Nov 23, 2011

Spreading Some Sunshine!


Wow!  Do I filled honored AND thankful or what?
Denise from Yearn 2 Learn has awarded me with the Sunshine Award!
Thank you SO MUCH, Denise!  I accept!

Here are the rules for accepting this award...

1.  Thank the person who gave this award to you, and write a post about it.
2.  Answer the following questions.
3.  Pass the award on to 10-12 fabulous bloggers, link to their blog, and let them know you have awarded them!

On the questions below,  you are going to see that I gave more than one answer on several.  Sorry, I just can't help it...it's the way I roll...bwahahahaha

So...here are my answers...

Favorite Color?
Pink, of course but red does rank up top with it!



Favorite Animal?
Dogs!  Now you aren't surprised at that, are you?  teehee
Miss Maggie Bleu


Favorite Number?


Favorite Drink{s}?
Sundrop
 Peppermint Mocha




Facebook or Twitter?
Facebook!


Your Passion?
Teaching

Being a Gramma to this precious girl...


Giving or Getting Presents?
Getting presents is fun, but I really love giving to others the most!!!!!



Favorite Day?
Christmas...it's so magical, and my Savior was born.
I love decorating, shopping, baking, and FAMILY!


Easter...My Savior sacrificed everything for ME.


Now, I am passing on the Sunshine Award to these bloggers...
Congrats!!!

Patti who is a ray of sunshine at A Series of 3rd Grade Events
Melissa who is the best dressed, and always makes me smile at Teaching Fashionista
Simply Super Jennifer at Empowering Little Learners
Little Miss Hypothesis who inspires me with Science
The most wonderful JenR at The Teacher's Cauldron
The crafty and clever Kelli at Castles and Crayons
The fun and colorful Mel at Seusstastic Classroom Inspirations
Wonderful Sally at Elementary Matters
Rockin' Hilary at Rockin' Teacher Materials
Caitlin who is Ms Preppy

Thanksgiving Blessings,

Nov 22, 2011

Making Butter

So our afternoon activity and Thanksgiving snack we made today was butter.  We do this every year, and every year it is a hit!

Shaking it is always fun for the kiddos!  They sure shook up some good butter!  


They thought it was cool that this was something they could actually make at home to contribute to their Thanksgiving meal.

And here's how to do it...

Making Butter


Ingredients Needed: heavy whipping cream, baby food jar {or other small jar} with lid, crackers

Directions:
1. Place heavy whipping cream into a baby food jar. Fill the jar about half full.
2. Replace the lid to the jar. Make sure it is secure!
3. Shake the jar very fast and hard. Continue to shake.
4. The cream will become frothy. Still shake!
5. Shake until the cream turns into a clump. There will be some liquid left, but it should not be a lot!
6.Open the jar. Drain off liquid. Enjoy with crackers.

Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Baking!

Planting Corn Squanto's Way...Well Sort Of!


My kiddos loved learning about the Pilgrims, Native American Indians {esp. Squanto and Samoset} and Plimoth Plantation!  

One of the activities we did was planting corn the way Squanto taught the Pilgrims to do...which was burying a fish with the corn.  The kiddos enjoyed learning the reasoning behind that.

Then, I told them we were going to plant corn the way Squanto taught the Pilgrims.  They really thought I had stinky fish, dirt, and corn!  bwahahahaha  

They were quite relieved when they saw that the dirt was crushed Oreos, the stinky fish was gummy fish, and the corn was candy corn.  They LOVED this as our morning snack!!!

Thanksgiving Blessings,

Nov 12, 2011

Alphabet Center

When you think of Alphabet Centers, do you think of "younger students only"? If so, have I got a center for you!  I have an alphabet center in my third grade classroom called Alphabet Topics!  My students love it!


In a notebook, I have created divider pages A-Z.  Behind each letter, I have placed pages for topics beginning with each letter.  From time to time, we brainstorm topics that we have covered, and label a page for that topic under the appropriate letter.  Sometimes, I just add topics that we've covered. 

When students visit that center, they can flip through the pages and choose a topic to write about.  Once that topic has been chosen by a student, it can not be chosen again.  However, if a student writes only a small amount of info, and there's space left, another student can add more information to fill that topic up, but can't repeat anything that has already been written.  

As the book fills up, there are lots of topics that students can revisit and read about. 

If I notice some inaccurate info under a topic, I will hold a brief discussion with the class so we can figure out the appropriate info for that topic.  A new blank page is created for that topic, and a student can then choose to write about it.  

Reading, writing, and reinforcing info is addressed in this center...plus my kiddos LOVE IT!

It you'd like the pages to get you started, just download below.  I hope your students enjoy it as much as mine do!





Chatterbox Blessings,

Nov 7, 2011

Plural Nouns






Here's our Anchor Chart for Plural Nouns. 

And...another FREEBIE!  It's a cut-n-paste plural noun sheet with a color coded answer sheet.
Enjoy!

Chatterbox Blessings,

Nov 6, 2011

Multiplication Booklet FREEBIE


I'm starting Multiplication this week with my third graders, so I created this little booklet for them.  I'm offering it as a freebie too, so snag it if you wish.  I hope it helps your kiddos!




Have a lovely week, everyone!
Chatterbox Blessings,

Anchor Charts Addiction

Hi!  I'm Rebecca, and I'm addicted to Anchor Charts!  
bwahahahaha  

I just love to create Anchor Charts with my students.  

However, I'm starting to run out of space, so I have got to get creative about storing them!  I have found several ways, but I'm not sure which way I like best.  How do YOU store your Anchor Charts?  I'd love to hear your ideas!

Chatterbox Blessings,

Nov 5, 2011

Fall Back

Don't forget to turn your clocks back an hour tonight!
Happy Fall Y'all!

{sigtag made by me with tubes from Tender Teddy Tags...no longer online}

November's "Currently"

So, it's that time again...
to share what you are currently doing.  
Here's what I'm doing in November...

Here are the links to the blogs I am stalking...

So, what are you currently doing?  
Head over to Oh Boy 4th Grade!
November Blessings,

Nov 1, 2011

Classroom Graffiti

Classroom Graffiti is such a fun activity for content areas.  Use it to find out what prior knowledge students have on a unit before you teach it, and then compare it to what they know at the end of the unit.  Or use it as a review before a test on content area.

My reading intervention group is studying weather.  So, to begin this unit, I labeled seven pieces of chart paper with a topic on weather.  I divide the chart into two subtitles... BEFORE and AFTER.  The before will be done before the unit is taught, and the after...well, you guessed it...it will be filled out after I have taught the unit.  
Next, I placed the charts around the classroom.  Students worked in pairs to record information that they already knew/or thought they know about each topic.  {Yes, I have a small number in this class because it is interventions.}  I gave them a few minutes at each chart to record their ideas/thoughts/answers.  

When I rang a bell, they moved clockwise around the room to the next chart.  {Each group had a different color marker that they used on every chart.}  

When they arrived at the next chart, they had to read previous groups' answers.  They could not write anything that had already been written.  So, it gets a little more challenging as they go.  

Tomorrow, we will look over each chart to see what student knew or thought they knew.  This will help me to know what they really do understand, as well as, misconceptions or incorrect ideas they have about a topic{s}. 
As you can tell, some of the answers are incorrect.  At the end of the unit, we will be able to go back and  correct that by adding to the "AFTER" side of the chart and crossing out anything that was previously recorded incorrectly.  

Have you used Classroom Graffiti before?  Do you call it by a different name?  I'd love to hear your ideas on using this fun activity!

Chatterbox Blessings,

Building A Classroom Community

Classrooms are actually communities...after all, educators and students spend a lot of time there together....at least seven hours, five...