Made it Monday! (Okay, its Tuesday, but there are Freebies!!)

Yikes! I don't know about you, but summer is flying by for me! Its only been four weeks long, but so far I've been so busy that I haven't had a chance to do much blogging! I have been crafting, though, so I thought I'd share a little freebie in case you'd like to do some crafting yourself! I'm linking up with 4th Grade Frolics Monday Made It Linky Party, so after you continue reading, check out the other links here...:)

I've been seeing these adorable birthday balloons popping up everywhere, and I just had to make some! For under $4.00, I am super excited to say that I now have 24 birthday treats ready for my firsties this year! I cannot wait to make them a part of our birthday ritual! Here is a picture of them hanging out in the sunshine...

And here is a link to the balloons if you'd like to download them for free! All you do is print, tape onto some Krazy Straws, and prepare to celebrate!

Other than crafting and playing with my silly girl, I've been busy working on a new unit for Back to School, and I'm soooo excited to finally reveal it to you, plus share a freebie!  I absolutely LOVE using Kevin Henkes' books at the beginning of the year because they are perfect for helping students get to know one another and learn about the basics of school life.  Plus, the characters are just too cute! So, here is my newest unit, Back to School with Kevin Henkes & Friends: A Literacy and Friendship Unit Featuring Lilly, Chrysanthemum, and Wemberly!  If you'd like a FREE Movie Star Sunglasses Reading and Writing the Room activity from the unit, just click the pictures below to go to my TPT store and click on the "Download Preview" button! I hope you like it!  I cannot wait to use it with my kiddos this fall!

Winners!!

Congratulations to Heidi D., Kathy Smith, Kayla Henry, and Debbie Hurst! You ladies have all won your item of choice from my store! Please send an email to onceuponafirstgradeadventure@gmail.com to let me know which item you would like!

Thank you so much to everyone who entered the giveaway, and double thank you for following my blog! In case you didn't win and you'd like to do a little shopping (as if you need an excuse to shop--I know I don't), my whole store will be 20% off now through Friday night!

I'm off to finish up a little painting...expect some Pinterest-inspired DIY's later this week! Hopefully they turn out:)

Hip, Hip, Hooray! 400 Followers Giveaway!

As a huge thank you to those of you reading my blog, I've decided to host a giveaway! In honor of reaching 400 followers, I will be awarding any one item from my TPT store to four of my wonderful readers!  That's right, FOUR WINNERS! These are some of the prizes winners will be able to choose from:

How do you enter? Just use the rafflecopter below! Thanks for reading my blog, and good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Schools Out!! Yippee! And planning ahead!

Okay, my first official week of summer is over, and I had a blast! I decided to take a mini-break from all things teaching (including blogging), and I had lots of fun just being a mommy for a while! Miss Elliotte and I went to the childrens' museum, story hour at the library, played in her baby pool, and just hung out! We also tried some pinterest-inspired activities, and I have to say, we both loved the kool-aid playdough and edible fingerpaints! (well, we liked playing with them--we didn't actually eat them--I'm not that fun of a mom!) The links for them are below if you're interested. I might try them with my firsties this year, too!

Source: dealiciousmom.com via Brooke on Pinterest

Source: ourbestbites.com via Brooke on Pinterest

I guess all that fun time playing gave me some new creativity because I just cannot stop thinking about things for next school year! This is what I just finished today, and I'm very excited to share it with you! I normally have my kiddos do an All About Me Bag as a community-builder for back to school, and I finally came up with a way to snazz it up a bit (other than the usual magazine collages)! Introducing, the All About Me Paper "Bagpack!"

It has questions for the kiddos to fill out on the back, and they will put small items such as toys and photos that represent them inside the bag. I'm also thinking about having them draw self portraits--maybe Flat Stanley-style--to put in the little front pocket.

We'll share our bags during one of our class meetings, and then we'll display them for Back to School Night! I'm so excited I won't have to scramble for a last minute idea for that this year! Yay!

If you'd like to check it out, just click the pictures!

Oh, and if you are one of the first two people to comment with your email, I'll send it to you for free!

I hear Miss E is waking up from her nap, so its baby pool time for us! Have a great rest of the day!