Returning from the brink, Things that work... and a couple of FREEBIES :)

I am so happy to be part of this New Year's Linky! Happy New Year Peeps! I am Maggie from Maggie's Kinder Corner.  I have been teaching for 25 years, and most of the years have been with kindergarten--my absolute favorite age of little people! If you want to know more about me, follow my blog button to my blog and read more!

I have been contemplating things that really work for me and my students, so here is tip #1:

After having had the flu for going on two weeks, I have been contemplating how I will "battle the bug" in my classroom when we return to school on Friday.  What I have been doing seems to work very well, and that is:
Wipe each table with a Clorox wipe every day!

Keep a box of tissues and a trashcan at each table.  ONLY throw paper trash into the little trash cans! All tissues should go to the main trash can away from students.  By having little trash cans at tables, we avoid having to be near the germy trash can every time we have trash to throw away.

Spray down the interior of the little cans each day!
Sneeze into a sleeve!!!
DO NOT come to school with fever (a person with fever can infect everyone)

I can still say that I have not missed one day due to illness all year, though I really hated having those sick days during my entire Christmas break!

Another thing I do is drink lots of hot liquids, and never drink from a public fountain.  Sorry kiddos, but that is where a lot of germies are living!

Am hoping and praying that 2013 will be a healthy year for my entire class!

Tip #2:  Get those kiddos labelin! My class is really into labeling everything, and you can see the positive impact it has when you consider their writing, or when you hear them identify a word in a trade book they have seen during a previous labeling activity.  More power to the labelers of the world!!! Just click on the pic to grab it!

Tip #3:  Get them into math journaling! The added practice reaps nothing but great results! A definite KEEPER for me are the Common Core Aligned Math Journals that I created two summers ago.  They continue to be a top seller in my TpT store because they are simple, use minimal printer ink, and provide generic prompts that kids can make their own by drawing what they choose.  I allow my students to do up to three pages a day in their journals (which are stapled and kept in their chair pockets in folders).  We also have a bag of manipulatives in our chair pockets for use with our ten frames in the journals.  I can't wait to return to school and get my kids back to journaling! If you want to see an example of this journal, click on the picture below for a sampler, or follow the link to my TpT Store for the entire bundle. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Math-Journals-Bundle-for-K-1st-Grade-Common-Core-Prompts-No-CutPaste

Tip #4:  Bucket Seats are my absolute favorite new thing this year! For about 25.00, I was able to purchase five buckets from Home Depot, paint them, add embellishments, make easy to clean and disinfect seats for the lids, and add some terrific seating and storage to my classroom! Check out this top blog article from earlier this year.  Next year's new addition will be "Spots".  Discs that can velcro to the carpet for stepping stones, seating arrangements, and many other things.  I plan to use the round disc as on the top of my bucket seats for the discs, and I plan to construct them the same way, but will add velcro hooks to the bottom so they will stay in place on our carpet.  I love do-it-yourself projects, especially cheap ones! The best thing about them is how easy to clean they are--no fabric to wash! http://maggieskindercorner.blogspot.com/2012/07/just-in-case-you-crafty-teachers-missed.html


For more inspiration, be sure to follow this linky to the next terrific blog post! You won't be disappointed! And a huge thanks to Michelle at Inspired By Kindergarten for having me as a guest blogger! Be sure to tell her what you think, and by all means, check out her TpT Store!

Have a great day!
Maggie :)