The Best Thing

Well, it's the end of the year for us and that means sweet Memory Books are being filled out.  A HUGE shout out to Cara Carroll and the 1st Grade Parade for this FREEBIE!  I've used it for the past 4 years and tweek it just a smidge, but we L-O-V-E it so much!

Every year, I am so tickled with what the kids say was the best thing that they learned from me.  Here are some of their thoughts:

math * science * being nice * painting * writing * manners * Picasso saw things a different way  * being kind  :D
And then of course, there is always that one child, that completely melts your heart by writing this:

If you don't read 1st grade here is a translation:

1.  I learned how to use good manners

2.  I learned not to hurt people.

3.  I learned to be kind to others.

4.  I learned not to eat before everyone is served.

5. I learned to be nice.

Glue stick-extraordinaire

These are the glue sticks your teacher wants you to buy. Trust me on this. #disappearingpurple

Graph it Out!

Graphing is one of my students favorite things to do in Math.  We took this cutie patootie idea to the next level by graphing out and analyzing our bubble blowing data.  :D
My kids will tell you I'm kind of a sugar nazi!  I never give my children candy or sweets. So, needless to say they were shocked when I let them chew gum for this project.   Of course, to blow the biggest bubbles you have to have the most sugary gum you can find!
We chewed and chewed and then practiced blowing bubbles.  It was a fun process and they all wanted so badly to be able to blow a bubble.  But it definitely is a skill!  Kinda like whistling, tieing your shoes, and snapping your fingers.  Just takes a first grader time and lots of practice.  :D

We made a pictograph first based on our experiment:

We then turned our pictograph into a student created bar graph:

And using Interactive Writing, we analyzed our data:

Each kido used the torn art technique that I love to make their self portrait.  We used real balloons to imitate what their bubble looked like.  You could use crumpled up pink tissue paper instead of real balloons.  Up to you.  They all looked so cute together out in the hall!

Word

Happy!

We LOVE the Happy Song!  A super fun way to celebrate a birthday, or a Monday for that matter, is to play the Minion Happy Song.   Dust off your dancing shoes and boogie on down with your students.  It's fun for them to see their teacher acting a little silly and it burns a few calories as well!  :D

Dig In

Are you like me trying to scramble for "new" Mother's Day ideas each year??  Back in April, in my plants and seeds box, I found this beautiful Pueblo verse.  Years ago, while I was teaching Kindergarten, my teammie at the time shared this beautiful verse with me.  We always had plans of one day using it, so like all good teachers we filed it away!  I am VERY blessed this year with an amazing mom who is a professional photographer.  She came and took pictures of the children holding a handful of earth.  The photos turned out beautifully.

I hope our Mommas loved their present.  I know every time I read the verse it makes me cry!

Cinco De Mayo

Cinco de Mayo means "The 5th of May" in Spanish. The date is observed to commemorate Mexico's victory over the French Army in the Battle of Puebla on May 5th, 1862. It is a national holiday in Mexico and one that we love to celebrate in Texas to honor the Latin American culture in our area. Cinco de Mayo often gets misquoted by many as Mexico's Independence Day from Spain which actually happened much earlier on September 16th, 1810.
While we listened to Spanish music, the boys made sombreros and the girls made flowers for their hair.  They all turned out adorable!  I loved how the sombreros turned out.  My boys really thought about how they wanted it to look.

We learned how to count to 10 in Spanish and tasted 2 different kinds of salsa.  I was proud of all of my firsties trying at least a little bit (a.k.a tiny edge of their chip dipped in!)

Several of our Kindergartners along with a few of my 1st graders got the chance to perform an authentic Mexican Dance during the school's lunch time.  They were such a big hit.  I love seeing my babies perform!  :D