Is it Friday Yet?

Pleeeeeease tell me it's almost Friday!  My firsties have been a full of energy this week and as a result I have very little energy left.  Oh my ... I'm going to need to be one creative teacher to keep them engaged until December 21st!  Do all of you go until the 21st as well?  I keep telling myself that it'll be worth it after Christmas when I get to spend some quality time with my family and creating some of the many units that I have planned :-)

On the up side, I am amazed, flattered, and downright touched by the support I have been receiving at my TPT store.  I keep telling my husband how honored I feel that there are other teachers actually using my products with their students.  Reading the feedback I receive makes my day!

Before I head to bed for some much needed rest I need to tell you about an awesome giveaway that I am participating in.   Karen over at Mrs. Jones's Kindergarten in hosting 2 amazing giveaways.  You'll have a chance to win a copy of my I Spy Christmas Words as well as MANY other products.

Click on the picture to head on over to enter. 

Good luck!!!

I Spy Bossy 'e'

You might call it bossy, silent, or even magic.  Whatever you call it, the letter 'e' sure is a fascinating guy!  If your students enjoy using magnifying glass and you are looking for an engaging way to reinforce this skill then this word work activity is for you!

Included in this unit are 4 different pictures with a dinosaur theme.  I tried to think of a theme with bossy 'e' and came up with BONES.  I just might have been watching a TV show with the same name at the time :-)  Bones ... dinosaurs ... it works!  Within each picture are 15 teeny tiny words.  Ten of the words have a bossy 'e' while five of them have an 'e' but it is not a bossy one.  There are three different recording sheets for you to choose from.

You can find this unit at my TPT store.   The first 2 followers who leave a comment on this post will get this unit for free! Don't forget your email :-)

Elf Math Game Freebie

It's time for a FREEBIE!  These elves were just too adorable not to create a math game :-)  To play students roll 2 dice, add 2, then color.  I have included two different elves for your students (or you) to choose from.  I have also added an I can... card to help with student independence if you use this at a math work station.  Click on the picture to download a copy.

If you use this game I'd love if you take a second to let me know.
Enjoy!

Elf on the Classroom Shelf Linky

Is the Elf on the Classroom Shelf visiting your room this year?  Our elf is being delivered from the North Pole on Friday and I can hardly wait!!
I've created my first, ever linky as a place to gather ideas to make planning for your elf easier.  Feel free to share pictures, blog posts, activities or anything else about your classroom elf.  If you have a blog I would appreciate a link back to this post.  Feel free to grab my picture :)  If you would like to add the link to your blog I have included the code at the bottom.
I can't wait to see what kind of mischief your elves get into!!

 

How about a little freebie to add to your elf file? Click on the picture below for an Elf on the Classroom Shelf wordsearch.

 

Here is the link to the blog hop if you would like to post it on your blog: get the InLinkz code

Liebster Award :-)

In the last few days I have been nominated 5 times for the Liebster Award!!  I can only think of one word ----- Wowzers!!!! I am feeling the love today!  Thank you to The Price of Teaching, Beach, Sand and Lesson Plans, Curious Firsties, Little Second Grade Somebodies and Whooo's in Second for nominating me!  The Liebster Award is designed to bring attention to bloggers who have less than 200 followers.

Here are the rules:

1. You must post 11 random things about yourself.

2. Answer the questions that the nominator set for you.

3. Create 11 questions for the people you nominate.

4. Choose 11 other blogs with fewer than 200 followers to nominate and link them in your post.

5. You cannot “tag back” the other blog, but leave a comment on this post with the URL of your Liebster post so I can learn more about you & see who you nominate.

 

So, here are 11 random things about me...

1. I have 2 AMAZING children who I am so proud of.

2. I have another 21 children that I spend  my days with through the week and am proud to be their teacher.

3.  I have been teaching for 21 years - how is that even possible????

4. My favorite TV show is NCIS - it's one of the few shows my hubby and I both enjoy :)

5. Our local mall just opened a Bath and Body Works - FINALLY!  I've been travelling 3 hours for my fix!

6. I love to do cross-stitch - my house is full of my 'artwork'.

7. I love my flower gardens, especially the perennials that come up year after year with little effort :-)

8. My husband gets home from work before me and cooks dinner almost EVERY night - I literally walk in the door and sit at the table.  Yep I'm spoiled!!

9. I do laundry everyday - seriously the pile never gets smaller!

10. Blogging has made me a rejuvinated teacher! I have gotten so many ideas from my teacher 'friends' who I have never met (although I would love to sometime!)

11. My hubby and are celebrating our 20th anniversary this summer and we cannot decide how to celebrate ... ideas anyone?

 

Since I was nominated by 5 wonderful teachers I am going bend the rules a little and answer a few questions from each of them.

1. What do you do most when you are bored?

Bored?  I'm never bored!  If I were though I would pick up a good book!
2. When you were younger, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I'm a third generation teacher and always thought I would be.  I can;t imagine doing anything else!
3. Do you have pets?
I have one dog and as much as I love him his constant barking drives me crazy!

4. Are you a middle child, oldest, or baby of the family? Or are you an only child?

I am the third of four children.  We recently celebrated our parents' 50th wedding anniversary and relived some great memories.  It's not very often we are all together.

5. How did you pick your blog name?

That was easy - I need to laugh, otherwise some days I would cry.  The stories some of the kiddos have break my heart.

6. Would you rather live in a place with a cold or warm climate?

As much as I love living where there are 4 very distinct seasons I wish the snow would stay off the roads :(

7. What is your favorite book?

Right now - it's Elf on the Shelf

8. Have you or anyone in your family ever served in the military? If so, what branch?

I am the proud daughter of someone who served in the air force.  I also have a brother and brother-in-laws in the army.

9. Do you intend to "Black Friday"?

I bought a few things today :)

10. What is your favorite food?

That's easy - chocolate!

11. When was the last time you laughed so hard you cried?

Today - I work with the best group of people ever!

 

Here are my 11 questions for the blogs I am nominating:

1. How old were you when you knew you wanted to be a teacher?

2. When did you start blogging?

3. What is you favorite word word activity?

4. What is your favorite television show?

5. Who is your favorite author?

6. What is your favorite children's book?

7. What is your favorite food?

8. What's at the top of your Christmas list?

9. Do you have any pets?

10. What is your favorite childhood memory?

11. What is your favorite part of your teaching day?

 

 

Here are the blogs I'm nominating:

The Teaching Bug

Johnson Creations

2 Super Teachers

Little Red's Schoolhouse

C & C  Teach First

Look Whoo's in First

Twirlybird Teaching

O "FISH" ally a First Grader

Primary Paradise

Kindergarten Squared

Taking a Walk on the Wild Side

 

Don't forget to leave me a link to your blog so I can learn more about you! Hope you enjoyed learning about me!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Christmas Math Work Stations

I've had some requests for a post about my Christmas math work stations.  I started introducing them to the students today and let me tell you they are some EXCITED!!

Included are 10 ready to use stations.  Each station includes an I can... card which makes it easy for students to get started when they get to their station.  Some activities have recording sheets and include two I can... cards so you can choose to use the recording sheet or not.  I am on a photocopy 'budget' so need to be careful how many copies I make.

 

Here's a peek at what's included:

 There are a variety of skills covered including:

1. Base 10 Match

2. Light Bulb Spin and Graph

3. Greatest / Least Number

4. Ten Frame plus 10

5. 3 Dice Cover Up

6. Number words to 20

7. Tens and Ones

8. Skip Counting by 2's, 5's and 10's

9. Greatest Number Game

10. Light Bulb Patterns

 

Here's a few pictures from today:

 

 

You can find this holiday unit at my TPT store by clicking here.   As you know I LOVE giving copies of my products away. I am heading out for a few hours. When I return I will randomly choose 2 followers who leave a comment on this post to receive a copy.

 

I am currently working on my math stations for January.  Are there any special skills that you would like to see covered?  If so, I'd love to hear your ideas :)

 

 

 

I Spy Rhyming Words

It's time for me to giveaway a couple copies of my newest unit from my TPT store.  My I Spy activities have been such a hit both in my classroom and in my store that I created a new one.  This time students are on the hunt for rhyming words. 

Students need to use magnifying glasses to hunt for 20 teeny tiny words in each picture.  The 20 words make 10 pairs.  I chose all of the rhyming words from the list of 37 dependable rimes and  I included 3 different recording sheets for you to choose from.

 

I think these graphics from Scrappin Doodles are absolutely adorable and perfect for this activity.  Who wouldn't love this farmer????

I also decided to bundle a few of my I Spy activities to save you some money.  You can find I Spy Bossy e, I Spy Rhyming Words and I Spy Silent Letters bundled here.  You'll also find a complete bundle of all my I Spy activities here.

I'll send a copy of I Spy Rhyming Words to the first 2 followers who leave a comment on this post!

I Spy Christmas Words

My students cannot get enough of magnifying glasses!  I find December challenging to keep students focused and productive especially during independent work time.  So, I came up with this I Spy activity.

There are 4 I Spy pictures for students to search for teeny tiny hidden Christmas words.  There is a choice of 2 recording sheets for students to record the words they find.  One page has students printing the words.  The other has students printing the words and then finding them in a word search. Magnifying glasses and a wordsearch - your students will love you and they'll never know they are working!

 

You can find this activity in my TPT store.  I will send a copy of this activity to the first 2 followers who leave a comment on this post with your email :-)

 

 

Tens and Ones Christmas Mystery Picture

Okay ... the Christmas music and hustle and bustle at the malls have me doing my Christmas shopping (I really need to) planning.  I love Christmas and now that report cards and parent-teacher conferences are behind me the planning is in full swing.  I have my Christmas math work stations posted at TPT and I'll be doing a post about them soon :-)

 

For now I thought I would show you my Christmas Tens and Ones Mystery Picture.

Students need to solve each number then find the number and color.  For example:

4 tens 7 ones ___

 

 

You can find this activity at my TPT store.  Students pages are black and white so you can save your color ink :)  If you plan to use this as a math work station you can find a free I can... card here.  I am going to help the first 2 followers who leave a comment on this post with their Christmas planning.  I'll send them each a copy of this activity. (Don't forget your email)

 

Also, don't about the ongoing fundraiser for Georgian teacher Teresa Williams who remains in CCU.  You can see the details at 2nd Grade Pad.

 

 

I Spy Silent Letters

I just posted a word work activity that I am really excited about!

This word work activity has students using a magnifying glass to search for hidden words with silent letters.  Aren't the gnomes from Scrappin Doodles just perfect (and cute) for this activity????

I have included four different recording sheets making it easy to differentiate.  My students never get tired of I Spy activities.  You can find this activity at my TPT store.

I am going to be away from my computer for the next few hours.  When I return I will randomly choose 2 followers to get this unit for FREE.  Just leave a comment on this post with your email and when I get home this evening I'll select and post the winners.

UPDATE - I'm back and asked my daughter to pick two numbers between 1 and 5.  She came up with 3 and 4.  I'll be sending you a copy ladies!

Teachers Helping Teresa

I have joined forces with some other teachers on TPT to help raise funds for a teacher who is in need of both prayers and financial aid.  You might know this teacher from her great blog called 2nd Grade Pig Pen.  Teresa's wonderful colleague has come up with a wonderful way to help raise money.

To explain it best here is a copy of her blog post from 2nd Grade Pad :

 

 

I’m sure it is rare if there is anyone out there reading this post who has not heard of Teachers Pay Teachers, better known as TPT.  Not only is it a great site for teachers to share their wonderful teaching ideas, it is also a place of true heartfelt kinship with other teachers and many of the teachers form virtual bonds with each other in friendship.  This is one of those times.

One of my best friends, 2nd grade teaching buddy, fellow blogger and TPTer is in CCU in Atlanta with critical medical issues. 

 

I asked for all of my wonderful friends on TPT to help pray for her.  Prayers have been sent up for Teresa from all over the world.  I truly believe that prayer can bring about miracles and Teresa is certainly in need of prayers.

 

These very wonderful and special teachers then began asking, "What can we do to help?"

 

Out of their love and concern came

Teresa has pulmonary hypertension and is experiencing complications. She loves teaching and has a wonderful sense of humor that keeps us all smiling. The most important thing we can all do for her, is to offer prayers on her behalf. Financially, you can help by purchasing one of the below packages. All of these items have been donated by her fellow TPT colleagues who wish to help across the world.

 

If you visit Teresa's blog you will see she LOVES all things piggy...hence all the pigs! :-)

You can also view her great products on her TPT store.

We know how medical bills can quickly become astronomical, especially when in the Critical Care Unit. Therefore, we are offering you some wonderful deals in exchange for donations.

 

 

 

We have a HUGE pack of goodies in return for your donation of $25.

This is a value of $115.

 

You will receive all of these items via e-mail when you purchase.

 

After you purchase, please complete this google document so that I can e-mail your TPT units to you.

 

 

Click on each picture to see more information about the products.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In addition, several teachers have joined in another collaborative effort to form a piggy unit (Teresa's favorite kind).  This unit is available on my store for $10.  All proceeds will also be given to Teresa to help with financial needs.

 

 

Thank you so much for your donations.  I really appreciate it, but most of all, keep those prayers going!

 

Thank you