Printing Posters!

I just learned how to print a PDF poster-sized. You guys. This is life changing.

Can you imagine the possibilities?!

Okay, so the first thing I thought of enlarging was my Common Core cheat sheets. My teams use these in planning almost daily, and I've had other teachers tell me before that they turned them into posters and LOVED having big versions of them. I had no idea how on Earth they did that, but I was super stoked for them.

Well... NOW I KNOW! And of course I'm going to share the love with you:

Now, I am on a MacBook, so if you have a PC it may look a smidge different on your end, but it should be very very similar.

Step 1 - Download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader. It's totally free!

Step 2 - Open Adobe Reader and go to File > Open, and select the PDF you want to open.

Step 3 - With your PDF open, go to File > Print, and select "Poster" under Page Sizing & Handling. Select which page/pages you want to print poster sized.

Step 4 - Adjust the scale percentage by adding a little at a time (I added increments of 10%) until you get the desired size that you want in the preview window. I had to click on the preview shot every time I adjusted my percentage for the image to update, not sure if that is just a quirk with my computer or not, but you may have to do the same.

Step 5 - Click print! Each page will come out, then you just cut them, piece them together, and... voila! A poster!

Are you dreaming of all the things you can make giant sized now? I know, me too.

If you are a K-2 teacher and you want a closer look at the Common Core cheat sheets, just click the TpT button at the tippy top of the page and you'll find them in the Common Core category.

Happy poster printing!

Teal - An adorable book about the beauty of inclusion.

Let's be real. Any time the mailman delivers a package, it's exciting. And when you have an Amazon addiction like I do, you get a lot of mail excitement. BUT... the day he brought me Teal was way more exciting than the day he brought me a new box of batteries.

Teal is a sweet sweet story with beautiful illustrations by the amazingly talented Renee Galvin. In this story, Teal is a crayon who doesn't quite fit in. He's not green, he's not blue. He is different. He feels left out and is not sure what his purpose is, until one day when he finds a way to bring all the different colors together. The reader discovers that differences are what makes our world more beautiful.

This story is especially meaningful to me, as I teach in a full inclusion school. Children with a wide variety of different abilities, who might be isolated in a self-contained classroom at other schools, are fully included in general education at ours. We have an amazing staff of people who are dedicated to ensuring that ALL of our students succeed, and the beauty of inclusion is apparent around every corner in our school.

Teal is going to be such a special addition to our library, as it embodies everything we believe in; We are all human, and our differences make the world beautiful.

Renee has had such success with this little gem of a book, that she is currently sold out on Amazon.com. If you don't want to wait until they are restocked, just message her on her FB page, https://www.facebook.com/booksbyreneegalvin/, and she will pre-order a copy for you. =)

Solar Eclipse Fun!

On August 21st, the United States will experience its first coast-to-coast total solar eclipse since 1918, that's 99 years! Everyone in the contiguous US will be able to see this solar eclipse! If you are lucky enough to see it in totality, I am way jealous. We will see about 90% here in Denver. =)

This solar eclipse falls on our first day of school! I am beyond excited to share this experience with our students. Our PTA has ordered us 700 pairs of solar viewing glasses (Amazon has a lot of options) so that all of our staff and students can watch safely! If you purchase a set for your class, make sure they are CE and ISO certified.

Below is a super easy art activity we are going to do on the day of the solar eclipse, along with some other activities for before, during, and after...

Solar Eclipse Activities!

Who else is stoked for the solar eclipse? I can't wait!

Read Across America / Dr. Seuss' Birthday Fun!

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I am so lucky to have my son at my school. I love being able to see him at school every day. I also love getting to share our fun events with him, like celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday for Read Across America Day!

At my school, we dress up as Dr. Seuss characters and celebrate our love for reading all day long.

Last year my son and I loved our costumes so much that we are wearing them again this year!

Behold- The Lorax and his Truffula Tree!

It was so easy to make these costumes.

For my son's Lorax costume, I bought orange footed pajamas. They aren't available anymore, but an orange hoodie and sweatpants will give the same Lorax-y effect!



For the facial hair, I bought party favor glasses from Target, then hand drew and cut out the mustache and eyebrows from craft foam and hot-glued them on! Boom! Lorax!

These glasses are similar to what I bought, only mine didn't have lenses. And bonus- the extras went into my prize box!



For my Truffula Tree costume, I started with a black plastic headband and some pink tulle. I cut the tulle into strips and tied them around the headband one at a time until I got the fluffy Truffula Tree look I was going for.

Next, I got a white tshirt and white sweatpants, and some good ole trusty duct tape! With a black sharpie, I unrolled and colored the edges of the white duct tape black and stuck down a small section at a time on the shirt, but without cutting it until I reached the end. Then I did the same thing for the pants. After that, I went back and colored in the zig-zags on the tree trunk. Done! Super easy costume, but one that had a big effect!

Warning! The sharpie will rub off a little when you touch it, so make sure the t-shirt and sweatpants aren't your favorites just in case some rubs onto them!


We can't wait for March 2nd!