Five for Friday November 11

I am linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday. Thank you for hosting, Kacey!

       

Rocket Words!

We do Rocket Words each morning after calendar time.  I choose a few sight words.  We spell them as we squat for each letter, then spring up as we say the word.   The kids love it. It's a great Brain Break anytime of the day. It's sad when I feel it in my thighs if  we do a lot of Rocket Words... I'm not gonna lie... but, no pain, no gain!

Well, the kids love it so much that they started doing it by themselves, so I took full advantage.

I made a Rocket Words sign and added the Rocket Words of the day.  When anybody finishes early, they can go to the rug and practice Rocket Words-  oh so easy and they forget they're learning!  Plus, they invented it, so that's even better.

I took a quick little video of some of my kids doing a couple words to show you. I just caught it at the end of their list.

                                       

I wrote a post STUFFED FULL of Turkey Freebies from TpT!  Enjoy!  Enjoy!  I hope you find lots you can use these next couple of weeks.

This is a fun little activity I also leave up for early finishers.  The kids also "play teacher" at free choice and do this.  We first did it together as a morning activity, so they knew what to do.  

I used Post-its, but they didn't stick that well after a while, so I stuck the Post-it to a Popsicle stick with tape. 

The red endings go with the red letters, and blue with blue.  We worked on these sight words, and then used the sight words as endings to create new words.  The kids just hold the ending behind of each single letters and read the word.  Simple!



(I taped these on to show you, but pretend someone is holding the ending.)



Here is a little trick I use to help some of my children who have a hard time with transition numbers counting to 100.  I let them use their fingers as "groups of ten" to remind them what number comes next.  When they count to ten, they hold up one finger, as they say all the teen numbers.  Then as they go from 19 to 20, they put up two fingers for "twenty,"  then 29 to 30, they add a finger so they have three fingers to remind them the next number is "30," and so on.  This really helps some of  my kids.  They see 5 fingers up and know the number will be "50."  They learn quickly this way, and then don't need those fingers any more!

When we count by 10's together during our calendar time, I have the children hold up a finger for each ten  - ( 10 (one finger), 20 ( two fingers), 30 (three fingers)...  so they see again how having six fingers up reminds them the ten is "sixty," and so on...

This is a fun little game my mother plays with the children to practice letters, sounds, numbers, sight words, shapes- in other words- ANYTHING!  The kids LOVE it. Mostly, they love it because my mother is SO enthusiastic and so much fun, the kids cannot wait to work with her.  She comes in each day during center time to work with the kids.  It is heavenly. It makes such a wonderful difference to have someone besides me work with the children and make learning so much fun!  If teacher colleges taught one skill for teaching, it would be ... BE ENTHUSIASTIC!  Act like learning is fun, and you know what????  The children will believe LEARNING IS FUN!  

This first quick video shows some of my girls playing the game with letter sounds. It's sort of like a "Letter War" game. 

This video shows  two of my girls working on letter recognition.  One really needs the practice and the other can use the reinforcement and confidence.  It's great for both of them.  

It's funny because you may think this would work only for "competitive" children.  But for some reason, every single child BECOMES competitive when they play.  I think it's because they are so proud to show what they know.  They are not really thinking about "beating" the other player as much as being proud of the cards they get.

Thank you for stopping by and sharing some moments from my week.  Have a wonderful weekend.  And... to all the Veterans on this Veterans Day...

so very much!

Monday Made It! July 29th

I am starting off this post with a wonderful inspirational quote my friend Betty sent me ( from her sweet sister BJ!).

A thankful heart doubles our blessings and causes us to enjoy them twice; once when we receive them and again when we remember them.
Lord, let me never take You for granted and daily remember to thank you.

Starting this blog is something I am really thankful that I did- not because of the actual blog itself- but because of the connections it has let me make- you fabulous people out 'there' who are happy, encouraging  teachers, loving to share ideas and build each other up!  By the end of school last year, I was just not really myself. I felt like I would come home and complain, and I was really letting other people's negativity get me down and affect me. (Maybe I felt that way cause my husband told me that...hmmmm...)

In fact, it was SOOO hot in the school and people (not even the kids...) got SO cranky, that my friend gave me this post-it pad.  I just saw it in my desk the other day and smiled again... (yeah, it was bad... haha)

I didn't like that at all. Seeing the problems and forgetting the blessings can become a habit if you let it.  This summer has been completely different.  I am so happy each day to read all the fabulous ideas and thoughts  you all have, to share ideas I think of, and to comment and read comments and notes from the sweetest people.  I have 'met' some real, true friends here, and I thank you for that.

I have NO idea why I remember this, but when my kids were little, they would watch Rocket Power (a silly cartoon  about skaters and surfers...) and I will never forget one of the characters  talking about this group of people who didn't like them and saying, "Don't let the shoobies get you down. "  NO idea why I remember that- but it stuck with my and is sort of my motto. How pathetic that my internal voice is a surfer-cartoon character ... but ... this year- no matter how much stress other teachers are under with tests, students, parents, RTI, APPR, SLO, LLI, RTTT, PTO, NCLB, or any other letters you can think of... Here is my advice-

 Just remember to be thankful.  Enjoy your precious class of students who love and need the happy, caring, real you.   DON'T LET THE SHOOBIES GET YOU DOWN! Stay as positive as you can. Do your thing.  

End of sermon! :) (I think the sermon was just for me to go back and read once school gets going.)  On to Monday Made It! Thank you, Tara, for hosting this!

Here are some things that I had fun making this week!  Lots were from great Pins I saw and made to work for me. 

First- a couple anchor charts- (Please- art teacher friends of mine... don't judge.  I would like to say I TRY to draw like a kindergartener so the kids feel better about themselves. Yeah, that's it. That's what I do!)

(I have post-its cut in half all ready for when we do our labeling lesson.)

Next, I made these little guys for each child to take home, once we learn about them and use them first in the classroom.  I had these little wooden spoons that come from those ice cream cups you can buy. 

I made one side into a pointer for the children to point to each word as they read it, and also for them to remember to  use their EYES to notice pictures in the story they are reading.

Again- some had LOTS of attitude and personality to me and quickly became favorites...( You're probably thinking I could use some real human friends-  I know...but look at those yellow eyes...either crazy, bored, or trying to be sexy. Not sure.  ha!)

For the back side of the spoon, I used the adorable spacemen from Sandy's (Kinder-Gardening)  Sight Word Construction Packet , to help the children remember to use those spaces between words when they write.

I also made some spacemen and eye pointers to use in the classroom before I send these home to use. I will write a note with these to the parents explaining just how both sides of the spoon are used- and  hopefully it will be used at home for lots of practice reading and writing!

Here are a couple counting activities I made and have ready to laminate.  I have a big bin of colored glass dots that the children use for sorting and patterning. I think I will just include these fish right in that bin for another  beginning year activity.  I am going to keep my 4-leaf clovers in my extra little pot of gold with these gold counters- or maybe some of my "real" gold stones.

(This isn't actually something I made to use- just the idea to remember to make for

adding/subtracting using different color glass dots and a recording sheet.)



I will leave you with this- (again- not "funny" at all to 19 year old sons. Whatever! ;)

Happy Monday! :)





Monday Made It- July 15

I am linking up with 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made It!

My daughter got married on Saturday- so I am thrilled we "made it" through the wedding weekend- and absolutely beautifully, I might add!  I don't think it could have been one teeny tiny bit better. It was perfect. 

So- for Made It Monday, I am going to show a few wedding ideas- and my only school thing I actually finished making last week- I was sort of busy...

First of all, Ellie (my daughter) had these made by a lady on Etsy (I would ask her exactly where- but she is on her honeymoon, so I guess I will wait.  :) .  She makes paper roses from pages of favorite books. Ellie ordered a used book from Amazon and sent it to her.   Ellie had these made from pages of my dad's favorite book and added them to her bouquet. I know she got her love of reading from my dad.   (It is a stock option book, by the way... and she is an auditor- so I am thinking she got LOTS of great qualities from my dad! :) 

 (She was just looking down at a little ravel on her dress as we were getting ready, but I loved this picture with her bouquet. )

Ellie's husband made this box and stained it. A friend engraved it for them.   They did a Wine Box ceremony during the wedding, where they each wrote letters to each other about why they fell in love and what they loved about each other.  The letters and a bottle of wine are sealed inside .  They open it if they are ever having a hard time - or if not, on their 5th anniversary- (so hopefully in 5 years!).  They keep rewriting notes and replacing the wine, and open it again on their 10th anniversary. 

 Ellie and Matt decided to also have all the wedding guests write notes to them to include inside.  (Of course my son wrote on one , "Fighting already? " and signed his girlfriend's name...  wow...  ;)  I am sure most of them are very heartfelt and sweet. 

 

They had the box on a table with wedding pictures from each side of the family, back to great grandparents!

 

 

Ellie's husband got a roll of copper wire and made these wine bottles for each table. 

 

 

Ellie's sweet, sweet friend Lexi did all the hair and make up.

 

 

Their friend Adam was the photographer.  They took First Look pictures- and my daughter Emily, Matt's sister Laura, Lexi and I were all up in the Bed and Breakfast room where we were getting ready- looking out the dormer window as they took First Look pictures.  (So- it wasn't exactly a private moment but one of those moments I will always remember!)

Their dance... 

 

And of course, Squirt, Matt's dog...  who is also in LOVE with Ellie, was on his best behavior.

 

Oh- and LAST, out of last minute desperation  because I am so clever, I made what I like to call "Poor Girl Spanx" for me from some control-top pantyhose that I cut off about mid-thigh.  They were PERFECT.   And cheap.  No picture wanted needed.  You can just visualize that one... 

 



Thank you for sharing the wedding!  OK- NOW here is the only thing I actually made school-wise.  I had been thinking for a while what to do with my French Fry containers from Target.  I decided to use these for a Math Workjob for an independent math station.  After they count and finish each container, I may have them do a number writing paper for practice.

I bought sponges from the Dollar Store- 10 for $1.  I used the red and blue sponges for erasers for the laminated names I am sending home for our KindergartenPicnic.
                                         

I used the yellow sponges for French Fries-  who wouldn't?!  It bought 2 bags of sponges and there were a perfect number of yellow sponges in there for fries 1 to 10.

 

I also wanted to make a sight word activity with these. I was torn. #kindergartenteacherproblems...  SO- I went to McDonalds and asked for some of the Kid's Meal fry containers ( the oh-so-teeny-tiny ones that hold about 4 fries now, which I discovered when I ordered a Kid's Meal for me... If I were on Twitter, I would say #goodforthembutIwantedmanymore-  That's probably not a real thing.  ha.  You get the idea.  They are small.  Can you tell I have no hashtag sense at all?! 

BUT the people at our McDonalds are  SO sweet, the girl asked me how many I wanted!  I said ten- and TA DA!

 I printed out sight words and put them on the inside.  I am  laminating the words and putting them on with a Velcro dot, so that I can change the words in the independent center. This is a sample.

I have some colored thick popsickle sticks.  I have lots more plain sticks that I think I will spray paint yellow and use.

I put magnets on back of the letters and the French Fry container- cause my kids LOVE using the magnetic board!

I am going to have them write the words they spell with a red marker (catsup) on a recording sheet.

Thank you for stopping by, and thank you , Tara for hosting this party! :)
Carolyn