My name is Ms. Book Lady, and I have a problem with Pinterest.

(aka, how I spent two nights in a row cutting out 900 construction paper circles)

The first step is admitting your problem right?  A couple weeks ago I found this:

http://kidworldcitizen.org/2011/11/26/my-place-in-the-world-project/ 

It looked like such an awesome project, and it meets standards for first and second graders about understanding their place in the world so I couldn't pass it up.  I (plus my para and a parent) spent almost a week tracing and/or cutting out circles for this project.  Plus, now that classes are finishing up, each has to be hole punched and string tied (oy vey).  Thankfully next year only 1st grade will do the project, because doing this times 200 is getting ridiculous.

(Pictures coming soon!)

Oh, but while I'm whining about Pinterest, I guess I should show you all the cool stuff I've done from it:

I've used Pinterest to do other projects for school... like this:

http://keepingupwithclass.blogspot.com/2012/03/adjectives.html (the wordle suggestion).

And this Book Fair idea (so students don't have easy access to all the 'junk')...

http://threeringlibrary.blogspot.com/search/label/book%20fair

And Bulletin Board ideas up the wazoo!

I've also found cute stuff for friends gifts/super smart ideas for around the house:

http://gadgetsin.com/tag/great-ideas

and

Seriously yos... even if it keeps you up at night cutting out circles, it's worth it.  People think the ideas are awesome sauce and your students will thank you over and over again.  There is absolutely no reason to reinvent the wheel.  None at all.

random musings on a weekend from an elementary TL...

...how sad is it that I want to listen to my "school mix" over the weekend? (It's full of children's singers and Disney movie soundtracks.)

...I probably shouldn't have left my book at school over the weekend.

...oh goodness, my to do lists were in that book...even worse.

...you know you are stressed when you are doing everything by hand and paper rather than on the computer.  Something about an actual pen to actual paper calms me down.

...Crock Pot Chex Mix (inspired by, you guessed it, Pinterest) worked!  Recipe coming soon.

...I think I may have just planned out a rough sketch for the rest of the school year (minus 3rd and 5th grade).

...DVR is one of those inventions that I love to hate...

...good friends let you disappear from the face of the Earth for some time (weeks, months, years), but still welcome you back with open arms.

But since I'm currently going through the 300+ personal emails (oops), and now have to transfer my pen/paper musings to the computer, I should get going. 

More later...