Chapter 17: We're Back!

Hello 2012!  

1st Grade is back - and we are moving full speed ahead!

When we came back to school from our Christmas Break, Franklin had left us a little surprise!

 The note reads:
Dear Friends,

Happy New Year!  

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.  We were all very busy here at the North Pole.  Santa Claus had us working hard to make sure all of the good girls and boys got the toys they wanted.

I wanted to write you a note and tell you how much fun I had in your classroom!  I always loved seeing each of you everyday.  I hope Miss Leming isn't too mad at me for playing my little tricks on you...tell her I didn't mean any harm, I just wanted everyone to have a little fun!  I am going to miss being in your class everyday.  But, don't worry, Santa already said that I can come back next year!  Yippee!  Until then, I will be busy making new toys for next Christmas.

Once all of the toys were made here at the North Pole, I had some extra time to make some stuff especially for your class.  Here is some sports equipment for you to play with during recess (only if you're good, and Miss Leming allows you to use it)!  I hope you have fun using these things - I worked very hard on them!

I wish you all a wonderful year in 2012.  All of the elves here are having fun sharing our stories from 2011 - and we are excited to have more fun in 2012!

Always work hard at school, and you will grow very smart.  I am proud of you all!

Keep up your good work!

See you again soon!

Your friend,

Franklin

The kids have asked about Franklin every day since we have been back at school; they really miss him...

"What is Franklin's whole long name?"

"Where does Franklin live now?"

"Can Franklin hear me if I talk to him?"

What we are learning in 1st Grade:

-article adjectives (a, an) and when to use them 

-synonyms and antonyms

-money - value of coins

-sequence of events writing

-we still love our frogs!

1st Grade Funnies:

While we were on the playground one day, yes, on the playground due to the warm weather in January, one of my girls came up to me with a cricket in her hand.

With big eyes and panic on her face, "Mih Lemon, we need to hurry up and get inside..."
"Why, what's wrong?!"

"He is starting to scratch my hand.  That means he wants out."
"What is starting to scratch your hand?!"
"A cricket, Mih Lemon, a cricket!  Ah!"

We had bananas for our snack one day, and somehow our class got into a conversation about monkeys.  The kids had seen monkeys at the zoo when they were in Kindergarten, so they had lots of stories to share with me...

"Mih Lemon, my auntie saw a monkey peel a banana upside down when she went to the jungle!"
"The jungle?  Wow!  Which jungle did she visit?"

"You know, that jungle...it's kinda like the zoo, I think, but it's a jungle."

"Oooh, right, that one!".......

I am glad to be back at school!  (I think the kids are, too.)  I really missed my little darlings.  

I am so thankful for a job that I love!  :)

Chapter 16: Franklin's Finale

Well, we made it!  We have officially reached our half-way point in the school year.  I really can not believe how fast this semester has gone.  So many milestones and memories - I am blessed.

We spent this past week reviewing all of the elements we have learned since the first week of school.  In reviewing and discussing everything with the students, I realized just how much they have already learned!  My little darlings are getting smarter every day.  I am excited to see how much more growth and success they achieve by the end of May!

I know you are anxiously awaiting the Franklin update - so here you go!

I guess Franklin had a busy weekend at the North Pole, because when we got to school Monday he had dumped the books out of our Blue Book Bucket and was enjoying a nice warm bubble bath.

On Tuesday, Franklin barricaded our classroom door...
We had to climb through the yarn rope to get in.
When the kids walked in, they looked at me like "what is going on? how do I get in?!"  One of my friends decided to slide his little body underneath the rope!  They had fun with this!

Franklin brought "Magic Quiet Dust" from Santa on Wednesday.
(which consisted of glitter thrown all over the tables)
Our school also had a special visit from Santa on Wednesday, too!

Thursday was The Polar Express day!  We started our day by playing in classroom snow! (I simply used white shaving cream on the tables!)  We made snowmen and wrote our names and spelling words, all while giving our tables a good, deep cleaning.  After lunch we watched the movie, in our pj's, with the classroom chairs set up like a train.  I also served everyone a cup of hot chocolate (made in the crock-pot) with marshmallows!

Franklin decided that he would play "I Spy with My Little Eyes the Good Girls and Boys" on Thursday!

Friday was a 60% day for the students, and also the day of our Class Holiday Party!  So many fun things happened on Friday!  I don't know who had more fun - the teacher or the kids.  HA!
After our brunch, which was really lunch at breakfast time, we set up the classroom for our party!  The kids were munching away on a few snacks, including some reindeer cookies made by yours truly, when we received a special delivery.
Here's a picture of the reindeer cookies:

Two large bags from our Secret Pen Pal arrived just in time!  Each student got a letter and a wrapped box of fun toys.  The kids loved that special surprise!  I hope their Secret Pen Pal realizes how special my students felt when they opened their present - it was a moment of joy I will never forget.  :)

After the Secret Pen Pal presents were opened, I let them open their gifts from me.  They were so sweet and thankful for their gift.  "Mih Lemon, we love you.  You are the best teacher in the whole world!  You are just so awesome!"  I  so enjoyed watching them open presents and scream in excitement - that's what Christmas is all about.

Franklin really decided to go out with a "bang" on Friday...
(I have to give props to my Pop for this fantastic idea!)
Pop found a popcorn machine for a very reasonable price that he just insisted on me purchasing.  He told me to set the popcorn machine to a timer and have it go off one day, to make it like Franklin turned it on....
It was perfect!
I set the timer for 11:00am.  It went off a few minutes early, approx 10:45am, right in the middle of our party. As soon as it clicked on, PANIC struck.  The machine makes a loud humming noise when it's warming up, and the kids really freaked out...  A few of them walked closer to the machine to check it out.  After about 30 seconds, BAM!  Popcorn started flying everywhere...literally everywhere!  I thought they screamed when they opened presents, but no, this experience called for many screams and looks of shock and laughter.  They could not understand how Franklin turned that machine on - or if Santa knew what Franklin had done.
Here's Franklin before the explosion:

 And here he is after...

(there was popcorn all over the floor, too!)
"Oh my gaahhh, Mih Lemon, Franklin is real!!!!!!!  Aahh!!  How he do that?"

As busy and stressful and tiring as this past week has been, I am truly grateful for the opportunity to share this experience of Christmas magic with my sweet 1st graders.  Franklin has been such a wonderful addition to our classroom!  The innocence of a little mind wondering and imagining the magic of Santa and his elves is beyond amazing.  I pray for my students every day and night - and I have been saying extra prayers for them during this special Christmas season.  I pray especially for their health and happiness.  I hope they enjoy their Christmas and break from school as much as I plan to do - but I'm anxious to see them again soon!

I'll leave you in 2011 with this picture:
I had the students helping me clean the classroom before leaving school on Friday.  This little fellow wanted to clean the pig that we put our trash can in - so I let him go for it!  I turned around and found this...

Please keep in mind that he did this to himself!  HA!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from "Ms. Lemon's" 1st Grade Class!
See you in 2012!

Chapter 15: Franklin Fun

Here is an update from this past week in 1st Grade!

We've been learning about:
-complete subject
-complete predicate
-composing simple sentences
-complete sentence vs. fragment
-addition & subtraction through 20
-motivation is necessary to make it to Christmas
-our elf is very entertaining!

Franklin, our class elf, has been up to some mischief this week...

Franklin obviously had fun playing with Mr. Bojangles & Snoop Frog over the weekend, because when we got to school Monday here's what we found!

On Tuesday, Franklin brought a Special Delivery from our Secret Pen Pal!

Franklin brought snow on Wednesday!

(not only was his "special" snow all over our classroom, there was real snow falling outside!)

We have been decorating our classroom for Christmas, and Franklin decided he needed to help, too.  Here's what we found on Thursday...

And finally, on Friday, Franklin decided he needed to relax with a Diet Coke and some good books!

The kids really love Franklin!  They are precious when they walk in every morning - it's like a frantic search for Franklin!  I have noticed them looking at him during the day to make sure he's still watching.  I think they are a bit freaked out by the whole idea of this little guy playing tricks on them, though.

Everyone wrote a letter to Santa, some of which will be printed in the area newspapers, and they were hysterical!
"I really want to meet your Fs."
"I have ben haf good and haf bad but I promis to be good next yer."
"I love you Santa.  Please bring me some good toys.  I will be sure to have you some cookies.  If I forget just come wake me up and I will bake you some."

This is our last week of school for the year 2011!
I'm sure Franklin will be up to more adventures, so stay tuned to see what happens!
Please pray for strength and patience to make it through Friday...

Chapter 14: Meet Franklin

Sorry it has been a while - it is hard finding time to sit down and write these days.  I updated you before Thanksgiving, but lots has happened since then!

What we are learning in 1st Grade:
-prepositions
-object of prepositions
-complete subject
-complete predicate
-making a simple sentence
-adding and subtracting to 20
-weather/clouds
-life as a scientist
-frogs are a lot of work...
-Santa's elf is watching us!

                                 Here is picture of my November door:

The little feathers are part of our "Turkey Teacher" fundraiser.  The teacher with the most feathers won a turkey & the class received a party.  Sadly, my class did not win.  But, we had fun participating!

I had to take the frogs, Mr. Bojangles and Snoop Frog, home during Thanksgiving break...
A very helpful Petsmart employee informed me that the frogs would not live for 9 days without being fed...Yay.  So, they traveled far and wide.  I'm not sure if it was more traumatic for them or for me.  They survived - and are still alive and well.  They will be traveling again during Christmas break.  Anyone want to frog-sit?  :)

Santa Clause has sent an Elf to our classroom!  His name is Franklin.
The kids LOVE Franklin - a lot!
Franklin has been up to some mischief, though.

Franklin arrived on Monday, November 28th.
When we arrived at school on Tuesday, Franklin had put everyone's behavior chart on RED face. (red face is not good) He was hiding on top of our storage cabinet looking down at the behavior chart...

After everyone was back from breakfast and the morning announcements were over, I closed the door and panic struck...
"Mih Lemon, what has happened?  Why is we all on red?  We ain't done nothin' bad; we just got to school!  Mih Lemon, what is we gonna do?"

On Wednesday, Franklin decided he liked the Reading Spot lamp...

On Thursday, Franklin decided to zip line across our Promethean Board...

Friday was School Picture Day, and Franklin wanted to participate, too!
(He took pictures of himself on the copy machine and hung them all around our classroom!)

I am looking forward to what Franklin gets in to this week!

1st Grade Funnies:
From another 1st Grade class - As a review, the teacher asked the students, "What are clouds made of?"
Student response, "Milk."

One of our journal prompts this week was "Yucky Foods."
One of my girls wrote, "I am alerjik to white milk."  I was not aware of this allergy, so I asked her what she drinks at lunch if she can't drink white milk.  She said "chocolate milk."
Has anyone ever heard of being allergic to white milk, but not chocolate milk, before?!

Another student wrote that a yucky food was "skotch potatoes."
It took us a few minutes of conversation for me to realize that he was trying to write "scalloped potatoes."

One student came in Friday morning and did not go to breakfast.
Me: "Don't you want to go to breakfast?"
Student: "No ma'am.  I ate at home."
Me: "What did you eat?"
Student: "Some serious."
Me: "Serious?  What is that?"
Student: "You know, serious, that stuff you put in milk and eat..."
Me: "Oh, cereal?!  You mean cereal?"
Student: "Yeah, that's what I said!"

We have been working hard this week - and we only have 2 more weeks until Christmas Break.
I really can't believe that we are almost half way done with this school year!

Stay tuned for more Franklin fun!

Chapter 13: "Batty" About Mail

After the Pumpkin Patch trip we continued to celebrate and discuss things we learned.

Me: "Where does milk come from?"
Student: "A cow."
Me. "Yes. Ok, where does chocolate milk come from?"
Student: "A brown cow."

Me: "Tell me something you learned about pumpkins at the farm."
Student: "If pumpkins are green, that means they are dead."
Me: "Well, not quite; but good try!"

What we are learning in 1st Grade:
-prepositions
-adding 3 numbers
-fact family math
-forms and reflections of light
-Bat facts

Here is a picture of our classroom door for the month of October:

                        (each student's face is in the door decorations!)

Since we have been learning about bats, we made some origami bats!  Check them out!

Here's a view of the wall outside of the classroom.
We displayed our origami bats and wrote stories: "Should people be afraid of bats?" and "Would a bat make a good pet?"

My grandfather built a mailbox for my classroom.  This mailbox is totally awesome!  I mean, it is real life size, and it is made to where the mailbox height can be adjusted for the students to reach.  (I'll post a picture of it once I complete the paint job - soon!)  My kids absolutely love the mailbox - and it is already getting lots of use!

My class has a Secret Pen Pal!  How fun is that?!  Each student received a hand-written letter on the day of our Fall/Harvest Party.  I told the students while they were gone to Music class that the mailman had come in and left something in our mailbox.  They immediately started to freak out.
"What he leave, Mih Lemon?  What he say?  Where he get the mail from?  Is it in the mailbox now?"
I did a count down with the students "3...2...1..."
Wild screaming and jumping for excitement began, and it took me about 15 minutes to calm them down!
Each student was allowed to come to the mailbox and check for a letter.  Of course, each student had their own personal hand-written letter.  It was like Santa Clause had come to my room!  They were so excited!
"Mih Lemon, did you write all these?  I think the mailman wrote these.  When he comin' back?  Do the mailman know when we write back?"  
After our party, I collected the letters and told them I would keep them in the mailbox until next week when we had a chance to write back.  Heart.Break.  OMG!  They were all but in tears having to give their letters back.  I felt terrible taking them away, but it was the smartest thing to do at that time.
We made time during this past week to write back to the Secret Pen Pal - and the letters were absolutely precious!  One student wrote back about her favorite food:  chicenogis   (chicken nuggets)
All of the letters read "I love my Secret Pen Pal.  I miss you."  
How sweet?! (No, they do not know who the secret pen pal is...)

Stay tuned for more Secret Pen Pal updates!
Since our Pen Pal is a secret,  you'll have to wait and find out who he/she is!

Next update I'll have a picture of our November classroom door and some more 1st Grade Funnies!
2 weeks until Thanksgiving Break...

Chapter 12: Pumpkin Patch

This update is going to make you laugh, at least once.  Guaranteed.

The 1st Grade classes took a trip to the Pumpkin Patch on Friday.
We had a blast!

Before our trip, the teachers decided to tie-dye some t-shirts for the kids to wear.  Two of the teachers found a recipe for tie-dye using kool-aid and vinegar.  We decided that since we are on a teacher's budget, we would give it a try!  We went to the local grocery story and purchased approximately 135 packets of kool-aid and a large bottle of vinegar, and away we went.  We had fun tie-dying the shirts, and we were pumped that we made it work!  The shirts were supposed to dry for 24 hours, then we were supposed to iron them, and finally wash and dry them.  One of the teachers called me Thursday evening in a panic, "Have you washed your shirts yet?"  Luckily, I had not.  She said, "Well don't.  My shirts are white."
All the dye had washed out......AH!
She ended up purchasing some t-shirt dye that you can put in the washing machine, and then painted pumpkins on each shirt.  She is so creative!  They turned out absolutely precious!

The other teacher and I decided that we didn't have time to re-dye our shirts, so we just put them in the dryer with some fabric softeners...

When we got to school the next morning, we laid out the t-shirts and were getting ready for our trip.  (I was a bit apprehensive about this whole field trip idea, seeing as how it was my first one as a real teacher...)
The shirts smelled terribly of vinegar...
"Mih Lemon, why my shirt stank?"
...excessive sneezing and coughing...
The other teacher came into my room laughing hysterically because one of her students said "this shirt smell like pickled eggs..."
All we could do was laugh...

For those of you who live near the area, we went to Fiddlin' Rooster Farm.  The owners and staff at the Farm are top-notch.  They organize field trip that will make even a teacher's head spin!
The farm is set up with 15 different stations for the students to visit.  Each station lasts around 10 or 15 minutes, and they have activities that engage learning at each station.  It was seriously awesome!
(I tried to get a picture of the kids at each station, but I am going to be cautious of posting due to privacy concerns.)

1. Animals:  We learned about pigs, chickens, goats, and donkeys.
Did you know that chickens with red ears lay brown eggs?  And chickens with white ears lay white eggs?
Also, a chicken can lay 5 to 6 eggs per day.  Pretty cool!
                                   Here's a neat picture of a chicken:

2. Roping: The kids could practice roping a pretend cow and hula hooping!
                       Here's a picture of Mih Lemon with the hula hoop:

3. Hay Ride: We piled up on a big tractor trailer and rode to the Cotton Field, Corn Maze, and Pumpkin Patch!
4. Cotton Field: The kids learned about cotton plants and each stage of a cotton bud's life, and they also got to feel cotton.  They learned about how people used to hand pick cotton and how they would weigh their daily wages.
5. Corn Maze: We learned about corn stalks and how they grow, the life cycle of corn, and some things that corn is used to make.  Then we had a "Corn Cop" lead us through the maze!
6. Pumpkin Patch: Here the kids learned about how pumpkins grow, what is inside of them, and what all you can use pumpkins to make.  Each student also got to pick their own pumpkin to take home!
7. Lunch Break
8. Butter: Each student was given a small cup of milk with a lid on it.  As the staff member told the students about cows and things their milk is used for, the students were instructed to shake their cups of milk.  The milk eventually turned into butter - way cool!
                              Here is a picture of the Cow information:

9. Corn: Here the students got to see how corn is taken off of the cob, how it is ground up, and learned about different things corn is used for.  They each got a small cornbread muffin to dip into their butter to eat!  It was very yummy!
10. Cow Train: The farm has a train of barrel cars connected together that are painted like cows.  I got some really good pictures of the kids riding the cow train!
11. Wagon Wheel:  At this station the students learned about how people used to travel in wagons.  They got to see where the luggage went, how bonfires were made, and how difficult traveling really was.  The staff member at this station also played the fiddle and taught the kids how to dance around him in a circle.  This part was lots of fun!
                                   Here is a picture of the old wagon:

12. Duck Races:  This station was made up of 10 water pumps.  The students learned about the advantages of now indoor plumbing and running water.  At each pump, there was a gutter going towards the other side of the station.  Each water pump had a little plastic duck in it, and the kids got to race their ducks to the other side.
13. Barn Slide: The farm has turned a barn house into a fun house!  They have a huge tunnel slide coming out of the barn - and the kids came out super fast!
                   Here is a picture of Mih Lemon coming down the slide:

14: Barrel Swing: They have a huge swing made out of a big barrel (like the slide) that the kids could take turn swinging on.
15. Corn Pool: On the side of the barn house, there is a big pool of corn that the kids can play in!  They had lots of fun playing in a pool of corn...who would have thought?!

Overall, this field trip was a success!  We got a little later start than originally planned, but everything worked out perfectly in the end.  The staff at the Farm was more than welcoming and helpful during our whole trip.  We had a wonderful experience!

On the 45 minute bus ride back to school, the kids enjoyed talking about what they learned...
while their exhausted teacher took a little nap.

Chapter 11: Snoop Frog

It has been a few weeks since my last update.  Finding time to update here lately has been tough!  So many things going on, and so little time.  Anyway, here is an update of the past 2 weeks:

What we have learned in 1st Grade:

-article adjectives (a, an, the)

-addition & subtraction

-classifying plants & animals

-reading can be fun!

-class pets are a lot of work...

Yes, you read that correctly; class pets...

We have a new member to our class family.  We already had Mr. Bojangles, you remember, I'm sure.  Well yet again, on the playground the kids caught another frog.  I figured it would be ok to keep this one so that Mr. BoBo would have a friend.

I let the kids vote on a name for the new frog.  I picked a few choices and then let them vote.  Here are the results:

Albert - 8

Buffy - 2

Lucille - 0

Snoop Frog - 9

Snoop Frog & Mr. Bojangles are happy in their new home with each other!  

                                            Here are a few pics of them:

               Mr. Bojangles & Snoop Frog in their new home: Planet Frog

                                               playing "Leap Frog"

                                  Mr. Bojangles having a nice swim

                   Snoopy is smaller and much more lady-like than Mr. Bo

One of my closest friends, who teaches 3rd grade at my school, came up with a great idea.  She brought her class of 3rd graders to my 1st grade class to have a "Buddy Read" time together.  We paired up one (a few groups of two) 1st graders per one 3rd grader.  The 3rd grade student read a book of their choice to a 1st grader.  And then the 1st graders got to choose a book and read it to their 3rd grade partner.  I have lots of pictures of the Buddy Read, and some pictures of all of us together.  I plan to do an article write-up and send it to the newspaper!  The students had a wonderful time meeting and reading with their partner!  We will continue to Buddy Read once a month.  It was a great success! :)

1st Grade Funnies:

Student: "Mih Lemon, I got a cricket in my neck."

Me: "A cricket?  How did you get a cricket in your neck?"

Student: "I don't know, but he hurts."

Me: "I'm sorry that silly ole cricket is in your neck, maybe he'll come out later today."

In one of our journal entries the students had to write a complete sentence about A Flying Alligator.  One of the sentences read:  "A big fresh flying alligator."

Do you know what the meaning of "fresh" in that sentence is?  "Cool."

Student: "Mih Lemon, I had a asident."

Me: (thinking to myself "not again!!")  "An accident?  Where?"

Student: "In my pants."

Me: "Why?"

Student: "Because I had to sneeze and it came out..."

Luckily, there was not much of an accident, so everything was fine!

We have been on Fall Break for the beginning of this week, and I have truly enjoyed the time off to rest and recuperate.  We have 3 days of school left this week.  And 3 days of school next week due to Report Card Day and a Field Trip.  

Thanksgiving Break will be here soon!