Christmas Cheer

Seeing as how it’s almost New Years, I figured I should get crackin’ and post my entry about Christmas. It truly is the busiest time of the year (aside from report cards).

We really enjoyed our time with our Elf on the Shelf, Jackie. I made sure I took pictures of all her funny hiding spots and I ended up putting them into a collage and giving each student a copy. Now they can look back and think about their beloved elf whenever they miss her.

 Can you believe she went onto my phone and took a selfie?!

 I guess elves have a hard time on Mondays too.

 It turns out Jackie is good friends with Twinkle (an elf that belongs to a girl in my class) and they had a sleepover at her house!

Jackie’s last day was spent relaxing in a marshmallow snow bank

Jackie left after school on the last day before the break. The kids were devastated, but maybe they’ll see her again next year…

I didn’t get around to making any ornaments this year but it was because I was so busy with our Christmas project. As you might remember, last year my Grade One class learned about the Goshen School in Uganda. The kids wrote letters to students at this school and raised money to help them have a nice Christmas. The project was so meaningful and taught so much about empathy that I knew I had to do something like this again.

I didn’t want to do the exact same thing though.  After Remembrance Day, my class was really interested in learning about the war. This got me thinking about current soldiers who are away from home, involved in the war overseas. With some help from the Canadian government website, and suggestions on teacher groups on Facebook, I was able to figure out a plan.

Each student wrote a letter addressed to Any Canadian Soldier. They each wrote a very thoughtful letter introducing themselves, asking questions to their recipients, and letting them know that even though they are far away from home over the holidays, many people are thinking about them and feeling grateful for all that they do.

I wish I had pictures of some of their letters. Sadly, I didn’t take any. I then took all these enveloped letters, put them into a larger envelope (to save on 26 stamps) and mailed them all off at once to a base in Belleville. From there, our letters will be sent to the soldiers. Maybe we’ll have some mail once we get back!

To go along with this theme, we sang So This Is Christmas by John Lennon in the holiday concert. My hope is that after discussing the meaning of these song lyrics and talking about those who aren’t with their families at Christmas time, I have taught my students that material gifts are not the most important things to have at Christmas time. I also hope they have gained empathy for those with different situations.

When we weren’t engaged in our Christmas project, we were having some good old fashioned fun with Christmas books and elves. I repeated a fun craft I did last year with my Grade Ones and had my Threes and Fours Elf Themselves! Click HERE for the link.

I leave you now with some of the books I read to them over the last few weeks. These are great Christmas stories to add to your holiday collection.

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday, and has a Happy 2015!

Elf on the Shelf

We have a special new friend in our classroom! We came in on Wednesday morning, and what did we see on the whiteboard ledge? An Elf on the Shelf! Last year, I made a wish to Santa and asked him to send me an elf and my wish was granted!

We read the book as well as this special letter she arrived with. We keep it hung up on the board so all the kids can come up to read it.

We also used the name ballots she came with to come up with a name. There were some great entries like Twinkle, Snowbelle, Bella, Snowflake, etc. After a draw, the winner that came out was Jackie. So our elf’s name is Jackie.

The winning ballot!

Our certificate also came with a letter from Santa but I forgot to take a picture of it. The kids want me to photocopy it so they can take it home to show their families. Too cute.

On Thursday some of the kids didn’t even take off their coats and boots before coming in to see where Jackie was hiding.

Friday was the last day of Movember and our school celebrated by having a Moustache Day. Jackie appeared on Friday morning with a moustache of her own.

She even left our class a little gift (she must have run out of nice Christmas ribbon).

I had to create a little mailbox for her because the kids love writing her little notes. I peeked in there and I also saw a Dorito and a chocolate chip cookie hahaha! Jackie ate it all and even wrote a letter back, answering the many questions from all those notes!

I think Jackie’s arrival will make the next three weeks a ton of fun!

Twas the Week Before Christmas Break…

There have been so many moments in my teaching career where I’ve stopped and said to myself, “This is why I’m in this profession”. Seeing the love and joy in my students at Christmas time is one of those moments. There’s something about this time of year where everyone is just on the same page, and they truly show their compassion and empathy for others.

It was spirit week at Fairwood Public School and Ms. Lawrence’s class was in full spirit swing! Since I can’t share any of the kids’ photos (which I have a ton of), I’ll share my selfies with you. Normally, I’m not into taking selfies, but I felt I should for this fun week. [Did you know, according to Virgin Mobile, that 90% of selfies that people take are solely for themselves, as they are never shared with others? Who does that? Sorry, I’ve digressed.] I, on the other hand will share my selfies with you.

Monday was HOLIDAY COLOUR DAY! I came to Grade One wearing a wonderfully warm red sweater and candy cane earrings. The kids were decked out in red, green, white, and gold. We were very festive that day.

Tuesday was CRAZY HAIR DAY! Normally, I’d go a little crazier than this [in fact, my normal curly hair probably would have sufficed], but it was also the day of the Christmas concert so I didn’t want to be too extreme. I calmed things down by wearing an over-the-top bow in my hair. The kids….oh. They did not disappoint. Coloured streaks, gel galore, tinsel and ribbons, multiple pony tails…they made up for my lack of crazy hair.

Wednesday was BELL AND ORNAMENT DAY! Which was cute and fun for about 20 minutes. I wore jingle bell earrings and my jingle bell elf hat. Again, my kids did not disappoint. They came with bells all over the place! Pinned all over their shirts, tied in their hair, strapped to their wrists, you name it. 
Bells. Jingling. All day. 

For my busy little ones who don’t stay in one spot or try to be sneaky when I’m “not looking”, they didn’t get away with anything that day. Muah hahaha.

Thursday was HOLIDAY HAT DAY as well as the last day of school for my little lovelies. I forgot to take a selfie that day. From what you’ve seen, I’m sure you can use your imagination. We had such a fun last day. They showered me with presents and they were so darn excited to see me open them. I received lots of beautiful gifts and so many adorable cards. I realized how much of a teacher I am because I always made such a big deal out of how awesome their writing was in each of their cards. Speaking of cards, here is one of my favourites.

It’s me. Feeding a duck. 

This is why I love my onesies.

I spoiled them back by giving them LOTS of candy canes, Christmas cards, and snacks to enjoy as we watched The Santa Clause. It’s no National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, but it’s one of my favourite kid-friendly holiday movies.

In one of my gifts was a beautiful candle and a little teacher brooch. Tucked in beside it was this. My student added to the present by giving me a "healthy snack". He was adamant that it wasn't his actual snack and that it really was for me. Priceless. 

I need to talk about our Uganda project. Let me tell you that they sounded wonderful singing our Christmas song at the concert. They were superstars. They finished their letters to their friends in Uganda and I am off to the post office today to finally send them over. I also had the kids write a letter to their families telling them how fortunate they are to have them. This is a great example of what I saw:

We did a fun activity where I re-read them How the Grinch Stole Christmas [and I read it with an extra Grinchy voice] and had them tell me how they would make the Grinch smile. Their answers were so cute.

{I would do a trick}

And just like that school was over for 2013. Even though I have lots of Christmas festivities ahead of me, I’ll still squeeze some time in to get my January 2014 unit up and ready.

I’m not sure if I’ll be posting much over the break, so if not, I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful holiday with friends and family.

PS. Check out my Unforgettable Moments page for the most priceless moment I had all week. You’ll know which one I’m talking about.

Merry Christmas!

The Big Gingerbread Raffle

Hi there! After a nice and busy week with my onesies, I offered my neighbourly services to a family down the street and agreed to watch their kids. I have spent the night hanging out with my little buddies, and I. Am. Pooped. But they’re really cute so that’s okay. They’re both in bed now, so I’m snuggled on the couch watching and laughing hysterically as I watch Modern Family. Since I have a rather busy weekend ahead of me, I figured I’d better blog about the week; and let me tell you. It was a great week. A great week indeed.

Our two Grade One classes took turns each recess Wednesday through Friday selling raffle tickets for our two gingerbread houses. Each morning, Mrs. Cater and I chose two kids from our classes to advertise the event on the morning announcements, and the turn out was unbelievable. I tell ya, I won’t be surprised if one day way down the road (when I’ll feel extremely old) I hear that a handful of my kids turned out to be very successful salesmen. They pulled out their puppy faces. They smiled those devilish smiles. They literally chased people down the hallway. They used their outdoor voices. They sold those tickets! The turnout and support from the kids and adults at our school was just wonderful.

We announced the winners this afternoon and once all the kids had left for the weekend, I counted all the money. Ready? Drumroll please….

d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d…

d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d…

d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d…

We raised…

d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d…

OVER $200!!!

Mrs. Cater and I were practically dancing with joy. We raised much more than we had anticipated, and I can’t wait to tell the kids, and Connie at A Cup for Africa. Even more so, I can’t wait until our letters are written and we can send our Uganda buddies their big Christmas gift. Money can’t buy happiness, but it can certainly help give those less fortunate a wonderful holiday season.

Some other stuff we did this week:

Literacy

I read them The Gingerbread Mouse and they wrote a diagnostic letter explaining why the character is so fortunate. I can tell they are going to be awesome letter writers. 

Math

We continued with algebra with a focus on equality. The kids solved a variety of problems similar to this over the week. 

They’re really getting it. I’m a proud teacher : )

The other fun stuff

I just love holiday stories, so I try to read as many as I can throughout the week that are "just for fun" stories. No writing task; nothing to assess. Just listen and enjoy. Great for transitioning. 

I changed the book a little so that instead of saying "Toronto", I'd say "Keswick". That got them excited, alright!

A cute little book about Santa's helpers who kick it into high gear when he gets sick. 

I had them do an Elf Yourself activity. How great are they? I'll hang them up in the gym for the Holiday Concert for all to admire. Click the pic to be redirected to the original link. 

Ever wonder how Santa chose his reindeer? This book as all the answers. 

I modified my glass bead activity at the Writing Centre for the holiday season. I know I never blogged about those beads, but all you need to know is that it took a lifetime and half to make all those letters. 

Our first stop in our Christmas Around the World journey was Holland. 

Click the picture for the YouTube link. 

Last but not least...

Our Friday art lesson was spent making Christmas tree ornaments. They just need to dry over the weekend, then I'll add some Christmas coloured wire, and they'll be ready to go home. Click here to see where I found my Pinspiration.

Well friends, I'm off. Have a lovely weekend!