Dino Dig!

I'm sorry I haven't been posting much!  This school year has been CRAZY!  We went remote for about six weeks from November through December.  We came back face-to-face after Winter Break and have been ever since!  

Last year, we didn't get to do our big Dinosaur Unit due to being quarantined.  I am SO happy that I was able to start it last week!  We kicked off the unit by reading "Dinosaur Lady" by Linda Skeers.  It's about Mary Anning, the first Paleontologist!  I am still amazed that this year is the first time in my life that I've heard of her!  She's pretty awesome!  Then we worked on a flip book about her life!  The next day, we talked in-depth about paleontology and the job of paleontologists.   The third day is when the real fun began!

I ordered {THESE} kits and {THESE} cute hats (from Amazon), as well as disposable tablecloths, and eventually, disposable cake pans (more on that later)!  

DINO DIG DAY 1:  EXCAVATION

The kids each got the following:  1 plaster egg, 3 tools, a hat, and a clipboard with their recording sheet (below) and a paper ruler.  Apparently I'm a bit of a hoarder because while I was looking for rulers, I found a stash of 6" paper rulers from the ISAT test when I taught 6th grade!  They came in handy!  I went over the directions and then I let them start  digging!  They had about 45 minutes to dig and only two kids were able to get their fossil out in that time.  Also, this was WAY messier than when I tested one out in my kitchen!  The tablecloths helped out a bit, but there were still pieces of plaster everywhere!  The kids were pretty messy too, they had been wiping their hands on their shirts and pants and were covered in white dust!  I gave the kids a gallon sized ziploc labeled with their names to hold their tools, clipboard, and egg until the next day.  That night I went to the Dollar Tree and bought foil cake pans to try and contain the mess a bit for the next day!

DINO DIG DAY 2:  EXCAVATION, IDENTIFICATION & RECREATION

I set everything back up while the kids were at recess and I made sure I had plenty of time for the kids to work - it was Friday and I wasn't dragging this into the next week!

After extracting their fossils from the egg, the kids had to record how long & tall their fossil was and then record it's characteristics - long or short neck?  4 legs or 3 back legs?  spikes?  neck frill?  horns?  etc.

Then they had to look at pictures of dino skeletons and identify what dinosaur fossil they had.  

Once that was done, they were given clay (that came with the kits) and got to recreate their dinosaur!  I let them pick their colors and they got pretty creative!

The kids were getting done at different times, so I had a few Bitmoji classrooms ready on Google Classroom for them to explore - all about dinosaurs, obviously!  Overall, I feel like the kids liked this activity and I would for sure do it again!  I wouldn't call this a total classroom transformation, but close!  

XOXO,

Rachel :)

Hello again! (and FREEBIES!)

I haven't blogged in forever!  In my defense, 2020 sort of went downhill after I posted last!  What a year it has been!  After being remote for the last quarter of last year, I decided to learn all things Google!  I have been using Google Classroom a lot this year - even though we're face to face - as an exit ticket after math instruction.  Considering things have been so crazy for every educator, I've decided to share my Math Google Slides activities with you!  

These activities are drag & drop and fill in the blank!  I've learned that it work best if I have the kiddos click on the item they are moving and then use their arrow keys to move the item where they want it to go!  Also, I'm super new to Google and I *think* I have the sharing settings correct, but if not, please let me know and I'll fix it!!

I assign these in Google Classroom and set it to make a copy for each student.  So far, my kiddos have really enjoyed them! 

Addition Stories (pictured above)

Model Addition (Part Part Whole)

Addition Number Sentences

Vertical Addition

XOXO,
Rachel :)

Grinch ELA and Math Activities!

I like to have a "Grinch Week" right before Christmas Break! 

We read The Grinch and do ELA & Math activities that are Grinch themed!  We also make a Grinch ornament, so we can all remember how much fun we had!

The {Grinch ELA Bundle} includes:

*Making Words - students will make words using the letters THE GRINCH and CINDY LOU WHO!

*Long & Short Vowel Sort - students will sort words by their vowel sound!

*Roll, Add & Write - students roll two die, add and write the word from the story with that number!
*Write the Room - students will write words from the story that are displayed throughout the classroom!

*Roll, Find & Highlight - students will roll a dice, find * highlight the corresponding word!

*ABC Order - students will put words from the story in alphabetical order!

*Ing Ending Match - students will match up a verb with it's present tense!

*Sequencing - students will put events from the story in order!

The {Grinch Math Bundle} includes:

*Hundreds, Tens & Ones Memory - students will match up flats, rods and cubes to their corresponding number!

*Count to 120 - students will count to 120 and count on starting at any number!

*Tens & Ones Match - students will match up tens frames or coins with the corresponding number!

*Ten More, Ten Less - students will show ten more, ten less, one more and one less for a given number!

*Related Facts Memory - students will match addition number sentences with their related subtraction fact!

*Compare Using Symbols - students will compare numbers using <, >, and = symbols!

*Addition Strategy Review - students will review how to add using a number line, make 10 to add, add 3 numbers, use near doubles to add, use related facts to add, and adding in any order!

*Subtraction Using Symbols - students will review how to subtract using a number line, using doubles, using missing addends, and fact families!  

FREEBIE FRIDAY!!

FREEBIE FRIDAY!!

Today's freebie is for a file of stand-up turkeys! That may sound strange, but hear me out! I'm using these little guys for a STEAM project the week of Thanksgiving. My kiddos are going to have to build a "hide out" for their turkey using a number of different supplies! I can't wait to see what they come up with!!

You can use this lil guy to make turkey traps, add numbers for math games, add words or letters for ELA games, even as place holders for your class Thanksgiving feast!

To get this super fun FREEBIE, please subscribe to my email list and I'll send it straight to your inbox!

Click {HERE} to subscribe! 

Turkey Time! 🦃

My kiddos used my Turkey Fact Family Match activity yesterday and loved it!!  

Check out all of my turkey resources:

*Turkey Fact Family Match🦃 Find it {HERE}

*Turkey Math Bundle (Addition & Subtraction through 20)🦃 Find it {HERE}

*"Turkey Trouble" ELA Bundle (Blends & Diagraphs Review)🦃 Find it {HERE}

I'm Back!!

Hello there!  I know it's been a bit since I've posted here!  I'm working on using the blog more, so don't give up on me!

School has been back in session for over a quarter, can you believe it?!  This fall, I added a little quote above my hallway bulletin board, using 4" googley eyes from the Halloween section at Target! 

 They were too cute not to use!  

You can snag the bulletin board above (minus the eyes) {HERE}.  

If red & white dots aren't your thing...

If the red and white dots products don't match your classroom, take a look at the products I have in wood grain & turquoise!  

I have editable job chart jobs, labels and teacher binder organization in this theme!
Check them out {HERE}!  Everything is editable for you to customize!