk board spray paint and TA-DAH! 

I love it! I do suggest to make sure it is a smooth surface though because this side is pretty hard to erase, so I might be redoing the back side. I must admit that I might have found a new addiction by using the chalkboard paint. I loved it! 

Last but not least...

My breakfast "Made It"! I made mini apple pies and they are AMAZING! All I used was one golden delicious apple, cinnamon, sugar and croissants. They taste wonderful. I just wish I had some vanilla ice cream to go with them! Yes I realize I said this was my breakfast. It is summer after all, isn't that when we indulge ourselves?! 

Well I can't wait to see all the other Monday Made Its! Hope you enjoyed mine!

Emalie http://4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com/