Count down to SUMMER!!

WOW there is SO much to share as we count down to summer.

 First, I am very honored to have been invited to participate in the Little Rock Writing Project's Summer Institute for teachers! Only 9-12 teachers are invited each year and I am one of them!! My summer will be PACKED full of learning, reading and writing! I'm excited and scared and can not wait to get started!

Up next, the knee situation... still can't climb stairs or squat beside tables to conference, but the constant pain has finally reduced. I am now hoping that maybe some PT will help with the rest... if the dr will go for PT that is. 

We have three weeks left! this is the first year in FOREVER that we have gotten out before memorial day. I can only hope that our principal will let us sign out on Friday. Oh joy of joys... the thought that school would end that early is AMAZING!! There is still so much to do... DRA, assessments, report cards,  record cards, files....the list goes on and on!

This week is going to be CRAZY busy... we have a field trip, field day and I have a day and 1/2 of meetings. It just doesn't seem like it should be this close to the end of the year. I am making kindergarten yearbooks again this year. I can't wait to give them out at our kindergarten celebration!! Nikki at Melonheadz helped me out with a graduation set of graphics. Isn't it the CUTEST set ever!! I love the friends standing together!! Nikki is SO awesome. If you haven't seen her blog you need to head over Nikki's Blog or you can get this set at her etsy store. Melonheadz on etsy

Oh and I have to complete and submit my grad school portfolio by June 4!! Oh my heck!! I'm this close to graduating!!! WITH A MASTERS!!! I'm still in shock! I can't believe that it's here.. well right around the corner. If all things go the right way, I will walk at Arkansas State University on August 3. WOW.... just seriously WOW!!

Now for more on my summer plans... around the summer writing institute, I plan to work on several 1/2 done or not started projects for TPT and TN. I did just post my version of a Dinosaur Unit. I have to say that it's kind of cool. The kindergarten team at my school used it. The kids loved the activities that I made for stations and still ask if they can be brought back. Some of the things that I am working on are a Chicka Chicka Boom Boom based unit that actually starts at the end of the year to welcome your new students to your room. I really hope to have this one done asap... no promises though. I have some fall ideas that need to be started and some spring/ bug/ ocean ideas that need to be finished. They have to take a back burner ... for now.

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Falling in Love with the Tricky Teens

I just posted a new item at both TPT and TN. I plan to use it with my little ones this week. Several of my little ones are struggling with the teen numbers. I thought that someone else might be having this same issue and could use these.

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WOW what a week!!

with as bad as this week started for me, I have to say that this afternoon was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!! I am going to stop right here for not having pictures! I know bad bad blogger. But I will take some on Monday. Ok back to amazing... we used this week to really practice our behavior and procedures. One thing that I decided to change with my class is how I do stations. My kids are not independent enough to complete more than one rotation at a time. So now we "play" my turn your turn. I should mention that our school embraces walk to read. Our kinders are "leveled" according to DIBLES the first nine weeks and a combination of DRA and DiBLES in the second semester. Teacher observations are mainly what would move a child between the two groups. So I have the lower group of children. I love my kids but I really wish that they were a little more independent.  My stations now work like this... 15 minute opening/ whole group lesson on phonemic awareness. Then 10 minutes at a station (I pull a small group). Then 10 minute whole group  phonics (sound/ symbol) or spelling lesson. Next, 10 minutes at a station. 10 minute lesson on sight words and "reading". back to stations for 10 minutes. 10 minute whole group lesson- sounding out/ blending or writing. One more round of stations for 10 minutes. and lastly, read to self time. We are not up to 10 minutes yet (we just started after thanksgiving). We have reached 5 minutes.

This schedule is harder on me but it is SO much better!! Here is something else, if you don't quickly come to the carpet, you sit out of some of your next station time. This is REALLY cutting down on kids not cleaning quickly. I set a timer and even if I don't say a word, the second you hear the timer (and it's LOUD) you start cleaning up. Then I count down from 10 (either slowly if everyone is doing the right thing or quickly if children are playing). I do include 0 in my count down. When the kids here 0 they may circles around their eyes and say "Eyes on Mrs. Day". Then I start my lesson.

Here are a few pictures of my letter activities that I have at Teachers Notebook.

snowman activity

This is the snowman letter naming activity.  You can grab it at Teachers Notebook by clicking on the picture. 

 

Look at how hard this sweet baby is working!! LOVE these!! There will be a LOT more of them to come. In lots of different versions (think math, beginning sounds, ending sounds etc)

 

These babies are working with the monkey letter naming. The day I introduced this station, 3 of our 5 stations had versions of this activity. The second day 2 of the 5 had this activity and then the third day we were ready for this to be a single station. I like the reinforcing of having multiple stations with the new activity.

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Word work and teachers notebook

I have been working on some ideas to add to my word work station. This is a simple matching game where the kids match the upper case and lower letters. Then they record the upper and lower case pair on the recording sheet. I added them to my Teacher's Notebook store. There are three different themes monkeys, snowmen, and zoo animals. Click on the pictures below to go to my Teacher's Notebook store.

monkey-letter-naming

snowman letter naming

zoo animal letter naming

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