Dinosaur Fun

Dinosaur Fun

        We finished our dinosaur unit today! The kiddos made dinosaur skeletons with toothpicks and popsicle sticks. 

        We also made a class graph of our favorite dinosaurs. I’ve just added a new class graphing activity to my Dinosaur Activity Pack and wanted to try it out with my kids. They LOVED it! Though I think if I had copied 22 T-rex’s they each would have picked it!! I also made a recording sheet for students to replicate the class graph and then analyze the information presented! Here’s a shot of our graph:

        Yesterday we went to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History to see the dinosaur exhibit, along with many others! I love seeing the excitement on the kids’ faces when they see the dinosaurs. I also enjoy hearing them spew information they have learned over the school year as we walk through each of the exhibits.  

        Next week I begin teaching science/social studies and math again, and then reading the week after. I got this from one of my sweet boys today:

       
The card says “I can’t wait for you to start teaching me again!”

Well- that’s all for today! Be sure to stop by my TpT store to check out my dinosaur pack. J Have a GREAT weekend!!

My TpT Store

Finally on TpT

       

        My TpT store has been up and running for a week now! I have been so excited to come home each day and see how many views my products have had. It is really encouraging! I have also been frantically working to put together new products to post and reach more great educators like you! I’ll be honest though, I’ve been neglecting my homework so I may not be able to add anything new for another 2 weeks. (I’ve literally been addicted to making new items!) 

        If you haven’t stopped by my store yet, please check it out! I also want to stress for any of your purchases on TpT, be sure to provide feedback! It helps out the seller and you earn credits to use towards future purchases. 

Synonym Flowers & Life Cycle of a Butterfly 

        My kids have been learning about synonyms and insects all week. Rachel (my intern) introduced synonyms with an anchor chart and discussion and then used differentiated activities to give the kids some practice. Yesterday they started the morning with a quick synonym match activity. I made synonym match cards (that I printed on cardstock and laminated), and then Rachel passed them out. The kids then had to read the word on their card and find the match. Then they shared their synonym pairs.

      Today they made synonym flowers. This is something I did last year, after being inspired by this idea by Mary Beth at Run Teacher Run. I made flower templates that I copied onto construction paper. Then, I wrote various synonym pairs on the flowers, like so:

      The kids then had to find their partner and brainstorm more words with similar meanings to record on the petals. They did an awesome job!

       They also read The Very Hungry Caterpillar today. Rachel introduced the life cycle of a butterfly yesterday, and reinforced it today with the read aloud and a paper plate life cycle activity today.

        I also have an EXCITING announcement… I have officially opened a store on TpT. Here you’ll find ALL of my freebies (eventually) as well a new items that are for sale (though there is only one right now)!

Synonyms & Antonyms

A Personal Note & Synonym and Antonym FREEBIEs

        Okay… so I know it’s been F-O-R-E-V-E-R since I’ve posted, and I do apologize! Like all of you, I’ve been VERY busy. My intern is also the lead teacher, so I haven’t been directly connected to the lessons, which makes it really hard to blog! I have also been pretty busy with homework this semester, and I went on VACATION. What’s that you say?? I know, I too had forgotten what vacation is (we hadn’t been in two years). OMG it was so insanely nice to relax and enjoy my husband!

        Having an intern has allowed me to reorganize my files, make some new activities, and prep A LOT of new center activities. I have also been able to work one-on-one with all of my students. It’s GREAT! I’ve also had more time to do what I like to do: keep a clean home and CRAFT! I have even had time to paint my nails- that never happens! I’ll stop gloating and move on to the synonym and antonym FREEBIEs I promised in the title.

        My intern started teaching synonyms today. She made an anchor chart with the kids charting synonyms of big, small, and good. They did a great job. Tomorrow she has planned several differentiated activities for them to continue working with synonyms, including this one:

Synonym Match

This worksheet is designed to reinforce synonyms for your struggling students.

     I also made an antonym match activity that is very similar:

Antonym Match

  
Be sure to check out my synonym and antonym card packs on TpT!

ENJOY- If you like what you see please follow my blog!