Coding in the Classroom!!

Coding in the classroom may be something you think of when you think of a college course!

NO! NO! NO!

My Friends are NOT in college.

We are coding in 2nd grade! You read that right... "We are coding in 2nd grade!!"      EEEEEEEEK! (my shrill of happiness)

What is coding?

"Computer programming (often shortened to programming, sometimes called coding) is a process that leads from an original formulation of a computing problem to executable computer programs." - dictionary.com

  

Pretty much computer programming is telling a computer exactly what to do!! :)

Here is an example of what they will be doing!! Each level is different and each level gets more complex as they progress.

I am so excited to share this with you guys. My kiddos were SUPER excited to take on the challenge. They felt very important and did I mention... They are coding to MINECRAFT... If you are wondering what Minecraft is, it is a video game that apparently ALL 2nd graders LOVE! So, when I told them I was combining Minecraft and coding together that was just the icing to the cake.

We took the challenge of "an hour of coding!" You can access the website by clicking HERE. You will absolutely love it and so will your kiddos! I promise!! It makes them think differently. Also, they are learning perseverance and teamwork. I did partner them together for the first round so they could bounce ideas off of each other. I do plan to have them do it independently in the future.

The kids were challenging each other and trying really hard to complete the entire game within that hour time frame. They were superstars rock stars!! Kudos to them for owning something that they were just introduced to. 

At the end of the day, they all wanted to know the website so they could go home and code!! WOW!! Amazing teacher moment right there! :)

 Oh!! How true! This activity really did teach my kiddos how to think and problem solve and most importantly learn together. They became a team and figured out how to get through it together. No one in the classroom was left behind and it felt amazing, as a teacher, to see all of your kids working so hard at something. They didn't argue. They all had one common goal and "WOW" is all I really have to say. I agree with Steve Jobs!!

Christmas Around the World!!

Hello Friends :)

I hope you and your loved ones had an amazing Thanksgiving! As teachers, we have so many things to be thankful for!

My friends and I in the classroom learned a lot about Thanksgiving during November and we also started learning about Christmas. I know! I know! Christmas in November? Well, when you have so many things you want to share with your students it is hard to fit it all into those 3 short weeks before Christmas break. So, we got started early!! I wanted all of my students to know that Christmas is celebrated world wide and not just in their community. I read to them many different books about how other countries celebrate Christmas and they were overwhelmingly shocked that not all people celebrate in the same ways they do. We learned a lot together. I then let my friends do their own research about a specific country by using iPads, laptops, and books. They really enjoyed this assignment.

I wanted a way for them to show what they learned so I narrowed down what they would be looking for in each country. They looked up:

1. Food

2. They Call Santa...

3. Decorations

4. Weather

5. Did You Know?

I chose these five items because that is what they seemed most interested in. Once the research was done, they created posters with the information on them.

That is not all... We then got a world map and mapped all of the countries that we chose. We needed a lot of wall space to demonstrate our learning... so I decided on the hall. One of my students made a point that no one did the United States. I told them because we all celebrate so differently and I wanted them to write a personal paper about how they celebrate Christmas. My kiddos were so excited to write about how their family and them celebrate.

This is a prime example that students get excited about reading and writing when it is something they are interested in. I encourage you to break from the norm and do something because your kiddos want to do and they thrive when they are doing what they love. And hey! They were learning so much.

The background of each poster is the countries' flag.

*They were done as a model and not an exact replica!!

Just a word to the wise... a hot laminator WILL melt crayon!

                    

                           

     

I am THANKFUL for...

You!!

That's right... I am thankful for YOU!! I am thankful for you as an educator, I am thankful for you as a parent, I am thankful for you as a leader, I am thankful for you as a person. Thank you for being you!!

Hello!! 

As the Holidays approach, we as a society make EXTRA time to think about what we are grateful for and things that we are thankful for throughout the year. As an adult, the list is limitless. I am thankful for so many people, places, and things every single day that help me to be the best person I can be. I wanted to bring to the forefront of my students' minds that they have many things to be thankful for each and every day. 

We decided to make it into a CRAFTIVITY... 

What is a craftivity you ask? 

It is when you have a craft to go along with the lesson that you are teaching. In this particular craftivity, the students are going to make a turkey out of paint swatches and name five things they are thankful for. They will then turn this (graphic organizer) into a written paragraph.

Materials needed for the turkey:

1. 5 different color paint swatches for each student (you can use more or less)

2. Brown construction paper for the body

3. Yellow construction paper for the beak

4. Googly eyes (2 for each child)
5. Templates for the body and the beak --- You can find those here!

Materials needed for the paper:

1. Festive paper with lines
2. Pencil
3. A THANKFUL student :)

Each child will need 5 different color paint strips. Each paint strip should be cut to be 5" long and 2" wide.

 This is an example of what each feather will look like. They will put 5 different things they are thankful for on each feather and draw a picture in a different shaded box.

Once the student has their turkey assembled they will then write a paragraph about what they are thankful for.

This is an example of a couple turkeys that my kiddos made! Aren't they wonderful? I think so... I may be a tid bit bias.... hehe

 

Beautiful handwriting makes my heart melt!! I hope this handwriting makes your heart as happy as it makes mine. You are so welcome!!

Mystery Skype Success!!

OH MY GOODNESS!!

I am filled with so much excitement right now!! 

So, I have read a lot of other blogs about Mystery Skype and thought my class could totally do that!! I told my class that we would be doing our first Mystery Skype and I explained to them what it was and they were OH SO EXCITED!! If you are wondering what a Mystery Skype is... it is where you Skype another classroom in either the same country or a different country from your own and then you ask geographical questions to try and find out where the other class is from. They couldn't wait and, frankly, neither could I! We prepared questions and answers to commonly asked questions for about two weeks. We talked about our behavior and the etiquette we would practice while on our Mystery Skype phone call! They were so eager to do this Mystery Skype that their excitement was very evident. 

The day finally came!! It was scheduled for noon and that was all they talked about that morning. Once noon finally arrived we placed our phone call to our "Mystery State!" The kiddos were overwhelmed with emotions... I could tell they were nervous and a little scared. (It was a good thing for them to feel these emotions) Once the ball started rolling they did really well. I was so proud of them. They really got to utilize their map skills. It was wonderful.

Here are some questions I would recommend for first time Mystery Skypers:

1. Are you east or west of the Mississippi River?

2. Are you a landlocked state?

3. Do you border another country?

4. Are you one of the original 13 colonies?

5. Are you in Tornado Ally?

6. Are you touching the Appalachian Mountains?

7. Is your state considered to be in the North or in the South?

These were a few questions we used. Now, some questions will be ruled out considering the answer of a previous question. We had our question analysts figure out which questions we could no longer ask. Everyone in our room had a duty and they fulfilled their job really really well. 

If you were wondering....

Our first Mystery Skype was from a class in Oklahoma.

If you want to get started with your own Mystery Skype today just click here. I would highly recommend you try this experience at least once with your class. You will not regret it!!

Below are a few snapshots of our Mystery Skype in action: 

Given the Opportunity...

Wow... It has been quite some time... the world of a first year teacher is BUSY and I LOVE every minute of it...

Today, I want to share with you something I am very proud of and something that my students are extremely proud of! First, I have a question... How often do you let your students explore and show you what they can do? My answer to you would be... "You would be surprised!"

We started this project in September because I thought we would need all the time we could get... however, my students surprised me (why I ever doubted them is beyond me) and we were able to finish them in a little over a week. 

We started by doing a guided drawing of a pumpkin, once they drew and colored their pumpkin (kids love to draw!!) I asked them to pretend they were that pumpkin. I then asked them to decide the life the pumpkin would have... I told them that if I were a pumpkin I would be turned into many pumpkin spice lattes. (insert eye roll here haha) I then let their imaginations flow from there. 

I gave them a four square to organize all of their thoughts and then they wrote a complete paragraph using their four square. After that, they peer edited each others work (which by the way is amazing!!) and then we talked about publishing their work using a computer. We talked about typing and how I was not looking for anything fancy I just wanted them to be able to convert what they had written to a typed form on the computer. 

THEY WERE SO EXCITED! 

I heard many comments and mostly they led back to, "I feel like an author!!" When you as a teacher are excited about something and have such a passion for teaching them something new and the kids are thirsty for what you have, there really isn't any room for failure. 

We did face a few obstacles along the way at no fault of the students. We came across the issue of printing from the laptops and using my flash drive wasn't an option. Also, emailing them to myself was Plan C and that didn't quite workout either! Sure, we could have given up but we persevered through it and finally figured out a solution to our problem. 

What I am about to share with you is very precious and the students and I are both really proud of our finally product. We hope to share more of our published work with you soon!!

Blubber Experiment!!

Blubber, Blubber, Blubber!

When my students first thought of the word blubber they were thinking about the sound a fish makes in a fish tank. But, blubber is so much more than that!! It is FAT!! It is a layer of fat, that some animals have, that keeps them warm in harsh weather conditions!! This is not a new experiment, but here is our class in action. 

Materials:

1. Ice
2. Shortening
3. 2 quart sized ziploc bags
4. Duck tap
5. Large bucket
6. Water

Steps:

1. Fill the first ziploc bag halfway full with shortening!
2. Place the second ziploc bag inside of the first one and spread shortening out around the bag!
3. Duck tape the two ziploc bags together at the top! (See photo below)

4. Fill large bucket up with water and ice!

5. Have the students place one hand in the water without the blubber glove!

6. Have the students place the other hand in the blubber glove!!

7. After we were finished, we talked about how much warmer it was to have the blubber glove on and then we filled out our scientific recording sheet!! Get it here for FREE!!!

Awesome Finds!!

  Hello My Frugal Friends!!

 I LOVE bargains!

Who doesn't right? 

Well, if you are familiar with Morristown, you know we have an Ollie's!! It is amazing!! I wanted to share with you some of the best deals I found there so you can share with your teacher friends... They will LOVE you! ;)

So, every teacher loves chart paper...well, most of them! And I know I do! The cost of chart paper can ADD up so quickly. At Ollie's they have chart paper for 99 cents!!! Yes, you read that correctly... ninety-nine cents! I couldn't believe it and yes I left a few for you guys! ;)

Another AMAZING find - MY FAVORITE FIND - were these books! Last year while I was student teaching I purchased one of these books for $7.99... I found a whole set of them including 14 books, a poster, a book mark, and stickers for... brace yourself... $9.99!! I purchased the Reading Set and the Math Set! I just couldn't resist!

I cannot wait to share these with my kiddos and my team!! I am thrilled to have came across these awesome deals!!

Why Not?

Hello! Hi! Wow. Time sure does fly by... I have been a teacher for almost an entire month! Can you believe it? I sure cannot! I have been racking my brain with how to use less worksheets but still have student accountability at the same time... What better way than to use their desks... LITERALLY!! I let them brainstorm words with the short vowel sounds and sort them into categories all on their desk with an Expo Marker. I then took their picture to later assess their participation and understanding of the lesson that was taught. I was skeptical at first, but it went wonderfully and the kids LOVED it! They couldn't believe I was letting them do such a thing. What are some alternatives to worksheets that you like to use? 

Get to Know Your Kiddos!!

Oh my goodness! Where do I begin? This week has been so many things! It has been amazing. It has been exhausting. It has been rewarding. And those are just a few ways to describe how this week has been. 

My very first group of kiddos made it through their first full week of school and I didn't get tied up and tickled! (I had a dream that happened to me on my first day of school!) 

I was told that the first 5 days of school will make or break a teacher for the rest of the year. That statement got me to thinking... How do I want my students to see me and see each other. This entire week we practiced complimenting our shoulder partner before we got the day started. Who doesn't like a good compliment? It was so refreshing and it broke the ice for some of the students that may not have normally talked to one another. 

Also, I have been following a teacher here in my own county that my college professor let us take the opportunity to go watch teach. I read a lot of her postings and she stresses the importance of getting to know your students. How well do you know your students? I wanted to get the year started off right... That being said, I gave them a Reading Interest Survey created by this wonderful teacher. If you would like to download this item for FREE click here or the picture below!!

I would really like to know how you get to know your kids! Those relationships mean more than we will ever know!!

Growing a Brighter Future!!

Ahhhh! I have first year teacher excitement about bulletins boards! I wanted to take the bulletin board and make it go with our "Growing a Brighter Future" theme! So, I had them color a flower and then took their picture, cut it out, glued it on, and then laminated them. The leaves say... "When I GROW up I want to be a __________ ." They are super cute! I use the bulletin board to post hard work so everyone can see it! What is your District wide theme this year???

My classroom!! :)

eeeek! My classroom is ready and waiting for my second graders!! I am excited to share my room with you! Enjoy! 

 My curtains turned out fantastically!! Thank you Brandi! If you need anything like this done she is the go to lady. Here is a link if you are interested in contacting her! Click here!

My room is very limited on storage space so I decided to take these and label them with chalkboard labels that I found at Hobby Lobby!

I plan on placing the standards we are working on each week here! We will do it together as a class!

 My word wall is ready to go and you can get it here!

I find accountable talk to be extremely important and I placed these at the front of the room so my kiddos will get very familiar with them throughout the year! Wanna snag them... here is a link!