Hi all! I am so honored that my blog has been nominated for the Liebster Award by the very sweet Jackie from Neat Sweet and Hard to Beat! I have been loving the opportunity to share my classroom happenings with so many and connect with other educators that I find so inspiring! This nomination means so much to me, my heart is full!
If you’re not familiar with the Liebster Award, it’s given to bloggers with growing audiences to help acknowledge up and coming blogs! It’s a fantastic way for bloggers to recognize other bloggers and spread the word about new voices in our community. I know I put my heart into each post and it’s a wonderful feeling to be appreciated and recognized.
Along with the nomination, each blogger has to answer 11 questions about themselves to help their readers get to know them a little better and introduce themselves to new followers as well!
Here comes my favorite part! After I answer the questions below, I get to nominate 11 blogs for this award. I love the chance to pay it forward.
I can’t wait to continue on this blogging journey where I get to teach my students, talk about my passion, and inspire others!
Here are the questions I have to answer to accept the award! Here goes nothing 😉
1. Why and how long ago did you start blogging?
I started blogging three months ago as a New Years resolution. I have been teaching now for four years and fell in love with following and reading teacher blogs since my days of student teaching. I was constantly inspired by the blogs that I read and continued to use their ideas to inspire my own teaching practices. Fast forward four years in my own classroom and I found myself constantly reinventing the wheel and supplementing my curriculum, researching ideas to make my teaching better, and trying new things on a daily basis. I wanted to be able to share my (sometimes crazy) ideas with other teachers and continue to learn from those who inspired me most. So far, so good. I can’t imagine not being a part of this amazing teaching blog community!
2. What one word sums up the heart of your blog and why?
Collaborative! When I’m planning lessons and creating activities for my students I want them to work collaboratively by interacting with each other and our classroom. I am often “that” teacher whose classroom is the loud room, where the kids are never in their seats! I LOVE it that way! My students are always up and moving, having conversations with each other, and learning from their peers. I wanted that to shine through in my blog. Each activity that I share is one where my students are working on skills in our curriculum but they’re also learning to work together as well.
Collaborative! When I’m planning lessons and creating activities for my students I want them to work collaboratively by interacting with each other and our classroom. I am often “that” teacher whose classroom is the loud room, where the kids are never in their seats! I LOVE it that way! My students are always up and moving, having conversations with each other, and learning from their peers. I wanted that to shine through in my blog. Each activity that I share is one where my students are working on skills in our curriculum but they’re also learning to work together as well.
That’s one of the major reasons why I’ve enjoyed my blogging experience so much thus far. The collaboration that takes place with other teachers, bloggers, and readers has been amazing. I have been given so many wonderful opportunities to work with other bloggers in this community and I have loved every minute of it. I have yet to meet a blogger that won’t answer a question I have, is willing to share their experience, or celebrates a special moment with me. Collaboration is definitely at the heart of my blog and blogging experience.
3. Is there something you learned late in your blogging journey you wished you knew before?
I wish I knew to interact with other bloggers! Don’t be afraid to ask questions, comment on posts, and interact on other forms of social media. I have learned some about blogging and navigating this community on my own but I have learned SO much more from others! The willingness to share ideas and collaborate is truly amazing. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there!
I also received a wonderful piece of advice from my friend Julie at A First for Everything. She said at the beginning of my blogging experience, not to compare your beginning to someone else’s middle. I think this is so true for beginning bloggers and TpT sellers! It’s so easy to compare ourselves with other people who have been doing this longer and are so successful. It’s more important to enjoy the journey than rush to the finish line! Sometimes easier said than done, but I’m working on it!
4. What is your favorite pastime other than blogging?
My husband would say at the moment there’s not much I’d rather do BUT I love spending time with family, traveling and experiencing new places, reading, reality TV, and watching cheesy chick flicks and quoting their lines with my sister!
5. How many hours per week do you dedicate to your blog/TPT?
Oh boy, that’s a difficult question. About every free minute I have I spend on TPT products and blogging! I am NOT a morning person and I’m training myself to get up earlier to spend a few extra hours of quiet time to plan blog posts and create new activities. I would have to say that I spend about two hours every day during the school week and then more on the weekends. I’m always working on something with the tv on in the background! I probably spend an average of 10-15 hours a week on it. Whether that’s researching, planning, reading, writing, or creating.
6. What category of blog posts do you enjoy the most?
I love all things teaching blogs! I enjoy seeing posts about classroom management and interactive activities where students were working together to complete a project. I love to hear success stories from other classrooms to inspire me in mine. I also love to read about people’s favorite pins and Pinterest project recommendations. I’m not a crafty person but I would love to spend time over the summer revamping my classroom and trying to create new things for my small home that I’ve seen on the site!
7. Where does your blog inspiration come from?
My blog inspiration comes from my students and other teachers that I work with. I sometimes treat my students as guinea pigs (oops) to test out a crazy idea I may have for an activity but am not ready to share with the world yet. Seeing their enthusiasm while completing activities that I create is priceless. I also love talking and brainstorming with other teachers that I work with. We all share similar philosophies and I love having time in the morning before the kids come in or after school to chat about things we wish we were doing, or saw somewhere online, or would love to try. They give me ideas to create things for our team and I love the chance to see our ideas become reality!
8. Which post that you’ve written are you most proud of?
That’s a really tough question! I think I’m most proud of my Interactive Phonics Fun post because it was a reflection of my favorite kind of day in the classroom. It was an activity that came to me at the most random times, was completely interactive, student-centered, and fun! I loved seeing how engaged my students were and sharing this idea with the teaching community.
9. Is there any post you have been planning to do, but have been postponing it for a while now?
I have been meaning to write a post about my classroom management strategies and the ways that I build character and community in the classroom. This year is my first as an inclusion teacher and my cooperating teacher and I are constantly changing things up to make it work for our diverse learners. I have recently introduced brag tags and a VIP supply basket to encourage respect and kind character. I’m so impressed by how my students are responding to our classroom management plan and how we are encouraging kindness and respect. I hope to have this up and ready for everyone to read soon!
10. What is your favorite aspect of blogging?
I know I have said this already, but I am just so enamored with this blogging community and the opportunity to share ideas with other educators around the world. I love the ability to connect and work together on blog hops, linky parties, and instagram giveaways! It has been so rewarding already! I also love that my blog provides me with a tool to reflect with. I can see what has worked in my classroom by reading previous posts and I can go back and read things that were successful and will continue to help me grow as a teacher.
11. Which idea from a blog would you like to try yourself?
Oh my there are so many, I don’t know how I can choose just one! I am gearing up for Mother’s Day and deciding what gift I want my students to make for the lovely ladies in their lives. I have seen the “Mommy Spa,” idea floating around on Pinterest and I think Fluttering Through First Grade’s E-Spa-Cially for Mom’s craft is ADORABLE!
Oh my there are so many, I don’t know how I can choose just one! I am gearing up for Mother’s Day and deciding what gift I want my students to make for the lovely ladies in their lives. I have seen the “Mommy Spa,” idea floating around on Pinterest and I think Fluttering Through First Grade’s E-Spa-Cially for Mom’s craft is ADORABLE!
Now for the most difficult part! There are so may blogs that I wish I could acknowledge but these are just a few up and coming bloggers who I really enjoy following! I can’t wait for you to get to know some of these fantastic bloggers!
I would like to nominate these fabulous teachers and friends for the Liebster Award:
1. Diana at My Day in K
2. Nicole at Why Pencils Have Erasers
3. Jennifer at A Dab of Glue Will Do
4. Elsa at The Whole Wheat Class
5. Marie at Once Upon a Classroom: A Teacher’s Tale
6. Melissa at Mrs. Dailey’s Classroom
7. Andrea at Always Kindergarten
8. Suzanne at Kindergarten Planet
9. Laura at Luv My Kinders
10. Yukari at A Pinch of Kinder
11. Nicole at Firstie Favorites
The rules for receiving this award are to:
1. Link back to the blog that nominated you.
2. Answer the 11 questions posted by the nominator.
3. Nominated 5-11 people (blogs with less than 200 followers) and link them in your post.
4. Contact the nominees and let them know that they have been nominated on your blog.
Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a wonderful week!
1. Link back to the blog that nominated you.
2. Answer the 11 questions posted by the nominator.
3. Nominated 5-11 people (blogs with less than 200 followers) and link them in your post.
4. Contact the nominees and let them know that they have been nominated on your blog.
Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a wonderful week!
15 Comments
LOVE this and love all of your sweet comments. You poured your heart out for each question. Thank you so much for the nomination. ☺️
Of course Jennifer! I love your blog and am so glad we have connected. Can't wait to collaborate more!
Jayme, this is so well deserved! I love your blog and feel so fortunate to have connected with you. It was fun to read your responses and learn more about you. Thank you so much for the nomination – I am so honored and touched! Thank you soo much!
Marie
Once Upon a Classroom: A Teacher's Tales
Thank you so much Marie for your kind words! I am so glad that we have connected as well and look forward to collaborating more in the future. I love reading about new tech finds on your Tech Tuesday posts! I hope you have a wonderful week!
Congrats, Jayme! I'm so grateful we have connected through this crazy world of teacher blogs! I enjoyed learning a bit more about you through the questions. Thanks so much for the nomination!
Andrea
Always Kindergarten
I agree Andrea! This teacher blog world can be difficult to navigate so it's so nice to have found others to connect and collaborate with! I hope you have a great day!
Hi Jayme! Congratulations on your Liebster Award!!! I really enjoyed reading all about you and learning more. You are awesome! And…………WOW!!!! Thanks so very much for nominating me!!! I'm truly flattered and so very excited!
Suzanne
Kindergarten Planet
Thanks so much Suzanne for your sweet words! I love your blog and am so excited that I was able to nominate you for the Liebster Award! I look forward to following your blog and reading more about your great ideas! Have a wonderful week!
Hi Jayme, I loved reading your post and learning more about you. You do a wonderful job sharing your love for teaching and learning. Your blog is great and full of wonderful ideas and activities I am so glad I stumbled upon it. Your students are lucky to have you! Thank you for the nomination! 🙂
Thank you so much Diana! It has been so fun connecting with you and collaborating! I love reading all about your tech finds! I am so motivated by your blog to try and incorporate more technology into my teaching. It's going to happen one of these days! I hope you have a great week!
Hi Jayme,
I loved this post! I love that you have a loud classroom too! It is so important for students to collaborate and share their knowledge with others. You are great at keeping up with your blog! It seems like we started about the same time and I tried to make it my goal to post once a week but life gets crazy! Keep up the amazing work 🙂 I can't wait to read more of your posts!
Jackie
Neat Sweet & Hard to Beat
I'm so glad I'm not the only one with a loud classroom! I'm definitely making an effort to keep up with the blog but it's difficult. I find scheduling posts ahead of time really helps to keep me on track. Thank you again for the nomination and kind words! I hope you have a great day!
Hi Jayme – first of all, congrats! I love reading your blog because your passion and enthusiasm are contagious. Your students are so incredibly lucky to have you! I am so glad we have connected through this AMAZING community and can't wait to collaborate more. Thank you VERY much for the nomination and for thinking of me! Happy Wednesday 🙂
Nicole
WhyPencilsHaveErasers
Thank you so much Nicole! Your kind words made me day! I am so lucky to have found great teachers to connect and collaborate with in this blogging world. I'm so excited for what's to come! I hope you have a great day!
HI Jayme
I loved reading and learning more about you!
I did my post to if you were interested in checking it out 😉
Thank you for nominating me!
apinchofkinder.blogspot.ca/2015/04/liebster-award.html
Yukari
A Pinch of Kinder