NAKED EGG EXPERIMENTS: Make your own rubber eggs with materials you probably have handy

How many times will my daughter ask me to make naked eggs? She literally can't get enough! Science experiments have consumed our lives as my three-year old engages in every single experiment I used my in second, third, and fourth grade classrooms over the years!

This quick and easy science experiment can be set up in a matter of minutes! The actual process is a few days, but it gives kids plenty of time for observation and to see the scientific method play out.

Everything you need to launch experiment writing in your classroom/home and hook your kids immediately! Get kids engaged and WRITING!

THIS IS AN AWESOME ACTIVITY!

First, place a raw egg in a cup filled with vinegar. Leave it for at least 3 days. After 3 days, take the egg out. Run it under warm water and rub the shell off. You will be left with a RUBBERY egg. It will also be enlarged. Simply writing this experiment and keeping an observation journal is a great activity.

To go even further, after the naked egg experiment writing and observation journal, have the kids write their own experiments to conduct on their individual naked eggs. Some ideas include putting their naked eggs in salt water, regular water, food coloring, Mountain Dew, Cola, vinegar and baking soda, and more.

BE CAREFUL when rubbing the shell off the egg. Sometimes the eggs do POP. Have a few back up eggs, just in case. :)

Click here for the experiment!

Holiday Gifts for Families: Handprint Calendars!

If you are looking for a great holiday gift, not completely focused on Christmas, look no further. I have used this Handprint Calendar from Teaching with Mel D for YEARS! (She updates it each year) I used it with my second graders, third graders, and fourth graders....and now I use it with my toddlers as grandparent gifts!

There are a few options for some of the months (ie: You CAN do a Santa for December, if you want!). There is also an Australia spelling version, which is a cool little bonus.

In the classroom, I would sort the calendar by color. So, if I needed a light blue for the snowman pages and the snowflake pages, I would have a little assembly line - call over 5 kids, paint everyone's hands, handprint one kid at a time for both of the pages that need that color, and send them to the sink right after to wash up. The trickiest pages are when you need multiple colors, so I saved those for last!

I never lost instructional time to get this project done - I always did it during recess or when I let the kids eat lunch in the classroom as a treat. Which is why I started this project EARLY. Like Thanksgiving time early.

I also made sure to get some Sharpies for drawing faces and some googly eyes. Not for every page, but the googly eyes really do add something special to the pages with little critters!

Oh and the actual calendar pages with dates come color or black and white. I typically printed color because I let my students color in as much as I could, but they never had time to finish the entire calendar, so it made sense to print those pages in color so the coloring part would focus on the pictures near the handprints.

So, check out some of our examples from this year. These are my kids (ages 3 and 1), which is why there are two handprints on some pages. Instead of alternating, I just squeezed two handprints on the pages where I could fit them. It actually looks very cute! I'm impressed with our work! :)

Writing portfolios - pizza style!

We have a new ELA curriculum this year - Collaborative Classroom. I love that it totally matches my educational teaching philosophy. 

One thing I can continue with this program is a writing portfolio for each student. Throughout the year, kids keep their favorite pieces in file folders. At the end of the year, each student goes through their collection of writing. They make a pizza menu divided by writing genres with their writing pieces listed. Then we take this perfect picture to print and glue to the pizza box that now holds all of the writing from this year. Voila!

I’ve had MANY parents go on and on years later about how much they love this project. It’s cute, easy, and cheap ( I get local pizza places to donate boxes - they love helping a poor teacher. :)

Picasso Tiles: STEM at its FINEST for ALL AGES!

I have two kids, ages 3 and 1. They don't always get along. Obviously. The one toy they both play with EVERY SINGLE DAY are the magnetic tiles. We have bought different brands, knock off brands, name brands, whatever; they all work basically the same.

We use this to work on vocabulary development (structure, foundation, solid, base, towers, tunnels, bridges, etc.). We use them to talk about colors. We assign challenges. The STEM possibilities are endless.

But the best way we use these in my house and in my classroom? To deal with emotions. It's really frustrating when you're building a structure and it falls. We verbalize how we're feeling and that it is okay to feel that way. We talk through some problem solving. Do we still have little melt downs sometimes? Sure. Doesn't everyone? Even adults? Yep. But we are using these STEM toys to begin building that SEL foundation that will carry our kiddos through life and help them to understand how to deal with those emotions that feel so big.

Easy Winter Craft Idea!

Easy Peasy Craft Idea!

I used some craft paper and cut it into an oval. I cut the mouth hole next. Then I glued two popsicle sticks at the bottom as handles.

From there, my kiddo glued and glued white cotton balls until she just couldn't fit another white cotton ball. 

Then, let the pretend play begin!

She was Santa. She was an old man. She was daddy. She was anyone but herself. 

And it was very entertaining!

Happy December!

Quick and Easy Christmas Ornaments!

With the holidays right around the corner, here is a fun and easy craftivity I have done with my class in the past, and my two toddlers in the present! :)

A few years ago a bought a TON (Like 50) pre-drilled wooden discs with twine and ribbons that came with them for about $15 on Amazon. Best purchase ever.

Each year, we make ornaments! Last year we did thumbprints and then draw the string for a string of lights! Add some twine and a name/date, VOILA! Holiday gift!

This year, we did thumbprints again. Easy. But we drew on antlers and glued a felt nose on for Rudolph. Even cuter! And just as easy.

If you are looking for a holiday gift, look no further! 

And, of course, you could do this same thumbprint look on any ornament, piece of construction paper, whatever, to make it cheaper! Or free!

Show What You Know: Formative Assessments that are actually QUICK AND EASY!

FLASH BACK TO TEN YEARS AGO!

This little gem saved my formative assessment game!

I used this Show What You Know Chart every single year I was a classroom teacher. (I am currently an interventionist and instructional coach.) I had my students each given a number. When I wanted to do a quick check in ANY subject, I asked them to jot their response on a sticky note. They put their sticky note on their corresponding number. Typically I used this as an exit ticket or a ticket out the door.

When it came time for me to check, I tossed the answers that were appropriate and could easily see the students who needed a reteach or some extra support. I also knew right away who did not turn their response it because their number was still showing. 

Recently I was working in a classroom with a teacher. She had the kids do a quick right after their Individualized Daily Reading on a post it and asked them to stick them to her desk. It was literal chaos. Some kids put the sticky notes on her desk, others put them on the front, and NOBODY had names on them. So, I pulled this little gem out! Reprint, laminated, and VOILA! Organized, easy, quick formative assessments that WORK!

You are not replaceable.

Sometimes you just need to unplug. 

My kids are young and I really cherish our time together. Weekends can be lazy days or memorable adventures. They’re all perfect. 

It makes me think about the fact that as a mom, I am not replaceable. No one else can do that job for me. As a teacher, I am. If I were to leave this job, someone else could fill my shoes. Definitely something to keep in mind. :)

Do you know what's really fun?

BLACK LIGHTS!

Set up a few black lights in your classroom or home for the kiddos. I did a little mini word work station. I had letters written on paper that I colored with highlighter. Kids had to see how many words they could make out of the letters provided.

Did you know that those kiddos made more words than ever before...probably because the letters were glowing? True story. So easy, and such an impact on student motivation.

By the way, I got the black lights on sale after Halloween at Party City. It might be a good time to go check that out!

Buddha Boards for the win

Pictured above is my sweet boy and his Buddha Board. Love this thing for home life and school life! It’s simply WATER and a paint brush. When you write in the “magic” board, the water shows up black. Within minutes it dries and erases itself. 

Perfect for a mess-free activity with toddler who desperately want to paint or a word work station in your classroom!

This board was $30 from Amazon, but there are plenty of price point. You can even purchase the paper separate from the board. I totally recommend it!