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Preparing for Snow Days
Now that my daughter is in elementary school snow days have a totally different meaning! Last week her school had 2 (TWO!) fog days in a row after an already scheduled two-hour delay day. I’m not complaining about the fog days, I fully support the school in keeping children safe, I am however realizing that I need to be a little more prepared in order to keep her busy, and myself sane, on these days! Fog days were easy, once the fog lifted we were able to go do things, like visit the library. Snow days in our area are a different beast – I don’t want to…
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I’ve got something new to share!
I told you Monday that I’d have an announcement by the end of the week – well, here it is! I’ve been working on something that’s meant to save anyone who teaches preschoolers TIME and money. Hopefully that’s music to your ears! Now you can go to my TPT store or Etsy shop and purchase one product that contains all of the printables you need for an entire month of preschool. These sets will all be called One Month of Preschool, followed by the month that it’s intended to be used. Here’s a preview for January: Each month contains materials to support all learning and development standards, instructions for using these,…
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Happy Halloween!
Happy Halloween! Whether you’re celebrating today, or recovering after celebrating all weekend, I hope your festivities are the best! I’ll be sharing something MAJOR later this week, so make sure to pop back in after you wake from the candy-coma. I’ve got something up my sleeve that’ll make life so much easier for anyone who teaches preschool – whether it’s at a traditional school, a child care program, or even if you’re homeschooling a preschooler – and I can’t wait to let you in on it!
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Halloween Movement Ideas
It’s that time of year – Halloween classroom party time! I always loved these days, but I fully understand why some teachers don’t. The kids are already amped up, and then we give them sugar and take away the routine, what are we thinking?! Movement activities can be lifesavers for all of that pent up energy, so I thought I’d gather some excellent ones in one spot to save you a little sanity. Here are some options that’ll fit your party theme and get those wiggles out! Danny Go is always my daughter’s first pick, this is just one of his Halloween offerings: You can’t go wrong with GoNoodle, and…
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Something new and fun!
If you’ve read any of my previous posts you probably have an idea of my love for organization – it’s not a secret! One way that I’ve really been leaning into this is through my planner. I’m a hardcore fan of an old-fashioned paper calendar, and mine have become beautiful scrapbooks over the years. To say that I’m obsessed with planner stickers is an understatement. Over the last few months I’ve been designing my own clipart and using it to create planner stickers. Not only do I get to release some creative energy, but I get the satisfaction of having exactly the kind of stickers that I want to use…
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Finding Joy
I’ve been sharing my experience with burnout, and today I wanted to revisit a product that I created while feeling ALL of these feelings. A common suggestion for staying present and building a little more positivity is to practice finding something to be grateful for each day. If this works for adults, then it can certainly work for kids too – and it’s never too early to teach these kinds of coping skills. That’s where “Joy in Everyday: Building Positive Thinking” comes from. In practicing identifying those things each day that brought me more joy, I realized that I needed a way to keep all of these thoughts organized so…
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One Thing That Brings Me Joy
I promised that I’d share some of the things that have helped me refocus and work through burnout, so here’s one of my favorites. A big thing for me has been paying more attention to the positives. This always worked for me when things were tough in the classroom – recognizing positive behaviors, celebrating little wins – it shifts my mood and that of those around me. In looking for a way to do this in my own personal life I settled on the idea of challenging myself to take at least one picture a day of something, anything, that brings me joy. Trying to find one thing each day…
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Where in the world have I been?!
Hey all! It’s been a bit – 4 years to be exact. I’m really looking forward to refocusing my work here and giving you some amazing new content, but first I want to share why I disappeared because it’s a pretty common store that deserves some attention in this space. I burnt out. Big time. When you truly love the work you do that enthusiasm is obvious, and all too often it gets taken advantage of. I’d done everything “right” in my early childhood career – started in child care as a college student working at a before and after school program, moved into a long-term sub and eventually full-time…
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Amazing Deals on Dress Up!
I usually suggest waiting until after Halloween to grab clearance costumes for your dramatic play area, but this year I’m telling everyone I know to RUN to the Dollar Tree because they have some amazing costumes out already. You can’t beat dress up clothes and accessories for a dollar, and while I know that the quality may not be the best they’re all $1. Can I say it one more time ONE DOLLAR! Ok, I’m pretty sure that I’ve managed to convey my level of excitement, now let me show you a visual. I bought all of this for my own daughter – she’s getting a great big bag of…
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Friday Freebie – Summer Birthday
Happy Friday! I was searching for a freebie to share and when I stumbled on this one it struck a nerve. I love this Summer Birthday form from Khrys Greco because I was the kid with a summer birthday. I think one year I was allowed to bring in a birthday treat on the last day of school, other than that one year I never got to celebrate my birthday at school. I think that this is a fun way to let families know that celebrating a half birthday is an option. Download your copy and have a great weekend!
