Five For Friday (I mean, Saturday.)

I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching this week for Five For Friday! And even though it was a four day week, with Memorial Day, it was still a doozy!

We took our NYS Science Performance test this week, and on Monday my little fourth graders will finish up their state testing with the Science written exam. PHEW! FINALLY! We are in the home stretch!

I have a tradition near the conclusion of the school year. I try to do a countdown, and each day we do some fun activity. It keeps things fresh as the year winds down! I write these activities on slips of paper, put them inside balloons, hang the balloons from the classroom ceiling, and pop one each day!

Some activities we put inside the balloons:

Minute to Win It Games

Kickball Tourney

Reading Marathon

Ice Cream Party

Picnic Lunch Outside

Paper Airplane Contest

Popsicle Treat

Bubblegum Blowing Contest

Movie and Popcorn Day

I have each child earn raffle tickets throughout the day for walking quietly in the hallway and making good choices. The raffle tickets go into a jar and I use those tickets to choose kids who get to pop balloons each day. It really is a lot of fun!

Any other ideas for end of the year excitement?

My annual review with my principal is next week. I've been working to get my evidence binder and paperwork completed. It sure is a lot of hard work! I heard from a teacher friend in another district that some districts are using LiveBinder to digitally compile evidence for annual reviews. I'm putting "LiveBinder research" on my summer to do list because that would be way easier than hole punching and binder stuffing!

In real life news, my washing machine leaked its face off all over my basement last week. I ordered a new washer and dryer. They came today and they are oh so pretty! Unfortunately, in my infinite wisdom, I forgot to order the stacking kit. So, my friends at Best Buy will be back next week to stack. And when I say "my friends," I really mean it because the same two guys have delivered all of my new appliances in the past month, and we're now buds.

In other news, I've recently developed an addiction to the television series, Scandal. I've been binge watching for days and I love it! Scandal and report cards and RtI reports will be my weekend!