Solid Shapes Fun

This week we stared working on our solid shapes.  After exploring names and attributes, we decided to eat our shapes and build them.  Before we could eat, we had to sort our shapes and then graph our results.  For a sphere we used KIX cereal, for the cube we used cheese, for a cone we used Bugles, and for a cylinder we used mini marshmallows.   Yummy!

Later in the afternoon, we tried to build the shapes using toothpicks and our mini-marshmallows again.  Using our solid shape picture cards, I told them to try and build the shapes on their own.  I got them started with a square, and they were off.  Yep, they didn't need my help anymore.  They started with the cube then moved on to a pyramid.  I was so excited to see them figuring it out on their own.  At the end I challenged them with a rectangular prism.  Wow, they got it!!!  They realized it was easier to lay the rectangular prism down then stand it up!

"You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart." Jeremiah 29:13

We Are Learning Our Letters - Yeah

We have learned 10 letters so far, and the fun has just begun!!  On Friday we played a great little game, "Does My Letter Say....?"  I tell the kiddos, like every great teacher, that I have eyes in the back of my head!!! Heheheheh  I just smile sooooo big when they laugh and say, "No you don't!  You are just teasing."  Love it!!

Well, since we don't have eyes on the back of our heads we get to play a great little game.  I go over the rules and explain what we will be doing.  One of the most important rules to go over with the kiddos is what they can say.  For the game I tape a letter on each child's back and give them each a letter strip that has the possible letters on it.  They are to go around and ask their friends, "Does my letter make a ___ sound?"  I reinforce "sound."  I do not want them asking if they have an "M" on their back.  They must use the sound.  The helper can only say "Yes" or "No."  If the helper says "yes," then the child circles the letter they think they have and comes to me.  If the helper says "no," then the child crosses of the appropriate letter and finds another helper.

I remind them that I am the only one who can take the letters off, and I can't do it until they tell me the correct letter.

I use my Large Letter Flash Cards for this game.  You see the star version in the picture, but they come in two other versions; blank and with stick kids.  Click on the picture below to find them on TpT. This flash card set includes the following: A-Z uppercase; A-Z lowercase; th, wh, sh, ch, ar, ng, oo, ai, ay, ee, ea, igh, oa, ow, ou, ew, ue, ir, er, ur, or, oy, or, au, aw

They love it!!! They are up moving and learning at the same time, and I love that even more.  What could be better?? :)

"I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do." John 17:4

Rip Roaring Fun with the Letter R

Today we learned the letter R!  Yeah!  What could be more fun than getting to rip paper up and make a mess????  Yes, I said make a mess!!  I gave each kiddo a piece of red paper and told them to go at it!  They glued all those little red pieces of paper on a big capital R.  

 

Try it!  Just watch your little eyes light up when you tell them it is time to start ripping and make a mess.

"So I command the enjoyment of life, because there is nothing better for a person under the sun than to eat and be glad."  Ecclesiastes 8:15

It's Tower Time - Counting 1-10

We have been working on our numbers 1-10.  This fun little game gets us working with a partner, counting, and writing all at the same time.  One partner builds a tower using blocks and the other partner counts and writes the number.  During this time we also work on praising each other and helping if needed.

Check out this great little pack for printing numbers.  It includes printing pages for 1-10, 1-20, 1-50 and 1-100.  There are also tracing pages for 1-10 and 1-20. 

Click on the picture above to find this great classroom resource.

"For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised."  1 Chronicles 16:25

Ready, Set, Move!

Sometimes you just need to get up and move!!!  This great little game, Ready, Set, MOVE, from Smile Makers gets you up and moving.  The game includes 25 colored foam mats and 3 activity dice (one with colors, one with numbers 1-6, and one with different exercises).

My kiddos sure had a blast.  This was our first time to use the game, and my brain was already thinking about how I could use it again.  We played one of the suggested games.  I placed the colored foam mats around my classroom and started our music.  When the music stopped, the kids found a dot.  Then we rolled the 3 dice.  The students on the rolled color performed the activity that was rolled how ever many times the dice told them.  Ohhhhhhh, they loved rolling the dice.   I gave them instructions to pass the dice to a friend when the music started, and we were off moving again!!!

Just think about all the possibilities!!!  I can work on colors, sorting, number identification, and counting.  This game was a great addition to my classroom, and I can use it all together or just use the parts I need for other various learning activities and games.

(Look at us sort at the end while we were picking everything up!!)

Check out this great offer for teachers: Receive 10% off, no minimum order required, plus FREE shipping with any order of $29 or more.  Use promo code SMILE25 at checkout.  Free Standard Shipping valid in the contiguous United States or Canada.  Offer expires 9/27/13.

Click on the logo above to find this and other great products.

"A glad heart makes a cheerful face" Proverbs 15:13 

A New Guest Blogging Adventure & Labor Day Fun

I have some exciting news!!  I will be a regular guest blogger this year for the Organized Classroom Blog with Charity Preston.  I am so excited to share some of my classroom organization tips and helpful management techniques on her blog.  I will be posting something new and helpful the 24th of each month!!!  I look forward to sharing and learning so much more along the way.

Check it out!!

I hope you had a wonderful and relaxing Labor Day weekend.  We went camping all weekend with some friends and had a really nice time.   One of the nights the big boys left their fishing lines out, and in the morning one of the lines was stuck.  So the boys asked, "Do you think there is a fish on the end of the line?"  A dad responded, "Maybe, but probably not." (Dads are always right you know. lol)   Well, the boys decided to get a little brave.  Braden held the pole, and Ethan followed the line all the way down.  Yep, he came up screaming, "There's a fish on there!!!!!!"  Those were some happy boys! (and happy little sisters too)  - Life Lesson:  Never give up on something you think is a possibility!!

"I can do all things through him who gives me strength."
Philippians 4:13

Meet My Kiddos!!!

We are off to a great start.  Here is a picture of my kiddos on our first day of school.  Yeah!!!

Here we are on day two learning our first letter - U.  Uncle Upton hangs upside down......so we did too! :)

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give your hope and a future."  Jeremiah 29:11

Back to School Sale

It is finally here!! Yeah!!!  The annual Back to School TpT Sale.  I know many of you have been super busy getting your classrooms ready, making a wish list, and getting everything organized and put back together for those new kiddos.  Actually......I bet some of you have probably already started school and have kiddos right now!!  Our kiddos don't start until the 20th, but I officially started back last Thursday. (Yes, I still buy a first day of school outfit too.)  heheheh

Everything in my store will be 28% off!  Stop on by, and if you haven't started yet, I sure hope you are as excited at I am!!  Good luck and have a wonderful year.   (BTS2013)

Store Highlights

"Be the Word" Large Letter Flashcards

High Frequency Word and Phrase Cards

  

Those Crazy b's & d's!                              Turkey Trot  

Pattern Perfect

"Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth." 2 Timothy 2: 15

Classroom Decorations & Pinterest Fun

I had some extra fun getting ready this year.   I decided to recover my desk chair and well....... explore my Pinterest boards!  :)  I feel like a princess now, and I get so excited to sit at my desk.  (Not that I ever get too.  lol)

These cute tissue papers flowers are leftovers from a table I decorated for a cancer luncheon this past summer.  Don't they look so adorable in my classroom!!!!  I don't have the awesome balloon rainbow like I did for the luncheon, but I sure enjoy the rainbow flowers.

Luncheon Table - Soooo Cute!!

Now who doesn't like hiding a few things!!   Put up a little fabric and poof, the "clutter" is gone!! :)

And, finally a little gift.   I made these cute back to school gifts for my kiddos.   Fun little glow sticks.  Click on the picture to download the freebie tag.  I didn't think you would want my name on there, so I took it off!   :)  I also included sets that say .....year in Preschool,  .....year in First Grade, and  .....year in Second Grade.

I hope your Back to School is terrific.  I know I get sooooo excited!  And guess what, this year my baby gets to join me in Kindergarten!!!  Yeah!!   She will be right across the hall.

"For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope."  Jeremiah 29:11 NLT

Getting Ready for Back to School and A Freebie

Well, it is that time again Back To School !!!!!  Are you ready??  Our first day is August 20th, and the planning has officially begun.  Yeah!!  Before I really start anything, I like to take some time to reflect.  I think about last year, the previous years, the good, the bad, the ugly, and everything in between.  lol

Two of the things I think that have worked really well in my classroom are our Line Up Song and our Quiet Signal.  (Classroom Management and Procedures)  I can't wait to share these with you.

This will be my 5th year teaching kindergarten, and I truly believe that we can learn something new every year.  Believe it or not, how to line up was one of the biggest changes/challenges I had when I moved from 6th to Kindergarten.  Wowwzers!!!  In kindergarten there is a line leader, a caboose, and a door holder.   So......... I figured out how to get everyone to the line, but now, how do I get them quiet and ready to walk in the hall.  Our kiddos walk with hips and lips - one finger on your lip and one hand on your hip!  This keeps our hands from touching others, the walls, or anything else.  So, with the help of a friend, we now have a fun little Line Up Song jingle to sing/say while we are getting ready to walk down the hall.   Click on the picture to download this great little freebie poster!!

Now, our Quite Signal!  How do I get the attention of 20 little 5 year olds who are busy at work??  Our principal uses a raised hand for our building wide quiet signal.  The entire building knows that when they see a teacher or administrator raise his/her hand, they need to raise their hand as well and get quite.  This can be a little difficult for 5 year olds with their attention going in every which direction.  So, I decided not only to give them the visual clue (my hand raised), but an auditory and kinesthetic clue as well.  It takes us a few days to really figure it out, and lots of praise, but when we do......it's great!!  I also made picture clue cards for our classroom wall.  (Which, once they learn all four letters in the word STOP, they are totally excited that they can actually read the word!  :)  I clap 5 times, say S...T...clap twice....say O...P  and we all end quiet with our hands in the air!!  YEAH!!!!!  (I had the blank cards up, but this year I decided to make them colored to match my classroom decorations.)  These STOP Signal cards are available on TpT in color and black and white. Click on the picture below to find them.

Click below to hear how our classroom Quiet Signal.  Click on the picture above to hear it on You Tube.  (Of course you could do any clapping rhythm, this is just what worked for us!)

And I am sure like almost all of us out there, there are areas that we really feel we want to change/improve.  One of the areas that I still need some help reorganizing/figuring out ...... is my 30 minute independent center time.  We are a Title 1 building, so this is also our Tier time.  I know what activities I want them to do, but it is the organization part I need a little help with.  Like how to rotate them, keeping track of who went where and who did what!!!  Help!!  If you have any great resources or ideas, please let me know!!  Thanks, and I hope you have a great year too.

"An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge." Proverbs 18:15