Winter Wellness Day

Today we celebrated Winter Wellness Day.  This is a FANTASTIC way to send kids off on vacation.  It involves LOTS of moving and just being kids.

We had a morning assembly, made trail mix for a snack, moved to Zumba, and made bird feeders.

Students also worked as a team to build a snowman.  It quickly turned into a dragon and we used our bird feeders as the teeth and spikes!

We also spent the afternoon taking a nature hike on the bike path.  Students spotted deer tracks and even found this log shelter in the woods.

The kids thought it was the LOOONGEST walk ever (but really it wasn't).  Since they were SO tired I found a spot for them to slide down.

The last photo had be cracking up.  My kiddo came right down the hill and landed on his belly.  He got up with snow on his face but was ready to go again.  The entire walk back, the kids would find more clear spots to slide down.

We had so much fun today and the kids said it was the best day.  

Have a restful vacation!!

The LONGEST Blog Post and a Giddy Teacher

So I'm quite giddy tonight.  I came home to find out my husband had bought me a NEW Mac Pro.  My school laptop had to be sent away to be fixed and lets just say I've been quite cranky lately because I haven't been able to create!!

I think he wants me to get back to work!!

SooOoooo...if you have time, sit back and see what we've been up to the last two weeks.  This post will have LOTS of pics!!

We learned a lot about penguins.

Penguins Can, Have, Are

Penguin Facts and Number Stories

We've also been learning about Matter.  Our focus has been solids and liquids.  The kids sorted different types of beans and even built towers with everyday materials.

We've completed  some winter writing.  We wrote what we'd do if we were stuck in a snowglobe and students wrote steps on "How to Build a Snowman."  I used Ivory Flakes and the kids helped me measure the ingredients so they could create their own snowmen.

I consider myself to be quite crafty...but not in the sewing department.  I was looking for a way to cover my windows and here's what I came up with.  My grandmother gave me a quick lesson (which was quite comical) on how to do a straight stitch.  I used tension roads and have a ribbon attached to the larger window fabric so I can roll it up.  I think they came out cute and I LOVE the fabric!

We also celebrated the 100th day of school!!  Wow, the excitement over the number 100.  The kids went to each first grade class and completed activities.  They exercised, stamped, made Cheerio necklaces, put together 100 piece puzzles, and made their portraits of what they'd look like at 100.

The kids completed Eskimo Math.  They predicted, tallied, and recorded how many bites it would take to eat a Klondike.  YUM!!  Students also had to describe what it looked like and how it tasted.  Let's just say, they ENJOYED this activity.

And last but not least...I introduced Brown Bag Book Club last week.  This is when kids get together with a buddy and share a GREAT book they've read during the week.  They fill out a quick worksheet, share their books, and eat a snack provided by me (that's why they have the brown bag).

I hope you haven't fallen asleep yet but I had so much to share!

Happy 100th Day of School

Have you ever used Oldster?  This is one of the funniest apps on the IPad that I've seen.  Here I am at 100.  I'm still lookin' pretty good, right?  I'm sure that's all natural hair color and not from a bottle.  Of course I took pictures of the kids too...not just of me!

Today, we celebrated the 100th day of school.  The kids rotated to each first grade classroom and had an activity to do.  They exercised, put together 100 piece puzzles, stamped, made Cheerio necklaces, and made portraits of themselves at 100.  We had a BLAST!!

I have SOO much to share but I still don't have my laptop back.  I know when I do get it back, I'll have the longest post ever.

I'm beginning to fall into the state of being of feeling really relaxed and not consumed with work but I have a list of things brewing up that I want to get done.

Laptop Out of Commission....

SooOooo...I'm going to try to post about our week a bit later but my school laptop is out of commission and I was told I might get it back in a week (fingers crossed).

I'm borrowing an old laptop from school for the time being and the most I can do is check mail and take attendance. It's pretty slooooow so I'm not spending much time on it.

If you notice I haven't posted or your looking for the latest update on what your child has been up to I'm not ignoring my  blog.  We'll see what I can post later.

I'm sure I'll be showing withdrawal symptoms seeing I do EVERYTHING on my laptop!!  I keep telling myself I can make it a week and this might be a nice little break but then reality sets in and I think of everything I should/could be doing.  Yikes!!

Sour Lemons

On Tuesdays and Fridays our classes get a healthy fruit or vegetable to try.  This week we had grapes and lemons.

Of course, I always have my kiddos try the lemons.  This is a PERFECT time to snap some candid pictures of them making faces after trying one.

Ms. Kauffman (kindergarten teacher) photobombing their photo!

Bear Science Investigations

This week we've been completing science investigations. Students learned about black bears, polar bears, grizzlies, and pandas.

We brainstormed a list of facts for each bear.  Kiddos picked a partner to work with to create an informational spread.

They had to design a border, place their pictures, write facts, and add a diagram.

Here are a few examples.

This Teacher Needs a Break!!

So I had the sweetest student (with the biggest grin) tell me yesterday that I needed to take a break.  To me, this mean't I looked AWFUL!!  He even said he'd teach for me today!!  Is it wrong if I told him to be wearing a tie and to be prepared because I'd be napping in the back?

I knew when the bell rang at the end of the day he'd follow through and be ready the next day.

Guess who showed up today wearing a tie and had a handful of books in his backpack?  Meet Mr. Frink, my new substitute teacher.

Taking a nap while he WASN'T looking!

Today, I'll be napping in the back!!

Writing about Pirates, Map Reading, and Watching Out for PIRATES

The kids had a BLAST working with pirates.  They were eager to hear read alouds and write.

After reading pirate books we made a Pros and Cons Chart. The kids also wrote an opinion piece. They had to state if they wanted to be a pirate or not and give reasons.

I'm quite impressed with how well they have done with opinion writing this year.  The common core states students only have to give one reason to support their opinion but of course I ask for more!!

After learning about maps the kids went on a treasure hunt!! They were SO EXCITED for the end of the week to come.

When they came to class Friday, this was the first sign they saw...

Now would you have entered?  Of course ALL of them came charging in.  They found pencils, hats, eye patches, jewels, pencils, and treasure maps to read.

Throughout the day we went on 4 treasure hunts.  The kids had to read the maps and follow the directions.  They were quite GOOD, finding each treasure chest and not getting lost.

They also had to dress up like a pirate.  We wanted to fool any pirate we saw in school so they wouldn't think we were STEALING their treasure!

Here we are following the directions to one of our maps...it lead us right to our principal's office.

As, we walked in this is what we saw.  ShhHhhhh, can you believe it?  Our principal, Mr. Cyr, is actually a pirate.  I'm not sure how he manages both jobs but he definitely plays the role well each year.  He had the pirate talk down, was holding tightly onto the treasure, and even told jokes.  

His favorite..."What's a pirates favorite letter? RRrRRrrrr!" Some of the kiddos got it but I think some just laughed because he was acting SO FUNNY!

Here they are all dressed up!  I told them to look like pirates and these are the looks I got.  Pretty convincing, right?

Have a relaxing weekend!

AaRRrrrr....Looking for Some Pirate Work?

I just finished up some pirate work I'll be using with my kiddos this week!!

Pirate Math

Pirate Graphing

Word Work

Character Map, Labeling, Story Planner 

Writing

Check out my TpT Store if you're interested!!  Thanks for stopping by.

Teacher Pay Teacher Store

AaaRrrr...It's Pirate Time

Here's what we've been up to during the first week back in 2013!

We've been working in our Me on a Map book.  The kids made a map of our classroom and then wrote about it.

This is also when I introduce PIRATES!!  AaaarrRrrrrr!!  The kids go crazy and it fits in perfectly with our map unit.

We read pirate stories and and completed a Braid Beard Character Map.

For Writer's Workshop this week our focus was, "Good writers answer the 5 W's."  Together we created our very own pirate story with Jeremy Jacob being the main character.  It turned out to be quite FUNNY and for some reason they wanted to add me into the story.  Here they are working!!

 And now the story...sit back and enjoy!!

I really hope this isn't how they think I look in the morning!

Should say, "it" not "in."

Of course I wanted to illustrate too!!

Quite the adventure...right?  Stay tuned.  Students will continue to work with maps next week and then will go on a treasure hunt!

I just added pirate work to my TpT Store if you have time to check it out.