Secret Santa Blog Hop

Hello sweet friends! 

I am so excited to be joining my sweet friends over at The Elementary Entourage!  They are some of the smartest and sweetest bloggers I know!!!  Each of us have a sweet little gift JUST FOR YOU!  I think we are going to make Santa proud!  

ANDDDD...since I am your Secret Santa, here are a few clues in the form of jokes.  Cause I love corny jokes!!

What does a snowman eat for breakfast? 
Frosted Flakes!

Do you love snow days?  I know some of my friends love them and I know some of them not so much.  For us here in South Carolina, a snow day could mean inches and inches of snow and by that... I mean like three inches...maybe.  :)  

Time to go get bread and milk!

I bet you know what my freebie is!  (wink, wink)  Okay...okay...I will tell you!  It's SNOW!!!!  

When we return to school in January, one of the things that we love to teach about is snow!!  The kids LOVE learning about SNOW!!  They love to learn about the characteristics of a snowflake and Snowflake Bentley! 

How did the snowman get to school?   
He rode his icicle!

Here is what we use to launch our lesson on snow!  You can use it, too!  Just click on the picture below.  

Characteristics of a Snowflake 

Snowflake Bentley

 Okay...okay...one more joke for you!  Snow more???  Ohhh...come on!!  

What do you get when you cross a snowman and a vampire?
Frostbite!

Okay, go check out all the other gifts from your Secret Santa over at the Elementary Entourage!  

CREATE A PILGRIM TOY!!!

Happy Thanksgiving, Y'All!

One of the things that I love to teach is the First Thanksgiving!  I love teaching about the Wampanoag Tribe and the Pilgrims and how they lived in the 1600's.  I would have never made it...bless.  One of the things we discuss is how the Pilgrims made everything since there was no Target, Toys-R-Us, or Wal-Mart.  Even the toys had to be made!  So one thing we do in class is make a Pilgrim toy!  

First, I show them several toys that the Pilgrims would have played with.

One of the Pilgrim toys that the Pilgrims played with is a cup and ball toss toy.  It looked just like the toy below.  You would toss the ball into the cup or at least try to.  Let me tell you...it's not as easy as it looks.  The idea is easy but doing it??? Geez!  It would have taken a lot of practice!

So we make this cute Pilgrim toy with things we have around the room!!!  Because that is what the Pilgrims would have done.  They would have used what they had!

Want to make one too?  Here is what you need for one cup and ball toss toy!
   
1.  SUPPLIES

• one small plastic cup (just like the bathroom paper cups)
• a pencil
• two rubber bands
• a 4"x4" aluminum foil sheet  (I use the aluminum pre-cut sheets by Reynolds Wrap and cut them into squares.)
• string (12 inches)
• washi tape (one piece)

2.  Step One:  

You will need to drill a hole in the bottom of the plastic cup.  The hole needs to be as big as the pencil but you want it to be a tight fit.  Then wrap a rubber band around the eraser end of a pencil.  Stick the pencil through the hole so that the rubber band stops the end of the pencil.  

3.  Step Two:  

Wrap the second rubber band around the pencil and slide it up to the bottom of the cup.  This will help secure the cup so it isn't so wiggly!

Step Three:   1. You need two separate things for the ball and string.  You will need about 12 inches of string and your four by four square of aluminum foil. 2. Lay the string onto the aluminum foil square.   3.  Now fold the aluminum foil so that the string will be inside the foil.  4.  Fold again.  5.  NOW crumble up the foil into a ball.  Your string will have a ball attached to the end.  6.  Take the washi tape and attach the end of the string to the cup.  

HUZZAH!!  YOU DID IT!! 

You just created a Pilgrim toy!  Now it's time for the kids to practice!!  They will love trying it over and over and YOU will love it because it authentic and it's a hands-on project!!  



Here is a game that I love playing with my students.  They do a "write around the room" activity that sorts Pilgrim chores with the chores they do at home today.  Check it out at my store!  

Have a great Thanksgiving!! 

SUB PLANS FOR A DOLLAR! OH YES!!!! MAKING THOSE SICK DAYS A LITTLE BIT EASIER!!!

NEED SUB PLANS??

Hey y'all!  This is Shana Grooms from Mrs. Grooms' Room.  I am so glad to be back!  

Have you been feeling a little under the weather lately?  

Is this so true or what????

Being a teacher and being sick?  Not ideal! You definitely have to take your vitamins, get plenty of sleep, and exercise.  But if you aren't able to lick doorknobs just yet (ok...just kidding...sorry!!), and you need sub plans for your little ones, check-out my substitute plans below for The Little Red Hen!!  

I love to have my plans available and ready for my sub but sometimes getting sick means just whipping out something for your poor substitute teacher!  And you and I both know that IS THE WORST!  You don't feel like and your sub won't be feeling it either.  :(  

Luckily for me?  No crazy germs yet!  So far... my vitamin-packed force-field has been ultra-effective this year!!  

However, you now can grab this little set of plans for your kiddies for just a BUCK! Being sick won't be so HORRIBLE!  

Let's take a peek!

Here are some of the things that you will find in my sub plans!

Complete plans for your substitute teacher that are simple to understand!  

Got to make those words work, people!  Even if you can't!!! 

Mystery Word:  Chicken

How can we help that hard-working Little Red Hen? Let's give her some advice! 

 For math, use the grain group counters to count up larger numbers.  Use the single counters to count your ones!

What came first the Little Red Hen or the egg?  We got to learn all about the life cycle of a chicken!   You will be healthy again...don't worry! 

AND THERE IS A LOT MORE!! You can check out my sub plans at my TPT store, Mrs. Grooms' Room.  This will make being sick just a little bit easier!  Take those vitamins!!!

And the most super thing of all is that it is only a DOLLAR!!  

WHOOO needs sub plans?  NOT I!  AND NOW NOT YOU!!!  

By the way...isn't chicken soup orange juice really effective for colds and the flu?  :/

 Just click on the link below!  

TRICKS AND TREATS BLOG HOP

HELLLLOOOO SWEEEEEET FRIENNNNNDS!!  (Hoping that sounds spooky-ish) :) 

I am linking up with Mrs. Plemons Kindergarten!  This is a post to help you with some tricks ideas  and give you some treats awesome freebies.   I am so excited to be part of it!!  I love nothing better than an awesome trick to use with my students and a sweet treat to take with me!  Chocolate-covered, of course....

Here is my TRICK...

Okay, one of my favorite things to do with my kiddies is to read stories to my students and use my crazy voices.  And 99.9 percent of the time, my voices are hideous.  But my kiddies love them anyway.  Isn't that kind of scary? 

Soo...one of the ways that I like to tell my stories is to use VoiceThread!  Now if you have never use VoiceThread, think of it as storytelling magic or even Reading Rainbow.  It can just wisp you away and take you to another place but slightly more homemade.  

VoiceThread is actually free for the first five VoiceThreads that you do.  It is just a collection of pictures or photos that you or your students can tell stories about, read, or create discussion with others.  Now, I know I sound like a VoiceThread commercial BUT I promise it is easy to use and it something I go back to all the time! 

There are how-to lessons on using VoiceThread but let me tell you friends, if you can do facebook, you can do VoiceThread.  You just up load your pictures and add a comment to that particular picture.  The comment is actually just you or your students talking, reading, or discussing with others. You press a button and begin to read.  It records your voice and puts it all together for you.  Check this out...this is my Pumpkin Jack version.  (My book is much like Pumpkin Jack, gone.  But no new book has grown back. I don't get it.)  So to save the story?  I did a VoiceThread for Pumpkin Jack.  Please don't laugh and tell me...laugh and don't tell me.  I will never know.  

 I know...I sound hideous but my kids love it.  

Cool, huh?  I love VoiceThread.  AND the great thing about it?  Is that you can use it with anything!  Not just Pumpkin Jack! 

Here is my treat...

It is a sweet little e-book on the life cycle of a pumpkin.  Please download at my TPT store and please leave me your sweet thoughts!  I hope you enjoy it!  Have a wonderful time TRICK OR TREATING!!!  

An InLinkz Link-up

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EXTREME CLASSROOM MAKEOVERS: MRS. GROOMS' ROOM

Hey y'all!  

Welcome to Mrs. Grooms' Room!   

I am so glad you are here to see my sweet little room!  If you see something a little off, just know we are a working classroom.  Goodness!  Things can get messy!  So just bear with me.  If you see anything that was created by yourself, I CREDIT you!!  Please leave me a comment below and I will give you credit in my post.  I honestly don't know how I made it before without my blogger friends, Pinterest, and Teachers Pay Teachers!??  This classroom is because of you!  :)

I have left comments under my pictures.  In most of my posts, the left is the before photo and the right photo is the after photo.  I wish I had more cute little arrows and happy notes but my other laptop is sniff...with a virus...so I am using my oldie but sweetie, without a virus laptop!!  Promise to still love me!?  :)

Classroom Theme:    Black, White, and Sprinkles of Yellow

My little corner of the world...this is where all of the magic happens!

I am sure you can see the before and after.   Where do I put all of those tubs?  Under my computer counter!  Can you tell they are there?
"I don't need any more storage space.  But thanks anyway!" said NO TEACHER EVER!
(Sorry about all my stuff!  I was just getting ready to leave.)


Not a lot of change...

My awesome Promethean Board!  I LOVE this board!  It is my dearest and bestest companion in the classroom.  Does anyone remember when we used the overhead projector? :/

Folders with Chalkboard Labels 
Cute, right?

I know...it's probably not Pin-worthy BUT it is really cute and it matches my room.  I had to do it, friends!!   I am going to write their cute little names on the chalkboard labels in white with my white paint pen.  The labels?  I got them from the Dolla Tree!!!  Oh yes, people!  That is why I love that place!  The folders?  I got the folders from Target.  50 cents!


My Reading Corner

This is my reading corner.  I know there are not huge changes but I really think the "You are my Sunshine" picture looks so much better there than on my bookshelf behind my desk.  

My chalkboard job chart and my Essential Questions boards look a lot better and my EQ's are easier to erase!  

My students put their homework folders and spelling menus in the black cloth bins. There is storage underneath for me for little items like erasers and staples.  Much needed!  
Promise me, you will not open the teacher cabinet ever!!   
You could be crushed.  :)  

Magnetic Boards (Upcycled Serving Trays)

(It's amazing what a little spray paint can do!)

My Desk  

My desk in all of its glory...before and after.  I don't use it all that much and I haven't been as brave as some others who are letting their desks go.  
(I honestly don't think they would let us move it out of the room.) 

Cool File Holders

 Another Dolla Tree aquistion!!  I bought the little chalkboard stickers at Target last year.  Easy peasy and cute!


Little Changes

Just a few little changes here and a few little changes there.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE the crayon tower.  It is the best thing that has ever happened to little lost crayons.  Got a lost broken crayon that needs a home?  Put it in the tower!  If you don't have one, you definitely should get one!  It will make your crayon life so much easier!    
I am trying the glue sponges because the good Lord knows that glue sticks are just snacks.  And we are no longer allowed to have alcohol-based hand-sanitizer!!  Can you believe the alcohol-free hand-sanitizer exists?  
I thought it was like the unicorns...

Some of my favorite things...

I LOVE SITSPOTS!!!    If you don't have a rug and need spots for your little ones...GET THEM.  I LOVE THEM LIKE CRAZY SAUCE!!!  
"Boys. please have a seat on the black dots. Girl, have a seat on the white dots."  
AND THEY DO IT!!!   
Another one of my favorite things is my seat pockets.  My mother-in-law sewed these little cuties and they washed up like a CHAMP!  (Really, who has black and yellow seat pockets?)  If you need seat pockets, just send me an email.  She will be more than happy to sew you a set, in any color!!   

My third favorite thing is my Marvelous Morning Work by Tamara Russell.  I swear by it.  It takes us through the year step-by-step every morning.  I honestly think that she made it for my class!  ;)


My Counter

Another attempt at the before and after photos.  Definitely better after!


MY LITTLE RED HEN SUB PLANS

Just in case...they are ready to go!

Happy parts of my room...

 I upcycled my old rulers by making them bookshelf markers or dividers.  I painted them black and stuck some black and white washi tape on the ends.  CUTE!


So this is my classroom.  It is my second home.  Everyday,  I want it to be a happy and a safe environment for my students to learn and for me to live in.  Maybe one day I will be finished!  (ha ha)
I am so glad you got to come by.  
Virtual hugs!  

Now, head on over to Primary Gal's blog to check out all the other classrooms!  I will be right there taking notes!  See ya there!

TIME FOR AN EDUCENTS SALE!!!

What is a CLOCK or bleepteebogtoodadee?  

Sesame Street:  Martians Meet a Clock

Can you believe this?  Today is our third day of school and we have already started time!  I know!!!  I am already counting the minutes on our clock literally.  Ha!  Time is a BIG part of our calendar time...clearing throat...so many jokes, so little time. (I see you smiling!)  

We will be counting groups of fives and ones on our clock in the next two weeks. Can you believe that?  There are just so many things you can do with a simple clock. Counting patterns, symmetry, fractions, sequence, units of time, day and night, elapsed time...just not enough time.  

My GOAL EVERY YEAR?   My kids will be rocking around the clock! ;) 

Below are some of the things you will see in my classroom throughout the year! 

(Sorry about my cute little characters...my printer is sweet and wonderful...and dying.) 

 It's two of my favorite hands on the clock!! 

(Look at Baby Hour's diaper and pacifier!!  CUTE!!!)

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Momma Minute and Baby Hour.  We have already started talking about Momma Minute and Baby Hour in my class this year.   Unbelievable?!  I know!  But it is so important that we know and understand time.  

We do a little every day.

  

Here are some things we do in class:

1) We count every minute for the first 60 days so students can see how the minutes on the clock are grouped.  We color-code our groups of five, too.  One group is usually red and the other group is usually blue.  This of course creates an awesome pattern for students to see.  

2)  We talk about how we can count the minutes in groups of fives or ones.  Then we count the minutes by fives and ones!  It's definitely a daily discussion.  :)  

3) We do one minute of exercises or stretches to understand how one minute feels.  A minute on one foot, people, feels longer than one minute!!!  :)

4) We use the flash cards and games later to practice our time in centers but we talk about the rules EVERY day!  For example, "When Momma Minute is on the six, Baby Hour will be between two numbers."   

It's simple and it doesn't take a long time.  Five minutes, maybe?

By the time, we actually get to time, it's not that scary, and it's not that hard.
That is a concept mastered!!!  

Here are some cute videos that are great to use in class! 

What's the Time?

How to Teach Time - Time for Friends - Educational Short Story

Ticktock Minutes: Seconds, Minutes, Hours, Days

EDUCENTS IS HAVING AN AWESOME 

BACK TO SCHOOL SALE FOR TEACHERS!!

I have also teamed up with Educents with some instant downloads for you! Loaded with great activities like interactive notebooks, games, printables, and centers!  It's like having literacy, math, science that stretches throughout the year!  And it's simply a click away!!!  

TELLING TIME WITH MOMMA MINUTE AND BABY HOUR

This is one of my favorite units of all times.  We use this easy concept of time during our calendar time.  Students easily identify Momma Minute and Baby Hour because of their name and NOW we have the characters to go with it!  There are lots of games, printables, activities, and even a simple craft that students can use to practice time at home.  

A BALANCE AND MOTION UNIT: UNDER THE BIG TOP

This little show-stopping unit is one of my best sellers!!  Why?  I think Balance and Motion can be tough to teach the little ones.  You are dealing with a lot of unseen forces and how do you explain gravity if you can't actually see it?  Well...even though you can't see these forces, kids know what balance means and they know that things fall to the ground.  They understand push and pull and this unit gives them the tools to practice these ideas! 

There are practice sheets and printables to help reinforce your experiments, ideas, and activities.  It's a great addition to your balance and motion unit!!

For a limited time it is $24.99 from Educents which is about 78% off!  24 products for  literacy, math, and science - resources that will stretch you long into your year.  And over 1200 pages of materials ready for you to use - there is sure to be tons you will love!

(This is probably one of my favorite bundles.  There is so much I am going to be able to use this year!!  AND This gives me more money to spend at Educents later!)  ;) 

You can also take peek at some of the other products included in the bundle at any of the links below!

An InLinkz Link-up

No Educents account?  

Just click on the minion!  He will be more than happy to direct you there! 

Do you have an Educents' account yet?  If you don't, get one now!!  You will not be disappointed.  Before I even started blogging, I was a Educents fan and the great thing about Educents is that you get a big ol' bundle of student activities, ideas, craftivities, printables, and games for a low low price!!  As a teacher, you have to be frugal and Educents can help you be a frugal teacher!

Plus, you will receive updates, sale dates, discounts, and my FAVORITE...FREEBIES!!!  Woot! Woot!