Five for Friday!

                                        

Hello, Friends!
It's Five For Friday! I am excited to participate in Doodle Bugs Teaching Linky Party!

I am also quite happy for the weekend! I might even be doing this

and take more advantage of my "life in paradise".


                                                                  

Monday was our Teacher Development Day and I had to do a presentation.
It was nice to receive some good feedback.

                                                              

My students did such an awesome job writing about their Easter Break! Look at the amount of information they poured into their stories. They definitely had a lot to share :) I am very proud of them! Not bad for 3rd Grade ESL students!

                                                                

This week our focus in Science was on the Water Cycle, and here are some activities we did to fit my students' different learning styles.

It is a only a 6 minute video (which is very important due to the kids' short attention span) and the explanation is wonderful.

I also found this fun song, which we've been practicing and, I hope, will present to some younger grades to "teach" them about the Water Cycle. :)

Here are the lyrics

You can download this page here

We also did a simple Water Cycle experiment where we filled a glass dish with hot water, put a lid on it and watched all 3 transformations take place.

I think I might have a slight addiction to Baileys Coffee Creamer. Every afternoon, after I get home from school, I make myself a cup of coffee. It's like my little treat for a day to satisfy my sugar cravings, as I try to avoid sugar in everything else I eat or drink. So, guess what? The only store that carries this, is out of stock! :( I am sad.

                                                              

I've been trying to get back to my healthy eating habits. I fairly recently fell off track with my diet :) Maybe it's been a couple of months... My "allowed foods" list contains mostly veggies, meat, a little bit of fruit and...Ukrainian food. Here is a shot of my husband's favorite "Stuffed Peppers":)

Happy weekend! 

Linky Party Directory for Teachers

Linky Parties are so much fun! They are a great place to meet other bloggers! So, if you have a new blog, this is the best way to get yourself out there. I like to "party" whenever I get a chance. :)

Linky Parties are also important if:

- You are looking for more people to read your blog or share your content with (other than your family members or close friends) :);
- You are looking to connect and network with other bloggers.
But most importantly, there is so much that you can learn from other bloggers!

Here is a list of some Teacher Linky Parties to help you get started. They usually run weekly, although some are once a month.

Monthly Linky “Currently” with Oh, Boy, 4th Grade 

Monday 
- “Monday Made It” with  4th Grade Frolics  
- “Markdown Monday” with Kelly and Kim’s Kindergarten
- “Be Appy Monday”  hosted by Tech with Jen

Tuesday

- "Tried It Tuesday” with Fourth Grade Flipper
- “ Tech Tip Tuesday” by Techi Turtle Teacher

Wednesday

- “Wordless Wednesday” by Miss DeCarbo
- “What’s Going On InYour Science Class?” by Teachers Are Terrific
- “Working On It Wednesday” with Middle School Math Moments

Thursday

- “Tips And Tricks For Teachers” with Foxwell Forest
- “Technology Thursday” with Teaching Trio
- “Thematic Thursday” with Comprehension Connection

Friday

- “Five For Friday” with Doodle Bugs Teaching
- “Fabulous Freebies Friday” with Always A Teacher And Forever A Mom

Saturday

- “Spark Student MotivationSaturdays” with Head Over Heals For Teaching

Sunday

-  “Sunday Scoop”with Teaching Trio
- “Super Science Sundays” with Science Girl Lessons


I found it challenging to remember the scheduled days for the linkies I like to participate in. Here is a handy little schedule I made to stay organized and to be on time for the "parties" :)

You can download it here:

Linky Party Schedule (it inludes clickable links)


Here is a blank copy for you to print and fill out with the linkies of your choice.

Linky Party Planner

All linky party hosts have rules, so please read them before participating.

Good luck! Have fun "partying",connecting with other bloggers, and showing off your amazing content! :)

April Currently

I am linking up with Farley at Oh' Boy 4th Grade for her April Currently. 

1. You have to listen to this song if you haven't heard it yet. I can't get enough of it :)

2. It's been raining here all week during my Easter Break. Today the sky has finally cleared out and we rushed to the beach (before the weather decided to change).

3. We love painting eggs on Easter! It's become a family tradition.  I am thinking to hit Pinterest for some new ideas. 

4. I have a sweet tooth. I've been on gluten free and sugar free diet for a while now, but I do cheat  sometimes. My favorite kind of cake would be my grandma's layered vanilla cake (Yum!), but since she is far in Ukraine, caramel cake would be just fine :)

5. I realized today that I only have 3 days of vacation time left. That sums it all. 

I hope you are all enjoying your Spring Break!

Can't Keep Up? 6 Steps To Having A Miracle Day!

Once upon a time there was a workoholic teacher. She taught 3rd Grade children by day and ran her little Teachers Pay Teachers Store by night.

Her weekends were her most productive workdays.
She worked as quickly and efficiently as possible, so that one day she would have a comfortable life, time to relax, and spend more quality time with her family.

She almost burned out. As you probably already guessed, that person was me, and I would have burned out if one day I didn't come across a book called "Miracle Morning" by Hal Alrod.

6 easy steps listed in this book helped me make necessary changes in  my life and bring it to a smooth flow without slowing down or eliminating any of the tasks.

This book is about establishing a morning routine, releasing tension, setting goals, and becoming the person you need to become to achieve greater success.

6 step routine only takes about an hour out of your day and has to be done in the morning before you head out to work. So, I do wake up 45 minutes earlier than I used to, but it's so worth it.

Those steps are:
- Meditation
- Affirmations
- Visualizations
- Excercise
- Reading
- Journaling

I am not getting paid for doing this book review. This program helped me, and I want to share this with you.

You can purchase the book on Amazon.com. If you have Kindle Unlimited, (by the way, Amazon offers first month free) you can download this book for free.

It's truly amazing and life changing! So, go ahead and check it out!

Do you have a favorite morning routine?
Let's talk about it in the comments.


Have a great day!

Liebster Blog Award!

                                                             

I would like to thank Heather from The Land Of I Can for nominating me for Liebser Award! I really appreciate your nomination, Heather!

                                                                
                                             

The Liebster Award is an award for new blogs. Liebster is a German word that means: BELOVED, CUTE, LOVELY, DEAREST, and WELCOME.

To accept the nomination I must:

1. Link back to the blog that nominated me
2. Nominate 5-11 blogs with fewer than 200 followers
3. Answer the questions posted for me by my nominator (Heather)
4. Share 11 random facts about myself
5. Create 11 questions for my nominees
6. Contact my nominees and let them know I nominated them

Here are my nominees:

1) Mrs.Black's Bees a such a cute blog with a ton of activities for emergent readers and more! Check it out!

                                                       

2) Little Learner Toolbox I loved the tips and tricks for those who are just starting out as sellers on TPT. This blog will also keep you up to date with the newest technology and apps. This new "Ca-ching" app is way too cool!

                                          

3) Mrs. Brigg's Class is a blog filled with great ideas including those for Social Studies. I am looking forward to reading more of Ellen's posts.

                                          

4) Grasty's 2nd Grade Goodies I just LOVE Leah's blog design! This is an awesome blog for second grade teachers! Check it out!

                                                       

5) Pawsitively Teaching is such an adorable and well thought out blog! This teacher-blogger is currently teaching 2nd grade and has fourteen years of teaching experience in Kindergarten through 4th grade! Wow! Can't wait to read more of her posts!

                                                      

Questions from Heather:

1. What grade do you teach and why do you love it?
 I teach 3rd grade. 3rd graders are so sweet and still love their teacher! 
2. What is your favorite book to read to your students?
 I love "Clementine" by Sara Pennypacker. It's a great children's book and is going to be a classic. 
3. What do you love more: sticky notes, hole puncher, or dry erase markers?
 Can't imagine my life without dry erase markers but do love that hole puncher :)
4. What is your drink of choice to get through the day?
 I stopped drinking pop and coffee over a year ago, as I got onto a healthier lifestyle. I've always loved tea and even more now. 
5. Favorite school lunch that your cafeteria serves but you might not actually eat?
That would be pizza :)
6. How long have you been blogging?
I set up my blog last year, but was a little apprehensive at first about sharing my teaching experience with others. It took me awhile, and now I enjoy it. And the best part of it is meeting so many amazing teacher bloggers! 
7. What is your favorite TPT product?
I love "Christmas Around The World Scrapbook" by Sarah Cooley . Such a fun and creative unit!
8. What holiday do you look forward to most during the school year?
I look forward to all of them as it gives me a chance to pretty up my classroom, create more holiday activities and lessons, and celebrate with my lovely group of students. 
9. What do you do with your summers?
Ideally I enjoy visiting my family in Ukraine :) As this opportunity comes rarely, I spend my summers catching up on some housework, creating more lessons, relaxing with my son and husband somewhere on the beach or at the hotel.
10. Do you pick out your school outfit the night before or the day of?
This is a big one for me as I love fashion, style, and comfort. So yes, I do pick my outfit the night before. 
11. What do you wish all your students would know before coming to your class?
I wish they had better reading-comprehension skills coming to 3rd grade, but I do understand that English is their second language (just like it is for me), so I incorporate a lot of fun and exciting activities to help them become better readers. 

Here are my questions for the nominees:

1) How do you spend your free time?
2) How do you juggle your family life, teaching, blogging and creating lessons? Do you use a planner?
3) Do you work out?
4) Are you scared of anything?
5) Describe yourself in 5 words.
6) Cake or chips?
7) What was your favorite toy as a kid?
8) What is your biggest achievement in life?
9) Your funniest moment in the classroom.
10) Your celebrity crush.
11) If you were granted 3 wishes, what would they be?

I am looking forward to reading your responses! Good luck!

Five For Friday with a Giveaway

Love February,Valentine's Day and Winter Olympics! While most of you guys are getting freezing temperatures and snow storms, I get to enjoy warm weather with a little bit of rain at this time of the year. Sorry about that :) Even though it's 90 degrees here, I still managed to get sick. This flu virus, or like they call it here "Gripe Dominicano", usually stays with you for about 3-4 weeks. I am on my 3rd week now :(

I've linked up with Doodle Bugs Teaching to share with you my weekly five.

                                         

                                                               
Today, most schools are driven by data and standardized tests, and so little time is allowed for children's social and emotional development. I strive to incorporate as many of such activities as possible.
Last Monday I introduced "100 Acts of Kindness" Challenge to my 3rd graders. I decided to allow for it  2 weeks and have a big Kindness Celebration on Valentine's Day. We talked about how we can make the world a better place by doing nice things for our friends, family and neighbors. I made a printable with the list of simple acts of kindness and handed it to each child. You can download it here.

To my big surprise, they jumped right into it. This girl received a card from her former BFF :) So funny!

Here is the picture of out "Kindness" heart on the second day of the challenge.

And here it is on Friday of the same week.

"Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love." - Mother Theresa

                                                                   

As we learned about the layers of the Earth, I decided to throw a little art into this lesson.We made playdough earth models. I found this craft on Pinterest :) The kids loved it! They really enjoyed making the layers. And when we cut the planets in half, they thought that was so cool, that they asked me if they could take their creations home.

It can be so frustrating to read poor student handwriting! I believe, that it is essential to begin emphasizing the importance of neat writing in elementary school.

I created a simple form with the purpose of motivating my students to write neatly. I glue it into my students’ notebooks (inside cover) in the beginning of each school year. Every month I reward the students with neat handwriting (and those, who have shown some improvement) with small stickers. I’ve been doing this for 3 years now and it’s amazing how much of an effect such a seemingly small idea can have.

We've been reading, singing, writing, matching and memorizing multiplication facts 0-5. Although most of my students already know them pretty well, there are some that would benefit from extra practice. So, here is a fun game I came up with just the other day while practicing math facts with my students. I wrote a multiplication fact for each child on a little piece of paper and taped it to each student's shirt (answer not included but memorized by the student). The task was to come up to each of your classmates and give the answer to the multiplication fact written on his card. If you are correct, he draws a star or a heart on your card. The person, who receives the most stars (hearts), wins.

The winner of this challenge received a sweet treat :)

                                                               

I am very proud and excited to be a part of an enormous giveaway hosted by An Apple For The Teacher who recently hit her 300 follower milestone! Over 60 teachers donated their products!  To participate, please head over to her blog. She has more surprises in store for the lucky winners. 

                           

Thanks for stopping by my blog! Have a nice weekend!