First day with the kiddos! Helpful hint #2

Today was the first day with my kiddos, and boy...it was definitely an experience. I found I wasn't quite as prepared as I originally thought I was. I had to change my plan of attack a lot sooner than I anticipated. But something tells me that's how life is a special educator. 

But I also began the process of lesson building and implementing my behavior plan. It was really fun! My kiddos are all really excited for the prospect of their "future party". More detail about that will come when I've actually begun planning it. 

But I have a great space to work in..and I've come to find that the helpful hint #2 is:

Not having a lot is not necessarily a bad thing....especially when you are teaching special education. Nothing made me more happy then when my kid was throwing things around...and I realized that she couldn't actually break anything. That and she was struggling with finding things to throw. 

Below is the promised reading station picture:
 I'm contemplating painting it and making it a project for my kiddos. Splatter paint, hand prints, or actually something educational (nah). 

Isn't it cute? I think it could really be a fun space to work and play. Again, I'd like to paint it, but it was a weird glaze over it...idk. But notice how their are compartments on the bottom? Perfect for big books!

This is just one of my many flip charts (thank god) that I inherited from many friendly teachers. This one is going to be centered around spelling and sounding out letters/memorizing the order of the alphabet. The blue one behind it may be used for the math cents, or I may use it for a completely unrelated reason. Not really sure yet.

Either way, this year is looking good!