A VERY Creative "Geometry" Video!

This video is so great!  I can imagine having your students view it at the beginning of a lesson on shapes and tangrams to show students that basic shapes make up everything and the possibilities of pictures they can make with shapes.  I think it would really generate some discussion and use of "math speak" (vocabulary) in a meaningful way.  I just found it off the the ELA Mapping Project website and will show it to my class on Monday!
Laughing Moon

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Astronaut in the Orange Emergency Suit

When one of our dads who works for NASA visited our class last Thursday, a student asked him what the difference was between the orange spacesuits and the white suits.  Well, the orange suits are the ones you used to see the astronauts wearing when they boarded the space shuttle.  That suit is designed for "emergencies" or for launch and re-entry.  The white suits are used for "outside" - space walks. 

I decided to make an astronaut in an orange suit but may change it so the students make it as a glyph with them choosing between orange and white depending on answers to questions.  But for now, here's what it is going to look like.  (I am debating whether to take a photo of each student and put it behind the "shield" made of part of a baggie.)  We'll see how the time goes...

The Moon is Made of....SUGAR!!!

This year I decided to let the students make the phases of the moon with Oreo cookies.  Last  year I used Ritz crackers and Cheez Whiz which was much easier, BUT not nearly as "authentic" looking!  ALL of the children were able to do this, but it did take some coaxing not to eat the moon!

The DAY AFTER we did this activity, I saw SPRING Oreo cookies with YELLOW sugar!  The yellow would've looked good, too. 

I'm Falling in Love With You!

I took photos of my students lying down on a red plastic tablecloth with their hands over their heads, sprinkled with artificial rose petals.  Then I took the photos to CVS and had them printed with heart border. 

The students put their photos on the front of the card and decorated it with some little pink and white foam hearts.  On the inside, they  glued a piece of paper on the top flap that said,

" ___ ____ falling in ______ with ____," .  They filled in the blanks with "I am falling in love with you."  On the bottom flap was a piece of paper that said, " __________________________________!"  The students then  filled in the blanks with who the card was going to.  In my class we have children being raised by both parents, one parent, grandmothers, and even a GREAT grandmother! (She's doing a WONDERFUL job, too.)   The students then drew a BIG, BRIGHT, and BEAUTIFUL picture of themselves with the people the card was being addressed to. 

Click here for this freebie.

It was VERY cute and the parents loved it.  Unfortunately I did not take a photo of the finished card. 
:-(

This was not an original idea.  I do not remember who I "stole" it from, so if it was YOU, please let me know so I can give you credit!

Valentine's Day Linky Party!

Are You a Teaching Blog Addict? Valentine's Day Linky Party

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Dr. Seuss's Lorax - Tour de Art

Coming soon to a theater near you! Dr. Seuss' The Lorax

  Got your walkin' fingers on?  It's time to take a Tour de Art of Lorax projects!  Starting place: Art Projects for Kids: Classroom-Tested Art Projects for K-5 and Beyond, Kathy Barbro's blog.

Mini Puppet Theater

Truffala Tree Craft with pencils

Feb 1 Today’s Creative Blog Temporary Tattoos

Feb 2 Katydid and Kid Puppet & Puppet Theater using recycled materials

Feb 3 zakka life Truffula Tree Pencils

Feb 6 Smashed Peas & Carrots The Lorax Game [using all the body parts from The Lorax]

Feb 7 WhiMSy love Pom-Pom Pillow with Lorax Mustache

Feb 8 Little Birdie Secrets Garden Planter

Feb 9 Art Projects For Kids Yarn Pom Pom’s on Twigs (Truffula Trees)

Feb 10 Dabbled Stenciled T-Shirt

Feb 13 Prudent Baby “UNLESS” Garden Stones

Feb 14 TonyaStaab.com Lorax-themed Party Table

Bucket Fillers and Pinterest

This week I read the book, How Full is Your Bucket? for Kids. The children are learning that words we use with others can "add drops" to their bucket or make their bucket "drip".  When I asked the children why they thought one of the illustrations showed everyone with an invisible bucket over their head, one very astute little boy said, "Because we all have feelings."  BINGO!

Now that the children are learning to read and write, I will have a little form they can fill out when somebody "fills their bucket".  (We will not fill it out for those who make our buckets drip - we want to accentuate the positive!  I have a bucket in the classroom where the children will drop their "drops", and at the end of the day, I will read them aloud.  We will be working on learning our lifeskill of Caring along with practicing writing!

Source: seusstastic.blogspot.com via Angela on Pinterest

I came across a post in Mrs. Lee's Kinderkids teacher's blog about charts she made with her class.  I think I am going to do something similar in my class with Bucket Fillers:

Source: mrsleeskinderkids.blogspot.com via Susan on Pinterest

Another GREAT idea came from The First Grade Parade using the David character:

Source: thefirstgradeparade.blogspot.com via Susan on Pinterest

I can't wait to do this in my class!  Such great ideas from talented teachers!  Thanks for sharing, y'all!

Space Units about to launch! Hope it's not a "scrub"!

What started out as creating some ten frames and dot cards for my classroom has turned into a much larger unit!  I just kept thinking, "Oh, and I need a center for (fill in the blank)...and 'Wouldn't it be great to have'....."  I don't see how Deanna Jump, Kim Adsit, DeeDee Wills, and all the other fantastic teachers whose units I purchase can find the time to make their wonderful units!  My hats off to all of them!  I hope to have my unit for sale soon!