The first week of the new school year has started and I sort of feel like I'm back in a routine. My boys started 2nd & 1st grade(s) on Monday and they are LOVING it so far. I did a little news segment for a local station on Monday talking all about teacher gifts. Just a few quick and easy ideas, but then I got to thinking that I forgot one so I wanted to chat about that here in case you need any ideas for the teachers in your life. This would be a great one for any Friday of the school year :) Let me just preface this by saying that teachers DO NOT expect gifts. Ever. When I was in the classroom I didn't … [Read more...] about Orange You Glad It’s Friday?!
GENERAL
Meet The Teacher Ideas & Downloads
*** Thanks for stopping by! Sadly, I am NOT able to send you a file of these documents to edit due to copyright {graphics, fonts, etc.} I apologize for the inconvenience, but thank you for your understanding!! Blessings to you!*** Can y’all believe Meet the Teacher night is right around the corner?! For some of us, it’ll be here much sooner than later. I was going through some of my files and came across my “Meet the Teacher” packet, so I thought I’d share it with y’all incase y’all can put any of it to use. Our Meet the Teacher night always falls on a Thursday. That’s kinda genius if you ask me. It gives me the entire next day to … [Read more...] about Meet The Teacher Ideas & Downloads
Ice Cream Day Freebies
I LOVE doing ice cream themed activities the last few weeks of school. Since I haven’t met a kid yet that doesn’t like ice cream…or some form of frozen treats…these activities always seem to keep them engaged when the chaos of the end-of-the-year is almost too much to handle :) I thought you might enjoy celebrating all things ice cream, too! So here's a little freebie for you! And if you're looking for even more math, literacy, and science activities with an ice cream theme, check out these resources & what teachers are saying about them! … [Read more...] about Ice Cream Day Freebies
Open House 2011
Have I mentioned before how much I love my school?? Because I really, really do!!! I feel so blessed to be part of such an amazing family and teach in such a fun environment!! I especially love the way our campus transforms this time of year! Even though the weeks prior to Open House can be a little busy, crazy, & chaotic, it’s always worth it in the end. I LOVE how proud the kids are to show their parents all of their work. Brag day is the best!! Here’s a little peek into Open House 2011 in my neck of the woods :) We’ve been learning lots about America & Texas the last few weeks so I tried my best to fill every nook and … [Read more...] about Open House 2011
Celebrating St. Pat’s Day!
The Irish in me is ALL.OVER St. Patty’s Day!! I LOVE IT!!! I especially love celebrating it with the kids! I don’t have many pictures to show you, but with St. Pat’s right around the corner, I just wanted to share a few things I’ve done in the past to make it fun for the kids! Here’s a fun little writing we did today. This is one of my favorites!! You can download the Loopy Leprechaun craft patterns HERE. First we read this book… Then we talked about luck and feeling lucky. Afterwards, I had the kids write about what makes them feel lucky using the prompt, “I feel lucky when…”. I got some darling responses! After they were … [Read more...] about Celebrating St. Pat’s Day!
Open House – Traveling Through America
As for Open House, we’re all *12 kinds of* crazy tryin’ to get things together. Y’all…I gotta say…things are lookin’ DANG cute! My school is nothing short of amazing and the entire place just transforms into such a sight! Since we’re studying American symbols & Presidents in our curriculum, First Grade decided to go with a patriotic theme for our hallways & classroom this year. Just think, “Traveling through America”. The hallways are still a work in progress, but I’m LOVIN’ what we have so far! Can’t wait to show y’all!! Here’s a little peek at what we’ve been workin’ on in the classroom… LOVE this little writing!! We read … [Read more...] about Open House – Traveling Through America
Positive Reinforcement Freebie
I love positive reinforcement. Sometimes…okay, maybe a lot of times…there are a few little friends who need a little something more than positive reinforcement. You know those babies I’m talkin’ about…the ones who just DO NOT…no matter how positive you are…respond to it. Those are the kids that *might* give me a little bit of heartburn & grey hair ;) However, I still use positive reinforcement as often as I possibly can! One of my favorite things to do is give out certificates & awards. The kids LOVE these! I’m always so shocked how motivated they are by a piece of paper :) Not only do … [Read more...] about Positive Reinforcement Freebie
Tooth Fairies, Teeth, & Money/Coins
Have you ever wondered what the Tooth Fairy does with all those teeth?!?! We asked ourselves that same question and the kids came up with some pretty clever answers! First, we read a little book… And for a little reader’s response, the kids wrote about what they thought the tooth fairies did with their teeth! And they made some cute little scrapbook tooth fairies to go along with their writing. This is probably my favorite thing we’ve done to date! I LOVE how they turned out! The kids did pretty much ALL of the work themselves. I showed them an example, but told them they could make their fairies look … [Read more...] about Tooth Fairies, Teeth, & Money/Coins
Candy Heart Math {& A Making Words Activity}
I know Valentine’s Day is over, but I like to extend my Valentine-ish activities throughout the month. After all, February is the month of LOVE, right?! Well, that’s what I’m goin’ with anyway. Candy hearts are my favorite February math manipulative and here are a couple of little math printables & activities for you!! The first is a little candy heart graph. I know there are a GAJILLION of these floating around right now. I like to graph the number of letters in the conversation. I pass out a large conversation heart to each kiddo and have them count the number of letters on the heart. Then we create a big ol’ graph on a giant … [Read more...] about Candy Heart Math {& A Making Words Activity}
100th Day & Valentine’s
I got the sweetest email from a darling reader who wanted to know if I was okay because of my lack of blogging lately :) I’m a-ok, but my boys…well…they’re a different story. They both tested positive for type A flu last week and I was one busy momma! No time for anything other than snugglin’ the heck outta those kids. Even though the snuggles were sick induced, I’ll take what I can get! HA! I’m SO happy that they’re finally on the mend and back to normal!! I hope that’s the last of the sickies this season!! Because I was tending to my mommy duties, our 100th day celebration didn’t exactly go as planned :) I have the most amazing … [Read more...] about 100th Day & Valentine’s
Groundhogs & Their Burrows
The kids have loved learning about burrows and how groundhogs dig tunnels. Did you know they dig up to 700 lbs. of dirt when digging their burrows?! WHOA! We talked about burrows and other places animals calls home…dens, lairs, nests, caves, etc. Then I had the kids pretend like they were groundhogs and do a little descriptive writing. First they had to draw their little burrows. CRACKING up that this one has a TV & a bed! HA! Then they had to write a few sentences describing their burrow as if they were a groundhog. Finally, they made a little groundhog. I LOVE this little art piece. It takes all of about 5 seconds to put … [Read more...] about Groundhogs & Their Burrows
Valentine’s Ideas
Since we’re on DAY 4 of NO SCHOOl, I’ve been surfing around some of my favorite blogs and have found some darling Valentine ideas! Just wanted to pass along incase you need some Vday inspiration :) The Idea Room has these awesome Valentine Bingo boards you can download off her site for free!! These would be awesome for a class valentine party OR even just for a fun math activity. I totally would’ve used these to reinforce number recognition in K, but I think I’ll use these to reinforce addition/subtraction facts (maybe even place value or coins) with my firsties!!! Can’t wait!!! Love this fun snack idea … [Read more...] about Valentine’s Ideas
Chocolate Pudding & Penguins
I’m trying to catch up on a few little things, but thought I’d share this in the meantime. We’re stuck INSIDE today…no school…with tons of ice on the ground and temps too cold for me to talk about. Yuck. But the upside to this little sleet day is that I’ve got a clean house & chicken noodle soup on the stove. Speaking of soup, if you’re dealing with stay-inside-weather like we are, you’ve seriously gotta try THIS SOUP. Y’all….it’s DANG good. Perfect cold weather meal!! Moving on… This week we’re learning about the “-ch” digraph. My firsties are LOVING the Digraph Kids and talk about each of ‘em like they know them personally! … [Read more...] about Chocolate Pudding & Penguins
Celebrity of the Week
When I found out I would be moving from 2nd down to 1st last year, the wheels immediately started turning. I’d had a jungle theme in my room for several years, so I was ready for a change…and I knew “Hollywood” was the way to go! Last year, my star of the week was aptly named King/Queen of the Jungle. This year, my kiddos get to be “Celebrity of the Week”…and they LOVE IT! I have a special little celebrity corner decorated with paper lamps and pics of Disney stars, and a special celebrity chair that only the honorees are allowed to use {for the week}. Can I just tell you how much I love this chair?! I … [Read more...] about Celebrity of the Week
Place Value, MLK, and Snowmen!
Here's a fun little place value activity I made for my kids to do in their math tubs last week. It’s a snowman place value spinner! Graphics courtesy of Digi Web Studio Last week we were working on place value with teen numbers, so that’s what this particular activity reinforces. The kids spin the spinner on the middle portion of the snowman and collect that amount of ones cubes...or whatever kind of counter you want! Then they spin the spinner on the bottom portion of the snowman and collect the same amount of ones cubes as well. Then they count their cubes and see if they can make a set of ten. I always tell them, “If you can … [Read more...] about Place Value, MLK, and Snowmen!
Mitten Loads of Fun!
We hit the ground running the first week back from break and it was so nice to be back in a routine. We did a lot of mitten themed activities and the kids loved it! Hope you enjoy them, too!!Of course, we started the week reading The Mitten, by Jan Brett. There was SO much to do with this book!! We created a flow chart to sequence the events, used puppets from the Jan Brett website to retell the story, discussed the story elements using a mitten themed story map, and lots more! {I kept forgetting to charge my camera, so I didn’t take many pictures :(}We also read, The Hat by Jan Brett and compared it to The … [Read more...] about Mitten Loads of Fun!
Brown Bag Book Club
Years ago I was lucky enough to attend a Linda Holliman workshop. It.was.AWESOME!! She is such a hoot and her ideas are SO inspiring!!! While she was explaining a few different ideas to us, one of them really got my attention. She talked about how her kids would complete a readers/listening response on a lunch bag and then she’d fill the bags with popcorn and have the kids partner up and share what they wrote. I LOVED that idea!!! Since I’m such a big fan of book clubs, I decided to incorporate this idea and turn it into a book club…hence the birth of the “Brown Bag Book Club”. Y’all…my kids are OBSESSED. And I gotta say…I’m LOVIN’ … [Read more...] about Brown Bag Book Club
Winter Math Games
Happy first day back after a niiiiiiiiiice long break :) I know we’re all excited, right?! Just 10 short weeks ‘til the next vacation, but who’s counting?! Seriously though…I’m already missing my little boys during the day, but I’m SO happy the whole family is back in a routine! Since I’m currently raising the two wildest boys under the age of 4, I didn’t have much time to create a whole lot over the break. I had to spend all my *down time* {yeah right} being a mommy & tending to domestic duties. Thankfully I had lots of planning time today to try and get caught up! Here are a few little games I’ll be putting in our math tubs this … [Read more...] about Winter Math Games
Christmas Catch-Up & Happy New Year!
It’s been a BUSY holiday, but I’m back in town and trying to catch up on everything! I know this post is a bit overdue, but just incase you need some ideas for next year, I thought I’d share a few little things. We read this story. Then we talked about how grown-ups have to go through an application process to get a job. Then I had the kids fill out their own applications…to apply to be one of Santa’s elves! HA! They were ALL over it! I told them I was sending their applications straight to the North Pole. I’ve never seen such GOOD work!! You can download your application HERE. We also read this story… And then had the kids … [Read more...] about Christmas Catch-Up & Happy New Year!
Reindeer Games
I feel like the 3 weeks in between Thanksgiving and Christmas break are so RUSHED! Not that I’m complaining…I LOVE breaks :)…but there’s always so much I want to fit in in such a short amount of time! Last week we started learning about reindeer. Before we continue on with more reindeer fun this week, I wanted to start with some non-fiction reading and fact gathering, so that’s just what we did! We started out by reading this non-fiction book about reindeer… I love reading non-fiction books because my kids just eat it up! They’re SO engaged when it comes to learning new facts. Plus, it gives me a chance to teach them about the table of … [Read more...] about Reindeer Games
Happy Grinch Day!
Happy Grinch Day, friends!! Here’s my sweet team all decked out in our Grinch Day duds. We celebrated “Grinch Day” today and the kids got in on all the fun, too!! They came dressed in green and some of our little cuties even painted their faces and sported Cindy Lou’s hairstyle. TOO cute! Of course, we started out the day by reading the book… Then we brainstormed a list of adjectives to describe the Grinch… {I tried my best to draw him, but not so sure I did him justice. And please excuse the handwriting!} Not so sure that “teethy” is a word, but my little sweetie who offered it up was just certain that it is!!! She INSISTED we … [Read more...] about Happy Grinch Day!
If Take A Mouse To The Movies
One of my favorite holiday books… And there’s SO much you can do with it! We had a little “If You Take A Mouse To The Movies” day the other day and the kids had so much fun!! Of course, we started out reading the book. After reading, we talked about cause & effect and made a diagram to show the chain of reaction. I also assigned each kiddo to a story event and had them illustrate it. Then we came together as a whole group and I had the kids work together to sequence the events on a giant filmstrip! I really wanted a text to self writing activity, so I gave them the prompt, “If you take me to the movies, I will ask you for some…”. … [Read more...] about If Take A Mouse To The Movies
Santa Claus is Comin’ To Town
I have a thing for Santas. I really do. I have a HUGE collection here at the house and I just can’t get enough of him! He’s so dang cute! SO…it would only stand to reason that I’d want to include a few Santa activities in the classroom as well :) I know that a lot of kids don’t celebrate Christmas, but this year EVERY single one of my kiddos does…so that makes planning a little bit easier for me. However, this hasn’t always been the case! I guess you could say I’m taking advantage of it this year :) I read a book about Santa the other day…can’t remember which one…and had the kids make these cute little scrapbook Santas after we read … [Read more...] about Santa Claus is Comin’ To Town
Noun Town
Oh…I’m SO lovin’ all these fun little Christmas activities! There’s just something about this time of year, don’tcha think?! I’ve gotten SO many WONDERFUL ideas from blogland that I can’t wait to implement in my own room! Y’all are too dang much! Here are a few more things we worked on this week… I was so inspired by Sarah Cooley’s Noun Town that we made one of our own, too! Since it’s the holiday season, we decided to make a Gingerbread Noun Town. We did some “city planning” before we got started. We talked about people, places, and things that we might see in our town and brainstormed a list of each. After city planning, I had each … [Read more...] about Noun Town
