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Sunday, April 27, 2014

Tricky Teens and the Rainforest

A Peek at Next Week

Next week we are continuing rainforest research and in math we are heading into the Tricky Teens!  Here's what I have planned:

Monday
In Math, we are introducing place value using pool noodles!! I cut a pool noodle in half and cut half of the half into 9 parts.  Instant ten rod and ones!  Woo hoo!  We will model how to make various numbers using the pool noodles.  The students will use these awesome FREE mats and pretzel rods and marshmallows to model the number.



In Reading, we will be studying the canopy layer of the rainforest.  We will begin by reading The Umbrella by Jan Brett. We will act out the story using masks printed from Jan Brett's website and a green umbrella. 




We will talk about what types of animals live in this layer, including my favorite the SLOTH!  We are going to make this sloth: 
Cute, right??!?!  This craft came from Tippytoe Crafts!  I love that it uses my sweet nuggets shoe as it's body! 

Tuesday we are continuing with place value!  While trolling Pinterest, I found this wonderful idea! ALL Aboard!  These ideas came from Learning with Mrs. Parker!  Love her blog! If you go to her site, you will be able to download a workmat for all your sweet nuggets to use while you model!  Perfection!


In Reading, we will move to the Understory Layer of the Rainforest.  We will discuss all the animals that live in the understory and make a red eyed tree frog!  We will be writing three facts about this amazing frog!


On Wednesday in Math we will be making paper chains to represent the Tricky Teens! 


In Reading, we will discuss the Forest Floor layer of the rainforest.  The students will be making a piranha. I got the pattern from this unit I bought off of tPt:   Rainforest Learning Adventure.

On Thursday, we are going to use bean sticks and beans to represent tens and ones. I am going to use the FREE mat and practice pages I found on one of my favorite sites, Kindergarten Crayons!  

In Reading, we are doing a review of ALL of the layers of the rainforest and making these adorable safari people!

On Friday in Math, we will play Roll it! Make it!  Expand It!  According to common core, Kindergarten only needs to know place value up to 19, so one of my cubes will be just the numbers 0 and 1 and the other will be a ten sided dice.  We will also use this FREEBIE as an assessment!

In Reading, we will continue making our safari guide books/people!  We will also make our very own safari hats!


It's going to be a FUN week!  We are also doing our Mother's Day crafts, but that is a SECRET!  SHHH!

What's on your plate this week??


Sunday, April 20, 2014

Harpist, Stations, Doughnuts and Eggs!

Easter Week in Review

This week we studied more Fairy Tales:  The Three Little Pigs, Cinderella and Little Red Riding Hood!  We also had Doughnuts with Dads and an egg hunt! When we read Jack and the Beanstalk last week, my sweet nuggets were VERY intrigued by what a harp is. Not only were they curious about what a harp looked like, they had a blast trying to decide what it might sound like. SOOOOO I put a call out to my amazing parents and VOILA! We had a very special guest harpist visit our room!  And the BEST part?!?!  Each sweet nugget played the harp!  It was amazing!  They loved every second! 







A little Peek at my Stations:
Matching the picture to the Sentence

My sweet nuggets focusing on reading the sentences!
Real Words V. Nonsense Words

Short Vowel Sort
Short and Long Vowels
Noun Sort!
 In my Math Stations my Sweet Nuggets Were:
Ten Frames!





Counting On to Add

Subtraction Action!

Counting By Fives
Recording the Kite Tail Measurement
Measuring Kite Tails!!

Counting by Fives Puzzle
























I will leave ya with some pictures of my egg hunt! 







Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Fee Fi Fo Fum!!!

Hiddy ho, everyone! Thanks for checking out my very first post!! A GIGANTIC shout out to my amazing friend Greg from Kindergarten Smorgasboard for making urging me to do this.  He is a huge inspirational and motivating teacher!  The man exudes love for his job and man, does he sleep?!?!?    Anywho, be patient with me while I get the hang of things. There are soooooooo many ideas I want to share with you guys.

Last week we had an absolute BLAST focusing on measurements and fairy tales!  I'm just tellin' ya that Jack & the Beanstalk and Rapunzel should be requirements to do with measurement!  We measured beanstalks, leaves, feet, braids and hair - PERFECTION!  I was BEYOND pleased with my kids progress and they NAILED the assessment on Friday!  Woot!  Woot! 

We started out by reading Jack & the Beanstalk and measuring beanstalks with lima beans.  The sweet nuggets loved this! 
 We then measured ourselves with beans!  Of course, the majority of my kids were the same "bean height," but, hey, they had fun!  We DID have one kid that was 11 beans and one that was 8, so we talked about being taller and shorter.



 Later in the week, we sequenced the story Jack & the Beanstalk.  I got the activity pictures from Yvonne Dixon from tPt, just click the link above.  :)  I couldn't resist making this awesome beanstalk with the giants feet on the ceiling.  The sweet nuggets were SUPER excited (and so was I!)

 We continued with some measurement ideas I snagged from pinterest (I am a pinterest-aholic!) I had this note up on the board when my sweet nuggets entered the classroom.  First off, I am THRILLED the majority of them can READ this! 

 We quickly got to measuring the feet of the giant!  It was a cooperative activity, they ATE.IT.UP!  Learning is SO fun!




The last couple of days we read Rapunzel and did the WONDERFUL Julie Lee's measurement activity.  And yes, I know that this sweet nugget got her answer on "longer/shorter" incorrect, but hey, check out her beautiful Rapunzel! Here is the original idea. MAN O MAN, I love me some Julie Lee!