The Legend of Jelly Bean and the Unbreakable Egg

 

The Legend of Jelly Bean and the Unbreakable Egg:  

A Holiday Hill Farm Book by Joe Trolano, illustrated by Susan Banta

 (DJ Inkers Clip Art)

I received this book from a friend and teaching colleague and I knew right away that it would be the perfect seasonal book for young children.

Here's a Peek Into the Story:

Five fluffy chicks peck, poke, and whack a friend who is not ready to hatch!  Much to their dismay, the unbreakable egg is collected by the farmer.  The chicks follow the farmer to rescue Chick Six, but not before falling into the Easter egg dye.  Finally, these colorful chicks receive a colorful surprise when the sixth chick Jelly Bean makes an appearance.  

Teamwork and kindness are the messages received from this great seasonal story!

My Preschoolers loved this story!  Here's a Look At What We Did:

Colorful Shape Inspired Egg Hunt

(Source for Geometric Shapes 10" Jumbo Designer Cut-Outs)

 (Source for Geometric Shapes 1" Mini Designer Cut-Outs)

Prior to the start of the lesson, I hid many plastic eggs.  The children found the eggs and opened each egg to reveal a small shape cut-out.  The children were asked to identify and sort these shapes and to place the egg in the colored buckets.

Jelly Bean Sorting With Our Very Own Jelly Bean Chicks

Each child received these cute plastic chick eggs full of jelly beans to sort and to eat!

(Jelly Bean Sorting Mat Source)

Jelly Bean Chick Art

These colorful chicks were made from coffee filters.

 

Ask K-2 students to write about their own unbreakable egg, complete a written retelling of the story, identify and explain their favorite part of the book, and make connections to self, text, or the real world.

 Click on the chick to download the writing paper and the math mind map.

Enjoy the download and have a great night!

The Biggest Kiss

 

 The Biggest Kiss by Joanna Walsh and Judi Abbot

What a fun read for Valentine's Week!

Find the penguin on each double page spread!

You'll have to read the book more than once just because it is fun!

Be sure to add your own kisses to the letter K!
My Preschoolers Loved This Book and Letter Project.

Better yet, smear on some lipstick and 

kiss the letter K!

 For K-2 Kiddos, have fun with narrative writing!

 
(click on the image above the download the pdf.)

Have a sweet week!

It's Almost Groundhog Day!

Happy Groundhog Day!

Fun Art Project

 Download the Writing Paper And a Poetry Page Below.

Happy <ALMOST> February!

A Book About Me

 

All of us have some type of student created booklet for the first week of school.  This type of simple activity is great to have on hand!  My old copy was in need of new clip art and a simpler font.  (This little project took a LOT longer to complete than I thought it would!)  If you are looking for a new "Book About Me" or just want to add this PDF to your collection, feel free to download it HERE.  I've include directions on the last page for teacher use.  Please remember to remove the "Directions To The Teacher" page before copying the booklet for classroom use.

Hope you are enjoying the summer!

Animal Groups and Animal Characteristics

My students love animals!  

So, to keep a sense of routine during these last few weeks of school, our morning have been filled with reading and writing activities for Animal Groups.  My students worked in small groups and with partners to read, write, and share all about animals and animal characteristics!

We started with this fabulous resource from Scholastic!

Students used graphic organizers and post-it notes to record their learning.  Then they worked with partners to write reports.

Here's a look at our reports.

"Facts About Mammals" featured a student designed cut and paste of their favorite mammal.

"Learning About Birds" featured a paper plate bird art project.

"Reptiles" featured an alligator or turtle shaped writing book with student generated facts.

Here's a look at an alligator shaped book.

Fun With Fish

 Students used a teacher prepared writing booklet to write on the topics of characteristics of fish, fish habitats, fish food, fish babies, and interesting fish facts.  (The student work in unedited in all of these photos.)

Here's a look at a few of the fish designed paper plate projects.

We read, studied, and wrote about Insects!  Here's a look at a report!

We also covered amphibians, but I guess I did not take a photo of those projects!  It's been a busy week!

We finish school on June 21!

Hope you are having a great month!

Ladybug Fun!

My, Oh My!  I've Been Busy!  Busy Testing!

Here's A Look At Just One of Our Reading Responses From This Past Week!

We Read The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle.

After reading The Grouchy Ladybug, we wrote about what makes us grouchy and why.  If you are in need of a smile, click on the photos below to enlarge the students' writings and read their responses.

Here's a simple art project that will keep your little "bugs" busy as bees!

Use an 8.5 in. x 11 in. piece of red construction paper for the body.  Demonstrate how to round the edges of the red paper.  Use an 8.5 in x 5.5 in. piece of black construction paper for the head.  Demonstrate how to round the edges of the black paper.  Glue the head on to the red paper.  To make the antennae, the children tucked two small pieces of black pipe cleaners behind the head.  Use another 8.5 in x 5.5 in. piece of black construction paper for the spots and the legs.  Attach google eyes with glue.  Add a "glitter glue" smile and let dry!


Enjoy,