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!

Excited about Inservice?

Some of you may have rolled your eyes at my question and that is ok! This is for those eager beavers like myself.

 I am overly excited about everything as a new teacher. You could probably tell me that, as a new teacher, I would have to plant 431 trees all on my own throughout the year and I would be super enthused by the idea. Who wouldn't right? We could always use more trees!

Well, today I was able to attend my very first inservice as a certified teacher and I was super thrilled. Perhaps, I was the only person that was "super thrilled." Again, thats ok! To make a change you have to be difference!

I found the inservice to be very beneficial. 

Today, I am going to share with you something I found very helpful. Also, I am an extremely hands on type of learner, so this activity helped keep me engaged and the information really stuck to my brain.

Scarborough's Rope

If you look above at the photograph, it gives you an idea of the many strands that go into making a skilled reader. Children need all of these to succeed. If a child lacks one or two of these strands the entire rope will fall apart, so to speak.

Some very lovely ladies presented this rope in a way that is going to make it difficult to forget!

Each of us had the opportunity to make a Scarborough's Rope out of pipe cleaners! This was a neat experience and made learning about Scarborough's Rope very interesting. I am going to incorporate each of these strands into my reading block this year in hopes to really reach those children who may have a thread or two missing.

Also, I have learned really quickly that inservice is what you make it! Be positive. If not for you, for them.