A Little Taste of Coffee

Well, I have a confession to make.....I'm not a coffee drinker. 🙈 I know, I know.  How can I be a teacher and not drink coffee, right?! HAHA In all seriousness, I just never found anything I liked, but I was ready for some morning caffeine in my life.  So, some of my Teacher Besties and I had a coffee tasting party!

I asked all of the friends who were coming to bring some of their favorite coffee flavors and creamer to set me up for some real taste testing.  My friend Andrea keeps a Keurig in her classroom (plus she has a couch!), so we gathered for some morning drinks and so they could help me out with all this new coffee stuff.  She even let me use her cute cat mug! 🐱

I was amazed at all the flavors you can get in coffee and creamer!  They had a great variety, so it was an awesome way for me to try the coffee black, or add some flavored creamers to sweeten things up a little.

After all the taste testing, I was shocked at the verdict!  I LIKE COFFEE!  I never thought I'd actually find a coffee I liked, but I did.  My choice of drink this morning was Starbucks Toffeenut with a little French Vanilla creamer. 

I think this was a great starting point as I venture into the world of coffee.  There are so many other products and flavors out there, and I'm excited to try it all!  This post may seem silly to some, but in the middle of Pandemic Teaching, I'm thrilled to find these happy moments with my Teacher Besties.

It’s Spooky Week! 👻

Celebrating holidays at school is one of my most favorite things about teaching kindergarten!  We love dress up days and parties and all the other fun activities that come along with it!  Everyone (and by "everyone" I mean ALL kindergarteners😂) is always hyped up about the holidays, so we may as well ride out that excitement and make it fun!

Things will go a little different this year since all the kiddos are home and we are back to virtual learning.  So, I'm going to have to work a little harder to make things fun for them this week.  It's a little tougher to plan things and make sure they have materials they need, but I was able to come up with some fun activities on short notice--thank you TPT! LOL

I decided to choose five books that the kids typically love to read this time of year, and send home activities centered around them.  This will throw some festive fun into each day leading up to Halloween next Saturday!  In addition to these fun activities, I plan to demonstrate some fun science experiments for them to observe (normally we would get to do them together at school) and we are even having a Virtual Costume Party on Friday!

1. There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Bat

I really didn't have time to create something new, so I was so excited to find all kinds of super cute activities to go along with this book on TPT.  I decided to send the kids this adorable interactive sequencing activity they could do while I was reading the story, and they can use it to retell the story again and again at home!  Watch my Instagram for pictures of actual student work I'll post this week so you can see how they did!

2.The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything

There was a whole set of fun activities to go along with this book, but I just chose one craftivity to send home to my students.  They will get to listen to the story, then put together the pieces to make their own scarecrow and then match the sounds to the object from the story.  Get the set of activities here and watch for me to post some students examples this week on my Instagram account!

3.Creepy Pair of Underwear

This book is always a favorite for the kids!  Anything with underwear and potty humor seems to hold their attention and keep them giggling.  Luckily, there are also lots of fun activities on TPT for me to choose from.  I purchased this set, but I am only going to send the bunny craftivity and writing as the assignment.  I can't wait to see how this turns out and post a sample on Instagram for you to see!

4.Room on the Broom

This is a very popular choice right now since there is an animated version on Netflix.  It's super cute and the kids are loving it any time of year!  I can't wait to share the book with my class and see how this cute witch craftivity turns out for them!  Be sure to keep an eye on my Instagram account this week and I'll show you how they turn out!

5.Crankenstein

The final cute story I will be reading during Halloween week is this one!  It's adorable and the kiddos always love it!  My students love doing directed drawings together, so that's exactly what I plan to do during one of our LIVE sessions this week.  There are all sorts of versions out there, but I really love Art Projects for Kids and can't wait to draw with my students!

What are some fun things you are doing in your classroom this week?

Math Toolkits

Distance learning.  Virtual learning.  Whatever you call it, I'm back to it after two and a half weeks with all my kiddos in the classroom. 😔  All of my students are logging on from home each day and I've been doing a live reading and math lesson daily to keep them on track and in routine.  In addition to the live sessions, I record videos as needed and they complete other activities during the day and submit on Google Classroom.

I will be the first to admit that this is hard.  Hard for me.  Hard for the students.  And soooo hard on the parents who are also working and hold down the fort at home!  There are so many things to think about and consider.  It took some time to see what would work for my students and their parents, but I feel like we are really in the groove of things!  As I plan my lessons each week, I have to think about what materials they will need and get it to them in advance.  Many things have already been sent home for them to use.  But, as we move along through our content, new things are needed.  One thing that I sent home for this round of Virtual Learning was a Math Toolkit.

We started the school year out virtually for the first three weeks.  Then we finally got to come to school in person for two and a half weeks before we had to switch back to virtual learning.  This time, I decided to send the students home with their math toolkits.  We had been using them in class, so I figured I may as well send them home so the students will have a set of manipulatives to use during math lessons.

The Math Toolkits have proven to be a super handy was to keep manipulatives at their finger tips, while also giving them individual materials that they won't be sharing with anyone else.  We started out with some basic things and can add whatever we need as we go along.  Right now, here is what the students have in their toolkits:

a ten frame
foam die
red and white counters
cubes
foam square tiles

The Math Toolkits have been a great addition to their supplies at home.  We are able to use them during live sessions and it also gives the students access to materials while they work independently.  We did have some serious talks about taking care of our materials.  Once we return to school face-to-face, the students understand that they will be bringing their toolkits back to school so we can use them there.

Have you made toolkits for your students?  What did you include?  Any tips or suggestions for things I could add in later?

Colorful Fridays: It's Red Day!

There are so many things to learn in kindergarten!  Although things are very different with having to teach virtually, I am still working super hard to teach it all and still make it fun.  One of my favorite beginning of the year activities the kids always love is learning their colors.

 

Honestly, most of them are able to recognize their colors when they come to kindergarten.  Sometimes they might get mixed up or have a little trouble, so it never hurts to review the colors, but we also work on recognizing and spelling the color words.  My kindergarten team decided to teach one color each week and then celebrate it on Fridays (we are all about the celebrations y’all!).  This is what we have done the past few years and it works for us!

 

We always start out with the color red.  The kids are usually able to recognize it and it’s the shortest color word to spell, so that makes it a good beginning place.  We have many different activities we do with the colors, as well as fun videos we watch throughout the week.  Of course, we have had to modify things a little due to virtual learning, but we still wanted to send some paper and pencil work home for the kids so they can get the full kindergarten experience.  On Friday, we are still celebrating by wearing a red crayon hat (or whatever the color of the week was), telling the kids to wear red clothing, and doing a red-themed Show and Tell!

 

These crayon hats are super cute and a freebie from Crayola Queen on TPT!  We copy them each week for the kiddos in whatever color we need, then they cut them out and glue on a sentence strip to make their hat.  We also had these cute shirts made in 8 different colors by our favorite shirt girl at Lulu’s Vinyl and Gifts!  She has an awesome new website and the shirts are listed here if you might be interested in purchasing the bundle of crayon shirts.  Get 10% off your total order by using the code kindercrazy (this code is good for anyone on any order)!  She offers local pickup if you live nearby or she can ship to you!  There are also lots of other awesome teacher t-shirts and you can even checkout with Sezzle (my favorite part so I can load up my cart and do 4 payments😂)!

 

It's Fri-yay and I look exhausted!  Virtual teaching isn't as easy as it looks!

So, while we are all celebrating in our red hats and red clothing (it’s always neat to see what the kiddos pull out of their closets), we have Red Show and Tell!  The kids are allowed to bring one item that is red to show the class.  They can’t show items of any other color and must wait until that week.  When it is their turn, they can show off whatever they brought to their classmates and tell them something about it.  They usually bring toys and plushies for this, but that is perfectly fine (you can make your own rules).  They are only allowed to have it out during Show and Tell.  

Since this is starting out as a virtual activity (I’m still holding out hope for going back to school in person), the kids presented over Google Meet.  This is a great time to get them comfortable talking in front of their classmates.  They are usually so excited to show off their toy (or whatever item they have), that they don’t even think about it!  Each week they are presenting in front of the class and working on public speaking skills, as well as practicing their listening skills when they listen to their other classmates present!  It’s a win-win situation and amazing to see them build confidence week after week!

These shirts also make super cute Halloween costumes!

Crayon shirts by Lulu's Vinyl and Gifts
Use discount code kindercrazy to get 10% off your total order (so you can add even more things to your cart!)

Five Things I Have Learned During Virtual Learning

"Teachers Can Do Virtually Anything"

Virtual learning has been a real experience.  It has been very different than I ever expected, but I’ve already learned so much along the way.  I officially have one full week under my belt and feel like I’m finally starting to get in the groove of things.  I’ve spent some time reflecting this weekend, and here are five big things I have learned through this process.

 

1.    Virtual Learning is NOTHING like in-person learning.  I teach kindergarten, so this is my perspective.  I’m sure teachers from other grades might have different opinions than I do, but I think we can all agree that teaching and learning just isn’t the same online through a computer.  I am having to be concerned about the screen time of my students, conscious about the type of work I am assigning because they may not have help at home, and there’s just no way to fit a whole day of lessons we would typically do in the classroom, into a day of virtual teaching.  I am currently teaching live 1.5 hours per day (divided into 2 sessions) and trying to hit the big topics and slide other content in through various books during read alouds.  I would much rather have my kiddos all day at school so we could learn all the fun stuff, I could help them with their work and hands on activities, and we would have limited screen time because we were busy engaging in the real world with each other.

 

2.    The mute button is amazing. 😂  I never thought I’d see myself teaching the first days of school online.  It definitely wasn’t easy and it was so strange to teach the students how to mute and unmute….and then see their mouths move and them wiggling all over the screen but never hear a sound. Hahaha  I could literally just continue with the story and not have to stop and redirect anyone 100 times on the first day!  It was so strange to be teaching and reading in a completely silent room.  After I got through a couple more days, I really began to appreciate that mute button more and more.  I mean this in the nicest way possible because I'd love nothing more than to have them all in my classroom, gathered around a rug where we could truly dive into a good book and discuss the story as we read along together.

 

3.    There is some amazing technology out there.  We are required to go into work and teach from school.  I was so thrilled to do this after what we went through in the spring and trying to teach from home.  We got these awesome boards that have been amazing as we are trying to teach through this pandemic, but they will also be awesome when the students get back to school.  My Google Meets look huge on this screen, so I can really see my student’s faces.  I have a remote that will let me zoom in and out, as well as move the camera around.  So I can teach from anywhere in the room!

 

I love my new technology!  It is amazing!

4.    I miss real life interaction with my students.  I am thankful for our daily Google Meets.  I am thankful for their smiling faces and getting to see their eyes light up as they learn something new or realize they know the answer to a question.  I am thankful that I am able to hear their sweet voices and giggles.  But, nothing can replace actually being in the classroom with these amazing kiddos everyday.  I miss the hugs, the high fives, the dancing and singing together (it’s just not the same virtually), doing all our letter activities, and so much more!  A computer will never be able to replace the feel-good feelings you get from real human interaction—especially with my sweet kinderbabies! 💕

 

5.    Virtual teaching is waaaaaay more work than anyone realizes.  Several “outsiders” have commented that I must not be doing much work right or that my job must be really easy right now.  Those people are CRAZY!  There are so many rounds of trial and error to figure out what works for the students in my class.  The prep work is killer and everything we plan to do for each week has to be meticulously planned ahead of time.  We are doing weekly material pickups, so if we don’t have everything planned exactly right, then it will completely throw off my lesson plans for the week!  Last week felt like running a marathon to prep for the upcoming week.  If we end up doing this long term, I hope things get a little easier as we go along.  But, last week just about took me out!

 

So how is Virtual Learning going for you?  Any tips, tricks, or successes you’d like to share?  Feedback from my parents has been very positive and that is truly keeping me going until I can get my kinderbabies back in person.  I am so thankful for this three-day weekend to rest and recover, but I’m ready to dive right back in on Tuesday and see what kind of progress I can make with my class!

'Twas the Night Before Kindergarten

‘Twas the night before kindergarten, and all through the school, some pink furry unicorns were breaking the rules…..wait, what?!  Hahaha  Okay, so there were pinky furry unicorns, but we didn’t break any rules!  We were just running around school in our pajamas doing a read aloud!

Kindergarten is such an important and special year in a child’s life, but things are anything but normal right now.  With COVID still on the loose, we are starting school virtually in my school district, so I won’t get a traditional first day with my students.  I’ve tried to think of things to make it extra special and I hope I’ve done that for them this year!

I found this super cute book and ordered it.  I wasn’t sure if it was going to be “the book,” but once I received it, I decided it was perfect!  "The Night Before Kindergarten" talks about preparing for kindergarten, feeling a little scared, posing for pictures and all the other "normal" things one might experience on the first day.  They won't get that exact experience, so I thought it was a good idea to read and discuss how things are going to look a little different this year.  I grabbed the adorable and comfy unicorn pajamas I found at Walmart and got cozy in my classroom to do a special night before school read aloud for my students.  I felt so silly and wasn’t feeling very confident in myself, but once their parents shared their reactions, I knew it was worth it!

My Kinderbesties and I always like to have a really good time with lots of laughter.  So, of course, we had to go around the school for a mini photo shoot in our matching pajamas.  We have the best time and I’m glad they’re always on board with my silly ideas.  They never hesitate, but just dive right into whatever fun and exciting things we come up with.  I can’t wait to see what fun things we do next for our kiddos!

Gearing Up For Virtual Learning and a FREEBIE!

This is the week!  It’s getting real!  I have spent the last few weeks prepping my students, their parents, and myself and now it’s time to actually do this virtual learning stuff!  Tomorrow is the first official day of school, but it feels so different than it ever has.  My school is actually doing a Drive Thru event for the first day, so I’m excited that I’ll get to see the kiddos on their first day and we can put off this virtual learning a little longer!

           

We are using Google Classroom for virtual learning and most of my families were not familiar with it at all.  So, I did a Parent Orientation Meeting via Google Meet so they could try logging into their child’s account and joining a meeting.  It was great for a technology trial run to see what kind of issues there might be.  My parents were all rock stars and didn’t seem to have any technology issues!  I was the one that had trouble, so it delayed the start of the meeting by a few minutes.  But, I was glad it happened so that I could fix the issue and it shouldn’t happen anymore!

That face you make when your technology finally cooperates, you catch your breath, and can conduct your meeting! 😂 Also, don't mind my messy background--I didn't plan to host my meeting here, but I had to switch to my laptop at the last minute so that Google Meet would work.

During the meeting, one of the most common concerns I got was from parents asking what they can do to help their child be successful during virtual learning.  I made a list of some things that we discussed during the parent meeting and decided to make a printable that I was able to put in their folders that I will send home with them tomorrow.  You can download a copy of the freebie from my TPT store by clicking here.

            

This school year will definitely be one that goes down in history.  There will be lots of hiccups along the way I’m sure, but I am anxious to get back to doing what I love the most—teaching!  I pray that this all passes and we are back into the classroom soon!  Good luck to everyone else having their first day this week and I'll be back to update you soon on my first few days!