Classroom Pics - And So It Begins!

So I've been pretty busy working in my classroom this week.  Teachers don't actually go back until Tuesday, but as y'all know, we can't wait until the first day to start, can we?  Here are some of the things that have been keeping me busy:

I saw all of those cute pennant banners out there, so I decided to make some of my own.  I'm not quite finished, but I think they're pretty cute - whadd'ya think?

This is where my kids will turn in their homework, notes from home, money, etc. You gotta love free gifts from Highlights!

These are our reading buddies.  Kids can pick a buddy to read to during reading time.

Some of our AR books.  Yep, this is what I've been spending most of my time on.  EVERY SINGLE AR book in my classroom this year will have a library card/pocket.  The kids are gonna have to sign their AR books in and out (I've been losing too many).  I've realized that I have a TON of AR books!

These pictures show my Science Lab station.  My plan is to have "Mad Scientist Mondays" where we conduct various science experiments, working through the different steps of the scientific method.  After we had to give a county science assessment to our kids last year that was heavily weighted on scientific method (for example, one of the questions was, "When would you ask, 'How do you know?' in this experiment), I realized that the science series we have didn't really have a big emphasis on inquiry and method.  We were supposed to get a new science series last year, but was told after we voted that they didn't have the money to get the new books for K and 1, so we were just stuck with the old ones.  The kicker?  The new assessment tested on the info in the new series!  How's that for a kick in the teeth?  So, anyway, we can complain or go ahead and do what we do, right?  So, Mad Scientist Mondays were born.  Who knows?  Maybe my kids will be so excited, they won't want to miss a Monday!

I was tired of not really having enough bulletin boards, so I made my own!  I have the cutest little birthday cupcakes (from Miss Kindergarten) that I'll put up once I have my students' info.

This is where I store my reading and math centers.  Reading on the left and math on the right.  Basically, the kids just find the picture of the center they are going to and then pull the whole drawer out.  They can then go anywhere in the classroom to work. 

Well, that's all I've gotten done so far.  The books are really killing me, but I've been wanting to get them organized and entered on Librarything for a while now, so I'm acually taking the time to do it.  I'll be sure to post more pics as I finish things up!