My Favorite Biography Picture Books

I am so proud of my kiddos! We were in the thick of our biography genre study and getting ready for our publishing party. Then, BAM-- we miss two days because of a snowstorm. Obviously, I was sort of freaking out because I really didn't know if everyone would finish! But finish they did!

We read a lot of mentor texts to prepare us for understanding the genre and writing our own biographies. Below are a few of my favorites that we read:

From top left to right:

Malala: A Brave Girl From Pakistan/Iqbal: A Brave Boy From Pakistan by Jeanette Winter

Eleanor by Barbara Cooney

Monsieur Marceau by Leda Schubert

Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez by Kathleen Krull

Honda: The Boy Who Dreamed of Cars by Mark Weston

Me...Jane by Patrick McDonnell

The Harvey Milk Story by Kari Krakow

Hello, I'm Johnny Cash by G. Neri

Diego Rivera: His World and Ours by Duncan Tonatiuh

There were so many meaningful and interesting conversations surrounding these biographies. It was wonderful seeing the kids make connections to other people they had read about in the news or to events happening today--for example, after reading about Cesar Chavez, a lot of the kids connected his method of using non-violence to Dr. Martin Luther King. When reading about Marcel Marceau, many children circled back to learning about Albert Einstein and how he also lived during World War II.  Many of the people we read about were unknown to the kids, but now they feel like they have gotten to know each person individually and reference them in many different parts of the day!

Besides using mentor texts to help find information about our biographical figures, kids used iPads and chromebooks to do research online. We categorized our research into paragraphs about the person's "early life", "adult life" and "accomplishments". Our librarian introduced me to powerlibrary.org , a great tool for e-resources. There is a section for child-appropriate search engines, like Searchasarus, SIRS Discoverer, and Kid's Search. All you need to access it is a PA library card number! I am sure there are search engines like this for most libraries all over the country. Find out from your local or school librarian!

Now that our publishing party is finished, it's time for me to begin gearing up for spring conferences next week! Wish me luck!

The Easiest DIY Ever

Sometimes it is hard for me to process that I am kind of a real adult now. I am married. I have a job. I pay rent! And car payments! AGH!

Recently, I have been on a sort of home redecorating obsessive-compulsive thing (thanks a lot, Pinterest). I think my husband is freaking out because I have been rearranging our furniture so often and he can't keep up...sorry dude!

I am by no means handy. Neither is my husband. So DIYs that I see online, while beautiful, just don't seem possible with our limited skills. However, whilst shopping at Target, I stumbled upon this adorable washi tape....

.....and I had an idea for an DIY!

I think this side table was the first ever piece of furniture I purchased post-college for my first apartment in D.C. It was a right of passage (Ikea) and a steal ($8!). I felt accomplished. I honestly can't believe it has lasted so long, moving from D.C. to NYC and through two apartments in Philly. Definitely time for an upgrade. I also really want to brighten up our living room and eliminate some of the black for a fresher look. Washi tape to the rescue!

I simply used a ruler and a pencil to outline a chevron pattern on the top of the table. Then I got to work arranging the tape in different combinations. Viola!

What do you think? It's definitely nothing fancy, but I think it spruces up the table nicely!

Fashion Friday: Teacher Wardrobe

I teach in a school where dress code is casual (and I mean casual). Most teachers wear jeans every day--sometimes even yoga or track pants. When I first started at this school last fall, it was a hard adjustment fashion-wise, as I had come from a very fashion-forward staff at my previous teaching job in NYC. Most teachers seriously looked like they stepped out of a J.Crew or Ann Taylor catalog (teachers get discounts at these stores, BTW):

Ann Taylor/J.Crew

I love both these looks, and often tried my hardest to emulate them back in NYC, but at my current school, they are just not practical! My school is on a 10-acre campus next to a horse farm, so needless to say it gets muddy and slushy! I am also teaching a younger grade, so I'm spending a lot more time sitting on the floor (so skirts and dresses are pretty much not happening!) Nowadays, my typical "school uniform" for winter consists of comfy jeans and worn in Uggs or Bean boots. I also tend to layer a lot with tanks/tees underneath cozy sweaters. 

I love J.Crew Factory for layering pieces:

Although they are on the more expensive side, I love AG Jeans . The quality is amazing and they last a loooooong time! Plus, a lot of the jeans come in a stretch-blend, so they are easy and comfortable to move around in!

Corduroy Stilt/The Middi/The Prima 

What are your favorite go-to pieces for work? If you work in a casual environment like me, what are your picks? I'd love to hear from you!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day typically isn't a holiday I get super excited about (although I do get excited by the fact that most stores are stocking extra chocolatey goodies this time of year). Here are some Valentines-y things I've been loving:

This wallpaper from LaurenConrad.com

These perfect little sprinkley shortbread cookies from Trader Joe's

These DIY glitter pencil Valentines I made for the kids in my class. Similar instructions here. (How funny is it that my and my assistant teacher's initials are H&M?)

This year for V-Day, my husband and I are planning to stay in and cook a lovely dinner together. For dessert, we will indulge in these brownies, a childhood favorite of my husband's, topped with ice cream.

Mission: Impossible?

Ever since I was a kid and read Harriet the Spy, I have been fascinated by the undercover spy/detective life. I actually thought I was going to be a spy for a brief stint in the fifth grade. I had a "spy kit" (aka my dad's old leather briefcase) filled with useful tools-- a magnifying glass taken from a rarely-used science kit I received as a gift for some birthday, binoculars, sunglasses (you never know when you need to be incognito), a hand mirror for subtly checking out things going on behind you and around corners, and of course, a notebook. It would have been awesome if I had the trench coat, too.

Here are some "Spy Chic" items I would recommend for any budding investigator--or anyone who wants to look cute-- and slightly suspicious!

From left to right: Calvin Klein / Banana Republic/ Burberry

From left to right: Design Darling / Kate Spade / Ashley Brooke Designs

From left to right: Ray-Ban/ ModCloth/ Toms

There were many places where I did my "detective work". Usually, it was spying on my older sister and her friends. Sometimes, I would go to the playground by my house and observe the kids in my neighborhood. My favorite spying was done at my dad's office building. I would stealthily move around the corridors, hold my hand mirror behind doors, and "spy" on unsuspecting lawyers-- who were usually just on the phone talking about something work-related that I didn't understand or typing on computers. 

Recently, I have become frustrated with how my class has been handling our transitions. Maybe it's just a middle of the year slump kind of thing, but I still believe that anything can be improved! I decided that I needed to get them jazzed about wanting to make smooth, quick transitions. My first instinct has proven to be a winner!

I framed it by asking the kids what they think a "mission" is. A lot of them said it was something that a spy needs to accomplish to save someone or find something. I asked the class what they think we need to accomplish during a transition. They all said that to accomplish a transition, they need to be quick, quiet, and get to where they need to be in a good amount of time. With that in mind, I introduced...

 

When we need to do a quick transition, such as from the rug to table spots, or going from table spots to lining up for a special, I ding our little chime and put on theme music (right now it is obviously the Mission: Impossible theme, but I am assuming that we will get sick of that quickly, so I also have The Pink Panther theme and the James Bond theme in mind). They have the entirety of the song, which is a little over a minute, to get to where they need to be. They love it! They take it SUPER seriously!

If they complete a "Transition Mission", they get a marble in this "Mission: Accomplished" jar. Once the jar is filled, we get a party! The kids have already decided that they want their first party to be a "Spy Party", so I am definitely looking forward to planning some kind of fun detective scavenger hunt!

Enjoy your weekend!

Home Decor

I always go on Pinterest and see photos like this and let out a huge sigh.

Who are these perfect people with perfectly organized, beautiful homes? I seriously want to be them! The major thing I am jealous about (besides all the beautiful furniture that I cannot afford right now) is the fact that everything in the photo is placed strategically and seems to have a perfect spot! I can do that!

I decided to start with my jewelry. I love how Krista from Covering the Bases  displays hers:

I love how the jewelry is showcased instead of stuffed away in a box. I especially love how she stacks books underneath to give the display some height. Here's my attempt:

Obviously, my photo quality is not even remotely close to the one of the previous photo. But you get the idea.

I also love the idea of using drink-ware (like the martini glass) as a storage option for trinkets. I have many "collectible" glasses from breweries, bars, etc. I also have many rogue hair-ties, barrettes, claw-clips, and bobby pins. I corralled them together in this never-used glass alongside my hair products.

I saw this post and decided to revamp my coffee table:

I got the tray and bud vase from Target. The whale coasters were purchased from Open House, which is one of my favorite stores for cute and affordable home decor! Last Christmas, one of my students had given me the tea-candle holder. I never really knew what to do with it, but I feel like it looks great on top of the stack of books!

I actually didn't think I had any books worthy of coffee table status. The only one I knew for sure was appropriate was our engagement photo album (we've just sent the photos in for our wedding album, and I can't wait to stack that baby on the coffee table soon!)

 Ahhh, NYC in the snow. What a magical time!

After looking through some of my cake-decorating books (many of you may know I love to bake, and even had a brief stint working in a bakery before I found my true calling as an educator), I realized the photos in those books were also beautiful to look at! Finally, I found Michelle Phan's book on sale and thought it had some great tips and tricks...not just for putting on make-up, but for being a woman in the modern world! As my friend put it the other night, it is almost like an etiquette book for women of the 21st century. Why wouldn't people want to see that in your home?

I hope you all liked some of my decorating changes! I hope to keep organized and tackle my closet next...wish me luck!

Aaaand We're Back!

For me, it's always a hard adjustment to go from "festive holiday" winter to just plain old winter. Especially because we haven't yet had ONE snow day :(

There's not much to get excited about, so I find ways to make it interesting! One of my new winter faves is the salted caramel hot chocolate from Shake Shack! MMMMM!

It's been a little over a week since returning from winter break. After such a long, relaxing vacation, I have to admit I was a little hesitant to get back to school. However, once we came back, it was really like we had never left!

The kids were most excited to return to our block area. One of my goals when I switched from a 3rd/4th grade to a 2nd/3rd grade was to integrate more block building into our daily schedule. Back in October, I asked the kids to name the blocks in our block area. We came up with a chart that shows the shape of each block and their name.

After we named the blocks, we put labels on the shelves to designate where each shape goes when it isn't being used in a structure.

On Friday afternoons, the class suggests some ideas for structures they would like to build throughout the following week. We vote, and the top two are the structures that kids can begin building on Monday. As a class, we decided that there should be no more than four children working on each structure (it can get kinda crowded in our block area). At the end of the week, during our morning meeting, the children who built that week share about their experience and answer questions and hear comments from the rest of the group about their structure! It's really awesome!

How do we know which kids are working on the structures? Well, as a class, we came up with the idea to pull eight popsicle sticks (each stick has a classmates' name on it) from a bucket, making sure to omit any popiscle sticks that have names of children who built the previous week. When your name is picked out of the bucket, you can sign up for one of the two structures we voted on.

Here's an example of one structure that was built this week (it's an air-base, FYI):

I'm looking forward to seeing next week's buildings! Happy weekend!