Big Heartland Blogger Giveaway + $1 Deals!

It's back to school for a lot of us and our new bloggy group, Big Heartland Bloggers, are here to make it easier on YOU!  Through Sunday, you can enter our Rafflecopters for a chance to win awesome back to school products!  Wait, it doesn't stop there...We are also doing $1 deals on Saturday, August 1st!  For a buck, you can find some fantastic resources to start your year off right.  

Writing can be hard, I mean really HARD for students of all ages.  Read on for tips on how I organize Writer's Workshop in my first grade room and enter for a chance to win my pack, Little Writers!: Writer's Workshop for grades K-2.

Here is my writing corner, and I really mean corner!  I have a very odd shaped room so I had to create a bulletin board display with lots and lots of hot glue!  My WRITE banner is included in the writers pack, as well as my Writing Tips posters.  

Tips include: 

#1-Think What You Want To Write About

#2- Draw A Picture

#3- Write 3 Sentences About Your Picture

#4- Use 5 Colors In Your Picture

#5- Make 5 Labels For Your Picture

#6- Add Details To Your Writing

At first, I thought it was too many steps.  But, these are steps to add as you go through the year.  For example, in the fall we will work on tips 1-4, but by spring, our goal will be to be able to do all five steps while writing.  And these are great tips to differentiate for those students who have a lot of trouble.  Maybe have them focus on one sentence and picture.

Next, is my writing tools to get the kiddos where they need to be by the end of the year!

I think the very first time we do writers workshop, I always hear, "But I don't know what to write about!!!"  Oh my goodness, child!!  

Well, I will have no more of that this year!  I created these writing topic cards that will stay in a cute little caddy on my writing table.  If I hear a kiddo say those dreadful words, I will silently point towards my writing table.  End. Of. Story.

Here is my storage for daily writing papers and fun extras, like postcards.  My portfolios are on the top, but I plan to keep those in hanging file folders in a cube.

I've included a portfolio cover for each month, that way you can staple it all together and when you are done, put it away to build a year long work sample for your kiddos!

Other parts of this unit include mentor texts that have descriptive lessons + anchor chart labels!  Super excited about this part since my kiddos usually love to create anchor charts!  Here's another pic of some writers workshop awesomeness :)  Just a few pages out of the 125 page unit!  This will definitely get you through the entire school year.

Now, how about a dollar deal???  Grab my Meet The Firsties unit today only for a buck!

I used this last year during the first week of school and I loved how it introduced my new students and built our classroom unity.  

Here's what's included:

"Meet The Firsties" pennant banner

Individual All About Me pennants

Get To Know Your Neighbor Interviews

Firstie Face (draw pic of your neighbor)

First Grade Freckles graph

Eye Color tally graph

Hair Color bar graph

First Grade Quality cards

How We Treat Our Friends writing papers

My Friend List

Firsties In The Future 

Whew!  That's a lot to cover for the first few days of school, so I've made this pack to be used anytime during the year!  Anytime you need to build on relationships, come back to this! :)

Wow guys, that's a lot of good stuff in one blog post.  Make sure you enter to win my Little Writer's Workshop unit below in the rafflecopter and check out the other Dollar Deals from my friends!

Monday is the kick-off for this bad boy:

Come back for more tips and tricks!!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

An InLinkz Link-up


For my friends at Big Heartland Bloggers with giveaways only, please link up here:

An InLinkz Link-up