07 January 2015

NEW blog design ~ Thanks to the 3am Teacher!

LOVING our new blog design by 3am Teacher!
Our  new button one of my favorite things about the design.   


Thank you to Michelle T. from 3am Teacher designs.  She was so great to work with!  My sister and I are so excited about our new blog design. 
Michelle really listened to our vision for this design - which was clean and simple with a tropical feel.  We both love the beach, so we wanted our design to reflect what we love.  The design conversation started with me sharing this old STARFISH story with Michelle. 


I often think of this story and how it relates to education.   WE come in contact with so many students over our career.  We sometimes need to keep in mind - amid all of the data tracking, assessments, and other extraneous nonsense we are required to do these days...
Every teacher does make a difference! 
WE may not know the effect we have until years later ~ but I like to think that we have a positive impact on our 
students every single day!

We hope you love our new design!
We are here to share tips and ideas, lesson plans, and products that will make your life a breeze! 

Be sure to follow us - we are also going to be adding some ideas, recipes, and information for you to use in your personal life - for a Healthy New You!  We hope you stop back for the FREE tools we will be sharing to help you stay on track in the NEW YEAR!  We also will be adding free products in our freebies section!  We can't wait to get that section of our blog filled with great activities for you to use in your classroom.
Here is to new blog designs ~ new beginnings and a Healthy NEW YOU!  

03 January 2015

Martin Luther King Jr. FREEBIE

Martin Luther King Jr.  ~ Timeline Freebie
 
The life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is an important part of history.  WE all have the responsibility to teach our students about this amazing leader.    Often I hear teachers talk about how they can't fit in Social Studies as much as they would like - due to curriculum overload and simply not enough time in the day.  I am sure we all work very hard to try to squeeze it in ~ but at times we fall short of the mark when it comes to doing a man like Martin justice.  I hate hearing teachers say they touched on it for a day.  I spend the entire week immersing my students in the life of MLK Jr.  I find those teachable moments and run with it ~ this unit offers so much to learn  - not just the history - but life lessons that all children will benefit from. 
  
   In my 21 years in the classroom, I have found that integrating Social Studies and Science are the only way to fit it in.. so I have developed numerous integrated units to complement the units I need to teach.
Here is a preview of our unit that was just UPDATED this week ~ I love the clipart from Melonheadz and Creative Clips - it makes the unit so much better!!
 


 
To help you get started we want to share this FREEBIE with  you !
This is part of the larger unit shown above.   
Here is a peek at it - click here to download.

 
 
 
Let's take the time and teach our students about this amazing leader!   He deserves the recognition!
Honor Dr. King this year and every year!