Five for Friday December 11

Happy Friday!  I'm linking up with Kacey for her wonderful Five for Friday Linky to share some favorite holiday fun from this week. Thank you, Kacey!  

Here are my playdough "Flavors of the Month."  

My new favorite recipe for playdough is this one using Bisquick:

Bisquick Playdough
2 cups Bisquick
1 cup salt
2 cups water
1 Tbsp cream of tartar
1 Tbsp oil

Mix all ingredients in a microwave safe bowl.  Microwave for 3 minutes.  Scrape and stir the bowl. Microwave for another 3 minutes. If it is not quite ready,  microwave for another minute.
(I made a double batch and put it back in my microwave for one more minute, which worked perfectly.)

I like this playdough because it really lasts well.   A double batch actually made 6 of these sized balls.  Last year, I was experimenting with Christmas ideas and ruined one...  I had these big, shiny confetti shapes like these that I thought would be fun: 

NOT. 

They didn't mix in and were too much. Lesson learned and only five playdough balls left. 

I made Snowball (white with colored glitter), Christmas Tree (green coloring with cut up red and green tinsel pieces and some little gold stars),  Cocoa (all I did was add LOTS of cocoa powder, and it smells awesome!), Gingerbread (cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg ), and Candy Cane (red coloring and mint extract). 

I was thinking I could make Peppermint Patty playdough and have the brown cocoa playdough and some white with mint extract.  Yum. 

I also looked for some pine scented essential oil in the store, but I couldn't find any. I was thinking that may work well in the Christmas Tree playdough.  I COULD tell you that I put it in there, couldn't I?  I forgot that you can't smell through the computer.  Well, I am honest- and I didn't put it in. The ones that smell don't have any "extras."  The ones that don't smell, have some bling in them.  The kids loved them.

Here are some cute Christmas Tree Playdough Mats from Jennifer Brown's TPT store. My kids would love rolling out the bulbs for the Christmas trees.

She also shared some wonderful Snowman Playdough Mats! Thank you, Jennifer!



  

 Here are some other cute Winter Wonderland Mats from OkinawanGirl's TPT store.

We made these wreaths for the parents this week.  I had each child work with me one at a time to guide those little paint-covered hands.  They love it each time I paint the palm of their hands, because it tickles.  Every single child laughed this year.  For some reason, that just made me happy.

Some years I attach a poem, (My hand made the wreath. My thumb made the berry. I hope that you have a Christmas that's merry!)  but this year, I didn't.  I just went with the wreath.  

I got the bows last year after Christmas at Walmart for 70% off.  I'll be back there again this year!

The children love making these presents.  It's a quick activity that gets them thinking about what they might give to someone else, not what they want to get. 

They colored the present, cut it out, and put a real bow on it.  I did this in small groups, so we could talk about what each child was going to write, but it was a very independent activity.  I made a couple different presents the children could use. If you would like a copy, just click on the picture below! I didn't have them color the bow, because I used a real bow. (I used the picture with the smaller bow so I could cover it with a real bow.)

                              

I posted all about Christmas lights and TPT Christmas light freebies HERE!

Each year, I use this fabulous Christmas Lights Pattern by Meredith Fitzhenry that she shared at her TPT store.  Thank you, Meredith!

 I enlarge it 200 times and print it on 11x17 paper.

I write secret sight words on each paper with a white crayon.  There are some on the paper above and you didn't even know it! The children  watercolor however they want.  It's always a favorite for all of us!

After the children discover their secret words and read them to me, they write them on their paper.

I also enlarged Meredith's paper not quite so big and made some number papers for my little ones who still need some number recognition practice.

We followed this activity up by closing the shades and reading this sweet book that lights up.

Here are a couple of my favorite candy cane ideas- with a little literacy sprinkled in!

 

I cut out candy cane shapes, outlined them, and wrote red sight words in every other space.  I wrote white crayon sight words in the white spaces.  The children had to read the red word, then paint the white section with red watercolor.  This was actually a really good activity for following directions, too.  The kids did great!

 They turned out really cute!  

We also made our other sight word candy canes this week!

The children could choose a  white candy cane with red words- or a red candy cane with white words. That was maybe the hardest part.  They chose ten different word stripes to add to their candy cane.  After they make their candy cane, they read their words to a friend at their table. Then, they write their words on a recording sheet.  They will also read the words to me.

(I have each child put a scrap piece of paper under the candy cane cut-out so the glue doesn't go all over the table when they glue on the strips.)

After they glue on the strips, I turn the candy cane over and help the children trim the edges.

When they finish this center, they get a mini candy cane to take home and eat as they read their candy cane words to a grown up.

Here is a copy of the sight word sheet I used and the recording sheet.  Just click on the picture if you would like a copy.

Here is a fun video of Santa making candy canes!



Thank you for stopping by!  It's going to be 63 degrees on Sunday. That is unheard of in Upstate NY in December!  I'm thinking there will not be a white Christmas this year.  I'm okay with that- except then I don't want a white winter at all afterward.  The only time I really love snow is before Christmas- then winter just drags on for months after that...   Have a WONDERFUL weekend! 

Five for Friday! Lucky December 13th

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

I had fun posting this week, joining two linky parties.  The first was all about COOKIES at Time 4 Kindergarten's Virtual Cookie Exchange.

I shared some of my favorite Christmas recipes.  (These are some of my sister's family's gorgeous creations!) 

I also shared my new favorite Character Education book.  SO sweet. (I meant the book- but so are the cookies!)

The second linky was a Christmas Questionnaire with Michelle at Fabulous in First.

 I had fun thinking about my Christmas memories as I was answering the questions- and so much fun reading about other blogging friends' memories and traditions. 

 

We made our hands and foot reindeer this week.  This is always a favorite because it is such a great independent activity.  

You can check my Reindeer Post to find lots of other reindeer ideas and freebies!

We also made our hand wreaths for the children to take home to their parents this week.  They did a great job.  I help "steer" their hands to the right spot.

 

As I was finishing up the last couple wreaths and writing, and while some of the children were washing up before recess, I put on a Curious George winter story.  When I looked over on the rug, I realized that I had a line of beauticians in my class.  Too funny.

 

 

Here is my post with some Holiday Homework ideas. Just click on the picture below if you would like to a copy!

I have been sending home one or two a week this month, just for fun.  You could even make a packet to send home over break if you wanted.  I sent this one home last night and the kids loved it! I stapled the worksheet to the plate and napkin. 

 

We had our Teddybear "Tt" Party today! (Guess what letter we worked on?) Everyone brought in their favorite Teddybear.   (One little girl said her Teddybear was in the shape of a cat.)

 

 

We did lots of addition and subtraction problems, graphing, and patterning with Teddy Grahams. AND we had tea. It was peach iced tea- so how bad can that be? Ninety nine percent of the kids liked it.  One was adamant that he was probably NOT allowed to drink it.  Then he was allergic to it. Then he had to go to the bathroom.  Poor thing.  I had apple juice, too, so it was all good.

 

The bears "chit chatted" on the rug while we worked with our Teddy Grahams and drank our tea- so nobody's bear was spilled on, heaven forbid!

 



 We sorted our bears.  We played a game where one person had to describe a bear with lots of details, and someone else had to find the bear.

We lined up our bears biggest to smallest.  We used our bears to act out positional words like above our head, below our knees, beside us, and between us and our neighbor.  We drew pictures and wrote about our bears.

We went on both Bear Hunts (of course) on Youtube. 

Congratulations to Natasha and Breanne on winning the Holiday Specs!  I hope you have received them and have a ball looking at lights this weekend!
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Here is a little ornament I found that I thought would be so perfect for so many of us that I wanted to share.  Seems good to me!

Have a WONDERFUL weekend!