Stuck Santa and Anchor Charts

 So, today we read the book Santa's Stuck, What a hoot! The kids loved it. We went on to make these chimneys which I found on Cara's blog on First Grade Parade. I tell you, if you haven't seen her blog you must check it out. She does awesome things with her class. Kudos go out to Cara!

Here are a few anchor charts we've done in our class. I don't know about you, but I am running out of room for all these anchor charts we make. I hate to take any down but will have to switch some out. The odd and even chart is really a helpful one for the kids. They refer to it quite often. Anyway, on to more projects. I'll have some more projects to post in the next day or so. Today several of our teachers did projects they came across either on blogs or pinterest. We were comparing projects and each one is as cute as the next. Once again, I am soooo thankful that all these great teachers share.  Have a great week!

Holiday Bulletin Board

Omg! When I saw this bulletin board on Pinterest I just had to do it. Thanks to my wonderful aide in my class we were able to duplicate it. It's so cute! I don't know about you but is Pinterest just so addicting? I can't seem to get enough of it. There are so many awesome ideas out there and wonderful people who share. But on the other hand, isn't that what teachers do, beg, borrow and steal?! I am so very thankful for all the teachers who share their creations. They're awesome!  Have a great week and thanks for stopping by.

Our Turkeys in First Grade!

So, what a day today was! I was completely exhausted when the kids went home. We had our pilgrim and indian feast with the kindergarten. We usually entertain the kindergarteners and they feed us. However, our school has had to put a stop to food brought into the building that isn't ok'd by parents first (we have two children who are deathly allergic to certain foods). Anyway, our firsties sang songs and read poems to them while the kinders sang to us. They also had their own snacks from their lunches. They had a blast. We then went on to sing to the preschoolers too. In the afternoon my daughter came to visit and she had this cute turkey project for them to do. We also somehow squeezed math, religion and a reading test in. I don't know how we managed that. Now, tomorrow the kiddies have a half day and parent conferences will be the rest of the day and night. Oh my! I will be glad to see Wednesday come. Now on to all the wonderful holiday activities. Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful turkey day, gobble, gobble!

Mayflower boats and Trying to Catch My Breath!

I love how these boats turned out. I got the idea from First Grade Parade. If you need any great ideas check her out. I just love her blog! Back to the Mayflower, we started by reading a book about the Pilgrims and the Mayflower. Each child wrote a fact they learned on sticky notes and placed it on the anchor chart. After that we made the boats. Each page has a fact abou the boat. We are having a Pilgrim and indian feast with the kindergarten class on Monday so we will use these boats as the center piece. The kids are just loving all the November activities. We only have a day and a half next week. Parent conferences are Tuesday after the kids go home at noon. We do all the conferences in one day and then have the next day off. It sounds like a long day (and it is) but it's also nice to get them over with in one day. Anyway, I'm still busy taking classes for my masters in reading and it is soooo busy now. We've had some easy classes but now the work is piled on. On top of that our school is getting evaluated by the Archdioces in February and we have a ton of work to get done by January 1st. And, I still want to do all the wonderful projects and activities in my classroom. I feel like my head is spinning. I even woke up the other morning dreaming about guided reading books.
Unbelievable, huh! So I'm off to type up a lesson plan for my classes. Have a great weekend!

First Grade is for the Birds!

Ok, I don't think my kids want to make another turkey! I saw several great turkey ideas on the blogs and just had to make them. I have been making the same old turkey every year for the past many years and I wasn't about to make it one more time. When I came across these they were perfect. First we made the turkeys along with our counting by 10's math lesson. Then we used the pattern pieces to make another turkey. Finally, we made turkeys with our phonics. I will say the pattern piece turkey was fairly difficult for some of them, they just didn't get it. Either way, they turned out cute. Life has been so hectic around her. You see, our school is getting evaluated by the Archdioces this February so we have a ton of work to do for that. I am taking classes toward my masters in reading and have a ton of reading tests to give and evaluate this week, all on top of the regular school work. AND the most important thing this week  is that my girlfriends and I are going away for a scrapbook weekend. So, that explains the craziness. I'm sure it's no different than your life. Anyway, have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by.