What's in my Backpack?

This year, I've been doing a much better job than usual staying organized. Here are the items I keep in my backpack on a daily basis that help me do that, and also make me happy with their cuteness!

I have 5 classes this semester (well 6, but one is a lab) so I have 1 Lisa Frank notebook for each class! Inside, I used my label maker to put the name of each class. I got all of these on Amazon every time I look at them I smile. Plus, they match my multicolor Lisa Frank pen I talked about earlier;)

Besides those, I also always pack my little ban.do "I Did My Best" notebook. I decided this year that I really want to make sure that I'm learning for the sake of learning, and not just passing tests. In this book, I record at least one really interesting thing I learn each day, even on the weekends! They say "you learn something new each day" and I'm hoping that by the end of the year I'll have a whole book of really interesting facts! 

Another thing I started doing recently is being more mindful of what I eat. In the little pink notebook with the bow, I record everything I eat, and keep track of how many glasses of water I have each day. I like to keep it with me so I can mark things down right away. 

Then there's this cute "things to do" note pad. In class, I often think of things to put on my 'to do' list and write them on lined paper and then forget which notebook they're in. Now, I have this handy notepad so I can keep all my lists in one place! 

It's kind of ridiculous how much I love this pencil pouch. It's obvious that it's pretty worn out, but I don't care! The brand is called Paper Doll Mate, which is also the brand of my wallet, which is pretty similar looking!

And of course I also keep my planner in my backpack! (It's hiding under the other notebook since I've shown it before). All of this goes in this darling backpack:

Dorm Decor

I just moved back into school for my final semester of college (yay!) and thought I'd share some of me tips for making a boring dorm room as cute as possible.

Many dorm rooms start off pretty ugly (mine has black blinds and dark blue carpeting... which is the worst combination and impossible to keep clean) so it's important to combat that with as much prettiness as possible!

This is my bed. I hung white Christmas lights around it like every basic college girl does, but I'm pretty sure I'm the only one with the Hello Kitty Posters;) I found this turquoise blanket at Kohl's and it's super soft and cute, so I keep it on top of my comforter. I also got the most adorable pillows from Typo. They're reversible, which is awesome. One of them features ice cream, donuts, and sprinkles on one side, and a smiley face with donut eyes on the back. The other one has a horse on it with an ice cream cone making it a unicorn, and turquoise wth white polka dots on the other side. Plus I keep my little cloud pillow that I sleep with every night, a pink puppy my brothers got me for my birthday years ago, and a pink bear that my boyfriend won me on the boardwalk on my bed.

 

I'm also kind of obsessed with my desk. I keep my backpack and purse hung on a hook on the left side of it, and on the right side I have my calendar. On the top, I have pictures of my family, and various knick knacks. On the desk part I have a white board where I write my countdowns, a board with all of my photobooth pictures on it, my hair things, and a push pin board that came of the dorm desk, which I use to display little cards with bible verses and inspiring quotes. 

Just like with my bed, I have little sentimental things that remind me of the people I love on my desk! I definitely think that's the most important thing to remember to do when decorating a dorm room. In the pictures you can see that I have a build-a-bear bunny that has my boyfriend's voice recorded on it, a little donkey that my best friend gave me when she got married, and of course lots of pictures!

 
 

Around the room I have a bunch of Lisa Frank "posters" (I ripped pictures out of a big calendar) and little whimsical details. I moved the set of drawers from under my desk and put them by my bed as a nightstand, and found a pink table runner at the Dollar Tree to make it cuter. I also keep all my ugly extension cords in a little pink and white container, and have a pink and white striped laundry basket to match!

My Favorite Whimsical Outfits

I thought I'd make a post of some of my favorite teaching outfits! These are all outfits I've actually worn while at my tutoring job this past summer, and each one of them earned me many child-compliments!

I love anything dessert related, so this is a go-to. The shirt features donuts, cupcakes, and ice cream, and was actually purchased in the kid's section of Forever 21! Sometimes I get the biggest size in the kid's department, because if you ask me, little girls get cuter clothing options;) You can't really tell but I also have on lollipop earrings and a sparkly hair clip. 

I love this dress so much! Here's more of a close up of the design:

Ugh, the bows, the polka dots, the tea cups, the bows, the carousel animals! I just can't get over it. 

I cut my face off because it was a bad picture;)

I'm probably the only adult who would actually wear this, but I love it because to me, the blazer makes it feel professional, but it's still bright pink and sparkly! In my defense, it was monochromatic day at the tutoring center!

Valentines!

In school, Valentine's Day was always my favorite day of the year. I absolutely loved picking out valentines for everyone in my class, and carefully deciding which design best fit every student. I still love Valentine's Day, and try to make little valentines for my friends ever year, along with my significant other! This year, I couldn't resist getting some of those paper valentines they make for classes, that I used to love so much. I picked  a My Little Pony set, with glitter tattoos! So exciting;)

I also made little gift bags for my roommates and a couple friends with a few of these valentines and tattoos, some cards I made (just by getting blank notecards and decorating them with stickers!), Hello Kitty coloring pages/activity pages with a couple colored pencils, and some assorted sticker sheets.

I love this sort of thing because I've never really grown up, and I like to remind the people in my life how fun it was to be a kid!

I can't wait to have Valentine's Day with my class someday soon. I just know I'm going to go out. (When I observed/helped out a class for one semester, I took notes on each child's interests as I noticed them, and before I left I made each of them a card with pictures and stickers of their favorite characters and activities!)

Pins, Pins, Pins!

I love pins! And I've always associated them with teachers (especially when they're holiday themed or book themed).

These are a few of my favorite that I have!

Below, I zoomed in a little more. As you can see we have an "open book" pin, an "I love books" pin, a "bookworm" pin, a pin with a little girl on it, a pin that says "some of my best friends are books," a plain book pin, a "keep fighting" pin, and a "sweet pea" pin. Most of them I've either had a long time or I was given them as gifts, but I can tell you that the "I love books" and the plain book were both from https://kategabrielle.com/, as was the "keep fighting" pin!

Ice Cream Outfits!

Ice cream! I love to eat it, but I think I love to wear it even more.

My favorite place to buy ice cream themed clothes is Modcloth (that's where I got the "ice cream is cheaper than therapy" tee in the second picture, and the ice cream dress in the 3rd!) I've worn the first blouse while tutoring, and the kids always comment on it! So fun

In Praise of Pastels

As much as I love a good themed outfit, I can also appreciate basics (just as long as those basics aren't too basic). When I try to dress all practical and boring, I tend to get a bit depressed. But when I wear pastel staples I feel both put-together and happy!

My skinny mint cords are from Gap, and my top and sweater are both from Forever 21. My necklace (my one fun piece in this outfit) is a map of the world and was given to me by my best friend! (I'm quite certain she got it at Modcloth) and my matching gold flats are from somewhere I don't remember, but can probably be found just about anywhere;)

I also want to mention that I have gotten much better at my makeup since these were taken;) I don't take enough outfit pictures, but I'm hoping this blog will change that! 

Also - I made an Instagram page! @thewhimsicaleducator :)

Interview with a Teacher

Last week, I interviewed a teacher I know. I asked her for her most essential tips for classroom management, and how to make the most out of teaching time. She has been a teacher for about 30 years, and has taught in both public and private schools. She also has a Masters Degree in reading, and was a reading specialist in an elementary school for many years. She has taught grades K-8, here and abroad, and was even the teacher and principal of a one room school house, where she single-handedly taught grades 1-8. So her advice was definitely valuable to me!

Here are some quick bullet points I got from her:

• Respect the students as people first.
• During the first few weeks, keep reviewing the rules as if it's a test - show them how the rules apply specifically to what they are doing.
• Use chimes - teach the students that when you ring the chime that means you see their eyes, no voice.
• Practice "freezing" and make it fun. This way when you need their attention immediately they'll know what to do.
• During the first few weeks, you almost can't really teach. They must be primarily about discipline, because those weeks will set the tone for the whole year.
• Don't let parents come in any time and disrupt the lesson. Set times for them, and try to make it before music or PE, so that there is a set time they must leave.
• Write a word on the board (like "recess") and say nothing, but go up to the board and write -2 minutes, for example. Explain that since those minutes were wasted, they must be made up. You could also write something fun besides recess, and take time away from that.
• Randomly put stickers on students' name tags when they're especially on-task.
• What children want is to know what to expect - they want consistency, and they don't want to have any doubts. 
• Use a marble jar and/or group points. Don't take away any marbles or points - they earned these.
• 1st thing in the morning, set the tone. Make it a place they want to be, free of chaos. Make it a safe place by playing classical music, diffusing essential oils, and starting with a story and then doing quiet journaling. Chicken Soup books for whatever grade they're in work great for this, because they have short stories with a lesson. The students can journal how they feel after, or can draw to express themselves. 
• Kids love timers (ex: 5 more minutes of journal time...) let them see the time.
• When you send students to someone else (like the principal) it makes them think you can't handle them or have given up on them, so try not to resort to this. 
• Children might oppose you because that's what they've had to do to survive. (She shared a story with me about a student in one of her early years of teaching who defied everything she said. Eventually that student, who was being raised by his grandparents, told her about the things his parents used to make him do. He had to defy his parents, and he brought that into the classroom).
• Many children rule their house, and are used to having power. If you're in control then they don't have to be, and this is what they crave.
• The classroom is your own little world, and something you create together.
• You have to make a big enough impact on these kids in just one year. One small thing you say can change the course of their life.
• The relationship and respect aspect is so much more important than teaching.
• Utilize turning the lights off, and having children put their heads down when they need a break or things are getting out of hand.
• Impress upon that that school is their "job" and sometimes they'll have to do things they don't want to do.
• If they're coloring for science or something mindless like that, play a book on tape in the background. The more they can read and be read to, the better. 
• Teaching students to read solves a lot of problems, and is the main goal with younger students.
• You won't have time to do everything you want to do with them - only do the important problems. Circle the main problems in workbooks, and if parents question why explain that we don't do every problem in every book, and that they can do the extra problems with their child later if they want.
• "The longer I teach, the less value I see in homework."
• Have parents read at home with their children as much as possible.
• Math facts must be a priority.
• Do what's best for the kids - don't try to get everybody (parents, other teachers, etc.) to like you.

Teacher Clothes: Book-Themed Clothing Sites!

There are a million cute book-themed articles of clothing out there, but after much searching, these are my top picks for websites with a wide variety of items.

Listographs is the coolest site ever. They take all the words from a book (they have a huge selection!) and make a design that fits that book with the words. Then they put that design on shirts, posters, scarfs, and bags!

They're a little pricey, but I think it's worth it for something so cool and unique! The one pictures is from Sense and Sensibility, and it cost $34.00. 

The scarves are even pricier at $39.00 like this Hamlet one. They're more simple, with only the words and no design.

I think my favorite items from this site, though, are the totes! How cute would these be to carry your teaching materials in?

 

I love the idea of getting one to fit the grade level that I'm teaching. And at $29.00, these are a little more affordable. 

My other favorite website for book-themed clothing is Out of Print. I've been (mostly window) shopping here for years, and I absolutely adore it! I even have a couple items from here that I'm planning on showing in another post. This site has t-shirts, sweatshirts, socks, totes, mugs, and scarves, all with book covers or reading themes on them! 

Currently I'm eyeing these pieces:

Again, I would purchase based off grade level, and would probably reserve the more casual-wear for Fridays, or dress the tees up with a blazer or something! This cite is also a little more affordable than the other, and I can say from experience that the items are quality!