I took a personal day on Monday. I hadn't seen my sweet family since mid-December, so I took my boys home for an extra long weekend. Mr. Spouse had to work. Boo. While I was out, I had my kids write about what they thought happened to me. I didn't tell them where I was going or what I was doing, so it was hilarious to read their responses when I got back!!
One of my sweeties said that I was spending the day shopping with my sister, Mrs. Cortez. Mrs. Cortez is a precious 6th grade teacher. We are NOT sisters, but we *might* have told the kids that we are :) We get told we look alike no less than 20 times a week :)
Last week we celebrated the 100th day of school Sadly, I've got NOTHING to share with you. I absolutely got ALL of my ideas from Pinterest and loved every little minute of not having to recreate the wheel. We had our annual balloon launch in between the intermittent spurts of rain. It stopped right before we headed out and started right back up again as we were walking inside! Dear Mother Nature...thanks for that!!!
We also celebrated Groundhog Day sans my camera. However, I did get a few pics the next day of some things that we did to celebrate.
We made a grade level graph {Pinterest inspired} and we did the same little writing we did last year, only this time I had them draw their burrow instead of making one for them.
We kicked off our Dental Health unit with this writing I did last year. Honestly, one of my favorites of the whole year!! This year's is NO exception!! Love this little tooth fairies!!!
Now we're working on Valentine related skills and having SO much fun!! Our math tubs are FULL of Valentine math activities and we're using some of our Love, Splat centers for our literacy tubs. Next week we'll continue on with our Valentine theme and we'll be doing some awesome little activities from First Grade Blue Skies & Fun in First. They both have DARLING "Froggy's First Kiss" units!! Here are a few little things I made for our literacy tubs. Just click on the pics to grab your copies!! And feel free to leave a comment and let me know if you have any kind of Froggy activities so that I can link to yours as well!!
Froggy Freebies
In other news, I'm 100% obsessed with these cups.
They *might* make me happier than the red cups during the Christmas holidays. Bless you, sweet Starbucks. You and ALL of your overpriced coffee. Dangit.
Now you might wanna head on over to Heather's Heart and enter her giveaway...just sayin'. She's "totes adorbs" {that phrase tasted terrible coming out of my mouth. I promise I'll NEVER use it again.} Heather is always SO dang sweet and encouraging. She always leaves the sweetest comments and she has the most giving heart. She's got TONS of freebies up for grabs so you need to head on over NOW. Enter for your chance to win one of these PRECIOUS tees from Sewing Sassy...
AND a Consious Discipline CD and 5 items from Heather's TpT store. In addition to all that, Rachelle from What the Teacher Wants will be giving away 2 of her units, too!! LUCKY {in my best Napoleon Dynamite voice}. GOOD LUCK!!
I'm still computerless and going through serious withdrawls right about now. Not sure when I'll get my little laptop back, but I miss her so much I can hardly stand it. Sad, I know. Not sure when I'll be back, but stay tuned for some super fun ideas on teaching and introducing dictionary skills! We're LOVING it and having a blast {so far}!!!
TGI{almost}F!!!!
I love your cute little dictionary man! Soooo cute!:)
ReplyDeleteLove the dental health unit!
ReplyDelete-Ffion
The First Grade Jungle
I am taking a personal day next Friday and totally stealing this adorable idea. What happened to Mrs. Bushey? :)
ReplyDeleteI want that little tooth fairy!
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of writing for a personal day. I will be using that idea in the future. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI love your tooth fairies! I thought I owned EVERYTHING you ever made, but I don't have the dental unit yet. Guess where I'm headed after this post... :) Thanks for sharing those Froggy's First Kiss activities!
ReplyDeleteSarah
Sarah's First Grade Snippets
Can't wait to do the tooth fairy. Just saw the Starbucks cup today. There's an app that scans the cup and makes the "heart dance"? It's the yummy liquid in the cup that keeps me dancing. HA!
ReplyDeleteTammy
primaryparadise.blogspot
Oh my goodness - I love, love, love your writing prompt for when you were gone {shopping!?}...will have to steal that for sure!!!!
ReplyDeleteHolly
Crisscross Applesauce in First Grade
Super fun!!
ReplyDeleteJennifer
First Grade Blue Skies
(and thanks for the shout out!! =)
ReplyDeleteJennifer
First Grade Blue Skies
Love the little tooth fairies! Definitely going to have to do that for our health lesson next week :)
ReplyDeleteWe also recreated your groundhogs writing with the burrows, and they turned out ADORABLE! They are hanging on my wall as we speak! Come on over and check them out!
Natalie
Teachery Tidbits
My kiddos are loving your Splat unit. We did the inferencing activity today and will probably do more next week. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteSwimming into Second
My kids are loving your Splat Unit too!!!! Thanks for the adorable Froggy activities!! You are so creative!
ReplyDeleteAMy Burton
I have a mini unit on alphabetical order with a valentines theme you might like and right now I'm having a giveaway, check it out if you like...
ReplyDeleteFirstgradefrosting.blogspot.com
Love the little dictionary man! He is precious!!! The "Where is Mrs. Carroll" idea is too cute! :)
ReplyDeleteElisabeth
www.missdelk.blogspot.com
I love your writing prompt for when you were out! I will have to do something like that the next time I am out!! Thanks for the freebies, they are great!
ReplyDeleteBarbara
happyteachingfirst.blogspot.com
I love those cups too!
ReplyDeleteNot all Starbucks have them though--and some stores only have them some of the time.
I go to Starbucks daily (different ones), and I have only gotten a love cup twice!
TGI{almost}F... back atcha!
Kim
Finding JOY in 6th Grade
I totally want you be in your class. So much fun stuff happening ALL. THE. TIME!
ReplyDelete❤Jodi from...
★★The Clutter-Free Classroom★★
Helping Teachers Get Organized
I love it how students think teachers are related to someone else in the building. We have this new math specialist and my students kept asking him if he's someone's dad. I have never gotten the sister thing, I think it is because I am the only short teacher with long brown hair in the building.
ReplyDeleteReally cute stuff thanks for the freebies!
ReplyDeleteTammy
@klingercafe
That dictionary is adorable! I wish you were visiting California sitting on the beach! How fun would that be???!
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to see your super cute (no doubt) ideas about dictionary skills! Perfect timing! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteLast week when I subbed for a kindergarten class I had the students draw what they thought happened to their teacher! One student thought she was making scrambled eggs. Another one thought she was grocery shopping for cereal, carrots, and apples! LOL! So funny to see what their little minds are thinking!
ReplyDeleteI love your "where is..." writing response...it reminds me of the book, Miss Nelson Goes Missing (-; I used to read that to my Kinder class every year and I had created a script for the kids to act out...it was too cute!
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite letters from a student is on my Inspiration link:
http://the3amteacher.blogspot.com/p/inspiration-for-3am-teacher.html
She wrote: Dear Mrs. T., I hope you have a good day without me because I am sick." She insisted that her mom drop it off for me so I wouldn't worry about her...too cute!
Michelle
The 3AM Teacher
That Dictionary Guy is a cutie!
ReplyDeleteLove your What Happened... prompt. Great idea.
What does Starbucks put in that coffe that makes us all so willing to pay for it?! ;P
Have a great Friday.
❤ Dragonflies in First ❤
We have been loving Froggy this week too!! thanks for the freebies. I am going to print them and file them for next year!!
ReplyDeleteThe writing samples are precious! I love the shopping one.. and the picture shows you are shopping at Kroger. Too funny!!!
My kids are LOVING your Splat unit. Thanks for these great freebies!
ReplyDeleteJenn
Finally in First
Love the Froggy freebies-- I think they'll be showing up in my Literacy stations next week. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the shout out :) You are too sweet!
ReplyDeleteThe balloon launch looks like SO much fun!!
Jodi
Fun In First
Thank you for the Froggy freebies!
ReplyDeleteBarbara
Grade ONEderful
Lol! I had a personal day today! That would have been a super fun activity for them! (even though I'm sick during my personal day!). One of my teacher friends retired last year and I made a scrapbook with her kids writing what they thought she should do for retirement. Their responses were hilarious like sumo wrestle and bake us cookies once a week. I hope that you enjoyed your day off!
ReplyDeleteI love the dictionary guy! Where did you find him?? I also like your idea for the sub! I am going to have to steal that one and pin it!
ReplyDeleteMisty @
Think, Teach, & Wonder
Couldn't agree more about the Valentine's Starbucks cups. I use them for my pencil cups in my class. Couldn't get rid of that red Christmas one fast enough.
ReplyDeleteGreat blog.
Great minds think alike, I was out and had my kiddos guess what I was doing!
ReplyDeleteLaurie
Chickadee Jubilee
I just LOVE reading your blog! I so look forward to reading what you have to say! Thanks for the frog stuff & for sharing the Where is idea! I don't drink coffee, but do LOVE that cup, I just may need to go get some just for the cup! Enjoy your weekend!
ReplyDeleteKaty
http://growingreadersandwritersinkinder.blogspot.com/
No, I know where you were, you were cooking up some more recipes for me to make :)
ReplyDeleteJennifer
{Who may or may not made some of them lol}
Hey Cara! Your blog is one of the first blogs I began following quite some time ago. It has been so fun to go from following blogs like yours from which to draw inspiration to slowly building my own blog to share ideas with other teachers!
ReplyDeleteI did recently post a little froggy freebie on my tpt store if you would like to use for yourself and your own little babes or share with other teachers! I have been using it as a word work rotation during Daily 5 this past week...it's nothing fancy, but my kiddos have enjoyed it! I catch them joking with one another during rotations about how they should "really make the froggies kiss the words" followed by little bursts of giggles:)
Ellen Boyle
http://www.greatfirstgradeexpectations.blogspot.com/
I am also taking a personal day on Friday and would love to use your writing activity. What a great idea! Thanks for sharing Cara!
ReplyDeleteTarra
www.chalkboardchitchat.blogspot.com
I love these FROGGY ideas!! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI love this writing idea. I think it would be a riot reading what the students have to say about your "adventures" outside of school.
ReplyDeleteAmy
The Crazy Adventures of a University Graduate
I love love love "What Happened to Mrs. Carroll?" That is SUCH a great idea!! I'm totally stealing that next time I'm out!
ReplyDeleteCara,
ReplyDeleteThis is my first year teaching 1st grade and I wanted to let you know that you have literally SAVED me so many times this year!!! :) Thank you for all your awesome posts and for sharing so much of you and your classroom! I don't know how you do it but I am grateful that you do!!! :)
I just read Froggy's First Kiss to my class. Now I have a great activity to do with it. Thank you so much for sharing!!
ReplyDeleteLove your blog!
Susie Q
This morning we had a team meeting, and the meeting coincides with students Morning Work, so I gave them the prompt asking them to write where they thought I was. It was a huge hit! Even my IEP carriers had written at least a paragraph down! Great suggestion! They even asked me to use that prompt again when I have another meeting that involves me being out of the classroom!
ReplyDelete"What Happened to Mrs. Carroll?" is genius. It's fun and creative for the kiddos (it's low maintenance for the sub.). Love it! "Froggy's First Kiss" activities are really cute too! THANKS so much for sharing!!
ReplyDeleteSophia
http://fancifulfirstgrade.blogspot.com/
I used the "Where was Mrs. Moran?" prompt in my sub plans the other day after reading about yours and got such sweet responses. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteKimberley
First in Maine
just wondered if you are going to post about dictionary skills?!! would LOVE to hear what you were doing!!!
ReplyDeleteJust checking in to see if you will be making the dictionary post soon??? I love all of your ideas!
ReplyDeleteI'm teaching dictionary skills in May and would LOVE to see your great ideas!! :)
ReplyDelete