Spring Break Sale

I am OFFICIALLY on Spring Break... so that mean SALE!!! Click on the picture to go to my TPT shop.

P.S. If you are looking for a team to cheer for in the Final Four... GO CATS!

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Raining Clocks Freebie

I think I can make it... okay I really hope I can make it. Spring Break is 3 looooong days away.  As I am sure many of you have experienced this year--- we had a snow day-free winter for the most part. I know I will be thrilled on May 17th, but for right now- I.am.beat.  So, needless to say- exhausted me, means short post.  BUT it is a good one!  I threw this little freebie together. We decided to review time this week instead of jumping into regrouping right before Spring Break (let's be honest- their brains are mush).  We needed this review sooo badly.  They are reading clocks (digital and analog) very well for the most part, but I am very unimpressed by our sloppy drawing of the times. I loooove Read the Rooms, so I used some clip art I already had and made an activity or workstation. Click on either picture to download!

Let me know what you think!

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Loads of Pictures- Math and Poetry Night!

We started the day out with Math Centers! We are rocking that 2 digit addition! I have started regrouping in small group, but not whole class yet. Let's hope my constant emphasis on making ten will aide us in regrouping!

 The center below is part of my Spring Packet- you can find *HERE*! This one does have regrouping in it. 

 This is a very high level money center from my *Money* packet. Students are asked to figure out how much money they already have and fill in the black with missing coins to equal the total. 

 These boys are playing my Scoot and Slide game and we modified it to a great center! You can find it *HERE* free!

 These cuties are sorting Easter addition facts based on their sums courtesy of the wonderful *Ms. Arnold*!

I have mentioned in previous posts that we started a First Grade Poetry Night last year. We found the idea via the fantastic *Amanda* and fell in love with the idea! We call it Poetry Night but really it is half Reader's theaters and half poetry.  Parents send in tons of hot chocolate, cookies, and marshmallows. The kids all dress in black and we have a fantastic evening. I wish I had gotten a picture of the people in my room- it was stuffed to the gills! 2-3 adults per child and 21 out of 24 kids made it! Here I am in introducing the evening!

 We started out with our readers' theaters! They did a FABULOUS job! These kids did The Three Little Javelinas- a Desert version of the Three Little Pigs. It is a great book if you haven't read it before!

 Here is another group reading The Little Red Hen!

 And two more- we really love Kevin Henkes so we did Owen  and Sheila Rae the Brave. 

 If you look closely you can see evidence of bloggers all over my room!

 After an intermission filled with lots of sweets- we turned the lights down low and got under the spotlight!  I projected their poems on the SmartBoard behind them as they read their fabulous poems.  We write all Free Verse in First Grade at our school. It is unbelievably hard- but produces phenomenal poems!

 I am so proud of my students. I know I am incredibly lucky to have students and parents who could make such a special night possible. And yes- Mrs. King teared up during several poems.

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Winner of *E Book* giveaway

Hcarp- congrats! I will send your email address to Sylvan Dell! Thanks for particpating!

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Fast Facts Exercise Download

I have been meaning to post about this fabulous exercise for over a year now...

One of the fourth grade teachers at my school told us about how she had started using PowerPoint to practice Fast Facts with her kids.  All her kids would have out their slates or white boards instead of little pieces of paper (Totally speaking for the trees here!).  You set your PowerPoint to have whatever facts you want. The best part is the fact flashes on the board and you put the sum on the following slide. GENIUS. They practice it correctly every.time. 

 I tell my kids all the time "It's not practice that makes perfect. It is perfect practice."  If students guess and get it wrong, they are training their brains incorrectly. 

*For a challenge, I turn up the automatic speed from 5 seconds to 3 seconds. They really enjoy this challenge.

My kids absolutely LOVE this drill. I uploaded my doubles version to TPT for free.  Click on the picture to check it out!

 

I found this little note on my desk at the end of the day and it made me cry... in case you can't read it a very simple "You make my day!" It doesn't get much better than that.

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In honor of the Hunger Games *Flash Sale*

I have been waiting on this premiere for a VERY long time! In honor of me acting like a Teeny Bopper and going to the Midnight showing of the movie, I will be offering a 15 % of Sale for my Spring Centers and Money Unit until Midnight! (I tried to run a 12 % off sale, but that wasn't an option :).

 

I have heard that both Katniss and Peeta are Kentucky natives (just a little fun fact!).

Let the games begin!

P.S. If you haven't entered the giveaway to win a fantastic E Book ...click on the picture below (not many people have entered, so your chances are really high!)

 

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My day in pictures...

 I started the day by introducing 2 digit addition (my kids were SO excited!).

We began publishing our poems...

...which would explain the giant "Poet- Tree" in the hallway! We will be hanging our published poems from the branches before our BIG POETRY NIGHT (Can you tell I am getting anxious about it?!) on Monday night!

We spent a little time with Annie and Moby (for some reason I think my kids listen better to these two than to me :)!) reviewing animal adaptations in the Desert.

 

 On my break I hung up some Fabulous 4s in the hallway.  The kids did a beautiful job explaining 2 ways to make 25 cents in words/pictures/number sentences! 

 And last but not least I ran gobs of copies on my break.  If I am going to squeeze any Easter in, it has to be before Spring Break! I LOVE all of Jodi's fluency packets and I can't wait to use her **Easter** set!

*Phew* after that looong day,  I was glad to come home to these 3 sweeties!

Tonight will include printing and cutting out my Spring Centers!

Have a great evening!

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Desert Text and * E book giveaway*

Well, it was a Monday. Maybe it's my lack of caffeine during the Lenten season or my new diet (I am in a wedding and going on a beach vacay all in the month of June!)- but Mrs. King was just a little bit cranky today.  Really-I should be a in great mood- my students were very good and they knocked the socks of their Money Assessment (thanks in part to my *Mega Money Unit* I think!). So what better way to make an attitude adjustment than to host a giveaway. 

As I told you all a week or so again, I love teaching about the Desert.  Today I used this FANTASTIC book to talk to my students about the animal and plant adaptations. The book is full of children's tunes with a "desert twist." My students' favorite was the one about the Javelinas set to the tune of "I'm a little teapot," and I guarantee it had NOTHING to do with Mrs. King's singing!  

 

Anyway- the best part of the book is the pages of resources in the back.  There was a great little game that my kids really enjoyed where they had to guess the Desert Animal based on the adaptation listed. Back to the point of the rambling- **Sylvan Dell** said they would give one *E Book* version to one of my followers! Winner will be announced Thursday evening!

Please leave me 1 comment below and tell me that you follow Sylvan Dell on *facebook*!

And then another comment that you are a follower of me and my TPT store!

If you haven't gotten a chance to download my Desert Learning Log, you can do so below.  I also made a document where my students record facts that they learned about the Desert during their independent reading. 

Just for fun, here is one of my sweeties reading the great book!

Aaaand just in case you missed it, I posted Spring Literacy and Math Centers on TPT last night. The Spring Centers and my Money Packet are on sale for tonight only!  Go check it out!

Off to tuck my kids in and watch The Voice!

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New Unit and Sale

I LOVE creating. It makes me feel really good to finish something and be proud of it!  I just uploaded my Spring Literacy and Math Centers  to TPT. 102 pages! Are you kidding?!? Lots of goodies!  I have both my units on SALE today and tomorrow! GO check it out!

Have a great Sunday evening!

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*New Unit*

I am currently working on some Spring Literacy and Math Centers! Don't worry- I am taking lots of breaks to go outside on this BEAUTIFUL day, to watch March Madness (my Cats play tonight), and to take my son to his book fair (holy cow he has talked about it ALL week).  I found some super cute spring clipart that got me really motivated. You can check out some samples from my unit here:

And just because I can't get over how cute they are-

If you have my old button- I would love for you to trade it for this one!

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**Come See** **Come See**

...my new blog design!  I am absolutely in LOVE with it. I really, really liked my old design from Kristen, but I had purchased a premade template when I first started blogging that a few other people were using.  I asked Jena to make me a new design and I am blown away by her creativity! She was fantastic to work with and took my "I want something no one else has and don't use the color red" rambling and made it into something SO cute!

 I am going to take a much needed break tonight and go shopping with my husband (he actually picks out really cute things for our kids), but I will be back at it tomorrow. I am beginning to work on some Spring centers!

I don't have too much to say--I just really wanted you all to see my new design and show Jena some *love*!

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