Symmetry Fun

Have you ever wanted to tape up your kiddos??? Okay, not really, but what if you used it as a teaching lesson?  You can be sure your students will never forget the lesson.

People are great examples of symmetry, so I tape up my kids.  And believe it or not, they LOVE it!! We talk about what symmetrical means - both side are the same, and we even have a little chant, "Symmetrical Same."  (We put our hands together above our heads and say "symmetrical" then in front of us palms out and we say "same.")  One day the kids really got into the "same" and they told me I was not symmetrical because I had a watch on one wrist.  Yep, they were correct.

We also got to do some other fun activities with symmetry like paint and build symmetrical shapes.  When we build our shapes, the kids like to make one side and then trade with a partner to see if their partner can finish the shape and make it symmetrical on both sides.

I put together this great activity set that includes cut and paste printables, activity pages and whole group lesson ideas for Symmetry, Whole, Half and Parts.  Click on the picture below to find it at my TpT store.

Included Pages/Activities:

Whole, Half, Part - Identify & Draw a Line

Whole, Half, Part - Count the Parts and Write

Whole, Half, Part - Sort

Whole, Half, Part - Are They Equal

Whole, Half, Part - Whole Group Pizza Set

Symmetry - Whole Group Activity Idea

Symmetry - Draw a Line

Symmetry - Sort

Symmetry - Shape Building

Symmetry - Color or Paint Printable Pages

I hope you get a chance to try this in your own classroom!! :)

"Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever."  Hebrews 13:8

What does it feel like?

This week we are studying our 5 senses.  I totally love the experiment we do with TOUCH because we get to play with shaving cream!  Yeah!!!!  We start off with a partner describing how things might feel: porcupine  - "poky" (I am still laughing),  rock - "hard," feather - "fluffy."  BUT, then I show them the shaving cream.  "Wow, really Mrs. Rucker!"  Yep, but we have to do a little work first.  Hahahah

I gave them several objects to feel, and then we picked a word to describe it.  We used a cotton ball, button, glitter star, foil, and feather.

Then.........we finally got to play with the shaving cream!  Yeah!  How would you describe it?  - soft, fluffy, creamy, smooth??  They loved it!

"But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it.  The woman realized what had happened to her, so she came, trembling with fear, knelt at his feet, and told him the whole truth.  Jesus said to her, "My daughter, your faith has made you well.  Go in peace, and be healed of your trouble." Mark 5: 32-34

Tracer Spacers

I shared this last month over on the Organized Classroom Blog.  I wanted to share it here too!

Teachers are always looking for ways in which their classroom supplies can stretch a little further or serve a duel purpose.  Yep, that's me!!   I have seen those really cute little spacer guys that help kiddos with their writing and make the perfect space, but of course I multi-task, multi-purpose, multi-anything really.  So......I invented the Tracer-Spacer.  Okay, I really didn't invent the pen, but maybe the word.  Heheheheh

At the beginning of our sentence writing process, we do a lot of tracing and copying to work on letter placement and spacing.  Our Tracer-Spacer comes in very handy.  We trace the sentence and then flip the pen around for a sentence spacer when we write.

The kids love the fact that they can pick a different color every time they trace, and I love it because it is so fun to say!!  Say it one time to them and it sticks.  Think about your classroom.  What else could serve a duel purpose?  How could you reuse something in your room?

New Fan Freebie - Fall Find it Fast

Fall Find it Fast!!!

I have a new Fan Freebie on my Facebook page.  Be sure to follow so you don't miss out!

Click on the picture above.

"There is time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens." Ecclesiastes 3:1

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