Camping at School!

Hey Friends,
Yes, you read right! We camped at school! Actually, CAMPED, OVERNIGHT with 50 students!
When my colleague and I first approached our administer and asked if we could plan a campout at school, her initial response was: "You want to do WHAT?!" She quickly hopped on board and I can't thank her enough for, not only giving us the opportunity, but taking part and helping out as well. We are fortunate to have such a motivated and caring principal on our team. I don't think I have ever seen so many big toothy grins and it's all due to the amazing staff and parents who volunteered at this event.  I couldn't have asked for a better group of people to help make this a night to remember.

Here is a little run down on how the night played out. We asked the students to return to school at 6pm with all their camping gear. We began by playing Just Dance on the Smartboard and then had a nice hearty pasta dinner (courtesy of one of my student's mom). She cooked dinner for 75 people! She's a saint I tell you! 

Once the kiddies were fed and ready for fun, we split them up into four groups of 12 and completed four 20 minute stations. 

The first station was a camping craft.


The next station was all about baking! Baking a cake in a mug! A five minute process!


Messy and delicious! Just what the campers ordered!

Finally, the last two centers were related to physical activity. We had camp games in a classroom and free play outside. The kiddies loved every minute of it!

My favorite part was when we gathered into the gym and sang songs around the campfire! Our school custodian even played the guitar! It was so much fun!


We gave the students the choice of staying overnight or being picked up at 9pm. This gave some of our more anxious students and/or parents a chance to participate in the fun. At this point in the evening, we said goodbye to some friends and the kiddies who remained (about 48) did something they have been talking about for days!

They went outside into our school yard in the DARK!


All they needed were some flashlights and a little imagination! Apparently, there's a "ghost" living in the field behind the yard!

Finally, we had some s'mores and cuddled up in our sleeping bags for a movie!


The sleepyheads didn't actually SLEEP until about midnight! Too much excitement and giggles with their friends. It was definitely a night to remember and when I asked my munchkins to write about camping at school, I got the greatest responses. I quote my third graders when I say: 
"Well, I speak for all of us when I say, that camping at school was a blast!" and "This was an experience I am sure to always remember." Seriously! They are 8! 

I can't say I got ANY sleep that night and quite frankly I'm still trying to recover! However, I can honestly say that this was a great experience that I recommend to all and the smiles, oh the smiles, they made it worth every sleepless minute. We may just have to make this an annual tradition!

This week, we have been reading and writing all about camping with my Let's Go Camping Literacy Center, Printables, and Craftivity Pack.


Check it out and have some camping fun with your kiddies!

Until next time...
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Fun, Fabulous Fractions!

Hi Everyone!
Just wanted to share some of my kiddies accomplishments in math! Language Arts is my favorite subject to teach, however this whole math business is starting to grow on me! We have been having some fun lately and it's all because of this sweet little package I just posted up on TpT!


We have been working on it for a few days now and have had a blast! The kiddies love fractions and they especially love that it's all about cookies and cupcakes! Yummm!

First, we went to the Smartboard room and watched this clip on "What is a Fraction?" It is simply stated and really gives a clear depiction of what a fraction is all about. I stopped the video several times to repeat and go over what had been stated.


Then, we used Kidspiration to play with fractions!


It's great because you can shade the boxes and do all kinds of neat stuff! The kids got a kick out of it!

Finally, I asked them to complete a worksheet to see where we were in terms of understanding fractions!


The rest of the week was devoted to some great fraction centers from my pack!






This week we will begin to look at fractions as part of a whole AND mixed numbers!
I plan to show them the video below and then use more of my fraction centers to help them master these very important skills!


I gotta say, I do like this series! They get to the point and have great visuals.



The 118 pages pack includes:

- 4 fraction basic worksheets (write the fraction/draw the fraction)
- 4 mixed numbers worksheets (write the fraction/draw the fraction)
- 2 puzzle matching centers (match the fraction picture with the corresponding fraction) 1 with circular fractions and 1 with rectangular fractions
- 2 draw the fractions centers (choose a fraction card and draw the corresponding fraction) 1 with circular fractions and 1 with rectangular fractions
- 2 write the fractions centers (choose a picture card and write the corresponding fraction) 1 with circular fractions and 1 with rectangular fractions
- 1 match the circular and rectangular fraction pictures center
- 2 "How many are eaten, How many are left?" activity (1 with circular fractions and 1 with rectangular fractions)
- 1 fractions as part of a whole activity center
- 1 cupcake fractions center
- 1 draw the fraction center for mixed numbers
- 1 write the fraction center for mixed numbers
- 2 fractions in real life activity sheets (fractions on a clock and in a glass)
- 6 fraction posters to display in your classroom. 
- 1 make your own fraction poster for students

Until next time...
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Beware of BigFoot!

Hi Everyone!
I know that many of you are almost finished the year! Woot! Woot! You must be beyond excited! We, on the other hand, still have until the 21st of June to learn. This year, we have decided to bring on the camping fun and have just begun our Camping Theme. 

I introduced the theme with some BIG news (we will be having an overnight "campout" at school), but not before I made them guess what our new theme was all about, while reading this wonderful read aloud. 


In this story, Timmy and Tammy take a walk in the woods and find a mysterious paw print. They begin to guess where the print came from. I purposefully did not show them the cover page, so that they can guess too! Needless to say, they were all very surprised to find out that Bigfoot was in town! I made this little story chalk full of structures and features, so that we could really look into that in our reading response. The kids had a great time and of course they wrote their very own Bigfoot stories too.


I was so proud of their creative writing. I have to admit that this has been a challenging year, but the growth and progress I have seen their academics, as well as socially, has blown me away. These kiddies are absolutely awesome and never cease to amaze me. I just can't believe how great my job is sometimes! So rewarding! 


I love our little forest! Bigfoot is not only REAL, but he has a whole family of sasquatches too! 

Here are a few pics of the follow-up activities included in these two packages. Each pack includes different activities. I like to have fun activities prepared for my early finishers and I also like to use them for morning messages or centers. Sometimes we even complete them as a whole class. I usually place them in an easy to find/reach basket and the students choose which one they would like to complete. I love giving them choices AND I love that they are independent and know what is expected of them when they have completed their craftivity.






You can stop by my Teacher Store to check out these packs and other Summer Units.

For those who are in their last few days of school.. Enjoy every moment with your kiddies!
And for those of you who still have quite a stretch to go... Hang in there!
Until next time... 
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There's no Love like a Mother's Love


Hello Everyone, 
I have just had the most fabulous weekend and am looking forward to the week ahead. 
Of course, this week it's all about Mother's Day!
My Mama is my very best friend and I love her to pieces!

The kiddies are feeling just the same about their wonderful mom's and have been hard at work creating a beautiful keepsake for Mother's Day.


They made their beautiful mommies and wrote all about how their hearts belong to her!
I was tearing up reading their letters. 
I know their mother's will loooooove their kind and genuine words.

You can check out this craftivity by clicking on the picture below.





Naturally, we began by reading my My Heart Belongs to you Read Aloud!
Click on the picture to check it out!





Don't forget that TpT is having a huge Teacher Appreciation Sale tomorrow and Wednesday!
Be sure to check out my TPT STORE for some great deals on ALL my packs!


Enjoy and until next time...
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Currently...


Hey Sweet Friends,
So, I've only done this once before, but I loved it! 

Here's what's currently going on in this teacher's life!


Stop by 
to link up!

Happy Friday everyone!

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