March Rainbows

With spring officially around the corner we needed to brighten up our room a little.  What a better way to do that then to make Name Rainbows!

The idea is pretty simple-the students write their name in the cloud and then the rainbow is made by using an adjective to describe each letter of their name.  It gets a little tricky for some of the letters so usually after about 5 minutes I help them out by looking up some good describing words online.  

There is a pre-writing sheet that I use below.  After doing this activity without a sheet one year, I realized that having the students organize their name/words ahead of time REALLY helped :-)

Click on the picture below to get a free copy of the pre-writing and cloud sheet.

100 Days of School

We have made it through 100 days of school, folks!  It's a pretty big milestone in first grade and we did a ton to celebrate!

To start the day off my students worked on writing 100 different words.  They loved getting to move around the room to see and write different words.  They worked on these little booklets all throughout the day :-)

Next, we made 100th Day hats.  They had to decorate their hats with one hundred things.  I set up four different stations around the room where students rotated through dot markers, stamp markers, mini stickers and sequins.  When they finished I had them count out their groups of ten to 100.  

 I love that they were helping each other count!

After that was the most exciting part of our 100th Day celebration . . . the fashion show.  This was absolutely hysterical and the kids had so much fun.  I laid out a red carpet (made from red butcher paper) and put on some fashion show music.

They took the opportunity to dance the entire way down the carpet

The kids had all made t-shirts at home with 100 things on them and this was their chance to show of their design.  

 

Even the teachers got in on the fun!

I found this great idea on Pintrest . . . but lost a few stars throughout the day :-(

In the afternoon we took the numbers 1-0-0 and turned them into something else.  Their ideas were great, of course.  We had everything from a lawnmower to a snowman to a dinosaur.  They really came up with some creative ways to use the numbers!

 

Overall it was a great 100th Day Celebration!

The Week Back From Break

Welcome back!  We've been back from break for almost a week now and are getting back in the routine of things.  We had a big snow storm over break so we are officially in the time of snow gear.  Snow pants, gloves and boots galore!    

To get our brains warmed up again we did a fun little writing prompt that I turn into a class book: "The day after Christmas, Rudolph took Santa's sleigh and went to . . . "  We talk about how busy Santa and all the reindeer are during the holiday season and that after Christmas they all need a little break.  The kids love thinking that Rudolph takes a vacation and they always come up with really creative ideas about where he goes and what he does.

I love the sunglasses :-)

 

Rudolph with a snorkel :-)

Click here to get your free copy of the sheet and a cover if you want to make it into a class book.

We also talk about New Year's Resolutions or wishes for the upcoming year.  We start by reading Squirrel's New Year's Resolution which does a really nice job of explaining what a resolution is.  

For the fun part of the project we cut out the numbers and glued on sequins to make them look really festive!  

Finally we wrote four wishes for the coming year: one for themselves, one for their family, one for the school and one for the world.  Each wish goes under a flap.  I can't take credit for this idea...a coworker has used it the past few years and it's all over Pintrest :-)

You can get a copy of the sheet I used for the writing.

I hope your 2016 is off to a great start!

The Countdown to Winter Break (and a freebie)

The countdown to winter break is on so I wanted to share this quick ornament to make with your students.  I get packages of glass ornaments from Hobby Lobby.  Every time I have gone they are 50% off, which ends up being being about $4.50 for a box of 12 (a steal).  

First, I write their name and the year with a sharpie around the top of the ornament.  Next, I have the kids pick two colors to put inside.  Then we cover the opening with a paper towel and SHAKE!  They end up looking almost tie-dyed.  

I have done this project for 7 or 8 years and this is the first year that I have had ornaments break on me (ugh), so instead of letting the kids shake them I had to do it.  I know that limits the fun a little but it prevented any more finger cuts and they still loved the way they turned out.

You use quite a bit of paint for this so you need to let them dry out for a couple of days.  We turned them upside down to drip dry in plastic cups.  After they are totally dry I put the top back on and added a ribbon.  

Here are the finished ornaments :-)

To wrap the ornaments we make these adorable reindeer heads out of paper bags.  I have a parent trace the antlers on the bags and then I have the kids cut them out and draw a face on the front.  They write who it's to/from on the back.  Finally, they add holly leaves as the ears.  I wrap them in a sheet of tissue paper and they fit perfectly!  Too cute!!

Also, if you're in need of a quick little word search, look no further.  I have some freebies for you.  There is one for Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and a Reindeer option.

Click here to grab your free copy!