I sat on the fence long enough!  I have read about and heard so many teachers share all the wonderful resources that they received through Donors Choose and still I waited!

I made the leap this year and was honored and humbled by the support that poured in from family, friends, staff, parents at our school (both in my class and those I have never met!) and total strangers! It touched my heart and the heart of my 18 students.  Now it is my turn to give a little back!



We had FOUR projects funded over a three month span and now each child in my class has their own stability ball! My kids {LOVE} them and we are so excited to have them.  I could go on and on about stability balls, but that will be another post:)



I have to say that these particular ball chairs and the Donors Choose projects were inspired by a post at Mrs. Stanford's Class.  You can click on her button below to take her to her post about ball chairs.


So now it is time to give a little back!  I have signed up at Donors Choose to donated $10.00 a month so each month they send me a reminder with account credits.  So here is YOUR chance to get $10.00 towards YOUR PROJECT!  What??  No project??  This is your time to sign up or pick a favorite project you would like to support!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don't forget to leave a comment with YOUR favorite Donors Choose project! I can't wait to see them all. GOOD LUCK!

If you read my BRIGHT IDEAS post, you know my firsties have fifth grade reading buddies and we are so thankful for all their reading support this year.  My students are blessed by the friendships they have made with their reading buddy. 

It is our turn to give back a little.  Our buddies took the FCAT test Monday-Thursday this week and then have two more days next week. 

We thought it was super important to build on the connection so our class gave out buddies a handwritten note this week with a little pick me up snack!

I am linking up with my Firstie Friends in a super fun Product Swap.  These teachers are super talented and are my go to place when looking for top notch first grade products!

 Word Safari was the perfect addition to our word work center this week!  The students reviewed nouns, verbs and adjectives and then picked a card from a pile and decided how to categorize it.  I had my firties explain why they put it where they did to their partners.  As I listened, I heard one student coach another, "Well, is it a person, place or thing?"  So sweet:)

Welcome to the Bright Ideas Blog Hop.  I love the simplicity of this hop as I can share a little and then  hop along to hear so many new strategies and ideas that are easy to implement. Collaboration among teachers is one of the reasons I started my blog.


Throughout my 17 years of teaching in the primary grades, I have paired up with a intermediate teacher and implemented Reading Buddies. This experience is a win-win for so many reasons. 

1.  My first graders are paired up with a stronger reader who is able to help them read and decode words with books on their level.  We meet once a week for 20 minutes.  This is such an amazing way to build fluency with my firsties!


2.  Our school uses the Accelerated Reader program where children are able to read leveled books and take comprehension tests on the computer.  We are able to utilize this program that much sooner because our reading buddies are able to show the first graders how to find the program on the computer, how to log in and then help with any unknown words.  The reading buddies ARE NOT allowed to help with the answers.


3. Our Reading Buddies take the FCAT, a standardized test here in Florida.  We are able to write notes of encouragement and send little snacks and pick me ups during their two weeks of testing.  All of our school is matched up with FCAT buddies, but I believe it means even more now as friendships have been made through the year and the kids have a connection to each other.  They know we are rooting for them!  We  are sending over a basket of apples on Monday with our notes of encouragement.



I would love to hear if YOU have reading buddies!  If you enjoyed this Bright Idea, please consider  following me on Facebook, Teachers Pay Teachers and Bloglovin.

For more bright ideas from 150 different bloggers, please browse through the link up below and choose a topic or grade level that interests you. Thanks for visiting!

I am linking up today with Kasey at Doodlebugs Teaching.  After trial and error on and off for two years, I FINALLY have my math centers up and running.  OK, truth be told, it is going smoothly with the help of my super sweet intern, Michelle!



My intern works with students on the math concept that follows a lesson and our weekly standards.  We work in small group at a table or on the carpet depending on the activity.