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Sarah Plum

K-5 Resources for Diverse Classrooms

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You are here: Home / Archives for Freebie

Check!

July 26, 2012 by Sarah Plum(itallo) 17 Comments

Freebie Fridays


Another project off my “to-do” list! I’m steadily making some progress, which is good, because I have less than a month to go!


I had pinned this a million years ago from Mel D. at Seusstastic Classroom Inspirations and kept coming back to it. As I would go on my “errands” and see things that would be perfect for a traditional treasure box in the Dollar Spot or bargain aisle, I kept trying to decide what I wanted to do in terms of rewards in my classroom.

During my student teaching, I tried both approaches. I used a treasure box in one placement, and rewards like these in the other. The kids responded the most positively to the rewards that, I felt, meant something. That’s not to say treasure boxes aren’t valuable or important if that’s what works for your classroom — I think it’s important to do what works for you and your students! These kiddos, however, really liked the additional classroom privileges and duties that they could earn.

I’ve been brainstorming for a few weeks now — off and on — what rewards I could possibly implement. I came up with 12 to start with, knowing that I’ll likely tweak them once I get to know my kiddos and what they value the most:




The reward I’m most excited about my students earning and redeeming is definitely the “be an expert” reward. I look forward to collaborating with students on a mini-lesson that they’ll teach to their peers… I definitely think that will be a big hit and something valued by all my kiddos!
This system is within my “Be Oz-Some” behavior plan, so of course I had to make a label to that effect! I’m planning on creating a quick log for me to check off what reward a student chooses, and then write when they redeem it — that way I have some data about what’s working and what isn’t.
I would love for you to head on over and pick these up for FREE in my TPT store if you think they would be useful in your classroom! Not every reward will fit your style or classroom system, but I hope that a few will — and of course, there’s two labels to choose from too. (When I create my reward log, I’ll post that as a Google Doc freebie as well.)

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Freebie, Getting Organized, Student Teaching, Teachers Pay Teachers, The Wizard of Oz

It’s Monday!

July 23, 2012 by Sarah Plum(itallo) 11 Comments

Who would’ve thought Monday would become my favorite day of the week? It totally has! I look forward to Monday Made It alllllllll week long — both because I’m excited to share my hard work, but also because I am so inspired by what everyone else creates!

Mr. Plum and I took our little guy on an adventure this weekend to see the Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center, a part of the National Air and Space Museum. William has a *tiny* obsession with space (and by tiny, I mean massive) and we couldn’t resist the opportunity to let him see the shuttle Discovery in person.
Let me just tell you… I teared up. We’ve been over my propensity to tear-up before, but oh my word, y’all. The nerd in me was not prepared for the sight of that spacecraft and the opportunity to see her up close. To see that, no, her surface is not shiny, and oh? that’s a stencil?!
Those types of moments are the moments we want our students to have. Those moments of complete awe and wonder. Those moments of discovery.

Which led me to this:

I took more than 150 photos while we were at the Hazy Center, and when I got to this one while reviewing them on my computer I just stopped. And then I thought, “this has to be in my classroom.” I jokingly turned to my husband and said, “hey — Discovery: it’s not just for astronauts.”
As soon as the words left my mouth my eyes got all wide and my brain did that thing where I just had to make this poster before I did anything else. And then I thought of all of you — and thought maybe, just maybe, there’d be someone out there that would want this in their classroom too.
This file is large enough to print as a 16×20 poster (I’m picking mine up at Costco this afternoon!!!), and comes with a release in the .zip file for you to do so without any hassle. I’ve uploaded it to my TPT store; you can either click here or on the image to go and download it!
To sweeten this Monday Made It, I would like to giveaway a printed 16×20 poster of this to one lucky follower. Simply enter the Rafflecopter below, and I’ll choose a winner on Friday!
I’m also planning on participating in TBA’s Freebie Friday this week in which I’m going to put together a pack of images of the space shuttle and other Smithsonian highlights I took that you can utilize for classroom use. (I actually went to art school briefly for photography, but that’s a story for another day!) So follow me and check back so that you don’t miss it!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Freebie, Giveaway Like It's 1999, It's science., Monday Made It

(wo)Man Behind The Curtain + FREEBIE!

July 16, 2012 by Sarah Plum(itallo) 12 Comments

Let me start out by saying I am totally and completely floored by the amount of support and interest that’s been generated since I started out this little old blog. I’ve gotten such positive feedback, and cannot overstate how much useful advice has been dispensed to me (FOR FREE! Y’all know I love free!).
Part of that support has come in the support of these three awards:

From: Teresa @ Fun Games 4 Learning, Antonia @ Forkin Fourth, Julie @ Math is Elementary, Rachelle @ Teacher on the Loose, Mrs. Rios @ Mrs. Rios Teaches Second Grade, and Storie @ Stories by Storie. Thank you so much, ladies!!!
The rules are pretty much the same for all of them, but the Versatile Blogger Award requires that I give y’all 7 random facts about myself. So, without further delay:
  1. My husband and I both completed the same five-year Bachelor/Master program… together. Yep, we even sat next to each other during our graduation ceremony (talk about emotional) and took our official picture together!
  2. I’m gluten intolerant… which can be a real bummer sometimes! I’m trying to gauge how to deal with this in my own classroom — as far as treats for my kiddos — so we’ll see how it goes. Any fellow gluten-free teachers?
  3. I’m a terrible dancer but I love to dance. It’s really the best, and something I came to love when it was the only thing that would calm my fussy baby-turned-toddler down.
  4. I can trace my roots on my mother’s side back to the Mayflower, and on my father’s side back to Mary Queen of Scots. Pretty awesome, if I do say so myself.
  5. I’m mildly obsessed with fonts. And by mildly, I mean I can pretty much identify any font by name in under 30 seconds. (Just ask Ginger!)
  6. I’m probably the only elementary teacher that’s not a fan of Skippyjon Jones. At all. (I’m ducking all the rotten tomatoes right now!)
  7. Shopping for school supplies and organizing things is my version of zen. Big-time.
SO — Instead of nominating individual blogs myself, I’d like to have everyone leave a comment linking back to your blog! I love finding new blogs, and I know others do too — so this is a perfect way to put yourself out there and to also find some new bloggers to follow!
I also wanted to share one piece of decor I finished for the classroom today:

This will hang in my classroom during the first week of school (and then outside our door after that). I am so excited to have it finished — it was actually super easy to do!
I know an Oz-themed room is pretty out-of-the-norm, but I know that many teachers utilize it as a book study, or party-theme, etc., and so I’m offering the pennant in my TPT store (in three sizes; the size I chose is the 7.5″ size) for FREE! So head on over and pick it up!
And just another reminder — if you haven’t already — my giveaway closes at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday! Make sure you are entered!

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Classroom Decor, Freebie, Meet the Teacher, Teachers Pay Teachers, The Wizard of Oz

Oh, Target. You had me at $1.00.

July 10, 2012 by Sarah Plum(itallo) 19 Comments

Our local Target turned over their Dollar Spot today to the back-to-school teacher goodies, so I was able to pick up a few more lightbulb stress-relievers for my classroom, and my husband was able to get some globe stress-relievers for his kiddos. (We also got some wipe-off sleeves, but those aren’t as exciting… clearly.)

I decided that I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to create something surrounding the globe stress-relievers, so I added-on to the lightbulb packet I posted this morning to include a “world of possibilities” version for your kiddos. (Even if your local Target lacks either of these stress-relievers, you can find cheap globe stress-relievers online! Yay, Internet!)


So if you have already downloaded the packet, head back on over to my TPT store to re-download! (Or just click the picture below!)

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Classroom Decor, Freebie, I (heart) Target, Monday Made It

Monday Made It + a Freebie!

July 9, 2012 by Sarah Plum(itallo) 63 Comments

I’m excited about today’s Monday Made It, because it’s something I saw on Pinterest and then had no choice but to complete after finding the perfect materials on my Michaels trip.

Moment of silence y’all, for Dorothy-gingham plates — 12 for $1. Perfect for my bulletin board headers (no purchasing of expensive letters!) and my word wall.
I thought that was going to be my only Monday Made It… but then I found these in the Target Dollar Spot:

What is it? A stress-reliever. And so this was born:
I’ve used stress-relievers before in the classroom to give kiddos a little brain-break and some tactile input, but these were begging to be used as a focal point for kiddos that are stuck.
So I created a little packet with a projectable anchor chart, a reproducible anchor chart, the labels, and some guidance on how I utilize stress-relievers in the classroom and plan on using these. You can find it by clicking on the cover below (it’ll take you to it on TPT)!
I would love to know what you’ve utilized in your classroom to get students “unstuck” and on the path to a lightbulb moment — share in the comments!
So there you have it, my Monday Made Its! I’ll be back later today or tomorrow to share a few things I’ve been working on for my classroom, as well as my plan to tackle creating my language arts curriculum for the first few weeks.
Update: Head on over to this post to see what I added to my “encouraging lightbulb moments” packet and re-download it at my TPT store!

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Classroom Decor, Freebie, Monday Made It, Teachers Pay Teachers, The Wizard of Oz

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About the Author

Sarah Plum(itallo) is a teacher of emerging multilinguals and 21st Century Grant coordinator in Virginia. She writes curriculum for inclusive classrooms and presents professional development on a variety of topics.

Read more about Sarah and her background in education here.

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