Jan 25, 2014

100th Day, Chromebooks, and AdvoCare...OH MY!

My 2nd Graders are 100 Days Smarter!!!
We had the best time with our 100th Day!

We made 100th Day Headbands

Did some things in 100 seconds

Made a gumball machine with 100 gumballs

And did some fun out-of-your-seat activities in 100 seconds.
Then another day, was chromebook training.  We are so excited to get our chromebooks, and have lots of activities coming up to use them with! 
And Mrs. Wrinn finished the AdvoCare 10 day cleanse this week...and started on days 11-24...with 6 lbs. lost, no more hot flashes, and tons of energy!
Despite the cold...and snow...with NO snow day even...it's been a GREAT WEEK!
How has your week been?

Chatterbox Blessings,
Rebecca

Jan 19, 2014

GOOD GOLLY GUM BALLS! It's the 100th Day!

Isn't it exciting when that 100th Day gets here!??!

One of my all time favorite books to read for the 100th Day is Lester Laminack's Jake's 100th Day of School.  If you don't have this book, then you need to get it for your collection!  Lester's words are always thoughtful in his stories, showing the care and compassion of others.  This book is always included in my 100th Day classroom celebration!
BUY THE BOOK HERE!


I just finished a new pack, "Let's Celebrate 100 Days" just in time for my classroom celebration coming up this week.  This pack comes with a cute "100 gumballs" craft!  When is your 100th day?  Head over to my TpT store if you are in need of some new ideas for your 100th Day.  You can check it out here.

100th Blessings,
Rebecca

Jan 15, 2014

Making Our Own Braille

Today, my kiddos made their own Braille...they were super excited about this!  They worked so hard and careful to punch out all of the dots so they could start using it.  It was a huge success with everyone!  If you missed my last post about Helen Keller...then be sure to scroll down to yesterday's post to see what we have learned and been doing in correlation with our story, Helen Keller.

BTW...this activity is simple to make!  Just print the Braille out and give everyone a copy.  
They will turn their paper over to the back and punch each dot through with the tip of their pencil {make sure pencils are sharp and stress to them not to punch hard!}  
Voile'...Braille!


Chatterbox Blessings,
Rebecca

Jan 14, 2014

Living In Darkness...Focus on Helen Keller

Helen Keller...
What do you think of when you hear that name?
Some might think of words like blind, deaf, mute...
and that would be true.

However, what I think of is...
STRENGTH * COURAGE * DETERMINED * AMAZING

I have taught about Helen Keller for quite a long time, and it seems that each time, I learn something new...something amazing.  This lady was really something!

Watch this rare footage of Helen and her teacher, Anne Sullivan.
Warning:  It will probably bring tears to your eyes!

And though she never saw...she never heard...she did finally learn to speak.
Watch this!


Simply AMAZING, huh!??!

This week, our story from our Journey's reading series is Helen Keller.
My second graders have really enjoyed learning about this remarkable woman....so many questions...It's been awesome.
Here is an activity that we did today.
It is from my Helen Keller pack that you can find in my TpT store.

My students really got creative with their ways of communication...since they couldn't "hear", "speak", or "see".  

We have been learning Braille and Sign Language, as well.  My kiddos can sign several words and are working on finger-spelling their names.  We have located a lot of Braille in our school and in our community, that we never noticed before.

And so...I leave you with this quote from Helen Keller herself...
"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched -- they must be felt with the heart."

Many Blessings,

Jan 10, 2014

New Year Goals!!!

Well, school is back in session after Christmas break!  On Monday, we had teacher inservice and then Tuesday was a "snow/cold" day due to the 0〫weather {bc we have many kiddos that walk to school!}  Wednesday was students' official day back.  
We spent the morning sharing our Christmas stories, as well as New Year's.  We made a New Year's glyph that is now hanging in the hall outside our door.    
Our first day back after break {Happy New Year, btw!} we talked about resolutions and setting new goals for the year.  While my 2nd grade kiddos came up with suggestions that were right on target with my thoughts, they were quite strict with their solutions to accomplishing the goals.  I had to remind them that we weren't trying to set consequences for those not meeting the goals...{Ha!} but trying to come up with ways to reach the goals.  

We made a list of things we thought could make our classroom better {even though some things on the list only pertained to a few students...but those "few" students' actions can really cause a disruption in our classroom}.  So this is the list that the kiddos came up with.  

We decided to target the three top goals that we felt needed the most attention...and here they are...
1.  Stay on task...I have several this year that have had difficulty with this!!!  Hmmmm...
2.  Appropriate behavior...this applies only to a few but that can really wreak havoc on a classroom!
3.  Help others...by this we meant "HELP" others to UNDERSTAND and FIGURE IT OUT on their own...NOT give them the answers...we had just a few doing this but they recognized this without me saying so!!!
I could not have agreed more!  This class is a sweet group with a "few" head-strong kiddos.  We felt we could channel that energy into something more positive...and they agreed!  So to head in that direction, we agreed that these things need to be put into place by everyone!  Everyone!
And let me tell you...EVERYONE of my students have strived to make this week the BEST...and it HAS BEEN!  I am SO proud of them!  I can't wait to see all that we can accomplish in the second half of the year!

It always amazes me {I'm not sure why at this point} when you "hand it over" to the kiddos, they are much harder on themselves than the teacher!  By that, I mean, they set more astringent expectations, consequences, goals, etc. than I would.  Some of the consequences come from what they are use to at home...ones that I don't adhere to in my classroom.  ;)  So with that said, they decided on the ideas on the chart...this is what THEY wanted to see happen in our classroom...so we will go from there, and see how their ideas work!

Ya know, some classes are more challenging than others....and many times it is just a couple or three but that can mean a lot!  I have had HIGH hopes for this class anyway...and now, I think we might just make it!
How was your New Year's?
What did you do with your kiddos when you returned from the break?
Many blessing for 2014!!!

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