Where has the time gone?!

WOW!  It has been so long since we have come to our site.  We had ideas for this site towards the end of last summer.  I am one of those gotta do it right now kinda people, so....we did.  However, then school started.  As any teacher knows once school starts, it never really stops until the end of the school year.  Which brings us here.  The start of a brand new summer.  With this new summer comes a new baby and a new job! My family has been blessed with a beautiful baby boy this year.  We could not be happier.  Dana is of course his titi (aunt--although not by blood, she is the closest thing to a sister I have) and adores him as well.  This year has also brought a new job.  I decided to stop teaching for a while and take on a new career that will allow me to spend more time at home with my little nugget.  However, despite this new job, new baby, and new things going on in our lives, we are at it again.  The idea to take on this site sparked from the interest we have gotten on Pinterest.  Each day I see more likes on our "How to Fill a Bucket" bulletin board and from that pin we have seen other shots of our classroom hanging around Pinterest.  How great!  I want to use this site to connect the world of special education with the world of elementary education.  We want to share ideas from experiences, lessons, classroom setups, and strategies that we have found successful.  The idea of two brains is better than one is coming into play!  However, first, stay tuned for my top tricks on how to make a classroom look more like a home instead of a cement block cold room with random books and colors thrown in.  I think there are different key strategies to making a classroom feel more homey and welcoming to young learners.  This first impression with students and parents can set the tone for the year.  It's all about the first impression!  After that we will plan ideas about "Meet the Teacher Night" and move on into integration strategies that meet the needs of all learners.  Now remember, we are not experts.  In fact, we are relatively new to this field, but we love what we do and we take pride in what we do to help the learners that have crossed and will continue to cross our paths.