Courtney (Swimming into Second)


Hi y'all! My name is Courtney and you can also find me over at Swimming into Second.


I'm so excited to be an author on this awesome new blog. I've really enjoyed reading about all the other authors who have already introduced themselves. 

 Here's a little about me.

 I am a southern girl from Tennessee. I say y'all way too much. I'm always drinking half and half tea (half sweet and half unsweet).

I love sports especially Tennessee football and Atlanta Braves baseball. In the fall, you can always find me with 100,000 orange-clad people at Neyland stadium. Can you tell that I can't wait for football to start?

I love to read. I am constantly buying books. I have shelves and shelves of books in my classroom and at my house. I always wish I had a library in my house like all those fancy houses do.

I love to go to the movies. I hate to clean. I absolutely love watching HGTV. I am obsessed with blankets.

I am addicted to Spin class but I can't spin right now because of my broken ankle. It's killing me!

This will be my ninth year of teaching. I have taught Kindergarten, 1st grade, and 2nd grade. Second grade is my absolute favorite!

Okay, so that's me in a nutshell.

Now,  the reason you are all here..the freebie. I kinda got carried away on my freebie so I hope you like it.  This year, I want to do better at keeping track of how many books my students have read and if they are reading at home. Doesn't it just kill you when they don't read at home. Ugh! I had a student last year that struggled so much and I spent so much time with him trying to improve his reading. I could tell he wanted to read better but it just wasn't clicking. Around February, the light finally came on. When I asked him what the difference was, he told me that he had started to read at home. Umm, I think I was encouraging that all along. I was so glad that he finally was reading but who knows where he could have been if he had started reading in August. 

Okay, back on track, my exclusive freebie for you is a reading packet with a reading survey, reading logs, and a reading goal page. I've even included a banner (3 versions) that you can use for the title of a bulletin board with your kiddos' reading goals on it. 





I hope you can use this pack in your classroom! Click on any picture to download.

I would love for you to come visit me at my other home! Click on the image below to head over to my blog.





42 comments

  1. Thanks for sharing! What a great idea so that students can see their own reading progress too.

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  2. What an awesome resource to have on hand heading into a new school year!!! Thanks Courtney!!!

    Halle
    Across the Hall in 2nd Grade

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  3. The freebie that you gave away today is AMAZING! I did some reading goals with my students last year and they got really into reading! I can't wait to show them this! *I teach 3 grade levels so I will have the majority of my class again this year, so I will get to enjoy reading with them again!

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  4. Argh, I struggle with this also. And it seems like there's sometimes some fudging on the reading logs. I'm going to download this and try it. Reading at home really does make a difference, doesn't it? Thanks for the freebies, Sara

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    1. It really does and I do have some fudging and ignoring too. Thanks Sara!

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  5. This is an amazing freebie. I am looking forwards to using it this year with my students. I like the goal setting page. I think I will have them set goals for each trimester instead of the whole year. It might help them to self assess their progress as a reader better. Also, it will be interesting to see how their opinion on favorite books change throughout the year.

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  6. Thank you so much for the freebie! Our school is starting a new reading program this year and this will go absolutely perfect. I can't wait to implement in my classroom. I am having some trouble downloading?? Every picture I click on does nothing??

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    1. Hi Ali! Did you get it to work? It takes a while for Dropbox to load but it seems to work.

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  7. Wow, Courtney! That's so generous of you! I will definitely be using this! I'm moving from 5th grade to 2/3 next year, and I'm a little unsure! I've been a 5th grade teacher for 13 years! I'm so glad to hear you love it! I'm hoping for great things! :)

    ~Erin
    Mrs. Beattie's Classroom

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    1. Good luck in 2nd/3rd grade! I'm sure you will love it!

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  8. Thanks, Courtney! This freebie looks awesome! I'm moving to 2nd from 1st this year and very excited. Everyone seems to love 2nd grade!!

    Crystal
    Teaching Little Miracles

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    1. Hi Crystal! Second grade is awesome! I hope you love it!

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  9. Such a wonderful freebie!
    You can just tell how much you ♥love reading!
    ~Fern
    Fern Smith's Classroom Ideas!

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  10. Thank you for sharing! I have just the place to hang up this great reading bulletin board!

    Mary
    Teaching Special Kids

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  11. Thank you for taking the time to share your story and your freebie. I can't wait to hit my 9th year of teaching. So far I am on my sixth. Almost there.

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    1. Thanks Celine! The 9th year isn't much different than the 6th. Things are always changing!

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  12. Loved your post about reading and your reading goals freebie was like the cherry on top! :o) Thanks so much - I am getting it printed and ready for the coming year with my 3rd graders.

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  13. This is great!! And I loved reading about you!! I love that I'm getting to know my favorite bloggers that I've stalked for a while! :)

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  14. This is such an awesome freebie! I totally agree, reading at home makes all the difference and sometimes I feel like I can't convince parents of that. It is like they don't have the confidence that anything they do at home helps their kids. It makes a huge difference! Thank you so much for the freebie! I am a follower of your blog, too!

    Bobbi
    Bitty Bilinguals

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    1. Thanks Bobbi! It shocks me how clueless some parents are.

      Swimming into Second

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  15. Thank so much for the freebie! I'm right there with ya on the broken ankle...I broke mine 3 weeks ago! It's no fun...and awful not being able to get to my group fitness classes! Hope yours gets better soon! :D

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    1. Thanks Diana! I hope yours heals fast too!

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  16. Thanks! I like your quick about me part, it made me laugh. Sounds a lot like me. I'm starting my 9th year of teaching as well, all in 2nd grade. I'm really trying to get into this blogging this summer and I'm loving it!!!

    Stuckey in Second
    http://stuckeyinsecond.blogspot.com

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  17. Thanks for the fabulous freebie!!! I can definitely use this with my kiddos!

    I loved reading the about me part -- it's always fun to get to know the people behind the blogs!! Thanks for sharing!!

    Ashley
    That's So Second Grade!

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  18. Thank you so much for this freebie! It was exactly what I was looking for! I'm moving from 1st to 2nd this year so I have a few more questions for you....What are realistic goals for lower/mid/high readers? Do you reward them with something at the end of the year or every month for achieving their goal? If so, what do you get them? Do you use Pizza Hut or Burger King incentives? Thanks again!

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  19. Hi Becky! I let them set their own goals. I don't tell them that a goal is not realistic. We do have a discussion about how many books are appropriate because they could be reading longer books or shorter books. I set a goal for reading at home (in minutes) and give them a Brag Tag (http://www.imagestuff.com/) for meeting that goal. Our school system wants them to read 20 minutes a day at home and they have a big push for that. I don't give them anything else. I think reading should be it's own reward.

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  20. I agree that reading at home is so important! Thanks for the freebie. I will definitely be using it this year as I teach 2nd grade for the first time. I am excited to follow your blog for more awesome 2nd grade ideas.
    The Traveling Teacher

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  21. I have been blessed by finding all of these blogs by you terrific 2nd grade teachers that are so talented. Thank you! Thank you for your time and effort and talent and the freebies and for helping all of us make the students learning more enjoyable!

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  22. Thanks so much! This package will be put to great use for my home reading program, which I have to revamp as I am teaching the same kids again this year. Very much appreciated!

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