Teaching Values

I really try to work on my kiddos with being kind and compassionate.  One thing I try to do every day is to show a video that works on manners and values.  There's a great website Values.com  that has various short clips, like commercials, that show manners and values.  My kids love them and we do a quick discussion about them now.  In the future, my hope is to have the kids respond in writing about them, but they are such little tikes still that I don't want to overwhelm them with too much morning work.  We watch them right after we get all our things put away in the morning and before they start their morning work or reading time.

I would love to try to link a video so you could see one, but I'm not quite sure how to do it if it's not on you tube....but if you go the to website you can see them all.  They are all short and sweet and have a great message.

I'm Learning!

Ok so I'm attempting to embed a picture of a document and then with a link to get it!  Thanks to Miss Kindergarten who was kind to share a tutorial.  I'm hoping this works.  IF not I guess I have more learning to do!  So here is my math freebie with a picture!

Math Freebie!

TA DA!!!!

Math Freebie!

This is my first attempt at sharing something besides pictures!  We are busy working on place value and I've seen some things similar to this but decided to make my own that fit what I wanted.  Also we have been doing this in our own journals but soon I hope to put this into a work station so they do it on their own. I used the copy machine to make 2 of these on one document.  Then they will glue in one half and complete it, then if they finish, glue in another and complete it.  At the work station there will be 2 spiral notebooks and each kid will work in a notebook.  I will post pics once we've tried it.

Here is my first try at a freebie!

Place Value Freebie

(I'm not sure how to insert an image with a document...but I'll keep practicing!)

Long over due....

Wow...I am long over due for a post--I got sick the 3rd day of school, I then caught a cold.  It hasn't kept me from school but definitely has made me super tired in evenings and the weekends. I've been trying to relax and take it easy whenever I can.  I hope to be on the back slide of it but my poor nose just doesn't stop!  (some of it may be do to allergies too)

So just an update on a few things my 2nd graders have been up to.

Even though patterning is an option for us, this usually gives me a quick glance at their patterning skills.  I usually do some for every holiday the first few months.  

Then we did some fall trees--I have them copy a poem and then do the tree.  They can only tear the leaves of their trees.  This gives me a glimpse of what kids can copy from me and their handwriting.  

Here is our purple hand pledge.  We say this every morning after the Pledge of Allegiance. We made our own purple hands.  I painted their right hand and they "stamped" it on the paper.  Then after they dried, the kiddos added hearts and cut them out.  

Here are our buckets for bucket filling.  

A close up of what they colored to go in front of their bucket.

The warm fuzzies they get and give for bucket filling.  After awhile they will have to fill out a bucket filling form but for now, just warm fuzzies.  

Sticky Wix!  (actually I think they are called Wicky Stix)  This is a spelling activity we do to practice our words.  Each week I try to do some kind of "fun" spelling activity and usually hands on.  We've done stencils and will do spelling cream (aka shaving cream). BTW...this little guy got to bring a stuffed animal to school because of his chance card from Homeworkopoly.  

Here's a little girl who spelled prize!

Working on the word grape

Here are some kiddos in our poetry center.  They have to put the poem back together.

I had a picture of a my listening center....but I don't know how to block/cover a student's face--If anyone knows, could you let me know how.  I try not to put their faces in anything but sometimes it's hard not to.  Thanks...

Place Value kites!!  These turned out really well.  I used a deck of cards to hand out their numbers.  My higher kids got 3 cards and my average and lower kiddos got 2 cards.  With those cards they got to decide what number to make--so this kiddo got a 5 and a 6 so they could make 56 or 65. Then they had to write their number in standard form, picture form, expanded form and Hundreds/Tens/Ones. I gave them the labels to use for those (as it would have taken too long for them to write and for space on the bows)

Up close of picture form and expanded form.

Up close of standard form

Tens/Ones

They had to do it in pencil first and get it checked by me.  Then they could go over it in marker.  They really did turn out great.

So that is just a snipet (sp??)  of what we've been doing.  I've been really working on routines still.  I did get all my kids DRA'd and am looking forward to beginning reading groups soon--this coming week most likely.  Also we've been doing our math workstations which seems to be going well.  And we started XtraMath which is a great online tool for having the kids learn those math facts.  I really like it as I can see how they are doing and it only takes them about 10 minutes a day and if they want they can do it at home!