Congratulations to Lindsay Flood for winning the giveaway!  I found out that Lindsay is actually a blogger too!  I've seen her blog, but didn't put two and two together until I emailed her!

I'm terrible with getting blog names and real names linked in my mind.

 Primary Polka Dots is her adorable (and bright) blog!  Go check it out if you get a chance!

Lindsay, I hope you enjoy those word wall letters and the Fry Word Mega Pack!  :)

Thanks to everyone who entered!  

Here's this month's 'Currently' from me!  Don't you just love that mustache?  What is it about them that's so hot right now?  I love them.  Maybe they remind us of that magical time in the 80s?  My dad had one when I was little... now it's kind of weird to see one.  Most guys I know grow a mustache after losing a bet.

Head on over to Oh' Boy Fourth Grade to link up!  

Did you remember to enter the giveaway!?  It ends tomorrow (Wednesday the 8th).  Hurry up!  Click here if you haven't.

3.  Classroom Website.  Do you have a website?  I promise you that it makes things SOOOOO much easier... and brings you into the 21st century.  If it makes sense for you to have one (meaning that most or all of your parents have access), then do it.  Spend a couple of hours setting it up and it will be easy to update throughout the year.  I've always used Shutterfly for my classroom sites because it allows for password protection and picture downloads/posting by parents.  It's easy to use and perfect if you're a beginner and don't want to spend time learning code and other geeky things.

A class site allows you to post files, get interactive with your students, make announcements, post videos, photos, link to YouTube and other sites you use, and more.  There are endless possibilities.  No, I can't share my previous ones with you... that was part of my agreement with parents.  :)

Here are my favorite options building a classroom website:

Shutterfly      Blogger      Weebly      SchoolRack
WebNode      Yola

4.  Energy.  Have you been exercising?  Yeah, me neither.  I like to make sure I'm stocked up on coffee and ensure my to-go mugs are ready.  Get back into your routine early if you've been taking Summer naps and eating bon-bons.... isn't that what teachers do all Summer?  We don't plan or work or anything.   {Hahahaha... yeah right}  Bottom line:  get healthy again if you've been slacking.

5.  A clean slate.  Make sure you're room and desk are clean and free of clutter.  Organize all of your things for the first week and get rid of stuff from the previous year(s) that you won't be using.  If you haven't used it in a year or two... do something with it.  Throw it away, recycle, donate, or store.  It's like that ugly teacher sweater.  Are you really going to wear it?  Or is it still hanging around because it always has?  Or do you just like collecting ugly sweaters?  Keep the stuff you will actually use and ditch the rest.  

6.  USB drive.  I have a collection of these little guys.  Keep one on your lanyard (with your keys).  Mine is a 16GB one.  Don't store any personal or 'sensitive things on it', but you'll be happy you have it.  You never know when you're going to have printer failure, your email won't work, your IT guy comes to steal your computer, or you need to carry files around with you. 

7.  Camera.  Keep one handy if you don't already have one in the room.  I kept one of my old ones in my desk drawer.  You never know when the mood will strike.  I loved taking little shots and sending them to parents:  "This is Anna reading all of her sight words!  Yay!"  Also, it makes it easier to document great ideas or classroom/lesson setups that you want to remember.  

Some of you are heading back to school very soon... can you believe Summer is almost over!?  Where has the time gone?  I have these 'My first day...' writing prompts if you need them!  I always have my kids draw a picture and write about their first day.  I've included PreK-5th and you can choose from plain or dotted lines.  I don't know any 5th graders that use dotted lines, but just in case.  :)  Get them for FREE on TPT.  

Got a sweet tooth?  I can't wait to use this candy calendar soon!  I just uploaded it today.  It's only $1.50 in my TPT shop.  Also, the first person to correctly guess my favorite candy (on the Facebook page) will win a copy!  It's definitely not licorice... eww.  

If you're interested in an awesome giveaway, head on over to Swimming Into Second.  She's doing a 10 day giveaway... very cool.  I never win anything, buy maybe you can.  :)

That's it for a few days!  I'm off to France for a wine trip with some girlfriends!

Sounds fancy right?  Don't be deceived.  Everything is close over here, so it's like driving from Kentucky to Georgia.... except there will be a lot of wine and French speaking involved.

Have a great week!