Ok, this is me playing with google docs.  I had no success before, but maybe this will work.  I use this cover for our snowflake books.  I have cut out foam snowflakes from a craft store on the frame next to my door and I have numbered them 1-20.  I have the children estimate how many snowflakes tall they think they are, then I measure them, they record how many snowflakes tall they actually are and then I take a picture.  Here is a link to the googledoc if it works  Snowflake book cover

I can do it!

Now this doesn't look like a rowdy bunch of ladies does it?  No ... I didn't think so.  Ok we used our inside voices most of the time. (See my previous post for links to all their blogs)  From the back there's me, Chrissy, Meredith, (table) Katie and Deedee.

 I am still on a big learning curve with this blogging thing.  My computer is a dinosaur and so I am currently using my son's computer to create this post. (No it is not fair that his computer is better than mine, but he knows more about it than I do - he's 12 - help me ...)

At the lunch I learned how to use Power Point to make fun slides.  I did this one really quick, but I see more in my future (thanks for the pic Chrissy).

I learned a lot more from these ladies as well and I have been on a real high.
 Today reality smacked me in the face ... a little - assessments, assemblies, "grown ups" (acting like children - I will stick with the real thing, thank you very much).  But I'm not going to let it get me down.

Kristin at A Teeny Tiny Teacher posted a scripture yesterday that I read this morning:

"Do everything without complaining and arguing so that no one can criticize you."  Philippians 2:14.

It helped ... a little... I work at a Christian school ... I may post this on the wall.



Winter Fun - Part 1

Ok I don't know if there will be a part 2, but just in case.  I am putting up some pictures from our winter activitities.  Some are my own ideas and some are from other blogs ... unfortunately I am terrible at keeping track of where I got things  so ... if any of these activities are your idea or you know where it came from please let me know so I can give credit where credit is due.  Thank you and here's the stuff ...

Stories about snow to practice new sight words.

Our bulletin board ... Thank you pinterest!

This is for all my blogger friends that teach at a Christian School.  I got the poem at Danielle's Place.

Fun poem for ordinal numbers.
That's all for now.  More later ....

Thank You!

I had the BEST afternoon.  I barely blog, but somehow I got an invite to have lunch with some of the most amazing women in the teaching blog world.  It was such an inspiration to sit around and talk and laugh with these ladies.  I guess I better get off my butt and rejoin the fun.  I'll try to post more ideas so I give back just a little of what has been given to me.  Thank you so much Katie (Little Warriors ), Deedee (Mrs. Wills Kindergarten), Meredith (Keen On Kindergarten), and Chrissy (Read Write Sing )! 

OK I promise I will never get all mushy again.  Probabaly.  More than likely.  Ok I just cried at a commercial, but it was really touching...

I won!

Ok I haven't posted in quite a while, but I spend too much time reading other blogs. I entered a contest for Miss Kindergarten and I won, so I thought I would give a big shout out to her sight.

http://misskindergartenlove.blogspot.com/


Check it out! She has a lot of great ideas.

As for me, I have some great materials and pictures, but terrible technology at the moment. Maybe Santa will put a new computer and camera under my tree. Until then, I'll have to wait for the gremlin fairy make it possible to post something in less than half an hour. Please check out some of my favorite sites in the sidebar. That is where I spend a lot of my time!

Thanks again Miss Kindergarten!

Morning Work

I use a variety of activities for morning work (that time between when they first arrive and when school actually starts).  The children look at the board to find out what the work will be that day.  I have had handwriting practice, Math Boxes, quiet activities, books, puzzles, etc.  I created these to reinforce the color words we have just introduced.

Beginning color words


beginning color words 2

Life Saving Teacher Tips

Katie Mense at Little Warriors is having a linky party asking for some life saving teacher tips.  My number one life saver is the people that I work with.  I have worked in an environment where I barely spoke to the other teachers in the building.  I love where I am now.  I have a wonderful assistant in my class and I know I couldn't get through the day without her.

I also couldn't make it through the year without chocolate.  After the first few days of school all the kids in my class knows that chocolate is my favorite food no matter what form it takes.  The first letter we introduce it M and our first treat - m&ms.  Life is good.

The final thing that I couldn't live without is music.  "Music soothes the savage beast" - William Congreve.  And that is certainly true of my kinders.  We sing in my class all day long.  I love Dr. Jean, Jim Gill, Heidi Songs, Frog Street press, Harry Connick Jr. (ok not a children's musician, but we love to dance to jazz), and Greg and Steve.  On Fridays (Fabulous Fun Friday) I bring my guitar for some extra music.

Sing and eat chocolate with a bunch of great people.  That about sums it up!