A Little Bit of This and a Little Bit of That

We have been back for 5 days now. And we are digging in for loads of learning.

I am enjoying reading The Little House in the Big Woods to the kids. Personally I find the book a little long, and sometimes it is difficult for me to follow, but somewhere I saw that it was on an exemplar list, so we are going for it. I knew it was a good choice when I was reading it on Monday and at a very appropriate part more than half of the class started laughing. Wow, that surprised me. They were listening, comprehending and communicating their understanding. 

It was at one of my favorite parts. Charles' pa was coming home through the Big Woods, without his gun and a panther was following him. He described the way the panther sounded--like the scream of a woman. Oh, how they laughed. It was a great moment for me.

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Cloverbuds rotations today. But no pictures. Sunflowers was the commodity. One group made sunflowers out of coffee filters. I showed a short video (2 minutes) about the life cycle, and then they created a 4 part drawing of the life cycle. Another did pig stuff (cuts of meat I think). And finally a cooking group, peanut butter balls with sunflower seeds. Good times.

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One sweetie made my day when he came in after recess and saw supplies on his desk to make the January quilt. He said, "oh, a quilt, I LOVE this!" Thank goodness it was not as difficult as the December quilt, but it did take some doing. Cutting a 3 inch square into 4 triangles is tricky, but they are certainly getting better. I got the quilts off of TpT. Check it out here.

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My good friend Julie has been at it again. She created a January alphabet chant, along the lines of The Phonics Dance. I printed it while the kids were at PE and Music, and had it hung before they came back. I wasn't going to say anything, but they noticed. :) So, with our coats on (we were just heading to the buses) we went through the new chant. Score. Two times through in one day. That is called repetition and exactly what my firsties need to become better readers. 

Julie is giving this away this week for her followers. It is amazing. Check it out (at First Grade Critter Cafe') if you want a cool January alphabet or if you want to read an inspiring blog.

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It is time to start checking the sheep. We did this last year also. Feeling for a bag, looking under their tails, looking for changes. We always ask permission, and feel sort of weird doing it, but that is what our sheep expert told us to do. Please, Lily and Wooly (the ewes), lamb during the day, so that I do not have to sleep in the barn. This is especially important, because there is loads of evidence of critters living in the barn. I think you know how I feel about mice.