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- Prezi Tutorial

I am linking up with 4th Grade Frolics  for Monday Made It. Thank you for hosting this, Tara

 My sweet friend Susanna mentioned my Prezis in her post yesterday over at her WONDERFUL  blog Whimsy Workshop, and that just thrilled me!  :) Thank you, Susanna ((hug, hug, hug)).  So today,  I thought I would share a little about how I started making them.

Since I enjoy making and using Prezis in my classroom so much,  I want you to see how much fun they are to make.  I just found Prezis when I took a Technology Class at my school for Professional Development- and sort of fell in love with them. Prezi has no idea who I am or that I use them, and I am not associated with them in any way, except that I think the are an awesome tool to use! :)

I started writing a tutorial post- and then realized that Prezi does a great job - much better than I was going to do- so I am adding the link for their Prezi Tutorial. 

Prezi breaks down everything with their Getting Started with Prezi page. 

It is so easy- even I can do it.  Literally- there should be a commercial with just me on it- and people who know my technological giftedness (she said sarcastically) would immediately feel so much better about themselves and their abilities to make a Prezi!  :)  Now, I have been making them for about 2 years- so I am better than when I started, but I will never forget that first time I saw their little slogan that said, "Go ahead. Make a Prezi!"  So- I thought, "OK!"

You need to sign up for a free account.  It is fun to just explore what Prezis are available out there.

Here are some tutorials that are helpful.  Start with a basic one and see how fun it is. :) Remember it can be simple, simple, simple and so useful!

Do It Yourself Prezi Tutorial by Tai Tran

Youtube Prezi Tutorials for EVERYTHING!

Eva Steele-Saccio  also wrote a great tutorial on Educade.

In the two years I have been using Prezis, they have added many more options to their offerings- font colors, fonts,  music, backgrounds...

When I started, there were only blank backgrounds.  Actually, this is what I prefer for mine. I mainly use Prezis as "zooming posters."  I organize my favorite links and put them together by theme so they are ready for me to use very easily.  I don't use background music because I include lots of Youtube videos as links and want it quiet in the background, but  I am going to put music in my Open House picture Prezi this year, though! That will be fun.  

Sometimes when presentations are presented as slideshows on Prezis (Monday Tongue Twister- not really- that was really easy to say- Hmm- alliteration I guess?!  I got sidetracked- sorry!)  and the slides zoom in and out fast, people get dizzy and don't like it. :)   I have seen some like this and they are distracting sometimes. The zooming feature is fun to play with.

Ned Potter made a Prezi about making a great prezi.

It shows the zooming feature well. When you get to this link, just click though the arrows on the bottom of the prezi to see it.  (This kind is the slide show presentation kind when you use the arrows at the bottom, not the zooming poster kind.)

Zooming Poster Prezi 

Most of my Prezis are not slide shows. I go to the top where it says, "Frames and Arrows" and choose "Draw Invisible Frame."  I frame the section that I want to be able to zoom in on, if that area is selected (touched on the smartboard or clicked with a mouse).  Then, when the Prezi is up as a poster and I touch an  area, that part will zoom forward.  Here is a sample of the invisible frame/zoom Prezi:

my Earth Day Prezi.

If you click on an area, it will zoom forward.  Just scroll the mouse to back out. 

Here is what this Prezi looks like in "edit" mode when I added the "invisible frames" just so you can see-

Slide Show Prezi

The slide show option is very simple. If you want it to play like a slide show, you just click the pencil to the left side of the Prezi when you are creating the Prezi, then click on any slide or area you want to select as your first slide, then continue- click the pencil, then the slide...  You can edit it easily and take off slides, too. 

My 'My Favorite Things" Prezi is slide show.  To make it full screen, just click the box in the lower right corner (red arrow), then you can click through with the arrows. (Just hit escape to get out of full screen.) I like this to be slide show because when we sing the song, I can click through at our own pace. You can also just "play" a slide show and select the time you want between slides.

My Power of One Prezi is also a slide show.

I love making a Sight Word Prezi to use with my class all year. It is great for those extra moments you have during the day- and extra fun because the children love to see themselves on that big screen.

This is a slide show Prezi.  This would be a fun one for you to try because it is SO EASY. 

I take the children's pictures, each holding a different sight word and download them onto my computer. Next,  I just choose each individual  image and insert each image.  Once they are inserted, you can make them larger or smaller by clicking the image and using the arrows to enlarge or decrease the size.  Then I arranged them ( just for fun) any way I want and used the pencil to the side to create a slide show. Click the pencil, then the picture, pencil, then picture... (red arrow). You can edit the Prezi anytime you want, very easily by hitting "edit." (duh. haha)

Here is how the page you are working on will look after you have made the path for all of the slides:

                                

I also use these sight word pictures to make books for each child to take home.  They love to share pictures of friends with mom and dad- and hopefully practice reading these sight words! I keep one in our room for a classroom book, too.  I print them in black and white to save ink. :)

I hope this post makes sense and is helpful to you!  A fun thing to try when you first play around with Prezis , is to make one about YOU!  Go to google images and download a bunch of things you love- favorite clothes, favorite sayings, favorite flower, favorite place, favorite coffee, favorite perfume, favorite animal. Then, title your Prezi your name.  Practice inserting  the pictures you downloaded and arrange them, resize them, twist and tilt them-  add some text-  just have fun!  You could even do this as an introduction of yourself for your class. 

I just wanted to share my love of Prezis with you. Hope you made a new friend with them, too!
You can see all of my Prezis at my Teachers Pay Teachers Store.  Here are some I have made that I use all the time in my classroom!

 

I JUST finished my new Fun in Fall Prezi .

Here is the description of the Prezi and what it includes:

This Prezi is a zooming poster FULL of information, videos, songs, stories, activities, and links to everything FALL for a primary classroom. It is a great way to incorporate Science and Social Studies into your classroom, as well as generating ideas for Writer's Workshop. Just click on a topic and have all those resources at your fingertips! Underneath the title are songs about fall. In the Prezi, I have included the following sections: 1.Back to School- which includes songs, online stories, the Pledge of Allegiance (saying, singing, and signing-regular and slow motion) The Star Spangled Banner, Grand Old Flag, a crayon box with videos of how crayons are made, a pencil box with videos of how pencils are made, Pinterest links, and activities/links for The Kissing Hand; 2. Why Leaves Change Color ; 3. How Does a Pumpkin Grow? -includes videos, a lifecycle chart, songs, stories- and some bonus bat and skeleton songs/stories for Halloween; 4. Apples- which includes videos of the lifecycle of apples/apple trees, songs, making applesauce, cider, and donuts, and Johnny Appleseed videos; 5. Monarch Butterflies-which includes activities, lifecycles, videos, a male/female chart, and links to great sites about monarchs; 6. Columbus Day; 7. Election Day- which includes 4 videos and 3 online stories about elections( Duck for President, If I Were President, Grace for President); 8. Veteran's Day- with videos explaining Veteran's Day to children.

Each sections also includes a link to Pinterest boards/pins for that subject for easy teacher access to more activities and ideas.

I had so much fun watching all the videos and picking the best ones. (There are some CRAZY ones out there... I think I've seen them all!)

 My  Back to School section of this Prezi is my free sample.  I'd love you to try it!

 I thought this could be useful for everyone (in the US- unless you just want to learn about the US...), even if you don't have seasons like I do here!   I hope you enjoy this and find it useful. It just has some fun songs/stories/ activities for those first days when the kids are tired and may need a few minutes to rest and learn at the same time!  If you click on the crayon box and the pencil box, I put on some videos about how crayons and pencils are made.  Pinterest links are on the spines of the books- as well as several Kissing Hand videos.

This year, I want to teach my  class to sign the Pledge of Allegiance.  I found great videos for this!  One is regular speed- but the second is slow motion which will be so helpful for me the children. I think this will be so much fun! I have more Patriotic Songs- and versions of The Star Spangled Banner  on my Learning is Fun Prezi if your class becomes  obsessed interested in seeing other people sing it.  We have a BALL with that. 

I am going to leave you with another way to use a Prezi- maybe the sweetest way I have ever seen. For my daughter's birthday, her sweet, new husband made her a Prezi to present her gift... a man after my own heart!  No wonder I always knew he was perfect for her! :)  This one is a great way to show the zooming that's available- and music in the background (which is a song by the performer they are going to see).  Also- Peanut is our cat who is missing Ellie like nobody's business- and she wants a Westie like crazy... :)   Just click through the arrows at the bottom.  (PS- I did get permission to share this! ;) 

Have fun and let me know if you make some of your own- or if you have any questions that I can try to answer. 

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