TPT Seller.... Finally!

As I mentioned in my Summer Projects post, I had a goal to get some of my teaching resources up on Teachers Pay Teachers. I am pretty tech savvy (or so I thought) so I figured it would be a simple process. Update and jazz up the resources I have already, and post them. Then I can start making more. Easy peasy, right?

WRONG!

It was definitely not as easy as I thought it would be! Roadblock after roadblock, I have spent many long summer hours working on this goal! First, my resources were made with only the intention to use them in my own classroom. So I had to go through them and change anything that might be a copyright infringement, replacing images, fonts, backgrounds, etc with ones I have purchased the rights to. Crediting and linking everyone. Creating cover pages and end pages. I was lucky to stumble across some extremely helpful websites, such Teaching in the Tongass and Erica's EDventures. Learning how to flatten and secure my documents took the longest (especially since I didn't even know what that meant!) and I had many trials and errors along the way. 

But this morning, I DID IT! I posted my first product (first one is always a freebie) for the teachers of the world to use! Or not. I really don't know if it is even that good. I have two more products to post, and then I have work to do if I want to make more! I have some old (and super old) stuff I could revamp and post, but that might be more work than starting from scratch! All in all, I had fun learning all the new tech, and am excited to delve into the world of being a Teacher-Seller! 

My very first TPT product!!!

Summer Projects

When people invariably ask me in the month of June "Are you excited for Summer?" I think that they imagine me chilling on a beach somewhere with a mojito, not thinking about school at all. Usually I let them think that, (I don't want to seem like some sort of freak) but really I am excited at the prospect of having time to LEARN!!! Super nerd here! 

The last few summers I was taking university Ed Psych courses, and I thoroughly enjoyed them, but I am taking a break from that for a bit (mostly due to the cost of university courses, sheesh!) and focusing on Ed Tech. I am starting my summer of learning by taking the Google Certified Educator Level 1 course, and so far it is pretty basic. I am hoping to blast through it and take Level 2 as well. I am so excited to use even more Tech in my classroom this year, and am thrilled that I will actually have some Tech Coach time embedded in my position to help others in my school with Tech implementation. Squeeeee! 

The second Summer Project I am starting is to finally get some of my resources on Teachers Pay Teachers. I don't have much created yet, just some simple things, but I am hoping to delve more into that over the next year. 

Lastly... CRAFTS! I created these lovely Crate Seats last summer and they were a HUGE HIT both with my kids and with the staff. I don't know why people were so surprised that I made them. I'm crafty! So this year I am looking at creating some more furniture for my room. I'm not sure what yet... but I have a lot of pallets....

Flexible Seating In Place!

For more information about Flexible Seating in general, or for how I started it in my classroom, see HERE.

Kids working at low table and standing desks

Flexible seating worked wonderfully in my classroom this past year. This Summer I am moving to Grade 3, and changing classrooms. So the challenge is to create a whole new space for my littles. I will be teaching many of the same kids this upcoming school year, so they are experts in flexible seating. I am trying to start with as blank of a slate as possible (while still hoarding the furniture I want, lol) so that the kids can help me figure out how to set up the classroom come September.

Yesterday I was in my classroom moving stuff in after the big floor waxing, and was too disappointed to even take photos. I should have anyway, just as a starting point. The classroom itself is a bit smaller than my old one, as it has a wall that juts partially into the space due to vending machines on the other side of the wall. It has windows on only one side, instead of two, so that has both it's pros and cons. Once I go back in August I will take some "Before" pics and process pics.