Divine Pin-spiration: My Winter Bulletin Board

Found this little gem on Pinterest. I got it from bulletinboardideas.org but they got it from daniellesplace.com. So thank you to both places I guess. :) Last year we got this purple bulletin board paper and it really pops! ( This picture makes it look a little flat.) I have a really beautiful border with snowflakes that matches perfectly. When we have some free time I have been letting one or two kiddo's choose a snowflake to write on something that we have learned about recently. Then they cut it out and get to put it on our bulletin board. They enjoy being able to be in charge of the hallway board and I enjoy not having to change it up until March. :) Being a perfectionist makes changing a board a time consuming activity. I think they are doing a great job though. Dont you?

"I'm in Love! I'm in Love and I Don't Care Who Knows It!"

Did you catch my Elf movie reference in the title? Have I mentioned I how much I love Christmas? :)


Well, I have a new love and it is called the wonderful world of Pinterest and I am OBSESSED! I have seen people post things on Facebook before and wondered what in the world this "pinning" thing was all about. I have seen the light! I saw this estimation station on there and pinned it. Then made it and now I am sharing it! It's from the blog First Grade Parade. You can find the link here : http://thefirstgradeparade.blogspot.com/2010/09/estimation-station.html to see the original one.

To make mine I took a piece of posterboard and cut it in half. Then because the theme of my room is an Ocean/Beach one I freaked out when I found these cool wave borders, which I put all the way around the edge. I used big stickers to spell out estimation station and left a big blank space underneath for the kiddo's to put their estimate. In the litle blue tub below the poster is the container for items to be estimated,  a couple of pencils, and some sticky notes. At Math Station time the kiddo's can look in the container and make an estimate of how many items they think are in there. They will write their name and estimate on a post it note and stick it to the poster board. On Friday, we will count the items in the container and then go over the estimates that have been posted. The person who comes the closest will get a sticker for their rewards chart. I can't wait to try this out! I think it will really help because our 2nd grade kiddo's consistantly struggle with estimation, so that is an area I wanted to really focus on this year.

I love you Pinterest! I am so glad you exist! You are going to change my classroom and my life! :)

Snowman Math Facts

Well, FINALLY these are done! I had the kiddo's color these BEFORE Christmas break and it's almost February and I am just now putting them out for Math Stations. I got this snowman picture from a Scholastic holiday's book but you could do the same thing with some clip art or even have the kids draw their own. After the kiddo's colored them I laminated them and cut them out. Then I taped a craft stick on the back. I found the "ice blocks" at the Dollar Store ( LOVE!). They are for flower arrangements but I thought they would hold the snowmen well, stand up to some repeated use, and look like they were stuck in a block of ice. They have become a hot commodity at Math Station time.

Snowman Stainglass

This is a cute craft we did for project Friday. I ordered snowman dyecuts from our REMC provider to make these.  They also have a mitten and a snowflake that I thought would be cute but they weren't available. ( Guess I will have to order earlier next time.) So I gave the kids choice through the color of their construction paper.

You will need construction paper ( in seasonal colors), wax paper, tissue paper, and a glue stick ( not pictured).
Fold the construction paper in half and cut out your image.

Glue the pieces of tissue paper onto the wax paper.

You want to overlap the peices of tissue paper to create a stainglass effect.

Trim down the wax paper to fit inside of the construction paper and then glue the two sides together.

Then hang the finished product up in a window. The wax paper allows the light to shine through just like a pane of glass would. I hung these up at the end of our hallway so everyone could enjoy them.