*Currently* December with a Cyber Monday (& Tuesday) TPT Sale!

Hello December and Cyber Monday sales!  Welcome.  Time to link up with Farley over at Oh' Boy Fourth Grade for another Currently! 

Listening: My little ones (3 years old) just saw The Polar Express movie for the first time.  It was #priceless #familyfun!  We popped some popcorn and turned out all of the lights to get the full *movie effect*! :)

Loving: I love this time of year.  Reflecting on the reason for the season is always a good thing.   

Thinking: I'm thinking how wonderful the idea is of giving the "Gift of Reading" as a way for my kiddos to countdown the days until Christmas.  I can't wait to watch them each unwrap a new book for us to read before bedtime...starting tonight! :)

50 books wrapped and ready to go!   

Wanting: I want so badly to check out the Cyber Sale over at TPT for some great RtI and literacy activities for my students, but haven't had time...just yet.  By tonight, my online cart will be filled!  Don't forget, my TPT store is also participating in the Cyber Sale and is up to 28% off today and tomorrow. 

Needing: After unpacking all of the Christmas boxes and decorating the house yesterday, we have a slight mess in the kitchen.  All of the empty boxes are now waiting to be placed back down on the shelves in the storage room.  My husband is having a little holiday party at our home on Tuesday night to celebrate his last class before he receives his Master's Degree next week (YAY!).  Needless to say, we need to get the house visitor ready!  

The garland looks like it needs a little adjustment. Lol 

Giving: Many times throughout the year, my husband and I assess what we own and what we truly need.  Once we had twins, our house began to burst at the seams with "stuff".  Boy, loads of things come with having twins! However, we are so very fortunate to be given hand-me-down clothing, toys and books from friends and family.  We are so grateful to them for giving, giving, giving.  So, in return, we give back and pay it forward to those who need it most.  We are starting a tradition with our little ones to donate our lightly used toys to those kids less fortunate.  Right now they are still in the stage of "I need that!".  My husband and I know it's going to be a process throughout the years.  Our greatest hope is to raise grateful and giving children, so they may pay it forward one day, not just during the holiday season.  

Our favorite donation store.

Head on over to Oh' Boy Fourth Grade to link up with Farley for your December Currently! 

Happy December!

*Gifts of Reading* Blog Hop!

Welcome to Literacy Loving Gals and the *Gift of Reading* blog hop! A big thank you to Wendy over at Read with Me ABC and Andrea over at Reading Toward the Stars for organizing the hop!  The graphics are adorable, aren't they? 

At each blog stop, you will be gathering Reading gifts and freebies. Just so you know, the hop is set up as a loop. You may start anywhere along the hop, but if you'd like to start at the beginning, visit Andrea over at Reading Toward the Stars! 

As we know, graphic organizers are effective visual tools for students to use when reading and responding to text.  All students can benefit from using graphic organizers, including English-language learners, gifted children, as well as students with special needs. Graphic organizers allow students to arrange ideas and content in a meaningful way to support their comprehension of the material.   

If you're looking for a fabulous resource filled with step-by-step guidance on using Common Core aligned graphic organizers with your students during Reading, check out Laura Candler's book Graphic Organizers for Reading: Teaching Tools Aligned with the Common Core.  

Therefore, my gift to you for this hop is a set of graphic organizers that can be used with any holiday or winter-themed text.  (They will become a paid product once the hop is over, so grab it while you can!)  As you can view below, each organizer comes in color and black and white.  They can be downloaded from my TPT store by clicking HERE, or by clicking on the picture below.  If you have the time, I'd appreciate a rating. ;)

Skill: Main Idea & Details

Skill: Sequence- First, Then, Next, Last

Skill: Compare & Contrast

Since we had our first snow of the year, my students have been putting the graphic organizers to great use with various winter-themed titles, including The Snowy Day and Snowman Magic.  

However, an uplifting story to read around the holidays is Christmas Makes Me Think by Tony Medina.  It's an oldie, but a goodie.  I haven't read it with my students just yet, since it would be a bit premature prior to Thanksgiving, but it comes highly recommended. ;)

Summary on Amazon: In this delightfully original Christmas story, our young narrator is thrilled. His favorite holiday is coming, and he looks forward to the presents, a great big tree, and baking a chocolate cake with his grandmother. But soon he starts to wonder: What happens to all the trees that get cut down and don't make it to the next Christmas? And what about all the people "who don't have a place to live or food to eat or presents in a stocking/or under a tree?" His thoughts shift — maybe he should give his extra presents to kids who don't have any, and give homeless people hats, gloves, and scarves. He realizes that Christmas is really about community, people coming together and helping each other. "Christmas makes me think/about others/and not just me!" His thoughtfulness leads to a magical celebration of the real spirit of Christmas.

Thanks for stopping by Literacy Loving Gals during the *Gift of Reading* blog hop!  If you would like to enter the giveaway I'm offering, please see the RaffleCopter below. If you do enter, make sure to email me your information (Twitter handle, Bloglovin' name, Facebook name, IG username, etc.). I'd like to be able to contact you, if you're the winner! The winner will get a choice of any two products in my TPT shop.  

a Rafflecopter giveaway
a Rafflecopter giveaway Click the Next Stop picture below to continue hopping!  Deniece over at This Little Piggy Reads has more Reading gifts and freebies just for you! 

Happy Holidays!

*Wordless Wednesday* (with Future Freebies)

I'm linking up with Miss DeCarbo over at Sugar and Spice for another edition of Wordless Wednesday.  In the world of teaching, a picture can say it all!

Interested in some blog hopping this weekend to gather a trail of Reading gifts and freebies?  Check back with Literacy Loving Gals this Friday to start hoppin'! :)

Happy Wednesday!

Sunday Letters with a *Guest Post* & a Freebie

I'm linking up with Michelle over at BigTime Literacy for another edition of Sunday Letters.  You can join her every other Sunday to write letters to people or inanimate objects for fun!  In this edition of Sunday Letters, I've included a link to my *Guest Blogging Debut* which includes a FREEBIE!  Enjoy. ;)

Click for my Guest Blogging Debut 
and a Textual Evidence FREEBIE. :)

Click HERE for LLGs' Instagram.

Thanks for stopping by to read some Sunday Letters.  Don't forget to link up with BigTime Literacy to share your letters.  Happy Sunday!  Count your blessings and remember:

November *Currently*

I'm linking up with Farley for November's *Currently*.  Even though Halloween just ended yesterday, Thanksgiving will be here as quick as a wink!  November is a good time for self reflection and giving thanks.  I have much to be thankful for in my life.  Taking time out each day to count my blessings keeps my world in perspective.  I can't believe how fast the school year is already going by and I'm a year older as of this past week.  Time sure flies.  I guess it only flies when you're having fun, so that means I'm having fun...always a bonus.  

 

Listening: My kids had their first *real* Halloween this year and had a blast, even though it was snowing a bit, 37 degrees and windy.  At the age of three, they finally understand the Halloween excitement of going door to door to receive FREE candy if they say "Trick-or-Treat" and "Thank you".  It's fun listening to them going through their candy baskets with the "Ooh!" and "Whoa!" sound effects.

Loving: I'm loving the fact my family is supportive, thoughtful, generous, kind, forgiving, etc.  This list never ends.  I'm so lucky to have them.  Even though I'm grateful for them year-round, November is a nice month to give them a special *shout-out*! ;) XO  

Thinking: When I think about my husband, I smile.  I'm so glad to have married my best friend.  For my birthday, he surprised me with a little dining adventure.  We restaurant-hopped for the different courses of the meal.  It certainly was a wonderful evening. :)

Wanting: My husband and I are both teachers.  Each year we head out of town with the in-laws on vacation over Spring Break.  I'm really wanting my spring break to match up with my husband's, but that's not going to be the case, unfortunately.  This is the first year, in quite a few years, we don't have the same Spring Break schedules.  His school has break in March and my break falls in early April.  Oh well.  Maybe we'll get something planned for the summer vacation-wise. :)

Needing: Hello.  My name is Colleen Noffsinger.  I am a book addict.  When looking through Scholastic book order forms, I feel I need almost every single book in the catalog.  Does this happen to you?  I've apparently passed this trait onto my own kids as well.  We circle, circle, circle all of the books we *need* to read during story time in our home.  Even though the majority of the books can be found at the library, there's something about having them on the bookshelves in our home to read whenever we fancy.  Being able to purchase the books is just another thing on my *grateful for* list... 

Reading: My kids' favorite book for the past month was Just Say Boo!  Even though a new month started and Halloween ended, it was still read at story time today. :)

Hope you have a fantastic November and count your blessings!  Head on over to Oh Boy 4th Grade to link up with Farley to share your Currently...

Have a great weekend!