A Mash-Up of Randomness with Pictures!

Time to play catch up on the lack of blogging-----all the while listening to Pitch Perfect on TV (I LOVE this movie!!). Here's a mash up of pictures and activities that we've been doing this past week.

Our predictable chart practice. 
 

Searching for M's and S's in magazines and newspapers.

 

 

Taste testing apples! We will make applesauce this week for Johnny Appleseed's birthday! We also red The Little Red House before I cut open the apple! The kids were entranced with this story (of course I'm a little dramatic when reading so they were so excited to find the "star" inside!)

If you aren't familiar with this story---here's a great link to it! The Apple Story

Using the Mimio to match upper case and lower case letters on the apple tree.
 

 Then we played Apple Hide and Find. They love trying to figure out where Johnny Appleseed is hidden. I've only used the color words and a few numbers in order for all students to feel as if they are successful. I'll add more numbers later on to make it harder.

 

It's only $1.00 right now in my TN shop!!! All items are 50% off!! 

We started working on the farm this week as well. We have a trip to the local fair next week so I'm wanting to make sure animals and farm activities have been introduced before then. Today we did a Farm/Circus animal Venn Diagram. This was great for discussion to have students explain why they thought certain animals belonged in both areas. For example: snake---one student said, "well snakes are found in the grass and they crawl into the tent!" EEK....yes they can....!

 

If you didn't grab my Cow Labeling Freebie from yesterday's post---grab it here.

 

 

Monday Madness--data, freebie, & giveaways!

It was a Monday. Insanely busy, kiddos nutso (is this a real word?), parent conferences, write-ups, and wondering did I actually teach anything today? And I thought that the full moon was over?

Not your typical Monday around here but here's to tomorrow being a little smoother.

About a week or so ago I posted a question on my FB page about how you share/show data in your classroom. Well I received a few responses but still concerned/confused, whatever, over how to show it.

We are required to show data on a bulletin board or some type of display for our student's growth. I'm skeptical about showing kids names, so we can use the number system, but some of my kids can't even recognize names, so I know numbers will be a loss. Not only that, some of my kiddos will pick up quick on who is who. 

So I thought of "I Can" charts--ya know..."I Can" tie my shoes, "I Can" count to 100, etc. etc. But it still has be in a graph form and has to be 1 reading skill and 1 math skill for each 9 weeks.

The problem is---I'm such a visual person that this is blowing my mind. And I have no idea why?!? I get the graph, I get how to display and I pretty much get which standards that I could show...for example...this 9 weeks I could graph how many students can read color words and how many kids can count to 25.

But how do I graph it---withOUT using students' names??

Any suggestions on what you do?? Help please!

And to my EC teachers out there---how would you display? My EC resource friend is overwhelmed on how to display her data b/c each student has an IEP that--of course---is completely different from the next.


On to something totally different before my head explodes---Whimsy Workshop is having the most A-MAZE-ING giveaway!!!!!!! Click on the pic to enter!! I not so secretly hope I win! :)

 

 And because I can--here's a little freebie for ya!

We've been working on labeling activities in the classroom. So what better way to practice than with some animals from the Farm!!! Click on the picture to take you to Google Docs!!

 

Graphics & Fonts from Mrs. Leeby and mycutegraphics

Leave a little love if you grab it! :) 

 

 

Winner & a Freebie!

Does anyone know what day it is?? It's hump dayyyy....LOL sorry couldn't resist (it really drives me nuts actually but it sort of gets stuck in my head!) But it also means that my giveaway has ended.

The winner of my Farm Fun with Literacy & Math Pack is:

a Rafflecopter giveaway



Check your email Rae!!! Thanks to all of those who entered! Also, I'm having a 20% off sale over at my TPT store. 

So the Farm pack is on sale as well as my new Apple Hide & Find--Numbers & Colors.

The first two people to leave some love can get this pack for free.

I LOVE playing these games in the pocket chart with the kiddos. In this version, I hide Johnny Appleseed and the students have to read the color word or the number to see if Johnny is hiding behind it. 

I have it up in my room now, but forgot to take pictures today. I'll add up a picture tomorrow. 

The great thing about this game is that I have put numbers 0-20 in this pack as well as color words typed in that particular color and color words in black and white. This provides various levels of differentiation. 

Today I put up numbers only 0-5 and color words because that's what I've been working on with my students. But later on, I will begin adding numbers to 10. 

Happy hump day everyone....I've got to finish addressing my Chicka Chicka Boom Boom exchange envelopes and watch the finale of Big Brother! :)

Apple Fun & A Quick Giveaway!

It's that time of the year when the air finally loses some humidity (at least here in NC) and you can actually feel it. It's also that time of year when most people are learning about apples!

Blast from the past today with some apple activities that may help you in your classroom.

Here is a great way to practice labeling the parts of an apple.Click on the first picture to grab it for FREE!!!
Leave some love if you do!
I also upload this picture to my Mimio to help students when labeling the different parts of an apple or just going over it to start with. This helps with showing them how/where to put particular words that we are talking about. I'm a visual learner to so I always try to have some type of visual up for those students who are the same.
 
 

 

Here's another freebie for color word practice that I created last year! Click on the picture to grab it as well!! Leave some love if you will! :)

 

Last week ended up being more rules and procedures with a few apple things thrown in. I didn't get as much done as I wanted too but this week I hope to fill each day up with Apple Activities. Stay tuned for more activities this week!

Do you have lots of apple stuff planned?? If so, what fun things will you be doing with your kiddos? 

Don't forget--I'm having a quick giveaway to win my newly updated Farm Fun with Literacy and Math Pack!!! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And my buddy Irene over at Learning With Mrs. Leeby is having a HUGE blogiversary giveaway(s)!!! Click the picture to check it out!!

 

 

Saturday Back-Up

And the week rolls around again without blogging! Just when I think I'm finally finding a groove...bam...exhaustion sets in and I fall out when I get home! LOL

I'm hoping that by October I'll have a "school" routine in place---not for the kiddos---but for me. Ya know, the whole going to bed at a decent time, waking up refreshed, ready, remembering that walking on a hard floor all day KILLS my legs by Thursday....all that sort of stuff.

I did remember to take a "few" pictures this week. So far my kiddos are adjusting well...one little friend (a Kindergarten repeater) has had a difficult time this week (hitting adults and such) but other than that...it's getting there. Once I break about two more in with the routines and procedures I think we will be set. Hopefully they will all be used to everything by the time our first field trip rolls around.

Yep I said it. Field trip. The sometimes dreaded days where we take over 120 some kiddos OFF campus. I get nervous right before the trip, but once we get on the road to wherever we are going, it all ends up being ok.

Every year our county assigns a particular day for K students to go to the county fair. So our day is Friday, Oct. 4th. Glad it's a Friday! :)

And in preparing for that, I've been updating my Farm Fun with Literacy & Math pack this week. It has gone from 64 pages to 114 pages. Whew what a task.

I added addition puzzles, picture puzzles, ten frame practice, alphabet and number practice with recording sheets, etc. etc.

Here's your chance to grab it up! Two easy ways to win!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Rant time----why did Google take away the Add Text feature to photos???? Grr...I use Picasa, but I 95% of the time used Google to add text to my photos b/c I take my pictures on the school ipad with Google+.....geez....aggravating!!

Here are a few pictures from the week.

 Practiced small groups in math today. My group worked on Zero. You can find this sheet from

 

 I love dry erase sleeves. I had some students practice working on forming numbers with our Grandparent volunteer. 

We practiced the letter M on the Mimio. I used the letter M sheet from Irene's Alphabet Pack.

You can find it here.

Then this week while browsing, I saw this really cute and simple idea from

 

Click on her button to see her post about this simple game. The things that make us go DUH!

A Look Back On a Short Week!

Finally time to sit down and post something, anything, random or not. This was the first week of ALL of my students. Whew. So far only 22 kiddos. *praying it stays that way*  (The past 4-5 years it's been over 25) but so far so good.

I have a pretty good class...a couple of little ones that I have to stayonlikethisallthetime but I think once they get "it" it'll get better. So I've been pretty hardcore about procedures and routines....gotta get those down before we can really get to business.

I took as many pics as I could (which wasn't many) but it was just crazy busy this week and who has time to think of a camera! ;)

Here's a peek at what went on.....

 Of course---our expectations. Please ignore the messiness of this...but it works and I have to move fast with this group or they lose focus quick!! But it has really helped. 

Graphics from mycutegraphics.com

 Heidi songs of course...Learning the color words. 

Heidisongs.com

Next up---working with partners to see who could sort by color. They did great. And one day we used GLUE! (gasp!) and glued down scraps of paper to sort by color. I really just wanted to practice using glue...hehe got to trick them too! :)

 

 

Then we used clip art from Krista Wallden (the bus--creative clips) and names for name practice. I gave them the bus and while they were coloring, my IA and I cut up their names and they had to glue them back down in order. 

 

 All complete!

 

And of course we read Pete the Cat like 500 million times.....but they love it and we made a book yesterday but I forgot to take pictures.

And in other exciting news:

My DonorsChoose project  recieved this earlier this week:

 

But of course---if the remainder doesn't get funded then I lose the gift from Kia Motors. So here's to praying and keeping my fingers crossed that it gets completely funded!! :) Thanks Kia Motors and 1 other donation from a generous person here in NC who gave $20! 

So exciting to see this in an email.


Oh and my buddy Irene over at Learning With Mrs. Leeby is having a HUGE 800 follower giveaway!!!!

It ends Monday so hurry and enter!! :)