Summer bucket list

I'm linking up with Deanna Jump to write my to-do list for this summer. Even though summer doesn't start for me for another 5 weeks, I can still plan ahead!

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Number 1 on my list is to relax and de-stress after the school year.

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I also want to catch up on some musical watching. Hoping to get tickets to the Lion King, even though I've seen it before, I really want to watch it again!

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I want to eat a lot of dim sum when I'm visiting my parents. It's a meal I've really missed recently!

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I'm flying back to the UK for a month (so beyond excited!) and top of my list while I'm there is catching up with my friends and family.

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I also want at least one Sunday roast. Hopefully roast pork... with roast potatoes... and fresh vegetables... and gravy... yum!

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I also want to create a few products for my TpT store. I've now got 20 products in there, but want to increase this as I have loads of ideas and loads of new clipart to use!

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Graphic by Creative Clips

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While I'm in England there will be obligatory trip(s) to the Cath Kidston shop to stock up for the next year!

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I am also hoping for a weekend away with some of my UK friends so we can have a proper catch up and make up for me living so far away most of the year.

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I'm moving flat this summer, so unfortunately (as I hate it) I've also got to pack and unpack at some point!

Five for Friday time

So another week has gone by and another week closer to the end of the year, and yet the work continues to pile up!

I'm linking up again with Doodle Bugs Teaching for the fabulous Five for Friday linky party which is just so much fun if you have never tried it. I've found many of my favourite blogs to read through this link up and I'm sure a lot of my followers have found me the same way!

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I've posted off my first ever SLANT box to my new friend Amanda from His and Her Hobbies . There are no pictures as I don't spoil the surprise, but hopefully when she receives it she will have a reveal! If you haven't heard of SLANT boxes before, its run by the lovely Jameson from Lessons with Coffee and you get paired up with two people, one to send to and the other to receive from. I can't wait to get my box from Jamie at Miss Math Dork.

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In my craft club, I've been sewing bookmarks with the children. For some this has meant lots and lots of re-threading needles and untangling knotted thread, but it was worth it when my littlies manage to create pieces like this!

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As part of the school's healthy eating week, my class cut out pictures to make their own balanced diet plate. I may have created a group of monsters though as I was apparently so passionate about the need for a healthy diet, that at lunchtime they all refused the cake and asked for fruit... the entire week!

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A website recommendation that I've recently sent out to the parents of my class, Words for Life has reading tips, recommended books and downloadable activities, all split up into age groups. Go check it out!

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And last, but not least, its our half-term holiday this week (yes I know some people have finished completely, but we have another half a term to get through, so I'm happy about my week off now!) so I intend to do as little work as possible and catch up with my reading. I have 5 new books lined up and have made it my challenge for the week to finish them!

Graphic by Creative Clips

6 months + 2 days blogiversary!

So I completely missed my 6 month blogiversary, in my defence Tuesday was a very busy night for me (wrote a Maths assessment and watched multiple episodes of Mr Selfridge!) and it completely slipped my mind.

I honestly can't believe I've been doing this blogging malarky for half a year and how much I'm still enjoying it, despite the slow growth of readers and followers. I've learnt so much over the last few months and I really hope that I am bringing something (even if just a little something) to the blogging world.

Anyway to thank you all for reading my blog at all, I've got a brand new product to give away for free. Just click on the image below to go to my TpT store and download for free (in a nice round-number co-incidence, this is my 20th product uploaded to my store!)

I've linked up with Teaching Blog Addict's Freebie Friday, so head over there for more great freebies!

It's a Five for Friday!

Love this link up and this week I have plenty of randomness to share with you all.

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My sunflower seeds are growing, YES (last year not one single one sprouted, I blame the seed packet or alternatively unintentionally allowing the children to water as much as they liked!)

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Class Assembly this week. No photos as they all have kidlets in them, but we did sing this song as part of the assembly. I'm truly sick of hearing it now!!

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We painted settings and wrote descriptions with adjectives.

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As we head into Summer proper, I have finally got around to creating another themed 'Count the Room' this time for Summer! Click on the image to grab it from my store.

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Thought I would do my bit to spread the word about a project by Have Fun Teaching that needs your help! They want to create music videos for all 220 Sight Words that will be available for free. However, they want to fund this project by the end of May and they have a long way to go! You can pledge as little as $1, but the more you pledge the more rewards you will get.

Join the movement!

Below is a sample video for 'is'. 

Please leave a comment, I love reading them!

My Weird School - Must Read Monday

To be honest I was in two minds about recommending these books, however, due to the fact that both my class last year and this year have adored the series, I am going to.

The My Weird School series is by Dan Gutman and is about the adventures of A.J. and his classmates in Second Grade at Ella Mentary School. A.J. is your typically naughty, boisterous boy and frequently gets himself and his friends in trouble. The language can be a bit rude for my taste, but I edit out the words I don't like as I read aloud! The series is perfect though for introducing chapter books to children, which is why I've used them for the last couple of years. 

Some favourites of my class include:

Please head over to Teaching Maddeness for more suggestions of great books to read!

I appreciate myself!

Teacher Appreciation Week isn't really a big thing over here, but having read about it on so many blogs recently and of course, having joined in with the TpT sale especially for Teacher's Appreciation Week, I felt I could join in with the actual week. Except I decided to do the appreciating of myself. After all, we all deserve to spoil ourselves now and again! (That was my justification anyway!)

I used this wonderful excuse to make multiple purchases off my TpT wish list (yay for clipart!) which should be making their way into my next creations. I am slightly addicted to Creative Clips Monthly Clubs as its a surprise each week what we will get.

And then the Book Fair visited my school. Well that was just dangerous. I should never be left unsupervised around books. Especially books with a discount. Well let's just say it was my Teachers Appreciation Week gift (gifts!) to myself...

Also due to a technical hitch, the TpT sale has been extended, you still have a few more hours to shop so head on over there quick!

Antarctica?!

My school decided to host an Around the World Day recently and it was a complete blast! Each teacher chose a continent or country and then the children went around and visited each of the 6 places. We even mixed up the age groups so that we had 4-7 year olds in each group.

I decided to go for Antarctica mainly because we live in such a hot country I fancied doing somewhere really cold as a contrast. Air-conditioning was set on minimum temperature, white sheets were draped over my book corner, box of 'snow' set up, pictures of penguins all around my classroom and we were ready to go!

I used the craft and penguin facts from Amy Lemon's Waddle With Me unit (if you would like to grab this, head over to TpT where the Teachers Appreciation Week sale is now on!)

It was a very hectic day (especially repeating my session 6 times!) but very worth it as the children enjoyed themselves and hopefully learnt a snippet about each of the places! 

Incidently, carrying on my penguin theme for the week, I went with my partner teacher to do a reccy for our school trip and guess what I saw?

3 link ups in 1!

As part of Teachers Appreciation Week, TpT are having a 2 day sale. Please head over now to my TpT store for some discount shopping!

I know that many top sellers are joining in this sale as well, so this is your chance to grab some bargains!! Head over to Primary Possibilities for a link up of stores who will be on sale.

Also if you leave feedback for the products you buy you can earn TpT credits for use with your next purchase. 

I've put my entire store on 20% including all of my best selling items. I'm linking up with Flying into First Grade to share some of the products I'll have on sale.

Don't forget to  enter the TpT code TPTXO when you get to the check out as you get an additional discount giving you up to 28% off! Now I'm off to fill up my own shopping basket! Speaking of which, I'm going to make this a record 3 link up post, by linking with Southern Fried Teaching for 

I'm definitely stocking up on some clip art...

And maybe this calendar ready for next year...

And I'm sure I'll be tempted with much much more!

It May be time for a Currently!

So another month rolls by and I'm yet to hit my target of blogging 3 times a week regularly! However, I can start May off with one of my favourite types of post, a link up with Farley's Currently.

Listening - I adore Friends and am currently watching my way through the whole box set of DVDs. I'm nearly at the end of Series 3.

Loving - The Biscuit Box. I blogged a picture last week of some biscuits sent to a friend for the birth of her new daughter which I loved, but here is the one I got for my brother for his birthday. Amazing! Especially since these ones were a bespoke order for me as cricket is is favourite sport and it wasn't one they had on the website.

Thinking - Procrastinating is so much more fun than working, unfortunately once this post is done I really do need to do some work.

Wanting - We had a sponsored run/walk of laps of our track, I managed to do 7 miles which is a massive achievement for me and my level of unfitness (slightly eclipsed by the 5 year old in my class who did 11!) however 2 days later I can still feel it in my legs!

Needing - To go house hunting. In July I am moving out of my present accommodation and so need to start the hunt for somewhere new to live. Not really sure what am looking for, so suspect I've got to spend a while narrowing it down!

Surprise - The blog I'm going to surprise is Happiness is Watermelon Shaped in 3rd Grade. Susan always leaves the nicest comments on my blog and makes me feel that what I write is appreciated, so I wanted to send her back some of the same feeling!

Please go and check out her blog and also Oh' Boy Fourth Grade to find more great blogs in the link up!

Also a heads up for the TpT {heart} Teachers Sale coming up this week. I'll be putting my entire store on a 20% discount!