Classroom Management, New Blogger On The Block. and A Lot of Excitement!!

Happy Thursday Friends,

Remember that trip to the pool that I was supposed to make yesterday? Yeah...didn't happen. Right after I put my post up, a pipe broken behind our sink & flooded our kitchen. Fun times, I tell ya, fun times!

However, life is back to normal today!

Before I get started into my post, I wanted to let you know about a new blogger on the block! Michelle, one of my good friends and coworkers, has started her own blog. She teaches kindergarten & is a phenomenal teacher. Her creativity is just awesome. So please hop on over & show Michelle some support by following her. This is not a blog that you are going to want to miss. Click on her button to visit and say hi!

She just created a jungle/safari set of classroom posters and some jungle themed writing posters that look terrific. They are FREE in her TPT store!  Click on the picture to head over to get her freebies!

I wanted to talk a little bit about classroom management today. What are some strategies that work for you? I wanted to share a few with you that I use today. Heidi, from My (Not So) Elementary Life will be guest blogging for me on Sunday with a lot of her classroom management tips, so stay tuned.

I was doing a color coded system (green, yellow, grey, and red) where everyone would start off on green & if they didn't follow the rules move colors. However, I didn't think that focused on positive behavior. Then the clip chart idea grew on me, so that's the direction I am going in. I like the idea that you can work your way back up with positive behavior.

I also use this smarty pants idea from pinterest for students who respond with "out of the box" thinking and to encourage participation:

If the students have a good day, they receive a gold coin. For every 5 coins, they receive a buccaneer buck. With buccaneer bucks, students can "purchase" free time with a friend, extra treasure box, lunch with the teacher, and pizza parties.

I came across a great behavior management catalog from Miss Cosby over at You Might Be A First Grader that was great! She outlines different kinds of behavior management ideas so you can choose what works best for you. She also includes incentives of smarty pants for achieving good grades on tests. It also has a personal best board for those challenging times of the school year (i.e Christmas, field trips, etc.) Click on the picture to go & take a peek:

Some exciting things happening:

1. I am participating in Jessica Stanford's Product Swap!! I am exchanging a product with Ms. C from Just Wild About Teaching!! I am so excited to be paired with her & can't wait for this exciting experience!

2. My class is going to be pen pals with THE Jena Snowden's class this year!!! I am all sorts of thrilled. I feel like I'm going to be pen pals with a celebrity! I have followed Jena's blog since the beginning of my blogging adventure which started a year ago (I was only a blog stalker back then!). She is amazing & full of awesomeness. Can you tell I'm just a little LOT excited!!! :)

3. I'm participating in a Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Alphabet Letter Exchange! 

Chrissy from First Grade Found Me is hosting this awesome project. Your class would get assigned a letter of the alphabet & put in a group with 25 other bloggers. You are provided 26 templates of your letters. Then your class decorates each letter & you keep one while you mail the other 25 off to the bloggers who are participating. When you are done, then you should have a great collection of letters from all around. Chrissy is still looking for bloggers who are interested, so stop by & let her know if you would like to participate in the fun!

Well I'm off to a PTA convention for the weekend! As I mentioned above, I have a couple of guest bloggers lined up for you over the weekend! Stay tuned for Fabulous Blogger Friday tomorrow. So sit back & enjoy! I will be back soon. :)

Have a thrilling Thursday,