tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47258779527433613492024-02-21T06:58:47.120-08:00Drowning in Applesauce Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-3847282435144518092014-01-25T01:51:00.000-08:002014-01-25T01:51:55.580-08:00Drowning in Paperwork<span style="font-size: large;">My students know me as <b><i>The Boss of Applesauce</i></b>, while my peers all know that I am really just drowning in it. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">At this time of year, as I am struggling to write a proposal for Universal Pre-Kindergarten and gather all of the necessary documents to renew our license with the Department of Mental Health and Hygiene, it is easy to lose sight of it all. But as I braved the -5 degree wind chill, <i>four hours</i> <i>early</i>, on Thursday morning and mentally planned for my upcoming <b>Chinese New Year</b> unit, I imagined the children's faces when they would finally master the skill of chopsticks and I thought <i><b>'If I could, I would do this job for free.'</b></i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>I absolutely LOVE teaching!!</b>! I thank God everyday that I am finally getting a chance to do this thing that I love so much. Even if it does come with a ton of paperwork.</span>Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-71849502657244731032013-08-23T04:22:00.001-07:002013-08-26T12:48:29.546-07:00Pounding the Pavement and Compound Words<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I'm so excited. After weeks of trying, the hubby and I finally snagged seats on a bus to Washington DC to take part in the 50th Anniversary of the <i><b>March on Washington.</b></i> Anyone who knows me knows that I am always ready to pound the pavement for something that I believe in and I am ecstatic about the opportunity to participate in such a historic event.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">So in honor of my upcoming trip, I have created a <b><i>Compound Word Song Freebie!</i></b> (Yay!).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Initially, when I planned our compound word unit, I watched and sang Dr. Jean's "<i>Compound Word Boogie</i>' on Youtube a gazillion times, so that I wouldn't forget it. I had my pictures printed on cardstock, cut and magnetized (I put magnet dots on the back), had my marker poised over my magnetic dry erase board and COULD NOT REMEMBER THE SONG!! No matter how hard I tried, I could not get the beat in my head. For some reason I cannot explain, the only tune that would come to my head was "<i>Sally the Camel</i>". <b><span style="color: red;">ARRRGGGGGHHHH!!!!</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">So in Super Teacher fashion, I just made up a compound word song to that tune. I wrote it on my dry erase board leaving blank spaces for pictures (I switched them as the verses changed) and the children LOVED IT! In fact, we began singing the song during transition times. The children all stop what they are doing and yell out the compound word (which makes the little teacher in my head start doing the running man).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">If you use these with your children, let me know how they like it. While you are there, click the follow button so you can be one of the first to know about my new products.</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Compound-Word-Song-with-Pictures-842718"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Compound Word Song Freebie</span></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Remember Your Passion</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">RAM</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.classroomfreebies.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="Classroom Freebies Manic Monday" src="http://www.theorganizedclassroomblog.com/images/stories/classroom-freebies/manicMondayOrangebutton.png" /></a></center>
Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-92126525892042525832013-08-17T17:37:00.000-07:002013-08-18T05:58:56.751-07:00You "Get" to Read This!<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I am officially on vacation (Applause! woo hoo! oh yeah, oh yeah!). By vacation I mean completing administrative work for The Children's Magic Shout Out Foundation, attending the 13th Annual Stop the Violence event, working on my teaching tips book, updating my blog and planning my routines and lessons for the new school year which begins September 4th. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">A wise man (my boss, who doesn't read my blog, but you can never be too sure :-D) reminded me that I "get" to do these wonderful things, I don't "have" to do them. I "get to help underprivileged children. I "get" to stand up for what I believe in. I "get" to prepare myself for molding young minds. The best part is, I "get" to share my crazy world with all of you lovely folks. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Hopefully, I also "get" to get all of those posts that I meant to put up during the school year. Don't be surprised if you see a post on Arctic Animals on a 90 degree Sunday, rest assured, they were covered in January (I think). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I will try to throw a freebie or two in also. (Why else would anyone come to this page? :-D)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">If you haven't already, visit my TPT store and download my current available freebies </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Dodecahedron-Sight-Word-Game-507531" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: center;">Dodecahedron Sight Word Game</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Leadership-Quote-820843" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Leadership Quote</a></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmd59zxBpLTtWymGljtBfRM2LEEwVc3n442mHsxVAouSHzLUVZAKBVDIIw_2c-3EEI9R_2bNw49-py7nlmjsTCbceFN2cmk750bgXA7EyAaYJyIcBEfDIZDdiSiTFtmwqmRHZ61qZnuPW_/s1600/home-795902-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmd59zxBpLTtWymGljtBfRM2LEEwVc3n442mHsxVAouSHzLUVZAKBVDIIw_2c-3EEI9R_2bNw49-py7nlmjsTCbceFN2cmk750bgXA7EyAaYJyIcBEfDIZDdiSiTFtmwqmRHZ61qZnuPW_/s1600/home-795902-1.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Ants-They-Crawl-All-Around-Sequencing-Song-for-Insect-or-Picnic-Theme-795902">The Ants Crawl All Around</a><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #a64d79; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Update: My two week break, turned out to actually be one and a half, as the staff must report to work on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of the second week for staff development and to prepare the classrooms. This means I "get" to spend more time than I thought perfecting my room layout for the new school year. Yay me!</span><br />
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<i><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Remember Your Passion</span></i></div>
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Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-83959517639150203762013-08-11T08:39:00.000-07:002013-08-11T08:41:08.938-07:00Endings & Beginnings<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">What a crazy week this has been. While most people are preparing for back to school, I am preparing for the end of the school year and the beginning of a new one at the same time! My school runs year round and only closes for two weeks in August. So while I am closing the year out and saying goodbye to my future kindergartners, I am also preparing for a new batch of little ones, who are just beginning their preschool journey. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Good thing I have those two "vacation" weeks coming up. :-)</span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">In the spirit of endings and new beginnings, I am finishing up some lingering projects, closing out some business ventures and focusing on what's ahead. I am putting together a teaching strategy book (tough project), I will be uploading some new things to my TPT store and working on making my blog look as spectacular as some of those others I have seen. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I am so new to this. I still haven't learned how to link to my blog when I write comments. Hopefully, somewhere in those two weeks, I will come across a good blog tutorial. If anyone knows of any, please leave the link in my comments.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">And now for a freebie--Just because.</span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I saw this quote on leadership at a community center where I was volunteering and had to have it for my classroom. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">You can get it from my TPT Store</span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"> <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Leadership-Quote-820843">Free-</a><a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Leadership-Quote-820843">Leadership-Quote</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">While you are there, become a follower so you can be among the first to know about new freebies.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">*Remember Your Passion*</span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"> R.A.M</span><br />
<br />Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-32875149008622289332013-07-28T13:03:00.001-07:002013-07-28T13:03:20.718-07:00<h2>
Summer Sizzlers</h2>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The past few weeks, I have been focusing on ways to get organized and manage my time, inside the classroom and out. I have a planner, cutsy to-do lists and files for almost everything. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Truth be told, my life is still a hot mess, but it's gotten a little easier. I've picked up a bunch of tips and tricks from those with lots of experience, as well as gaining insight from those, who like me, are just starting out in the field. I've also discovered some cool things on my own, which I am super excited to share.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Unfortunately, I am so disorganized that everything is all jumbled up in my head and on my hard drive. So I decided to organize it all the only way I know how - by writing it all down.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So with everything else going on in my life, I have decided to write a book. It will be called "<b>Summer Sizzlers</b>" and it will be a compilation of some of the really cool summer themed ideas that have been shared with me and that I want to share. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I have shared this idea with my co-workers and they have been amazing in helping me out and with trying some of my ideas out in their classrooms. There are so many things that seem good in theory, but fall flat in the classroom, so I am not putting anything in the book that I have not actually done with my class. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">There are also a lot of amazing ideas that I have come across that are suitable for one or two children, but not for a group of children. Those are not for this book. This book will be for summertime <b>group</b> activities.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It will be an <b>EXTREME</b> amount of work, I know, but not only do I think it will be worth it, I think it will help me organize a lot of the ideas I have floating around.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I will be posting a lot of teasers over the next couple of months and really need your feedback to know that I am on the right track. So if you see something you like-leave a comment or a rating. Follow my blog, my facebook page and my TPT store. Tell a friend to tell a friend to tell a friend.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">My first teaser is a really cool sequencing song that I made up to the tune of "The Green Grass Grows All Around" created for a picnic theme. I used manipulatives when I did this activity with my preschool class and they LOVED it. I have done it numerous times since and it is met with the same enthusiasm each time. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If you use it with your little ones, let me know how it goes. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Click on the link below to get the freebie.</span></div>
<a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Ants-They-Crawl-All-Around-Sequencing-Song-for-Insect-or-Picnic-Theme-795902"><span style="font-size: large;">The Ants, They Crawl All Around Freebie</span></a><br />
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<br />Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-70789529302973694552013-07-10T17:17:00.001-07:002013-07-10T17:17:57.330-07:00Drowning in Much More Than Applesauce<b><span style="font-size: large;">It's been so long since I have been able to update my blog and it is simply because I CANNOT FIND THE TIME. I am juggling so much with work, family and volunteering, that I am utterly exhausted. I visit my favorite teaching blogs daily ( <a href="http://teachertothecore.blogspot.com/%C2%A0">Teacher to the Core</a>, <a href="http://www.growingajeweledrose.com/">Growing A Jeweled Rose</a>, <a href="http://www.1plus1plus1equals1.net/">1+1+1=1</a> and <a href="http://www.playdoughtoplato.com/">Playdough to Plato</a>, to name a few), but I am too tired to even come up with a clever comment to leave. My weekends are filled with lesson planning, Pinterest hopping and trying to catch up on a week's worth of sleep in one day. </span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>I was so excited to <span style="color: red;">FINALLY</span> start my blog and I have no clue on how to keep it running. </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>I even joined a webinar, which was <span style="color: red;">SUPPOSED</span> to help teach me to maintain my blog...<span style="color: #6fa8dc;">sadly, I didn't have time to participate.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>I imagine the writers of the blogs I follow to be some superhuman, fruit-ninja type warriors, able to slice life's obstacles in half, while simultaneously avoiding the bombs. How they still find time to share such fabulous ideas dressed in witty banter, I will never understand. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>Heeeelllppppp!!!!</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>I am shining my floodlight with a capital T in the sky and hoping one of my super blogging teacher/this/thatandthensomes will give me a clue. How do you juggle teaching, family and LIFE and still find time to blog about it?</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>#drowninginmuchmorethanapplesauce</b></span>Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-74328149814775336822013-02-10T05:42:00.000-08:002013-02-10T05:42:30.859-08:00Chinese New Year!<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Being a first year teacher, I am extra excited about every holiday that comes around because I feel as if I am celebrating them for the first time. In the case of Chinese New Year, this really is the first time I am celebrating it, making it super special. Adding to my excitement was a chance to use all of the cool stuff in the Chinese New Year unit that I won from <a href="http://teachertothecore.blogspot.com/">http://teachertothecore.blogspot.com/</a>. It was created for first and second grade, so I modified some of the activities to fit my preschoolers. It has everything you need for a successful Chinese New Year celebration, including bulletin board goodies.</span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">The Panda Smart Art was a big hit with the kids.</span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">We also used the dragon hat template to create our tissue paper dragon head.</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">I recreated the image on poster board and wrote the color names in colored marker. I gave the children sheets of tissue paper to tear and glue onto the poster board.</span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Then it was time to decorate the body. I drew scales onto yellow roll paper and let the kids do the rest.</span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Our original costume was really long in order to accommodate all of our kids, but the day of our parade fell on the same day of Nor'easter, so many of our children did not show up for school. We cut the roll down and cut the excess into strips to hang from the sides. (We were originally going to do this with tissue paper). Sticks were added and Viola'!</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">We had been practicing our dragon dancing without the costume all week to traditional Chinese music and learning how to move in harmony with each other, so by the time our dragon costume was done we were pros. </span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Of course no Chinese New Year Celebration is complete without chopsticks. The children were surprisingly good at using them. It helps that they had been using them in various centers throughout the week. (i.e letter sorting, colored rice sensory table, Lego color sorts). I was still impressed at the skill at which they used them to eat. :-D </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcZUxUfMSmBvnP1xp-odRO_YOTtUaELR_KargaKWs-rY8Pc-F7dYV4_zJcBW_qFN1WvW22v8TkSOs_-EFwHgZ3-lAgjyI8apn_O9iWm0nK8FZX3LHC94Xodr0DT1dtVlyTWl_iyLU9Q4SM/s1600/Copy+of+class+1+228.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="142" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcZUxUfMSmBvnP1xp-odRO_YOTtUaELR_KargaKWs-rY8Pc-F7dYV4_zJcBW_qFN1WvW22v8TkSOs_-EFwHgZ3-lAgjyI8apn_O9iWm0nK8FZX3LHC94Xodr0DT1dtVlyTWl_iyLU9Q4SM/s200/Copy+of+class+1+228.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Other activities included fan dancing with child created fans, Chinese clothing for the dress-up center and one of my favorite books "Tikki-Tikki -Tembo". It was <i>hi-la-rious</i> to hear the children try to say the full name. I laughed so much my sides ached.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9BfwBSlYKAVKSFbt2FN0PcT26_rVShPJ-31ESv9aMkgmoyXWzjepDStNUpakPaizUBg31-8CLfd8rdZBaIdwTIdBfOKAyMZh2FbXNLmli5ufHCbTL1QejJpVY6r8xvBTO7cn2No4u9QL5/s1600/51bv-C2+hqL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9BfwBSlYKAVKSFbt2FN0PcT26_rVShPJ-31ESv9aMkgmoyXWzjepDStNUpakPaizUBg31-8CLfd8rdZBaIdwTIdBfOKAyMZh2FbXNLmli5ufHCbTL1QejJpVY6r8xvBTO7cn2No4u9QL5/s200/51bv-C2+hqL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">To find it on Amazon <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Tikki-Tembo-Arlene-Mosel/dp/0312367481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1360501759&sr=8-1&keywords=tikki+tikki+tembo">Click Here</a></span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">To get a copy of the Chinese New Year unit I used, which includes many more activities, <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Chinese-New-Year-Common-Core-Informational-Reading-and-More">Click Here</a> </span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">To see the blog on the unit by its creator <a href="http://www.teachertothecore.blogspot.com/search/label/Chinese%20New%20Year">Click Here</a></span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">I can't wait until next year!!! I have so much more planned. I would love to hear what ideas you have come up with for the Chinese New Year. Please comment below.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: red;">From one of our exercises on working in harmony.</span></td></tr>
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Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-34433437303183732262013-01-29T20:00:00.000-08:002013-02-02T08:10:26.001-08:00Pajama Day!!!!!!<span style="color: purple; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Today was Pajama Day at our school and I was so super excited since I have never been a part of one before. I was so elated to don my favorite Hello Kitty Onesie in public that I didn't even wait until I got to work and proudly sported my ensemble on the NYC subway system. New Yorkers are so cool that even though I got a few sideways glances, everyone tried to act like a grown woman in a onesie and a Cookie Monster hat with a purple spotted frog around her neck was the norm. Being a native New Yorker myself, I calmly read my AM newspaper, as if this were my everyday gear.</span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I was all geared up to break all the normal classroom routines, only to find out that today we were receiving a visit from the Department of Health. I was crushed! I tried to imagine myself in a professional meeting with my pigtails and pajamas and it made me cringe.</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Imagine my relief when our consultant walked in, smiled and said "Oh, it's pajama day? How nice", never even batting an eye. She must be a native New Yorker also. Gotta love my hometown!</span><br />
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Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-40345350943256705032013-01-20T06:20:00.000-08:002013-01-20T07:06:28.665-08:00Dodecahedron Sight Word Race<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">I geared up and began tackling sight words with my children this month. Our word wall got revamped, we were pointing them out, digging them up, tracing them, building them, fishing them out of snow disguised as packing peanuts. We even had a Super Sight Word scavenger hunt, which had children pulling words out of play-doh, manipulative bins and from underneath blocks. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Half of my children bathed in the word immersion. They were excited as they found and read words around the room. There were some who found the words and could not read them. Those children folded them into pockets or held them crumbled in sweaty fists until they saw them again in small group or afternoon meeting. They would then produce the hidden word, yelling out its name, eager to get a check mark next to their name. There were some still, who were not interested in anything word related. They swiped the coveted pieces of paper out of their way as they continued through their day, not even attempting to view its content.</span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">I scoured books, Pinterest and teaching blogs and websites for a way to get these children interested. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Then one night between asleep and awake it hit me! A Dodecahedron Sight Word Race! It had everything! It was suitable for my beginners and my more advanced students. It used both gross and fine motor skills. Children who had difficulty reading the words could match them and the entire class could get involved. As an added bonus, I got to use a Dodecahedron, which I have been dying to try ever since I ran across the <i>Dodecahedron Book Report Project</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">I woke up at 4am to work on the game and was carrying it to school at 7am that same day (and still had time to shower and dress). I began with the giant floor game board. This was made on large white roll paper. The twelve words were written at the bottom and columns ran the length of the paper. I then created rows which would serve as the "stops". </span><br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Next, I wrote my words on my Dodecahedron die template and glued it together. I glued my tabs on the inside, but I have seen images with the tabs glued on the outside.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">I then placed the sight words in a set of plastic cars ordered from Lakeshore. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">I used the cars with beds, but if your cars do not have them, the words can also be taped to the top.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">The excitement began as soon as I started taping the board to the floor. The children rolled the die, read the word and raced the corresponding car to the next stop. As the children were racing, the children on the side were cheering the car on ("Go 'the'! Go 'the'"!). This stopped them from becoming distracted during someone else's turn.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ0F4n6pykreCjLkIEmlmLxQEBTHWjOqbHGdHjI1YEmUT5tkOcyDT0yewmdJvWe22PIebZRxZ7vkWLPNpX_t6ear0pHZVCAM5vzyc7tPs9v19ljty0UOQAd27cI63L3UhKCplJPYX-S2zC/s1600/pictures+318.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ0F4n6pykreCjLkIEmlmLxQEBTHWjOqbHGdHjI1YEmUT5tkOcyDT0yewmdJvWe22PIebZRxZ7vkWLPNpX_t6ear0pHZVCAM5vzyc7tPs9v19ljty0UOQAd27cI63L3UhKCplJPYX-S2zC/s200/pictures+318.jpg" width="200" /></span></a><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmV2Tw7v9S270OWodW4gfsjSkSl3KNzSvkELipkkFKZNIr1JAdxoYmARd-lQiKnWXd2ux5mF6LDXD2gv24j7ypKQy-FO8_etfRDtLJjLiQJcJyV59G8-FNHihrHGpX0MZOj7JoWtK1gTZi/s1600/pictures+354.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmV2Tw7v9S270OWodW4gfsjSkSl3KNzSvkELipkkFKZNIr1JAdxoYmARd-lQiKnWXd2ux5mF6LDXD2gv24j7ypKQy-FO8_etfRDtLJjLiQJcJyV59G8-FNHihrHGpX0MZOj7JoWtK1gTZi/s200/pictures+354.jpg" width="150" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQXcQ7lO89uU6UymaMM0h5DblmQd8bLvZJiIhRgu2AQx7sVlvU-q-v5d3eCB2UUVAcsLquD_k_7pAmMABk2Wg-a7GSYwzk-Z94mvXIVvmBMWarj50-YhR-hEFK3Hw9rjLUb1F2Qf028Jej/s1600/pictures+379.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQXcQ7lO89uU6UymaMM0h5DblmQd8bLvZJiIhRgu2AQx7sVlvU-q-v5d3eCB2UUVAcsLquD_k_7pAmMABk2Wg-a7GSYwzk-Z94mvXIVvmBMWarj50-YhR-hEFK3Hw9rjLUb1F2Qf028Jej/s200/pictures+379.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzYsmgc7YeG5RSQQgGvlLaA0c_gAiBiyiFyZrD8buLQ_9SOiCxGv6ygWDfT8ppU1jhs1m8bGvmV3ocdN9JZqADfhRELYl_-vzxHufV7CqB3A_kBhMpqU-OezzdC8PBRmKNIQiFenEes81X/s1600/pictures+384.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzYsmgc7YeG5RSQQgGvlLaA0c_gAiBiyiFyZrD8buLQ_9SOiCxGv6ygWDfT8ppU1jhs1m8bGvmV3ocdN9JZqADfhRELYl_-vzxHufV7CqB3A_kBhMpqU-OezzdC8PBRmKNIQiFenEes81X/s320/pictures+384.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">It was a big hit!! I've since developed a table top version to be used for small groups. This will be available for free from my newly opened TPT store!!! </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Dodecahedron-Sight-Word-Game">http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Dodecahedron-Sight-Word-Game</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Please comment and let me know what you think!</span></div>
<br />Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-17954865118651794442012-12-22T07:11:00.000-08:002012-12-22T07:11:06.029-08:00It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #990000;"> <span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I was doing my normal Facebook stalking, when I came across a photo posted by my former TA showing a display she created at her new school.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9yv09Uu_vrTn3pgCTnVhC0M4taKAQKXbXXejYes5UPRMsIfF5xYGM5u1REKvIgQ89nSIXBHV2JhH6wZRjWuio7bRaH37XXmu2ErpD7rBqJWDJsGcJos8TpTnyHLoo1liL5gogy7vW-qKr/s1600/63184_469657856410673_120424547_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9yv09Uu_vrTn3pgCTnVhC0M4taKAQKXbXXejYes5UPRMsIfF5xYGM5u1REKvIgQ89nSIXBHV2JhH6wZRjWuio7bRaH37XXmu2ErpD7rBqJWDJsGcJos8TpTnyHLoo1liL5gogy7vW-qKr/s320/63184_469657856410673_120424547_n.jpg" width="256" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My very first thought was "That should have been in my classroom!". I jokingly commented "I'm totally stealing", in the back of my mind feeling there is NO way that I could ever make something of that caliber. This lady is<b> AMAZING</b> with a pencil and a pair of scissors and I'm lucky if I can even <i><b>find</b></i> my pencil and my scissors. </span><br />
<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I was so in love with this display however, that I had to try. So I picked her brain on her process and, like all great teachers, she shared the wealth. As an aspiring great teacher, I feel it is only right that I do the same. So here is my rendition of the display and my process, which due to my artistic shortcomings, is somewhat different from hers.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Everything in her display is hand drawn and since I no longer have her to draw for me :-( and I couldn't find my pencil, I decided to go to my next best friend for help-Google. All of my images are downloaded and printed on multiple colors of paper and then cut and glued together. </span><br />
<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I printed the log cabin on brown construction paper and the trees on green and white papers. I traced the top of the log cabin on white paper and cut it out to make a snowy roof. I then cut all of the snowy parts of the trees out of the white paper and glued it on top of the green trees. The sky is blue construction paper over poster board and the snow is white construction paper. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSkTrE2Pz1R5pONuhIZ1kt0j6OBSg2zu64D6ZbEAGOLdNz9jeLj_RUjIq3lRrcTGozhWXFYGYBLfIYOQab8aXgVTXHOF0G3A48i_Ze8FOmUKuPEzbsiOZLVCRYGQ6B_SklwKjToKDlKdGG/s1600/pictures+100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSkTrE2Pz1R5pONuhIZ1kt0j6OBSg2zu64D6ZbEAGOLdNz9jeLj_RUjIq3lRrcTGozhWXFYGYBLfIYOQab8aXgVTXHOF0G3A48i_Ze8FOmUKuPEzbsiOZLVCRYGQ6B_SklwKjToKDlKdGG/s320/pictures+100.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The falling snow is holes punched out of white paper and individually glued to the paper. (This was the most tedious part of the project. The holes kept sticking to my finger and not the paper.)</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfvoaGP-ruLt0GihwuFJmQ5t7jMqX3FoCI-oH-UjqXiX_zXyG-f_b0Lt6DtbjJfciNWhn7KBACD44U7kZe5vns0Ld3Ppryu3HzudfRnFhrGTq2PYecoLc9giSl5pZOSIO4jBYqlw2OUY5n/s1600/pictures+104.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfvoaGP-ruLt0GihwuFJmQ5t7jMqX3FoCI-oH-UjqXiX_zXyG-f_b0Lt6DtbjJfciNWhn7KBACD44U7kZe5vns0Ld3Ppryu3HzudfRnFhrGTq2PYecoLc9giSl5pZOSIO4jBYqlw2OUY5n/s320/pictures+104.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Next, came the window frame (brown construction paper) <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyovzY12clTPrTzLnzf_HrXSrTH3_XRisJG0iz7uP_E5m-Z2dVolecAlGubX1NxTAQO6JmlWsCtLAUcT7NMff8w4DrD5V6R-jjfQ7R1H39_rduc55P02sv8dTIloMbpyi1M0zwAtmMD8y_/s1600/pictures+112.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyovzY12clTPrTzLnzf_HrXSrTH3_XRisJG0iz7uP_E5m-Z2dVolecAlGubX1NxTAQO6JmlWsCtLAUcT7NMff8w4DrD5V6R-jjfQ7R1H39_rduc55P02sv8dTIloMbpyi1M0zwAtmMD8y_/s320/pictures+112.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">and the curtains (yellow construction paper).</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09zR5vOgjLJ762S8eIrOgUjLdD2xxGS9GDakLGSx0pr_kGCRm1mySyCqLSgPx_23rkazntd6AolY9wP4u5r1KAnUybh6kC48LvIE7XTpoud2dULx_M0_M5Uk5Z5mf7E70LGfl96TIUIuT/s1600/pictures+117.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09zR5vOgjLJ762S8eIrOgUjLdD2xxGS9GDakLGSx0pr_kGCRm1mySyCqLSgPx_23rkazntd6AolY9wP4u5r1KAnUybh6kC48LvIE7XTpoud2dULx_M0_M5Uk5Z5mf7E70LGfl96TIUIuT/s320/pictures+117.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Next came the candles. I printed the same image on black, white and green papers. Then I cut each individual part out and layered it onto the black base. The berries are cut from the white paper and colored with a red marker and the flames were cut freestyle from orange and yellow paper.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGkw1WHHkh0EEBzi-UWkw2JdS-SdDKvt1CAUQh-HPYdZN2FHPrxDr9gj_ogRTCap5ip4fcMP12cbYEnB8KFVg0QZAYF2Piyw6YM5_TvM5elEsifti4J1yn0U0xMi85Gs8OonpFVGg6uhbP/s1600/pictures+145.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGkw1WHHkh0EEBzi-UWkw2JdS-SdDKvt1CAUQh-HPYdZN2FHPrxDr9gj_ogRTCap5ip4fcMP12cbYEnB8KFVg0QZAYF2Piyw6YM5_TvM5elEsifti4J1yn0U0xMi85Gs8OonpFVGg6uhbP/s320/pictures+145.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The poinsettias were printed on red, green and yellow paper. I used the green paper as my base and glued the red and yellow cut outs over the base. Layering it this way gives it a slight 3D effect. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr824LJjZ0hGUD_oyoE3P66-LSBe4fAZoG7B7zx0OkM-9DDN557nCZhxb2ALUMy-yNx4sOnWapqtwbyfDoVvlj5F9JHAkvoZwvzHkVozb-Zohjxd62NHDabsGsiXgcDOrcyGujBVStP4FX/s1600/pictures+148.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr824LJjZ0hGUD_oyoE3P66-LSBe4fAZoG7B7zx0OkM-9DDN557nCZhxb2ALUMy-yNx4sOnWapqtwbyfDoVvlj5F9JHAkvoZwvzHkVozb-Zohjxd62NHDabsGsiXgcDOrcyGujBVStP4FX/s320/pictures+148.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Next, I did the flames. I printed these on red, orange and yellow paper, but I layered it wrong, so the red is behind the yellow instead of the orange. My husband said it wasn't really noticeable so I left it, but if you are going to recreate it, I would suggest placing the orange behind the yellow and the red behind the orange.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGo2lzyVWS9CmVxwbSV97VcfdkhP2wAesmToiWSqIadQguuhedhzRZNQ9WpyIbpUFfA4Fdq_GM7KkSIjBMwggz5G0vtxbhY-0gQWjh9O3Xu6V1nD8or2muZ-r09F2Rw-8OMbGaTUYoWAVw/s1600/pictures+138.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGo2lzyVWS9CmVxwbSV97VcfdkhP2wAesmToiWSqIadQguuhedhzRZNQ9WpyIbpUFfA4Fdq_GM7KkSIjBMwggz5G0vtxbhY-0gQWjh9O3Xu6V1nD8or2muZ-r09F2Rw-8OMbGaTUYoWAVw/s320/pictures+138.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> The logs are printed on brown construction paper and glued after the fire had been placed. This was done on black poster board, but I did another for the lobby of my building which utilized black construction paper over white oak tag.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The brick was bought in a roll from a neighborhood pharmacy and cost $1.99 each. I used two complete rolls. This is my finished project:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkBSbYJybmkqglCrcCfQqQ8hAYoaq356TM1KNodvs4R3ts5ZbSvkmEe5Xkyun3SaDtkp_zAWa5dkI50xO7f2xvIyAgucyinUeXLmlzZffGwNmqnT1K1UXM93u-IL3rYkZ2KuEL84x-9fHo/s1600/pictures+440.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkBSbYJybmkqglCrcCfQqQ8hAYoaq356TM1KNodvs4R3ts5ZbSvkmEe5Xkyun3SaDtkp_zAWa5dkI50xO7f2xvIyAgucyinUeXLmlzZffGwNmqnT1K1UXM93u-IL3rYkZ2KuEL84x-9fHo/s320/pictures+440.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The entire thing is held onto the wall with contact paper and to protect it from little hands. The Mantle is white poster board and the stockings were purchased from <i>Deals</i> for $1.00 a piece and decorated by the two classes. My class decorated the one on the right with our hand prints.The other class' has a really cool hand print reindeer project housing their names. </span><br />
<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The stockings are held on with velcro strips and will be removed after the holiday. We plan on leaving the fireplace up throughout the winter. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I also made one on a smaller scale for the lobby of my building. As previously stated, the fireplace uses black construction paper over oak tag. Other changes are that the trees are just printed once on white paper (I didn't think the layering made so much of a difference for the amount of work that it entailed) and the colors for the fire are in the correct order (pictured below).</span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Completed window and fire. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Score 1 (or 2, if you count both) for the artistically challenged!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">R.A.M</span></div>
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<br />Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-50289538242995965042012-12-04T03:22:00.000-08:002012-12-04T03:22:28.444-08:00All Gingerbread Houses Have Witches<span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">We loved the mini Gingerbread theme so much that we continued it for another week. We made gingerbread character headbands and took turns chasing that gingerbread boy until he was finally eaten. We made a class story titled "Going on a Gingerbread Hunt", which included snow angels and a snowball fight as we made our way through the snowstorm. After making it to the gingerbread house and finding and eating the gingerbread man, piece by piece, we got chased home by a witch! After all, in the words of a very intelligent four-year-old "All gingerbread houses have witches." Good point.</span><br />
<span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">We topped off our unit by making the coolest gingerbread houses out of milk cartons. We used graham crackers with marshmallow fluff adhesive. Add some vanilla frosting, gumdrops, Twizzlers, peppermints, M&M's, marshmallows, sprinkles and imagination and you have some really cool 'witch cribs.'</span><br />
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<span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Alas, we never got a chance to make gingerbread men of our own. I have been searching endlessly for some ready-made gingerbread dough to no avail. Looks like I am going to have to roll up my sleeves and make some from scratch. Thankfully, I have another week to figure it out.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">RAM</span></div>
Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-83047272978431120792012-11-26T20:59:00.000-08:002012-11-26T20:59:30.949-08:00Catch Me If You Can...<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I started my mini Gingerbread unit this morning with a reading of <i>The Gingerbread Boy </i>by Paul Galdone and a Roll and Graph Activity compliments of <a href="http://www.teachingheart.net/">www.teachingheart.net</a> (slightly modified for a larger group). The children were so excited and engaged that they wanted to keep going. My centers were stocked with gingerbread activities to stimulate their little minds, however rehearsal for the (dreaded) Christmas Showcase sent us past the centers and onto the stage. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">While we were walking by, the children noticed the<i> </i>laminated </span><i style="color: #741b47; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Gingerbread Boy </i><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">characters that I attached to a cookie sheet via magnet dots (an old teaching trick that I </span><i style="color: #741b47; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">just </i><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">discovered) and got super excited. They went on and on about the story and who was going to the story center first and I was ELATED!!!! The teacher in my head was doing the wop and saying "I rock, I rock!!" </span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Not only did I finally find something to do with those magnet dots, I sparked interest in the story, the children were eager to do retellings...I had to tap my pocket to make sure I had enough post-its for afternoon center time. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">After practice (which went surprisingly well, by the way), lunch, outdoors and nap time, it was finally time for centers. Everyone was on their best behavior, hoping to be called first so that they could have first center choice. The first center picked-the story center. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">By now, the teacher in my head was doing the running man with a side kick (yeah, I'm that old). I was so excited to see the action in the story center, I could barely make it through the rest of center assignments. I watched in awe as the two children at the story center arranged the pieces onto the cookie sheet and with each holding an end, carried it over to the kitchen area and put it into <i>the oven.</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">They weren't excited about the characters at all, they were excited about the cookie sheet. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The dancing teacher in my head came back to earth. I have <i><b>SO </b></i>much to learn.</span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">A feast of roasted fox, gingerbread old man, old woman, boy and threshers, bar-b-cue cow with a side of cantaloupe and a red, yellow and green apple pie for dessert lifted my spirits up again. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Maybe tomorrow I will challenge them to bake the characters in the order they appear in the story. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">A great idea, but I'm not going to start dancing yet. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><i>Okay, maybe just a little two step</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">RAM</span>Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4725877952743361349.post-18655880876768272502012-11-25T03:55:00.003-08:002012-11-25T03:55:45.298-08:00Drowning in Applesauce<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><i>November 25, 2012</i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><i>After 18 years of managing a construction company, I finally called it quits and decided to pursue my dream of teaching. With a mixture of fear and excitement, I took a deep breath and dove right in, head first. Eight months later, I am still learning to swim.</i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><i>Preschool is nothing like anything else I have ever experienced. The mini beings that I would look upon with oohs and aahs are now giants to me. They are full of life, energy and big ideas. I look upon them with awe and each day we discover new things together. I am amazed by my new life and I have a sense of fulfillment that was missing in previous years.</i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><i>At the same time, I am frightened. These larger than life beings are learning the same way I am and it is my job to lead them. Alas, their fearless leader has no idea what she is doing. The textbooks didn't prepare me for this. Great teaching is a skill that comes with experience and experience with time. </i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><i>Maybe in a few years (or decades) I'll feel like I have it all under control. In the meantime, I'm just going to enjoy the journey, pick up some new tricks along the way and try to keep myself from drowning in applesauce.</i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><i>R.A.M</i></span>Resilient Children. Resilient You.http://www.blogger.com/profile/05279791100402447054noreply@blogger.com0