Barkley

        

 Barkley

Barkley is showing off his latest haircut.

 

     This is Barkley, a cute little Yorkie in our family.  I spent a couple of weeks in the presence of this little fellow.  He brightened up the day from the first thing in the morning to the last yawn at night. 

    

          This box was intended for my granddaughter to play in, but Barkley decided it would be fun for him too.

         This is when he was just a pup wearing his winter coat. 

    He doesn't like to get wet, so Barkley rides on his own raft in the pool because he wants to be part of the action.

      Last, but not least, here he is with his friend, Aldo the large black dog, taking a rest after an active day.

   

Barkley loves his baby.

        Everyone needs  to relax sometimes!

 It was a rough day.  Everyone needs a little snooze!
What can I say?

Enjoy your day!

Beti 

Crayon Sight Words

               

Crayons!!

    Last year I saw these cute Dutch Boy paint chip swatches at a hardware store and I could note resist taking a whole range of colors.  At the time I was not sure what I would do with them, but I just had to have them.  My husband cringes when I walk into the paint department. I always walk out with a handful of paint chips.

  Thank you Dutch Boy Paints for these adorable crayons! They are very cute!
 

               My students have been making learning game activities for their 1st grade buddies.  These would be perfect for their sight word recognition. 

    A sheet of label stickers came out and were applied to the crayons. 

       I gave three of my girls this list of Dolch Pre-Primer sight vocabulary words and the rest was history.   My 5th grade girls just  love to do projects for our first grade friends. 

          These wonderful young ladies made a matching game from the list of sight words. I will give them an opportunity this week to work with some 1st graders using the game that they made. A learning experience for both 5th and 1st grade students.

     Do you have your students work with younger students in your building?
I would love to hear about it.

    Please leave a comment.  I would love to read your ideas.

Enjoy the day! 

I saw this crocus popping out of the ground in Alabama.

 Spring should be right around the corner.

  I linked up with Forever in Fifth Grade. Please use this link to see the wonderful ideas teachers have found. 
www.foreverinfifthgrade.blogspot.com
 

Beti    

People Search

People Search
            
     At the beginning of the year, usually the first week of school, I like to have my 5th graders have a People Search.  Each student is given a handout.  They need to find classmates to fill each category. They need to find a different person  for each answer.  

Find someone .......
   Who as a baby in their family?
   Who has traveled to New York?
   Who has has a birthday in the same month as your birthday?
   Who has gone camping?
   Who has gone to another school?
   Who rides the bus?
   Who has traveled out of the United States?
   Who is an only child?
   Who is the oldest child in the family?

Have some fun and make up some of your own questions.
       The tricky part for the children is that this activity is a                             SILENT ACTIVITY!  
     The kids soon realize that they need to communicate with each other without talking. Many groans and moans are heard in the room, but soon they are moving around the rooms silently finding needed information.  They are also making some new friends in the process. This is a great ice breaker for the new students in school. 

     We have three 5th grade homerooms.  My teaching partners and I take our 90 some kiddos to the air conditioned cafeteria because it can be very hot the first week of September in Michigan. 

     We give the students about 15 or 20 minutes to mingle and talk. The children are encouraged to ask both boys and girls for their answers. After the kids are finished, I might say,  " Everyone who walks to school, or everyone who has traveled outside of the country,  come stand here" .  Everyone can see what they have in common with others.
    
Today I linked up with The Whimsical Teacher for Tried and True. Check out all the great ideas.
www.thewhimsicalteacher.com 
     I hope you will be able to use this activity in your room.   

 I have also linked up with 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made It.

www.4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com
                                         
     Have a great year!
Beti

Cracked Egg Cards and Envelope Baskets

 

Cracked Eggs  

  I found this cute cracked egg design to make an Easter card at 
http://www.sundayschoolkids.com/activities-lent-easter/1-cracked-egg-instructions.htm 

        My 5th graders made these cards for their 11st grade buddies.  They turned out quite cute.

     The directions were quite a challenge for some of the students.  First you had to read the directions from the bottom up. That was confusing for some.

The directions to reverse fold also stumped a group to children.  But the end result was very cute as you can see. 

 

    Envelopes came in handy to make a basket envelope for the Easter egg card.

          First, we took a legal size envelope and cut off the end with the return address. ( Our school gets donations, boxes of old recycle envelopes from local businesses).  

         Next, the remaining part was folded in half. The top flap was cut to match the curve.  Then a cut was made along the fold and following the curve to make a handle.  

        Finally, the open side of the "basket" was glued and decorated.  

       The cracked egg card fits nicely into the basket and ready for delivery. 

  Check out the Forever in 5th Grade Linky, SHOW and TELL.
www.foreverinfifthgrade.blogspot.com
    

 A joyous Easter to all!

Please leave a comment if you have the time. 

Beti

Girls' Bathroom Beautification

           
      Butterflies 
     and Flowers
 
     Would this made you  smile and feel good when you walked into the girls' bathroom?  That was our intent with our Bathroom Beautification.

   Today I am linking up with 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made It.

Here is the Link....   www.4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com

        Before  the beginning of the school year, I though it would be fun to "beautify" the bathrooms at our school.  So we had a "little contest" to see which bathroom in the school could be the cutest.  I know it is quite hard to make a school bathroom look cute, but we tried. My good friend Dawn, who teaches 2nd grade just next to my 5th grade room, took on the challenge with me.  Since the 5th, 2nd, and 1st graders share a bathroom we worked together. 

  
    This is the view when you enter the girls bathroom.  Dawn had made and laminated these butterflies many years ago.  We thought they would be  nice, bright, and happy.  

      Dawn also had these stars in her classroom decorating stash. The words were added to made the girls believe in themselves. Some helpful students were around school and they made some little butterflies hanging above the window. You can see a pink butterfly on the right side of the picture. They seem to fly a bit when the window is open and a breeze comes in.
     Some cute stickers were added to the stall doors.  

      Unfortunately, there was no prize in our contest, but we did have fun improving the bathrooms of our school a little bit.

    I encourage all teachers and schools to do this type of project. It could make a difference to someone you least expect!

     Have a WONDERFUL DAY! 

Beti

A Lizzy Blankie

     

 LIZZY BLANKIE

 

                          4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com

  My son and  daughter-in-law have a dachshund named Lizzy.

I saw a Doxie Blankie pattern by Jenna Wingate on Pinterest. The name was Dog in A Sweater.  It can be found on ravelry.com.

     I thought it was so cute and looked just like Lizzy.  This was my inspiration piece.   I knit and crochet for fun.  

      So... when my son and daughter-in-law said they were having a baby the wheels in my head started turning.   A Lizzy Blankie would be a fun gift for our granddaughter. 

"Tummy Time" for Lizzy!

                     

Please leave a comment if you like Doxies.  I'd love to hear from you.

Come back and visit my blog again some time.

 Beti