Becoming a Penguin

Oh my word ...... last week was probably my favorite week of the year so far!!  We learned all about PENGUINS!  Tacky has to my favorite "odd" bird to have around.  We did a little mini-research project about our favorite penguins, made a cute little penguin for the wall, waddled like a penguin with an egg on our feet, became a penguin in icy cold water, and finally made and edible penguin. SUPER FUN!!!

Becoming a Penguin

After talking about how penguins can swim in that super cold water without freezing, we decided to try it out.  On one hand we put a cotton glove (feather & blubber) and a purple latex free glove (the oil on their feathers).  This was our penguin hand.  Ready, set, freeze!!!  It was so fun to feel each hand when we pulled off the gloves.  One hand was warm, and the other one was freezing.  They just giggled and giggled.

Waddling Like a Penguin

Making an Edible Penguin - YUMMY!!

Swiss cake rolls, orange gummy slices, chocolate thin mints, M&Ms, large marshmallow slices, and icing for glue. 

They are going to ask - "How do we get the stuff to stick on?"  I love the look on their faces when I tell them glue.  "EEEEWWW  Mrs. Rucker!  We don't want to eat glue."   What if our glue was made of icing???  "YUM!!!"

What a week, but talk about some real life learning in action!

And God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds-livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds." And it was so.  And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind.  And God saw that it was good.  Genesis 1: 24-25

Creative Writing - There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pumpkin

After reading the story There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves, I thought it would be fun to make our own story for Thanksgiving.   There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pumpkin!

With the help of a great teaching partner, we came up with several things for our old lady to swallow!  The kids had so much fun trying to figure out what she was going to make at the end.

Using the creative writing story page, I put one item at a time up on the front board and the kids wrote it down on their paper.  Then they cut out their own little part and fed it to their old lady.  EXCITING!!  They giggled every time.  Before I showed them what she was going to cough up, I let them guess.  Yep, they figured it out.  A pumpkin pie! 

We practiced retelling our new story with a partner, so we were ready to show our parents when we got home.  I think some of them did it several times!!! 

We also painted a paper plate pumpkin pie and put pumpkin pie spice on it for the finishing touch!! Yummy!  It smelled so good in my room.  

Click on the picture below to download the creative writing page freebie from this Old Lady pack.  (writing page only).

Click on the picture below to find this complete Old Lady Creative Writing and Story Telling resource at my TpT store (creative writing page and graphics).

I hope you are having a great year!

"Let us come before him with thanksgiving. Let us sing him song songs of praise. For the Lord is great God, the great King above all gods." Psalm 95: 2-3

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

Tornado Alley

We are working on our weather unit right now in science, and today we talked about tornadoes.  Yes, living in Kansas we are right in tornado alley!!

Last week had to practice our school wide tornado drill before school even started.....right during our morning transition time.  Good thing we were prepared and had practiced several times.  The kids knew right what to do and where to go.  Our principal thought we needed to practice during one of our more "crazy" times of the day.  Really?!?!?!?  (He actually had a real tornado warning occur during this time of the day at his previous school.)  Okay.......good idea.......we can not tell the tornado to wait until we get the kids backpacks and stuff put away.  lol :)

After talking about how a tornado forms, what it does, what it looks like, what happens during a tornado, and what we should do during a tornado warning, of course we had to go outside and be a tornado!

When we were finished whirling and swirling around, we picked up 10 things for our tornado art project.  We finger painted black tornados and glued on the items we picked up from out side.  Up in the tornado they went!!

"Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced crops." James 5:18

May Day Fun!

I can not believe it has been 10 days since my last post!  It's been a little crazy with only 12 days of school left! :o)

Today was a lot of fun.  We made May Day baskets.  We used a flower stencil, and 10 flowers later, I think they were finished with their baskets.  Really, I think they just stopped because I said it was time for recess.

We don't have "art" class anymore, so I try to introduce the kids to as many art terms as I can.  Today we used stencils.  We started with a circle.  I had them cut it out of white paper, and then they got to trace it on a color of their choice.  Then we rolled the circle up for our basket and cut a strip for the handle.  Next, I had them cut out the flower stencil.  I laid out several different colors of paper and the precut stems, and.........they were off.

  My instructions were to try and make at least 3 flowers, but........I couldn't stop them!!

"As for man, his days are as grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth." Psalms 103: 15

Burping in the Classroom & A Freebie!

Who doesn't love those There Was An Old Lady books!!  I know my kiddos sure do.  Last week we read There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly and There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Shell.  After sequencing the events, we had to compare and contrast the stories.  The kids blew me out of the water!! (lol)  They actually told me I didn't have enough lines in the circles for them.  "Don't worry Mrs. Rucker, we can just smoosh the words in there!"  So, just like any good teacher, we did it.  :o)

Now, I don't know if you can do this next part in your classroom (or would want to), but boy did we have fun with it.  Of course the boys were sooooo excited because in the shell story the old lady didn't die, she burped!!  Here it comes, yes, we had to burp!  We burped and built a sand castle.  Here are their adorable drawings.

I had them go to their tables and draw their sandcastle.  If you notice, some of them even included everything from the story.  Then yes, here it comes, we got back together and burped!!

If your kiddos love these stories too, click on the picture below to download this compare and contract freebie.  Caution, you might have to add more lines or "smoosh" in all of the things your class comes up with!

"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2