Thanks so much!

Thanks so much for the overwhelming response to the ABC Twiggles giveaway post!  It is good to be back blogging here, especially after such a warm welcome.  Since so many of you have recently left comments, I am not going to be able to reply to each comment individually.  Please know how much I appreciate hearing from you.  If I have neglected to reply to a comment you sent me this summer and you are still waiting to hear, please email me again.  While I try to carefully respond to those of you with specific questions, I do occasionally (but unintentionally) forget to reply due to the volume of emails I get.  It's a nice problem to have in a way, but I do want to make a personal connection with people as my time allows.  Which reminds me.........if you have invited me to be a friend on one of the social networks such as Facebook, Jhoos, Twitter, etc., please do not be offended that I have not accepted your invitation.  As of this moment, I am not a member of any social network.  It is just a personal decision.  That's where I'm at for now.  I have had lots of encouragement (and grief!) from friends who know me in real life to join, but for now I'm not "out there."  I know enough to never say never.  (I thought I'd never switch from film to digital photographs.  I also thought I'd never switch to digital scrapbooking, and I haven't totally made that switch, but I can see it coming.)  I will be SURE to let you all know if my social network status ever changes.  Then y'all have to be my friend, okay?  (Just kidding.)

In other news..........

I am so excited about the new school year.  I love fall and all the great aspects of that season here in the midwest of the United States.  I also love thinking of new activities and materials and routines and organizational systems to add to my classroom.  AND I love sharing those ideas here.

Today I am sharing something I made this summer that I think will be very useful to me this year.  It is a little ring with cards that have seasonal songs, poems and fingerplays printed on them.  I am sure that most of you who work with young children have a stash of favorite songs and poems that you use each year.  I do as well, but I must admit that I haven't always been very organized with them so sometimes I forget from year to year which songs I like.  I also find things online and print them out to bring to school, but it's cumbersome to have to shuffle through a bunch of papers when teaching a new song. So....this summer I took the time to make a bunch of files of my favorites and to format them so they could be cut apart into little cards.  I then laminated these cards, hole-punched the corner, and now I have a little "ring of songs" for each season: fall, winter and spring.  I stuck one of those little removable hooks right by my calendar area and my fall ring of songs is hanging on it right now, waiting for the first day of school!

And just in case you were reading this thinking...........gee, that looks great, I sure wish Laura would make it available as a download.......HERE YOU GO!  Let me know what you think.

Download Apples Download Apples Leaves Pumpkins Download Pumpkins

Download Pumpkins Trick or Treat Download Pumpkins Trick or Treat Turkeys

Download Turkeys God's love

These are each single page files.  I printed mine on white cardstock.  After printing I cut them out (into fourths), laminated them, trimmed them, hole-punched them and put them on a ring.  You can't see it in the photo but to cutesify them I tied some seasonal ribbons onto the ring.  Hope you enjoy!

Comments

[Laura]

Thanks, Michelle! Im glad you enjoyed the cards. Ill post the winter ones in a few months.
Take care,
Laura

To: directress@live.com

[Michelle]

Thanks Laura! I've got the perfect fall ribbon for the ring! I've got all of my songs organized in a dreadful index card box. I think I'll sing more songs with the kids when it's displayed nicely like this. Can't wait to see the winter songs!

[kelly l]

Did you post a muffin song a year or so ago with cut out muffins sprinkled w/ glitter? If so could you tell me where I can find that post again on your blog?
Thanks so much!

[Jodi]

Thank you for sharing these files! I can't wait to share the songs with my children...they will love them. :) I am so happy you are back!

[Laura]

Youre welcome, Amanda. Thanks so much for writing.
Take care and good luck in your new school year.
Laura

To: directress@live.com

[Shannon]

Thank you so much for 1-being back, 2-posting great and time saving ideas, 3 - Sharing your work! LOVE THIS and all you do!

[Amanda]

Your ideas are always so cute and very useful in the classroom. Thanks for helping me out during my first year of teaching and into my second. You are awesome!

[Ami]

Thank you! Cute songs :-)

[Gigi]

You are WONDERFUL!! Thank you so much Laura for these files. My kids will enjoy these so much in our homeschool this year. I tend to focus on the schooling part and forget to do songs with my kids.

I know that they LOVED the songs they were taught in school last year because I would hear them all of the time!
I also loved that the teacher would give us (Parents) a copy.

[Christine]

Thanks so much for doing the leg work for us! I have had this idea and not gotten to it. I hope you keep us posted throughout the year with more!

[Myra]

Thanks so much for these!