Monday Made It: Week 7

It's Monday!  These Summer Mondays are my favorite of the entire year.  I love seeing all the ideas every single week.  Really!  My Monday mornings usually go as follows.  Wake up as early as possible to check out 4th Grade Frolics blog (on my phone) to see if she's posted.  She always has since I'm way over on the West Coast.  Then I stumble downstairs to link my post up to her blog, get some breakfast in me, and start reading all the posts.  Mondays are the day that I tend to pin a bunch of stuff.  Overload on Pinterest!  I do take a break throughout the posts to feed the dog and fish, check in with my boys, get ready for the day, etc... but mainly I'm getting caught up on blog world.

I got so excited on Saturday that I already posted some of my Made Its.  I couldn't wait!  Chutes and Ladders turned into an Order of Operation Game, and all my Math Interactive Notebooks are D.O.N.E.

  

My sons also made up my birthday pencils for next year.  They said they were bored, so I "helped" them to find something to do.  I doubt they will complain again anytime soon.  This time around I decided to do the simple route.  I had picked up these foam stars and some pencils from the Target Dollar Spot.  No offense to my laminator, but I am tired of cutting things out.  The packages of foam stars even came with little adhesive tabs that made it extra easy to stick a pencil on the bottom.  

This weekend has been filled with creating a project that is near and dear to me.  I absolutely LOVE my Morning Math Meeting every day, and I really wanted to do the same idea with Vocabulary.  After searching high and low, I decided to create some headers and activities that I can stick into a pocket chart for my students to work with words every day.

Introducing: Wonderful Weekly Words!

 I made up 25 headings and 10 different vocabulary cards.  I don't have a pocket chart at home but here's the idea on my carpet.  

Each day will have the kids working with a new Word of the Day in addition to another type of word.  The plan (at this moment) is Mondays for Homonyms, Tuesdays for Prefix/Suffix, Wednesdays for Roots, Thursdays for Character Traits, and Fridays for Specials - basically words in other categories.  Friday will also be a review day.  Each week the pocket chart will look like this to start our Monday morning.  Those little activity cards will rotate around throughout the week for kids to do different things with the words, and I'll add specific word cards under each heading.  The kids will write in their notebooks, creating their own dictionaries of words we learned throughout the year.  

To keep everything organized, I took my portable file box and changed it up. 

I printed off the headers and activity cards half page to save ink (and paper).  At the moment they are tucked into the box.  I also have a hanging file folder dedicated to each type of word that I know my students will be using each week.  This will be easy to keep over on the carpet near my rolling pocket chart holder.  

Speaking of file folders... I also ordered a new teacher bag for this coming school year.  My friend is currently having a Thirty One party, so I decided to splurge on a Zip Top Organizing Utility Tote.  Then I had to get the matching bottle holder and key fob too.  The beauty of this bag is that it fits a portable file folder box inside.  Easy way to keep things organized while bringing things home to grade.  

Isn't it pretty?!?

     

Now I know it has nothing to do with a Made It since I just ordered it... I'm just so excited that I wanted to share.  :)  Here's an image from The Nest Effect with the file folder system.  I'm hopeful that mine will be as organized.   

I also made up Ninja Summer Boot Camp for my own boys.  It's over on Google Docs if you want it.   We have 4 weeks until the first day of school, and they really need to start remembering their skills.  A little practice a day for the next 4 weeks and they should be good to go!  

Basically, the kids choose one math, reading, review, and research activity per day from the list of choices.  There's no need to be bored...  

When completed they color in that activity.  If you don't like an activity, just make up your own.  :)  Some activities are on there twice.  Hope it helps!     

Have a wonderful day!