I'm in love...

I'm so excited!  Look what came in the mail today...
It was a splurge but hey, teachers are worth it!  Two of my favorite things in life are quotes and organization.  This planner has both!!  Check out Erin Condren's website to see for yourself.  The regular price of the planner is $50 but I read on another blog that they go on sale right before school begins.  Hope everyone is having a happy Saturday!  I'm off to go admire my planner some more.

The most incredible pencil sharpener EVER!!

How many pencil sharpeners do you replace in a year??  Last school year was a good year for me, only 3.  Electronic pencil sharpeners are expensive, need replaced frequently and are so loud!  Luckily, I have found the answer to my pencil sharpener woes!!  The pencil sharpener from Classroom Friendly Supplies has answered my prayers.  Troy Decoff, owner of Classroom Friendly Supplies, was nice enough to let me test his sharpener.  It is inexpensive ($24.99), sharpens the pencil quickly and easily and is very quiet!  You can see the perfect point in my picture below!


So, where can you order a sharpener for your classroom?  Click on the button below to go to the Classroom Friendly Supplies website.

Also, a great BIG thank you to April at The Idea Backpack and Patti from Tales from a 4th (and 5th) Grade Teacher for awarding me The Versatile Blogger Award!!!  Check out their AWESOME blogs!!

More giveaways!

People are in a giveaway mood!!
Kelley at Teacher Idea Factory is having a 500 follower giveaway!
 Mrs. C at Just Wild About Teaching is having a 200 follower giveaway!
Shanyn at Coffee, Kids and Compulsive Lists is having a 100 follower giveaway!  My complete Number Jar set is part of this giveaway!!!
April at The Idea Backpack is having a 100 followers giveaway!
Make sure to click to enter each blog!!



100 Follower Freebie!!!

Sorry for the second post but... I've just hit 100 followers!!!!  Thanks to Marie at The Hands-On Teacher in First for being my 100th follower.  To show my gratitude, I would like to giveaway my Number Jar Workstation (Numbers 1-100) for free through Friday.  Just click on the picture below!
Again, a big thank you to everyone who reads my blog!  I began my blog 3 weeks ago and I'm thrilled that so many people would follow it!!

Another blog award!!!

I'm soooo excited to have received my second blog award!  A BIG thank you to Katie from Dirty Hands and Lesson Plans for awarding me with the Versatile Blogger award!

The rules for this award are as follows:

1.  Thank the blogger who nominated you.
2.  Include a link to their site.
3.  Include the award image in your post.
4.  Give 7 random facts about yourself
5.  Nominate 15 other bloggers for the award.
6.  When nominating, include a link to their site.
7.  Let other bloggers know they've been nominated.

So, seven random facts about myself are:
1. I ran my first marathon at the age of 42!  It was on my bucket list but I never thought I would actually accomplish it.  I'll be running my second (and last) marathon this October in Chicago at the age of 43.
2. My name is spelled Aimee instead of Amy because my mom hated the name but my dad insisted on naming me.
3. I was awarded Elementary Teacher of the Year by my school district in 2008.  One of the highlights of my teaching career.
4. When I was in kindergarten I sang Delta Dawn in the talent show because I wanted to be a country music singer when I grew up.  Funny thing is... I can't carry a tune and I hate country music!
5. I have a crazy memory when it comes to dates and numbers.  I can, given a date, usually tell you what I was doing on that date and what I was wearing.  
6. I am a thyroid cancer survivor.
7. I absolutely HATE to cook.  My husband does all the cooking at our house.  He is police lieutenant and is currently on 2nd shift.  My daughters and I are starving to death!

Drum roll please, I am now nominating the following blogs...


 Jackie at 3rd Grades a Charm
 Krista at Stellar Students
 Darleen at Third Grade Love
 Yvonne at Sassy in Second
 Lyndsey at A Year of Many Firsts
 April at Wolfelicious

On a side note, I'm almost at 100 followers!!  I'll be giving away a FREEBIE to everyone when I reach 100!

Teaching American History Grant

Today I wanted to share with a you a wonderful opportunity that I was given a year and a half ago.  I was chosen to be part of a grant that my school system was awarded.  The Teaching American History Grant is given out all over the United States.  I applied to be a part of this grant because, if you were like me, I didn't pay much attention in my high school history classes and felt like I needed a refresher. Our grant cohort consists of 15 elementary and middle school teachers.  We have taken 3 graduate level courses.  Two in  19th and 20th century American history and a course in Understanding By Design.  We spent last summer (and this summer) writing units for teachers in our school district on topics that we chose to focus on from each century.  We also have "field trips" that we take during the school year and summer.  Most are day trips but we also go on two 5 day excursions.  Last year's focus was Indiana in the 19th century.  We traveled to historical sites and museums throughout the southern part of the state.   This July we will be traveling to Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama to visit sites that relate to the Civil Rights Movement. 
Probably the most exciting opportunity we've had was to go listen to and meet Ruby Bridges.  I can not even begin to describe to you the feelings that I had listening to her tell her story. 

      Ruby Bridges signing her book for me!!

This experience has been a lot of work and very time consuming but I feel I am a better teacher because of it!  Thanks for listening!

More giveaways!

I just found this cute blog this morning and can't wait to read her post!  Laura at Will Grade for Coffee is having a 100 follower giveaway.  Click the picture below to enter!

Also, Michelle over at No Monkey Business is having a 300 followers Giveaway.  A $30 Amazon gift card is part of the giveaway, so click the image below to enter!
 Have a wonderful Sunday!  I'm off to take my youngest daughter to soccer camp for the week.  Wright State University will never be the same!

Blog Award!

I'm so excited!  After two and a half weeks of blogging, I've been awarded...
from Katie and Lisen at Second Grade Smartypants!
So now I get to pass it on to others.  Once you receive the award, you must follow 3 rules:
1.  Follow the person that gave you the award
2.  Link back to the person that gave you the award
3.  Pass the award on to 15 new bloggers
I'm passing the award on to the following blogs...















Click on their buttons to check out their blogs!!