My Thanksgiving Break

I know I am enjoying my Thanksgiving Break!  I hope you are too!

I know all of my students are also having a great Thanksgiving Break and will be so excited to share with their classmates.  This is a graphic organizer I will use to help them organize their thoughts before they write about their break.  Click here to grab it free.

This organizer helps the students who always answer "nothing" when asked what did you do over break.  I know personally, I will "Go" to my parents and a cheerleading competition in Orlando.  I will "Do" nothing (at least for a day), watch Catching Fire (I LOVED it!) and marathon shop on Friday with my Mom.  I will "Eat" a scrumptious Thanksgiving meal made by Mom!  What will you do?

I am linking up with Thankful Thoughts at Teaching Blog Roundup this week.  (I am taking a week break from Helpful Hints on Hump Day)

This Thanksgiving, I am thankful and blessed to have such a wonderful family.  It amazes me how fast time is flying and what beautiful ladies my girls are growing into.

From my family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving!

Turkey Time - It's a Fact

Thanksgiving is quickly approaching!  I have been doing a few fun things in the classroom!  With so many things to teach and so little time, I have a hard time fitting fun crafts in!  I generally won't do a craft unless I can tie a lesson to it too!

Check out these fun Fact Family Turkeys my little turkeys just made.  We are working hard on understanding the ins and outs of fact families.

Each student made a different fact family on their turkey body and wings.  Then we did the addition feathers and followed with the subtraction feathers.  Finally we assembled our turkeys.  I loved them.  I traced some of the parts on construction paper and printed some parts on colored paper.

I'm sure these are easy enough for you to make your self, but if you want to save some time I have uploaded the patterns and directions to my TpT store.  Click here and grab it for $2.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, here is a First Thanksgiving KWL I used last year and am using again this week.  Click here to grab it if you like.

Don't forget to stop by and check out Classroom Freebies Manic Monday!

My Thanksgiving Break

I hope you had an amazing Thanksgiving Break.  I had a very fun and packed break but not extremely productive.  I was hoping to get more work done, but family and fun won out.  I got to see my extended family including my 3 month old nephew,  I did a little shopping and went to watch my daughter in her regional cheer competition.  (They won and are heading to Nationals in 10 days!)

Here is a quick freebie I am using for tomorrows "What did you do on your Thanksgiving Break?" writing.  I am hoping by doing the graphic organizer first, it will help the students come up with  more than "nothing".  Click here to download it.

Also, if you haven't heard there is a Cyber Monday plus Tuesday sale starting soon at Teachers Pay Teachers.  My store and many others will be 28% off.  Don't forget to enter the Promo Code.

Class Behavior Challenges and Thanksgiving

Oh my what a class I have this year!  Not to brag, but normally my class is very well behaved and I have very good behavior management.  This year, WOW!  It is tough, I really don't have any one typical behavior problem.  Just a mix of very active, chatty, disrespectful and helpless children.  I am trying everything under the sun and have not found something yet.  Class behavior rewards, terrific tallies, bribery, behavior chart, CHAMPS, whole group instruction, small group instruction, you name it.  I will not give up and I will succeed.  (When I figure it out I will be sure to share.)  I just read an interesting post on doing away with the typical behavior chart (read it here) and maybe since mine doesn't seem to work anyway I should try it?  I did make a little head way with a few students today.  The lost their privilege to participate in learning centers, they had to do the work by themselves at their seats.  They really did not like this, so hopefully...

OK now that I have vented (sorry)  I am going to start focusing on the positives and what I am thankful for this month.

Today I am thankful for the new technology we have been lucky enough to receive at school.  I have been given a new MacBook Pro and iPad for the classroom within the last 7 days.  (I know don't hate me too much.)  

I started my First Thanksgiving unit today.  I had the students complete their K and W of the KWL.  If you didn't grab this freebie earlier, you can get it here FREE.

I learned today that my kids don't really know much about the First Thanksgiving.  I am excited to be able to teach them all about it.

Also- you all JUST HAVE TO COME BACK ON Saturday.  Why, you are asking... 4 of my blogger friends and I are having a Thanksgiving Thank You Raffle for our followers.  The five of us are each giving away a fun $20.00 gift certificate.  That's $100.00 in gift certificates, just in time for the holidays. 

The First Thanksgiving FREEBIE

I am starting The First Thanksgiving today.  I like to start new topics with a KWL chart to see what the students already know and what they would like to learn.  I usually do a big KWL all together.  I thought it would be fun for the students to do their own small KWL maps.  I created this little packet to help us with our learning and a summary writing activity at the end of this topic.

I am copying the "What I think I know" map and the "What I want to learn" map front and back to use as an opening activity.  At the end of the unit I am going to have the students use the "What I learned" map and writing paper.  Click here to download your copy FREE.

This Freebie is featured on Classroom Freebies Manic Monday!  www.classroomfreebies.com is a great resource filled with FREE resources everyday, but on Mondays WOW it is fabulous!  
What is your favorite Thanksgiving activity you do in your class?