Freebie, Updates, Play Dough and a SALE!

Wow, this has been an amazing summer!  My summers are usually pretty quiet....but not this year!! 

 I visited my sister in Ireland for 3 WEEKS!  Had an amazing time with  my nieces and nephew. (Got a sister tattoo!!) Came home, spent one night at my house before leaving for the lake with my boys and husband for a week. (They are all taller than me now but still my little boys!). Came home, spent one night at my house before leaving again for a week long youth camp with my church! 

(5,000 teenagers learning about Jesus.....AWESOME!)

 Summer's almost over, time to get busy!!

Here's a freebie you can use to welcome your students back to school. Get it at my TPT Store.

I love my calendar but wanted to add a few things to it.  I added 3 new event cards (Graduation, Mommy Make Over Day, Class Picnic) and more "No School" cards.

The play dough center is always busy in my classroom.  I made this to add to the fun this year!

My entire store will be 20% off today and tomorrow.  Enjoy!

Welcome Letters and School Supply List

Do you send out a welcome letter and school supply list to your new students before school starts? 

 I do and thought that would be a good place to start blogging again for the upcoming school year.  My letter always includes a little about myself and my family, an invitation to a preschool orientation night, and a request for a family photo.  This is something I started doing a few years ago and love it!  I ask the parents to bring a framed family photo to school the night of orientation or open house.  They help their child choose the perfect spot in our classroom for their photo.  The purpose for this is to create a feeling of community in the classroom.  I have seen my students showing off their photo to their new friends, pick it up to give mom and dad a kiss, or just carry it around with them sometimes.  The photos are conversation starters among parents during class parties as well.  A great way to help people connect.

This picture is from last year. You can see a few of the pictures around the room.

My school supply list is a little different each year.  I take an inventory at the end of the year to see what we will need for the upcoming year.  Last year I added a WISHLIST to my supply list.  I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner!  I had a great response from the parents.  I'm sure you are like me and every other teacher out there.  We spend a small fortune of our own money in our classrooms.  The extra supplies were very welcome and the parents enjoyed sharing.