A Freebie and Giveaway!

Pink Tiara Book Blog Tour is come to an end at Primary Graffiti.  I'm so excited to offer a HUGE freebie, a new unit, and an AWESOME giveaway.  

Maria Dismondy did a wonderful job teaching exclusion as a subtle form of bullying in her beautiful book.  You can preview the book with an online reading at my blog too!  

Click the image above to link to my blog for your freebie and enter the giveaway!

Free Motivational Poster!

I just thought I would share this!  Have a great week!  Click the picture to download.

                                                                         Enjoy!

                                                                                           

What's All the Hubbub?

It's Sub HubBub, the new monthly newsletter of the Sub Hub blog. Don't miss the first issue Feb. 1. Visit Sub Hub to become a subscriber!

Lights and Shadows

Hi all! Mary here again from Sharing Kindergarten!

I know you all have all your lesson plans for the week written, prepped, and ready to go...

right! Right?

Okay... well SOME of us might need a little help this week. SOME of us may be looking for a complete lesson plan to teach about light and shadows this week.

Since I have already written, prepped, and planned out my awesome and FUN science unit this week, how about I share it with you?

Here are 5 days worth of Light and Shadow lesson plans AND
-book lists
-supplies needed
-charts already made
-activities planned
-links to great online resources ready

I have to say, this is one of my favorite units to teach, so I hope you choose to use it this week. It is so hands on and fun! And I did all the work for you!

Don't forget to download and use my Groundhog Day Mini Unit this week too! It is completely free.Here's to an early Spring!

Lions, Birthdays, Roaring + Miracles

HAPPY WEEKEND!!!!! HAPPY Saturday!!!!!!
Happy Re-charge your batteries and take a deep breath!!!!! Happy 100th day or there-abouts-depending on your calendar!!!! Happy to be a teacher? Happy to make a difference? Happy to contribute? Need a pick-me-up?


Happy, happy. Joy, joy, joy!

Every now and then I get to observe something truly amazing. Every now and again I get to participate in something awesome and inspiring. Once in a lifetime I get to learn of a 'miracle' and hear my part in its unfolding.

Yesterday on my blog I retold the story of an amazing set of parents who encountered a miracle, (as documented by Oprah's 'Medical Miracles') and I was one teeny-tiny part of it..... lions, birthdays and roaring: oh my!!!!!! 

Since its the weekend, perhaps you have time to read the story? It will bring a host of emotions. Perhaps smiles, perhaps tears -- or maybe both. I invite you over to read for yourself. Priceless. It's the story of the 'Lion Lady.' Pour yourself a cup of warmth and hop on over to RainbowsWithinReach for the rest of the story.
-- Debbie --

If your work includes that of reaching out to children with special needs -- this story is for you! I promise it will be worth your time.

Sweet Secret Code Words

Hi Blog Hoppers... check out my new game...

It is called Sweet Secret Code Words. This is a class favorite year after year, so I made this game digital for your guys. Check out the details at

Doing What Matters Most

I was lucky enough to get to review Start Something That Matters by Blake Mykoskie, chief shoe giver of TOMS. It may seem that the book would have nothing to do with teaching and blogging, but there are actually quite a few connections. Read the full review and enter to win a copy of your own at Sub Hub.

Don't Leave Out Math and Science for Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is usually all about writing stories and poems, reading holiday-themed books, classroom parties (maybe), eating candy, and exchanging cards. But don't forget that you can celebrate during math and science too. I have just the freebie for you. Check out my Valentine's Day Math and Science Ideas.

RtI resources and Data you can USE!!!

I came across a new website to me and HAVE TO SHARE!! Yes, I'm shouting.  Actually freaking out in a wonderful way.  easyCBM has made RtI instruction easy peasy lemon squeezy!  Oh. Yes. I. Did!  

My school transitions for RtI from 915-945am EVERY MORNING.  Since the entire school is moving at once, we have more success transferring kids to various classrooms that will meet their immediate needs.  Sounds easy right?  With more than 200 students on my grade level alone... easy it is not!  

I currently have tier two word reading, tier three comprehension, and tier three math.  Wowzers!  easyCBM is a one stop shop.  I've linked their screeenshots pages so that you can see all the wonderful tools this website provides..AND for FREE!  

In Florida, teachers are required to give FAIR (Florida Assessment in Reading) to all students.  This website has K-8: letter naming sounds, phoneme segmenting, word reading list, passage reading fluency, multiple choice reading comprehension, math number and operations, math geometry, math measurement, etc.  Various grade levels provide different support options and you have access to ALL.  Students can take the assessments online or on paper.  I used several assessments for a baseline this morning and input the scores this afternoon and received magnificent graphs.  Just what MRT would love to see!  

You HAVE to check this website out today!!  I signed up and had immediate access to files.  YEAH!!! By the way..PURE excited here..I'm not getting paid for this.  So stop reading my post and  go check it out.

Free 100th Day Activities

     Hello, Blog Hoppin' friends. I am Lidia from Kid's Reading Activities. I am very excited to be a part of your community. I have taught 15 years and most of my experience has been in Kindergarten.  I am always amazed at how much these little ones can learn.

     I love to create reading activities, especially thematic literacy centers and other fun activities. Today, I have some ideas and free printables for the 100 days of school. I have also included a parent letter for a fun family project. In this project, parents will help the child glue 100 small items on a hat. Click on the picture to hop on over to my blog for the parent letter, free printables and more fun ideas.

My free printables.

Celebrating a Baby with Some Math and Writing

Since all of my long-term subbing jobs have been for teachers on maternity leave, I came up with a baby math and writing activity to help the students feel connected to their missing teacher... and to help the teacher feel missed and appreciated.

I use the baby's stats for a math activity, and then the students make cards for the baby offering it advice for the future. The students (and the teacher) love it! Visit Sub Hub to see all the details.

100th Day Projects

With the 100th day around the corner, my kiddos are preparing for their big 100th day projects.  Since we are in second grade, my kids work on groups of 100 through a 1000.  Last year was a BIG success.  Many students traveled through our primary hallway to take a look.  I couldn't find all my fabulous pictures but did manage to find a few.

Here is the rubric used:

Link over to my blog and check out some of the final projects.

 

Get Ready For Groundhog Day

I have to share this simple FREE unit with you guys. I made it for my class, but I think and hope many of you can use it too. I loved the Scrappin Doodle Graphics too much to let it pass.
Please, go grab this from TpT and leave a comment on my blog or rate it for me. (Hit the link to take you there.)
Thanks!

Cupids For Cancer

Please come and read about the program that I sponsor at my school during February.  I challenge you to sponsor a similar <or same!> program to benefit your the oncology department at your children's hospital.  What are you waiting for???  CLICK!!!

Valentine Poetry Writing Freebie

I have planned ahead for you and made a quick little Valentine poetry writing freebie. Read a book, and the students write poems that follow the pattern. Free printable cards are included for students to make their own Valentines.

Love Those Polar Bears!

Hi!
Just a short post to share our big polar bear hanging in our classroom! It is SOOOOO cool for the kids to see how tall a polar bear would be if he stood up on his hind legs - almost 10 feet tall! My co-partner, Lisa, gave me this idea! I enlarged the polar bear picture to 10 feet on our old overhead. I had to do it in two parts! The polar bear sketch is very skinny because I wanted him to fit in the laminating machine. So, the realism is a little off, but the IDEA of the height of a polar bear is brought into the classroom! I take each child's picture standing next to the polar bear - Wow! A polar bear is big!
Click here to get a copy of the polar bear sketch! It is my first attempt at a Google.doc so bear with me as I learn this new skill! :)

Down with Downtime!

Greeting, Blog Hoppers! I invite you to check out my latest blog post featuring the first release of my new line of substitute products. This is called Down with Downtime and features subject-specific time fillers based on the Common Core State Standards. Down with Downtime: K-5 Math is now available along with a free sample.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Blog Hop

Good morning readers and fellow bloggers..... while everyone is still focused on the life and contribution of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and before you put those books, projects and resources away -- I want to direct your attention to a blog hop on this topic that I'm hosting at my personal blog, RainbowsWithinReach. I invite all the blog hoppers to hop on over and take a look at the amazing ideas already linked up!!! Click right here to see the blog hop. If you've written an article that addresses diversity, acceptance, peace and the issues involved in Dr. King's legacy -- please come on over and link up!

Last week as part of my "author-in-the-schools" visit in southern FL I had a class of kindergarten children weave THE MOST ORIGINAL 'dream catchers' as a thank-you gift for my time in their midst. What an awesome project to use in the exploration of dreams: large and small!

This is a brilliant idea brought to fruition by Caitlin Clabby, author of the blog Kindergarten Smiles. I think they would make an AWESOME parent gift for Valentine's Day.

Happy Hoppin'
  Debbie Clement

Abe Lincoln's Hat

Hey Everyone,

It's Hope King from Second Grade Shenanigans here to quickly share how we create our Valentine boxes in my room each year. I know many schools do not allow any form of party or celebration unless it includes academics/standards-based learning...so if that is you...here is a little trick. Valentine's Day is not the only holiday celebrated in the month of February. We also celebrate Abraham Lincoln's birthday on February 12 and President's Day on February 20th. So...why not have a triple threat and combine the three?!?

Fun fact for the day: Abraham Lincoln kept many of his letters and important documents in his tall black hat. Every year, my students make these adorable Abraham Lincoln hats to hold all of our Valentine cards {our version of letters and documents}. After reading Abe Lincoln's Hat, we write facts about him on heart shaped cut-outs. Then the students attach their facts to their hats. On the day of our Valentine's Day celebration, the students place all of their cards into their hat just like Abe! 100% Learning & 100% Fun...all at the same time! Here is a look at how our hats are created!

This fun activity is one of many in my new unit that incorporates Valentine's Day into lots of friendly letter writing fun! You can check out my unit over at Second Grade Shenanigans! :)

Thank you, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.!!

Hey y'all! This is Anna from Crazy for First Grade! I wanted to share a couple activities with you that I am using to celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.! 

I plan to read a lot of literature with my class about Dr. King! Here are a few of my favorite books about his life & legacy!

 My sweeties will use what they learned about Martin Luther King to complete this bubble map.

 Then they will write up an informational piece about him using the facts on their bubble map.

 We'll also watch parts of the famous "I Have A Dream" speech and reflect on our dreams.

 I found this PRECIOUS idea from 1st Grade Decades on Pinterest...my newest online addiction. *side note*- You can follow my boards {HERE}!

I'm going to let my students write about their dream on the writing paper below & put it inside their book! Too cute!!

You can download all of these printables {HERE}!

I hope you are enjoying a relaxing Monday off work!!! We sure do have a lot to be thankful for today as we give thanks to such an amazing man!

"Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase."

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.