Yesterday was a Busy Day!

Oh, what a lovely Saturday morning.  As many of you, I am now on Christmas vacation.  Here are some moments of a fun filled yesterday.  Linking up with Doodlebugs to share my 5 for Friday/Saturday.   

I had joked with the kids about needing staples, and I actually did get them.  I actually did a happy dance after I opened it up.  The kids still thought I was crazy.  

I loved this gift sign.  I'm going to leave it up all winter long…  I don't live where it snows though, so it's all just wishful thinking.  

Yesterday the kids created their Sugar Cube Missions.  I think I've done this now for 5 years… and every year I tweak it a little to make it a better experience.  This year I had the kids sit on the ground on a huge roll of butcher paper.  Boys were on one side of the classroom, girls were on the other.  Each group had the same amount of supplies and I limited their time to 30 minutes.  I also only supplied the spice drops (bells), licorice (adobe roofs), and candy canes.  Less mess, no headaches.  It was a competition - anyone that could lift and carry their mission won.  

I popped 10 bags of popcorn for our Polar Express movie then carried it all to school in a big trash bag. While watching the movie the kids compared the book to the movie using 3 train cars.  I made this up at the last moment, so I'm sorry it won't really help much for this year.  It's over on Google Docs.  During the movie, every half hour or so, we had an "intermission" and they wrote down some notes on their papers.  

This week we also tackled finding the prime factors of numbers.  I love doing this right before Christmas so we can make Christmas trees.  We covered a piece of paper front and back with examples… the kids enjoyed making their own Prime Factor Christmas Tree Farms.  

Words can not express how I loved having a PJ day yesterday.  This was the first year that I had one as part of my party.  I'm so glad I did.  I might have another one today too!  I was so exhausted last night and my almost 4 year old kept waking up - his tummy wasn't happy.  

Hope you have a wonderful day!  All the gift are now wrapped… maybe I might do some baking, I might watch a Christmas ABC Family movie, I might just blog hop for a while.  :)  Love the feeling of vacation!  

 

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5 Random Moments

5 random moments of this week…

Here are my boys with Mr. and Mrs. Claus.  It's the official picture… We used to get them all dressed up, but over the years we are lucky to not be in the picture with them.  I've been photographed so many times with Santa in an orange shirt (totally clashes), or holding a screaming child - that this year I don't care that my children are wearing their clothes from school, or that Mrs. Claus is holding my youngest in place so he doesn't dart out of the scene.  I'M NOT IN THE PICTURE - and for that I'm doing the happy dance!

Okay - here's something school related.  We sent home progress reports on Friday.  Since the progress reports are really just a print out of the online grade book for parents to look at, I like to add a little more information on a half sheet of piece of paper.  Just more of their recent assessments - district tests and the reading unit tests.  First trimester I pull the kids over one by one to go over their grade print out, this time around I passed them out and went through the different areas to look at.  Both times the kids made up a goal of an area to work on, and wrote something they were proud of.  This half sheet of paper was stapled on top of their academic grades.  I had a request for the sheet - it's over on Google Docs in a powerpoint format.

I love my kid so much - This week I went back to school to sit through a beginning violin concert in order to hear his guitar group perform.  Let me say that again.. beginning violins…  Oy!

My older boys were also in the children's musical at church.  They both were in the choir, and then my oldest had a speaking part.  He isn't afraid of the microphone like his mommy!

Okay - last random thing… I uploaded a freebie early this morning as a surprise for my students this coming week.  We are starting the unit on prime and composite numbers (even though we have been practicing with it for the past 1 1/2 months in Morning Math Meeting) - I wanted to change it up to being a special Holiday version of our normal headings.  Every day the kids sort random numbers under the correct headings - so why not make it fun!  

Linking up with Doodlebugs!  :)  Hope something in my rambling helps you!  

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Five for Friday - Did you enter yet?

It's Friday and it's the beginning of a beautiful week long vacation.  I'm so thankful for my district giving us an entire week of rest.  Love the kids, need a break though!

Linking up with Doodle Bug's Teaching to share 5 random things about this week.

My kids have been writing in their Thankful Journals this past week.  It was just a simple mini book - folded over construction paper with a couple sheets of copy paper inside.  I had them write different categories in their books - one per page (Family, Friends, Home, School, City, State, and Other).  They took this week and during ELA center time had to add to their lists.  Then yesterday I gave them this freebie from MelonHeadz Illustrating and showed them how to create Word Art using their brainstormed lists.  They got so into it.  Above is my example - the kids laughed at me when I mentioned being thankful for my dishwasher and washing machine.    

This week we took a lot of tests to finish up the end of the unit and wrapping up before the big break.  As they finished their reading unit test, they worked on this Reading Feast Craftivity from Jessica Scott - I {Heart} Recess.  Each part of their turkey dinner was a different portion of the book report.  I told them they had to choose a book they had read in November to write about.  They turned out awesome and the kids learned about some new books that are out there!  

My preschooler came home with a little turkey craft.  I love handprint projects and the fact they added google eyes.

Christy Fultz over at Mrs. Fultz's Corner posted this personality quiz over on her Facebook.  I took it since I love random quizzes and I'm a deer.  What animal are you?   

Last up - my BBB's giveaway is still going on.  It runs through next week and we're giving away 3 gift cards to TPT.  Have you entered yet?  

Hope you had a great week! 

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