It’s Father’s Day! Do you have big plans today? We went to church and had hot dogs. That’s kind of a normal thing for my church. You can also go to my church and have tacos. Or In and Out. Pretty much any time something is being celebrated, you can bet our church is going to celebrate it with food out on the patio.
No, I did not join our church because of all the food.
I didn’t.
Our family is actually postponing Father’s Day until Kerry arrives. But let it be known that I love my dad and I am so thankful for him. He is really and truly our rock. And once, when my sister, brother, some neighbor kids and I were walking to school in Houston, Texas, he was truly a hero.
This big bad fourth or fifth grader kept throwing rocks at us and we would have to run reallyreallyreally fast past his house every day. Or maybe it was just the one time. I don’t really remember. But we were skerd.
We told my dad (who was probably all of 32 years old at the time) and he snuck over to the kid’s house early one morning and waited in the bushes . . . And as we walked/ran/hurried past the house, the huge third grader came out ready to aim his gigantic scary boulders at us and my dad POPPED UP OUT OF THE BUSHES and said . . .
Love the organization tip!
Jennifer
First Grade Blue SKies
Love the library card pocket use!! I keep my calendar cover ups in a long skinny box with dividers (holla) that I got from The Container Store. (Seriously glad that store is WAAAY on the other side of town; it is too dangerous.) I use velcro dots on the backs of mine, so they will not fit in the pockets – but I still think that is ingenious!! I'll have to use that idea for something else – they make them so cute these days.
Linda, do you know the name or type of long skinny box you use from The Container Store? I used to only have two sets of calendar pieces–black dates for normal days + red dates for important days (plus cards for birthdays and holidays of course), but I just acquired all new cutesy calendar pieces to change every month–turkeys, pumpkins, etc. I use velcro on mine as well & I need a box or drawers that are appropriately sized for my sanity! (My old box was PERFECT!) I was looking into the Smart Store totes–maybe the medium inserts and handled trays? but I am trying to do it all online and it's hard to make sure it will be right. Thanks for any help you can give!
I bought a couple of the three drawer plastic thingies at Wal-Mart, I keep them in plastic sheets in the drawers by month, I also store my words of the month with them, because they hang in the same area. I take them down in order so the next year I don't do a primal scream when it is time to start a new month. Also, I like change so I have three or four different themes for each month so I don't have to have the same stuff up every year. I am a one of those people who loves containers, I tried several things before this became my favorite and I stuck with it.
I hope you have a great day.
You are good! I love organization- this would be far better that my system (which is baggies with each month's inside). I also LOVED your dad story! I can see why he's your hero. I tried to comment on your guest post the other day (the one where you wrote about your passion for writing). I wrote it twice & it didn't post ?????? so I gave up! I wanted to say that I am so glad that you're able to follow your passion. It is evident to me that you are a gifted writer and I am so happy you follow your passion. I always smile/laugh when I read your posts & sometimes have even been known to spit things out of my mouth because of something you wrote (uncontrolled because of laughing). I bet you are a fun teacher! You go girl! Carol
Hmmm….this post makes my basket full of labeled ziploc bags look really bad! Ha! We celebrate birthdays with cookies and cupcakes and the occasional SHEET CAKE which I have to cut and serve to all 25 of my Kinder-babies. It all depends on how much the parent wants to torture me, I think. 😉
Jill
ABCs and Polkadots
I just have all mine rubber-banded together by months and thrown into a "calendar" bag. lol!
I love the idea of treat bags to celebrate birthdays. I am always very close to losing it when a parent brings 2 dozen cupcakes for 30 kids with bright blue frosting, drinks, pizza and balloons, without letting me know, right in the middle of instruction. They just waltz right in with siblings and all. Treat bags would be a faster, easier and sanity saving alternative.
Ha, I wish my calendar stuff was organized! I JUST finished my first year (and it wasn't even a whole year, I took over after the first quarter, so I started off behind and it just got worse. Pretty sure the rest of kindergarten was in a different time zone by the end!) and didn't even get my own calendar set until the end of November, so I don't even have it all laminated and have only a vague idea where any of it is right now. As for birthdays….sometimes parents bring cupcakes or cookie cake. Sometimes not. I never know until they show up. (Side note–I just started blogging and I've been back-stalking you from the beginning. I share your vision pain. I'm -12 in the right eye and -14 in the left. AND I got stuck with a contact problem and wearing glasses for over 6 months, with the dreaded Tiny Eye Syndrome that makes me look even MORE like a middle-schooler! Thank goodness that's over!)
Happy Sunday!
This is the same box I use to file tracer letters and our lunch menu choices.
Laurie
Yep, certified whack-a-doodle, Teeny!! I'm with Jill…this makes my labeled ziploc bags {that are thrown in the top drawer of my desk because I rarely use it except for calendar pieces!!} look awful! Maybe I will become a certified whack-a-doodle, too. 😉 I love that you pre-fill-out their birthday cards! Tho thmart!! xoxo
Nicole
Oh man! I've had mine in one of those "ancient" cardboard pencil boxes we got years ago in school, just paperclipped together….definitely using this idea! Thanks so much.
I always celebrate my summer birthdays as half birthdays. When summer rolls around I send them a birthday card in the mail. The first day of school they always come to me and thank me for remembering their day.
Love the box idea…so much easier than what I've been doing! 🙂
I use one of the boxes you're supposed to use to store magnetic letters. I guess they kinda look like a tackle box?? Anyway, I used the little dividers to make 16 slots that perfectly fit my calendar pieces. 12 are for the individual months and the other 4 slots are for things like birthdays, special days, field trip, etc. I like that when I open up the top, I can see everything in one glance. The lid snaps shut and the box goes back in the closet!
❤ Karen
flamingofab@gmail.com
Flamingo Fabulous in Second Grade
What are calendar cover ups?
Our Bridges curriculum calendar has 4-inch-square pockets and pieces, so they would never fit in pockets! Lame! We have to use quart-size baggies (sandwich is too small!) and they're all in a shoebox. Yours looks much nicer though! I do like the big squares we have because each one has a pattern on it, or a skill to practice (like sums or Base 10 pieces). Calendar is a huge part of my math time (21 versus 12 anyone?) and it's nice to have the added curriculum focus!
I always have a snack calendar for kids to bring in snacks on a given day. I go through the Bdays and plug in their birthdays on the calendar. Then they are signed up for 'snacks' that day – what they choose to bring in – is up to them! I too, often have families that send in a sheet cake with ice cream (no knife to cut it with, forks, plates etc.)
Whatever summer birthdays are left over I look over the months and find a few with nothing or some years I plug in their days the last week of school! (If there are only a couple of kids)
I love that you let the summer kids choose a day to celebrate. So sweet! Great organization, too.
Kristin
My Carolina Classroom
This is such a great idea! I am giving my calendar a complete overhaul this summer and this tip is just what I needed to get more organized. We don't have any hard rules on birthday treats, but I ask for the parents NOT to send cupcakes because they are huge and messy. Most parents send cupcakes anyways. I always celebrate my summer birthdays in our ABC countdown at the end of the year. If I have a lot of summer birthdays, then we celebrate their half birthday.
Amanda
Mrs. Pauley’s Kindergarten
What a great idea! I can't wait to use this.