Healthy Me Unit



Hello Friends!

Oh my... It has been a LONG time since I have posted here! I guess I have been busy, but I can't think what I have been doing that has taken up so much of my time. It's amazing how each day can drift along and then all of sudden, you realize how much time has passed and you didn't even notice!

One of my favorite units to teach is "Healthy Me." Little kids are always so interested in how their body works and although, I don't go into HUGE detail, we do have some lively discussions during this unit. 





We also discuss healthy habits such as hand washing, exercise, and sleeping.

At the conclusion of this unit, all the healthy me pages are stapled inside a cute cover. This is a fun way for my kiddos to have a discussion about healthy habits with their families!



If you are interested in my HEALTHY ME unit, click the image below....
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Health-and-Nutrition-for-Little-Kids-206430
Here is freebie for you to hang next to your sink to remind your kiddos to wash the germs away!


https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1ubUzeAYMczZXo1OVJ2RDk1eFU/edit?usp=sharing

Until next time!

Blessings, 


St. Patrick's Day Fun.... leprechaun traps, Pot of Gold Word Families, and cute footprints!

Hello Friends!

It is all leprechauns and St. Patrick's Day in my classroom right now! Whew! Luckily, our little leprechauns will be leaving on Monday! But before they head back to Leprechaun Land, my kinders had a family project where they were to design a trap to see if they can keep one here! This, of course, is a typical kindergarten project now BUT when I started doing this YEARS ago, it was still a unique way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. I think the thing I love the most about this project is that it encourages kids and their DADS to work together. Dads seem to LOVE doing this project with their kids, so we continue it from year to year.....

I thought I would share some of this year's designs! 











The other fun thing about this project is all the architectural designs that happen at the Lego table! Check this one out! Do you notice the little traps set up in the picture?


Of course, we also had to do some fun leprechaun math activities. I love this one which I got from Kim Jordano's March Ideas which you can find HERE.





Look at the fun writing that goes on during this time!


 We made -OT Word Family Pots of Gold...... Love this!!







And lastly, take a look at these cute footprints that the leprechauns left in my colleague, Lisa's classroom...... CUTE!


Until next time!

Blessings,


St. Patrick's Day Math Centers - Revised!

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Five-Fabulous-St-Patricks-Day-Math-Centers-583322
Hello Friends!

I thought I would let you know that I just revised my Five Fabulous St. Patrick's Day Math Centers packet. If you purchased it, please re-download! This was one of the first math centers packets I created and as with all my products, after a few times of using it with my kiddos, I found some kinks!

I'm really pleased with the math skills that my kiddos are working on this week. This was the first time I REALLY introduced number combinations. We have been touching on combinations all year, but THIS week, we are working on understanding that one number can be made in many ways. I am using five frames with them this week and then will transition them to ten frames soon.


I also LOVE this little game where my students play a Bingo game using different versions of how numbers are shown!


Here is a quick image of the contents of the packet. Make sure you re-download if you purchased it! And if you are interested in checking it out, click on the link below to take you there!

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Five-Fabulous-St-Patricks-Day-Math-Centers-583322

Until Next time!

Blessings,

My Bright Idea - Solving the "MY GLUE WON'T COME OUT, TEACHER!" Dilemma



Hello Friends!


I KNOW that I am one of MILLIONS of early education teachers who dream that their students will someday grow up to invent a glue bottle that does not clog! Ugh! We do tons of projects in my classroom that involve glue BUT if I think they can pull it off with a glue STICK, then that is what I give them to use. I just do not have the time to unclog 16 white glue bottles........




So......... this summer, as I was perusing the clearance aisle at Walmart, I came across plastic mustard, ketchup, and mayo bottles. I had no idea what I would use them for when I purchased them, but knew SOMETHING would hit me, so I stored them in my classroom.

Several weeks ago, I was having one of those AWFUL, frustrating days and dealing with clogged glue bottles was NOT something that I had the time for! Well...... it was my AH-HA day because those mustard and ketchup bottles came rising to the top of my brain. I took them down from the shelf, filled them with the glue from the clogged bottles, and put them out for my kiddos to use. Wow! What a nice and easy day I had! The bottles worked perfectly!

BUT....... the experiment was not over after the bottles were used that first day. Now, I was left with ooey, gooey ketchup and mustard bottles! What was I going to do with them NOW?? Well, this definitely was my AH-HA day! I cut craft stems in half and stuck them into the holes in the nozzles - not all the way; half way. I put the glue bottles away that day and we did not get them out until the following week.



Because I did not look at them for a week, I had no idea what I would find....Would the craft stem  be glued to the top or would the glue be dried out? Well...... I was THRILLED when I took them out! They worked wonderfully!!! Hurray! AND the best part of this is that my kiddos can pull the craft stem out by themselves and also replace it independently! Two kids can share one bottle, so the expense is small.



I needed some place to store the bottles......... so, I covered a cardboard drink carrier with colored duck tape and THIS worked perfectly, too! The kids can pick up the carrier and take it to their tables and then return it back to the shelf! And the best part....... No more "My glue won't come out, Teacher!" Yay!



And that, my friends, is my BRIGHT IDEA!

Next up is my friend, Nicole, from Mrs. Rios Teaches. She is sharing fun ways to recycle old calendars! Click the image below to take you there OR you can continue on the hop in your own way by clicking on the images in the linky below! Enjoy!

http://mrsriosteachessecondgrade.blogspot.com/2014/03/bright-ideas-blog-hop-2.html
 Until next time!

Blessings,




Some Dr. Seuss, My March Door, Coffee Filter Umbrellas, and My Year Old Poinsettia Has Bloomed!

Hello Friends!

Whew! It's Friday! We made it! Woo hoo!

This week we did some Seuss. We had SO much going on that we couldn't do as much as I usually do BUT what we DID do turned out really cute and my kids learned a lot, too! Basically, I drew the outline of 4 Seuss books and traced them onto construction paper. My kiddos added a label, used crayons to decorate, and then wrote word families onto the shapes. They could write REAL or silly Dr. Seuss words. Even my struggling learners were able to do this and EVERYONE had a great time doing them. Plus, they made a cute as a button display! 



The four stories we did were:

THE CAT IN THE HAT (of course!)



GREEN EGGS AND HAM



HOP ON POP

 

and

FOX IN SOCKS


It's March and we are thinking (hoping!) Spring. I found a great way for my kiddos to paint a coffee filter umbrella. They have always struggled with trying to paint the filter because it kept popping up. Also, because the filter is designed to allow water to pass through it, the paint would seep through and make a bit of a mess on the table.

So...... I taped the filter to a white paper plate.

Then my kiddos used their watercolors to paint it.


Pull the tape off while the filter is wet. When dry, create your cute umbrella picture! Easy!


Here is my March door...... I had one of my kinders ask me last week if I was going to "change that snowman" that was on the door. It's been there a long time!" Ha! He was right! My Winter door was up all of January and February! It is nice to look at a color other than blue! 


Finally...... look what my poinsettia from 2012 is doing! It is growing red leaves! Yay!!! This little guy has been with me for over a year and I did not have the heart to destroy it. So... basically, this plant just sat on my windowsill. I watered it and fed it a couple of times, but that's it!


So that's if for now..... Have a great weekend!

Until next time!

Blessings,