Pencil Dispenser (from an acrylic straw dispenser)

A few weeks ago, my sister told me she saw a cute idea to use a straw dispenser to hold sharpened pencils.  I thought it was such a cute and clever way to always have sharpened pencils on hand and ready for use, but I was bummed that I'm no longer a full-time teacher with a classroom of my own.  Then I realized we still go through a ton of pencils here during homework time and I'm always scrambling to find sharpened pencils when the kids have to restock their pencil cases before they go off to school in the mornings.  I decided I was going to go ahead and get our own pencil dispenser for our house.

Check it out...

It's funny how exciting it can be to get a new electric pencil sharpener and a cool dispenser.  No matter what time of year it is or how old you are, fresh school supplies can give you a fresh outlook!

There was really nothing to this "project".  I simply ordered an acrylic straw dispenser from Amazon,(Amazon affiliate link)  the kids sharpened a bunch of the pencils we had around the house, and we filled up the dispenser.

To get a sharpened pencil, you just turn the knob on the side and a fresh new pencil rolls right out.

I thought about adding a little label or stickers to the dispenser to jazz it up, but for now we like it just plain.  (The kids love watching to see which pencil falls out) It sits right on top of the little cabinet where the kids put their school papers and we keep extra school supplies.  

I think I may get more for each of the kids' teachers.  I missed out on the chance to give them for back-to-school or Christmas gifts, but I think they'd be appreciated at any time of year.  

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Books, Authors and Series for Middle Elementary Boys (or Girls)

Since today is "Read Across America Day", my son and I thought we'd share a few of his favorite books and series.  He just turned 9, is in 3rd grade, and he's a pretty strong reader.

Before this past year, my son was primarily interested in non-fiction books.  He'd read every night, just like his sisters, but his tastes leaned heavily towards books like The Guinness Book of World Records and Top Ten Lists of Everything Football.    While I loved that he was reading (and learning lots of interesting facts), I was eager for him to expand into some fictional books as well.  When he finally found a series he liked, he was hooked and has been enthusiastically reading a great mix of fiction and nonfiction ever since. 

(NOTE:  While the books on this list are ones that have appealed to my son, my 10-year old daughter has read and enjoyed many of them as well)

 Here are the books we recommend ...
(Amazon links are included with each photo and title so you can read additional info about each title) 

So, what was that first series that he found and he loved?  The Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket!  

I think it was the back cover's description that peaked his curiosity.   When you tell a boy that something is going to be terrible and sad and disastrous, they can't help but to want to find out more.

My son LOVED the series.  I'd picked up the first book for him at Goodwill (where I often bought books that I hoped would appeal to him).  After he read that first one, he quickly wanted to buy or borrow the rest of the thirteen books in the series.  I loved how interested he was in the series and the great vocabulary he was picking up as he read.  There is also a movie version that my two oldest really enjoyed after they read the book.  (my youngest found it a little too scary).


The next book is not part of a series, but it had a similar "dark" theme that my son really loved.  

Holes by Louis Sachar won the Newbery Medal in 1999 and is a really neat story with lots of twists, turns, coincidences and connections between generations.  It takes place primarily in a work camp for boys, but it has lots of great messages about perseverance and friendships.   The book also has a really well-done movie version that our whole family enjoyed watching for movie night one weekend.  (The screenplay was written by the author so it sticks really close to the book's plot and the cast was great ~ Jon Voigt, Sigourney Weaver, Shia Labeouf)  I love when there are good movie versions of the books my kids have read ~ it gives lots of great opportunities to compare and contrast, and it can help more reluctant readers get through a book if they know they have the treat of a movie afterwards.


This next author is my son's absolute favorite.  

My son even chose Dan Gutman and some of his many books as the topic for a recent author study project he had to do at school.  Gutman has written nearly 100 books for kids and Kevin is trying his best to read them all!

His favorite collection by Gutman is the Baseball Card Adventures.  The books combine everything my son loves ~ sports, history, mystery and adventure.  Ordinary baseball cards are magically able to transport the main character back in time where he can interact with some really famous and interesting players such as Babe Ruth, Jackie Robinson, Roberto Clemente and others.

I love when an author writes several books with the same topic or theme.  Once a child reads one, there are several similar books which are also likely to be enjoyed.  Dan Gutman has done this with several of his books, not just the baseball card series.

My son enjoyed Back in Time with Thomas Edison and then was able to read another book with Benjamin Franklin.  He loved both the Kid who Ran for President and the Kid who Became President.  All three books in the Genius Files series were a hit as well as The Million Dollar Kick and the other million dollar books.  Slightly easier reads, but still fun, are the whole series of My Weird School books.

As I mentioned, Dan Gutman has written nearly 100 books so I'm not going to list them all, but every one that my son has read, he's loved.  His author page on Amazon lists all his books and he even has his own website with some fun games and background facts.

When my son did his author study project at school a few weeks ago, he "met" some other authors through his classmates' reports.  One of those authors was Andrew Clements. 

He had read Frindle several months ago and really enjoyed it.  After rediscovering Andrew Clements, my son has been reading and liking several of his other books too.  A few favorites...  Lunch Money, Lost and Found and The Report Card

One last book that my son really liked was I Funny, by James Patterson.

James Patterson's mystery novels with Alex Cross are some of my favorites as an adult, so it's cool to see my son really enjoying this author as well. (even though the subject matter is completely different)

I hope this post has given you and your boys (or girls) some good suggestions for some fun and interesting books.  There are so many children's books out there and each child has their own tastes and interests.  I hope some of the books and authors we've shared might help spark and encourage a love of reading in your child.

DISCLOSURE:  I am an Amazon affiliate and I will earn a small percentage if you choose to purchase any of these books from the links in this post.  However, we get the vast majority of our books out from the public library and I think that can be a great way to determine if your child likes an author or series first ( you can always buy the books later! )

Make Your Own Chalkboards (with construction paper and glue)

Here is another one of those "No way.  I had no clue you could do that" ideas!  A couple months ago one of my readers (Hi, Bonnie!) sent me an email telling me that she makes her own little chalkboards for her preschoolers using just construction paper and glue.  Now Bonnie said she has been a classroom teacher for over 30 years, so I was sure she wasn't making this up, but I didn't have a chance to actually test it out until recently.  Well, it totally works and it's such an inexpensive, easy and awesome idea.  

Check it out...

I know a lot of schools use dry erase boards, but I think these could be even better for several reasons.  First, they're way cheaper.  Second, you don't have worry about dry erase markers which are pricey and dry out quickly.  Third, you can even make your own little reusable worksheets with this method!

Here's how to do it (it's super easy!)

1.  Get a sheet of dark construction paper, a foam paintbrush and some white glue.

2.  Using the brush, cover the entire sheet of paper with a thin layer of glue.

3.  Let it dry completely, then "season" your chalkboard by rubbing the side of a piece of chalk over the whole surface and wiping it off.

4.  For added durability, you could mount your new little chalkboard onto a piece of cardboard if you'd like.

5.  To make a reusable worksheet, just write using a white crayon before you paint on the glue, then continue with the other steps.

Pretty darn cool, isn't it??!!  They're easy and cheap enough to make a whole bunch of different ones for your kids at home or to make a set for your classroom if you're a teacher.

Sharing this awesome idea and smart solution at:

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The Story of the Apple Star

Years ago at a fall festival,  I remember a story teller telling a really cute story about the star that you see when you cut into an apple.  When the kids and I came home from apple picking at the orchard today, I thought it would be a fun time to share the little legend.  However, although I remember the basic premise, I couldn't remember any of the details.  Googling led me to several versions of  "The Little Red House with No Windows, No Doors, and a Star Inside" but I couldn't find the story I'd heard.  Finally, I came across this version on a site for Girl Scouts.  It was short, but was the closest to the one I'd heard a long time ago.  I decided to elaborate on it a little bit and make my own version.  It was a big hit with my kids and I like how it includes a little lesson on how hard work and patience can bring you rewards.

Check it out...

Click HERE or on the story below for a printable PDF version!

And here's my son after I read the story and I cut into his apple to reveal the star...

Definitely check out the version that inspired me HERE (she also has a cute dried apple wreath project to go with it). 

Lunch Box Packing Tips

I have to be honest with you, there are certain chores that I don't like to do ~ emptying the dishwasher, putting away clean laundry and packing lunches for three kids every morning top my list. (There are lots of other things on that list too)  However, I realize that I can't put in more dirty dishes unless the dishwasher's empty, we need to be able to wear the clothes I've already washed and dried, and my kids need to eat while they're at school.

So this isn't going to be a post showing how to make an adorable themed lunch for your child.  (Don't get me wrong, I love seeing all those cute sandwiches cut and decorated in elaborate shapes and my kids would go nuts if they ever opened their lunch box to see one of their favorite characters made out of food, but it's just not going to happen here.)  Instead, if you're like me and lunch-making isn't your chore of choice, here are just a few things that have been working well for us.

Here are my tips...

Reduce Stress by doing as much as you can before hand.  School day mornings are hectic enough without having to figure out what you'll be putting in the lunchboxes that day.  My kids don't really like the texture of sandwiches that have been refrigerated over night, so I make the sandwiches or "main dish" each morning.  However, we try to have all our "side dishes" portioned out, packaged up and ready to go.

Save Money by buying regular (or bulk size) packages and making your own individual-sized servings.  If you look at the price per pound or ounce in the grocery store, you'll see that the individual sized packages of crackers, cookies, and other treats can be almost double the price per pound of the larger packages.   Also, as handy as the prepackaged apple slices or cut fresh fruits can be, you often pay significantly more for that convenience. 

We have been trying to package up our fruits and snacks on Sundays, and then refill and restock once more later in the week.

With the money I'm saving, I'm often able to buy a few extra snacks that I might not be able to afford in the individual sized packages.  Plus, packaging them yourself often makes things a lot easier to open at lunchtime.  (Have you ever seen a kid try to open one of the prepackaged fruit cups or container of pudding?  I volunteer in our school cafeteria and believe me, 95% of the time, the extra juice in the fruit cup ends up spilling EVERYWHERE!)

Eat Better  by having healthful snacks packed up and ready to go.  As much as I recognize the benefits, we don't eat only organic and my kids still get some "junk food" in their lunches or after school for snacks.  However, I know we're much more likely to include a good variety of fruits and veggies in our diets if I make a stop at the produce market and get everything sliced up and ready to go.  Also, by taking a few minutes to portion everything out before the week starts, I know that I we'll actually eat the food and those strawberries or cucumbers won't go bad sitting in their original cartons in the back of the fridge.

Involving the Kids has really made a difference this school year.  Many of the softer fruits like strawberries can be sliced with a not-too-sharp knife and the kids don't mind helping to slice and package if they can sample a few.

My oldest daughter (almost 10) loves to help in the kitchen.  I know she feels so important and helpful when I let her make up some instant pudding, jello or other "recipes" for lunches and after school snacks.

 Just so you know, regular Jello is good, but adding fruit slices makes it much fancier!

Finally, you can Encourage Independence and Responsibility by letting your kids partially pack their own lunches in the morning.  As I mentioned, I will still make their sandwiches or pack their hot "main dish" in a thermos, but I'll let the kids pick out their own sides from our prepackaged containers.  Depending on what we've made up, they usually have to get out two fruits or veggies and one or two other sides (jello, pudding, yogurt, crackers, etc.).  They're not quite to the point where they can pack their own lunches completely ~ but this puts them well on their way.

NOTE:  I did try letting my oldest daughter pack  the lunches for everyone a few times last year.  After a quick glance at the lunchbox, I thought she'd done a great job.  However, when I heard my son thanking her that afternoon for the "extra sugar you put on my sandwich" and found out she'd added a spoonful of sugar to his PB&J, I knew they weren't quite ready to go at it all on their own just yet. ;)

I have partnered with The Glad Products Company through DailyBuzz Moms to help promote their Food Storage products. I have been compensated for my time commitment to review this product. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments. Thank you GLAD!

Smooth Move Through Kindergarten

My kids are just finishing up their first week of school and I know most other schools around the country have started or will start soon. With so many of those students having their first "real" school experience as kindergarteners, I'm excited to have a guest post today from the wonderful Susan at Kindergarten & Preschool for Parents & Teachers.  Susan has years of experience in the classroom and the following advice is perfect for your new kindergartner (and your older kids too!)

 

You took the dramatic steps of enrolling your precious child in kindergarten. Now what? After shedding some tears, put away the tissues and realize that your child still needs you for a Smooth Move through Kindergarten. Can you say that fast? It might be rather difficult for your child to say if teeth are missing. Here are some ways you can help in the school year:

1. Focus on Your Child: When you are with your child, give him or her your undivided attention. Turn off the techno gadgets, including phones, and communicate. This special time may be before he leaves for school, while you are driving to school, playing before dinner, helping with a bath, or snuggling while reading books in bed. Ask questions about their day such as:

• What is your favorite thing to do at school?
• Who do you like to play with?
• Did you eat your lunch?

2. Play outside: When your children come home from school, they need to unwind, relax and play to release stress and exercise.  

3. Communicate with the Teacher: Keep the lines of communication open with notes, email or conferences and notify the teacher of any changes in contact information or stability changes.

4. Check Your Child’s Backpack every night for notes to sign or homework to complete.

5. Volunteer a few hours a week, if possible, as a classroom helper or offer to do some projects at home. Take part in classroom parties, school fundraisers and field trips.

6. Read books.Young children should be in bed by 7:30 giving you some time to share books and talk about their day. Limit television and video games before bedtime. This may excite your child making sleep more difficult. The best way to have your child get a good night’s sleep is to spend the last part of the day with them, reading books and communicating.

7. A Good Night's Sleep and Healthy Breakfast are essential to a productive day at school.

8. Avoid Rushing by getting your child to bed early and rising early enough to have a nutritious breakfast. The backpack can be prepared the night before.

9. Encourage Responsibility and Independence: Work on tying shoes and memorization of your home address and phone number.

10. Teach Children to Respect Authority and follow the school rules. Don’t criticize the school or teacher in front of your child but arrange a conference time with the teacher should you have concerns. You may be able to solve problems by email or phone before a conference is necessary. It is best to approach the teacher first to solve problems before talking to the principal.

Many child development specialists agree that reading every night with your child is the most important activity you can do. It will promote literacy, a love of reading, bonding, emotional fulfillment and increase your child's vocabulary and reading skills. Because many children are playing less outside, I would like to emphasize that playing with your children is a close second.

If you are still fretting over whether or not to send your child to kindergarten, click Kindergarten: Enroll or Wait? There is a free on-line test that may ease your worries. I really like this free printable which can be enlarged from Growing a Jeweled Rose. Perhaps it will help you and would certainly make a nice gift for any teacher.

 

For a glimpse into Kindergarten see my book, a number 1 bestseller in PreK/K on Amazon Kindle:Kindergarten: Tattle-Tales, Tools, Tactics, Triumphs and Tasty Treats for Teachers and Parents   Would you like inexpensive ideas, activities, and games to teach your children through play? Mommy with Selective Memory and I wrote a number 1 bestseller in Motherhood on Amazon: The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble and Motivated to Learn .

Let Children Experience Childhood.

What other suggestions to you have for your child to have a successful kindergarten year?

{ Thanks so much, Susan!  I love the tips and even those of us with older kids can appreciate the advice for a great school year.  Speaking of having a great year, I love your recent post on Bullying ~ lots of great information.  Thanks for sharing.  ~ Laura }

 

Back-to-School Advice and Supplies (in a Fun Gift Basket)

Yesterday was the first day of school for my kids (woo hoo!)  They'd already made these cute little pencil bouquets for their teachers (which I heard were a big hit) and I'd picked up all the necessary supplies they needed to bring in to school.  However, I wanted to give them a little something special from me to celebrate the new school year. I decided to pick up some extra supplies that they might need for here at home ~ things that weren't necessarily on their supply lists, but that might come in handy for homework assignments or projects. Knowing that extra scissors and markers aren't really a "fun" gift, I decided to put a neat little twist on my practical gift.


 Check it out...

Pretty clever, don't you think? (and, yes, I am patting myself on the back for this one). Incorporated in each bit of advice are key words that correspond to the various school supplies.  As the kids read the words of wisdom, they were directed to open certain numbered gifts.

Here's how I made them...

I simply gathered up a variety of school supplies, came up with a bunch of sayings that used related words, wrapped the supplies in tissue paper, then numbered them to go with each saying.



Here are the little bits of advice I came up with (the corresponding supplies are in blue here, but weren't listed on their actual papers)...

Some Back To School Advice

• Let your colorful personality shine through at school and leave your special mark on everything you do. (Open gifts #1 and #2) colored pencils & markers

• Don't cut corners! If something is worth doing, it's worth doing right the first time. (Open gift #3)  scissors

• Remember, you can do hard things. Just stick with it, stick with it, and stick with it some more until you finally do that hard task. (Open gifts #4, #5 and #6) glue sticks, regular glue, and scotch tape

• Make sure you are always prepared and stay sharp. When you're sharp and focused, you'll be able to do your best. (Open gift #7) package of pencils with pencil sharpener

• Keep in mind, you will make mistakes. It's okay and it's all part of learning. Just look at what you did wrong, figure out how to correct it and move on. (Open gift #8) package of erasers

• Before a test or important assignment, just take a deep breath and put together all that you've learned. (Open gift #9)  stapler

• When you get home from school, I hope you take a minute to tell me the highlights of your day. We're all busy, but you and your schoolwork are important to me. (Open gift #10)  package of highlighters

• Most of all, whether you've had a good day or a not-so-good day, I think you RULE and I'm so glad you're my kid! (Open gift #11)  ruler

Then, I simply put each kid's wrapped gifts in a little container tote I picked up from the Dollar Store.

When they got home from school, they took turns reading each bit of advice and then opening their numbered gifts.  They had fun as the tissue paper went flying and they got all sorts of exciting supplies (because getting your very own stapler is a huge deal! ). 

It was fun seeing them so excited and I'm glad something practical could end up being such a big treat!

Sharing our fun new supplies at:

The Mommy Club 
It's Playtime 
Happy Hour Projects 
The Frugal Girls 

Colorful Pencil Bouquet

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Astrobrights Papers by Neenah Paper for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

School starts here in just a few weeks and we're all excited for the new year to begin.  The kids are looking forward to seeing all their friends, meeting their new teachers and learning new subjects.  When I was recently given the challenge to "Make Something Astrobright", I knew just who I wanted to make it for ~ the kids' teachers!  As a former teacher myself, I know how demanding the job can be.  I want the kids' homeroom teachers to get a little something on the first day of school to say thanks in advance for everything they'll do this year. 

 Check out these cute and very 

colorful pencil bouquets...

 

Won't they look pretty on the teachers' desks?  They're bright and very colorful, but practical too!  Plus, I think it's a thoughtful little gift without seeming like an over-the-top form of bribery.

These pretty pencil flowers 

started with this colorful

 Astrobrights paper.

Astrobrights paper comes in 23 bright and vibrant colors.  You're sure to find the right color for your pencil bouquet (or any school project) and the bright colors will guarantee that your project will get noticed!

First, we did a little prep work...

I cut the Astrobrights paper into three different sizes of flower shapes and my son was in charge of pencil sharpening.  Then I wrapped the top few inches of each pencil in green duck tape so they'd look more like stems (but could still be used and sharpened).

Next, we were ready to make

 the pencil flowers 

for our bouquets...

The girls used a hole punch to make holes in the center of each flower, then layered the three different sized flower shapes onto the pencil top.  We then pinched each petal to make our flowers a little more three-dimensional and put them into a small vase (I actually used small juice glasses I'd picked up at the thrift shop).  I love how the different Astrobrights paper combinations made some really colorful and vibrant flowers!

How about you?  Are you ready for the new school year?  Astrobrights is actually running this great"Give a Brighter Year" sweepstakes where you can win $30,000 in supplies for the school of your choice (and a $500 gift card for you!).  Go check it out! 

 

Oh, and check out Astrobrights on Facebookfor lots of great ways you and your family can "Make Something Astrobright"

Photo Gift Card Holder (and thank you booklet for teachers)

Today is the last day of school for my kids!  We were blessed with some really great teachers this year and I wanted to show our appreciation with an end-of-the-year gift.   As a former school teacher myself, I know that gift cards and hand written notes of thanks are usually appreciated much more than yet another coffee mug or scented body lotion.  For our gift this year, I combined the gift card/thank you note with the photo idea that we used on our Photo Bookmarks and our Lollipop Valentine's Cards.  I really like the way they turned out and I think the teachers will really like receiving them.

Check it out...

For the "specials" teachers ~ Music, Gym, Library, etc ~ I put all three kids' photos on the front and they each wrote their note of appreciation inside the little booklet.

Doesn't it almost look like they're holding up the gift card "sign"?

Then for their regular subjects, we made a separate booklet for each teacher they had and I put their individual pictures on the front holding up a gift card.  

They were really quite simple to do.  The hardest part was getting the kids to write the messages for the inside pages of the booklets.  They all switch classes for their different subjects, so they had quite a few sentences to write.

Here's what we did...

1.  I started by taking a picture of each kid holding their arms up over their head.

2.  Next, I printed out the pictures as a 4"x6" photo and cut the kids' bodies out.  I also went to Target and got a bunch of gift cards.  ( I was lucky enough to find a few Thank You and Teacher-themed ones, but the pickings were a bit slim ~ I guess it's a gift card time of year!)

3. For the booklets, I simply folded two pieces of colored cardstock in half and stapled them together to make a book.  On the front cover, I glued on the kid's picture and had them make a little thank you sign.  (I wanted something to be left on the card after the teacher removed and spent the gift card).

My girls had me add some patterned paper for a pretty touch.

4. Next, I used a couple glue dots to add the gift card on top of the sign.

5.  On the inside,  the kids wrote their messages to each of the teachers ( I gave them writing prompts and they had to choose four of them) and I wrote a thank you message of my own.

One from my 3rd grader

 

My son in 2nd grade

Even my kindergartner did some

I wanted to make it as easy as possible for the kids (since they are not into "homework" at all now that the weather is nice) so I just printed out a bunch of writing prompts and cut them to size.  All they had to do was choose any four for each teacher and complete the sentence. Then I just had to glue their responses and my own thank you note onto the pages in the booklet.

Some of the prompts we used:

My favorite part of _________ class was...
You really made me feel special when...
I really liked learning about...
I think you are a great teacher because...
I really appreciate that you...
You always made me smile when...
One thing I will always remember about this school year with you is...
You did a great job teaching me about...


That's it!...

I'm really pleased with the way they turned out and I look forward to using this same concept for other people and other occasions.  The kids will be working on ones for their dad for Father's Day soon!

Sharing our fun idea for gift card giving at:
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Frugal Girls 
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