Groundhog Day in first grade is always so much fun! I want to share some cute handwriting pages I just made with you so you’ll be ready for February 2nd early this year! Click below to grab a freebie with some cute groundhog jokes in cursive and print versions.

image credit: TeddyandMia/shutterstock.com

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I love teaching about weather each spring. The kids always get so into it and there are so many fun activities & experiments we do together. This year I upgraded my song cards for one of my favorite weather songs all about clouds. I would love to give credit to the clever teacher who wrote these words to go along with the tune of “When the Saints Come Marching In” but I’m not sure of the origins and I have seen it in many classrooms, both online & real life.  Please let me know if it’s you! Click any of the images below to grab a copy for your class.

I also made a fun cover for the cloud journal I made for my class last year. I don’t know why I didn’t think to add that cuteness last year! Click below to snag the cloud journal along with a quick addition math game.

Image Credits: Shutterstock/worker, Shutterstock/C_Eng-Wong Photography, Shutterstock/pablonilo

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Today was such an exciting day! Opening Day means Giants baseball but it also means summer is on the way! In honor of the day I made a few fun baseball themed reading response activities. They are perfect for reading workshop, homework, or even quick sub plans. All you need to do is find a fun baseball themed story to share with your class. Click the image below to download your freebie:

Image Credit: Shutterstock/David Lee, Shutterstock/Jenn Huls

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Click the image above for a free and easy St. Patrick’s Day craft. Be sure to visit Teaching Blog Addict’s Freebie Friday for more awesome freebies:

If you’re looking for more St. Patrick’s Day fun for next week check out my other St. Patrick’s Day posts below:

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Happy Leprechaun Awareness Month! I think St. Patrick’s Day is one of my favorite times during the school year. There are so many great books and activities you can do with your class. Way more than you can actually fit in between March 17th arrives. That’s where my March Reading Comprehension activities come in. I have 30 ready to use, no prep activities that you can use after reading any St. Patrick’s Day story with your students. They are also great to use for writing quick sub plans, using for homework, or during reading workshop. You can find this packet in my TPT shop by clicking the image below. And for a free sample click the image below!

My new favorite craft (and I might be stretching things to claim this as a craft) is making kiss stickers for any occasion so of course my candies are ready for St. Patrick’s Day! Click below for free stickers! You’ll need full page labels and a 3/4 inch circle punch and you will be set.

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I hope that everyone has been basking in winter break! Mine has been filled with gingerbread, latkes, & lots of cheesy Hallmark movies. Sadly I’m already getting mini panic attacks at the thought of being back at school. I’m trying to ease my way back into school mode slowly with some baby steps. Hopefully we will all have a smooth transition back to school in January!

Start with the easy stuff. Plan your outfit- for me that involves conquering a mountain of laundry so all the better to start now! Pack your teacher bag. Clean out any remnants of holiday treats. At this point I think the bottom of my teacher bag is pretty much coated in glitter from sweet cards from students and candy that escaped from our gingerbread trains on the last day before break. It’s time to avoid an ant infestation! Plan & pack your meals & snacks for the first day and be sure to go to bed early.

One of the things that helps me through the first day back after any long vacation is to remember that it’s like a mini first day of school all over again. Someone will be super late, some kids will be absent, someone will cry at some point, you might be lucky and have no bathroom incidents but it’s good to be open and prepared for the craziness. At the very least your students will be very excited to see each other again and want to spend some time chatting.

I always try to start the morning by letting each child share one brief memory from our winter break as part of our opening circle time. After we share we’ll complete this cute page to get in some writing about winter break. Click the image below to get a copy to use with your class:

Another thing that helps me on days like this is to manage my expectations…. which to me can mean going into the day with low to zero expectations and then having a lovely surprise when your class behaves wonderfully! January gives you a great chance to reboot your behavior plan or try something entirely new to keep your students motivated & on task.

When all else fails, plan some fun surprises for your students. Last year I bought 2014 glasses at a party supply store the day after New Year’s Eve on sale. We took hilarious class photos wearing them. I’ve also done a New Year’s toast with sparkling cider or with actual slices of bread toasted. This year I’m thinking about using ring pops to “ring in the new year” Check back later this week for some free printables to go along with these New Year’s treats.

It can be so depressing when you head back into your classroom in January to see empty, bare walls instead of glittery bright holiday projects everywhere. I haven’t decided which project we’ll tackle first but there are so many bright & cheerful ideas on pinterest to choose from. Here are a few of my favorites:

Image Credits: Nancy Nolan’s Kindergarten, First Grade Blue Skies, Mrs. Crosbie, Happy Holidays, Artsonia, The Vintage Umbrella

I love this post from Krissy Miner about being a performer in the classroom and it is so relevant throughout the entire school year. The more dramatic you are the easier it is to draw in your audience, aka your students. This is harder and harder to do the more tired you are which is what can make January feel like such an exhausting battle. My mantra at this point is just keep smiling!

The first day back is a great day to read engaging books that are a bit longer. I find that my students can sustain their attention for an amazing story for much longer that they can keep working on more independent academic work at times like this. Here are a few of my favorite series:

Just like on the actual first .day of school it’s always best to over-plan and over-prepare for everything! You’ll be ready for anything unexpected that comes up but you’ll also be ready for the next few days of school if you don’t end up using everything on the first day. Click below for some quick and ready to use activities for January:

Another thing that has helped me on days like this is to be flexible with your schedule. Follow your class’s lead and shorten or lengthen work periods depending on how things are going with your individual students at that moment. This is something I try to do throughout the year but especially on days when your kids might be feeling a little bit more squirrely!

My favorite tip for any first day back at school or really for any day in gloomy January is to plan some rewards for yourself. Give yourself something to look forward to no matter how small it might seem… a new magazine, nail polish, candy, or a new relaxing TV show (hint, hint… there’s a new Bachelor season starting January 4th!)

And last but not least go home as soon as you can!

image credits: Shutterstock.com/Sandra Cunningham/Patryk Kosmider/ Skylines/Annette Shaff/Luxe/Epic Stock Media/Dora Zett/Soloviova Liudmyla/Alis Leonte/Utekhina Anna/Neil Lockhart

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I have officially made it through the first week of school! My class is adorable and I can already tell that it’s going to be one of those special years. That doesn’t mean that I am not completely exhausted though! I have lots of fun back to school goodies I plan to share with you but for right now I wanted to get these cute bag tags up in case you haven’t had your first day yet.

Click the image to download your free bag tags!

I always love reading The Kissing Hand near the end of the first day of school. Many of the kids will have read it at home that morning or the night before with their parents and it’s a sweet way to connect with your new kiddos. This year after reading it I looked out to a whole carpet full of first graders holding “kisses” on their palms firmly to their cheeks- it doesn’t get much cuter than that!

After reading, we made Julie Lee’s fun Chester the Raccoon crafts. This project is the perfect first day craft. It’s simple but turns out adorable and makes everyone feel successful. While we were busy crafting I had each child come and hold a stuffed animal version of Chester for a cute photo. When I recover from my week one exhaustion I’ll post some pictures of how cute our little Chesters turned out.  Click the image below to check out Julie’s craft:

To make your own bags of kisses you’ll need regular sandwich size ziplock bags, chocolate kisses, & enough tags printed out for your class. I put 5 kissed into each bag and then just stapled the tag to the front. I left a blank spot near the bottom for you to sign your name. Easy & cute! I hope your back to school season is going smoothly! I’ll have more cute back to school freebies when my nap is over

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I am so not ready to believe it’s time for back to school shopping but I can’t resist the Target dollar spot. I found the cutest crayon erasers there and had to scoop them up. I knew they would be the perfect little first day of school prize for my new class. You know, the new class that I feel I should be meeting in about 3 more months instead of next month, of course, but this way at least one thing is ready! Click the photo below to download the labels I used. You’ll need to print them out on Avery 5160 labels.

Font Credit: Kimberly Geswein

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Somehow there are only 10 days left in this school year! I am always amazed when we arrive at this point each spring.

I am so ready for some relaxation but I always get emotional about saying goodbye to my students at the same time. I’m way excited to be done with assessments, report cards, classroom cleaning, and all that end of the year stuff but I’m feeling bittersweet about everything else.

We had our annual Open House celebration this past week which has added exhaustion to my mixed emotions. So did I start writing report cards or be productive in other way this weekend? Of course not!

I hope that you are surviving the end of the year craziness as best you can! Here are a few little freebies to help you make it through:

I have had an amazing group of parents this year and I wanted a little something to thank them for all they have done this year. I printed this on full page label paper, cut them out, & stuck them right onto a bag of microwave popcorn. I put a tray out at Open House for the parents to pick up. Click the photo above to download this little tag. UPDATE: I just added a second version of the tag that would be best for single parent families. Let me know if you have any other edits to suggest that would make the tags work for your particular gift giving situation

If you’re looking for some fun things to keep your class busy in the last few days check out this handwriting joke book. It’s also something you can send home with your kiddos for summer practice. Just click above to pick up this Facebook Fan freebie. Click the like button to download your copy.

Good luck making it to the last day!

image credits: gify

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