Owl About Me freebie from Classroom Freebies

I stumbled across this "Owl About Me" freebie from Diane at Classroom Freebies. It's a very cute owl template. It has 8 boxes in which the children write information about themselves. The key for these is on a coloured owl which can be placed in the middle of the display. This would be a lovely activity for the first week back at school, particularly if your classroom is owl-themed.

Hop on over to the original blog post to download this for free.

The owl-themed crafting continues - paper lantern owl display

As you've probably noticed from my previous post, I've gone a little owl-mad this summer. Taking inspiration from Pinterest, I decided to make a 3-D sign for my reading corner. 

Quite often, when I make something crafty, it doesn't turn out exactly how I planned it. This was one of those occasions. The phrase "Pinterest fail" (if you haven't already Googled that term, you're in for a treat!) kept springing to mind. 

Originally I had planned to use 4 owls - 2 multicoloured and 2 blue, reading "We love to read!" - but one just wouldn't work. It ripped, it fell out of shape and ended up being a horrible patchwork thing full of staples, glue and tape. Eventually, I threw it in the bin - a much better place for it! Now, my 3-piece owl display reads "We love books." 

Please ignore the drippy glue. It will dry in clear!

I've learned from my mistakes and offer these tips for future paper-lantern-crafters!

• Make sure the lantern is made from strong paper that won't rip if pulled firmly.

• Get the type of lanterns that have a plastic or metal piece running from top to bottom to hold its shape; otherwise you'll end up with a saggy, rugby-ball shape after some time!

• If it's really not working, bin it and start again!
  

Summer crafting, owl-themed!

I must confess. I have been making things for my classroom already. I saw some cute mixed pattern owls on Pinterest about two years ago and had forgotten about them. I was reminded again when I found this patterned paper in Tiger a few months back. I bought it on impulse and put it in my wardrobe for a summer project. 

Being in Ireland with most people my age long-gone from the town, what better way to pass some time than making some owls?


Here's what I did:

I've been making and downloading lots of owl-themed things for my classroom. I thought it'd be better to cut out  lots of display materials when I'm watching TV or sitting in the sunshine rather than when I'm focused on planning at the start of the school year. Watch this space for more owl-themed resources!

Tiger: Stationary Heaven for teachers, parents and crafty types!

Being a self-declared stationary and craft supply addict, I often get jealous, reading American teaching blogs. They seem to have so many places to buy stationary at incredibly cheap prices. I found it very difficult to find affordable materials when I moved to Italy. Then, last year, a Tiger Store opened in my city and my crafting life changed. I will warn you in advance, the Penney's/Primark Effect may take a hold of you and you will leave the shop with your arms full every time!

The shop has all sorts of things. It reminds me of a pound shop but the items are much better quality and, most importantly, oh so cute! In there, you'll find craft supplies, fancy dress items, toys, cosmetics, bicycle accessories, kitchen things and much more.

Irish teachers, there are 10 shops in the country.
Other readers, they have 317 shops across 21 countries.

You're welcome (for the wonders you'll buy) and I'm sorry (for your new addiction)!

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Look at all that ribbon!

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This would be great for a reading corner. I think it costs about €15.

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Storage boxes galore:

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These big foam dice are great for maths activities and classroom games.

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And I couldn't resist these watermelon flip flops!

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IB PYP Poster Kit

Calling all IB teachers!

I am very excited to announce the addition of a GIANT IB PYP poster kit to my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

The kit contains:
10 Learner Profile Posters
12 Attitudes Posters
8 Key Concepts Posters
5 Transdisciplinary Skills Posters
Headings for all of the above sets
6 Transdisciplinary Themes Posters (and a display idea)

Where necessary (regarding the spelling of "organise" and "behaviour"), I have included two versions, one in American English and another in British English.

All of the poster sets are available individually in my store. The total cost of all of these is $12. If you purchase this bumper kit, you can save $2 (and buy yourself something nice!).

This is a fantastic purchase for an International Baccalaureate school, especially at back to school time.

Click here to download the IB PYP poster bumper kit!

Learner Profile Attribute Posters - Black with coloured polkadots

I have recently added my first paid item to my TPT store. It's a set of learner profile posters. This may be of interest to those working in an IB school teaching the PYP programme.

Each poster has a gorgeous black and coloured polkadot background and cute clip art from My Cute Graphics (my latest addiction!). It costs just $2.

It's often hard to find printable International Baccalaureate resources so I aim to make some more in the near future! If you have any requests for resources, please comment below or send a request through the link in my TPT store.

New TPT store and a secret walker freebie poster

Well hello there, Blogland! It has been a long time since I've been here. I haven't made blogging a priority of mine this past academic year but I aim to change that for the summer months. 

I've decided to open a TPT store. I'm all for sharing free resources and I will continue to do so but I would like to sell some of the items that took more time and effort. 

I have been amazed at the power of the internet and many people I know working in other IB schools in different countries had seen my learner profile posters up on the walls. I'm delighted that they have spread. However, I have seen lots of pins on Pinterest where people have taken screenshorts and edited them and not given any credit to me as the creator. 

The creation of my TPT store was spurred on by link shared on Facebook by Valerie King AKA Múinteoir Valerie. She has been an active Irish teaching blogger for just over a year. Have a look at her blog. If you are job-hunting, some of the most recent posts should be of interest to you.

Anyway, back to the store. I've added my first item to the store and it's free for all. It's a secret walker poster. I use this in school as a classroom management technique to ensure nice behaviour in line when walking to and from the play area and the lunchroom. All of the children's names are in a cup. I choose one at the beginning of break. I don't tell the children who the secret walker is until they come back after their break. If the secret walker behaved responsibly, I reward them with a star sticker (that is placed on a chart under this poster). If not, I don't reveal the secret walker's identity but explain why the mystery person did not receive the reward.