More Rock Theme Ideas

First, thank you to everyone that shared ideas!!!!  

I am making some more stuff, but I am sharing what I have done for now.

Click on the rock to download!

Chocolate Chip Excavation

I did the Chocolate Chip Excavation years ago with my K's, but lost all of my stuff in the move to WV, so I made a little activity to launch our Rock unit.  

Click on the picture to download:

Monster Clipart For Teachers

Here is my try at monsters.  Again, let me know what you think... (be gentle...remember I am new to graphics:))

Feel free to use them on your stuff that you sell or share.  :)  

Click on the picture and you should be able to download the zip file.

Rock Ideas????

I am getting ready to start a PBL on Rocks for ALL of next week, and I need some ideas on Rocks.  I got the fabulous resource form Chalk Talk on Rocks, but I need some more stuff.  I am supposed to teach this all day for 5 days.

If you have anything or any good sites on Rocks, would you be willing to share????  I would love it, and be forever grateful!!!!  I could then put everything together for all of us in a pdf and share giving credit to everyone.

Thanks a bunch!

You can email me at kwalsky@gmail.com.

Nothing like waiting until the last minute for planning!  ;)

Kid Clipart for Teachers

Here is the first batch of clipart for you to use on your materials for TPT or TeacherEBooks.  All I ask is credit by putting clipart by first-grade-teachers.blogspot.com.  That is it.  All of my clipart is going to be free!  I am going to work tonight on some more stuff.  I am completely addicted.  

I am not sure how to download an entire folder on Google Docs, so I have to do it like this:

Boy 1

Boy 2

Boy 3

Girl 1

Girl 2

Enjoy them!

Honey Bunny Giveaway!!!!

I just had to order from Honey Bunny since I blogged about her cute stuff!

I got this set today

All I can say is BEAUTIFUL!!!!

This set is so professional and printed on extremely quality paper!

I hope she makes a bigger size alphabet set for us teachers to use on our word walls and alphabet line!  It is absolutely the coolest set ever!

I also got my Knock Knock Poster!

LOVE it!!!!  It fits perfectly in a frame I got from Hobby Lobby for $.89.

Well, I am so excited that the most AWESOME and talented Nel is doing a giveaway on my site!  

You can win.....

A  13x19 alphabet print!  

LOVE IT!

All you need to do is head on over to Honey Bunny Studio and take a look at all of her cool stuff!!!! Come back here and tell me what you liked. (1 entry)

Become a fan on FB of Honey Bunny Studio

How cute is all of her stuff????  Next on my list is the Vowel poster and the double alphabet print set.  So cute!  I can't wait to move into the new school and show everyone my coolest room ever!!!

I will announce a winner on March 31st around 7:00ish EST.  Please leave separate posts for each entry.  Have fun!

Non teacher stuff

For those of you who thought I fell off the end of the world, I am here.  :)

The past two weeks have been CRAZY!  First, my mom was in the hospital (out now, and doing better everyday).

Then, my youngest gets a swollen salivary gland(which he gets at least 2 times a year and no one has a clue what causes it) and then strep.

Then, my husband gets strep, and then me.

Now we seem to be over the storm (except for the swollen salivary gland).  I am on spring break and just need to take time for myself (Sharpen my Saw).  So what do I do?  

Go furniture shopping at my favorite thrift stores of course!  Here is what I got and transformed:

I call him Henry, and he was $10.  I wish I had taken a picture of the before!  I am now doing that.  He was in need of help.  Mold was all over him and he needed to be spruced and Shabbied up and placed in my dinning room.

So with a new Henry, I had to buy these great chairs and reupholster them pronto with some cute Amy Butler fabric

Here is before:

Love the chair, hate the fabric!

Here is the after!!!

So pretty now!  Henry matches the green in these chairs!

Reupholstering chairs is about the easiest thing to do!  I got six of these chairs and a mahogany dinning room table with pedestal legs for $100.  They just needed a little TLC and now they rock!

Then I was at another thrift store and saw this boy.  I just loved it.  Not my style, but I knew he had to come home with me.

The price said $40, but I talked them down to $12.  I think it was because I had been painting all day and had yucky clothes on and my two kids were tearing up the store.  I really think they wanted me to leave in a hurry.  :)  This could be a new tip for everyone who goes to find cool stuff in thrift shops.

Finally, I had two of these chairs that I got for free and had to do something to spice them up.  I am almost done with them.  Here is what I have so far, and I wish I had taken a before shot.  They were ugly brown wood.  

Here is one of them:

Look how happy she is now!

I am planning on doing some more crafty stuff the rest of the week.  I bought an old Amish bench for $1, a bunch of old wooden school chairs, a really cool picture frame I want to shabby up, and some other things that are dying for some paint, glaze, and sanding.

I promise to create some cool stuff for the classroom, but I just wanted to let everyone know that I am using my creativity in another outlet this week!  :)

Free Turtle Clipart

Here is the first of many free clipart images that you can use for your teaching items. I will have more this week featuring "Ocean" animals.  I know they aren't perfect yet, but I am getting better with each drawing.  :)

Just click on it to get the jpg.

All that I ask is you give me credit in the credits section of your work.  That is it.  :)

Now, be totally honest...Is it horrible?  Thanks, and I hope you guys can use them.  

Artwork for the Primary Classroom

I just stumbled upon the cutest site.  It is Honey Bunny Studio!  

How cute are these?

How about these cute posters to decorate your classroom?

I LOVE these too!

Finally, every First Grade or Kindergarten Teacher needs this poster!!!

I am so buying this for my room in the new school!

Over at Honey Bunny Studio you get 40% off of one poster.  

 (just mention Swell Swag in the message-to-sender box @ checkout)

Clipart for Teachers

I am now starting to draw clipart for teachers to use how they please on TPT and not worry about all these legal crazy terms.   I am looking for suggestions on what to draw first for everyone.  I am going to make everything for free at first, until I get really good (wink, wink) and then reasonably priced.

Let me know what you are dying to have and can't find out there in the market.  I am hoping to get some practice and then make custom stuff for people at a reasonable price so they can sell on TPT and not have the same clipart that everyone under the sun has.  I think there should be a new option for teachers who sell.

Kindergarten Works Winner!!!

Congrats to......

Pinks My Ink said...

I follow Kindergartenworks.

Janine

You are the winner of the Kindergarten Works giveaway!!!  Please email me at kwalsky@gmail.com.  

You are going to love it!

New Winner of the Smart Lesson Stop Giveaway!!!

Unfortunately, the winner never contacted me for the Smart Lesson Stop Giveaway.  So...

The new winner is.....

So, Amy Lynch, please contact me within 48 hours, or I will have to choose someone else!  

Email me at kwalsky@gmail.com.  

Word Work Center Giveaway!!!!

How many of you do the Daily 5?

Are you ready for the coolest Word Work Activity for the Daily 5, that will have your students begging to go to Word Work every single day????

A few months ago, I was searching the internet for ways to JAZZ up Working on Words and found (Thank Goodness).....

I could not believe that I had not heard of Kindergarten Works before!  I immediately fell in love with the Dough Working on Words Center!!!!

Center direction card

Sight Words!!!!

ABC Order!!!!

Building word families!!!!

These are actual cards that you laminate and let the children work with.

You can use cookie cutters or other alphabet stamps, but I use these from Lakeshore.  I have 3 sets for the kiddo's to work with at their seats.

Kindergarten Works has some awesome items they have made.  I love everything I have bought, and I am so glad they are letting me giveaway the Dough Set!!!!

Here is how you enter:

Go to Kindergarten Works Blog and follow (1 Entry)

Like the on FB (1 Entry)

Follow me!!!  (1 Entry)

Make sure you leave separate entries for each entry so that I know to count you!

This giveaway will end on Friday, March 11th around 7:00ish EST.

You are going to love Kindergarten Works Activities!  Your kiddo's will be begging for more!

Teacher Appreciation at Doodlebugs Paper!

My favorite stationary and cute paper company is having a sale for teachers!

Love just about everything!