Five for Friday {May 17}

It's Friday again!  Only two Fridays left in the school year for me.  I can hardly believe that my sweet littles are so close to first grade!

Here are my five randoms from the week:

1. This....

...and this....

...have been my best friends lately!  I spent all day Wednesday completing running records for my students (that was SUCH a fun day!  Love to see them reading!!), and every spare moment in the classroom this week completing year-end assessments.

We had LOTS of celebrations as my students realized that they have become READERS this year!  The sight word assessment had them all wearing big smiles!!

(You can grab these STAR awards from my TPT shop for free if you'd like!) 

2. We needed something fresh for our afternoon choice time.  I'm not sure why I had forgotten all about my easel, but I pulled it out and the kids LOVED it!  And, of course, I loved that it was a quiet, calm activity...at least for four at a time!

3. We've been following the growth of pea seeds planted in sand, soil, and pebbles.  The three sand plants were looking awesome until this week when they finally decided that sand just isn't a good place for them to grow!  Still keeping an eye on what will happen with our pebbles plant.  So far, it looks pretty good.  And, of course, our soil plant is thriving.  The kids love checking these every day.

4. Have you heard of this book?  Our staff read it during March is Reading Month, and I was inspired to implement a daily DEAR time in my classroom.  I have grown to LOVE that time!!  We spend ten minutes each afternoon just reading silently (that includes me!), and then the students take five minutes or so to share about their books with each other...like a partner "book review" time.  This is definitely something I will continue in the future, and I would recommend this book as a good summer read.  It is geared more for upper el/middle school classrooms, but I had some good take-away even for K.

 5. Instead of being Mrs. Sloothaak today, I got to be "Trey's mom" on a field trip with his class to the zoo.  He has had such a wonderful Kindergarten experience.  I almost don't want to see the school year end because it means his year is over!  I had the best time hanging out with my guy and his school buddies today.

Five for Friday {May 10}

I'm excited to be back, linking up for another Five for Friday with Kacey at Doodlebugs!

This is the first full week I've been back since Spring Break, and BOY was it jam-packed!  Between school and family, I was running around and my mind was spinning all week long!  Anyway, here are my 5 randoms for this week!

1.  I had the best time planning gifts to spoil my kids' teachers this week for teacher appreciation week.  A few years ago, I had a student who brought me a small gift every day of the week.  I thought it was such a special way to be spoiled, so that's what I did for my son's kindergarten teacher this week.  None of the gifts were big, but we had something special for her each day.  I hope they helped to make her feel SO appreciated this week!  This was one of the gifts we sent.

And a reminder that being a K teacher, and having a kindergartener, means that my work is never finished!!  Teacher at school and teacher at home!  My son wrote this sweet letter to his teacher this week.  He really took his time and worked so carefully.  But...look!  Trey!  You MUST begin each sentence with a capital letter!!! :)

2. The town I live in (Holland, MI) has a festival every May that attracts tourists from all over the place!  It's called the Tulip Time festival.  Tulips line the streets of Holland and it is so beautiful!  The weather was perfect this week, so we headed downtown to enjoy the tulips and some junk food as well!

3. Thursday was the BEST day of my week!  I got to spend my day learning from Kim Adsit at her "DI for the Little Guy" seminar.  She is AMAZING and such a master teacher.  I loved her sweet southern accent and her sense of humor.  Awesome, AWESOME!  I felt so silly asking her for a picture, but I just had to!

4. My students' Mother's Day gifts turned out so adorable and they LOVED them!  Heehee!  Thanks for the inspiration, Pinterest! :)

5. We wrote our last letter of the year to our Kindie pen pals in Colorado today. :( 

Only 17 days left!

Race to 100....and a bloggy break

Who knew that such a simple game could be so LOVED by my students??!?  I whipped up a version of this game around Christmas and my kindies enjoyed it so much that I've made a couple of different versions since then.

"Race to 100" is the simplest concept ever.  It's a partner game -- each partner chooses a color.  One partner rolls a dice and colors that many squares.  Then, the next partner rolls and colors.  They continue taking turns, coloring the boxes in order.  The person who rolls the exact number to land on 100 is the winner.

I usually make enough copies that each pair can play twice.  The winner of the first game brings that page home, and the other partner takes the other one home, whether they were the winner or not.  They love it.  

This game board is fun and Springy, and the KPM Doodles clip art is so cute!

Please grab a copy for yourself if you'd like it!

On another note, I will be taking some time away from the blog while I tend to a situation that has arisen in my life.  I am needed for my family right now and just am not in a place of having the mental energy needed to maintain this blog effectively.  In time, I will return.  I look forward to that day!

Spring Break is slipping away... {boo!}

The to-do list for my Spring Break was long.  And I got a lot done.  Not everything, but a lot.

BUT...the top of my to-do list was to spend oodles and oodles of time with my kids, to not wake up to an alarm clock, and to relax and enjoy!  SUCCESS!!  I did all of those things, and it was FAB!

Today, I was too lazy to do much :), but I did manage to complete a TPT product that I've had on my list for a while.  This write the room activity will be perfect for Spring, and the graphics from KPM Doodles are so cute!  I love the bright colors -- they have me dreaming of temps in the 60's and 70's (yes, we're still in the 40's and 50's). 

 I'll be plugging this in to my next round of literacy stations, and I know that my students will be glad to have our write the room station back.  We've been without it for several weeks since it took me so long to get a new one made!

Click here to check it out on TPT

I'll give this away to the first 2 people who leave me a comment.  Make sure to leave your e-mail address so that I can send it your way!  Hope you're having a great weekend!

Girls only lunch

A few months ago, a colleague of mine hosted a girls only lunch in her classroom.  She invited only the girls and had a special table set up just for them.  I LOVED the idea so much that I stole it!  Isn't that what all good teachers do??? ;)

Actually, I asked if she minded if I used her idea and, of course, she didn't mind at all.

This is the first year that I've had students at school for lunch.  My previous eight years of teaching Kindergarten, we had a half-day program, so I had close to fifty students each year and no students there for lunch.  

I can't say enough good things about the switch we made this year to full-day K.  I LOVE it for so many reasons...and at the top of my list is the difference it's made in my relationships with my students. Spending all day with them has allowed me to KNOW my students and invest in them so much more!

I was so excited about the idea of having a special boys lunch and a special girls lunch.  Of course, ladies first, so I put together this invite and passed them out to the girls a few days before the big day.

While the girls went to get their lunches from the lunchroom (my cold lunch gals waited in the hall), I quickly set up our special picnic area in an open carpeted space in my classroom.

Each of the girls decorated place cards and I made them each a treat bag to take home.  Just jelly beans, a click pencil, and a fun eraser.  Nothing big, but hopefully a reminder of how much I value them!

 I made some girly cupcakes for a special dessert treat.

We had the best time!  We chatted about clothes, jewelry, and getting our ears pierced!  Such perfectly girly conversation!

The boys will get their turn next month, but this time was just for my girls!  After we had finished eating, one of my sweet girls said "I will remember this day forever!".  They might not remember it forever :), but I do hope that these nine sweeties ALWAYS remember that they are special beyond words!

Five for Friday {March 29}

It's Friday!  Time to link up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for another Five for Friday.

1. We are learning about the earth in our current science unit.  This has included investigations using earth materials....and magnifying glasses!  There isn't a single child who wouldn't agree that magnifying glasses are so. much. FUN!  And, on this day, the science investigation included sand, soil, pebbles, and water.  

 This sweet little one is the daughter of a good friend (and colleague) of mine.  She's precious!

 2. On Tuesday, the girls in my class and I enjoyed a GIRLS ONLY lunch.  More to come on that, but it was perfectly girly and OH so fun!

3. My Spring Break started Wednesday at 3:45 (to be exact)! :)  I was telling my students all day long on Wednesday that I would be having a dance party at 3:45.  And, as much as I love my 25 cherubs, DANCE I did when those busses rolled away!  

YAY Spring Break!

My son still had school on Thursday, and was able to celebrate his birthday with his class since it falls over Spring Break.  His teacher invited me to come in to help him celebrate, and even gave me some time to read a story and do a fun activity with the class.  I loved every second of seeing my birthday boy in HIS Kindergarten class!

4. And then, this morning, I got to join my other favorite little for the Easter egg hunt at her school.  So thankful for time off to make special mommy memories!

5. With all of the bunny crafts and egg hunting behind us, my mind is ready to center and focus on the reason for this weekend's celebration.  I'm so thankful for my risen Savior!!

source: Etsy

Happy Easter, friends!

Easter Bunny craft -- go grab it!

You have a few days left to squeeze in this Easter bunny craft...and you definitely should!  My Kindies had so much fun with this today, and the finished products look adorable hanging in our classroom.  They bring the feel of Spring, when really it is still snowy and cold outside here in West Michigan.

You can grab it here, from Kacey at Doodle Bugs.

Just check out these cutie-pie bunnies!!

I modeled on the board as the students followed along, but each completed bunny definitely has it's own personality!  That's what makes them so much fun! 

Saved the best for last.  Melt my heart...I LOVE this sweet bunny!!