Christmas Break Catch Up - Part II

Still catching up!

Whew...it does not pay to get behind in blogging...

So many pictures to share! Let's start with our class Christmas tree.

A friend sent me a picture of something similar and recommended I try it for my class. I am sure it is a Pinterest find. This was our version. :)

I have so many favorite picture books. Well, at least that's what my kiddos tell me..."Mrs. Dunn you always say they're your favorite"...

This one is a classic, and by sharing it, I know that I am probably not sharing anything you haven't already taught with this a dozen times over.

But seriously, I just can't help myself. I LOVE Dr. Seuss! You are never too old for a good ol' life lesson wrapped up in some magical rhyming fun!

Now...around this time of year everyone pops out with their Elf on a Shelf craziness....I mean my kiddos come in every morning,"Mrs. Dunn last night my elf...."

I have never been an Elf on the Shelf kind of girl, but after reading How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, I had to pull out my Grinch.

Since my husband always calls me the Grinch of the family (long story there, probably something to do with ripping the Christmas tree out of the house each year on his birthday, the day after Christmas...;) ... I digress... since I am the Grinch of our family, I have a soft spot for the fuzzy green fellow. A couple of years ago, I picked up my very own Grinch from Kohl's. I just love the Kohl's Cares program, and if you have taken my class tour, you have no doubt seen the results all over the shelves.

Well....I pulled out our very own Grinch and mischief ensued!

 

The kiddos LOVED it, so I put up with the distraction for their sake. Those that know me closely know just how difficult of a task that was for me, but I have no doubt that Mr. Grinch will probably make an appearance next year. We had some great writing ideas for our notebook thanks to his crazy antics.

I have to share a couple of books for you, and then I am off to catch up on other all too often neglected tasks.

First is a throw-back to last year...

I want to revisit my ALL TIME favorite Christmas picture book, Red Ranger Came Calling by Berkeley Breathed.

Mr. Breathed has perfectly narrated the tale of his father ~ the self-proclaimed Red Ranger of Mars. This sour-faced little boy is sent to spend Christmas on the damp little island of Vashon were in the end the true meaning of Christmas and faith prevails over "promises hatched by those who weren't very good at keeping them..." and other such twaddle.

I just had to share a few more pics...my kiddos LOVED it!

Funny what belief in someone can do!

 

Red Ranger Came Calling, Berkeley Breathed

If you were to ask most anyone at our school what my favorite Christmas book is, I would not be surprised that they could tell you The Red Ranger Came Calling. They might even ask you a favor in return...to tell me to stop showing them my beloved book over and over again! Again, I just can't help myself!

Now for a great chapter book....

Last night I read a great little dystopian tale...

A friend of mine posted about this book on her Instagram, and I thought I would give it a try! Only $2.99 on Amazon Kindle...whoohoo...I am so glad that I did. 

In Stung by Bethany Wiggins, we follow Fiona as she struggles to come to terms with the foreign and shattered world she awakens in...When the honeybee population collapses, bio-engineered bees cause a worldwide pandemic, and a government botched cure shows that man should be careful how much it plays with mother nature. 

You must have noticed by now my weakness for a good dystopian book. This one was different from so many others that I have read, and I love it for that!

Well...with that ladies and gents...I will say goodbye for now....just until we play catch up again. ;)

Happy Reading, friends!

Keep Calm

So I saw this on Pinterest, and well...yep...I will have to try to make it. LOL...now if someone would be so kind as to let my kiddos know. 

Yes ~ we are all so excited and ready for a break, but I have so much left to cram into their sweet little heads. Was that very responsive classroom of me? Oh well, they know I am kidding...I do love my sweet kiddos. You know I brag on them all the time!

We are furiously planning and drafting our opinion pieces. I think this will be my favorite to read so far. I love how my kiddos are always so full of opinions, and it would break my heart if they suddenly couldn't express those opinions. I better hear some cute little voices in there! 

I just wanted to share a reader's notebook entry that makes my heart sing! I want every book my kiddos read to be the best book, yet! It only gets better with every page! Keep turning guys...just wait to see what happens in the next one!

Look at the adorable stockings a parent
brought in for our kiddos Christmas party!

So I was wondering the other day if anyone has been keeping count of exactly how many picture books I have shared since I started this crazy quest to share one great picture book a day. I am still debating if sharing many books a couple times a week counts, but at this point it is the best I can do...and since this is my blog ;) and I make up the rules...well, I am counting them!

Before I share some new ones we have read, I want to revisit my ALL TIME favorite Christmas picture book, Red Ranger Came Calling by Berkeley Breathed.

Mr. Breathed has perfectly narrated the tale of his father ~ the self-proclaimed Red Ranger of Mars. This sour-faced little boy is sent to spend Christmas on the damp little island of Vashon were in the end the true meaning of Christmas and faith prevails over "promises hatched by those who weren't very good at keeping them..." and other such twaddle.

I just had to share a few more pics...my kiddos LOVED it!

Funny what belief in someone can do!

 

Red Ranger Came Calling, Berkeley Breathed

The Spirit of Christmas by Nancy Tillman is another new favorite of mine. These illustrations are beyond amazing! This is such a beautiful story, and my kiddos truly loved it today. You know when you have boys calling out how beautiful the illustrations are ~ well then you have something magical don't you! This lyrical rhyming story, like many at this time of year, reminds us what is truly special and magical. Reading this story reminded me so much of my Katie Byrd...grown up and out making it out on her own..."the best part of Christmas will always be you beneath my Christmas tree."

This next book reminds me of my boys...The Longest Christmas List Ever by Gregg and Evan Spiridellis. Again, another fun rhyming book that the kiddos (boys, escpecially) LOVE! Lots of fun toys gets tossed around this one, but in the end, much like others shared tonight, it is more about the love of family and friends that makes the true spirit of Christmas. 

With that kiddos, I will say goodnight.

Happy Reading!

Turkeys and Reindeer

Holy Moly, Guacamole! This is the last day of our Thanksgiving break, and I have so much to do. Just like me to wait until the last minute to accomplish all of the mind-blowing, amazing things I had planned to accomplish on my break, LOL! 

I hope everyone has had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Of all of the holidays, this one  is my favorite! I love all of the traditions and family time. 

Our class started our break by giving! We donated the most canned goods in our school! We owe a great thanks to the wonderful parents and students that opened their hearts to donate to Hope's Closet. The school donated 4273 food items this Thanksgiving season! How awesome it that?!

We had a very busy and productive week just before our break, but I really enjoyed our morning meetings most! We are really getting into the groove of building a respectful community. Here are a few of our messages... 

  

As much as we are enjoying our messages, my kiddos love the activities we do! With our 11-15 message, we had a "snowball fight" with the paper the students wrote what they were thankful for on - tons of fun! When I called time, students had to pick up the nearest snowball and guess who was thankful for those things. Some were easy to figure out, some not so easy. We also played "telephone." It was funny to hear how mixed up our message became. My kid's favorite has to be "Would you rather?" I found this fun little activity at Classroom Freebies by Rachel.  You just have to check out her site and TeachersPayTeachers store. Tons of fun ideas and great freebies!

 

Some random photos around the room :)

 

Look at my sweet gift from a sweet girl!

I want to share a few more of my favorite Thanksgiving read alouds. We were lucky enough to squeeze in quite a few great picture books before our break. We laughed as turkey tried to find his way out of Thanksgiving trouble. We just loved all of the funny ways he tried to disguise himself from farmer in Turkey Trouble by Wendi Silvano.

Turkey Bowl by Phil Bildner is one of my new Thanksgiving favorites, and I was so excited to pick this up from the last book order. I love the illustrations by C.F. Payne. This story is all about family and Thanksgiving traditions, the very reason Thanksgiving is my favorite! 

This next little book is an oldie but goody. I was two when this book was first published, LOL, but it still makes me giggle. Sometimes it's Turkey, Sometimes it's Feathers by Lorna and Lecia Balian is just too cute for words. The illustrations make you fall in love with little, old Mrs. Gumm, and the repetitive phrases make it fun for the kiddos to join in. We all loved the ending! If you are at all familiar with A Turkey for Thanksgiving by Eve Bunting, then you will know how this fun little book ends. Both are sweet stories, but if I had to choose, I would pick Sometimes It's Turkey... couldn't tell you why ~ maybe because it's as old as I am, haha.

Who Will Carve the Turkey This Thanksgiving by Jerry Pallotta is a fun little back and forth story. I fell in love with the illustrations! David Biedrzycki is so talented. It is fun to hear the kiddos share who carves the turkey at their house.

My own kiddos this Thanksgiving! They grow up so fast :(

Katie and I had a blast running  walking (haha)
the Reindeer run for Reading 2012! 

 

Sorry for such a long post...I took this fall break to really catch up on things at home and spend time with the family, and I totally neglected Flamingos and Butterflies. I cannot believe how fast it has flown by, but I am excited to get to see my kiddos at school tomorrow! Believe it or not, I have missed them! I have said it often, but I am so proud of this sweet group I have!

 

This is what I was supposed to be getting caught up on, LOL. These notebooks have been sitting on my dining room table mocking me most of the break. As soon as I am done with this post, I will be writing letter after letter again. This is so time consuming with both classes, but I have learned so much about my readers this way. One of these days, probably just before retirement, I will find a way to efficiently answer all letters. If anyone out there has a great system for this, please feel free to share. I will say that I am super excited to answer all said letters using my new stack of Frixion pens! Whoo hoo...I LOVE these erasable pens! These definitely make my list of favorite things! The only problem is that you cannot walk into just any store to pick them up. I found some at Office Depot this weekend and picked up an armload!  

When we get back tomorrow, all the Thanksgiving books are put away and it is time for all things Christmas! I want to share my favorite Christmas CD. The  kids will come to know it well! I play it almost everyday during this time of year. I picked this up at Kohl's one year and absolutely fell in love with it. It is a lighthearted, fun Christmas CD ~ doesn't hurt that it has my man, Jason Mraz, on it.

Now one last picture book for you. This is my all time favorite Christmas book! It is a long read but WELL worth every minute! This is the book that made me fall in love with Berkeley Breathed! His writing style is full of such descriptive and figurative language, and Red Ranger Came Calling is a Christmas masterpiece. I spend a few days sharing this one, smiling the entire time. Please forgive me that I do not share much more information yet. I don't want to give it away just yet... I want my kiddos that are reading this to be surprised. ;) Be sure to check back to see what the surprise is.

All right my sweet friends... with that I must say good night. Those darn notebooks are still mocking me and the hour grows toward The Walking Dead. 

Happy Reading!