Boggle & Dental Health

I love Boggle. One of my most favorite apps. While writing about my love for this game during Writer’s Workshop one day, I realized that my kids sorta love this game, too! A few of them said that their parents play it on their phones and some of the others talked about playing Boggle Jr. at home with their families. Love it! So I combined their love for Boggle with their love for the SMARTBoard and now they ALL have a FAVORITE Work Work activity!! At least once a week, I have the kids visit the SMARTBoard to play Boggle…and they LOVE it!! They each take turns connecting words and then recording them on a corresponding sheet. You can click on the pics to download a set of Boggle Boards & recording sheet for your kiddos. This is a PDF file so they aren’t specifically made for SMARTBoard…you can adapt them however you need! :)

If you don’t have a SMARTBoard, you could laminate the Boggle Boards and have the kids find words using a vis-à-vis or expo marker & then record their words on the recording sheet.

Oh…almost forgot! You might already be all planned out for the next few weeks, but just incase you’re needing some new ideas & activities, I just uploaded my Dental Health Mini Unit ~ Brusha, Brusha, Brusha to TpT {$3.50}

This little Dental Health Mini Unit includes 42 pages of engaging, hands-on activities such as:
*3 poetry pocket activities
*writing prompts & templates {how-to, text to self connection, creative writing}
*graphing & data analysis
*word problems and work mats
*hands-on addition/subtraction activity & recording sheet for math tubs
*thinking maps
*two egg experiments & science notebook/journal activities
*hands-on blending onset & rimes game with recording sheet
*/ee/ & /ea/ word sort with work mats & extension sheets

TGI{almost}F!!!!!!

Groundhogs & Their Burrows

Since we were iced out of school last week, I’m playing catch up this week and using all of last week’s plans :) We still have LOTS to do and I barely scratched the surface last Monday! I was SO bummed that my kiddos missed Groundhog Day last week :( I planned on teaching the kids about animals that hibernate & groundhogs fit in perfectly! Shockingly enough, only one of my kiddos knew that the groundhog didn’t see his shadow last week, so we went on with the day as planned :)

We went through this awesome little SmartBoard lesson before doing anything. Y’all…this was just TOO much! Even though the lesson was primarily centered around Groundhog Day and groundhog facts, there was a lot of great info on hibernating animals! The kids loved it!!

If you have a SmartBoard, click the pic to download the lesson! I found it on Smart Exchange!! I’m nowhere NEAR talented enough to make something this dang cute!!

The kids most enjoyed learning about burrows and how groundhogs dig tunnels. Did you know they dig up to 700 lbs. of dirt when digging their burrows?! WHOA! We talked about burrows and other places animals calls home…dens, lairs, nests, caves, etc. Then I had the kids pretend like they were groundhogs and do a little descriptive writing.

First they had to draw their little burrows. CRACKING up that this one has a TV & a bed! HA!

Then they had to write a few sentences describing their burrow as if they were a groundhog.

Finally, they made a little groundhog. I LOVE this little art piece. It takes all of about 5 seconds to put together. One of my best friends, Jodi, showed me this idea years ago when we taught Kindergarten together and I’ve been doing it with my kids ever since.

The groundhog is made of one large brown heart {turned upside down}, one medium sized brown heart {cut right down the middle and used as ears}, and one medium sized white heart {turned upside down and used for teeth}. All the kids had to do was cut the ears and make the faces. The hearts were pre-cut for them! I think these are the dang cutest things! And perfect since Valentine’s Day is only a week away!

Mystery Pics Freebie & Inventors Light Bulb Download

Alright folks…after a very early mini Spring Break, I’m ready to head back to the classroom tomorrow! Pretty happy to get back into a routine if I’m being totally honest. Not that I didn’t love being home with my boys, but being STUCK at home wasn’t all that. You’d think I’d have the cleanest house EVER, but it turns out it’s even worse than normal. Living with 3 stinky boys is NUTS. I’m grateful for NO surprise visitors this week!! HA!!

I’ve gotten several comments and lots of emails regarding the fun little light bulb template I used for my kids’ invention writing. Click the pic below to download. If you have any questions, let me know!!

I just added a new set of Mystery Pictures to TpT. If you’re learning about money or reinforcing coin counting, these would definitely be fun for your kiddos! These are color coded and include a whole new set of 9 different pictures {robot, raindrop, house, flower, dinosaur, candle, rocket, goldfish, and a star}. You can click on the pic for your mystery pic freebie!!

And head on over to TpT to get the other 8 pics {$3.50}!!

I’ll give away 3 free Money Mystery Pictures to the first 3 people who tell me about your favorite Superbowl commercial!!!

A Few More Ideas…

Since we’re on DAY 4 of NO SCHOOl, I’ve been surfing around some of my favorite blogs and have found some darling Valentine ideas! Just wanted to pass along incase you need some Vday inspiration :)

The Idea Room has these awesome Valentine Bingo boards you can download off her site for free!! These would be awesome for a class valentine party OR even just for a fun math activity. I totally would’ve used these to reinforce number recognition in K, but I think I’ll use these to reinforce addition/subtraction facts (maybe even place value or coins) with my firsties!!! Can’t wait!!!

Love this fun snack idea from Poppies at Play! Great for a class party or just a fun treat for the kids! She even has cute little tags you can use to bag these up and give to the kids! LOVE!

Kalleen from At Second Street guest posted on Tatertots & Jello to showcase these BEYOND DARLING Valentine treats. Free printables, too!! Y’all…I think I know what I’m handing out to my girls at school ;)

And one of my FAVORITE party blogs, One Charming Party, has been hosting a little Classroom Valentine Party. TONS of darling classroom party & activity ideas!! LOVE!!! You’ve gotta check it out! There are 4 days of ideas so far, so you’ll just need to keep scrolling down the page to see all the ideas!!

Have y’all seen any fun ideas lately?!?!

This & That…and a Couple of Valentine’s Day {Gift} Ideas

***Y’all…we are going on the THIRD STRAIGHT DAY of NO SCHOOL. The streets are coated with ice and we can’t go anywhere! Can anyone say cabin fever?! I SO wish grocery stores delivered! We’re scrapin’ the bottom of the pantry for food. Popcorn and Club Crackers just don’t cut it, y’know?!

***I’m on the #30 blog of the Meet the Teacher Linky party and WHOA. Y’all are all SO cute and talented! I LOVE getting to know more about each of you!! I plan on making my way through the other 54 blogs in just a bit. I’m wrapped in a blanket with a big cup of coffee listening to my boys entertain themselves upstairs. I’m finding SO many great blogs…I just LOVE it! I plan on saying “hi!!” to each of you! Promise I’ll get to yours soon if I haven’t already! And if you haven’t had a chance to link up, go now! And if you have linked up, don’t forget to check out all of these fantastic blogs…and while you’re there, please say “hello”!!!

***Did y’all know that my bloggy BFF, Babbling Abby, just started a new teaching blog?! Yes folks. It’s true. And it’s gonna be pretty dang amazing, I’m sure of it. Head on over to The Inspired Apple and say “hello”! if you haven’t already!!

***I’m really thinking about setting up some kind of “teacher bloggers” convention/luncheon/somethinglikethat. I’d love to meet all y’all face-to-face! Would that not be SO much fun?!

Now onto Valentine's…because it’s just around the corner!

How do y’all celebrate?! Do y’all do anything fun for the class party?! My last year teaching Kindergarten, I decided to make it cutesy…and I loved it. Y’all…I LOVE this commercial “holiday”!

I made a little banner…

I semi-decorated the tables…

And we made these cute little bags to hold all our Valentines.

What about gifts?! What do y’all like to give to your kids?! Here are a couple of fun, very inexpensive ideas!! I’m all about giving the kids something fun & cutesy without breaking the bank!

Channel your inner Martha and make these fun little love pops! SUPER EASY!!! I gave these to my Kcuties one year and they were a hit! You just cut out a bunch of little hearts, place several of them together one on top of the other, hole punch, and slide a sucker right through! The kids LOVED these!!! I put them in a flower pot and had the kids pick a couple for themselves before they left for the day! Wanna make these for your babies?! Read all about it HERE!

I pass these out EVERY year, in addition to a little sweet treat. I always use sign language to say “I LOVE YOU” to my kiddos. That’s another way I like to get their attention. I make these as my valentine card. Fast, easy, and they don’t cost a thing because you’ve already got the supplies in your classroom! Just trace your handprint, cut it out, and curl the two middle fingers around a pencil. Cut out a heart, glue it on, tape it to a straw, and VOILA! A Valentine from the teacher! And cute, too!

I LOVE these next two ideas. I haven’t made these for a class yet, but both of them would be the PERFECT class gift. VERY inexpensive and FUN!!! I made these for the kids in my boys’ playgroup last year and they loved ‘em!!

This is homemade play-doh. SO easy to make and it truly didn’t take any time at all!! I just used heart shaped cookie cutters to make the heart shapes. Then I cut off the top of a ziplock baggie, folded scrapbook paper over the top of that, and tied it together with cute ribbon. These would be great gifts for preschool kiddos or K’s & firsties.

I’m giving this one to my firsties this year!! SO dang easy! Sugar cones & cotton candy wrapped up in plastic & ribbon! LOVE THESE!! And you can get the cotton candy for $1 either at Wal Mart or the Dollar Tree. And a little goes a LONG way, so you don’t need that much!!

You can get the recipe for the playdoh and check out the assembly instructions for both little projects on my little domestic blog.

Now off to “meet” more fabulous teachers!!!

Meet The Teacher...LINKY PARTY!!!

Time for a party! I LOVE reading blogs…love it. All kinds of blogs. My blogroll on Google Reader consists of a little over 200 blogs. Yeeks. That’s A LOT of readin’! You can definitely start to feel like you “know” the people you’re reading about even though you’ve never met! I was actually blessed enough to find some of my best friends through blogland…the mommies in my boy’s playgroup! And that eventually led me to landing the amazing job I have now. CRAZY story. Anyway, I’ve been obsessing over “teacher blogs” for a while now and would LOVE to get to know YOU better! So let’s have a “Meet the Teacher Party”!!!! First off, here’s a little bit about me…

Yep. That’s me. All 31 years of me. Can you see the crows feet & grey hairs?! I’ve been married for 6 1/2 years to a crazy wonderful man {who was the PE teacher at my first school} and we have two CRAZY boys…Landon, 3 and Grant, 1. Cute, right?!

LOVE.THEM. I’ve been teaching for 9 years {what?!}. 7 years in Kindergarten, 1 year in 2nd grade, and this is my first year in 1st. Who knew that 1st would be my favorite?! I’m the oldest of 4….yes, FOUR…kids. And seriously, I love my siblings like NO other. Here we are last Easter.

I’d tell you a little about them, but that’s a WHOLE other post in itself. I gradyated from the University of North Texas {GO EAGLES!!!!}, but I’m a Boilermaker by marriage. Mr. Spouse graduated from Purdue and this house bleeds black and gold :) I started a little business 2 years ago…painting, blog design, and creating announcements/cards/invitations…but life has gotten crazy so the painting part of the business has sort of fallen to the wayside. I love all things photography and I love me some blogs. When I’m not blogging here at Emilyk Cole, you can find me posting about my family at Life With Team Carroll or all about my domestic adventures at Pearls, Handcufs, & Happy Hour. I love iced tea, Etsy, collecting cookbooks, spending time with my family, Frank Sinatra, and I LOVE Jesus.

Now for the Q & A

Q: What would you be doing if you weren’t a teacher?
A: I should say, “stay-at-home-mom”, but I’m gonna go with photographer. I LOVE photography!!!!!

Q: What are your hobbies?
A: Ummm…is it weird to say that teaching feels like a hobby sometimes?! Photography, painting, cooking,reading.

Q: When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A: I always said I wanted to be an "acting pediatrician”. Ummm…the dramatics are still there, but I don’t want ANYTHING to do with the pediatrics! Other than the kids, of course :)

Q: What are your guilty pleasures?
A: Fried cheese, COKE!, Teen Mom {1 & 2}, Real Housewives {all of them}, McMommy, US magazine, Oreos, Jersey Shore, Forever 21, thrift shopping, did I say fried cheese already?!

Q: What is your biggest fear?!
A: This is EASY. Frogs, flying, & tornadoes. In that order. TER.RIF.IED.

Q: When you’re on vacation, where do you like to go?
A: VEGAS, baby! I’m not a gambler…sorta…but I LOVE Vegas! SO much to see & do! And we’re headed there for SPRING BREAK! Woo hoo!!

Q: What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
A: Be yourself….it’s no fun being a watered-down version of someone else; Pray about everything, worry about nothing; Don’t worry about what other people think about you…life is TOO short!

Q: What do you value most in others?
A: Honesty….whether it’s being honest abou something or being true to yourself! Kindness and loyalty are right up there, too!!

Q: If you could choose one of your personality traits to pass down to your kids, what would it be?
A: My sense of humor?! HA! I’m no comedian, but I sure can laugh at myself and see the comedy in most situations :)

Q: If you could have lunch with anyone in the world….living or dead…who would it be?
A: Jesus and Reese Witherspoon. And then I’d like to have a “teacher related” lunch with my bloggy friends Babbling Abby, Deanna Jump, and Kathleen Pedersen! :) HA!

Now tell us one random thing about yourself:

I auditioned for the Mickey Mouse Club when I was in the sixth grade…I “stalked” Britney Spears at her hotel one time and ended up meeting her bodyguard…I met Kurt Russell and think he’s an absolute jerk…I have to watch The Negotiator, The Hangover, Wedding Crashers, and Maid in Manhattan every.time they’re on TV. Okay…that was a few random things, but you get the point! HA!

Now it’s time for YOU to join the party!!!! Here’s what you need to do: Write a post titled “Meet The Teacher”. Start with a brief “biography” and then copy & paste the Q&A {using your answers, of course!} Copy the web address of your “Meet the Teacher” post and come back here & link up! It would be GREAT if you could visit at least 3 other teachers…get to know a little bit about your fellow bloggers…and leave a comment!!!! Don't forget to grab a button when you link up!!

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Chocolate Pudding & Penguins

I’m trying to catch up on a few little things, but thought I’d share this in the meantime. We’re stuck INSIDE today…no school…with tons of ice on the ground and temps too cold for me to talk about. Yuck. But the upside to this little sleet day is that I’ve got a clean house & chicken noodle soup on the stove. Speaking of soup, if you’re dealing with stay-inside-weather like we are, you’ve seriously gotta try THIS SOUP. Y’all….it’s DANG good. Perfect cold weather meal!!

Moving on…

This week we’re learning about the “-ch” digraph. My firsties are LOVING the Digraph Kids and talk about each of ‘em like they know them personally! HA! They love this week’s kiddo…Chompin’ Charlie…and since Charlie’s favorite candy is CHocolate, we decided to have a little fun with CHocoloate pudding.

First, we brainstormed a list of –ch words after reading Charlie’s story. {Have I mentioned how much I love my SmartBoard?! Because I DO!!!! I just hate that it makes my handwriting look so BAD! HA!}

And we had LOTS of fun writing our own –ch words in CHOCOLATE PUDDING!!!

The kids LOVED it! Sure, it was a hot mess, but SO much fun for them!!!

***************

I’m sure everybody’s all finished learning about penguins, but here’s a little idea you can tuck away for next year. These are my most favorite!! Paper plate penguins! I used to have the kids make these when I taught Kindergarten as a little art activity. I had my firsties write facts in question format on the penguins bellies. It was great for reinforcing correct punctuation and fact finding.

I’ll be back soon with more fun printables & ideas!! And be on the lookout for my first “linky party”. A little somethin’ for us to get to know each other better!!

Happy snow…er, SLEET…day!!!!