Bulletin Boards Made EASY!

Hey everyone! It's Karen from Mrs. Jones's Class and I am here with a quick and easy idea for you!

This was created in my last minute desperation last summer as I struggled with changing grade levels from Kindergarten to 5th grade, setting up a new classroom, learning the new curriculum, figuring out WHAT I was doing, buying a bajillion new things for the room (because I guessed that 5th graders wouldn't all love rainbows and polka dots), and needing to put together some kind of bulletin board that would be cute AND functional.... this easy anchor chart bulletin board was just the trick!

So. Do you create anchor charts? Of course you do!  There you go, you are already half way done.

I put up different color paper and a boarder to separate the subject areas, then printed out some big letters to make a focus for each of the sections. Suuuuuper easy!  I would display the anchor charts from our current units, just stapling each one on top of the next so that we could flip back to old ones if need be. 

Easy AND functional!

If you would like to use my letter headers for the different subject areas,

  you can download them here.

Enjoy!

<3 Karen

I am such a sucker for Valentine's Day stuff. The colors. The candy. The memories of trying to figure out what the choice of Garbage Pail Kids card meant from the boy I was crushing on... In my classroom, I definitely DOWNPLAY the love stuff with the holiday. I try to make it more of a friendship holiday - with pink, red, and hearts of course!

Just in case you are still looking for a quick Valentine's Day math activity, I made a short FREEBIE that includes 8 task cards for one step and two step word problems. It is perfectly aligned to the 2nd grade standards but could easily be used with some 1st graders and as a review for 3rd grade. You can pick it up for FREE by clicking here.

Enjoy!

Clip Art Addicts Unite...

Hola, peeps!  Stacy here from Funky Fresh Firsties.  I hope your weekend is off to a FAB start!  Stopping in to do a short post today and I wanted to share something that I do that makes hallway displays pop!  I have a crazy collection of clip art {we're teetering on a full blown addiction....shhhhh}.  I use my clip art to make classroom products obviously and I even use it to cute-sy up my newsletters, etc, but making my clip art into posters is one of my favorite things to do!  It is easy, fairly quick, I can get others to help, and I can use them over and over again! Here's my latest project with clip art posters:

We've been reading Lulu Walks the Dogs in class the last week or so and also working through my book companion.  The students complete character webs for each dog and I wanted to display those in a cute way.  I opened the PDF file on my laptop and projected it onto the SMART Board.  I used the zoom (+) button until the dog filled up the poster and taped the poster to the SMART board!
Then I traced the dog with a ball point pen fairly lightly.  It didn't need to be perfect because I would be outlining it more precisely later

Once I have the image (Cordelia the Dachshund in this case) traced... I go back with a FAB marker and outline carefully.  I love, love, really love the flip chart Sharpies!  I normally buy a few packs at the beginning of the school year at Really Good Stuff.

Yep, all outlined is so much better!  Now you can color it in or get the kids involved and let them help (if your OCD is minimal)... or enlist the help of parents, or husbands, or aides!  One of my favorite things to do is color the posters in with chalk.  I got some cheap chalk at IKEA on my last visit {swoon}.

A video of me coloring?  That's right... you're welcome! :)  In case you needed a tutorial!  Side note: it's hard to video yourself coloring with one hand...  this took some serious skill peeps!
Once you have your posters all finished... be sure to laminate for durability.  They look so amazing in the hallway with student work!  I like to try to add a 3-D type element to mine.... so this time I added yard between Lulu and all 3 dogs to look like a leash!

I made these to go along with the hallway display.  If you read Lulu Walks the Dogs and would like them... you can download them HERE!!!

Also, if you are in need of a book companion, you can find mine HERE!  I would HIGHLY recommend the Lulu books for 1st and 2nd graders!  Lulu and the Brontosaurus is amazing... and Lulu Walks the Dogs is also equally entertaining.  Grab both and watch your kiddos sit and listen in AMAZEMENT!

I hope that y'all will have a great weekend and that it will go by super SLOWLY!  You can keep up with my on FB over at Funky Fresh Firsties... let me know if you try the poster trick!!!  Talk to y'all soon!