Keeping Them Engaged and Busy To The END!

I don't know about you but I am in the final countdown. We have 8 days left and my firsties are high as kites! 

With all the dance practices, assemblies, parties, rainy weather, and activities it's hard to keep them in control. But a few of my packets have been lifesavers in keeping my kiddos engaged and busy.

There's no way my kids want to learn something new so we are reviewing and staying strong to the end but in a fun way.

 My kids LOVE to do a Find a Friend. It gets them up and moving and they get to talk to their friends while reviewing important skills.

 Anything that involves Do-A-Dot markers is a HUGE hit in my class.

 Another favorite is playing Tic-Tac-Toe. Again playing with a friend is the best!

Flip Flaps have been a favorite all year and the fast finishers even play a little game with it.

 We've been doing some reviewing with SCOOT! Another fun activity to get them up and moving while reviewing.

My kiddos love doing these a second time because they are more confident and think they are really smart because now it's 'easy'!

You can find these at my Teacher Shops. Click my side bar for a link to my TeacherPayTeacher  or Teacher Notebook shop.

I'm trying to enjoy every minutes with my little ones. All too soon it will be time to say good-bye and then I'll miss them terribly.

Happy End-of-the-Year Teaching!

End of the Year!

It's hard to believe there are less than 2 weeks left of school. The year has whizzed by so quickly.

This is such a busy time for teachers with testing, end of the year programs, portfolios, grades, etc. etc. etc.

But it is a favorite of mine because it forces me to reflect on how much and how far we've come. It also comes with mixed emotions of saying good-bye to my precious little ones but hello to my beloved summer sanity.

I made my going away gifts this weekend. I got a cute idea from Pinterest with the crazy straws and Kool-Aid. Then I always give my kiddos a book.

If you'd like to grab a copy of the 'KOOL' tag click HERE.

 Every year I snap photos of all the things we do in class throughout the year. Then I put together a DVD for each of my students. I add our favorite songs and there you have it- The Class Memory Movie. Parents tell me this is an all time favorite and students watch it non-stop. It takes me many hours to put it together and during the process I wonder if it's worth it. This year's DVD is around 650 slides and 33 minutes long. But when I see the finished product, I cry every time and know it was well worth it. It's so fun to see the growth and learning that takes place in first grade. My babies come in hardly being able to read or write and go out reading chapter books and writing novels! 

(Well maybe not novels but really long stories)

It also helps me remember why I LOVE being a teacher!

End of the Year Survival

Wow! It's been over a week since my last post. So sorry. I'm incredibly busy like all of you trying to finish the school year. I'm putting my slide show together, memory books, doing grades and report cards, portfolios, practicing dance festival, field day activities, plus trying to babysit teach my little firsties. My hubby says it's crazy being married to a teacher in May and August and I'd have to agree.
I know I have a few new followers (and some of you may have forgot about these or missed them) so I just want to link up to some of my older post from last year showing what I do at the end of the year that is SAVING my sanity right now.

My kiddos LOVE the Behavior BINGO! I got this idea from Camille over on Fun For First. 

You can check out the post HERE.

I'm trying to keep my kiddos busy with educational things so they don't get too hyper. We are doing some great reviewing with these things:

Tic-Tac-Toe (these are on my Teacher Shops)

Scrambled sentences (also on my Teacher Shops)

Wipe Out with calculators

I posted this freebie last year HERE.

And on the last day, I have my kids for about an hour and a half so we will be doing some fun relay games. 

You can check out that FREEBIE post HERE.

I hope we all survive the end of the year!

End of the Year Fun!

Here are some pictures from our end-of-the-year fun. We did a 'Student Appreciation Day' where, we the teachers, honor the kids with a day of fun activities.

 Here we had some science experiment fun with Diet Coke and Mentos thanks to Mrs. Hodges!

 Lots of bubbles!

 Baby chicks came to visit!

 Sidewalk chalk was a big hit!

 We have brick pavers around the flagpole in front of the school and the firsties loved to color them in.

 It was very colorful for all the families attending Kindergarten graduation!

 Playing games with our friends!

 A fun P.E. game on the lawn!

Two cuties doing our 1st grade dance to 'Rock-a-Hula-Luau'. A great song from Grease 2.

Well, tomorrow is our last day. I can't start thinking about how much I'm going to miss them. They are so cute and make me laugh. Have I said lately how much I love this job?

Hope everyone is having a great summer or soon to be summer. 

I know I'm excited to get it started!