Countdown to School - 1 month to go!

August is here!  I always start getting antsy as soon as it arrives.  We start school after Labor Day, but I have so much to think about for this upcoming school year.
1.  Decide on a classroom theme.  Why is this soooo hard???  What do you do? Do you usually change themes each year?  Last year I did a beach theme and it was by far my favorite.
2.  Send postcards to my new fourth graders
3.  Finish my curriculum map for math with the new Common Core.
4.  Purchase everything from my TpT wishlist.
5.  Go shopping for whatever my theme is and get in my classroom to decorate & organize!
I guess I better get a move on!

State Testing...here we come!

New York State testing is right around the corner!  After a week off from school, we return on Monday and start testing on Tuesday morning - should be fun! How long are your tests?  We have 3 days of testing for ELA (90 min. each day) and 3 days of Math (90 min. each day). Oh, and don't forget Science - 2 days!  

SmartBoard is in! Ideas needed!

 I am SUPER excited to be getting a new SmartBoard because mine is an old dinosaur that takes forever to turn on and it never stays calibrated. If you have an interactive board in your class, how do you utilize it throughout the day? I just feel that I need to step-it-up and integrate it more into my curriculum & instruction.  Does anyone have anything that they do everyday on it?  What are the best websites to find interactive lesson?  

Linky Party @ Fabulous 4th Grade Froggies

If you are a 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade teacher you need to visit Lorraine at Fabulous 4th Grade Froggies.  She is having a linky party to create a list of blogs, specifically for upper elementary. Now I need to go figure out how to put the picture here! Arghhh....I thought I had it all figured out.

My First Blog

So....this is my FIRST post, on my FIRST blog ever!  I need to FIRST thank Charity Preston from the Teaching Blog Traffic School who has taught me so much about this whole "other side" of teaching and sharing. I am super excited to begin this crazy adventure. I know I have A LOT more to do on this, so feel free to send suggestions, ideas or just some happy thoughts! :)  I also am joining my FIRST linky party with Lorraine from Fabulous 4th Grade Froggies. Lorraine's blog is so awesome that I am going to give her her own post about the linky party!