Peek at My Week...Turkeys

I have often said that my talent is recognizing a good idea when I see it.  This week my plans are filled with good ideas...a little bit of everything Kindergarten and turkeys. 

The ideas and activities in my plans I have found across the internet.  I am so thankful for creative teachers who create wonderful resources and then share them on their blogs, tpt stores, and through pinterest.  I have included links to each of these  resources and ideas.  Some are free, some are paid items.  The paid items are so worth the cost.  So without further adieu here is what we are doing.

We are still working our way through the letters and the numbers.  Our routines for both are going strong. You can read about my number routine here.  I love using peas and carrots to really look at the numbers.  For letters we use Animated Literacy, plus Reading a-z and several other resources collected over the years for phonics and handwriting.

Content Area and ELA standards will meet while we learn about Turkeys.  We will use Kathleen's Pederson Let's Talk Turkey to learn more about Turkeys and more about nonfiction.  We will label the parts of a turkey using Lori Rosenberg's labeling page.  You can grab it at her blog or on Freebielicious.  We will be using what we learn to write about turkeys.  Our nonfiction writing will start with a tree map.

Next week I am back in the classroom and I will be prepping for our Thanksgiving Feast and learning about pilgrims.  This week...enjoy Turkeys! 

Head on over to Deedee Wills and take a peek at what everyone else is doing.

Thankful

I am thankful I get to work with a wonderful staff and the sweetest 5 year-olds.  To be truthful some are already 6...they would want to be sure I told you that.

I wanted them to be sure they knew they were loved...both by me and by their parents.  When their parents came to conferences last week I had them write something nice about their child on a turkey feather.  We are reading a few each day and adding them to our turkey out in the hall (there was not a bulletin board in the classroom big enough to hold all the feathers).  We have been doing this right after lunch and it is quickly becoming the favorite part of their day.  I wish I could capture the look in their eyes when they are the ones being talked about.

Students who feel good about themselves are going to learn better...easier...and more completely.


I am thankful I have discovered this bloggy world of great, kind, and generous friends.  Friends that make me a better teacher.  They have rekindled my excitement and offered me fun new ideas.  For that reason I am linking up with Hadar at Miss Kindergarten to share a couple of teaching tips.

First....the best thing I pinned this summer.  Scrap Baskets!  I found them here, actually I am no longer sure where I found them.  I can't seem to find the pin.  If you are the one who made the really cute scrap baskets let me know....I want to give you credit!.  Mine are not nearly as cute...but they work!!  I put the baskets on the tables whenever we are doing a cut and paste project.  Kids stay at their seats (no more running back and forth to the garbage can) and cleanup is much quicker (and more complete).  Now I don't even have to remember to grab them, they remind me whenever we start our project or learning page.

 Second...the best thing I accidentally did.  I didn't have the space for a pocket chart and I wanted to use ducks with 5 Little Ducks (you know take them away, count, take another away), so what's a girl to do??  I put a strip of velcro on the front of my bookcase!!  Perfect!! I don't know if you can see it, but the black velcro is as wide as my top board (which is kind-of thick) I now have a spot for any of my retelling, counting, little phonic and rhyming activities.  I did not expect it to become one of my student's favorite activities during free choice time.

Third...one good idea taken a step further.  My kiddos like the retelling with velcro so much that when I saw this idea at Making Learning Fun, I knew I needed to make it my own.  Putting velcro on paint sticks makes a great portable retelling "stage".  Home Depot gave me all the paint sticks I wanted, so I grabbed some big ones for the classroom and little ones to send home.

Thanksgiving Preview

As much as I love October and Halloween...I love November and Thanksgiving more.  It is my birthday month, but I don't think that is the reason.  We are getting closer to Christmas, but I don't think that is the reason either.

I like history!

I like food!

I like saying Thank-you!

and....I like playing dress-up.

I go a little crazy...I admit it, maybe a little too crazy.  With the help of my students (and sometimes their parents) I cook a Thanksgiving Feast.  Yup...turkey, carrot and celery sticks (I have seen a 5 year old peel a nice fat carrot down to one carrot stick, yum!...others are using a peeler for the first time), rolls (I use frozen rolls, but I bake them in a dutch oven...outside), homemade butter (made in a jar), ground cranberry/orange relish (I have an old-fashioned grinder), baked potatoes (wrapped in foil in the coals), apple juice and sometimes we get ambitious and make pumpkin pie with the pumpkins we played with at Halloween.

With all this fun there is great learning going on.  I wanted to give my kinders chance for more practice with positional words.  Turkeys seem like the perfect way to do just that.  Follow this turkey around the farm...

 

If you want to download it, just click on the cover.  Then, please leave me some love.  Follow my blog and watch to see how my feast goes this year!