Embracing the Christmas excitement

You know the saying -- never fight a battle you know you can't win. Well, that's what the week before Christmas break is like in a kindergarten classroom. Do we abandon all learning, expectations, and routines? No. But, let's be honest -- if you try to ignore the Christmas madness, you will be fighting a losing battle.

So, I just embrace it! Build learning opportunities into themed activities. Teach compassion and model the spirit of simple giving by making, wrapping, and delivering presents. And, just remember, they are five- and six-year-olds. You, as a teacher, cannot compete with the hype of Santa. A child's kindergarten teacher is a rockstar in their eyes. Santa holds god-like status. Don't even try to beat him at the attention game.

Here are a few picture highlights of Christmas in our classroom. Not pictured (unfortunately) is my favorite Christmas tradition with my class -- caroling around the school. I play guitar and love playing with my kinders. They love to sing -- especially Christmas songs! So, we practice all month and then spread Christmas joy around the building by knocking on classroom (or office) doors and singing a song with the guitar. I can't decide what the best part is -- the sweet sound of their voices or the looks on the faces of our surprised listeners (especially the teachers!)

Dear Santa...

I picked a couple letters to share with you. They were all cute, but these ones cracked me up because these kids have some big demands. Santa, you have your work cut out for you on these ones.

This one was just funny -- [Dear Santa, I want a stocking. I want a stuffed animal Santa.]

[Dear Santa, I want a wolf. I want a digipet. I have been good.]

[Dear Santa, I want a dragon. I want a kitten. I have been good.]

[Dear Santa, I want a happy birthday. I want a beautiful world. I have been good.]

Sweetest journal ever -- "I am sorry Santa that some people don't believe in you."

"Star Word" Christmas Trees

Channeling Christmas fever into "star word" (high-frequency reading words) practice.

"Cookies for Santa plates" -- Parent gifts

The last couple years, I have made handprint calendars with the kinders. As much as I loved them, they were SO time-consuming. With only 3 school weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, we just didn't have time for them. In addition, in the past couple years, I have received two thank-yous (verbal or written) from parents for the incredibly time-consuming gifts. 

[Side note -- to the parents out there, if your child brings home a sweet gift for you, please thank your child's teacher. Many people may think these supplies were bought by the school or that making a parent gift is an expected aspect of the job. Both are untrue. Teachers come up with the ideas, buy the supplies (remember, a $2-3 gift x 20+ students is not cheap!), and in some schools (not mine -- thank goodness!) risk getting "in trouble" with administrators for taking time away from curriculum to create presents. Just a little side note!]

So, this year (thanks to my teammate's idea!) we tried something new -- Cookies for Santa plates. They turned out SO CUTE! I honestly love them so much... I couldn't wait for the kids to bring them home to their moms and dads. I wrote the words around the edge of a ceramic plate with a thick-tip Sharpie marker. Then, the kids drew their pictures (I gave them a few choices/ideas) with permanent markers. I baked the plates at 350 degrees for 20 minutes to set the drawings. Adorable!

Thumbprint Light Cards

Cute and simple. My kinders used watercolor paints to add their "thumbprint bulbs."

Merry Christmas from Mrs. A's kinders!

Kids are funnier during the holidays

I honestly think it's true. The kids are funnier around the holidays. My kinders have been on FIRE lately. Seriously hilarious. A little sampling for your reading pleasure:

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Student 1: "I love Santa."
Student 2: "Me too."
Student 1: "I love Santa because he's the nicest guy ever."
Student 2: "Yeah because he leaves everybody lots of presents."
Student 1: "Yeah, but only if you're good. If you're bad, you get coal. And coal is just another word for poop."

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Mrs. A: "I'm going to Jamaica to be in Miss Mayhan's wedding. I get to be in her wedding. I'm going to wear a pretty dress and stand next to her while she's getting married in her beautiful white dress."
Student: "Oh! I get it. You're going to be that guy up front with the book."
Ha ha! Nope, not that part, buddy.

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Mrs. A: "This movie (Rudolph) is really special to me. It's a very old movie -- I even watched it when I was a little girl at Christmas!"
Student: "You mean like at the first Christmas? Like when Jesus was born?"
Mrs. A: "Nope... I'm not that old."

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And, last but not least, I am not proud of myself, but I just pulled out my cell phone to call Santa. Yep, it happened. But... it WORKED!!! :)

Handprint Calendars - Parent Gifts

For the last two years, I have spent the month of December slaving over these handprint calendars. They are time consuming, messy, exhausting... but absolutely darling.

One of those projects that make me say, "What was I thinking?!" all along the way. However, the pride on my students' faces and the happy parents are worth it every time!

I love these calendars. They require simple materials -- cardstock, binding, paint, and hands! But, they capture an amazing little handprint that will never be the same size.

Here's a snapshot of each month:

Front cover [I know you may wipe some away, but these handprints were made to stay. So keep them forever, a treasure they'll be. A special "I Love You" for you from me.]

[That's a ghost on the left. Apparently, this ghost is a partyin' ghost.]

[This handprint tree is upside down... but that's what makes it so cute!]

Well worth the time, cleaning, and paint on everything. Literally. Everything. 

Can't catch me... I'm the Gingerbread Man!

Every December, I do a unit on the Gingerbread Man with my kinders. It's one of my favorite units of the year-- and every year it grows! Here is a recap of a few of my favorite things from this year:

First, we read about 10 different versions of the story -- from the original "Gingerbread Man" to "The Gingerbread Girl" to "The Gingerbread Pirates." The kids loved every one of them -- and the different versions provided the perfect opportunity to compare and contrast. For each version, we identified the main character, setting, chant, other characters, and the ending. 

Later that week, we decorated cookies and graphed our "first bites."

I'm not going to lie to you... the cookies looked pretty gross! Ha ha! But the kids loved every minute of it.

After taking our first bites and adding them to the graph, many students were given the opportunity to "defend" their choice. For example, one little guy said: "I bit off his head so he couldn't see where he was going! That way, he couldn't run away from me!" 

Math + cookies = fun, fun, fun!

One of my favorite parts of the unit was our "science experiment." In all of the versions of the story, the Gingerbread Man never wanted to get wet in the river! Why?... we wondered.

So, of course, we had to find out. First, each kinder was given a cookie. We drew what he looked like before his "swim."

We added our cookies to a cup of water (one cup per group), and waiting for a minute or two. As you ca see in the background, we also had a quick snack while we waited. :)

When we tried to take them out... they crumbled into pieces!

And, we drew the results. Great fun -- and the kids were very surprised by the results.

Click HERE or on the picture above for a printable of our Gingerbread experiment worksheet.

All I want for Christmas...

Mrs. Anderson: "What do you want for Christmas?"

A sample of responses...

"A bodyguard."

"A butler. They can do like anything for you. You don't even have to get up!"

"A ninja."

"A brother."

"McDonalds."

Hmmm... not sure many of those will be filled. :)

'Tis the season

Is there anything more beautiful than kindergartners singing Christmas carols?

Answer: No.

I love the holiday season with my kinders. Their joy and innocence is at its absolute best in December. The mixture of true belief, the promise of Santa, and simple joyful cheer cause the most darling sparkle in a child's eye.

This year has been difficult to "get into the spirit" -- at least if you live in Omaha! After four years of living here, I have learned to equate December with feet of snow. December brings the buzz of snowblowers in the early mornings, a frisky dog running in from the yard, and the 15-minute battle with snow gear before recess.

But, not this year. In fact, today, on December 12, my kinders were digging in the sand with shovels and buckets. This just does not feel like Christmas in Omaha!

In addition, every year, Christmas is a strange time for a couple with no children (like us!) Yes, I love the holidays. Yes, we put up a tree and our stockings. But, besides wrapping up an unnecessary amount of dog toys and treats, Christmas feels a bit disconnected at home with no children. 

But, I'm lucky. I have 17 little bright lights to bring my Christmas spirit to life. Even the biggest Scrooge among us couldn't help but light up when you see a five-year-old pumping her legs on a swing, singing "Frosty the Snowman" at the top of her lungs.

My kids breathe air into my life -- and remind me of the simple joys in life. Snow, or no snow, my Christmas spirit lives in my students. And I know, no matter what the weather, December will always mean joy, cheer, and unbridled excitement in a kindergarten classroom.

Trim the reading tree

I love this new workstation -- and so do the kids. This is one of those ideas I wish I had thought of 4 years ago!!!

Simple and festive.

• Pick a felt ornament from the bucket.
• Read the "star word" (sight word).
• Put in on the felt tree (felt sticks to felt!)
• Record the words on the paper tree.

I made the tree with a large triangle of green felt and hot-glued on a yellow felt star and a brown felt trunk.

The ornaments are simply felt shapes with "puff paint" words. 

WE LOVE THIS.

Click HERE or on the picture above for the printable.