Five for Friday

{On a Saturday}
 
 
I'm linking up with Kacey for another round of Five for Friday!
Enjoy!
 
Eco-nom-nom-nom-ics
 
We are learning about Economics in Social Studies, and I just discovered the book Striker Jones
  
 
It's an excellent chapter book that helps teach students basic economic principles.  It has a Teacher's Companion that lays out every lesson for you with objectives, questions, and activities.  We are part way through the book and loving it!  They get so excited to hear the next chapter.  The first chapter/lesson was all about trading.  One of the activities was to give each child one piece of candy, so they each get something different.  Then, they spent a few minutes trading.  At the end, we had a lot of great discussion on the pros and cons of trading.  Some children ended up happy, but there were still a few unhappy with their trades.  It was an awesome activity!
 
 
Jigsaw
 
This week we did a little Jigsaw Activity with our Science Unit.  We are learning all about the states of matter, so each group was assigned a few pages from our science book.  They had questions to answer in order to become experts on their section.  Then, they shared what they learned with the class.  They loved it and learned a lot more about matter!  :)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Oobleck
 
To go along with our solids, liquids, and gases unit, we read the book by Dr. Seuss, Bartholomew and the Oobleck and then we made our own Oobleck!  This was such a cool activity for them to discover the properties of solids and liquids.  It was even cooler to find out that Oobleck is actually both a solid AND a liquid.  They couldn't get enough of the stuff! 
 
 
 
 
 
 
I used the basic recipe of two parts cornstarch, one part flour.  I ended up putting about 1/4 cup of cornstarch, 2 tablespoons of water, and one drop of green food coloring in their cups.  They mixed and played for quite a while.  We discussed the properties Oobleck had, filled out a quick observation sheet, and then I passed out a writing activity.  They had to write about what would happen in Oobleck started coming down in our classroom! 
 
 My classroom aide/friend got a little handsy with the corn starch... 


Click here to get this writing freebie.
 
 

Thanksgiving Skit
 
 The Second Grade performed a skit at our Student of the Month Assembly yesterday.  Being so close to Thanksgiving, we decided to stick to that theme.  We had a few children give some history of Thanksgiving, recited a poem, and sang this awesome song. 
 

*Warning:  This song will get stuck in your head until the end of time.  Listen at your own risk.  :)
 
We found awesome little boy pilgrim hats in the Target Dollar Spot and ended up making some bonnets for the girls.  They looked darling!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sweet little pilgrim children...
 
Silly faces!

Gobble, Gobble!
Happy Thanksgiving!
 
 
Mockingjay Part 1
 
On a non-teaching related note...
 
 
On Wednesday, I was lucky enough to go to an early screening of the new Hunger Games movie.  It was awesome!  Definitely worth staying up WAY past my bedtime on a school night...  If you're a fan of the books/movies, go see it and let me know what you think! 
 
Have a great weekend!  :)
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What the November???

How on earth did it suddenly become November!?  Let alone, the end of November!  But, I'm really glad it's here, because that means December is just around the corner.  Some of my most favorite classroom activities happen during this special month.
 
I've got the calendars copied, the cardstock purchased, and the paint ready to go.  We are starting this adorable Christmas Gift tomorrow!  I can't wait!  I started making these calendars during my first year of teaching.  But I took a break from them the last two years, as I adjusted to the new state, district, grade level, and school.  Now I am ready and raring to go! 
 
Last year was the first year my classroom ever had a little Christmas Elf.  It was more fun than I could have ever imagined!  I really hope we get another one this year.  ;) 
 
In case we do, I prepared a little Christmas Elf in the Classroom packet. 
It is FULL of activities and ideas to use with your classroom Elf. 
 
Included in this packet are:
-Two Calendars to fill in for the daily Elf Activities
-Worksheet for students to decide on the Elf’s Name
-Tally Chart and Bar Graph for choosing the Elf’s Name
-30 Suggested Activities (with original matching poems) for your Elf to do
-Two Versions of A Daily Elf Journal
-A Weekly Elf Reflection Page
-A note to leave if your class is too naughty
-A note to leave on your Elf’s last day
 
Lucky for you, it is ON SALE today and tomorrow. 
Click here to check it out! 
 
Gingerbread Houses
I LOVE the tradition of having parents come make gingerbread houses with their children.  At first I thought it would be too chaotic, but it was definitely a controlled chaos.  :) 
 
Pretty soon we will be sending a note inviting parents/families to this special event.  When we do, I will upload a copy of the note here for you to use. 
 
Have a great week!  :)
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