Setting Priorities For a New School Year

I'm so excited for another new school year.  Another chance to tweak my craft!  I have enjoyed working on projects for the classroom this summer, and I had a half-day conference with Sarah from CTCRWP that has me psyched up to teach persuasive writing again this year.  My new SmartBoard has been installed, and I spent a day reviewing its amazing capabilities.  So, yes, I'm excited, but also a bit hesitant.

From September through May, my family misses me.  We are all out the door by 7a.m., and I'm the last to return to the nest, usually at 6 p.m.  I'm a bit embarrassed to admit it, but I usually go back to school on the weekend for a couple of hours just to get ready for the next week.

My husband and I have already discussed my coming home sooner.  We're toying with the idea of having a "family work hour" after dinner.  We would clean up the kitchen and all set up our homework on the kitchen table.  One hour, everyone, even if you don't have homework (read a book!)  I've never been good at getting school work done at home.  My kids are very busy and noisy, and they like to engage me in conversation when I'm concentrating.  My small dogs are very neurotic and insist on being on my lap or under my feet at all times.  So it's just easier to stay at school until I'm done with paperwork, etc.  Plus my husband has become a wonderful cook!  But I'm going to try to be home by five most days.  Anyway...

My mom sent me an e-mail that I thought was going to be something funny, like the things we usually send each other.  But this one was different.  It reminded me of my hopes and dreams for this year.  Maybe you'd like to watch it and think about what you can do differently this year to balance work and school.

Click  HERE to watch it.

I'll be back soon with pictures of my classroom.  I just can't bring myself to take pictures when it looks like a tornado has been through.  But I'm making progress! Two weeks left until school starts for me!

Have a great week!
Catherine

Restyled Stools for my reading table!

When my students come to a guided reading lesson, we sit together at my reading table.  Some people call it a "kidney bean" table.  One of my teammates calls it the "rainbow" table.  Whatever you call, it, it fits five chairs nicely, six chairs if we squeeze.  Some teachers at my school have gone to IKEA and found really cute plastic stools shaped like two cones, point to point.  I looked on the IKEA website, and found THESE.  They would be so CUTE in the blue color in my room!  But, I really like the idea of reusing... you know, going green.  I don't go around hugging trees, but it just makes sense to me.  So I checked on Craig's List and found six bar stools from a family that was moving.  All six for $30!  SOLD!

But wait... much too high for first graders.  And the fabric?  Ew!  So, I picked up some indoor/outdoor fabric at JoAnne's (half off PLUS my teacher discount).  I watched some videos on youtube about recovering bar stools, enlisted my husband to cut the legs, and viola!

Here's how I did it:

Get yourself some tools.  (Please note the $2.99 staple gun from St. Vincent DePaul.  I told you I like the idea of reusing.... OK, and saving money too).  This is all I needed.  Remember, JimDear did the wood cutting with an electric saw.

First, I spread my fabric out.  It comes folded in half, and I left it folded.  The pattern matched on both the top and bottom layers, so I knew I was getting the same design on both layers.  I looked around for something round to trace and choose a cooking pot lid that was 12 inches (the same diameter as the seat on the stool).  I placed the center of the lid over the part of the fabric I wanted to be in the center of the seat.  Then I measured out four inches from the lid all the way around and made dots with a marker.  I wasn't worried about the marker showing.  I knew it would eventually be trimmed off.  If I bothers you, mark a bit farther out and cut inside your markings.

Then I cut the fabric.  I put one circle of fabric right-side-down and put the stool on top of it, centering it just the way I wanted.

(Weird how the people who owned these bar stools for who-knows-how-long, never took the bar code off.)  Anyway, according the youtube video, you should put one staple on each side to start.  Hope you don't mind that I'm going to use the term "side."  I realize that circles don't have "sides," but just go with it, for my sake.

Then I stapled the four "corners."  I know, I know, just go with it!  The photo below has eight evenly spaced staples.

Now that I knew my fabric was held in place on all "sides," I began to work the fabric in between the staples, scrunching it and spreading it out, so that there were no big folds or bunched up spots.  Here is a picture of the bottom with all the staples in it.

The next job is to make sure all the staples are in all the way.  That's what I used my hammer for.  I DO NOT want any student's fingers getting pricked!  The needle-nose pliers was to pull out any staples that went in crooked.  All that was left to do was to trim the extra fabric off.  This picture was taken AFTER I trimmed it. (The dots I made earlier are now gone.)

Done!  I just love it, and I think the kids will be excited to come and read with me at my reading table. Many times when the kids come to sit on the chairs at the table, they sit on their feet or they kneel on the chairs.  I think it's so important for kids to have good posture when they're working at school, especially for reading and writing.  So now, just five more to go!  I don't start school until September, so I know I can do it.  I really didn't take long at all!

One done, five more on the way!

I'd love to hear what your kiddos sit on when you do guided reading lessons.  Feel free to comment!