Top Ten Things I've Learned From Teaching :)

Today I am linking up with Miss Kindergarten for 10 Things I've Learned From Teaching!

1. Be organized from the beginning. Spend the extra time over the summer getting yourself ready for the school year. Labels will make you happy!

2. Leave on time. Don't stay til 7:00. Give yourself a time limit so you have some me time or you will go crazy!

3. Use parent volunteers, but in the best ways possible, not because you "have to". My first couple of years I had parents in for everything because I felt like I had to. This year, not so much. I had parents signed up to help cut laminating, help copying, and help with science experiments/big projects. They still got to help, but it was really HELPING me, not making it harder :)

4. Become friends with the custodians. They clean your rooms, and a little bribery goes along way when it comes to getting your room cleaned first over the summer :)

5. Give yourself a budget on what you can spend on your classroom, especially in those first few years where you want to buy every cute thing you see at Lakeshore and Michaels! 

6. Be silly. The kids love it. Don't be afraid to be a little crazy. I used to over think it - now I just go with it ;)

7. Find a friend. It might not be a friend on your grade level, but who cares! Get someone who you can trust and go to when you're having a rough day. 

8. Buy a lot of hand sanitizer and lysol. Better yet, get the parents to donate it. My kids each bring a bottle of purell or lysol wipes at the start of school. There are months where I want to take a quick bath with lysol wipes when I look around at all of the kids coughing and sneezing. GROSS.

9. Find a pick me up and keep it handy. For me, caffeine. I keep k-cups in my desk. Sometimes, chocolate. Find what works for you! 

10. Leave your negative energy at the door. Give it your all everyday. Your mood sets the tone for the classroom everyday!

ALSO, I watched Ashley Hughes' tutorial on creating a facebook freebie page and I am HOPEFULLY  all set up! 

These table numbers are featured free for Facebook fans! Click HERE to go pick them up (and cross your fingers that it works - I needed this blog post to get the image for the download, so if it doesn't work right away, it's because I am on trying to get everything uploaded- try again later!)