Valentine's Day!

This was probably the best Valentine's Day I have ever had at school.  I am still amazed that everything came off so smoothly.  Seriously I am thinking did that really happen and where did the time go?  The day went by sooo fast.

First my Kindergarten team decided today would be a good day to do a switch around day (we need a better name, but we each prepare a 30 minute craftivity, lesson, game....our choice and then share that same activity 4 times.  The students rotate to each class).   I chose to do the old AIMS activity where you sort conversation hearts, then count them, then graph them.  Last night my husband and a couple of friends counted out 100 baggies of 20 hearts.  I just needed to make copies and my morning was ready!

However I don't know if your are ever prepared for 5 year olds.  During my second rotation, I was explaining what we would be doing and beginning to pass out my baggies of candy hearts.  One little, little guy told me he didn't need my bag of hearts because he already had one.  He then proceeded to pull a bag of hearts from the sweatpants he was wearing.  ewwwww...put them back, I think were my exact words as I shivered and tried make sure they did not make it all the way out to my table.  It took me a minute to realize that those candies had come from the class before mine and she had told them to put them in their pockets..  His response to me was are you sure as he tried to pull them out again.  No, No, No....use mine to sort.   I do think they fell down his pants leg when he stood up.  Still gives me the heebie jeebies, but I have smiled about that all day long.

I set-up my afternoon to be centers.   One center was passing out valentines into the bags we made yesterday (and I had a wonderful mom helping them get their valentines into everyone's bags).

One center was making ice cream.  I have a hand-crank ice cream machine, so lots of muscles and help.  Another mom took total charge, including bringing all the supplies for me.  I can not thank her enough for that...and it definitely made my afternoon easy.

Another center was making these mustaches and lips.  I LOVE them!!  Are they not stinkin' cute!  On my list to do again next year.  Two more moms helped.

We decorated cookies (no good pictures).  The mom who helped with that center had the brilliant idea to put the cookies into ziplock baggies so the sprinkles didn't get all over.  We set them aside until the eating portion of the party.  All tucked on the shelf neat and tidy.  :)

I like letting my kiddos create, so one center was making cards.  I had lots of die-cut hearts, old stickers, stamps and I just let the kids have at it.

Because we did centers I was able to teach everyone my favorite games....Don't Eat Pete!  Thanks to The Teacher Wife, I didn't have to make one just for Valentine's Day.  She had it all done up!

The kids went out to recess except for a few with treats to pass out...and my moms helped get all the food passed out.  Yummy ice cream and cookies.  All dished up and ready to go when they came back in.  We ate, we packed up, we went to our special, my moms helped finish cleaning up....Wonderful!!  My moms were the best and I got to enjoy the day.

I was very mean and told everyone they could not touch their bags until time to go home.  Timewise there just wasn't time...and I didn't want to mess with it.  Perfect.  They waited, and they left with wonderful bags of love to look at when they got home!!