America the Beautiful

We just wrapped up our "Living in America" unit!  This unit is such a perfect time to focus on nonfiction book characteristics, informational writing, and so many other standards while instilling a love of country!

I really did used to loathe this unit because it just seemed too abstract for kinders.  I thought how in the world would they learn all the facts and did they really even understand what a state or a country was!!!  Those concepts seemed too out there!  But then I realized it wasn't so much about the facts and deep concepts! This unit was so much more about WHY our country formed, HOW it was begun, and HOW it has changed. When we started to focus on the deeper understandings, everything became easier and more fun to teach. 

We found video clips from United Streaming and Brain Pop! Jr.. We researched and read lots of nonfiction books.  The kiddos talked a lot and had some great discussions with each other and more importantly with their families.  Their understandings grew deeper the more they shared with others!

And what happened was, our students began to feel a deep love and sense of loyalty and pride for their country.  Trust me, they learned lots of facts and information, but more importantly they learned the whys and hows of America...the big picture!  

This inquiry approach feels so right!  The kids were able to think deeply about the hows and whys and hopefully as they study America's history over the years, they'll begin to see trends and how it's all related.  And many of the same struggles of early America are part of many other countries' stories as well.

Well...this post turned into a bit deeper place than I meant to go!!!  But I just loved watching it all unfold this year, and feel like it will stay with my kiddos over time. Not all the facts, but the whys and hows!

In the meantime... Check out these amazing informational writings they did in the now!!!

Peace out for now!

Cinco de Mayo!!!

WHAT??? It's almost May...not even sure how that happened!  This year has flown by especially with all of the crazy snow days that are FINALLY over!

So it's almost May, which means it's time to dance, listen to a mariachi band, and sit on the deck of my favorite Mexican restaurant to celebrate Cinco de Mayo!  Woo-hoo!

Now I am pretty sure that's not exactly how my kiddos will celebrate, but this is a great time of year to focus on the importance of remembering the heritage and traditions of Mexico as we have many Mexican-American kiddos in our school!  So many of them love sharing their language or unique foods with the class. This is the perfect time of year to focus on the things that make each of us unique and share it with others.

So we created a simple packet that's both FUN and touches on why we celebrate this day in America.  It also has some printables that let all of the kiddos think about what Mexican traditions, music, and foods that they might have experienced.  Hopefully this will be a great way to get your kiddos talking and sharing all about who THEY are!

So here's a peek at what we included...

 Click on any of the pictures to head to our store!

So please leave us a comment and let us know what you think! 

 We'll pick 2 of you to get the pack for FREE!  

The pack will also be 1/2 price ALL day today so you can scoop it up for a BUCK FIFTY!!! :)

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

A little magic! Christmas, Chanukah, and Kwanzaa! Want it? You know what to do!

Twas 6 days before vacation and all through the schools

The kiddos were stirring and trying to follow rules!

The teachers were assessing and helping kids out

Create ornaments for parents that will make them SHOUT!

You got it friends!! We are trying to finish up all our assessments this week, so that we can really enjoy our kiddos next week!

We are so excited about all the ornaments and treats the kids are making for the their parents! After we finish our ornaments we will post pictures!

Want to create a little magic for your kiddos!! Well, we have been doing this for several years and it is awesome! Our kiddos write letters to Santa. Then we mail them to Santa (a local middle school class who answers our letters).

So, Mrs. Darby Jones at a local middle school has her students write responses to our kiddos' letters. We had our kids write about their behavior, what they want, and ask Santa a question.
The responses we get never promise to get the students what they want, but acknowledge our students' behavior, answer any questions and promise to do their best to get what they want. All the letters are signed differently. Santa, elves, reindeer, and Mrs. Claus all help answer our kids' letters.

The best part is the day of our holiday party, I wet and freeze a stocking with the response letters rolled up inside. Then around our party time, the principal or assistant principal will deliver the frozen stocking and say that she heard jingle bells and went outside to check it out. Then she will say that she found the stocking and it is still cold and icy. We let all the kiddos feel the stocking!! It is awesome!!

If no time to try it this year, maybe next year!

Anyway....

We can't wait to start using our newest pack! It is called Christmas, Chanukah and Kwanzaa Literacy Activities and Emergent Readers! Check it out below.

We created this pack so that we could add some leveled readers to our kiddos book boxes that give students information about the different holidays that people celebrate around this time of year (Even though Chanukah came super early this year).

We will also work on some informational writing pertaining to the holidays! Why not throw something HOT in by comparing the holidays!!

We think the kiddos will be more motivated to work if we are working on what they are thinking about, talking about and dreaming about!!

So everything will still be very academic, but very fun!

Leave us a comment and let us know what you think. If you have any suggestions about how to make this pack better or more useful, we would love the feedback.

Don't forget to leave your email address just in case we want to send you this pack!!
Thanks for reading! Have a great week before vacation!

Living in America! Hint, Hint- Leave a Comment!

I know it's about time we finished this unit!! We are not really good workers unless there is a time crunch for us! Well, maybe just a time crunch for me since Cristy started teaching this unit two weeks ago and has been patiently waiting for the finished product!!

Anyway if you need a cute Common Core aligned unit with lots of resources for Living in America check out our newest addition to our tpt store. In this unit we included graphic organizers, lift the flap books, informational writing papers, emergent non-fiction readers, a game, puzzles pieces, vocabulary cards and 3 flip books as culminating projects. Content in this unit covers American Symbols, Monuments, and Leaders!

Let us know what you think! Don't forget to leave us your email address. We will randomly pick one lucky winner and send you this pack!!

Have an awesome week!!

Grandparent's Day Rocked!!!

We had an AWESOME grandparent's day!!!  We literally had some grandparents crying when they left saying "This was the best day.  We feel so special and love you guys already!"  AWWWW!  That absolutely made our day.

So if you haven't already celebrated your Oldies but Goldies---here's what we did!  Hope you can snag an idea or two!

Every day leading up to the BIG DAY, we completed a different activity to get ready for our G-Parents!

Monday - NO SCHOOL-Labor Day Holiday!

Tuesday -We modeled coloring in their coupon books and they worked independently to cut them out and illustrate the books.

Wednesday - Read The Ultimate Guide to Grandmas and Grandpas.  This is a super cute book about how the grand kids have to get the grandparents to "take naps" and "remember to look both ways before crossing the street".  Then we got the kids thinking about something special THEY do with their grandparents.  Then we showed them the "My Grandparents and I" sheet we had created.  They drew their picture and then we helped them sound out the words working 1 on 1.  (We then scanned these in and turned them into a Power Point slide show for the g-parents!)

Thursday - We modeled completing the poems for their grandparents on our Activboard.  Then they worked independently to complete their own.  We circulated around the room to assist with blending words.  These might just be our FAVORITE part!

Friday - We modeled how to play "Roll a Grandpa/Grandma" with our kiddos for morning work.  We planned on playing with our g'parents if we had some extra time...which we did...so that turned out great!

8:30 am Breakfast and Coffee By The PTA

8:45 am  Guest Speaker

9:00-9:30 am Classroom Visits

9:00-9:06 - We watched a 6 minute Slide Show we made using all of the pictures we have taken of the kiddos so far this year.

9:06-9:20 - The kiddos shared their "My Grandparents and I" slide show.

9:20-9:45 - The kiddos gave their grandparents their coupon books and poems and then they played "Roll a Grandpa/Grandma".  It was so stinkin' precious watching our grandparents pile up on the floor, at the tables, anywhere they could find---and play this game with their littles!  I swear we were smiling from ear to ear watching them!  And as you can see from the time frame above---we MAAAYBE went a WEE bit over the predetermined time allotment!  I am telling you...they DIDN'T WANT TO LEAVE!!!

It really was a great day!

The activities above can be found in our
Grandparent's Day Mini Unit for sale on TpT. 

 You can click on the image below to grab the 

"My Grandparent's and I..." writing paper for FREE!

We hope you and your g'parents have an awesome day together!  They truly are a reason to celebrate!

Princess and History Makers

    Hi Friends!! Long time no blog for me!! Yes, I am back from my never ending trip to the "Happiest Place on Earth"!! Wow my poor husband drove over 1000 miles for this princess. I am a lucky girl. I probably didn't have the best plan when I decided we should drive to Disney to take the boys Monday through Thursday  then drive to Valdosta, then drive back to Orlando for the Princess 1/2. Well I loved it!! I love to ride and I love going to the park with and without my kiddos!!

The Girls Before the Run :)

Anyway the run was super tough!!! I finished, but took longer than I expected. There were 22000 runners! You can only imagine the traffic on the course. The worst part was when we got to the castle we had to completely stop and wait to go through because it was so crowded. Not great when we were trying to run the entire time!! But, I loved running in my tutu and tiara and I love, love the gorgeous medal. So worth the 2 hours and 51 minutes and 13.1 mile run plus the extra mile or so to walk to the race beginning :).


After the Run :).

 Enough about princesses and travels!!! Time to celebrate our AWESOME Pal at Kooky Kindergarten. She has a store on Teacher Pay Teacher and a Teachers Notebook Store. Thank you Kooky Kindergarten for the adorable Dr. Martin Luther King Craftivity! The kiddos had to draw, cut and glue their own shapes and follow directions!!! Very important skills in kindergarten. Every child's finished product was unique.

 During Black History Month, we have been celebrating famous African American History Makers. The first history maker we celebrated was Dr. Martin Luther King Junior. We read stories, had discussions then finished off with an awesome craftivity from Kooky Kindergarten. Check out her link to purchase this craftivity. Also, check out some of our kiddo's work. They did an awesome job.

 Another history maker we celebrated was George Washington Carver. We choose to celebrate him to support our science unit on rocks ans soil and who can pass up a chance to celebrate the inventor of peanut butter. Can you imagine a world without peanut butter? I guess our peanut allergy friends would be happy!



We also celebrated Ruby Bridges! The kiddos had a great time creating portraits of Ruby and writing facts about her life!! The kids liked learning about a history maker who made history at their age!!

We have a few more important history makers we are going to have to learn about in March like Jesse Owens and Thurgood Marshall. We wish we had more time to do so many more :).

Don't forget our giveaway!!

This is the last day to enter to win our OWN bundle with products worth $23!

 Short Vowels Bundle:  Word Work MEGA Pack!

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By the way!! I have missed 3 weeks in a row of the Bachelor and Cristy has failed at her friend job to keep me updated! I would love any info on what happened. The only thing I know is he sent Ashlee home!! Boohoo! I loved her! Why did he send her home?????