Heebie Jeebies and a FREEBIE!

So today, our second day back after break, and THREE kids in my class went home with LICE.   L-I-C-E. 

I have a serious issue with lice.   I know people get it,  I know it is not a huge deal, but OMG! I don't deal with it well, I always think I have it,  I feel them biting my head,  I know they are there.  Our poor school nurse doesn't even question me anymore,  she just starts seperating my hair and checking my roots.  I have trouble sleeping, I end up dying my hair even when I don't need it, I scratch my head until it bleeds.  I HAVE NEVER HAD IT.  But this happens to me everytime.  It is crazy, and I own that.  It one of my issues.  

But right now,  I am not that crazy.  I bought this spray right before Christmas, and it is bringing me a little peace of mind.   It is all natural,  mint spray that is supposed to repel lice.  Even if it doesn't - I still believe it might, so it is keeping me off the ceiling.  I have a little bottle in my purse and the big one in my classroom.  I used it a LOT today.   Like, I smelled like a pack of gum, lot... but I feel like I am going to sleep tonight - so SCORE!  I found this brand of spray at Great Clips when my boys were getting their hair cut.  The little bottle was $5 and the large one was $14...but really a bargain at any price if you ask me!

 

 

In other news,  we did a really fun little activity today, so I wanted to share.   In social studies, we are talking about inventors, inventions, timelines, and how things change over time.  We introduced the topic today,  so I looked up a bunch of pictures of phones through the decades, and blew them up and printed them off.  We sat down in a circle and scattered the pictures in the middle.   I didn't give the kids a lot of directions,  I just told them to put the pictures in order from oldest to newest.   After they finished telling each other how much they all wanted an iPhone 5 and everyone they knew who has one, they got to it.   It was Ah-mazing y'all.   They made some mistakes to start out but they talked it out.   Things like - "these two don't have numbers on them so they were probably first", and "first they dialed, then pushed buttons, now we tap".  They LOVED the big ol' "car phone".   It was great.  Then I asked them what they would have used the first phones for.   They REALLY had to think about it.   They couldn't use them to text, to check out facebook... it looked difficult  to use, and they figured they would have to sit still to use them, so they decided they probably didn't use them for much except emergencies.  After they finished,  I gave groups of kids topics like cars, washing machines, airplanes, stereos, computers, sewing machines etc. and had them go look up photos of them through the years.  It was so loud in my room - they were all shouting, "Come look at this" and "You have to see this!".   I loved it.   They are working on Powerpoints or Prezis to show the progression over time.  After we get through the pictures,  I am going to have them try to explain why they would have changed. It was such a fun way to start this unit.  I have put up the phone pictures if you would like to use them go get 'em here... http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/FREEBIE-Phones-through-the-Ages .

 

 



Back at it...

Tomorrow my kids come back.   We had a very relaxed workday today,  which was a great way to ease back in.  I am not going to lie,  I would much prefer another fews days of jammies and couch time,  but since that is not in the cards,  I am really excited to show my kids Eve!   I took her to work today to get her used to the classroom.   She is so cute.   Just look at this face.

 

 

I finished my Snow unit last night - but was too tired to post it.   I love it because it revolves around four seperate snow books - 1 biography,  one science, one poetic and one fun - Snowflake Bentley, The Snowflake- A Water Cycle Story, Snow, and Snow Day.  It can be used as a whole,  or can be broken up into parts.   It can be used as reading, social studies, writing and science grades.   In fact,  there is a symmetry activity that could be graded for math.   I love when curriculum crosses subject areas.  Go check it out! http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Snow-a-Four-Book-Literature-Unit-Fiction-and-Non-Fiction

 

 

 

 



Look who is coming to work with me this week!!!

Tomorrow I head back to work.   Thankfully, the district I work for seems to understand that I have been sitting around in my pajamas or sweats the whole break and am not going to be able to handle jumping back in,  so we have a work day tomorrow.   I really have done so little this break, it is alarming.  I promised friends I would hang out,  maybe even have a party at my house... I did nothing of the sort.  I just sat here, cuddled under my favorite blanket,  watching episode after episode of Duck Dynasty. If my four offspring had not forced me to get up and feed them on a regular basis,   I might have slept for two weeks straight.   I guess I needed the break.  

That said,  I am pretty excited about heading back tomorrow.   I love my team,  I love my school,  and frankly,  it is time for me to get dressed. AND... we are starting The Mitten this week.   I love The Mitten.   I mean,  I really, really love it.  I have been a Jan Brett stalker fan, for years and The Mitten is my favorite, favorite.   We will be using my The Mitten unit - and comparing Jan Brett's version to Alvin Tresselt's version.   I love comparing folktales and these two are just different enough to be really fun.  If you get a chance,  go check it out. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Mitten-A-Literature-Unit

And... if you love Jan Brett like I do, you know she loves HEDGEHOGS.   She puts them in every book somewhere.  And lucky me,  it just so happens that my friend Susie had has a hedgehog that she is letting me keep forever and ever borrow for the week (Susie and I have had some odd conversations over the years,  so, "can I borrow your hedgehog", wasn't really that far of a stretch)! She is so cute.   She is pretty shy today,  so I didn't want to pick her up,  but oh my word!   I am so excited for my class to see her on Tuesday.   I am going to give them an assignment on Edmodo to Google hedgehogs and have them write down three interesting things about hedgehogs,  and when they are done I am going to surprise them with her!  I know,  I am a total geek.   But I don't care!  Is it weird I have an urge to dress her up in little Scandinavian clothes and a hat?   Don't answer that...I promise I won't really do it.

Happy Week Peeps!

Freckle Juice!

I am a kid of the 70's.  I love Judy Blume.  The only books I even really remember from childhood are Judy Blume books.   Every girl of my generation read Are You There God, It's Me Margaret over and over.   Iggy's House,  Tales of the Fourth Grade Nothing, Superfudge,  Deenie (I seriously worried about having scoliosis for years after reading that book).... the list goes on and on.   I can't imagine my childhood without Judy Blume books and I have made sure they are part of my own children's library as well. 

I love to share these books with my class as well,  on an age appropriate level - and my very favorite for second grade is Freckle Juice. It makes a PERFECT first novel.  Poor Andrew,  so jealous of all of Nicky's freckles,  so easily taken advantage of by that little biotch  stinker Sharon.  Jealousy is something we all deal with from the time we are old enough to say, "mine",  so this little tale is a natural for making text to self connections. 

I break out Freckle Juice after Christmas break.  I usually spend about two weeks on this story.   I have 11 or 12 copies, so enough to work in partners.   I love to listen to all the discussions that go with this story.   I have created what I think is a really great packet to go along with this story.   It includes ideas for text to self connections, making inferences,   chapter quizzes, a craftivity, a website author study activity and much more.  I found six different versions of cover art that have been used on this book over the last 35 years and made a voting and graphing activity to go with them.   One of my favorite activities is the Sign of the Times page.   It is obvious this book was written in the 70's, there are many clues... like the way the kids are dressed, the .10 allowance,  mom's hair style etc.   This activity has the kids searching the book to look for clues.  I hope that you will give this beginner novel study a look!  http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Freckle-Juice-A-Novel-Study

 http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Freckle-Juice-A-Novel-Studyhttp://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Freckle-Juice-A-Novel-Study

I am in love with Ed!

Edmodo that is.   Do you know about this site?   If you don't,  you NEED to.  It will make your school life so much easier.   It will make your class hang on your every word.... okay,  not really,  but they will LOVE it too.    If you don't know Edmodo - let me introduce you to my love.

The first thing you will notice is that Edmodo looks like a lot like Facebook.  KIDS LOVE THAT.    They can send each other messages,  build profiles and post on each other's wall - but you are like the Great and Powerful Oz and you can edit their walls or take down anything that is inappropriate (or just really badly spelled).  They take a learning style quiz when they set up their profile, so you have that available to you at any time - and so do they!

You can post messages to your class that they can get if you are there or not,  or if they are there or not!  You can post assignments,  apps.,  links to websites you want them to go to,  polls, quizzes, assignments,  IT IS AMAZING!  And you can see who is working.... WHAT?  For real peeps - you can see who is working and who is not, which can make a sub day a completely new experience. You can be sitting there waiting in your dentist's waiting room, and see that  Mr. Giggly Britches is not working on the brilliant Freckle Juice quiz you so lovingly created.  Just call the sub and ask to talk to him.... it will blow his mind, and make him believe you really are like Santa and can see him when he is being bad or good, so he better be good for goodness sake. Ho-Ho-Ho!  

And Mr. Ed...my love,  he CHECKS and GRADES the quizzes and gives you a little graph of how everyone did on each question.  You can see in a glance who has not turned in the assignment or see who is struggling and call them to work with you right then and there.... not after their papers have been riding around in your car for three days and they forgot what story you were reading in the first place!  You can reteach,  review, erase their quiz and let them retake it all in one class period.   They you can just print it out and copy it into your grade book.  No paper, no copies,  no big glue-y, shredded paper blobs in the bottom of your school bag.  HOLLA!

And building a quiz  or assignment on Ed is as easy as can be.  You simply choose build quiz,  select the type of quiz you want to give,  type in the questions,  and answer choices and click on the right answer.  Assign the quiz (to the whole class or a small group or one kid, whatever!).  You can assign a time for them to take it - or keep it more open.   Once they take it,  it is automatically graded and accounted for.  And the assignment gets saved for you to use next year (no more tearing through your file cabinets or opening every single Google Drive folder searching for your Community Helpers Quiz). A-W-E-S-O-M-E, awesome, awesome - Toe-ta-lee!

There are tons of great apps you can preview and download (some cost money,  but you can make "money" by completing teacher surveys and stuff).   I often find a video or game about a topic we are going to be studying,  write my class a message and provide them with the link on Edmodo.com,  then ask them to type a response or answer some questions or a poll about it for bellwork - totally frontloading for the day.   My second graders can do it without a word of instruction from me and have been able to since the second week of school.

There are a lot of wonderful teacher resources available too.  You can join interest groups,  share badges, and materials with teachers around the country.   You can link up with other classrooms,  or teachers that you know.  

I swear,  I don't work for Edmodo...(totally would if they offered - LOL) but it is my very favorite classroom website this year and I want to share what I love!  Go try it out if you don't already use it!  It is ABSOLUTELY FREE!   If you do try it,  please find me and link up with me!

I have a lot of pictures to go with this post.... but I can't attach them?   Not sure what is going on,  but I will add them when I am able.

Valentines Day FREEBIE!

Just added a little Valentines Day freebie to TpT and Teachers Notebook.  Go and get it if you can use it!  I love a math walk-about activity,  especially on a day my kids are losing their minds thinking about the cupcakes they get to eat at the end of the day.  This one is probably best for second and third graders,  maybe some firsties,  but not most.  

 

Currently, and this is to that as that is to this...

It seems like only yesterday my dad was instructing me to store a lot of water in my garage because EVERTHING was going to shut down with Y2K.  LOL!  I love that we even had an ominous way to say it - Y2K... it seems amazing to me that was 13 year ago.    I was a new momma to a snuggly 3 week old baby boy.   Now I am a gray haired mom (when I don't color frequently enough) to a hormonal 13 year old boy and his three younger siblings.   Life is crazy fast.

Now that it is January it is time to share this month's currently... linked up with Farley at  http://ohboy3rdgrade.blogspot.com/.

Listening - I am very often listening to Elmo.   He is the current obsession of my 2 year old Eden.   I am super happy to be sitting on the couch listening to this,  instead of at work.  But there are a lot of other things I would prefer to be listening to.

Loving - that we don't go back until Monday (and that is even a work day - no students til Tuesday!)

Thinking - that if we ever came across someone like Mr. Noodle in real life I would warn my kids against him.  He is creepy.  I really don't like this segment of Elmo's World.  

Wanting - it is cold and cloudy and THE PERFECT day for a nap, but there is no chance in hell Grant is going to let me take advantage of this opportunity!

Needing -to take care of my hair problem.   These gray hairs are alarming.   It is shocking to see how fast they are taking over my head.   They are wirey and stick straight up.   It is a constant battle.   I hate that my hair is acting so old.   I don't feel that old....

OLW - One little word - Happy.   Even without a nap,  with new gray hairs popping by the minute,  and the constant annoyance of Mr. Noodle,  I am happy.   It is a choice and I chose it. 


I just posted a new analogy packet on TpT and I am super proud of it.   It took me FOR-EVAH to complete,  but I am really happy with it.   I have noticed that when my second graders start to understand analogies they start to make their own all the time... which is exactly what we want - kids making their own connections right?   Text to self, and text to text and text to world and self to world... well it all starts with being able to make connections - EXACTLY what analogies are.   I tried to include as many different types as I could for elementary aged kids.   It is an easy, intentional way to teach connections.   It can be used as a unit - or throughout the year in bits and pieces.   It is not connected to any one subject area - it can be used to show one type of analogy and be used in science and then later in math and later with a book.  I even made a I Have, Who Has challenge game to go with it.   Please go check it out.   As long as your kids are readers,  they can use this!  I will send a free copy to the first five people who comment on this post!

Hope you are all having the Happiest of Days to start this New Year!