Out Of This World!!

Yesterday, I was delighted to try one of the activities I got from Babbling Abby.  You know my class theme is outer space, so this was perfect!  I introduced my class to Astronaut Ice Cream!  (So cool, right?)  I ordered it online, and it's actually really easy to find.  So when it finally came in, I just couldn't wait! 

We all tried a little, and I must admit that it was pretty good.  The texture freaked me out a little, but I got over it.  I ordered two pack for my class, so everyone got a small taste, and a few got seconds.

Then, I asked each child which they preferred: Regular Ice Cream or Astronaut Ice Cream. We graphed the results, and here are the results........

(Wow, sorry for the sideways view......what's up with that?)

.........It looks like Astronaut Ice Cream won with 9 votes, while Regular Ice Cream received 8 votes (including my own).  I mean, it was OK, but it sure doesn't beat the cold stuff.  :)

I then had the children complete a graph on their own paper to show the results.  We really had a blast with this!  Thanks, Abby...It was a big hit! :)

Desk Pockets and "I'm Finished! Notebook"

We all have those kids who are just done too dog-gone early.  I found this cute little tip from TeacherTipster.com.  (I love him, by the way!)  Each student now has a binder that they can work in when they are finished early.  I call it the "I'm Finished! Notebook".  The binder has page protectors with different worksheets in them that I can change out regularly.  My firsties use a dry erase marker to do the worksheets, and then wipe the boards clean with a colored sock that I bought at the Dollar Tree (buy 3 pairs for $1, so I only had to buy 3 sets for my class of 16).  I got the binders for .70 each (not bad!) at Walmart. 

Did I mention that they LOVE them?  They are just crazy about these things!  (And I am just crazy about the fact that they are doing WORK while having fun and not being bboorreedd.)



So, who doesn't love those chair pockets that you can order from reallygoodstuff.com?  I definitely liked the idea, BUT I soooooo didn't want to spend that kind of money on them.  YOWSAS!  So, I did some experimenting, and I found that you can use stretchy Jumbo Book Covers for chair pockets.  They are affordable AND adorable!  Ijust love how they brighten up the chairs!  And the kids just love them!  :)  Check it out....

They have really come in handy for storing the "I'm Finished! Notebook" and also for storing the dry erase boards I bought for each student at.......wait for it.......Dollar Tree!  (So glad I did that, by the way!)    I got my book covers at Walmart for $2.  I got blue, purple, orange, and red.  Make sure you get Jumbo if you try it.  The regular ones are just a little too small.