My Cup Of Tea {Mother's Day Made Easy}

Happy Friday eve folks!  Lindsay here . . .

Let's be honest.  Its 10 p.m. and I should REAAAAAAALLY be in bed right about now, but I just had to get on here and share my easy-peasy Mother's Day activities because . . . HELLO!  Tomorrow is May already!  Mother's Day is right around the corner! 

Okay.  Tiny panic attack over . . . just breathe. 

I love Mother's Day.  I really do.  I have the best teacher-momma in the world and I love making her feel special (and not just on Mother's Day). 

And then of course about four-ish years ago I joined the "Mommy Club" myself.  Which basically means I like to remind my husband as OFTEN as possible how large and difficult each of my boys was to birth and how some diamonds JUST MIGHT make all of those pesky stretch marks worthwhile . . . :)

But in all seriousness - every year Mother's Day is one of the most special days in my classroom.  My kiddos absolutely L-O-V-E surprising their moms with sweet words and beautiful gifts!

I call my Mother's Day celebration "Muffins With Mom".  Our whole celebration is tea-themed.  On the front of the card that my kidlets make for their moms it says YOU ARE MY CUP OF TEA. 

 

 

Now my kiddos DO learn a song that we sing for the moms and they DO make an adorable little modge-podged plate that is so sweet . . . BUT  . . . the best part of the present (in my humble opinion) is what is INSIDE the card.

 

What's inside?  Tear-jerking sweetness. That's what.

 

First, I do a student interview with each kiddo - all about MOM.  Not only is this highly entertaining for me ("Oh, your mom likes to watch General Hospital?") but to hear what the kiddos have to say about their moms is just TOTES ADORBS.  I mean, these kiddos think their moms are just THE. BEST.

 

Here is one example:

 

 

Glued onto the OTHER side of the card is a writing piece that my kiddos do that begins with "I love my mom because . . ."

 

These will make you laugh OR cry.  Check 'em out:

 

 

First one: "I love my mom because she drains the bath (baf)."  Hey, just being practical, right?

 

 

 

Next: "I love my mom because she is beautiful and pretty.  And a princess."  Love it!

 

 

And finally . . . "I love my mom because she helps me pull my tooth out." 



 

 

These sweet words make an adorable keepsake that mommas can't help but keep forever. And ever and ever and ever.

 

If you want to check out my My Cup of Tea {Mother's Day Made Easy} set in my TPT store, you can click HERE. 

 

 
This set includes: a student interview template, "Why I love my mom" graphic organizer, writing paper, "My cup of tea" craftivity AND a Muffins With Mom invitation that your kiddos can fill out and take home to their moms.

 

 

 

 

 



Well, that's it for tonight!  Hope you all have a FAB FRIDAY! 

Goodnight!

Lindsay

Yearbook Wrap-Up, Smartie Boards, Mother's Day and Sloth Poop - A Smorgasboard of Kindergarten Goodness!

Hiya peeps!  Lindsay here . . .

Well, I just had to share some SUPER FABULOUS GRAND news . . . The. Yearbook. Is. Done!!!!!

Phew.

That was a "so-huge-I-couldn't-think-about-anything-else" kind of project.  But now . . . its . . . done!  And mark my words, this Yearbook Coordinator is hanging up her hat!  Okay, well maybe there's not really a yearbook hat that I can hang up, but I am definitely retiring from the position!!  (Hear that Newport El friends - the job is up for grabs!!).

So - let's move on to other things!

The kiddos in Room 17 have been up to lots and lots these past few weeks:

1. First, we had our "Muffins With Mom" celebration.  I told my kiddos that when their moms heard them sing their Mother's Day song they would love it so much they would cry. (Which they did, and which the kids thought was so great!!)

The moms were very touched by their little Mother's Day plates and cards and the sweet interviews each student gave about their mom.  It was a super fun, special day!


2. We got a SmartBoard!  Or a "Smartie-Board" as my students have affectionately named it.  UN-fortunately it was installed (yes, drilling and all) right smack dab in the middle of centers.  Grrrrr.  And then on top of THAT it turns out that all of my classroom computers are far too ancient to even run the SmartBoard software. 

Sooooooooooo . . . technically I guess we don't actually have a Smartie-Board.  We have a large white thingamajig taking up our white board space that the kids can't touch and the teacher can't even use. Sounds fun, right?

Anyway, I am sure SOMEDAY I will actually get the mounted projector, and the new(er) computer and the actual software to use our Smartie-Board. 

I just hope it's sooner rather than later . . . :(

3.  Open House prep.

That's right.  We have 23 more days of school, and only 17 days until Open House. O.M.G.

Needless to say we have been knee-deep in all sorts of fun Rainforest projects (many courtesy of Kerri's fantabulous Rainforest Art & Writing unit (check it out if you haven't already!).

We made our Rainforest Guide faces last week which turned out oh-so-cute.

Then this week we researched the three-toed sloth and did some writing about what we had learned.  Here are some samples:

"Sloths have very sharp claws. Sloths go potty on the forest floor." Hmmm  . .. . interesting.

"A sloth can climb with their claws. And they go potty on the forest floor."  Aack!  More about going potty????!!!

And finally . . . "Sloths have really sharp claws. Sloths can go potty on the forest floor. Sloths have algae in their fur. Sloths are really slow and furry."

Okay.  I'll admit it.  My kindergarteners are fascinated with the toileting habits of the three-toed sloth . . .

I showed a brief Jeff Corwin sloth video via Discovery Streaming and at the VEEEEEEERY end it showed a sloth climbing down a tree.  So, of course, Jeff Corwin had to make a big deal in the video about the fact that the sloth was climbing down the tree in order  to DEFICATE.  And then they showed it. Deficating.  On the forest floor. And I swear that sloth was smiling!!

I was horrified . . .and my kinders were mesmerized.

So . . . there ya go. Sloths poop on the forest floor. Who knew?  (Thanks a lot Jeff Corwin!)

Well, that's it for now folks!  Hope you have a great night!  (And for all of you already on summer break . . . I am so jealous!!!)

Good night!

Lindsay

P.S. To our friends in Oklahoma - you are in our thoughts and prayers!!

{A special thanks to Tanja Tlusty for the graphic!}

Muffins for Moms and a Messyhair Family Announcement

Hola mis amigos!  Lindsay here . . .

Just brushing up on a little espanol for Cinco de Mayo . . . And you know what holiday is right around the corner next??

That's right. Mother's Day.

I just love Mother's Day.  And over the years (and probably since I have become a mother) it is just one of those holidays that holds a special place in my heart. AND tends to get me all verklempt.

Maybe I love Mother's Day because I have the best mom.  She is one of the humblest, hardest-working and strongest people I know.  And she's funny too!  (Just ask her to quote some of My Big Fat Greek Wedding for you . . .)   And of course I have fond memories of making breakfast in bed for my mom as a child on Mother's Day. . . . (The menu?  French toast with a side of Diet Coke.  Yep, I was a  REALLY good cook!)  And today I still like to visit my mom every Mother's Day weekend.  She and I could just sit around and talk, watch a marathon of old Cops reruns, or look through old family pictures ALL. DAY. 

I love you mom!

And then of course there's my little guy who came into this world and gave me the title "Momma" (and let's be honest, a few stretch marks to go along with that . . .) and gave Mother's Day a whole new meaning for me . . .

Soooooooo . . . to help celebrate mommies EVERYWHERE (especially the moms of my cute students) I started a tradition of "Muffins With Mom" every year in May so that my little kinder kidlets can shower their moms with singing, sweet homemade cards, a gift, and some yummy treats.  And let me tell you . . . the kids LOVE it! 

We started working on our "secret projects" this week. 

First my kiddos wrote about why they love their moms - seriously, I almost cried.

Next came the task of doing my student "interviews" about their moms.  This is super time consuming (especially this year with 30 kiddos!) but it is such a precious keepsake that I have to do it every year!  To hear what the kids have to say about their moms in their own words is priceless . . . (and hilarious!).  My favorite part: "Mom spends most of her time doing things like making sweaters for me out of yarn."  Awesome.

Finally, we will be making our Mother's Day craftivity (which becomes the outside of the Mother's Day card we will be giving):

If you are looking for a way to celebrate the mothers of your kidlets this year, you can check out my Mother's Day pack in my TPT store (just click on the teapot below).  You will get all of these goodies!

 

 

 

And while we are on the topic of mothers . . . the Messyhair family has an important announcement to make:

That's right . . . we are expecting baby #2 in November!!  We have been so very blessed by the news, and can't wait to meet our little Mr. or Miss in just a few months!!! 

Well, that's about it for now folks!  I'm off to have a little late night snack (I'm eating for two now, right?) and snuggle with the hubs on the couch.  Have a good night!

Lindsay

Jaguars, Mom's Day Plates, and a LUNA GIVEAWAY!

Happy Friday, Peeps!! Kerri here...
Whew!! What a week! We had a CRAZY busy week learning about the rainforest jaguars, making our moms some wicked cool plates for Mother's Day, and celebrating Teacher's Appreciation Week (well, that was actually all about me, and it was AWESOME!) 
Here are our jaguars from my Rainforest Art and Writing Unit...they are ADORBS!

This guy has squatty legs! HEEHEE!

Her spots are FABULOUS!

I LOVE these WHISKERS!! 

You might remember my post about my Mother's Day plates from last year found here. Well, we busted a move on those baddies this week as well, and they are AMAZING, peeps!! Take a looksie!

Like the chain he added hanging from his pants? Straight thuggin' it!

Hmmmm, Jack Skellington eyes??

Or maybe the sideways smirk?

Love Little Miss MisMatch bows and shoes!

It's not too late!! You can make these too! All you need are glass plates from IKEA or the Dollar Tree, tissue paper, and modpodge (naturally!) and you are good to go! See my post from last year if you want to make the best Mom's Day gift EVER!! :)


Are you ready for an AMAZING giveaway?? Learning Resources asked me to review this FABULOUS product-the LUNA Interactive Projection Camera!

This camera is light, portable, TOTALLY user friendly and projects SUPER clear images. All you have to do is connect it to the USB port on your computer and it comes right up. Here is mine on my computer desk......

As you can see, it projects the image onto your computer screen. From there, you can do a variety of things. 

You can take a photo of what you're projecting and save it to your computer (AWESOME, right??) take a video (Hello, video tutorials!), focus the image, rotate it, and all of these things happen with the click of a button!!
Here is another view of it from the front...

Isn't it cute?? I also like how well it projects onto my SMART board. Here is a pic from the kid's perspective... The image is HUGE!

These projection cameras retail for $200, which is CHEAP AS CHIPS when it comes to Doc Cameras! If you don't have one yet, I HEARTILY recommend the LUNA Interactive Projection Camera from Learning Resources.  

To learn more about the LUNA Interactive Projection Camera, and other great products from Learning Resources, click the links below...

You can visit Learning Resource's FACEBOOK page here :)


You can go to their TWITTER page here :)


And, their YOUTUBE page here! :)


You wanna win one?? Here's how you can! 
Learning Resources is allowing me to give one of these GREAT products away to one of you, our loyal followers! This is a $199.99 value! How cool is that?! To sweeten the pot even more, Lindsay and I will throw in one product from either of our TPT stores. YAY!!

We will be using Rafflecopter for our giveaway because it is THE BOMB-DIGGIDY and so easy to use! You can earn 5 separate chances to win:

1. Like Learning Resources on Facebook
2. Become a follower of our blog, or tell us that you already are a follower!
3. Follow Kerri's TPT store
4. Follow Lindsay's TPT store
5. Like our BRAND NEW Teacher Bits and Bobs Facebook page!!

Enter through Rafflecopter below, and good luck!!

Fun At the Zoo and More Mother's Day Madness!

Happy Tuesday my blogger buddies!  Lindsay here .  . .

Gonna keep it short and sweet tonight because I am TIRED!!!  This morning I hit the snooze on my alarm and fell back asleep for AN HOUR.  As in sixty minutes.  Yowzers.  Can you say sleep deprived??!!

 I am so completely exhausted that I don't even think I will be able to keep my eyes open and watch the Biggest Loser Finale . . .gasp!  PLEASE don't go blogging about how great the winner looked, etc., etc.  No spoilers people!!

Anyway, in Room 17 we have been working hard getting ready for Mother's Day.  Today my kidlets were using thier graphic organizers and writing sentences about why they love their mom.  Here are some of the finished products . . .

"I love my mom because she goes to work." (Tear.)

This one was super cute. Last sentence = "My mom helps in the computer lab."  (Gotta love those helper moms!)

I have also been busy interviewing my kidlets one-on-one and helping to fill in their mother questionnaire that will be part of their Mother's Day Card at our Muffins With Mom celebration. 

This kiddo had some exceptionally great responses . . . Mom likes to wear - princess outfits. (Classic!) I wish Mom - could do a headstand.  (Don't we all wish that?)

Its not too late to pick up your own My Cup Of Tea Mother's Day pack at my TPT store.  Click the flower below to check it out!



Also this week (Z week here in Kindergartenland) we have been doing a Zoo theme - and my kids LOVE it!  All of our activities are from my brand new Fun At The Zoo Math and Literacy Centers Pack . . .

Take me to the zoo! This colorful unit contains three math and three literacy centers your students will love, including:

1. More and Less With Mr. Alligator (comparing numbers using < and >)
2. Six Little Monkeys Make Numbers (how many ways to make the numbers 0-5, such as 1+1, 2+0, etc.)
3. Roar, Stomp, Nibble Number Cover Up (addition dice game mats and directions)
4. Hullaballoo At The Zoo reader (counting sight word mini reader with blanks for students to fill in and a surprise ending!)
5. Making Hearty Hippo Words (using the letters in the word "hippopotamus" to build words)
6. Zookeeper ABC order (putting words in ABC order and writing a juicy sentence!)

And for all y'all, a little freebie (score!) - a printable Mr. Alligator comparing numbers poster.  Just click the image below to access and print the file.  This little visual aide and rhyme will be sure to help your lil kidlets remember which way that pesky greater than/less than symbol is supposed to go!

These Fun At The Zoo Centers activities are all engaging, hands-on centers your kidlets will LOVE and that are ready be printed and used!  So scadaddle on over and get yours today!  Click on the lil zebra below to go check it out in my TPT store.

Well, that's it for now folks!  I am off to bed!  Tomorrow my little kinder kidlets are singing at the Spring Music Show and will be performing a song called "Soap and Water" to the tune of Beyonce's "Single Ladies".  No, I did not invent it, and yes, it is just as amazing as it sounds.   More to come later this week . . .

A whole bunch of good old randomness!!

Hey friends!  Lindsay here . . .

Tonight you are going to get a bit of BOTH of us, Kerri and I.  How lucky are you?  Answer: very.

Wow.  I feel like I have SO much to catch up on!  We have been busy little kinder kidlets . . . working on Earth Day, Open House, Mother's Day, etc. etc. etc. You get the idea.

First off: Earth Day.  Unfortunately I don't have many pictures to share, but we did do all sorts of fun things . . .

First, we did a beach cleanup .  Yes, my crazy school is on the beach.  This is my view every morning when I pull up: boardwalk, basketball courts, lifeguard tower and sand.

Next, I invited the father of one of my students to come in and talk about the importance of using reusable bags.  Not only did he share great insight with the kiddos, but he even brought each student a reusable bag of their own to take home from his very own company, LOVE Reusable Bags.  Check them out HERE - aren't the little snack bags adorable? 

Finally we wrapped up Earth Day by writing our own Earth Day pledges, and they turned out SO cute. 

This student wrote: 1. I will recycle aluminum. 2. I will clean up trash, and 3. I will take a quick shower.

I love what this students said on #2: I will be careful to not step on a worm.  Good stuff. :)



If you would like to download this lil handy graphic organizer, click the image below.  (I know, I know . . . Earth Day is over. Print it, save it, and pull it out next year people.)

The next big hooha (is that a word?) in our room with be our "Muffins With Mom" tea in two weeks.  My kidlets are stoked. Over the moon.  Giddy with excitement.  Except for the little boy who asked if he will have to wear a dress.  But don't worry . . . he is coming around.

Being a brand-new mommy myself this year, I wanted to do something extra special for all of the hardworking moms of my kiddos.  So in addition to a handmade gift, we will be have tea and treats, and presenting the moms with a wonderful, homemade cards of heartfelt sentiments. 

First, we filled out our official Muffins With Mom invitations - to be sent out next week.

Next, we filled out our graphic organizer about why we love our moms.  My wonderful writer-kidlets will be using their graphic organizer and putting their ideas into complete sentences! (Insert proud teacher face here.)

I LOVED this student's second idea so much: I love my mom because she works so so hard.  AFTER I stopped sobbing uncontrollably (yes, still have mommy guilt about going back to work), this sparked a GREAT discussion about WHY some mommies have to go to work.  Incorrect answer: "So they can buy stuff." Correct answer: "So they can take care of us." 

This was another sweet one. Reason #3: She makes me laugh.  (More tears.)

Next up - a Mother's Day craftivity.  In keeping with our tea party theme, we will be  making these ADORABLE little teacups for the front of our Mother's Day cards with the words "You are my cup of tea!". 

If you want to pick up my Mother's Day "My Cup Of Tea" pack at TPT, click on the teapot below. Included in this pack you get:

-Muffins With Mom invitation (customizable for your school, students, date, etc.)

-Teacup craftivity with step-by-step instructions and pictures

-What I Love About Mom graphic organizer

-What I Love About Mom writing paper

-All About Mom fill-in-the-blank activity (Warning: responses may be unexpected and highly hilarious!!)

If you check out this unit on my TPT store, pay no attention to the horrible preview images - the fonts are not showing correctly. Grrrrr. (Click on the preview image instead.)

Well, that's all for me tonight folks.  Happy Friday!

Good Evening, Faithful Followers! Kerri here...

I'm gonna keep it short and sweet tonight, cause Peeps, I am T.I.R.E.D.! What a week! This week, we were working on our Rainforest Unit whilst learning about macaws (Exhibit A)...

Aren't they pretty and bright?? Sharpie and oil pastels are a magical combination!

We also bubble-mapped AND tree mapped our thoughts on macaws (Exhibit B)...

These activities are found in my Rainforest Fun! Art and Writing Pack, if like what you see and want more... Next week, we will be making Jaguars!

We also practiced place value using ice cube trays from the Dollar Tree! I first saw this idea on TeacherTipster.com (Don't you just LOVE that guy??) and knew that I MUST run out immediately and get some of my own, and I found PINK ones!! HEE HEE...

OHMYSNAPS! Aren't they soooo beauteous?? And the rods fit oh so well in those spaces! I highly recommend that you run out to the Dollar Tree right NOW and get some of these babies!

Last, but not least, we culminated our America Unit with Oral Reports on American Symbols. Check out this cutie with his really AMAZING Bald Eagle project!

He was also the one who wore a penguin hat when he did his black and white report--I am thinking that is his signature oral report attire, right??

I almost forgot!! The winner of the Hear-All Assessment Recorder is... (click below) We will be contacting Yvonee with some details! Congrats, girl!