Base 10 {knowing you're ready to trade in}

I'm really working on building number sense with my kids this year.  I've beefed up my calendar and am working in more counting, grouping and just thinking about what numbers mean.  My 1st graders are able to count base 10 blocks in front of them but the wording of the standardized tests threw them {don't get me started} so I decided to have them dive in and look at grouping as much as possible.  In the words of Mr. Wonka himself, we're going sideways, slantways, longways and backways with place value.

One station was to take a Base 10 card and write the number.  I got these for free from TpT.

Another station was the reverse skill where they chose a number and had to build it.  If they could figure out then tens and ones by looking at the number I let them do that.  But the kids who still need some place value help had to count out the ones and then make groups of ten to trade in.

A third similar, but still different, station was to choose a dot card, count the amount and build it.

And then there was that group of little kinders that just. didn't. get it.  I even made up a little jingle about trading for a 10 but hey, if you can't count to ten, it doesn't do much good to sing, am I right?  :)  So for these little babies, I made a workmat.  And it made all the difference in the world!

Here we are, actually working through it as a group.  I picked a number and we all counted it out as ones.  Once we had the right amount, we filled up the ones on our workmat and pushed them over to the ten outline to double check that we had enough to trade in.  After I checked, they traded their 10 ones by giving them to me and receiving a ten stick.  Then they finished putting the rest of their ones on the workmat and we counted by adding on.  {10...ll, 12, 13}

The next day, they practiced without me {sshhhh...kind of} with these color coded baggies I made.  They chose a bag practiced just counting one to one and knowing when there were enough to trade in for a 10 stick.

You can download your free workmat by clicking the yellow picture above or this picture of it below. There are actually a few options.  I preferred to have my ones all scattered but there is also a workmat with the ones in an array of two rows of five.  Then both of those pages are also duplicated with a place for two 10s in case you want to be able to work on teen numbers.

Let me know if these help you out!  I have a feeling it'll be a regular tool in my room for a while.  :)  Happy trading in!

Friendship writing {Valentines, MLK or just because you're special}

I knew I wanted something to start the new year on the right foot.  As tight as my class is this year, everyone can use a reminder of how awesome they are, right adults?  ;)  So I read "The Crayon Box That Talked" and we talked about how each of us is unique just like the crayons.  It was super fun this year because I have twins in my class.  I held up 2 blue crayons that looked the same on the outside but when I colored with them, they were different shades of blue.  The kids immediately pointed my twin girls out as those 2 colors.  So cute.

But instead of having the kids think about how themselves, I put everybody's name in a bowl and they picked one out.  We talked about how fun it can be to have a secret and be able to surprise a friend so most of them made the long 24 hours without telling.  We drew the names after reading the book but didn't write until the next day so they'd have plenty of time to watch their secret person and see what makes them really special.  The next day, they revealed their secret friend and wrote about what makes them special.

We used this as a class bonding activity but I'm going to keep them hanging up for a while because it goes along perfectly with Martin Luther King {and the spirit of getting along with everyone} as well as Valentine's Day and sharing the love.

We just wrote on notebook paper but if you prefer to have an outline, I have two free downloads for you.  One has a picture space and one is just lines.  You don't have to do anything as a trade, just sharing the love!

You are ALL special!  Thanks for reading & loving on your kiddos.

2015. let's do this.

It's Friday of the first week back after a 2 week winter break.  Whew!  We survived.  :)  Let's celebrate with a Farley hook-up to kick 2015 off on the right foot.

I keep up with Kardashians.  So what?  If you watch The Bachelor or Real Housewives, let me hear you.  Everybody needs an hour to zone out, right?  At least I know what fashion trends are coming before everyone else.  ;)

Thank you, Torani and World Market.  These flavored syrups are the bomb diggity.  But not the clear ones.  The bottles look like this and it's a little more saucy than liquify.  For like $6 I had pumpkin spice coffee every day.  Then peppermint bark coffee in December.  Those were seasonal flavors but they always have chocolate, white chocolate and carmel.  And some Starbucks deliciousness to your kitchen.  They're also really good on ice cream.  You're welcome.

Does anyone else start testing the week back after a really long break?!  Insane.  But it is what it is.  Let's do this.  {maybe tomorrow}

Little girl has some flu symptoms so I'm home from work today.  I love having a day home with her, I just wish she was feeling like herself!

I'm needing some perspective & an attitude adjustment.  Can I just be super honest for a second?  I loved being pregnant and husband said I was an awesome pregnant lady.  Although I liked to stop for frozen yogurt whenever we out somewhere, I never actually sent him out to get me anything, I didn't have crazy mood swings, nothing.  I was perfect.  ;)  Then after Little Glamour Baby was born, I had the normal hormonal spikes & dips but everyone said it was okay because I was hormonal and sleep deprived.  Fast forward to her first birthday and I'm still moody and just don't feel like my happy self. Everyone said it was okay because hormones can take over a year to regulate because of breastfeeding, weaning, starting birth control, etc.  {TMI? this is real life for a minute, ok?}  Fast forward to a kick-in-the-pants message about listening to the right voice as we start 2015 and I realized...it's not hormones or sleep deprivation, it's me using those as excuses.  I've turned into a bit of a princess who expects things and then gets all snippy when they don't happen.  Only treating the people badly who I love the most in life.  That's annoying.  And I don't like it.  So it's time for a change.  Peace out cynicism.  I'm back.

yes.  More thinking of others before I speak or react.  That is always a yes.

maybe.  Continuing to go through my closet to get rid of items I haven't worn in years.  Instead of just dropping things off at Goodwill, I've started looking for organizations and places that help battered women get back on their feet or help single mothers try to make a better life for their babies.  Not a total clothes evacuation, but a start.

i wish. I love my job but I love staying home.  I love my kids but I wish I could do more with the little one at home.  I love looking for or creating new ideas at school but wish I could get more done around my house.  It's a constant back-and-forth.  Maybe Shark Tank can help me figure this out.

Happy 2015 friends.  Thanks for reading.  I truly, truly mean it.  xo

Christmas Giveaway

Ha!  I was so on my game this time...I hopped over to Farley's and started working on my Currently on December 1st!  And here it is a week later and I'm just now posting it.  :)  I mean, listen, babies are only babies for so long, am I right?

I would love nothing more than to give my Polar Express unit & Elf on the Shelf units away to some of you.  At least one person will win each unit.  If I'm watching a Christmas movie next weekend when I choose the winner while I'm full of Christmas spirit, maybe I'll give away more than one.  :)

The giveaway has now ended.  Units are available for purchase on Teachers Pay Teachers.  Click the pictures below to pin the units or click on the unit names to see my original posts with student work and other sample pages.

{Christmas Train to the North Pole}

{Being Santa's Helper}

Happy Holidays, friends!

Urban vs. Rural in the fall

Whew!  The 1st quarter was busy.  We just wrapped up a ginormous unit on urban and rural communities in the fall.  It was a lot of work getting everything coordinated but I am so so happy to be back to teaching in integrated units.  It just makes more sense to the kids when there's an overriding theme that everything is connected to - as opposed to remembering one thing for writing, then abruptly moving to math, then moving to another disconnected topic for science, etc.

As we learned about urban and rural communities, we studied plants and animals in science.  We focused mainly on life cycles and plant & animal needs.

How cute are these farm animal projects that the kindergarten teachers did?!

In social studies we talked about why we need farms and how things from the farms are harvested to be made ready to go to the grocery store and eventually our houses.  We also touched a little on wants and needs and how they're different in each community.

Venn Diagram from Mrs. Russell's room

Flip book: what we get from animals (ex: milk from a cow)

We wrote about exploring fall through our five senses and the life cycle of pumpkins.  We also went to the farm and wrote about what we did and saw there.

I feel chilly.

I taste nachos as the football game.

I hear cutting the pumpkin.

We ended our unit with group research projects.  The kids chose farm animals they wanted to learn about and we watched video clips and read non-fiction books to make notes in our notebooks.  Then they chose their favorite fact to write a sentence and illustrate.  I took videos of their presentations and hooked them up to Aurasma - our parents are going to flip out at Open House next week when they see our work come to life!!  :)

Ladies: for your eyes only.

Ok friends.  I've written you the perfect post for pinning, emailing to your guy or leaving open in a browser on your shared computer.  If you've ever hoped for an Erin Condren planner {and who hasn't} then you. are. welcome.  Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

But don't pin this post - it's just our little secret message so you know to bookmark the post below.  After all, we don't want HIM to see this message, now, do we?  It'll be our little secret.  ;)

Listen up fellas. This is what she wants.

Listen up boyfriends, husbands and parents searching for a gift for your favorite teacher.  I have done the grunt work {ie. I am a wife, mother & teacher myself} and this is THE gift on her wish list.  Before anyone accuses me of not understanding the meaning of Christmas, I completely believe in sharing love and giving to others, especially during the holiday season and I know it isn't all about gifts and getting.  But raise your hand if you aren't expecting or hoping to get one single thing for the holidays.  Anyone?  Bueller?  Ok then, let's go on.

In true teacher fashion, let's start with a pre-test.  If you are entertaining the idea of any of the following, please stay tuned.  This post is for you.

coffee cups.

no.  our cabinets already look like this.

school supplies.

yes.  that is adorable.  but no, we don't want school supplies for the holidays or our birthdays.  think about it - do you want a stapler, legal pad or another tie in your stocking?  right.  neither do we want glue sticks, pens or even books.  that's why we invented teacher appreciation week.

personalized teacher gifts.

now husbands and boyfriends, I am talking to you.  leave these classic teacher items for students to buy.  they are cute and have a place in the classroom but unless you want your home to be overrun by other peoples' Pinterest projects, leave all school-related items to her school family.

Let me introduce you to Erin Condren.  The master organizer.  The queen of coordination.  The maker of all happiness.

Okay, so maybe this isn't the end-all be-all of life.  But you know how happy the lady in your life is when everything falls in to place.  {and how stressed out she can be when things are unorganized, scattered and - gasp! - boring looking.}

These planners have made life SO easy.  There is a lesson planning book available but I actually recommend the life planner instead.  Each month has it's own 2 page spread.  Each week has large boxes to write in daily must-do's as well as additional space around the sides and bottom to jot notes, reminders or doodles in staff meetings.

Fellas, let me ask you  - wouldn't it be nice if she always remembered when your boys were playing in Monday Night Football?  There's a space for that.  What if she set aside time every week for a date night with you?  There are color coordinated stickers to help her make you a priority.

I'm sure that you are thinking "there are much cheaper calendars than this that would do the same thing."  But you are wrong.  These are personalized, filled with positive and inspiring quotes and will help your favorite lady feel relaxed, organized and in control.

If you're just dating or need something on a smaller budget, it's okay.  There are desk calendars, iPad covers, notepads and stickers.

So what are you waiting on?  No need to thank me.  Just place your order and get ready to watch her face light up when she sees that you've read her mind.  Get that one thing that she's always wanted but couldn't justify spending the money on.  Those are the best gifts to get.  Ever.

And while you're at it, go ahead and spend that extra $5 to add an additional 6 months to her planner.  Isn't it worth it to extend her happiness into the future?  ;)