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My Third Grade Focus Wall… SO FAR!

Okay, now before I start showing pictures of my focus wall, please understand that I am STILL in the process of setting up my classroom this week.  I still need to slap on a few skill posters, but we aren’t even teaching our first story for at least another week and a half (after benchmark testing).  My first day of school is next Wednesday, so I still have plenty of time to put the icing on the cake!  Like, for example, my vocabulary lists.  You’ll notice that they are absent right now.  I am still playing around with the template, because I want them to be exactly what I want, and so far, I haven’t been able to achieve that! 🙂  Type A… all the way!  To make a very long story short, I will update later!  I’ll make sure to snap a picture of the board when we tackle our first story so that you can see it when it’s 100% rockin’.  🙂

Ta-da!  I am so excited about this focus board, friends!  It is everything I had hoped it would be… except 100% finished.  {Okay, I’ll let it go!} If you’re wondering, here’s what I used on the board.

* FREE Zebra Focus Wall Labels from my shop.
* ELA Common Core I-Can Statements for 3rd Grade from my shop. (I have 4th grade too for now.)
* Ginger’s Common Core ELA Cards 3-5 Mega Pack.
* FREE spelling sheets that I shared earlier this summer.
* Genre Posters from my TpT shop.
* FREE Theme Posters for Reading Street Grade 3.
* Book Covers… to be added at a later date.  I am making this as I go.  🙂
* Eventually I will be adding a vocabulary list kind of like my spelling list.  I just haven’t yet. 🙂

Here’s a little close-up action.  You can see the details a little better this way!  The monkeys are cute little plates that I found at a local party store, the bunting is from Target’s party aisle, and the alphabet line came from Ladybug.  I just glued them to black and pink paper to make them POP and match my color scheme! They were very printer-friendly too… which is great… because I can go through ink like it’s going out of style.  🙂  Just ask my very understanding husband!

Now, friends.  I was in a BIG hurry to get home last night, because I had to be somewhere by 6:00, so the following pictures were snapped in a FRENZY!  They will not be the greatest photographs you have ever seen, but if you can ignore the crazy flash reflecting off of some of the cards, hopefully you will get the gist of everything! 🙂   Again, I have to reiterate that I have not added skill posters yet, and I have not added the vocabulary sheets.  You will see gaps…  but they will not always be there.  🙂  There are, unfortunately, only so many hours in the day!  I know I’m preaching to the choir!!!  I’m posting the unfinished board, because I’ve had countless questions posed about how I’ll be setting up my focus board.  I hope that this gives you a better idea of how it all comes together… even in its rough draft form!  Wow.  The truth is out there now.  I am a neurotic mess! 🙂  Exhibit A.  Right here.

The gap under comprehension will be filled with a poster/anchor chart.

The gaps under grammar and fluency will also be filled with posters. Eventually.

My soon-to-be-finished vocabulary lists will go in this little spot. 🙂

As you may have already guessed, I will be adding a poster under conventions as well.

There you have it!  That’s how I organized my focus wall… so far!  Last year, it was a work in progress.  Since it is only my second year with Reading Street (or any reading series for that matter), I am certain that there will be tweaks as the year goes on.  I am really happy about how it has turned out so far though.  Now… I’m off to my classroom for more decorating and whatnot!  BRING ON YEAR SEVEN!!!! 🙂

Comments

  1. Shari says

    looks GREAT! Love Ginger's CC ELA cards….bought them but still have to print! 🙂 I was thinking of using those on my focus wall too, but under a heading of academic vocabulary…….not sure yet…I get to go into my room Monday!!!!

    Reply

    • amanda.nickerson84@gmail.com says

      It would work for any basal program! 🙂 I just found out about it once I made the switch to Reading Street. I know people who use Houghton Mifflin and have focus walls. It's just a framework… so you could use it with any program!

      Reply

  7. *FARMERS* says

    I love how I saw your genre posters on your focus wall, great idea! I teach 1st grade & taught a week and a half of lessons using those posters at the end of the year. Everyone needs to run and buy those! They have been one of my favorite TPT purchases & I will add them to my focus wall too 🙂 Thanks!

    Reply

  11. Rachel says

    I absolutely love your focus wall! And how in the world did I miss your Reading Street goodies!? Thank you!

    I will continue to send my teacher friends over to your blog!

    Rachel
    thirdgradecupcakes.blogspot.com

    Reply

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