Hello Everyone!!! How's summer going for you? Mine has been busy with cleaning closets, writing, reading, and ... wait for it...Family time!!!! Finally!!! Hooray for having the opportunity to see both my boys this summer! And at the beach!!! What???? All my favorite things are in this picture! I am one happy and blessed momma! Being their first teacher, I am so happy to see them growing in positive influence and grace. They are truly my greatest treasure! And speaking of treasures, I have some to share with you today. Our team is going to enjoy a pirate theme this year in first grade. By theme, I mean we will have pirate stuff in the hallways, decorating our binders, our incentives, our class shirts, brag tags, etc. I don't change up my whole "western" themed classroom, rather add some fun whimsy to go along with our theme. We will make connections wherever we can. I created a little unit which will help guide our theme and give us some fun interactive "get to know you" activities for the beginning of the year. Here are a few pics from the unit! I am very excited about this unit and I think the kids are going to love it!!! If you are struggling with how you want to open your year with your littles, simply click the link below! AAAARGH! It's over 110 pages! CLICK HEEEEERE! I also had some time this summer to enjoy some book studies. One of my new favorite books for teaching writing is The Writing Strategies Book by Jennifer Serravallo. She includes a very comprehensive guide to working on writing with elementary kids. She embraces Lucy Calkins and adds her own spin on some of Lucy's lessons. I have gleaned so much from her book, I had to update my writer's workshop unit. Here are some quick pics. For your updated version of my Writer's Workshop unit, Just Click HERE for the link. It's over 100 pages now!! Free for you! :) I can't wait to set up Workshop with my new firsties!!! Thank you Jennifer Serravallo! You are a treasure! I'll be back soon to share some more treasures! Thank you for your continued support of this little blog. I consider it and you another treasure in my life. Please stop by again as you continue on your journey. If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to leave a comment or email. [email protected] Now, off to get ready for our team meeting tomorrow!! Can't wait to get together!!! Joyfully! Nancy