~Five for Friday~

Phew! What an exciting and exhausting first full week of kindergarten! I must say, having 25 little five year olds all day has worn me out! However, I am excited to link up with Doodle Bugs Teaching to share some cute ideas and tid bits for my Five for Friday! Let's not waste any time! Here we go!

1.) For my number one I am excited to share my Student at a Glance Assessment Checklist that I recently listed in my Teacher's Pay Teacher's store! It is a great little sheet that can be used to progress monitor and assess your students. I have used it for the past five years teaching kindergarten and just recently revamped it to include elements from the Common Core curriculum standards! It covers everything from letter naming and sounds to Common Core sight words to math skills involving addition, subtraction, number recognition, and 2D/3D shapes, just to name a few! Take a peek at it, it just might work for you, too!                            

Click Here

2.) For my number two I want to share with everyone my behavior plan that I am implementing this year. I have actually been using this for the past three years and it works great with my little ones and with my birdie/polka dot theme. Each child has a behavior nest. The ultimate goal of their day is to keep all of their eggs in their nests. As we all know with kindergarteners, they need lots of chances, which I readily give them. After 2 (or more) verbal warnings, the student loses an egg out of his or her nest. With each lost egg comes a consequence. If a student loses one egg, it counts as a warning. If a student loses 2 eggs, they miss 5 minutes of recess. If a student loses 3 eggs, they lose a portion of recess and a portion of center time. If a child loses all of their eggs, their parent is contacted. Luckily for me, this system works so great that I rarely have any children that lose more than 2 eggs. If they keep all of their eggs in their nest, they earn a special treat, which is usually a sticker or something yummy! They love getting their reward, so they usually keep all those eggs in their nests! I bought the little nests at a teacher store. I believe they are simply Carson-Dellosa cutouts. The eggs were made from laminated and cut out scrapbook paper. They are adhered to the nests with velcro! Perfect for removing and putting back!

3.) For my number three, I wanted to share one of the best center boards that I have ever used in my classroom. I work with an awesome team and they used this board before I began teaching kindergarten! It is perfect for rotating centers and calling small groups to my table to teach guided reading. These pictures aren't the best, but they at least show how the system works. By November, the children are pretty much able to understand the center board and where they are expected to go. And, of course, my teams are different colored...birds! Go figure!

4.) For my number four, I wanted to share with everyone a couple things that helped me to alleviate my stress with starting school...shopping and eating. Two of my favorite things! What is better than buying an adorable outfit for back to school? Not much! What is better to take the edge off of a stressful back to school week? A great dinner! So, here is my back to school dress that I wore for Open House and a picture of some yumminess that I treated myself to in celebration of back to school!

   Polka Dots...Go Figure!          Wasabi Sushi...Yummo!

5.) For my last Five for Friday, I want to add a celebration photo in honor of our "first day off" of the school year! I am excited about Labor Day Weekend and took this picture of Annie the Golden Retriever enjoying the view at North Myrtle Beach! Happy First Holiday of School, y'all!

Did you do something awesome this week at school? Head on over to Doodle Bugs Teaching and link up and share your stories or ideas! Click on the link below!

Here's to a relaxing, LONG weekend,

*Five for Friday*

Phew! I am so excited to be back on my blog! I am excited to link up with Doodle Bugs Teaching to share some ideas! The past few weeks have been HECTIC, to say the least, with going to back to school! Today marks the third official day of school for me. I have 25 sweet kindergarteners who are full of energy! Needless to say, they have worn me out in these three short days! However, it feels good to be back and I am anxious to get them into a "routine!" 

For my Five for Friday, I have a few ideas to share that I used this week with my kindergarten students to get them excited about the school year! 

1.) One of my favorite stories to read to my kindergarten students is The Best Nest by P.D. Eastman. My classroom theme is polka dots and birds, so I start them off early by letting them know that they are my "tweethearts." By the end of the year, they know the Mrs. Melton is obsessed with two things: birds and polka dots. If you haven't read this story, it is totally cute and worth the time. After reading the story, my students created paper plate birds to hang in the classroom! I forgot to take a picture of our birds that we made, but I have attached the idea that I "borrowed" from pinterest! The kids loved the story and they really loved making their own class birds! 

2.) One of my favorite games that we played this week was our "Jack Be Nimble" game. It is so simple and fun and it helps the kiddos learn each others' names! I bring a candlestick to class and place it on the carpet. Each student has a chance to jump over the candlestick while we recite the well known nursery rhyme: "Jack be nimble, Jack be quick, Jack jumped over the candlestick!." On the Smartboard, I replace the word "Jack" with the a student's name! It is great to see their eyes light up when the teacher writes their name on the board and they get to jump over the candlestick! It makes it even more fun (and they find it hilarious) when I tell them to be careful not to burn their hiney! After, they color a picture of the nursery rhyme. Here is a link to the coloring page (click the picture):

                                                                   

3.) Another fun name game that I like to play is called "Higgledy, Biggledy Bumblebee, Can you say your name for me?" I play this game on the first day of school! It is super easy. All you need are students and a stuffed animal bee (or you could use a picture of a bee). Basically, you sit in a circle with the children and say the rhyme together: "Higgledy, Biggledy Bumblebee, Can you say your name for me?" Whoever is holding the bumblebee says their name! I got my stuffed bee at the Kohl's Cares for Kids sale and it is perfect for this game!

                                                     

4.) One thing that I love about going back to school is decorating and getting my classroom ready! I love all things polka dot and birds, so I wanted to make sure that my class door showed off my theme! Here is a picture of my door! K-D is a hoot!

                                                    

5.) And for my last Five for Friday, I finally got around to making a multi-colored Word Wall Alphabet to go along with my Common Core State Standard Word Wall! Here is a little preview of what it looks like! Head over to my TpT Store to check it out!

                                                        

Thank you for reading my blog and make sure you link up over at Doodle Bugs Teaching to see other beginning of school ideas!

                                                     

Happy Back to School!

~*Back to School Sale*~

Well, the time has finally come! These past few weeks have been filled with lesson planning, classroom preparation, staff get togethers, and  professional development meetings ! Pretty soon, the students are going to be back and school will be in full swing! 

Maybe the thought of "going back to work" blows your mind. It sure does for me, but remember, routine is good and pretty soon, you will be back into the old swing of things...and you might even enjoy it! 

To soften the blow of those early morning wake up calls (that has to be the worst part, doesn't it?), I am kicking off my back to school week by offering 15% off of everything in my entire Teacher's Pay Teacher's Store! Mosey on over and see if there is anything that strikes your fancy! I have everything from Common Core Word Wall Words, Alphabet Cards, Open House Forms, Number Lines, Behavior Management Ideas, and so much more! If you're like me, every little discount helps and finding that perfect "something" for your classroom certainly makes going back more fun!

Click here for some shopping fun: 

**My Teacher's Pay Teachers Store**

Happy Shopping!

~*Favorite Pins Friday*~

I feel like I've been away from my blog for way too long! I just got back from my LAST trip of the summer...what a bummer! Now, it's time for me to buckle down and get things ready in my classroom! I haven't done ANYTHING all summer long! I guess my batteries are partially recharged, so it's time to start getting in that mindset! I guess pinning cute stuff is a start! Today, I am linking up with The First Grade Parade to share some great pins I found this week! 

I am in a "holiday/celebration" mood today, so I am going to share 5 of my favorite classroom holiday/celebration pins! Let's go!

1.) Saint Pat's Day Yumminess!

One of my favorite things is baking/making something for my class! I know my kindergarteners would go bonkers for this on Saint Patrick's Day! How cute and EASY and most of all, CHEAP! Cupcake liners, a box of cereal and milk to drink? I love the straws, too!

2.) Christmas Cuteness!

Christmas is my ultimate favorite holiday! It brings so much joy and happiness to the classroom! And the crafts you can find on Pinterest are unbelievable! Every year, all the crafts we create throughout the weeks leading up to Christmas are put in a paper bag. In the past, I have gotten paper bags from grocery stores and written the kids' names on the outside...isn't this cuter? And it's a craft in itself! 

3.) Bunny Lovin'

This is the ultimate cutest Easter pin! Every year I dye Easter eggs with my class and have to come up with something cute and creative for them to cart it home in without breaking it! How cute would a soup can like this look with some Easter grass inside and their little Easter egg? Something to plan for and start collecting!

4.) Halloween Writing!

I found this on Pinterest and think it is a must do to make a class book! The kids would love this, seeing as how they adore Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr.! Just think, you could do: Orange Pumpkin, Black Cat, Purple Bat, White Ghost, Green Witch...the ideas are endless!

5.) Don't Forget the Groundhog!

I love groundhog's day becuase most of the children I teach don't know what it is! But, they quickly become fascinated with the idea of a weather predicting critter who lives underground! I found this adorable graphing idea on Pinterest and had to add it to my "to do" list!

If you like any of these pins, head over to Pinterest and follow me: Natalie Melton! I have boards upon boards of school ideas! I have different boards dedicated to every holiday and school activity! What did teachers do before Pinterest? Did you find any exciting pins this week that you want to share? Head over to the linky party at The First Grade Parade and share them! Can't wait to hear your ideas! Click below to go!

~*Liebster Award!*~

~Drumroll please!~ 

First of all, let me start by saying this whole "blog thing" has been one of my new favorite things to do! I love linking up, reading other blogs, and especially connecting with people! When I get a comment on my blog or see that I have another follower, I instantly have a smile come to my face! Blogging makes you feel good, doesn't it? You get a chance to express yourself, share your ideas and see what others are doing! Like all teachers, I love to beg, borrow and steal! My fellow Charlestonian, Ms. McEachern from It's a Core Thing so sweetly nominated me for the Liebster Award! What a nice honor to have! Thanks girlie for nominating me! Her blog is adorable and she has some really cute ideas! To check it out, click on the award she gave me to link back to her page! Isn't the award ahhhhmazing?

So, this is my first award nomination and I am pretty excited about it! Let's hope I do it right. Here we go! Let's start with the Liebster rules (feel free to grab this graphic for yours):

~Questions For Me:~

1.) What kind of oreos do you like? 

    Oh wow! How do I pick just one? If I was forced to pick (and 

    was given a tall glass of cold milk) I would have to go with

    Double Stuf Oreos! Mmmmmm Mmmmm! Good!

2.) What woudld your dream vacation be?

    I love to travel, so choosing a dream vacation is tricky! 

    I would love to travel to a faraway country like Australia.

    However, packing up the car and going to Disney with my 

    entire family, including my 2 1/2 year old  niece and nephew   

    sounds pretty amazing, too!

3.) What was your first cd?

    Ooooh....this one is tough. I believe my very first cd was a

    Garth Brooks cd when I was little. I believe I stole it from

    my mom! I'm still a huge fan!

4.) What made you decide to start blogging?

    Well...I actually started a blog about a year ago called 

    "Kindergarten Tweethearts." I loved it, but I also started

    my Master's degree at the same time, so the blog took the

    back burner! This year I started up my TpT store and wanted

    a new and improved blog to go with it, so I started up this

    one and I love it!

5.) What is your favorite TV commercial?

    It seems like commercials start getting better and better! I

    love the AT&T commercials with the little kids. They always

    crack me up! I also like the Progressive commercials with 

    Flo! 

6.) Are you a fan of a specific sports team?

    I don't really follow professional sports, but I do love the

    USC Gamecocks! I also somewhat follow pro tennis. My favorite

    tennis player is Nadal! 

7.) What is your favorite local restaurant?

    I love the Ice House here in Summerville, but I also love, 

    love, love Halls Chop House in downtown Charleston! I've

    only eaten there once, but it was so fantastic, I dream

    about going back!

8.) If I came to visit your city, what would I absolutely have to 

    do while I was there?

    If you came to Charleston, you would have to see Rainbow Row

    and the battery! You would need to sit in the swings at Water

    front Park, take a carriage ride, and eat at Halls Chop 

    House! Among so many other amazing things!

9.) Who was your most influential teacher and why?

    I have been lucky to have many amazing teachers! I have two 

    favorite teachers--one is my fifth grade teacher, Mrs. 

    Howiler. She was always so caring and giving and PATIENT! I

    also loved my highschool French teacher, Mrs. Alford. She 

    was so talented and made me so interested in foreign 

    languages! I loved hearing her speak French!

10.) What does your spouse and friends think about your blog?

     My husband thinks it's great because it makes me happy and

     I get so excited about it! In fact, he created it for me!

     He is so "techy." He had some reservations about the name,

     but I was adamant that it was cute and I wanted it! Some of 

     my friends are also bloggers and my other friends think it's

     great! My family loves keeping up with me through it!

11.) What was your favorite teaching moment?

     There are just so many! I have two favorite moments. I had

     one sweet child who was adamant that when he grew up he 

     wanted to be a kindergarten teacher just like me! How sweet!

     Another moment came when I was teaching about MLK Jr.! I 

     brought two eggs to class-- one brown, one white. We talked

     about what they looked like on the outside (different), then

     we cracked them open and looked at the inside (the same). 

     After explaining the concept of "It's what's on the inside

     that counts" one of my students said, "So, we are all like 

     presents. We are all gifts on the inside. The wrapping paper

     is just different." My jaw dropped open! How insightful and

     beautiful for a five year old! I'll never forget that and I 

     plan to use that simile for years to come!

12.) (Extra Question) I student taught in first grade! Now I'm

      in kindergarten and love it just as much!

  

~A Little Randomness About MOI!~

1.) I LOVE the color pink! You wouldn't know it by looking at my blog, but it is my ultimate favorite color! I chose to do red and white polka dots in my classroom because I figured the little guys wouldn't appreciate all the girly pinks! So, I compromised with red! Red's good and super cute in my K classroom, but PINK is utterly fabulous!

2.) I have the cutest little Yorkie, Oliver, who is spoiled to the core! I also have a lop eared pet bunny named Buttons who weighs the same as Oliver (7.8 lbs!)

3.) My husband and I recently built our first home together! We love it! It is shabby chic and perfect for us! You can see a picture of it in my About Me section!

4.) My life motto is: "Be a warrior, not a worrier!" I have an autoimmune disorder that affects my platelet counts (ITP). But, I don't let it get me down! I have to treat it and be cautious, but overall, I try to keep a positive outlook! I have so much to be thankful for!

5.) I recently began a new adventure in trying to "eat clean." This is very hard to do for a junk foodie and diet coke addict. I must say, I haven't had a diet coke in exactly 13 days...phew! I am trying to stay healthy! It's so hard sometimes!

6.) One thing that makes me happy is fresh flowers! I almost always have four or five vases around my house with fresh flowers in them. It's the little things that make me happy!

7.) My husband and I have been together for 11 years! We started dating when I was a junior in high school! We just celebrated our 2 year anniversary on April 16th!

8.) One of my favorite channels to watch on TV is Investigation Discovery! I love the shows during the day but hate them at night because I get scared!

9.) I love iced tea! It is my drink of choice. I love a little sugar and lots of lemon to make it perfect! Mmmm!

10.) If you've read my blog you have read that I am obsessed with polka dots, birds, and mason jars! Go figure...I know I can't be the only one! :)

11.) My favorite stores in random order are: Loft, Target, Anthropologie, Garden Ridge, HomeGoods, and Urban Outfitters!

Again, I want to thank Ms. McEachern from It's a Core Thing for nominating me! You made my day and I have had so much fun answering your questions! Thank you for my nomination! So, I am going to go ahead and pass it forward and nominate...

Adventures in Room 204

(adorable blog!)

 Tailor Made Teaching

  (shabby chic goodness!)

Sweet Tea and Mosquitoes

(another Charlestonian!)

Enchanted in Elementary

(One word: Cute!)

La Senorita Creativa

 (Secondary level love!)

~Questions For My Nominees~

1.) Where did you go to college? How was it?

2.) What is your favorite movie and why?

3.) If you could go on a shopping spree, where would you go and  

    why?

4.) If you could visit anywhere in the United States, where would

    you go and why?

5.) Where do you teach and what makes it awesome?

6.) Name two things that makes your job enjoyable and amazing.

7.) Name two things that makes your job (at times) frustrating

    and difficult.

8.) Do you have any pets? Tell me about them. If not, what pet

    would you have if you had to choose?

9.) What is your favorite recipe?

10.)If you weren't an amazing teacher, what job would you choose?

11.)Name one simple pleasure that you love in life (like fresh 

    flowers or a big diet coke!)

12.)Bonus Question: What is your favorite thing to do during the 

                    summer?

*~FaVoRiTe PiNs FrIDaY!*~

Wow! What a busy week it has been! I am just now starting to get in the mindset that school will start back in less than a month (*tear*)but I have been amping up my own professional development by pinning some cute ideas on Pinterest! I am excited to link up with The First Grade Parade and share my top five pins that I found this week! So, here we go!

Have You Made a Ziploc Quilt Today?

I saw this cool idea and had to pin it! How neat would it be to get some adorable or funky duct tape (they make so much of it now) and make a class quilt with ziplocs? Simply slip student work inside to display! No more staples or tape...genius! 

Have You Given a Mouse a Cookie?

I just recently finished up my If You Give a Mouse Cookie thematic unit and saw this adorable craft to go with it on Pinterest! I think I may have to pencil this craft into my schedule for the first or second week of school! Cute!

Awwww.....More Cuteness!

A few weeks ago I posted my Kissing Hand Unit on my blog and the other day, I found this adorableness to go along with it! Don't you think the kids would love this on the first day of school? It is so sweet (both literally and figuratively).

Hungry Yet?

So, one of my favorite topics to pin about on Pinterest are recipes! I love to eat and I TRY to cook, so anytime I come across a yummy looking recipe, it gets itself pinned! I came across this recipe and had to pin it! I actually made these and they turned out DELICIOUS! You should try them, too! They are chicken roll-ups-- cream cheese, boiled/shredded chicken, cheddar cheese and a ranch packet rolled up into a crescent of deliciousness!

Laughter is Good for the Soul!

I love pinning funny pictures and sayings that bring a smile to my face, especially if they involve animals. Needless to say, this one did both! It's a little dorky, but I'm sure you laughed too!

Thanks for reading my Favorite Pins Friday post! Did you pin anything "pinteresting" this week? If so, head over to the linky party and share your pins! Click below!

                                                  

Have a fantastically fun weekend,

Made it Monday---Have YOU Given a Mouse a Cookie, Today?---GIVEAWAY!

Hey Everyone,

Today, I am linking up with 4th Grade Frolics to share what I have been busily creating this past week!

I am so excited to announce on this Made it Monday that I finally finished up my If You Give a Mouse a Cookie unit! I am super excited because I will definitely be using this in my classroom! I think I have found what my favorite activities to create are--thematic units! My school, in the past, has had strict guidelines for our whole/group/shared reading time allotments. Finally, this year, they decided to do something new and innovative: not dictate what the teachers read and trust their judgement. Novel idea, isn't it? Anyways, here are some clips from my unit! Also, there is the link to my TpT store! This unit is $5.99 (but includes 74 pages of nonstop cuteness!) You can click the link to visit it in my store....

OR you can be the first THREE people to comment on here (my blog) about my new product and I will email it to you for FREE! That's right....FREE FOR THE FIRST THREE COMMENTERS!Just leave me your email addresses!

Here are some sneak peeks! Click here to head over and see the full preview at TpT!

              

Did you make something incredible and would like to share it on this Mad it Monday? If so, head on over the 4th Grade Frolics by clicking below and share it!

Happy Blogging!,