Hello Mrs Sykes

If you sell resources on Teachers Pay Teachers, then you *NEED* these websites.

Lately, I noticed that I feel this compulsive  need to care what others think. A lot. As I prepare for the TPT Conference awesomeness of next week, I am scared. See, I am a socially awkward person. Really. If you've chatted with me  away from school , you'll see how I am able to stick my foot in my mouth. A lot. Fortunately, I make a decent first impression. :)

Here's a quick, Bright Idea for all the Teacher-Authors out there...  How to secure a PDF. Read on to Secure PDFs for free

I had so much fun last weekend at the 2015 ED Expo in Atlanta.  First of all, I was able to connect with amazing bloggers from around the US. Our task,  give our opinions about products. It was amazing.   I arrived late, well really, I arrived *just* on time, but then we got lost. Can you believe it? There were so many cool things to look at, and so many exhibits, that we got lost. Thankfully, my fellow bloggers guided us to the back left corner (instead of the back right corner!) and we were set to go. Bloggers were handed a pen and a piece of paper, numbered 1-10.

I am super excited about attending EDExpo 2015 this year! In just a few weeks superintendents, curriculum coordinators, and retailers of educational brick & mortars and online stores will meet in Atlanta, Georgia for the premier showcase of educational supplies, materials, furnishings, and products. What will I be doing there? I'll join a group of educational bloggers in sifting through the amazing school products. Our job sounds fun: Find the latest and greatest products you just have to get for your classroom. Challenge accepted. :) I am looking forward to meeting the bloggers, scanning the aisles for cool tools for school, and visiting Atlanta. I'll fill you in after EdExpo!

I'm so excited to be back with the Bright Ideas group! Today I'm sharing a few of my favorite hacks for my home office. These organizational hacks might help you begin the new year with a few fresh ideas for your home office.

If you haven't heard yet, Teachers Pay Teachers is an online marketplace where teachers, homeschooling parents, and graphic artists can buy and sell resources for educators.  Interested in opening your own TPT store?   Read on for 5 Skills I Learned as a TPT Seller that I had no idea I needed to know. Button Graphics  from my new favorite clipart artist, Tomato Dumplings . When people find out that I blog and create resources for teachers, they usually ask, "How do you find the time?"  My answer, "I have no idea, but I love what I am doing."  A colleague came to me for advice about opening her own TPT store, and I am so happy she did!  Since I am teaching part-time this year, I was able to meet with her over her track out on a beautiful Friday morning at a coffee shop for a couple of hours and chat in the sunshine about teaching, blogging, and being a Teacher-Author on Teachers Pay Teachers.  By the way, her store is called Tomato Dumplings, a...

Tomorrow, July 4th is my one year bloggiversary, one year since my first post.  ( printables from Fountas and Pinnell - still an incredibly popular post!)  A year, already?!?  O-mi-gosh!   I started this blog hoping that it would help me have an online place to organize resources.  Over the past year, this little blog has benefited me tremendously, in ways I did not anticipate: My hubby loves that I have a place to rant pleasantly discuss the ins and outs of classroom teaching; I've made so many new bloggy buddies {I'm hoping to meet more of you in person at meet-ups!}; I've become more technologically savvy  capable of following the directions I continually Google about how to disable/enable different blog features; I took the plunge and opened my online stores, helping bring a bit of needed income into our home; I feel like I'm contributing to the self-paced professional development of others, by sharing some of my Literacy resources.  {This ...

Am I the only one who procrastinates when there's serious work to be done?  I'm talking "8 days of school left, have to finish report cards and assessments because kiddos take them home on the last day of school, but I'm blogging instead" kind of procrastination?  {It makes me feel better that so many of you raised your hands!}  For real, I have had 2 sick kiddos of my own for the past 2 weekends!  You know, when I was actually planning to do some of my paperwork.  Being a mommy to sick kids comes first, tho.  Maybe the pediatrician can write an excuse note for me to put in the report card envelope...  "Your child's teacher was unable to complete the report cards since she was taking care of her own sick children.  Now she is poolside."  Naturally, I'm kidding; no doctor I know would sign that!!  ;)