June 2016 – Hometown Happy Teacher

Show and Tell Tuesday- June

June 21, 2016 2 Comments

Show and Tell Tuesday is today and I am linking up with Forever in 5th Grade. I am going to show you 4 pictures of things that are going on in my life and tell you about them.

I am enjoying keeping up with @alliethegypsyteacher daily photo challenge for the month of June. Check it out on Instagram at #teacherlifeabcs or see mine here.

So far, my summer has been consumed with watching my youngest play Little League baseball and my oldest two play summer basketball. I love watching them take enjoyment in their activities.

Create! Create! Create! I have been trying to create a classroom theme for my own classroom and I am really struggling to finding something that I am absolutely in love with. I did, however, put together a travel theme for my bestie’s junior high classroom. Now to decorate her room with it!

Flexible Seating:

In my own classroom I have been working on my flexible seating plan. My school PTO purchased a few items for me at the end this past school year.

stability balls
a mini futon
wobble cushions
scoop seats

I was super sad when they told me the futon was on back-order. I have been looking forward to it coming in this month! I am excited to incorporate it into my classroom seating options this upcoming school year. For this school year I will have

desks
long tables
round tables
futon
stability balls
wobble cushions
scoop seats
chairs with Bouncy Bands

What an exciting year to look forward to!

Thanks for dropping by!

21st century classroom, technology

QR Codes in the Classroom

June 14, 2016 No Comments

Are you wondering what in the world a QR code is? Well, a QR code is a machine-readable code consisting of an array of black and white squares, used for storing URLs or other information for reading by the camera on a smartphone or tablet.

First, find an app on your smartphone or tablet that can read QR codes. QR code readers are typically free. This site offers good ones to check out.

Now, find a QR Code generator to make your QR code with. You can find a lot of different options here.

To create the QR code…

Type the text you want the code to link to or copy the URL address you want the code linked to and paste it in the QR Code Generator.
Click Generate.

Now you can rename the code. You can download it as a PNG or PDF file .
Now you can insert the code into a document or share or embed the QR code .

Once you have your QR code you can create, create, create! Read on to get a few ideas on how to use QR codes in the classroom.

Inform parents or students- put a QR codes on a letter to give out even more information. Have a field trip? Put a QR code with a link to the field trip destination’s website. I love this idea from Fun in First with Jodi Southard. The QR code is linked to a recording of her reading the letter to her new students. You can click the image below to read all about how Jodi did it.

Homework- put QR codes on your homework sheets that has a link to a “how-to” video that can help them solve math problems.

Check work- put QR codes on assignment sheets so that students can self check their work upon completion. I created this literacy center task card assignment and attached a QR code with the answers. Students were able to self check their own work while I worked with another group.

Student led learning- students work in groups and scan QR codes to determine what task they must work together on and complete.

Audio book– create a QR code that links to an audio book or a YouTube video of a book read aloud.

Digital Restroom Pass- put a QR code on your restroom pass that links to a Google form. Check out my blog post here to learn more about it.

To create the QR code….

Preview the Restroom Pass Google Form by clicking the eye icon in the top right corner.
Copy the URL address and paste it in the QR Code Generator. Generate the code and save.
Now you can print the code and paste it on anything you choose. Your students will be able to scan it and it will take them to the Restroom Pass Google Form.

Put it on a restroom pass that hangs from a lanyard or clip.

Put it on a hand sanitizer bottle and have students put the bottle on their desk while they are out so you have a visual reminder that someone is already out of the room.

Or simply print a poster with the code and hang in your room.

How do you plan to use QR codes in your classroom this upcoming school year? Share with me in the comments.

Thanks for dropping by!

classroom management, technology

Digital Restroom Pass Using Google Forms

June 9, 2016 3 Comments

Do you have that one student who always has to go to the restroom? Do you often catch yourself wondering if they eat a diet high in fiber or if they are just practicing good old task avoidance? You are often thinking, “How can I log all of my students’ restroom trips efficiently?”

There is a way by making a…

1. Begin by signing into your Gmail account. If you don’t have Gmail you can sign up here.

2. Once you are signed in, look at the top right corner of your screen. You will see a box that looks like a grid. Click the grid for a drop down menu.

3. Click the Forms icon. If you don’t see it you may have to click More at the bottom to give you access to more icons.

4. Now you will have a choice of what type of form to create. You will want to click Blank for this project.

5. Give your form a name, in my case Restroom Pass, and a form description if you would like. I added Mrs. Mayville’s 2nd grade for my form description.

6. Now decide on what type of question or response information you want gathered from your students. I wanted my students to begin by adding their name. For the Untitled question I typed Type your name. In the drop down box on the right I chose “short answer”. Now my students will have their name and a time-stamp logged into an Excel spreadsheet (more on that in a bit) each time they use the digital restroom pass.

7. I decided I also wanted a log of what particular subject the student was in so that I could look for trends in the data and have valid evidence to support my concerns. I clicked the plus sign and added a “new question” and added my multiple choice answers below it. Make sure and toggle on the button that says Required at the bottom.

8. If you would like to change the background color of the form click the paint palate at the top right corner of your screen. You have the option of changing colors or using any of the images available.

Click the gear icon to personalize a message on the confirmation page. Hit save at the bottom when you are done with your personalized message.

7. Click the eye icon at the top right corner for a preview of your newly created Form.

Now about that Excel spreadsheet and accessing all this useful data…

Click the Responses tab and then the green Excel icon. It will then want you to select a response destination. It sets it up for you so all you have to do is hit create. Yes, it is that easy! When you need to generate and print a new spreadsheet all you have to do is click the icon with three descending dots.

Now I can have all my data in one place and have all the information I need with the click of a button. It can be done on any device that has access to your Gmail account. I plan to use our classroom iPad and an easy to scan QR code for manageable student access. Make sure you tune back in to my next blog post on QR codes.

Thanks for dropping by!

linky, Pinterest

Pinterest Pick 3 Linky – June

June 3, 2016 3 Comments

Pinterest Pick 3 is here again. I am teaming up with PAWSitively Teaching, The Inspired Owl, and Just Reed for their monthly Pinterest Pick 3 Linky. Check out my Pinterest picks for June.

My long awaited summer break has finally started! I always begin my summer break by giving a little T.L.C. to my back patio. This is where my family and I spend most of our time in the summer. If you drop by you may catch one of us out there…reading a book, grilling, swimming, paddle-boarding or just enjoying the peaceful sounds nature and country living.

My first task I decided to tackled was adding some colorful flowers to my back patio. I saw this idea and loved how they had the Tiki torches in the giant planters.

So I set off to Lowe”s and purchased a few items, enlisted the help of my three kids, and put together my own version. I am liking it so far. Fingers crossed the citronella plant I planted in one of the planters wards off misquotes like it advertised.

Now I have this idea on the Hub’s honey-do list. My current patio swing has no cushions (hazard of owning a new puppy) and no canopy through years of weathering. Now I am on the hunt for some chic patio pillows to throw on it.

My children and I are going to try something new this summer. We are going geocaching! Ever heard of geocaching? If you are like me then it is probably new to you too. Here’s a short video about it.

How fun does that sound? We are excited to go out to explore, discover, and find! Check out my Pinterest board below for some more fun summer break activities to enjoy with your kids.

An InLinkz Link-up

grammar, linky

June Winner Wednesday

June 1, 2016 3 Comments

Winner Wednesday June

It’s Winner Wednesday!

This linky is hosted by A Dab of Glue Will Do and Sara J Creations and takes place the first Wednesday of every month. I will pick a product from my store, share it in detail with you, and give you a chance to win the product for FREE. All you have to do to enter to win is enter your name in the Rafflecopter. Don’t procrastinate entering…it only lasts one day!

I am giving away a fun an engaging way to practice commas, quotation marks and apostrophes in singular and plural possessives with Macaroni Grammar.

Winner Wednesday June