Pinterest inspired Christmas ornaments, featured on Playing With Words 365, and a giveaway coming soon!

All my children get an ornament from Santa in their stocking every year -Pinterest inspired homemade ornaments.

Katie at Playing With Words 365 featured my Reindeer Thumbprint Ornaments in her Thrifty Thursday link up features. So many cute ideas are shared every week!

* WOW! I have over 100 followers. Thinking up a fun Giveaway to add soon! :)

Merry Christmas! Blessings and Peace!

Liebster Blog Award!! :) Thank you!!

Have been so sick since school got out last Friday - and so much shopping, baking... left to do! What a nice surprise to read today that some sweet ladies with wonderful blogs awarded my blog the Liebster Blog Award!

 Thank you so much to: Katie at Playing With Words, Sharon at Ms. McBee's Kinderbugs, Diana at Cole's Little Pups, and Michelle at Inspired by Kindergarten. :) Love all of your blogs!!

The goal of this award is to spotlight up-and-coming blogs with less than 200 followers. 

The rules are:

{1} Copy and paste the award on your blog.

{2} Thank the giver and link back to them.

3} Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
This is hard , tried to pick great blogs that did not already have the award! :)

My top 5 picks are:

Mrs. Futch's Class Blog

 So many wonderful blogs -so many wonderful ideas, so many wonderful teachers! :)

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas!

Santa Handprint Ornament - my favorite every year! :)

"Gingerbread Friends" - December Family Project! :)

Reindeer Thumbprint Ornaments

Reindeer Thumbprint Ornaments - make them every year - love how the are so cute and each one looks so unique! :)

Christmas Colors - a little book to share!

I needed a little book to practice our new sight words - look & have. My class also needs to practice color words. This is my first attempt at making a little book - please share any tips, suggestions... Hope it is something other teachers can use! :) Clip art from KPM Doodles - so cute!

Christmas Colors

Gingerbread Fun and More... :)

Wow - this week has gone by so fast! Still so much more to do before Christmas Break! This is just a peek of what we have been working on - lots of gingerbread stuff! More pics to come next week - left my camera at school!                                          

Gingerbread stories

Gingerbread Poem

Gingerbread Family Project 

Silly Song that I made up to help my kids remember the roles of the author and illustrator.

New December Math... from two wonderful kindergarten blogs!!

Diana from Cole's Little Pups has a new December Number Sense Unit. It includes ten frame activities, dice rolling, number puzzles, number maps, and much more! So many wonderful activities - love it! :)

Pam from Can Do Kinders has the cutest Christmas Write The Room Activity that integrates math and literacy! The graphics are from KPM Doodles - check out her shop on Etsy here!

Native American Pattern Necklaces and a Math Station sheet.

Our Native American Pattern Necklaces with noodles and a follow up sheet for Math Stations.

Native American Pattern Necklace - Math Station Sheet

Our Classroom Mailboxes and Writing Center

Fairy Tale Day!!

 

Our kindergarten classes had Fairy Tale Parties yesterday. We asked our students to come dressed as fairy tale and nursery rhyme characters. We celebrated the completion of our  Nursery Rhyme and Fairy Tale units! We had castle cake, punch, danced at "the ball", and made magic wands! So much fun!! :)

More love for Pete the Cat!

We love Pete the Cat too! :)

New Blog Design!! :)

Special thanks to Alicia at Dreamlike Magic for my new blog look! I loved my blog with the cute monkey, but it was confusing with too many other blogs using the same design. I love my new blog look! :)

My kindergarten schedule on the wall - it works! :)

I have tried many ways to display my schedule in my kindergarten classroom. Finally, a way that works for me and my kindergarten kids! My schedule cards are big and my kids can follow by the numbers and colors. Words and even pictures do not work so early in the year. I have some special friends that need to stay on track and now waiting for lunch (#5), recess(#10)... is not so hard! :) I borrowed this idea from a kindergarten teacher down the hall - and adjusted it for my schedule! So happy - it works!!

A Wonderful New Blog!

I love this new blog - Little Miss Hypothesis! It is all about exploring science with kindergarten kids - something I love!! :)                                                              

Kreative In Kinder Giveaway!

Kreative in Kinder is giving away some of her wonderful units! If you go now, you can check out her cute blog and then head to her Teacher's Notebook Store store and check out her wonderful products! :)

WOW! A Blogger Award!! My Heart Is Full!! :)

Pam at Can Do Kinders has nominated my blog for an award! So excited and so honored!! :) This has made my day, week, month... After a long week of teaching, planning, cleaning, fixing/selling dinners for the Cheer Team, football games, homework, teenagers and 5 year olds - this was unexpected surprise!! Blogging is new to me, but I love it! Where else could you  find so many wonderful ideas, share your own ideas, read about good days, bad days, frustrations, what works... with other teachers that have the same passion for kids and teaching! Thank you Pam!! :)

Check out Pam's wonderful site - her ideas are great!!

Kindergarten Journals and "Mr. Spaceman"

Kindergarten Journals and "Mr. Spaceman"

My kids love to use "Mr. Spaceman" spacers (from Really Good Stuff) when they write in their journals. I was so tired of picking them up off the floor... and I really wanted each child to have their own. The one thing I do not like for them to share! Last year I came up with the idea to velcro the spacers to the front of the journals. It works so well - no lost Spacemen!! :)

Where It All Goes Down Wednesday

Where It All Goes Down Wednesday - a day late!

Just finished with Open House tonight! Tomorrow we have a 1/2 day, thanks to Irene! I live on the coast of South Carolina - right below Myrtle Beach. We should only have rain and some strong wind. Praying for family and friends in North Carolina and on up the coast!! Some classroom pictures - more later!!  Lots of "borrowed ideas" from so many awesome teachers!! :)

Teacher Talk Tuesday

Teacher Talk Tuesday - Advice

1. Love your job - you get to laugh and play all day!

2. Give lots of hugs - might be the only hug/touch that a child gets all day!

3. Be very firm - especially the first few weeks. Young kids need structure to feel safe!

4. Communicate with everyone - especially parents. Do not assume that they know anything about your classroom.... I send a detailed newsletter each week.

5. Keep your rules simple and review each day!

6. Be patient and be consistent!

7. Share with others and be open to new ideas! 

8. Keep reading and learning as a teacher. I have taught a long time and I love to grow and learn with my kids and other teachers!

9. Appreciate all you have - be thankful! PRAY!

10. Save enough of yourself for the ones you love at home! :)

Meet The Teacher Monday

Meet The Teacher Monday! 

I teach kindergarten and I love my job! I teach at the beach - on the coast in South Carolina!! Always beautiful and usually hot!  I have been teaching for 23 years - mostly kindergarten. I have a degree in Elementary/Early Childhood and a Masters Degree in Divergent Learning. I received my National Board Certification about 4 years ago. I love 5 and 6 year old children. They make me laugh all day!

I married the sweetest man about 5 years ago. He loves me and my passion for teaching! I have 3 children. Thomas is almost 23 (working and in school), Matthew is a junior in high school, and Hope is a high school freshman. I also have wonderful step-children! Matthew has Aspergers- Autism Spectrum. Learning how to be the best mom for him and helping him to reach his goals in another passion.  I stay busy with church activities, watching my daughter cheer, spending time with my family, preparing for school, and helping with our local Autism Support Group.

I love the beach, shopping, baking, reading, movies, and spending time with my family!! I love to draw and sing - my kindergarten kids think that I am very talented (HA!)

This school year I would like to be more organized and deal with less piles of paper. I tend to keep "stuff" - trying to change and throw out!! I love to learn and grow with my students.

I can not live without Diet Coke, sweet tea, chocolate, and my glue gun! I also love pocket charts, labels, fat crayola markers, blue painters tape (works well on my walls), and zebra/ polka designs in my classroom! I have the best classroom assistant - Mary! Blogging has become a new passion!! :)

 Hop On Over To Meet More Blog Hoppers!!