Hello December

     I absolutely love teaching in December.  We get to use very rich literature in ways that are much more fun than the curriculum maps and Houghton Mifflin can be.  The kids are excited to see what will happen each day. 
One of the new items is decorating the door.  Here is our new door for December:

     The elves are from a unit on TPT called Let's Make an Elf.  The kids will be making them after we read the book Santa's Secret Helper.  The writing on the tummies will be how they could help Santa and why they should be chosen.  Still need to work on sentence starters for differentiation.

     I have used the Holidays Around the World theme in December for years.  Some of my projects came from my oldest daughter's kindergarten which was 20 years ago!!  I show the kids her projects and they still ohh and ahh.  There are a few days set aside to teach Kwanzaa and Hanukkah and then I choose different countries each day.  I always do Norway and reindeer on Dec. 1 which is Jan Brett's birthday and mine! 

     Well, time to search for new ornament and parent gift ideas.  I have used some of my projects since I first started teaching Kindergarten 18 years ago.  I think it is time for a few new ideas.  See you soon with lots of pictures and ideas.  Hello December!!  Mrs. B



Howdy Pilgrims!

Can not believe that it is already November!!  Where has the time gone?  Had fun decorating my door today for Thanksgiving.

     Have friends looking out for me and sending me messages about other door ideas they have seen on Pinterest to keep me going.  I now have an idea for December (on my Pinterest page already) and one for January- a snowman of course.  Need ideas for the rest of the year.  Had a former student suggest a groundhog for Feb.  May try to do something for the 100th day. 
     Tomorrow is our 50th day of school.  The whole grade level is dressing up and having a sock hop in the afternoon.  I plan on using a powerpoint about Then and Now from Martha Sheehan's site to discuss the differences in technology and fashion.  One of our teacher's was sent pictures of a student's grandmother from the 50's so I am going to look for pictures of my parents to show the class.  We are going to play Race to 50 with dice at math and enjoy rootbeer floats at snack time. I love what I see on other sites but have to watch the curriculum maps closely here. 
    Next week begins my Thanksgiving lessons in earnest.  Can't wait to try out some of the new ideas from TPT and Teacher's Notebooks as well as the wonderful blogs I read. 
Have a great week.  Mrs. B

Gearing Up for Halloween

We just finished with Red Ribbon week at our school.  Each day had a theme, which while fun, was also a little crazy as I was trying to get assessments done for the end of the marking period.  Monday was red ribbon day, Tuesday was Team Spirit-wear a jersey or workout clothes (comfie day), Wednesday was House team spirit day(red for my class as we are the Terrapins and Thursday was Pajama Day ( did I say comfie?!!). Friday was Crazy Hair Day: We are crazy for Drug Awareness.  Tried to tell the kiddos that the hair was the only thing crazy that day but didn't quite work.  Very high levels of energy.  Here is my take on the day:

I added real candy corn to bobbie pins with glue dots.  I wore my candy corn earrings and lanyard along with an orange sweater and halloween socks. 
     Now to get ready for tomorrow: Halloween.  My principal has always advocated "Fall" themed activities so we hold a Harvest Activity Day.  It's not really a party as much as a rotation of fun- yet academically connected- activities.  We have it in the afternoon until dismissal and it has been a hit for years.  Adding new activities this year thanks to Pinterest.  Some of our activities will include: -painting indian corn patterns with q-tips ( pointillism idea from Kindergarten Crayons site)
- toilet paper roll pumpkins (Family Fun site idea)
-scarecrow hands(popcorn in a glove)
-decorate a cookie to look like a scarecrow ( Family Fun site again)
- patterning necklace with pony beads
-graphing ghost marshmallows
- Monster Munch mix( snack items renamed to be scary and kids count in sets of 10)
- Paper bag scarecrows (Pinterest)
- Apple Dice game- I use a pattern of an apple and blow it up to full paper size.  Then I draw lines to look like a puzzle.  Inside the sections I write the numbers 2-12.  Students roll 2 dice and color in one section that matches that number.  I created this a long time ago with a wonderful co-worker: Cathy Harper.  We used to make dice puzzles, as we call them, for every unit.
The lists are made, the supplies are almost prepped_ finishing that tomorrow, and a few volunteers are scheduled to help.  Hopefully the kids will be calm- that would so be a wonderful Treat for tomorrow.  Let's hope I don't get tricked there.
Have a great, fun, exciting, and hopefully calm Halloween.  I will post pictures of these activities as soon as possible.
Here's a treat for the kids: ( Pinterest)

Spooky S'mores

Wallets full of words or sounds...but no money:(

My kiddos need something at home to help them learn the sight words or word wall words as I call them.  So I took an idea I got from a wonderful workshop put on by The Bag Ladies from FL and used it to create a home connection tool to extend the learning.  All you need is a large lunch bag- large works better to hold 3x5 index cards.  You will also need some clear packing tape.

1. Fold the bag into thirds so you can see the fold line.

2. Cut along the side of the bag down to the fold line.  Then cut across the fold line using only 1 thickness of the bag.  Cut up the other side so that you leave a flap.

3. Round the edges of the top of the flap.

4. Tape along both sides with the packing tape to create your pocket.

     I added a label using DJ Inker clip art ( AWESOME CLIP ART!!) and a letter when it goes home.  This wallet is set up for alphabet letter and sound recognition.  One side of the card has a letter and the other has a smaller version of our alphabet/ phonics chart (we use Fundations).  The wallet stays at home.  For the following weeks, the cards go home in a ziploc asking parents to put cards in the wallet and return the ziploc to school. 

     When they are ready, kiddos get the word wallet with a different label.  I used 3x5 cards in the past but found half sized ones from Staples with our supply money and ordered them.  This year we are writing the words on the cards so that the kids have a model of good handwriting to trace over and the cards are more legible than in the past for parents.

    How to use the cards at home:  I tell parents to flash them, look for a word in the book they are reading, leave them around the room and do a word hunt, or even lay them out and swat a specific word with a clean fly swatter. 

     The cards definitely help.  I am now trying to come up with numeral/ sets cards for my low kiddos in math.  I always made the word wallets and just started with the sound wallets this year.  Definitely need to think more mathematically. 

Happy practicing.

Mrs.B



Happy Fall Y'All

I am back.  Things have been hectic here but I will strive to post at least 3 days a week.  Just a quickie to get back into the swing of things.  I found a wonderful door decoration on Pinterest and decided to copy it.

I absolutely love pumpkins and scarecrows.  Next to it will be the fence with the pumpkin glyphs on them.  Shari Sloane is the site for the pumpkin glyph directions.  Click on the left side to find glyphs and then you will find the pumpkin glyph directions when you scroll down.  You can use a pattern (you will need a tall thin pumpkin and a short fat one) or get lucky like me and have access to a large die cut for both.

This is our board with our October family involvement project.  I read the book The Pumpkin Blanket to the students and they had to create a "quilt square" for a class quilt.  They are only told to use whatever materials they want to.  It is amazing how different they always are and from year to year.  I think this is my 15th year or so of doing this project and I still love it.

One of our fun fall activities is to see how many pumpkins tall we are.  The students then use small die cut pumpkins or stickers on a recording sheet then draw themselves next to the pumpkins to show how tall they are.  Great lesson in proportional drawing.  Will figure out how to link files soon so you can have the recording sheet to go with this idea.  We use all sorts of die cuts or premade cut outs to see how tall the kids are. 

Booksie, our class mascot, had a great time at a local pumpkin farm with the class.  We are now using the pumpkin for a long term science observation that links to the book Pumpkin Jack.  After it has been carved, students complete a monthly observation of the current condition of the pumpkin.  It will go outside in a planter when the smell gets bad.  I did remember to leave a few seeds this year so hopefully there will be some sprouts in the spring to continue the cycle.
Happy Fall Y'all.  Mrs. B

Pinned anything lately??

     I have a confession to make:  I recently fell in love.  My hubby is somewhat neglected lately due to my new love.  I am spending way too much time on the computer.  I got friends hooked on this new love and their hubbys are not too happy either.  Have you met my new love?   It's name is  

     I like to think of it as the file cabinet of the internet.  You can "pin" a link to an article or picture and categorize it for later use.  It is not just for teaching ideas: still working on that for myself.  You can make any  categories you wish and start pinning away.  It is simple, easy and FREE!!! 

    Click on the button to the left and visit my board.  You are more than welcome to follow me and to repin anything on my boards.  My pins are your pins. 
     Happy pinning folks!!!

Tech Tuesday

     So are you lucky enough to have an interactive white board?  I know I am.  We have the smart board brand of white boards so even though I will refer to any, I usually call it a smart board.
     I was really thanking my lucky stars for it today.  We ended up having a delayed early dismissal due to a gas leak in the area.  Only one way in and out of our school and the leak was on that road.  So, utilized downloaded videos from Discovery Education ( aka United Streaming) and we "rode" the Magic School Bus for a while until the road was reopened. 
     One of my favorite activities to use the smart board with my kiddos is called Wow Me Wednesday.  You can do this activity any day of the week I just chose Wed.  ( It used to be Wikki Wed when I was "old school" and used wikki sticks).  We always start our morning with a message on the smart board.  But on Wednesdays before I read it to/with the class, I call on students to identify letters or words that they recognize.  They use the pens to circle the letter/ word and then read it to me.  I keep a chart of who is chosen when and what they identified.  I do also keep track of mistakes and how many attempts it took- no more than 3 due to time.  It is amazing how much they pick up in a year.  I choose the first 5 students and our class mascot, Booksie, chooses the other 5 students.
Here is an example of what the board looks like when we are finished:

     Other ways I use the board is to graph the weather, introduce websites, use the document camera, introduce the song books for Dr. Jean song and I love the programable dice on their software.  There are loads of free files already made for each grade level in many subject areas at the Smart Board Exchange site.  I know there is a site for Promethean Boards as well.  I have picked up a file on apple sets, attendance pages, rhyming matches and many many more.  Happy Hunting.
     What do you like to do with your Smart board?
Mrs. B