They're on the way!

I feel like it's my birthday or Christmas morning when new books and animals arrive at Kohl's.  This set is just in time for Mother's Day!  Yesterday I went to one location and called another, sadly their shipment had not arrived yet.  However, they said it would be any day-can't wait to add these to my collection!

Measurement Mini-Unit

I didn't take nearly enough pictures during out "measurement-mania" unit, and I really wish I had taken tons. My kids loved measurement and seemed to grasp it very well as it was connected to hands-on, real world experiences.  Their favorites were measuring length with flowers that they painted, using cheez-its to learn more about area, and measuring "big foot" with various measurement tools.  "Big-foot" was actually just one of Mr. Perry's shoes that we used to measure the length of our feet.  They also enjoyed seeing how tiny Solomon's and Christian's are in comparison to theirs and especially Mr. Perry's.  Surprisingly, I had a few students whose feet were the same size as mine or slightly larger (a couple of very tall boys)!

Every day we discussed a different type of measurement and the tools that we use to gain information about it.    I printed the pages that are in the document below, laminated them, and used sticky notes to record information on them.  We began with  the why, when, how, and what's of measurement.  A great introduction to this is to bring in pairs of shoes that are too small or too tight.  Measurement is such an important skill for students because time, temperature, length, weight, capacity, perimeter, and area occur in every day life more often than we realize.

Measurement Mania

Mother's Day 2011

Here are a few cute ideas for Mother's Day.  They are connected to literature and can be completed within a couple of days!  In addition to these ideas I will probably have my student make a portrait of their mom with a water-color background because they always turn out so adorable.  In the past I've also done a class cook book where every student chooses a dish or dessert that their mom makes really well.  Then they write the "secret recipe" of how their mom makes the dish.  It's a really great review for expository writing, and they are hilarious!

I spotted these at Dollar Tree several weeks ago, and I thought they would make a perfect gift.  Each student will decorate their own "mug," and we'll place a few tea bags inside.


This is one of my favorite books about "mom's."  It has all kinds of things inside (and I mean all kinds of things-mom's have to be prepared)!  The kids always enjoy making predictions about what's inside.  Then we read the book to check our predictions.  As we read we also discuss which things are absolutely necessary and which things are optional.

I LOVE this part of the cover!

 SO true!

 Take a peek at a few pages. . .

This book is called "My Mommy's Tote."  The author is P.H. Hanson.
There are zillions of other ways to use this book!

This year I'm going to try something new.  Since we've already read "Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse." We'll use it for comprehension as we complete some comparing and contrasting activities and text to self connections.
Students will make a purse for their mom using cute scrapbook paper. Then they'll write about things that their mom has inside her purse that help her to stay prepared!  I also made a venn diagram for students to compare and contrast Lilly's purse to their own mom's purse.


I have included a few examples of the class cookbook and a min-book about mom's (My Mom the Superhero).  My students will probably trace and cut two purses.  Then we'll seal the sides and bottom.  Inside the top we'll add the "mom" book and "purse" writing.

Class Cook Book_mother's Day

Mother's Day Book

Purse Onal Greeting

Compare and Contrast_purse

my cup of tea

mom's purse

I love Mother's Day because I have a wonderful mom, because I love being a mom, and because I know so many loving and dedicated moms who deserve to be showered and appreciated!

The Last 30. . .

I have to admit that this weekend I haven't done much work for school (unless you count the much needed trip to Lakeshore-such a great sale), but it has been a weekend of relaxation, napping, and time with family!  Tomorrow we begin the countdown for the last 30 days, and I don't know about y'all but sometimes the last 30 days wear me out as much as the first 30 days!  If you've already begun the countdown to the last days of school, I hope your days are as calm and  productive as possible!  This post has absolutely nothing to do with school.  It's mainly two cute little fellas who share the same address as me!

Here are a couple of my favorite snapshots. . .

 

 

 

No matter what...these boys always end up wrasslin' (this summer I gotta take my vitamins every day)!

 

I love the progression of the cake from his plate to his mouth and face (watch carefully)!

 

Have a great week!

The week in review...

 

I am so sorry I've been MIA for a bit...this week I have tried to be super mom, get report cards finalized, prepare for Easter (outfits, photos, cards. . . ),  take care of last minute party stuff for Solomon (who turned one today!!!), and capture priceless photos of my boys since now Solomon is also on the move (walking full speed and getting into any and every thing possible)! But enough about that...here's what's been going on in room 18!

  I really LOVE this book so we used it this week to talk about fantasy/reality and for text to self connections. Then we did some directed drawing and splatter painting (which the kids absolutely loved)! 

  We read two of David Shanon's great books to practice "fantasy and reality" as well.

 Then each student created their own book cover and we sorted them into groups ( fantasy or reality?).

 We're still going green.  We observed our greenhouse, made a promise to Mother Earth, and wrote about what it really means to "go green."

 

We made a giant hand print "promise" of the Earth.

We practiced telling time in several ways.  We started working on a giant clock...which is still a work in progress.  We also wrote a class book called "Fergie's Day" in response to "Good Boy Fergus."  

We're also working on some estimation and problem solving with jelly beans, and this book is perfect! 

I'm looking forward to a 3 day weekend of relaxation...it will be our final day off  

before the last day of school !