Thankful.

  Since I'm on Thanksgiving Break, I thought it only fitting to make a list of what I'm thankful for this year.

So, in no particular order...

1. I'm thankful for my family. I say it often, but I adore them. My mom is my best friend, my dad is my biggest supporter and my brother is okay, I guess. Just kidding, he's the best brother and I love spending time with him. This year, I'm also thankful for my new sister-in-law!

2. I'm thankful for my health and the health of my family.

3. I'm thankful for Netflix. I mean, it's changed my life. I can now watch movies and shows for FREE and it's just the greatest thing ever. And, because of Netflix, I discovered Friday Night Lights and Tim Riggins. So, that one was a given.

Where do I get one of these? I'm not kidding.

4. I'm thankful for Finley. I love her so much. She's just my little buddy and she's brought so much joy into my life. And, I'm pretty much distraught that I have to leave her this week when I travel for Thanksgiving :( But, she's staying with my roomie Claire and I know she's in good hands.

LOVE.

5. I'm thankful for this toy. Because, it has entertained Finley for the last three hours.

I'm pretty sure Finley thinks this is her boyfriend.

6. I'm thankful for my job. I know that I'm so blessed to work at such a great school. I love my coworkers and I couldn't ask for a better place to spend my days.

Who wouldn't want to work here? (That's a balloon, by the way. Stuffed up our school secretary's shirt. At the fall festival.)

7. I'm thankful for the precious kiddos in my class. I adore them. They are a great class and they fill my days with laughter and happiness. And, I know that sounds corny... but, it's honestly the truth.

8. I'm thankful that Target sells groceries now. I, for real, don't have any reason to go to any other store now! It's so nice to just get what I need all in one place, ha.

Ahhhh, heaven.

9. I'm thankful for my home. I love my cute little townhome and I'm so glad that it has always been a comforting place for me to be. I feel safe there and happy there and that's all I need. (Well, that and Netflix.)

My fall door. It's already decked out for Christmas. Don't judge...

10. I'm thankful that Vandy killed UT last weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Thanksgiving at School

  We did some fun activitites with Thanksgiving this year! I kind of changed my game plan a little bit from years past. In first grade, learning about Thanksgiving was new and exciting for the kids. By third grade, I figured they'd read all the books and done all the "If I was a pilgrim..." writing a person could stand. So, I decided to let them do it all on their own.

 

Now, you know that's not completely true.

 

 I did stuff, too.

 

But, they did most of it.

 

Let me explain...

 

Last week, we started off by learning about the Mayflower. We watched the virtual field trip to the Mayflower from Scholastic.com. They kids loved it! They liked getting to see the boat (or, boat replica). We read a letter that a little girl had written to her aunt about her experience on the Mayflower and then the kids wrote their own letter. But, they just did it in their journals as a quick closure activity.

 

The next day, we watched the virtual field trip on Scholastic.com of Plymouth Plantation. The kids were again so engrossed to see it all!

 

On the website, there is a section that's all about the daily life of the Pilgrims and the Native Americans. So, the kids used all our computers to investigate this on their own and fill out the following compare/contrast graphic organizer:

 

 

 

The next day, we talked about the actual Thanksgiving celebration. We compared/contrasted our Thanksgiving to the first Thanksgiving.

 

 

 

I also typed out about 20 events from the first Thanksgiving onto cards and had the kids put them in order. We were going to make timelines... but, we ran out of time! We had DEA tests and field trips and science kits to do and all kinds of shenanigans that week and we were just a mess. We're honestly lucky we did what we did!

 

On Friday, I gave them a cause and effect/sequence sheet to test them because those are the standards we've been focusing on.

 

 

 

This week, we only had school yesterday and today. So, we did some fun stuff!

 

The third grade teachers who taught third grade last year told me about how they made colonial villages. And, since we'd just learned all about the pilgrims and how they'd made their own village, I thought it sounded perfect!

 

First, we decided where we should put our village. I gave the kids three locations (from a worksheet) and we made a huge chart to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each location. One kid said "We're just like the pilgrims when they had to decide where to live!" Love it when they "get it," don't you?

 

They all voted on the location that had forests (because it provided wood and food) and water (food and travel). Smart kiddos, huh!

 

I took the kids down the hall with me and let them choose the colors we needed to make our village. I went for the blue paper and they all yelled "No, the other blue!"

 

Well, sooooorry!

 

Then, we made homes that have thatched roofs and oil paper windows. We even gave them chimneys because the homes all had fires to keep them warm.

 

 

Today we learned about the businesses that you would find in a colonial village. We made those and added them to our village. If you lift the business, you can read about what happens there.

 

 

When we finished, I gave them all some seperate jobs. A few of the kids partnered up and wrote the description cards with all the information. They also made a sign, a boat, a sun, a river and a forest. They did it all COMPLETELY on their own.

 

 

(Not sure who put the blue lizard in the middle of the village.

But, I pick my battles around here. Ha!)

 

Here's a picture of the whole thing. The kids were holding it up for me. I was all "Hey, guys! Let's take a picture  where you're all hiding from me! Haha!" The lengths a blogger will go to to get a picture without a face in it...

 

And, here it is hanging in the hall with our turkeys!

 

Now, about those turkeys...

 

 

I needed a quick activity. And, I needed it quick. And, I wanted it to be Thanksgiving-y. And, I wanted it to be a math activity.

 

So, while the kids were working on their village, I ran back to my computer and made a quick Turkey Fraction sheet. Then, I cut some scrapbook paper into strips.

 

 

I told the kids that they could pick any 4 colors and any designs they wanted. I told them they also had to have at least 8 feathers. Then, I just let them cut them out however they wanted to.

 

 

When they were done, they filled out the sheet. They had to graph all the feathers with tally marks and then write fraction sentences about their turkey feathers.

 

 

Not a bad activity for spur of the moment, huh?

 

(By the way, it BROKE. MY. HEART. to throw that timeline in the trash! But, I didn't know what to do with it. We just don't have enough wall space!)

 

We had a great week and a half learning about Thanksgiving. I enjoyed just tying it into our standards and doing things that we would do anyway... just doing them about Thanksgiving. And, I'm glad the kiddos got the oppurtunity to be creative and have some fun.

 

They are eight, after all :)

 

"Hey Lady!"

I'm officially on Thanksgiving Break! Woo hoo!

 

And, as you know, I've been a pretty pitiful blogger lately. I blame it on school. It sucks all my energy right out of my body. But, I have lots of stuff to share (none of which is important, obviously) so I thought I'd play a little catch-up tonight.

 

Last weekend was a blast. Let me tell you why...

 

 I went to Franklin Friday night because I had lots of stuff planned with the parentals.

 

Finley was happy to see my dad. Because, he clearly handles her with such precision and care...

 

On Saturday, I went with my dad to have breakfast with my grandpa. I haven't talked too much about him on this blog... but, he's adorable. I love him. He's 89, opinionated and cranky if you happen to be in the food-service industry... but, also, the sweetest man I know.

 

We went to Cracker Barrel and when he wanted to get our waitresses attention... he just yelled "Hey lady!" across the restaraunt.

 

Awesome.

 

When we got back to his house, we hung out outside because my cousin was having a yard sale at his house. He has an amazing yard sale house because he lives on a really busy yard. So, it was fun to see some of my family I never get to see.

 

He would never, ever, ever admit it... but, my grandpa is kind of smitten with Miss Finley.

 

In fact, she spent the entire time we were there in his lap.

 

I couldn't put her down because every time I did she jumped all over poor unsuspecting shoppers and nosedived into the leaves. She even got a garage sale sticker stuck to her face and it took three of us to get it out. She's a pain.

 

But, she's pretty cute. I have proof: a man at the garage sale offered me $30 for her.

 

I'm not kidding.

 

Saturday afternoon, Blakely brought Hampton over because they were headed to the Vandy-UT game. Finley and Hampton have a love-hate relationship. Finley LOVES Hampton and Hampton HATES Finley. Ha! But, I decided not to go to the game so I stayed home and helped my mom keep track of the pups.

 

My mom turned to me about 15 minutes before the game and said "Too bad we don't have a Vandy bow for Finley and a UT bow for Hampy."

 

Challenge excepted.

 

I ran to the craft room and dug up two bows and we decked out our little rival puppies :)

 

No idea why their eyes look so creepy!

 

They even called a truce...

 

 

And, I just want to say that I took the bows out right after the picture. We don't torture our dogs around here. Well, we do. But, not with clothing.

 

About 10 minutes into the game, the dogs got really quiet. I looked over and saw this:

 

That would be both of them passed out cold. And, Hampy does that all the time but I can count on one hand how many times Finley has fallen asleep on the floor. She NEVER does that. She either sleeps on me or on my bed or in her crate. She never falls asleep playing. She was WIPED OUT from chasing her buddy all day. She slept the entire next day and I'm not exaggerating at all.

 

It was also pretty exciting when Vandy beat UT! We are HUGE Vanderbilt fans and we pretty much loathe UT. So, this win was fun for us. And, we're also excited that Vandy will be going to a bowl game for the second year in a row! (I realize that's not a huge feat... but, believe me. It is for the Dores!)

 

So, that was my weekend.

 

I love my family and I love spending time with them.

 

So, weekends at home are my favorite kind :)

Make Em' Work For It...

 

So, there's a Linky Party over at Miss Kindergarten where you're supposed to post your best teaching tip.

 

 

I thought and thought about it and here's what I came up with:

 

MAKE THE KIDS WORK HARDER THAN YOU DO!

 

This took me a looonnnggg time to figure out.

 

But, once I did, my life and my teaching have been a lot happier :)

 

I used to spend the entire day talking to the kids. I mean, obviously I was teaching. But, I just talked and talked and talked and they sat and listened. I'd give them an activity and then I'd just talk them all the way through it. (Admit it, you do it too!)

 

And, every time we did a "craftivity" I would cut out 90% of it (spending hours of my free time) for them or make them do it exactly like my sample and then I'd proudly hang them in the hall and they'd all look EXACTLY alike. (Admit it, you do it too!)

 

But, last year, I realized something:

 

THE KIDS ARE THE ONES WHO SHOULD BE DOING ALL THE WORK!

 

I decided that I was working too hard. Yes, you heard me right. There is absolutely NO REASON why I needed to stay after school cutting stuff out for them. And, there is no reason why I need to talk all day long.

 

So, I stopped.

 

Now, I'll say right now that I still talk alot. I can't help it. And, I still cut stuff out for my kids on occasion because it saves class time. But, I do make a concious effort to make sure that my kids are working harder than me.

 

Here's how I do it:

 

1. When we're sitting at the carpet and I'm teaching, I am CONSTANTLY having my kids share with their shoulder partners. At the end of a page, I say "Tell your shoulder partner what you're thinking." Or, if we're doing an anchor chart, I tell them "Tell your shoulder partner what could go next on our chart." That way, they don't get to just sit there like bumps on a log.

 

2. We fill out graphic organizers until we're blue in the face. I pretty much NEVER just sit and read to my kids unless it's the last 5 minutes of the day. As we read, we're holding our clipboards and filling out information the whole time. I generally stop and give them a chance to write unless it's a quick-write kind of thing. I love that they are getting so good at writing their thoughts out as they are happening and not 15 minutes later after we've read the whole book!

 

Here's an example of what my kids do at the carpet while I'm reading. We talk about it while we're doing it but they decide with their partners what to write down.

 

3. We do a TON of projects. I know what you're thinking. Third graders can do that because they're older. My younger students could never! But, guess what? First graders can do it too! My littles last year were awesome at doing group projects and they learn so much: figuring things out on their own, social skills, teamwork PLUS the information you're trying to teach them. Oh, and they are so engaged because they're excited.

 

My first graders last year researched an insect completely on their own in teams and then created a poster about it. They then presented them to the class.

 

We did several of these throughout the year.

 

This year, my third graders do it every week. You can read some of my other posts to see how: specifically this one and this one.

 

4. Make them do the research. It's okay to hand a kid a book and make them look up the information. I know as a first grade teacher I was so used to reading a book to them and then writing all the information down on an anchor chart. But, kids can do it on their own! (see above) Let them make their own anchor chart! I promise they can do it. Now, with the third graders, pretty much weekly they have something that they have to look up and research on their own.

 

Third grade research for a famous person using computer and book sources.

 

And, as for the first graders...

they can do it, too.

 

5. Hand them a dictionary. Trust me, they can find words on their own and spell them. My kids will even go to Google and type in a word to see how it should be spelled. They look in their science/social studies books in the index. Because, they know I'm not going to spell it for them.

 

6. Stop making "craftivities" that are perfect. I'm not saying don't do them. I'm not saying they can't be cute. And, I'm speaking to myself right now because this one was the hardest for me to let go. But, I can proudly say that the only thing I've cut out for my kids this year were some picture frames that took five minutes and their "back to school" backpacks and I did that before the year started when I had some extra time. I even let the first graders last year do some of their own crafts.

 

Last year, my kids made these Wizard of Oz characters 100% on their own! I worried that they'd make a huge mess of them but just decided to let it go.. and, look how great they turned out!

 

Well, maybe except for the Dorothys... ha!

 

I let the kids use scrapbook paper to make plants to label and they turned out great, too. In the past, I totally would have sat there and cut all that out and then tried to control them as they glued it. Not anymore, friends. I'd rather give them the experience of doing it.

 

7. Make anchor charts interactive. The kids can write on them, too! It lets them have some ownership and they should be the ones working! My first graders LOVED it when I had them fill out the charts we made.

 

I let them write their class promise this year.

 

And, they wrote on most of those post-its.

 

Anyways, that's my tip.

 

 Make the kids work harder than you do.

 

 Do it for yourself and, more importantly, do it for them.

 

 

 

Need Some Laughs?

 I was looking at the pictures on my iPhone this afternoon and I realized there was some funny stuff that I hadn't blogged about. So, this is my attempt to catch up and share all the shenanigans that go on around me every day :)

 

1. Last week, a sweet little girl from my class last year passed me in the hallway. Usually, when kids from my past classes pass me in the hall they wave, smile or give me a hug if they get the chance. What did this precious angel do? She walked by, nodded her head like a gangster and said "What up, Ridings?"

 

Come again?

 

I'll be honest. My first instinct was to bust out laughing. Because, I mean, it's funny when a six year old girl with pigtails and a lisp goes all ghetto, right? But, I had to get it together and give her the "respect adults" speech. I know she was just joking and trying to make me laugh and she's probably (okay, definitely)  heard me say things like that jokingly before.

 

(Just substitute this man with a cute little girl. Just do it in your head. And try not to laugh. It's hard, right?)

 

It still makes me laugh to think about it.

 

2. We had our Fall Festival a few weeks ago.

 

Let me tell you, it was a CLASSY event! Here we have our school secretary with a balloon stuffed up her shirt. Pretending to be pregnant. Just because.

 

I've been trying to convince her to make this her profile picture...

 

3. After Finley got spayed, she had some issues. She wasn't getting better and she was sleeping ALL the time and she wouldn't stop licking at her incision. So, I took her back up to the vet to bring all this up. They assured me that she was okay and that it just takes tiny dogs longer to recover. Oh, and they had a BRILLIANT solution to all the licking. Are you ready for this?

 

 

They put my precious puppy in a onesie!

 

(And, I'm sorry, but between the cone and the baby clothes she looked positively ridiculous. Every time I looked at her I busted up laughing and could not stop.)

 

 

And, now, for my new favorite picture of all time...

 

 

HA!

 

The poor thing fell asleep on my bed and she looked sooooo funny laying like that that I woke her up laughing. I'm a bad person.

 

But, I couldn't help it.

 

4. Halloween night, I went to vote and then I headed out to Franklin to see my parents. I was driving and I stopped at a red light. I looked down at Finley and this is what I saw:

 

 

HAHA!

 

She likes the feeling of the crate on her gums for some reason so she actually does this all the time. But, it still makes me laugh. I think between the cone and the bulging eyes and the massive gums... she's never looked worse.

 

5. Today, I was reading Harry Potter to the kids in our after school program. I noticed one little boy had a smudge on his forehead. So, I whispered "Buddy, I think you got some pencil on your face." And, he giggled at me with his cute little face and said "I know! I wanted a scar like Harry Potter!"

 

 

All together now: "AWWWWWW!"

 

(And, also, HA!)

 

Hope you have a great (and funny) week!

 

An Ode to Duck Dynasty

 

I mentioned in my last post that I'm currently obsessed with Duck Dynasty. This should come as no surprise to anyone. I'm the kind of girl who notices a show (usually about a year after everyone else does), watches every episode available in one weekend and then can speak of nothing else.

 

And, that's just what happened to me over Fall Break.

 

Comcast had all of Season 1 on demand and I literally sat on the couch for two days and watched them all.

 

If you don't watch this show... do yourself a favor and tune in some time.

 

It's a classic.

 

 

I'm sure you know all about it.

 

 But, in case you don't, here is the Cliff's Notes version:

The Robertson family, from Monroe, Louisiana (aka REDNECKS) are millionaires because they run the Duck Commander company. They make duck calls. But, it's still a "Mom and Pop" corporation. Oh, and they are about as country as country can be.

 

Let me introduce you to their awesomeness.

 

First up, we have Phil. Phil is the father to Willie and Jase. He's raised his family in the country and he's very concerned that his now-rich grandchildren are going to grow up to be "subdivision yuppies." In fact, that's about the worst thing he can imagine.

 

 

He repeatedly tells his grandsons that a girl's looks don't matter. All that matters is if she can cook. Preferably roadkill...

 

Phil's brother Si (I guess short for Silas?) is arguably the funniest guy in a cast of hilarious people. He's set in his ways and opinionated.

 

 

 

(He's talking about fourth graders at Career Day, by the way...)

 

Phil's son Willie is the CEO of the company. I guess he's the "smart" one.

 

 

 

Jase is my favorite. He's Willie's brother. He has all these fun ideas and cooks up all these ridiculous schemes that get everybody in trouble. Oh, and all he wants to do in life in catch bullfrogs.

 

All Jase's idea.

 

 

I concur.

 

Oh, and Ms. Kay is Phil's wife and Jase and Willie's mom.

 

 

That's really all you need to know about Ms. Kay.

 

Jase and Willie are both married and have kids. So, of course there are all kinds of kid shenanigans, too.

 

 

It's just an epic show. I laugh out loud every single episode. More than once.

 

I promise, if you watch it, you'll be HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY!