Spoonful of Confetti and Creativity

Top 5 Picks for a Farmhouse Classroom

Home Sweet Classroom! A Farmhouse classroom is timeless. I absolutely love the style. This style cultivates a home away from home feel for students, parents, and teachers. Here are my top 5 favorite products to help create your very own farmhouse classroom. Enjoy!

1. Black Pocket Charts:

Black pocket charts are the way to go! They are the perfect background to make your farmhouse decor POP. You can find all the pocket charts you need on amazon. I will post a few below.

Calendar Pocket Chart

Small Pocket Chart

Double Sided Table Top Pocket Chart

2. Greenery Decor

Greenery adds so much to a classroom. I love to group student desks and place the plants in the middle. It also looks great on teacher desks, near pencil holders, and really anywhere to fill some space. My favorite plants are at T.J. Maxx and Ikea. The ones posted below are from Ikea.

Galvanized Pot

Greenery

3. Farmhouse Lighting

An inviting environment is so important for student success. I personally feel that lighting helps students feel more comfortable and at home. I LOVE these lights. The lights can be hung above a smart board, above student desks, word wall, or above a teacher desk.

Farmhouse Lighting

$$$ Saver Farmhouse Lighting

4. Rae Dunn Decor

Farmhouse+Rae Dunn=the perfect match!!! All teachers are seriously obsessed with the cuteness and adventure when it comes to finding the perfect Rae Dunn decor. I am personally in search of the "write" pencil holder and "create" mug. I'll find it one day and put it in my classroom! I did find some Rae Dunn on amazon but I highly recommend searching at T.J. Maxx and Home goods.

5. Ship lap Wallpaper

Last but not least....ship lap wall paper! This can do wonders in a classroom with those ugly neon cabinets you can't stand! I love putting ship lap on an accent wall. For example, I would use this as a backdrop around my white board. It is also fun putting it in the front of a teacher desk. Below I have ship lap, buffalo plaid, and brick wall paper. All great for a farmhouse classroom!

Ship lap Wallpaper

Brick Wallpaper

Buffalo Plaid Wallpaper

I hope you are inspired and feel more confident about your farmhouse classroom! Be sure to check out my Farmhouse Classroom Decor Bundle that will help create your farmhouse vision. ENJOY! <3

Top 10 Teacher Must Haves

Is this your 1st year teaching and do not know where to begin with the teacher essentials? Have you been teaching for a while and looking for quality teacher must haves? Do you feel like you have a million clothes but NOTHING to wear? I have collected 10 of my most used and loved teacher products, clothing, and accessories that I literally use all the time. I want to share my trial and error of different products as a teacher, and hope you find something useful for this coming school year :)

Classic Black

Number 1: Classic Black Pants

I cannot even tell you how many times I wear these black pants! The one thing teachers should buy are neutrals! I dress these up with colorful tops, cardigans, and accessories. These pants make my mornings less stressful and coordinating my outfits a lot easier. These pants are only $34 too! Link Below:

http://oldnavy.gap.com/browse/product.do?cid=1018059&pcid=5475&vid=1&pid=525427022

Earth Shoes

Number 2: Earth Brand Shoes

I have told my husband to ONLY buy me these shoes for my birthday and Christmas!! I am 100% in love with Earth Brand Shoes! I can work all day in these beauties and my feet still feel amazing! They are pricey, but definitely worth it. Believe me, my closet is FILLED with shoes, but for the past year I have only worn my 3 pairs of earth brand shoes!! They have so many different styles and colors. Also, take a look at their sale section. My favorite pair are on sale! They are a game changer.

http://www.earthbrands.com/item/earth-shoes-sky-womens-gladiator-sandal/50317

http://www.earthbrands.com/item/earth-shoes-daylily-womens-wedge-sandal/50303/281

Lanyard

Number 3: Teacher Lanyard

Every teacher has one! I love buying a new lanyard every few years. I try to look for simple fun patterns that go with all outfits. Are you loving all things cactus? Might as well match with a lanyard!!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/512666098/cute-key-lanyard-striped-lanyard-badge?ref=hp_rv

https://www.etsy.com/listing/519956885/cactus-lanyard-cute-lanyard-southwest?ref=hp_rv

Teacher Bag

Number 4: Teacher Bag

Make sure you get a good one! I prefer more of a book bag than a purse, but I still wanted to get something stylish. This one is adorable and can hold so much including a laptop! This beauty is only $29 on amazon!

https://www.amazon.com/Leather-Like-Vintage-Womens-Backpack-School/dp/B00KTVI0WA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500264621&sr=8-1&keywords=zebella+backpack

Business Cards

Number 5: Teacher Business Cards

I don’t use business cards everyday, but they do make you easily accessible, and look very professional to parents. I print up my business cards and hot glue a magnet to the back so parents can put the card on their fridge. They are given out during open house/ meet the teacher. I put a link for adorable cactus business cards, but there are also plenty of free ones as well with different themes.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Cactus-Business-Cards-Editable-3203974

Lip Sense

Number 6: Lipstick

I love how lipstick puts an outfit together….but I love to drink coffee even more throughout the day and my lipstick is off before the kids even come to my classroom! This lip stick brand was seriously made with busy women in mind! This lipstick does NOT come off unless you rub it hard with a wash cloth. They are sold by independent distributors, but I have found most colors on amazon as well!

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=lipsense

Teacher Cup

Number 7: Teacher Water Bottle

I carry my water bottle around everywhere! It’s nice to just have a cute one :) One thing I do recommend is getting a large sized bottle so that you don’t have to refill it throughout the day.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/527449468/black-and-white-stripe-striped-glitter

https://www.etsy.com/listing/463360054/chevron-apple-monogram-decal-yeti?ref=hp_rv

Fancy Dress

Number 8: One Fancy Dress

Open house, meet the teacher, school plays, staff presentations.....the list can go on and on! It is good to have one fancy dress you feel really beautiful in and can quickly pull out of your closet. I love this one here!

http://www.dillards.com/p/gianni-bini-rotar-bloom-floral-wrap-dress/506918769?di=04953640_zi_black&categoryId=894&facetCache=pageSize%3D96%26beginIndex%3D0%26orderBy%3D1%26facet%3D-100271105971101101053266105110105

Teacher Binder

Number 9: Teacher Binder

The place where EVERYTHING goes! I take my work home everyday. Inside of it is a calendar, pacing guides, lesson plans, and notes for the day. Make sure you prep this binder NOW, so that you are less stressed during pre-planning. There are so many different teacher binders out there. Find one that you absolutely love.

https://www.macys.com/shop/product/russell-hazel-mini-3-ring-binder?ID=2717418&CategoryID=51662

Teacher t-shirt

Number 10: Friday Teacher T-shirt

Fridays are usually more casual for teachers, so this is the perfect opportunity to show off your cute teacher t-shirt! I love seeing teachers sporting their teacher gear, and getting excited about teaching. Madison Market Designs is one of my favorite places to shop for teacher t-shirts!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/MadisonMarketDesigns

Thank you for checking out my top 10 teacher essentials! What are some of your top teacher essentials? Comment below! :) Happy Shopping!!

Teaching Money!

Welcome!!! If you are here than you are looking for primary money activities/lessons, aligned to current 2017 standards that enrich, reteach, and engage!

I have both FREE! activities and a bundle packet (over 100 pages) in this blog and link below:
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/No-Prep-Money-Packet-Worksheets-Centers-and-Test-Confetti-and-Creativity-3129479

Money is such a fun thing to teach in the primary grades! I love their imagination when it comes to playing store, and counting out to see who has the most money.

Even though it's a blast to teach, if you do not have the right resources, students may learn surface-level instruction of money. It is my goal to integrate standards whenever possible, and to create a deep-solid foundation where their roots are steadily grounded in the instruction previously taught, before we move on to money.

One thing that students MUST have a solid grasp with before learning money is knowing base ten. They need to make the connection that 1 penny is the same as 1 cube, 1 nickel is the same as 5 cubes, a dime is 1 ten or 1 rod, and a quarter is 2 rods and 5 cubes. If they are going to have success with counting combinations of coins, they will need this knowledge. Enjoy the FREEBIE! below to use as a reference to help your students. Click on the link: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Money-FREEBIE-Anchor-Chart-Confetti-and-Creativity-3135070

The resources you will see are aligned to the following standards:

**Identify the value of coins (pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters).

**Compute the value of combinations of coins. Includes dime and penny combinations.

**Relate the value of pennies, dimes, and quarters to the dollar (e.g., There are 100 pennies or ten dimes or four quarters in one dollar.) Nickels also included.

Let's start off with identifying coins. I love to start off my unit with this song that my students literally ask me ALL the TIME to play. I don't mind though, it's so catchy!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ARNqyQ0CuY

Then I move on to teaching the names of the coins and their value using the anchor charts below (comes with all coins). I like to begin teaching coins by having them observe the coins. Sorting them in all possible ways: color, size, texture (some coins have rough edges/smooth), faces, and so on. Then we move onto filling out bubble maps about the coin, drawing the front and back of all coins, and coloring mazes to memorize the face/back of the coin and more!

Get the quarter anchor chart for FREE! HERE! https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Money-FREEBIE-Confetti-and-Creativity-3129555

Try the maze worksheet above for FREE!

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Money-FREEBIE-Confetti-and-Creativity-3129555

This small group game is simple but powerful when memorizing what the coin looks like and it's value. It also comes with plenty of puzzle activities for teacher table and center time.

Puzzles

Once students are familiar with matching the coin to the name, we move onto the value of the coin. Below are just a few preview activities that help students identify coins and their value.

After students have grasped identifying coins and the value we move on to computing the value of coin combination, especially dime and penny combinations. Counting pennies and dimes is a standard with not a lot of resources out there. I made sure to include a variety of dime and penny worksheets and centers.

Base ten rods and cubes become really handy during this time. I relate base ten any time I get when modeling counting coins. I encourage my struggling students to use them in correlation with their money manipualtives.

Try the shopping worksheet above for FREE!

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Money-FREEBIE-Confetti-and-Creativity-3129555

This activity can be used as a roam the room, reteach at teacher table, or partner work. It also includes optional rigorous questions. I made it for the following combinations: pennies, nickels. dimes, quarter, pennies and dimes.

The following activities are meant for enrichment:

If you want 100% student engagement during small group/partner work this is a student FAVORITE!

Students will roll a dice, move their game piece, count the amount and cover the value. Whoever gets 4 in a row WINS! Made for the following coin combinations: penny, nickel, dime, quarter, penny and dime.

Last, we move onto counting coins to a dollar. I use the following anchor charts to refer back to when teaching coin combinations. Includes all coins.