Five for Friday: Back from Spring Break

Today I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday!

We did it... we survived our first week back from Spring Break.  

This week was one of those weeks where everything just worked and we got a ton done.  We didn't have any interruptions and the kiddos came back rested and ready to learn.  We're at the point in the year where I wish we could stay.  The kiddos know the routines and expectations and we are running on all cylinders.  Such a great feeling!!

ONE: Plants

We began our plant unit this week.  The kiddos were so excited to start learning about plants.  We did an experiment to learn about what a seed needs to grow and the kiddos were so excited about it.  Now we play the waiting game to see which bag of seeds will grow!  

On Thursday my kiddos worked with their learning partners to read about what seeds need.  Then they wrote and illustrated three facts they learned from the reading!  The kids did an awesome job reading and talking about what they read with their learning partners.  

TWO: Problem Solving

I am blown away by the problem solving my kiddos are able to do this year.  We reorganized our math curriculum this year and the sequence of our units has contributed to a better understanding of addition and subtraction as well as problem solving.  

We do problem solving EVERY SINGLE DAY!  Each day our math workshop begins with a word problem on the board.  We read and discuss it together and then my firsties solve it using our work mat.  

Then at the end of our workshop we use a problem solving printable.  This practice each day has allowed my students many opportunities to work with word problems and I truly believe this is why they are able to solve word problems on their own! Right now we're working on these construction subtraction word problems.

THREE: Creating Word Problems

This week we took out these rabbits I found at the Target dollar spot.  My kiddos used them to create their own word problems.  They loved this math work station this week.  

FOUR: Interactive Journals

I am loving using journal pages each week to work on ELA skills.  My district is using the Reading Street series which means we have a ton of skills to cover as well as a ton of materials to pick from.  That being said I wanted a quick way to teach and apply the weekly skills we need to cover. 

These journal pages are a great way to teach these skills during our Daily 5 rotations.  In between our rotations we take 5-10 minutes to work on these journal pages throughout the week.  It's been a great way to hold the kids accountable without taking up so much time during our rotations.  

FIVE: Place Value

This week we've been working on comparing and ordering numbers.  My kiddos have done an awesome job.  For each new concept we played a game on the first day to introduce the concept.  They were able to work with a buddy or two to talk through these new concepts.  It was so great to hear the math talk!  

Have a great weekend.  Don't forget to visit Doodle Bugs Teaching!

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Peek At My Week

I'm linking up with the amazing Dee Dee Wills for a Peek at My Week! 

Spring Break is over... and we finally got some nice weather today!  We've been gone for 10 days so tomorrow we'll be reviewing all the expectations and routines the kiddos may have forgotten over the last 10 days!!

This week we'll be starting a plant unit.  I'm truly excited about this unit because everything around here is starting grow so this will be a fun time to explore the outdoors as part of our science unit!  

Click on my plans for more details and hyperlinks.

This week we're working on the ue and ew patterns.  My kiddos have done such a nice job with the vowel teams and other vowel patterns we've introduced over the last few weeks. This week we'll once again "build" our spelling words using Scrabble Cheez-Its and clothespins.  

We've done a ton of building with magnet letters this year and the kids are enjoying these new activities.  In addition to building our spelling words the kids need to write a sentence for each word they build.  I love this part of the activity because its a good way to see if they can read and understand the word they've built.  I also love the sentences because it gives my kiddos more practice with writing conventions.  

In math this week we're working on place value.  We'll be playing two place value games to introduce and practice ordering and comparing numbers.  For our math tubs this week we'll be using these Easter egg hunts.  We used these before our spring break and they were a big hit so I thought the kiddos would love to use them again this week. For our daily problem solving practice we'll be using some subtraction construction pages as well as the Rainy Day pages.  

Have a great week!

Be sure to check out Mrs. Wills Kindergarten to see what others will be doing this week!

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Peek at My week: Happy Easter

I'm linking up with the amazing Dee Dee Wills for a Peek at My Week! 

4 more days until Spring Break... we are all ready for the break.  Now we're just hoping the weather warms up a bit.  It's still 40 degrees here.  

Last week we reviewed vowel teams with Vowel Team Olympics.  The kids loved participating in these academic games.  This week were learning about the ie and igh vowel patterns.  

Click on the plans for more details and hyperlinks.

During our Daily 5 time my Firsties will be building spelling and sight words with Scrabble Cheez-Its and clothespins again this week.  They are loving this option at our word work station and I am loving how engaged and motivated they are to build and use the words in sentences.  Such a great hands-on and meaningful activity for my kiddos to complete each day.  

In math this week we're working on place value during our math workshop.  For our math tub games this week my kiddos will be playing these "Egg Hunt" addition and subtraction games as well as a word problem version.  All 4 games are posted to my TPT Store.   

 You can click here for the addition and subtraction game freebie!!

Have a great week!

Be sure to check out Mrs. Wills Kindergarten to see what others will be doing this week!

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Book Study: Chapter 7

Chapter 7 is all about manipulatives, models, experiments, and labs in the classroom.  I loved this chapter because a ton of what many of us do in our primary classrooms involve the use of this strategy.  

The benefits of manipulatives and models include an increased understanding of math concepts, a stronger math foundation, as well as a better chance of learning being remembered and consistently applied.  Lots of reasons to incorporate this strategy into our daily routines.  

What I'm Already Doing: 
During our Daily 5 rotations each day we use different materials to practice our sight words as well as our spelling words.  Recently we have used clothespins with letters to build vowel team words and sight words. We've even used the pins to build contractions.   

We also build spelling words with magnet letters and/or Scrabble Cheez-Its.  The kids love the Cheez-It option!

In math manipualtives and models are so important because its help the kids understand the math thinking behind their answers.  We use a ton of manipulatives during our math workshop block.  Most recently we've been using place value blocks and rekenreks.

What I'd Like to Try: 

During our math workshop time I'd like to offer the kids a choice of manipulatives.  I'd also like to include more science experiments in our room.  We tend to do whole group demonstrations but I think small group experiments could make the science even more meaningful to my kiddos.  

Be sure to check out Mrs. Jump's Class to see all the amazing ideas people are blogging about!

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Five for Friday

Today I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday!

ONE: Vowel Team Olympics

We have been working on vowel teams over the last few weeks and before moving on to other patterns I wanted to make this a review week to be sure my kiddos had a firm grasp of these vowel teams.   

That being said I tried to think of a fun way to review these vowel teams without using worksheets or even the materials we use during our Daily 5 rotations.  I wanted this review to include something special.  Because we're learning about American symbols this week I thought some Vowel Team Olympics would go right along with this theme.

All week during our Daily 5 block we took a few minutes in between rotations to use these vowel patterns in spelling tasks and sentences.  During our first rotation buddies on each team were given three pictures. Once the timer started the kids had to work with their buddy to spell the three words correctly.  They did such a nice job sharing the pen and helping one another.  

During our second rotation the kids used one of the pictures in a sentence.  They knew the only way to get the point was to spell the vowel team word correctly as well as use correct punctuation and begin the sentence with a capital letter.  Love the sentences the kids came up with!  

After each task we also did some Olympic exercises.  If each team was able to complete the exercises they were also awarded points!  

As you can see we all ended with 40 points this week! 

I love what these activities added to our classroom this week.  There was a buzz in the room as the kiddos were talking about their team points.  I was also so impressed by how well the kids worked together in teams to help one another! 

Today we concluded our Vowel Team Olympics by singing the National Anthem.  After singing the anthem the kiddos each got an Olympic Achievement Certificate... they were so excited for this!  

TWO: Place Value

This week we dove back into place value.  We touched on place value a few months ago and as part of our math program we are going back to this topic to add more tasks.  

I love that the kids really "get" place value because we do it as part of our morning calendar routine each day.  That being said we've been able to add hundreds into the numbers we're working on this week.  

This week we were able to take out these "Building Numbers" tubs to build and expand numbers during our math workshop time.  

I also had the kids building numbers and writing the expanded form on work mats.  I think this helped my Firsties understand what expanded form means.  It also helped those few kiddos that were confused by writing the number of tens and ones and then using that to write the expanded form.  

Never underestimate the power of using manipulatives.  It keeps the kids motivated and truly gives them a great math foundation.  More to come on the blog tomorrow as part of the Worksheets Don't Grow Dendrites book study.  

THREE: Opinion Writing

These collections can only mean one thing... we've started our Lucy Calkins unit on opinion writing!  My kids loved writing about their "best in show" this week and I was blown away by their willingness to add many reasons to back up their opinions.  They were so engaged this week during writing and I had a few kids SO disappointed they didn't get a chance to share their pieces this week.  

FOUR: American Symbols

We learned about US symbols to go along with out reading series piece in which we "visit" Washington, D.C. to learn about our capital.  We also read a ton of good books during our guided reading groups this week!

I had these maps sitting on a shelf and I forgot about them until today. This afternoon we took them out and used stickers to mark our state capital as well as some of the US symbols and landmarks we have been learning about.  We also finished learning about the Bald Eagle this afternoon.    

Five: Happy Friday

Jasper and I can't wait to catch up on our favorite show! 


Thanks so much for visiting! Have a great weekend! 

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Five for Friday: St. Patrick's Day

Today I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday!

ONE: St. Patrick's Day

We celebrated St. Patrick's Day all week with these great read alouds.  My kiddos enjoyed the tales of leprechauns and luck!  

We graphed in one morning to answer the question Do you believe in leprechauns?  We worked on a graphing unit in math this week so we used this during our math workshop time to discuss graphing and we were able to answer questions using the graph.  

We've been playing St. Patrick's Day math games over the last few weeks.  Prior to this week we worked on addition and subtraction spinner games.  This week we turned up the heat a bit and played a missing addend sort game.  A bit more challenging but the kids did a great job!  

TWO: US Symbols

The kids were so excited about starting this unit this week.  Our ELA program included a nonfiction piece about Washington D.C. so this was  a perfect week to begin the US symbols unit.  We took a "field trip" around our school to find different US symbols that we will learn more about next week.  The kids loved taking our clipboards around the school to look for these symbols.

Reading these nonfiction books and watching a short video on BrainPop Jr. helped my kids located the symbols around the school.  Our leveled library also had some great books that worked for this week as well!

THREE: Word Work

This week I changed up some of the work work activities during our Daily 5 rotations each day.  I was finally able to find Scrabble Cheez-Its so this week we built our spelling words (oa/ow patterns) with Cheez-Its.  By putting these worksheets in page protectors we were able to use dry erase markers to write our sentences.  This is a great paper saver and the kids love using the crackers to build words.  We'll be doing this again next week for sure!

This week I also had my kiddos building sight words with clothespins.  They love this activity and to add more meat to the task I had them write sentences on a recording sheet.  Can't wait to give this a try next week again!

FOUR: Graphic Organizers

Last week in the Worksheets Don't Grow Dendrites chapter we talked all about graphic organizers. This week I gave a few of my organizers a face-lift and we used them during our guided reading lessons.  I love how versatile they are.  

FIVE: Plants

Our plants finally started to grow this week.  My kiddos were so excited to see the small sprouts in some of our pots.  We've been working hard the last few weeks watering the plants.  It was great to see how excited they were to see the first few sprouts.  We even got to draw a picture of our plants this week to document the life cycle of a plant!  

Thanks so much for visiting!  Have a great weekend!

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