Five For Friday, Summer Projects, and an Ocean and ABC Book

Hello Friends!

I am linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five For Friday today.  I can tell it is the summer because I have to think what day of the week it is when I get up in the morning! My days are filled, but not scheduled; so many days drift into one another and when I really have to know what day it is, I have to stop and think. Sooooo different from the school year when EVERY minute is scheduled and the worry of whether everything you have planned will get done!

So...... my 5 points are definitely random today!

1.  My school garden is growing - yay! I did not plant it until after school was out and I do not have any little ones helping me with it this year - boo hoo! So when I planted, I had to think ahead to things that would be growing when school started and the types of things we could use in our science curriculum at the beginning of the year. So, pumpkins were an obvious choice with the hope that we might get a pumpkin this year! I also planted spices whose leaves have a smell. I thought we could do a "smell" scavenger hunt. I was given a free gourd plant, so I planted that in the garden and thought that if it grows a gourd, we could discuss how people of long ago used plants for vessels and food......


2.  This is the first summer for  a LONG time that I am reading purely for pleasure; no book studies or professional reading. I DO plan to do some professional reading this summer, but for now, I am just enjoying the pleasure of reading. Let's see...... here are a few titles.....

The Memory Child by Steena Holmes
The Collector by Nora Roberts
The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks
The Line by J.D Horn
The Source by J.D. Horn

As you can see, I have been reading purely for fun...... I should get on to professional reading in a few weeks!

  

3.  One of my goals this summer was to get my 20 gallon aquarium set up. I did it! Unfortunately, I started with 6 fish and now have 3 (sad face). BUT,  I am not giving up! The fish that are presently swimming in there are Rosie Barbs and VERY aggressive. I did not know this when I purchased them. I just thought they were pretty and I loved that they were in constant motion. So, now I have to find some fish that will be able to stand up to these little bullies..... that is my next step in this project!


 4.  One wonderful thing about the summer is the freedom to enjoy time outside on the patio or on the front porch.... ahhh........ a Chai Tea in the morning and a lemonade in the afternoon..... Love it!




5.  I HAVE been busy! Cleaning closets, dusting cobwebs, going through clothes......... I also have been creating new resources! As with most kindergartens, my students make an alphabet book. I have been doing this with my students for YEARS and finally, took some time this month to create a resource to share. If you read my blog, you know that I love giving my students step-by-step illustrations to draw and/or create their pictures. In this resource, there is a step-by-step drawing for each letter of the alphabet as well as SH, CH, TH, PH, OW, OO, and the Long Vowels. I also love giving them words that they can read when creating their letter picture. Since we start with the letter A, we start out with a simple 2 word sentence and then progress to 3 sentences when we get to Z and the digraphs. I have included this option in the packet as well. I put their pictures in a binder and at the end of the year, they have a cute alphabet book to keep and share....

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/ABCs-and-More-Lets-Make-a-Book-1285490




I also just finished another "Let's Make a Book" resource. This one is about the Ocean For Little Kids. In this resource, students learn about the Ocean Zones and the animals that call the ocean their home. I taught this unit to my students this past Spring and they LOVED it! We made a big book usig 12" x 18" construction paper, color coded the pages by ocean zones, stapled the pages together, and 'Voila!', they had a fun Ocean Big Book to take home and share! Yay!

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Ocean-Animals-and-Their-Zone-Lets-Make-a-Book-For-Little-Kids-1295912
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Ocean-Animals-and-Their-Zones-Lets-Make-a-Book-For-Little-Kids-1295912
Here is a page that one of my sweeties created. It's a bit different than the one included in the packet because my kiddos are my guinea pigs and I changed the words and some of the animals after we finished the unit!
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Ocean-Animals-and-Their-Zones-Lets-Make-a-Book-For-Little-Kids-1295912

So, that's it for now, my friends!  Make sure that you drop on over to Doodle Bugs Teaching to read more fun Five for Friday posts!

http://doodlebugsteaching.blogspot.com/2003/06/five-for-friday-linky-party-june-27th.html


Until next time!

Blessings,

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