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http://MsStephTeacher.blogspot.com

Sorry I've been away, but I'm back!

First and foremost, I have to apologise for being away for so long.  As some of you may or may not know, I had just started back teaching full time and made the transition from US curriculum to Australian curriculum.  I'm at a new school and learning something new everyday.  Sure took a lot of time and energy from me and I vowed to make sure my focus was on my classroom/students.

A Sneak Peek

We've had nearly every single special event in term 3, so I was busy busy busy.  One of my favourite events was during our Book Week celebration!  We had a parade of all the costumes with prizes and dancing, and a full day of activity rotations! I dressed up as Max, King of the Wild Things, and did an activity with the book.  We also had our School Athletics Carnival, that took all energy of me and left like a zombie the next day.  We had Jump Rope for Heart, Inter-School Carnival and so much more.

What's Coming Up Next on the Blog

I've got some new TPT products to showcase, share my experience teaching overseas and more!  I hope to have a giveaway on the blog soon as work on building more with this blog!

My Teachers Pay Teachers Journey

I'm still having FOMO feelings at the fact I couldn't be in Vegas for the TPT Conference 2015, but I'm so glad that those who went decided to share their experience via Instagram, Twitter, and Periscope as it was happening.  I'm looking forward to reading your blog posts for more details and insights!

I decided to share my journey with TPT with you all and am curious to learn about your journey!

I started teaching in 2010 and I started off my year going through what my school provided.  I would tweak some things and add my own activities.  In 2012, I was always looking for more and more resources to add to the curriculum.  Thank you to Google search for finding an activity for me that sparked my interest when I saw "https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/....."  I know by that name that it was something interesting!  I soon created an account and started buying!  I loved how creative, easily available and AFFORDABLE it was!  My first purchase was "Introducing Multiplication - Early Multiplication Worksheets and Activities" by Classroom Chit Chat because I was new to 3rd grade and wanted more resources for multiplication!  I still use it! 

When I moved to Australia in June 2014 I found myself with some free time on my hands and anxious to get back in the classroom.  I went through a 6 month process to get the eligibility to begin teaching and started working as a relief teacher.  I wanted more and more products to gather for my upcoming class, but I was short on money.  So I started making products *I* wanted, soon I had a passion for creating products.  I'm notorious for changing blog layouts constantly because I get the bug to create.  (Now I put that passion into creating classroom products!)  Now I use 100% of my earnings to purchase on TPT for clipart & classroom products.  I'm not in it for the money, I'm in it to create, utilise my passion in design and sharing with others! (One of my first products.)

Over the months I learned to use Powerpoint for PDFs and packets, and I learned the tricks of the trade within the POWER of Powerpoint!  I was exposed to different fonts, clipart, backgrounds, frames and more!  I found myself purchasing more of these products via TPT!   After about 3-4 months of creating I found *my own niche* in style, and it was received well!  My anchor charts, especially my Reading Anchor Charts packet, are my best selling product.  Learn from others, but stay true to yourself and your niche.  It's true!

I haven't been doing it for that long, but it's still a growing passion in me!  The sparks within the teaching community online really inspires me as a TPT seller, TPT buyer, but mainly as a TEACHER!  I love learning more and learning from others is my favourite way to be exposed to something new! I'm amazed at all the activity online via Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest and now Periscope!  I love that we love sharing so much and learning from while supporting each other! Let's keep this amazing online #TeacherTribe going!

What's your TPT journey?  Share it with me!  

I would love to hear more about it!

Made It Monday

Check out 4th Grade Frolics for more information about Monday Made It!

Thanks to One Stop Teacher Shop for making these I CAN activities!  (Yep, I'm mentioning them again.  They're that good!)  I bought mine in a bundle with Maths work and look forward to using these in maths rotations.  I didn't have any tennis ball containers (and they're quite pricey here in Australia), so I used old Pringles cans.  I've spent quite some time laminating, cutting, and taping my materials.  I still need to make a binder to hold response and answer sheets.  (But to save on paper I'll also have students use dry erase boards to write and work out problems.)

I had seen some teachers move away from specific classroom jobs charts and such to group jobs/committees.  I LOVED this idea because you can easily incorporate teamwork in the classroom.  I had made these posters for my classroom, then I decided to made a general one for anyone who'd like to use them.  (Not pictured is Library Committee because I don't currently have a classroom library and assign school library jobs to another committee.)  I used crews within the committee with 2 students per crew, except for a few that only require 1 person.  You can adjust how you use it in your classroom to your liking! 

Download this FREEBIE at my TPT Store!  Don't forget to FOLLOW ME! 

The last thing I made was a Get to Know Your Class Scoot!  I'm taking over a class halfway through the year and I got a bit of background from the previous teacher.  However, I'd like to learn more about the students from their own perspectives as well.  I made this activity for the kids!  I'm excited to try it out in a week!  (You can get this BACK TO SCHOOL activity for just $1!)

Five for Friday!

Five for Friday is a weekly teacher linky party where you post five random things from today or this past week and on your blog. Check out the linky party at Doodle Bugs Teaching.

Get to Know Your Class SCOOT

I was creating a game for my upcoming class to get to know them a little better & from their own perspective.  I wanted to know what they liked about their class, what they'd like to change, and so on.  Then I realised that this would be a good "Back to School" activity for any class!  It's up on my TPT Store!

FOMO TPT Vegas '15 & Periscope App

The ONLY downside to moving to Australia is trying to go to the TPT Vegas 2015 Conference would cost the ticket times 1,000! $$$ Not enough time off to justify spending that money to go back to the USA, especially since I would have time to visit my family in Florida.  I WISH I could go, BUT this Periscope App has been SO AWESOME! I'm slightly obsessed!  I'm loving all the videos and chance to chat with the teachers via messages.  If you're on Persicope, find me: @FishingForEd 

Australian Teachers Facebook Page Reaches 1,000+ Likes!

I'm so excited!  Australian Teachers Facebook Page reached 1,000+ Likes and we're hosting a giveaway to celebrate this milestone!  (We're each offering a product from our TPT Store, to find out more information: http://australianteachers.blogspot.com.au/2015/07/1000-facebook-likes-giveaway.html and it'll direct you to the post on Facebook.)

Nespresso Machine

We just got back from the city and bought this little baby!  I'm not a big coffee connoisseur, but my bf is picky about his coffee (a bit) and I'm all about something quick and simple.  This machine is AMAZING! I love how it "steams" the milk!  Yummy too!  

Organising Materials for My New Class

I've been collecting our Pringles cans because #1 we don't get them often because they're ridiculously expensive here in Australia, but they were 1/2 off and #2 they're perfect for the "I CAN..." activities from One Stop Teacher Shop!  Love this activity for my maths block!