News Flash With Kermit the Frog

Love this short video clip of Kermit the Frog interviewing George Washington's father concerning his chopping down the cherry tree! The kids loved it & it went perfectly with our President's Day lesson described in my post "Honestly?".

It's Time to Celebrate the long weekend!

I am having a sale Saturday through Monday in honor of Presidents' Day & to celebrate the long weekend & all of those crazy teachers that are working on school stuff on their long weekend! Check out my Teachers Pay Teachers store by clicking here!

Honestly?!?!

Am I the only one ready for the looong weekend?!? I have only worked half of this week with my uncooperative knees and I am still exhausted! Teachers pay dearly for those long weekends...it seems the kids are extra "excited" before the weekend gets here and then extra "grumpy" after a long & busy weekend off of their normal sleep schedule. Nevertheless, it is st ill worth every minute of the trouble!

I had really good intentions of getting a lot of projects accomplished while off work this week but my knees went from bad to even worse. Turns out that I had an adverse reaction to my miracle knee injections that  have worked wonders for me the other 3 times that I had them. Looks like I have bought all of the extra time I can get & will have to give in and get a partial replacement  in my right knee this summer & the left knee will follow soon after...ugh! I'm too young for this and my doctor (bless his heart) has tried for several years to get me to the magical age of 40 before doing anything drastic...he makes it sound like turning 40 is a good thing...he tells me "congratulations Kelly, in May you will offically be old enough to get some new knees!"

Well back to kindergarten! Today I did a lesson for President's Day and we were talking about how George Washington chopped down his father's cherry tree. I asked the kids if they would tell the truth if they had done something naughty, even if it meant they would get punished. ALL but 1 said they would lie so they wouldn't get in trouble!!! So does this mean that they are honest about being dishonest?!?! You should have heard of the punishments they thought George Washington would get for cutting down that cherry tree...I particularly liked that he might get grounded from his XBOX & I am also left to wonder if I need to investigate possible child abuse/torture!!! So while they were thinking about an appropriate punishment I showed them the cutest  little video clip that I downloaded off of YouTube of Kermit the Frog interviewing George Washington's father (a puppet "George" is in the background cutting more cherry trees). He tells of how George told the truth & his father was so proud of him. You have to watch this video clip...it was the cutest thing ever! I added into my President's Day Promethean flipchart but need to figure out how to add it to my blog to share with nonPromethean board users.

I finished up my Dr. Seuss/Cat With a Hat flipchart for Promethean board tonight FINALLY! Check it out here.!

 

And here are a couple of pages from my Presidents' Day flipchart...can't wait to get to Abraham Lincoln tomorrow!

 

Woo Hoo! got the Liebster Award!!! Now, I'm passing it on!!!

Woo Hoo! I was given the Liebster Blog Award for new bloggers!

Thank you, Tessa at http://talesfromoutsidetheclassroom.blogspot.com/ & Ellen at http://greatfirstgradeexpectations.blogspot.com/  for giving me this award!

Now, it is my turn to award other new bloggers with this award!

Here are the rules:

1. Copy and paste the award on your blog.

2. Thank the giver and link back to them.

3. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.

I get to name 5 others new to blogging! WOW!

• Sophia at http://howcuteisthis.blogspot.com/
• Kristen at http://glitterandglueprincess.blogspot.com/
• Amy at http://theresourseroom.blogspot.com/
• Ms. Preppy & Kindergarten Korner at http://teacherbloggerexchange.blogspot.com/
• Mrs. Duggins at http://dugginsdoodlebugs.blogspot.com/

4. Hope that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers!!

And, don't forget, go and visit Tessa at http://talesfromoutsidetheclassroom.blogspot.com/ & Ellen at http://greatfirstgradeexpectations.blogspot.com/

March Madness in February?!?!

After spending the entire day at the emergency room yesterday with a very swollen & fluid filled knee, I was actually relieved to be sent home and confined to the bed/sofa for the remainder of the weekend! I feel like I am so far behind because many of you are already planning for March and I have yet to get my Valentine cards finished!!! They are next on my list of things to do...along with getting ready for my evaluation from my principal this week, finish graduate class homework, help son finish 4H demonstation speech/project, get back up sub plans together for knee-fluid draining day(s), cut coupons from all 6 of today's newspaper (yes, I am a big couponer!!!), upload class pictures on my blog, celebrate husband's birthday...bless his soul...I haven't been able to walk, much less shop for him, clean house before I lose someone in this mess, shower?!?! I think I hear a pain pill calling my name!!! And with that long list of things to do, what do I choose to do? Jump ahead and work on March projects that have been swimming around in my head! Check them out at my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

 

These cute St. Patrick's Day themed owls can be used to help with Alphabet upper/lowercase letters and alphabetical order and the set below can be used for sequencing numbers 1-20 and/or matching numbers to number words 1-20.

My kids will get a kick out of creating silly sentences with these Cat in the Hat themed sentence part cards. They will love illustrating the crazy sentences even more! Can't wait to use them!

Kindergarten Post Office

Every February I turn my Home Living center into a class post office to encourage my students to write and read more. Each morning the kids come in & write a letter or postcard to a classmate. (They have to pick a name from a bucket for the first letter of the day to ensure every student gets mail & can then write to anyone they choose when that one is done). When they are finished writing they bring their letter/postcard to me and I have them read it back to me before giving them a "stamp" (flag stickers). This helps emphasis legible writing and making complete sentences. During center time, my postal workers sort the mail by boy/girl and then deliver the mail to individual students' mailboxes.  At the end of the day, we check our mailboxes & read our mail. Again, this encourages children to read their own mail rather than have me read it for them. I also make sure to send them a small piece of mail each day too which they love!

For FREE printables click here! here.

Little Miss Hypothesis - Lessons from the Science Lab: Blog For A Free Science Unit!

Little Miss Hypothesis - Lessons from the Science Lab: Blog For A Free Science Unit!

Have I mentioned that I love kindergarten science?!?! When we do experiments, my little ones think it is magic & I suddenly become (and I quote) "the most, bestest teacher in the whole wide universe!" My coworkers and I were just talking about doing a better job of incorporating science into our already busy curriculum and then very next day I find Little Miss Hypothesis! Hoping her blog makes our science centers easier to implement! Check her site out! 

Snap! Subtraction Game

I'm so impressed with my little ones today! I have been a bit concerned that our kindergarteners have to add & subtract within 5 fluently under the new Common Core Curriculum standards. That is a big jump from the TN standard in which they just have to understand the CONCEPT of adding & subtracting. I saw this idea at the TN Kindergarten conference back in November so I decided to give it a try. Students were partnered up and given 5 snap/unifix cubes. Player 1 held the cube train behind their back & Player 2 says "Snap!" Player 1 breaks the cube train (behing their back) and shows 1 part of the broken cube train to Player 2. Player 2 then has to figure out how many cubes are still behind Player 1's back. They were doing so good that I then had them write the subtraction sentences that they were making. (5-1=4). Even the little struggling learner that I was playing with was quickly memorizing the number facts. I'm thinking that if we continue playing this game my little ones will be subtracting fluently before too much longer! Go ahead, you know you want to try it!

Common Core Curriculum Standards

I'm sure you have heard by now that TN kindergarten is in the process of moving to Common Core Curriculum Standards this year and grades 1 & 2 will begin the transition next school year and then the other grades will follow. Want to know what your child will be expected to learn at their grade level? Check out this website and you can see the Standards/Objectives for each grade level & for each subject area...right now we are working on Math & Reading/Language Arts (science & Social Studies will follow later).

Name Games for Promethean Board

Do you still choose a helper of the day? Our school is moving towards focusing on Leadership characteristics but I just love giving that one special child his/her special day to be the leader of all! Since the days of the Four Blocks/Building Blocks Reading focus, I have been doing Name Games each morning during my circle/calendar time and now do them all on my Promethean Board.  I have been working on making them look nicer and finally have them most of the way done! I have uploaded them for free on my TeachersPayTeachers store. Check them out & see if they are something you can use! Please let me know if you have any suggestions for other Name Games that I could add.

 

   

I have been working on a lot of flipcharts for my Promethean Board & am currently looking for ways to connect with other Promethean Board users. There are limited places to find other resources for them and Promethean Planet has some but they are not always visually appealing and lack the "wow" factor with sounds and self correcting activities...I understand why...because they do take a long time to create & it just doesn't seem worth the effort if I am the only one going to enjoy them. I want to share my creations with other teachers. Now the question is...where do I find these Promethean Board users?Smart Board seems to be everywhere so when I find Promethean board users it is like finding a long lost friend!   Here are some other things I have added...

 

 

Love Letters

Spent a wonderful & relaxing weekend in the mountains with my coworkers and now it is back to the real world. Here is my latest February project. Dental health items to come soon!

 

And for those of you out there with Promethean Boards don't forget to download the new February calendar...it is packed full of a month's worth of activities! And if the 100th Day of School is coming soon for you then check out the 100th day of School flipchart too! I am working on adding more printable items for those without Promethean boards.

 

Frazzled!

Well my graduate classes have started back this week and while I should be working on my homework I am frantically trying to finish up all of my February projects! I hate how quickly I get behind but I tend to do some of my best work under pressure! I survived the 100th day of sch I ool festivities today & should be sound asleep but my mind is racing with things I have to get done! Also looking forward to a weekend trip to Gatlinburg, TN with some cowokers! We had a wonderul parent donate her cabin in the mountains to the teachers at our school! Love spending time with coworkers outside of the school building.

Anyway, here are a few February things I have added tonight. More to follow soon (hopefully!)
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Young-And-Lively-Kindergarten

  

  

Spelling City

This website is a fun way to practice sight words.You can add your own words and all of the games will work on those specific words. There are several  great games but my little ones absoulutely LOVE Hangmouse. Go on and give it a try! Spelling City

Insta Learn Boards

Just curious if anyone out there in teacher land has used these Insta Learn boards? This are a PreK-3rd grade teacher's best friend! Mrs. Lively introduced me to them 12 years ago and I have never seen anyone else use them but they amazing! The boards have letters/numbers imprinted on them and the kids have letter/number tiles to match upper/lowercase or same letter to them. Then they use the strips with a specific skill on them. (pictured are CVC words, and matching numbers to sets) The best part is that they are self checking because only the correct answers will fit. I am able to use them the entire year and just change the skills. They have strips for money, time, beginning/middle/ending sounds, multiplication, sequencing & missing numbers/letters, sight words, upper/lowercase letters and so much more. Check out their website & request a catalog...  Insta Learn . I don't work for them but I just wanted to share this wonderful resource because if my school was on fire, this is the one item I would try to save!

 

Pictures to Go With the Last Post...

Here is a better picture of my stage (with a puppet sticking out) and the adorable pencil he made for me! I have the pencil hanging from fishing line above my bulletin board in the hallway. My son has a smaller green pencil that I plan to sneak out of his room and into my classroom to set on a shelf for decoration. Visit KMAC KREATIONS and chat with Kevin about what you would like him to make for you!

And just look at those adorable snowmen! We finally got smart and send home a family project each month for the child to decorate with their family any way they choose. They are all always so creative & different and boy are those little ones proud and ready to show off their projects. 

Coming Soon! An Answer to all of Your Creative Needs!

My husband and I have a very creative & talented friend that is sure to blow you away with his talents. Kevin McHann's talents are too numberous to cover in this little blog post of mine but to start he is a gifted singer, song writer, artist, curriculum writer, producer, actor....blah, blah, blah!

Now what can he do for you?!?!

Got an idea for a topic of study but not creative enough to get it together? Kevin is your man! Need a catchy song to go along with a unit of study? Kevin is your man! Need props and/or sets built for a school/church play? Need visual aids or (my personal favorite) decorations for your school, church, or classroom? Kevin is definately your man! Visit him at his new blog here. He is working on his blog today but keep checking back and be prepared to be blown away by all he has to offer. He is ready to create something custom for you today! Here is a picture of the stage he made for my classroom several years ago...in this picture I have my homeliving center in it, but also use it for puppet shows, class plays, dance contests, or to put kids on stage with a microphone to sing or recite the days of the week, count to 100, or show off any new skills they have learned. I just sit back with a clipboard & check off skills they have mastered while they kids enjoy the show! Easiest way to assess for report card testing ever! I'll post more pictures as I find them on my old computer....

Stay tuned for a picture of the giant pencil I had him make for me!

Christmas Break Withdrawals

It is embarrassing to say that I have only been back to school for 9 days but I am so glad we have a 3 day weekend! I am having withdrawals from wearing my pajamas for many hours in a day & waking up without the help of an alarm clock. Don't get me wrong....I love my job but it could be improved if the hours were 10-3 and pajamas & sweats were considered professional attire! So here I am on a very cold day with the house at an acceptable level of clean, showered & in a clean pair of pajamas, kids have friends over, vegetable soup in the crock pot, and husband watching fishing channel dreaming of moving back to Destin, Florida so I feel freed up to create more teaching materials for the remainder of the day. Just in time... I have been on a roll these last 9 days & have done some of my best teaching ever thanks to new ideas from Pinterest & teacher blogs I found over the Christmas break. Thanks to all that have freely shared and allowed me to borrow, adapt, and steal your ideas.

Here is my newest Skip Counting learning center games just in time for the 100th day of school. Check them out here!!

February Calendar

OK all of you Promethean Board users...I've got the February calendar up & ready to go. Thank goodness for Leap Year because you are going to need the extra day just to get to all of the review activities on this flipchart! In addition to calendar, weather, days in school, etc...I tried my best to include review pages for the things I will be testing for in the next 9 weeks...3D shapes, money, time, beginning sounds, punctuation, graphing, counting to 20, color words, and so much more! Go to my TeacherPayTeacher store to check them out! http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Young-And-Lively-Kindergarten

Here's another block center idea...

You can download these "highway" numbers, letters, and shapes C:\Documents and Settings\student\Desktop\Highway ABC Cards     Print the.mht and print them onto cardstock (I used a glue stick to attach to construction paper) and laminate. Add some Hot Wheel/Matchbox cars and students can "trace" the numbers, letters, and shapes.

b & d Confusion Signs

Found these great ideas in the Feb/March 2012 Mailbox Magazine for Kindergarten to help with b & d confusion & knew I had to make posters to use in my classroom. Print them for free at my Teachers Pay Teachers store. Also, let me know if you have any other visual aid ideas to help with b & d confusion & reversals
.