Camping Classroom Tour

Aaaannd the classroom is finished!  I've been doing a camping theme in my classroom for the past couple of years, and I LOVE IT!  It has been such a fun theme that I can add to a little each year.  It's been a busy week getting everything ready, but here is this year's version of Camp Aguirre!  

The entrance:

A close-up of the sign that my husband wood-burned for me:

Some other views around the classroom:

Math area:

Teacher desk:

Reading corner/small group table:

Back bulletin board and word wall:

Students' desks were prepared for open house with a trail guide containing information for the year and a bag of S'mores trail mix (Golden Grahams, mini marshmallows, and mini Hershey kisses).

"Words to use instead of . . . " chart on the left; Camper of the Week banner on the right

Thanks for stopping by!  Do you do a theme in your classroom?  What theme has caught on in your room?

Back to School and Bookshelves

Well, it's that crazy time of year again when the to-do list seems insurmountable as I head back into my classroom to prepare for the start of a new school year.  And what do I decide to do?  Start a new blog, of course!  So here I am on my first blog post, documenting each step of this wild ride!  In hopes of not becoming too overwhelmed by this new commitment, I plan on blogging only on Thursdays (hence, my blog name!) so that MAYBE I can actually keep up with it.  We'll see how it goes.  I look forward to sharing ideas from my classroom as well as things that inspire me along the way in this journey called teaching!

For starters, I've been working on a little bookshelf makeover this summer.  Over the past few years, one of my teaching goals has been to expand my classroom library.  As the number of books has grown, so has the need for more shelf space!  I had been using this very old, very dated, 1970's ugly brown shelf in my classroom for a number of years.  I had always kept it covered with a tablecloth and only used it for storage.  This summer I decided to bring it out of hiding, give it a nice coat of white paint, and give it a new purpose as a bookshelf instead of a storage shelf.  I am so happy with the results!  Here's what I started with:

After painting:

And, finally, in the classroom:

I still need to add some more books and replace a few of the basket tags.  But it's already a HUGE improvement!  While I was at it, I also replaced the rickety backing on another shelf with a piece of beadboard.  I forgot to take a "before" picture, but here is the new backing:

And here it is with books on it:

I am pleased with the improvements!  I've finished my "bookshelf wall."  Next week I'll tackle the other side of the classroom!