Money Game and Family Wants and Needs

September 25, 2014, 7:47 pm

Hello Everyone!
We have been working hard this week on identifying coins and telling their value. Today we created a whole group game to help with cementing those ideas. We made a "Bigger than Life" gameboard (you know my love of those shower curtain sized gameboards!). We divided the board into 25 sections with tape and then filled each section with either a coin, the coin's name, the value, or the value words. We taped paper coins to a foam die. The kids took turns rolling the die and covering something on the board that matched with the coin rolled. We played until we had 5 in a row covered! The kids were completely engaged for the entire game, helping each other and cheering when we finally had 5 in a row. A smaller version of this game will become a math tub game for next week.

You can get a printable of this game including large cards for the whole group lesson and small game board for math tubs.Simply CLICK HERE!!! :) It's FREE!

(I am hoping that google docs is cooperating. Every time I upload things lately, it looks different. Remember, you can always e-mail me and I will send you the doc that way!)

Next week we will begin a reading/social studies unit on family wants and needs. I have shared my "Me and My Family" before, but I added some elements using two favorite books, "A Chair for My Mother," and "The Relatives Came."

You can get this printable! You don't even need to save!!
All you need to do is CLICK HERE!!! :) I hope!!

Ok!! I've got stuff to do to get ready for our SCI FRI tomorrow!! Magnet fun!! Yippee!!
Have a fantastic Friday!!
Joyfully!
Nancy

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Article 0

September 28, 2014, 9:09 am

≫ Next: Place Value Pick Up Sticks

≪ Previous: Money Game and Family Wants and Needs

Hello Everyone!
Next week we will begin a science unit on seasons and then weather. With the start of fall, I wanted an easily accessible book I knew the kids would love, but also learn something. Splat the Cat came to the rescue with his new book based on the character by Rob Scotton. "Splat the Cat and the Pumpkin Picking Plan" fit our needs.

You know I also love to integrate, so I created a quick little unit based on this book. The unit includes an interactive science component on seasons, some poetry, some word work, a hands on visual connection and a few more little goodies. Here are a few pics.

For your free little mini unit, CLICK HERE!!

I hope you can use even a small part of this pack. The book can be found at Target or WalMart, as well as your local bookstore or on-line store. Have a great week!!

Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to leave me a comment!!

Happy Fall!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Place Value Pick Up Sticks

September 30, 2014, 8:05 pm

≫ Next: Curious Clouds

≪ Previous: Article 0

Hello Everyone!!
Thanks for stopping by today! I love this time of year. Beginning of year assessments? Check! Big beginning of year events? Check! Setting up routines? Check! Getting volunteers lines up? Check! Ahhhh! Feels good! I think this week will be a fairly calm one.
In math this week we are working on place value up to 99. Teaching kids that the tens and ones places really stand for a "value" of the numbers can be a challenge. Last year my teammate found a great little activity on "Sunny Days in Second Grade.blogspot.com" and I couldn't wait to use it this year to help with place value. I changed it up a bit and am calling it "Place Value Pick Up Sticks." We started with a whole group lesson using some large (ruler sized) sticks. I put 10 orange stickers on one side of 10 sticks. Then I put one green sticker on the other side. We took turns dropping the sticks. After the sticks were dropped we organized them into "tens" and "ones." That's where the dots come in. I wanted them to see the tens, and see the ones. We talked a lot about the "tens place" really meaning groups of ten, and when we write a 5 in the tens place we are really working with a value of 50. Then, of course we put the "ones" in. the kids wrote their findings on whiteboards.

Next week I will be putting a smaller version of this activity in a math tub. The game will use popsicle sticks with dots drawn on them.

I know the kids are going to love it. I might even get the kids to make their own game pieces!

If you think you might want to try this, check out sunnydaysinsecondgrade.blogspot.com. If you want a quick printable of my version of the game including directions on how to create the large and small sticks as well as a recording page for your kids...

CLICK HERE!!! :)

Have a great rest of the week!!! I'll be back soon!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Curious Clouds

October 6, 2014, 7:04 pm

≫ Next: Cloudy with a chance of .....

≪ Previous: Place Value Pick Up Sticks

Hello Everyone!
What a great day to start a study on clouds!! Dark clouds this morning releasing a deluge of rain! By 1:00 beautiful clear sky with just a few cirrus clouds! Perfect example of our ever changing skies.
I'll share our Cloud Unit in a second, but first I wanted to show some pics of our whole group math lesson. We are continuing our study of place value. After all the activities we did last week, it was time to see how all of this fits in relationship to other numbers. I pulled out our bigger than life 100 board and handed out some mystery picture clues. Each clue described a number in place value (tens and ones). The kids took turns putting their cards on the number for which their clue stood. When we finished putting all the clues down, a cloud was revealed!

Use your imagination! It looks like a cloud, right??? The kids loved working together to create it!! I'm not even sure they realized they were growing their number sense!!!

I did put together a little integrated cloud unit. We are going to try to get most of this in this week!!

The unit also includes some poetry, another science activity and more!!

You can get it if you click HERE!!

Stay tuned for more cloud fun later in the week!

Until then, have a wonderful week!! Thanks for stopping by for a peek!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Cloudy with a chance of .....

October 11, 2014, 10:03 am

≫ Next: Math in the Patch

≪ Previous: Curious Clouds

Hello Everyone!!
We had a fantastic week!! Integration all the way! In science we were studying weather and clouds. I shared my cloud unit a few days ago, but I wanted to show you how things turned out and more!
After a study on wind, we made our "Flutterflies," and took them outside to compare how the moving air affects even the lightest of materials.

We celebrated cumulus clouds and Charles Shaws book, "It looked like Spilt Milk" by creating our own clouds. Mix shaving cream and white glue, plop, swirl, dry and write using the patterned text! Thank you, Charles Shaw, for the inspiration!

We made out "cloud watchers" and went outside to study as scientists. After discovering those amazing clouds we recorded out observations in our science journals.

We tried to understand what happens in clouds for rain to occur. We were amazed by the "Rain in a cup" activity.

It's raining!!!

One of the last things we did was read, "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs," a favorite of kids. We used this text as a springboard for our own weather reporting. The kids created a picture of themselves and we used the amazing AP "Chatterkids" to make a mini movie of our weather reports.

This was a great way to have fun with language, weather, practice fluency and creativity- all wrapped up into one lesson! The kids had a blast and will remember this for a long time!!

All these activities (except for the Chatterkids) are available in the Clouds unit. You can get that

IF YOU CLICK HERE!

Up next? Our Cinderella unit and a study of the moon!! Hold on and thanks for going on this ride with us!!

Thanks, also, for stopping by and don't forget to leave a comment!!

Have a great weekend!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Math in the Patch

October 12, 2014, 3:31 pm

≫ Next: Writing Across Five Fingers

≪ Previous: Cloudy with a chance of .....

Hello Everyone!
Well, it finally feels like fall around here!! We are welcoming some cooler temps here in Texas. Summer truly seemed to drag on this year. Don't get me wrong, though. Summer is my fav season and there is not much I like better than enjoying some pool or beach time. But once school starts, it really does need to feel like fall. So....Time to bring on the pumpkins!!! Nothing like some fun pumpkin style math activities to help kids practice place value, standard and expanded notation and more. I am always updating, revising, cleaning up, and adding to my old units. I offered my "Math in the Patch" unit last year, but it has gone through a few changes. Yes! I did fix one or two typos! Grrrr! I hate typos!! I added some fun elements as well! Here are some pics!

I think one of my favorite things I added to the unit is the Number Pumpkin. You will need some orange paint chip strips, some sticks, and leaves. Give kids a 2 digit number and have them write that number in the many forms we have learned about. Labels for the sections are included in the unit. Tape or glue on the stick and the leaf. I can't wait to do this with my firsties.

We did something similar but with candy corn shapes the past few years, but this gives even more opportunity for expressing number sense with five sections.

If you are interested in any of this 60 page unit...

You can get it if you simply click HERE!! :)

I hope you have a great week!! Thanks for stopping by for a peek! You are welcomed any time! Stay tuned for more fall fun!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Writing Across Five Fingers

October 19, 2014, 10:25 am

≫ Next: Candy Corn Crush!

≪ Previous: Math in the Patch

Hello Everyone!
Thank you so much for stopping by for a peek into our wonderful world. First grade is such an amazing year of learning, growth, independence, stamina building, and soooooo much more. Our writer's workshop is coming along so nicely. My kids are loving storyboarding. We have published so many books already, and the kids are so engaged! First graders need as many tools as they can get to help them organize their thinking before writing. Next week I will introduce a writing organizer developed by Lucy Calkins. Lucy Calkins talks to young writers about making sure they have a beginning, middle, and end to their small moment stories. She discusses how to use their own five fingers as a graphic organizer to plan a story before they begin to write things down. I think there are many different ways to use this idea and tell a story across your fingers. You can use the who, what, where, when, and how template. Or you could use the who, what, when, what happened, and how you felt template. Another way to think about the five fingers is introduction, beginning, middle , end, and how you felt template. Remember that each of these five parts will need details added. I have included several different mini posters and planning sheets in a little unit. You can use the one you want to emphasize or support your writer’s workshop. Whichever template you use, kids need a lot of practice making sure they can tell their stories across their fingers.
Here are some pics of a little unit inspired by Lucy!

I like to use the template that emphasizes the intro, beginning, middle, end, and how did you feel components. I illustrate that with stickers on my hand in the colors of a stoplight.

We have been working hard on the partnerships we are building as writers. Our partners help us make our writing even better by asking questions.

I am so looking forward to giving my kids a new tool for their writing toolbox.

You can get the 40 page unit if you simple click HERE!!

I hope this will help you and your kids work on your passion for writing! Let me know if you can use this or if you would like to see something a little different. (And as always, let me know if there are any typos!!)

I am always up for learning something new that will help my little authors.

Have a great rest of the weekend!! Thanks for stopping by!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Candy Corn Crush!

October 20, 2014, 6:12 pm

≫ Next: Candy Corn Stars!

≪ Previous: Writing Across Five Fingers

Hello Everyone!!
Yes! I am posting again after only one day!! I am not sure I've ever posted two days in a row before, but I wanted to share what I am working on in math this week. I have noticed that my "Candy Corn Connection" unit has been downloaded over 500 times! Well, I have news for you! I've added some new components to the unit and am now calling it "Candy Corn Crush!" Our study this week is on comparing and ordering numbers. We started working today on one of the new components, Candy Corn Caper. It was inspired by a Kim Sutton Game called Place Value Trails. I laid out several candy corn shapes along a trail, labeling the first one with a 10 and the last one with a 100. I wrote numbers 0-9 on smaller pieces of paper. The kids drew 2 numbers and decided what number they could create and write on the trail, knowing that the placement of the number had to show number order.We played until all the candy had a number. There were some numbers created that we couldn't write on the trail.

I put an individual size of this game in math tubs this week, so the kids could continue working on comparing and ordering! (and it's available in my new unit!)

I also wanted to share what we are doing in math tomorrow! It's time for the Candy Corn Cruncher!! Last year I posted about our Pumpkin Muncher that we used to teach the symbols for greater and less than. Well, in honor of the sweet treat, I decided to create a new version of the Muncher. Alas! The Candy Corn Cruncher came to be! The kids will make mini crunchers tomorrow, but I got the big one ready for our whole class lesson.

I just know the kids are going to "get it" with this fun little addition to our math tool box! Directions for making this little cutie are in the new unit along with numbers to compare and recording pages.

Here are some of the other things you can get in the new unit!

Matching game

If you would like to try these games with your kiddos, simply click HERE!!

It's only 54 pages! You don't have to print in color. Most pages are black and white, and colored pages will be fine in grayscale as well.

Teachers- Let me know if you can use math activities like this. I'll keep pumpin' them out.

Parents- Please feel free to print and play with your kids!! All the practice they get with comparing and ordering numbers helps!!

Thanks for stopping by for a peek today! I hope it was worth your time. Don't forget to leave a comment!

Have a great night!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Candy Corn Stars!

October 25, 2014, 6:33 pm

≫ Next: Splat the Cat Fun and a little November Composing and Decomposing

≪ Previous: Candy Corn Crush!

Hello Everyone!!
What an exhausting but wonderful week! (21 Parent conferences, 21 report cards with 3 assessment result reports and parent letters for each, instructional specialists, WatchDogs, All Stars, field trip planning, technology enrichment lessons, planning for next week, and of course teaching.) I had to put just a little fun (both for the kids and for me!!) into our week, sooooooo.....
This post is directly attributed to a Good Housekeeping craft idea. You can find it here!
http://www.bhg.com/halloween/crafts/easy-to-make-candy-corn-halloween-garland/

I loved this idea for turning a paperplate into paper candy corn! We are so into candycorn lately! Well, I decided to take our science study about the sun and stars and infuse a little candy corn into it! Huh??? Hold on...you'll see! The kids traced the natural circle and drew a small circle on a plain paper plate, creating three sections. Then they painted the outer edge yellow and the inner ring orange. It reminded us of the sun! We reviewed the characteristics of the sun. When dry, the kids cut their plates into eight pieces, and voila!! Candy Corn! Well, in reviewing the characteristics of the sun, we talked about the fact that the sun is the closest star to the earth, so we decided to make our candy corn pieces into a star! They turned out so cool!! And what a great connection!! Here are a couple of pics!

We made a large one too!

We added the information we had learned
about the sun!

I also need to share our little sundial that we studied throughout the day. So easy and effective! The kids got to watch the shadow move and shorten.

We recorded our observations with a marker and on a recording sheet. I think I have shared our Sunny Sunny Day unit before, but in case you missed it

You can get the mini unit HERE! CLICK!!

Well, I'm off to watch a movie with the Hubs! Hope I don't fall asleep in the middle of it! I'm pooped!!

Hope you're having a great weekend!!

Thanks for stopping by!!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Splat the Cat Fun and a little November Composing and Decomposing

November 1, 2014, 10:41 am

≫ Next: Thankful for the opportunity to share!

≪ Previous: Candy Corn Stars!

Hello Everyone!
PHEW! We made it through a very busy week! We have been studying objects in the night sky this week (among MANY other things!!!) and after reading a couple of Splat the Cat books, especially Good Night, Sleep Tight, we decided to make a sweet treat inspired by that cute kitty!! This idea is an embellishment on the Black Cat Oreos on the Party Pinchers site. Thank you for the fun idea Party Pinchers!!!
They turned out so cute! And they look like Splat!!

We celebrated our annual literature appreciation day with Starlight Reading (also went along with our study of night time sky!) and dressing as Splat!!!

LOOOOOOOOVE This Team!!!
We are always up for fun!!

We are now gearing up for a big study on composing and decomposing numbers in math. It being November, I decided to create a little unit with a Thanksgiving feel. Here are some quick pics.

The unit contains 29 pages of whole group learning opportunities and math tub practice opportunities.

If you are interested, you can get the unit here. Simply CLICK!!

Now, off to enjoy this beautiful day!!! Have a wonderful weekend and thanks for stopping by to take a peek at what we've been up to!! Questions? Comments? Concerns? Don't hesitate to let me know!! This blog and I are still a work in progress!! Stay tuned!!

Joyfully!!

Nancy

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Thankful for the opportunity to share!

November 5, 2014, 8:16 pm

≫ Next: The Legend of the Five Kernels of Corn

≪ Previous: Splat the Cat Fun and a little November Composing and Decomposing

Hello Everyone!
This is a super quick post tonight. I'm Taking my sweet mom out for her birthday!! Happy birthday, Mom!!! My mom and dad were my first teachers. They taught all five of us kids the value of sharing what we have been blessed with. They both gave the best of themselves every minute of every day. I'm dedicating this post to them tonight. I am simply sharing a couple of quick units. They will get me joyfully through the coming week with my kids. One unit is focused on the Native Americans who welcomed the Pilgrims to America so long ago, sharing their knowledge of living in this land. The other is a set of 5 addition math tub activities with a Thanksgiving feel.

Click HERE for your printable unit (20+ pages)

Click Here for the math addition unit :)

I hope you can use parts of these to help your kids next week. I appreciate the opportunity to share my love of teaching in a hands on way with you!!

Now off to celebrate the woman who raised me to have a heart for giving.

Have a joy-filled week!

Nancy

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The Legend of the Five Kernels of Corn

November 9, 2014, 3:44 pm

≫ Next: Veterans Day Unit- Thank You Veterans!

≪ Previous: Thankful for the opportunity to share!

Hello Everyone!
I love this time of year. I love learning about the trials and successes of the small group of Pilgrims who traveled so far and lived through tragic times...all for freedom. I love sharing with kids the differences in the wants and needs between our generations. I love learning and teaching about the different environments and settings. for many of our kids, the stories of the Pilgrims are just that...stories. I often wonder if they realize that most of what we read about from that time period really happened. There is a legend out there that I came across many years ago, The Legend of the Five Corn Kernels. It is said that the Pilgrims endured such hardship that there were times when all they had to eat were five kernels of corn each per day. When times got better, they continued to serve the five corn kernels on their plates to honor and remember those hard times. Many families of original descent continue this practice. From my research, there is no telling if this was in all actuality something that absolutely occurred, but it is still a wonderful tribute to the trials and remembrances of those people. I want to introduce this visual to my students. I put together a little unit to help describe the legend.

You can get your own printable of this little unit. Simply Click HERE!

Here's to remembering and celebrating history.

I hope you have time to enjoy this little legend in the next couple of weeks.

Thanks for stopping by!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Veterans Day Unit- Thank You Veterans!

November 10, 2014, 5:10 pm

≫ Next: Talkin' Turkey- Number Bonds and Craft Connection

≪ Previous: The Legend of the Five Kernels of Corn

Hello Everyone!
A super quick post tonight. I realized that I had not posted my Veterans day unit update. I added a few things from last years unit. If you are still in need of a few extra things to do tomorrow as you celebrate and remember those who protect and serve, you can find the link at the bottom of this post.
Here are a few pics

Click HERE For Your Free Printable!!

THANK YOU to all the Veterans who gave and continue to give so selflessly. You have our hearts!!

Have a wonder-filled day tomorrow!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Talkin' Turkey- Number Bonds and Craft Connection

November 16, 2014, 12:56 pm

≫ Next: Gobble Gobble!!

≪ Previous: Veterans Day Unit- Thank You Veterans!

Hello Everyone!
Brrrr! It's chilly here!! I've got some yummy soup going and just took out my cranberry pumpkin bread. It's beginning to smell a lot like Thanksgiving!
The next few weeks will be crazy busy for me as my youngest graduates with two degrees from UTD. Lots of company coming in, meals to prep, house to clean, announcements and pics to send out, and so much more!! So this post is very quick.
I wanted to show you some fun stuff we were doing in math, what's coming up in math, and a cute little turkey my kids are going to love to make!
We have been working hard on composing and decomposing, beginning addition, etc. in math. We played a fun whole class game which helped the kids understand number relationships. It was called Turkey Trouble. I made a giant turkey and used 10 of my candy corn pieces from other games. The kids took turns closing their eyes and one kiddo would hide some of the candy under the turkey (Turkeys love candy corn!) When the kids opened their eyes, they had to guess how many pieces the turkey got! Such a fun way to use concrete and pictoral clues for number sense.

Next week I was going to go on and teach the addition strategy of making a 10 and adding, but realized last week that we need more work on number bonds for 10. Sooooo...I had to create something quick to use as a class activity and something to put in math tubs for practice and automaticity. This is what I came up with.

You can get that little unit if you CLICK HERE!! :)

Then I wanted one more little turkey project for my kiddos to do. There are so many great books out there about the troubles turkeys have this time of year. There are also so many hands on visuals out there.

I wanted to recreate my turkey from past years. Here's what I came up with!

I think he turned out so cute!! I know the kids are going to love making him and putting their own personal touches on him!!

Here's the link to the Patterns!! Printable!!

Hope these mini sharings are something you can maybe use as well!

And I hope you have a wonder-filled week!! I'll try to grab some pics of our week...making butter, Thanksgiving Retelling bracelet, and of course our feast!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Gobble Gobble!!

November 17, 2014, 6:14 pm

≫ Next: Thanksgiving Friendship Fun and a Big Share X 4!

≪ Previous: Talkin' Turkey- Number Bonds and Craft Connection

Hello Everyone!
I just wanted to send out a quick post tonight and show you how our little turkeys turned out!! After reading a couple of the books I suggested last time, Turkey Trouble and Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving, the kids had a blast brainstorming together all the things that we could eat on Thanksgiving instead of turkey. After writing a little message from Turkey, they created their turkeys. I love how each one turned out a little different.

Want the patterns?

Gobble Gobble, click HERE!!

So, from our little classroom to yours, Happy Thanksgiving!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Thanksgiving Friendship Fun and a Big Share X 4!

November 24, 2014, 8:38 pm

≫ Next: Here Comes That Jolly Fella!

≪ Previous: Gobble Gobble!!

Hello Everyone!
I am so thankful for having today off. I got almost all of my Christmas shopping done, graduation announcements addressed and in the mail, guest room ready for family coming in, and four of my curriculum units freshened up and added to!! Tomorrow? Cleaning and cooking!! Can't wait! I also look forward to going unplugged for a little while, so I plan on sharing all four units tonight. They will get our first graders through the three weeks before Christmas break and the week we come back.
I first want to share some pics of our Thanksgiving feast from last week. This was our 10th annual first grade feast. Every year gets better and better. We started the day making our Thanksgiving retelling bracelet, making butter, and telling what we were most thankful for. We set the "table" and let the kids choose if they wanted to be Pilgrims or Native Americans. The macaroni and cheese is always the biggest hit.

What a sight!!! 125 first grade friends enjoying lunch together!!

Now, here are some pics of some of the updated units.
First up? Santa's Stuck!!

Click HERE for your 59 page unit!!! :)

Next up? An updated unit focusing on Dr. Seuss' favorite green guy!!

Here are a few pics.

Click HERE for your free 77 page unit! :)

For the week before Christmas break? "If You Take a Mouse to the Movies!" Don't you love this book??? Here are a few pics of our 76 page unit!

For your own printable unit (76 pages) CLICK here!! :)

And finally, I've had many e-mails asking if I would update my Happy New Year unit for 2015!! That's what I have for you next!! WOW!! Can you believe it is almost the new year already??? Here are some pics from the unit.

For your 56 page free printable unit, CLICK HERE!! :)

OK!! That is it for now. I am turning off this computer so I can focus on my family and home.

I am so thankful for the opportunity to be an educator of young children. I am so thankful for the families who entrust their sweet children to me. I am so thankful for this little blog through which I have made so many new friends. I am so thankful for my amazing family! I am one blessed gal!!

And with that, blessings to you all!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Here Comes That Jolly Fella!

December 6, 2014, 9:53 am

≫ Next: Big, red, cherry nose!!

≪ Previous: Thanksgiving Friendship Fun and a Big Share X 4!

Hello Everyone!
Thanks for stopping by this little Window on Wonder! I love this time of year with my little firsties!! The wonder in their eyes is magical. I try to incorporate a lot of this magic into their learning. We started off the week reading Santa's Stuck by Rhonda Greene. We also discovered a couple of related books to compare and contrast, Santa Gets Stuck by Campbell Books and Are You Grumpy, Santa? by Greg and Evan Spiridellis.

We brainstormed ways to help Santa if he were to get stuck in our chimney!

Love the "Call 911" as a last resort!!

Then we got busy with our written expression and hands on visual expression. I have posted this visual in years past, (and the patterns are in our Santa's Stuck unit, but this year, because of one of the illustrations in the "Are You Grumpy, Santa?" book, we added a tush!! :) They turned out great!!

I really think the kids are going to leave Santa a healthy snack on Christmas Eve.

Next week in writing, we are going to focus on adding adjectives to our drafts. I put together an ultra mini unit based on the song, "Must Be Santa." We will discover how adjectives make our writing more clear for our readers. We will go back into some of our older pieces and add adjectives where we can. We will also make this cute little Santa based on the song and include some of the adjectives in the lyrics!!

I can't wait for next week!

If you would like the printable unit on adjectives,

CLICK HERE!!! :)

If you didn't get the Santa's Stuck unit from my last post, you can get it HERE!!! :)

I have so much more to share with you, but whoa! I have a ton of stuff to do to get ready for the holidays at home!!! Have a wonder-filled weekend and don't forget to stop and enjoy that wonder!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Big, red, cherry nose!!

December 10, 2014, 7:40 pm

≫ Next: Happy Holidays!

≪ Previous: Here Comes That Jolly Fella!

Hello Everyone!
Short and very sweet tonight!!! :) I just wanted to quickly share our adjective study from today! We took the song, Must Be Santa, found all the adjectives, discovered other adjectives in other books and all around us, including adjectives to describe each other!! :) Then we took took the most fun little section of the song and created a hands on visual to remind us of adjectives, to work on organization, to practice following directions, and to publish work visually. I think they turned out great!!

If you want to try it, You can get the little mini unit if you click HERE!!

(I fixed the little problem on one of the pages, if you've already looked at it.)

Tomorrow we will work on our parent gifts. I can't wait to start! They are going to be so cute. So check back again very soon for a tutorial on that!! That's all I'm going to say about that for now.

(Sorry, Parents! No sneak peeks!!)

Till then, hope you are slowing down to wonder in the joys of this season with your little ones!! Can you think of a better job during this time of year???

Joyfully!

Nancy

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Happy Holidays!

December 26, 2014, 11:10 am

≫ Next: Let It Snow!

≪ Previous: Big, red, cherry nose!!

Hello Everyone!
Thanks for stopping by this little "Window On Wonder!" I hope you had a wonder filled Christmas with friends and family. Mine was filled with all kinds of joy!! We got to celebrate my baby's college graduation...

and then the birth of our Savior!

The house was filled with family, friends, and food, along with love, laughter and loads of giving spirit! Today is a little more calm and quiet as my guys are out golfing. I am cleaning, reorganizing, and actually enjoying a little bit of time to myself. I thought I'd take a minute of this time to share what I was up to with my little firsties the week before break.
Our parent gifts turned out so cute this year. For the passed 8 years we had been creating a snowman plate for our gifts.

But this year, because of our diminishing funds, we decided to take the same idea and put it on a tea towel!! I think they turned out just as cute!! (And unbreakable!)

The first few pics show the steps I took to make my sample. I didn't get too many pics of the kids actually working on their's. They needed my full attention during the process...if you know what I mean!! :)

We got tea towels at IKEA!
Very cost efficient!!
(We had to get 130 of them!!)

We wrapped them simply, in a white lunch sized paper bag. The kids were so happy their hard work and patience paid off. They were so excited about giving their sweet gifts to their parents.

Speaking of giving, we spend a lot of time talking about and practicing giving this time of year. (The Christmas "gimmies" often take our attention.) We created a tree this year with ornaments that shared some different ideas.

"I want... I need... and I can give..."

We brainstormed different heart responses to these starters and then created our ornaments.

LOOOOOOOOVE the kids' sweet ideas for giving!

Then, of course, we celebrated the wonderful story by Dr. Seuss, "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." We celebrated the changes in the Grinch all week, culminating with Grinch Day at the end of the week! Grinch Day is one of our favorite days of the year. We have been embracing that green guy for the past 6 years or more. Every year it reminds us of the the spirit of the season.
Enjoy the pics!

A stuffed Grinch came to visit and watch us work!

And we couldn't forget that sweet little dog, Max!!

Tune - Row Row Row Your Boat

Adjective Study

Grinchy Adjectives!

Think Outside the Box

Happy Grinch Day!

Celebrating Green!!

Grab some green!

Green Glow Energy for Science!

How about some Who Pudding???!!!

My Crazy Team!!! WOW!!!
If you want to try some of the Green Guy's activities, CLICK HERE!

Stay tuned for a new version of my Snow unit for January. I love having time to rework things!!
This little blog brings me such joy. The opportunity to grow as an educator and share my experiences with new friends (fellow educators, parents, homeschoolers, educational publications, professors, even kids!) all over the world takes my breath away. May the new year bring all of you more joys than you can count!!
As Always,
Joyfully!
Nancy

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Let It Snow!

January 1, 2015, 9:39 am

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Hello Everyone!!
Happy New Year!!! My wish for you in this coming year is that you find some joy in every day! I get so much joy creating hands on curriculum for young learners which will engage their hands and minds!! Today I want to share a little unit that uses snow and snowmen for inspiration. My apologies to my Australian and other friends who are in the middle of summer right now, but maybe you can save this for another time in your year! :) This little unit is loaded with 80 pages of ELA, Math, and Science activities--whole group and independent, including my new favorite way to reinforce retelling!! Story Spoons!!! Take a look at some of what is included!