12 days (more or less)
The older I get, the more fun I think I'm trying to squeeze out of the holiday season! Last year I joined some strangers across the country and did a virtual running challenge where I ran 12 5K's (not races, just 3 miles or more) between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It was really fun, encouraging and kept me active as I enjoyed treats from the teachers' lounge each of those days as well! This year I wanted to get my local running friends in spirit of things so I started a Mankato 12 5K's of Christmas group. I've got 57 people in the group, a handful of whom I don't even know because they were invited by friends that I invited to participate. It's very exciting, except for the fact that 2 weeks ago I was put on a running hold because of an injury, but hey....it's making me really actually want to run! Hoping my doc will say I can run again soon and I'll still be able to squeak out 12 5K's before Christmas!
Anyway, 12 5K's to 12 Days of Christmas in the Classroom! Starting today until our winter break, we'll be digging into one of these bags each day (except for the Polar Express: that one lasts 4 days!) to explore more about the theme of the day! Every day we'll read a picture book, sometimes a non-fiction text about the topic, practie a reading strategy, do some writing about the theme and sometimes do a craft! It's pretty exciting seeing these bags waiting to unveil the books and activities inside!
Today we read The Littlest Christmas Tree and discovered the little tree found joy in the simple things around it each and every day. The little tree also thought about all of the other things it could be when it grew bigger in case it was never picked to be a Christmas tree. The kids were able to retell the main events of the story in chronological order when we were finsihed reading. They also read about Christmas trees in the 1600's (they decorated with candles and apples!) and how many people decorate their trees today! They did an illustration of the differences!
grinch!
(not part of the 12 days, but awesome nonetheless!)
Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday this week we did a study of How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss. First, we read the book and the kids made a character map of Grinch's character traits, which were later written into a Character Sketch (paragraph) describing the Grinch. We also used the character traits to make a Wordle (see final pictures). Next, we watched the cartoon version of the movie and they compared and contrasted the book and movie (we found LOTS of similarities). Of course, we can't celebrate our Grinchy learning without having some green treats!
Grinch Punch (sherbert and Sprite)
Cheers to the Grinch having a positive change throughout the book
and having his heart grow 3 sizes on Christmas day!
and having his heart grow 3 sizes on Christmas day!
Finally, the kids were able to draw their own Grinch, as we went through a little step-by-step tutorial on drawing him! These turned out so amazing!