IT’S MY FAVORITE THINGS!!!!!!!
You see, my friend Oprah had this little show where she gave away these little knick knacks. So I asked her if she’d mind if I did a favorite things blog post and gave away some awesome favorite things! She said it was cool. (Me and the O are friends because she goes to church by my house when she’s in Nashville…so that makes us friends. In my head. She just doesn’t know we’re friends…)
So, let’s get started with Mr. Greg’s Favorite Things!
These are LCD screens that you can write on and erase! Think of it as a high tech Etch-A-Sketch! I’ve used these in my classroom for 3 years and they’re AMAZING!
They have tons of options including little boards…small boards…and even boards that can link up to your computer to save your writing!
We use them for write the room, math the room and small group work!
The best part is that my ‘staches LOVE THEM!
(Thanks to my friend Chad at Male Kindergarten Teacher for this awesome handwriting!)
Thanks Boogie Board for making my classroom more fun and engaging and supporting my favorite things!
Be sure to checkout Boogie Boards!
Everything’s better with smelly markers!
Anchor charts.
Morning Messages.
Coloring.
Centers/Workstations/Hippopotamuses.
Art.
Grading.
Writing.
Every classroom needs more smelly markers!
I love my Scentos and Mr. Sketch markers!
I love writing with all kinds of colors. (In case you didn’t know…I like colorful things…ALL THE COLORS!)
So why not have fun ink pens in all the colors?!
My faves are Papermate Flair Pens and InkJoy pens!
I even let my ‘staches uses ink pens to do their write the room and other hippo work!
Fun pens in fun colors=engaged kiddos!
GLITTER!
GLITTER ALL THE THINGS!
I am #teamglitter all the way. If it can be held down, it could be glittered.
I would glitter my Jeep (Smorgie1) if the mister would let me!
Everything is better with glitter. The world needs more sparkle!
Mustaches!
Hello, my kids are named the ‘staches. They are Mr. Greg’s Mustaches.
My classroom is decorated in mustaches.
If it has a mustache…I probably have it. Dishes, ice cube tray, cookie cutters, lights, mugs, shoes (Converse), socks, unmentionables, Duck Tape, notebooks, pens, pencils, tape dispenser, picture frames, giant clothes pins…the list is never ending.
And I need more. More mustaches!
How can you not love something so fun and whimsical and happy?!
My classroom theme is mustaches.
People, I even wear a mustache suit!
Nuff said.
Thanks to my friends at Creative Teaching Press for the amazing mustache classroom decor and for always supporting my classroom and for being one of my favorite things!
If you don’t know GoNoodle, check it out right now.
It’s a FREE website with short brain breaks to get kids up and moving to keep them focused and engaged. Research tells us that our kids need movement and brain breaks and GoNoodle is the perfect way to make that happen!
Seriously…LOVE GoNoodle and so does my class!
(And GN is headquartered right here in Nashville so the employees even come hang out and GoNoodle with us from time to time!)
I am even an official GoNoodle Ambassador so I get to share my GoNoodle love with schools and teachers all over!
Thank you GoNoodle for making my classroom more brain friendly and getting my class (and Mr. Greg up and dancing everyday!) and for supporting my favorite things!
Sit Spots are these amazing Velcro like shapes that stick to the carpet in your classroom. But it’s not just Velcro…it’s like WOWZA Velcro stickiness…for serious. These things stick and your kiddos aren’t getting them up!
I love Sit Spots because they’re colorful and fun. And they are so versatile for your classroom.
Designed by a TEACHER so her kids could have a spot to sit, they are so much more than a spot to sit! (And it’s a family business and they are the best people ever! I glitter heart them!)
I write on mine with Sharpies so we can use them for games and learning!
The possibilities…
sight words
letters/sounds
CVC words
numbers/counting
add/subtract
And on and on and on and on and on…
Thank you Sit Spots for making our learning more fun and helping those skills stick (like Sit Spots stick to the carpet…get it?! Funny! hehe) and for supporting my favorite things!
You can even request a free sample to make sure they stick to your carpet!
I love bright colors. The world is happier when it’s colorful! So that means I use bright copy paper as much as I possibly can!
Thanks to Amazon for making it cheap and easy to keep stocked up!
(In case you missed it…I also like bright colors on everything. Clothes…car…classroom…so, bright colors are a favorite thing!)
I have this little GoPro camera and I love it!
I love how versatile it is and how much fun we have with this thing.
I also love that I can stick it anywhere and get amazing pictures and videos of the goings on in my classroom.
You want an eye opening experience?! Get a GoPro and strap it to your students and hit record. CRAZY!
You can check out our GoPro videos (SmorgieVision) on my YouTube page!
I mean…look at the fun angles you can take pictures from. I am a fan of sticking the GoPro in the ceiling because you get a bird’s eye view of my crazy class! (They’re my favorite! I glitter heart those little ‘staches!)
ESGI is a one on one, computer based assessment tools for PreK-1st grade teachers.
It’s a Mr. Greg favorite. It’s a teacher must have. It’s a teacher time saver.
Seriously…I can do my report card assessments on all 18 ‘staches in 1 day.
I can assess my kids on a skill in about 10 minutes to get up to the minute data so I can refine my teaching and meet my ‘staches right where they are.
ESGI saves you 400 hours a year.
Who doesn’t need 400 hours to laminate and cut….play in glitter…sleep…exercise…read this blog and like my pictures on Instagram and comment on my Facebook page?!
You can sign up for a free 60 day free trial by clicking on the ESGI button on the right side of the blog!
And last but definitely not least….my newest favorite thing…
This is the coolest piece of technology in my classroom. Every classroom needs this. Every school needs this.
Letters Alive is augmented reality. People…it’s 3D without the glasses.
The day I was introduced to this…I had to have it.
ANd the day I introduced this to my ‘staches…they were hooked. We use this almost daily and if we don’t, they’re asking for it!
Letters Alive is great for letters, sounds, sentences, word families and sight words.
It’s HIGHLY ENGAGING and FUN!!!!!!!
I mean…words cannot do it justice…so see for yourself!
A HUGE thank you to Alive Studios for partnering with my classroom and making our learning more fun and effective! I credit Letters Alive with helping my students master all of their letters and sounds in 26 days! (And they’ve become great friends of mine and I am so thankful for that!)
My Favorite Things would not be complete without a shout out to my TBFF Jenny for the AMAZING Greg’s Favorite Things image and for being the official photographer and the official clip art designer of The Kindergarten Smorgasboard!
I mean I think she nailed it on the picture!
And now you can enter for a chance to win some of my favorite things!