Five for Friday!

Thanks Kacey at Doodle Bugs Teaching for hosting the perfect linky party to end the school week!

 

This week was for the boys...the boys who know every name of every dinosaur. I'm always amazed at how much information they know about these creatures of long ago. It's like they have a special section of their brain set aside for all things dinosaur. To be honest... when I first started teaching, those kiddos intimidated me with their dino knowledge. I knew a little about the T-Rex, triceratops... uhhh....long necks.....Ducky?... (Yes, I watched Little Foot as a kid.)

Here is a unit where my littles get the chance to teach me.

I do get points for integrating reading and math with our dinosaur theme.

We created stegosaurus patterns and recorded the "core" pattern.

This was a favorite - making our own fossils with Model Magic!

 To see more dinosaur themed activities check out my Roar, Roar Dinosaur! post here.

I had big plans to make these ADORABLE Earth Day cookies...

That is until I came home from work exhausted and took a nap instead. Oh well! Kids need a well rested, happy teacher more than they need more sugar. Right? Savin' the idea for next year.

We read Help the Environment Reusing and Recycling. After we sorted pictures of things that are helpful and harmful to the environment.

One of my favorite songs to teach at the beginning of the year is He's Got the Whole World in His Hands. We did the age-old coffee filter + marker + water in a spray bottle Earth art.

When I individually helped them add their hands to their Earth, I let them create their own verse of the song to sing. "He's got _(student's name)'s_  family in His hands...." or "He's got _(school name)_ in His hands."

Math curriculum? Done.

Now we are reviewing, reviewing, reviewing!

I saw THE Shari Sloane present at a kindergarten conference last weekend and was AMAZED! If you haven't heard of her - check out her website here.

My favorite session of hers was on Math Games. I printed off several for my students to play as we revisit and cement the concepts we've learned so far. Her resources are free and ready to print with little to no prep involved! Click here to check them out. Your welcome!

Teacher Appreciation Week at Barnes and Nobel happened...

I couldn't help myself! 25% off!

Yes, I spent more money on these books than I did on gas this week.  I am not ashamed.   

I love it when an unplanned learning moment happens. This week, as my students did their usual caterpillar observation, one students said "One of them lost his tail!" This lead into a little spur of the moment research to discover that caterpillars shed their "skin" just like reptiles do as they grow. This is called "molting".

Our caterpillars are on their way to becoming beautiful butterflies! Now we watch and wait....

Happy Friday!