Santa Claus Is Coming To Town!

One of my favorite songs for the holiday season is

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town 

written by John Frederick Coots and Haven Gillespie

(and yes.....I had to look those names up!).
Glad to hear that.  Information like that
falls out of my head as soon as I hear it!

Whenever I think of old Christmas songs,

I think of Hugh Grant's character in

About A Boy.  
Playing the blonde card right now.
I have NO idea what you're referring to.
OK....if you haven't seen it you should go and rent it.  
It's a good movie....I linked the name to Amazon who should
really start sending ME some referral money--Hah!
It'll keep you entertained over the holidays.


Hopefully there are

some descendants who are still receiving

gratuities every time THIS song is played on the radio!

I really don't understand how all of that works...

but wouldn't that be COOL!???

The song can be found on youtube uploaded by buoreig.

Anyway, I LOVE this song sooo much,

that I want my 5 year olds to have fun singing it.

But since I'm not really their MUSIC teacher....

I'm their READING teacher....

I had to make it reading appropriate

for my Kindergarten class.
Of course you did!

BTW...there ARE sight words that

can be spotted within these words.

At a quick glance I found 23 of my

Kindergarten sight words (albeit they are repeated).

What better way to read,

than to write at the same time?

With cute pictures thrown in (even better)?

After all, reading and writing go hand in hand!

Yes they do my friend!

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town Handwriting Practice

 This is what I'm planning on doing....maybe you have a better idea?
Actually I do have an idea.
Our handwriting curriculum doesn't use dotted
letters but grayscale letters for the kids to trace.
Would it be possible to have these words in grayscale?
(Beggars can't be choosers though!
So no worries if  you can't make it that way.
Remind me that it's a FREEBIE and 
you get what you get and you don't throw a fit!)

Anyhoooo....I am copying these pages back to back and stapling,

so that there are only 2 pages per student.

 

 Then, I'm going to have red and green colored pencils for them

to trade off using on every other line...

they love doing that!

I'm going to let them actually color in the words "YOU" on this page.

  Here it is with modern manuscript.
At one point in my teaching career  I had to use this print
(hated it...sorry to modern print lovers),
but you do what the boss says, right?
So, I'm including it for any of you
out there that are using it...and I'm HOPING
that you LOVE  using this type of print,
and think it's the best thing since sliced bread!

 Ta-Dah! Merry Christmas, Angela!
...and all of you other teachers that use Handwriting Without Tears.
You thought I forgot!
I hope that this is what you're talking about!
I.love.you.!
You are all that and a bag of chips my friend!
The peeps in my building will LOVE this!
Thank you!

I decided to make a word wall
to accompany the handwriting sheets.
That way, we can all teach our students
the words before having them
practice writing them.

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town Word Wall

 I have to give you the option to print out in black and white
because if you're anything like me there may be days
when you just can't afford all of that extra color ink!
Just a teacher looking out for other teachers!

 I couldn't resist!
I HAD to make this cute coloring sheet!
Have your students color in the words to make it
"educational".  Great for a day that they are
making you absolutely bonkers, because they are just
ready for that Winter Break!
Maybe I'm the only one that has those days....but I don't think so!
Look deep into any Kindergarten teacher's eyes
the last week of school before Winter Break,
and the face may say "Calm"
but the eyes say:
"HELTER SKELTER!"

The next few things I'm showing you are for sale on TPT....

I'm just showing you so that you know what I'm up to.
Busy girl!

Santa Claus CVC Words: 
Nonsense Words And Real Words Sorting Activity

What an absolutely adorable way
to do this activity!
I'm so glad we're friends.
Do you think your creativity will ever wear off on me?
Not so much?

WARNING:
Nonsense words are a confusing concept...so
if you don't have to teach your kids
how to read nonsense words (lucky you!),
you may not want to do this activity.
Someone rated one of my nonsense words activities
a little lower than a 4 star,
because she said the concept
was confusing to the kids.
Well......yeah.....she's absolutely right!
It's confusing to grownups!
I agree!  I agree!  I agree!
It just HAPPENS to be a reading skill that I'm REQUIRED
to teach my students whether I like it or not,
so I'm just trying to make it a little more fun.
Ditto!  Our class just took the DIBELS test
and nonsense word fluency is on there.
The higher readers tend to do worse
on that test because it doesn't make a lick of sense!
Oh well, insert hoop.
Insert teacher jumping through it.
It is what it is.

After years of complaining about having to do this,
it  occurred to me one day that Dr. Seuss
made his career off of nonsense words....
so who's to say that they're useless?
However, he made it enjoyable.
Oh that's right, so are you!


Santa Claus CVC and Letter Reading Practice

Santa Claus Labels

A few weeks back I was making a 3 week projection plan.
Here's my December "3 week projection"


*AttaGirl Funnies by Angela Furgal AKA Fairy Funtastic*
If you see this pinned somewhere else...know that you saw it here first!

If you are wondering....I TYPICALLY don't plan that

far in advance.  In fact, I only do it while I'm kicking and screaming

and bemoaning the fact that I have to do it all ALL.
Seriously!  My lesson plans are in
my own shorthand.  I know what it means.
Isn't that enough?
My sub plans are INCREDIBLY detailed.
Like several pages long.
But we do sooo many things in Kindergarten
that you have to explain EVERYTHING.
Creating sub plans takes so long
that you start to wonder if it would just
be easier to come in not feeling well.
No, we don't do that.
But you think it as you're typing up the 3rd 
page of sub notes.

I work just fine on the fly.

My name IS Queen Chaos, remember?

This is a new thing that my principal has incorporated

at my school.  After having done it a few times now,

I have to say that it's kind of nice knowing in the back

of brain where I'm headed for the next few weeks

(but SHHHHHHH......don't EVER tell anyone I said that....

or I'll stop sharing my freebies with you!)

Ha!

So, as I was planning, and thinking about where

my kiddos are at and what they really need, and looking

at the HUGE Common Core State Standards that I have

made into clouds on one of my doors....I thought,

wouldn't it be nice to focus on the meat and potatoes 

for these last few weeks before Winter Break?

REALLY get my kids where they need to be before

they go off and forget everything I taught them in their 

two weeks off.  Or....if I'm thinking on the positive side...

I can teach them as much as I can, and then they can

go off and let it marinate for 2 weeks.

Hmmmmmmm.......

It's all about perspective sista!

So....to the basics, my friends!

Sight Words and CVC words.....let's knock them out!

I feel like I'm girding up for battle!
Let's get ready to rrrrrruuuuuummmmmmble!

I'm going to snowball them with sight words!

I'm going to rat-a-tat-tat them with CVC words!

They're not going to know what hit them!

They're ALL going to surrender to learning!

Yes! The willing, AND the unwilling!

The  compliant, AND the non-compliant!

Watch out kids, here I come!

You will NOT leave my classroom

a non-reader....

You will NOT think that reading is boring...

You will NOT think that you can't do it....

sorry, that's just not in my 

War Plans Against Illiteracy.

You WILL know all of your letters and sounds!

You WILL know every single one of your sight words! 

You WILL know how to read a CVC word with speed and accuracy!

You WILL pick up books (by choice)

....and (most importantly)...

You WILL learn to LOVE to read!

Girrrrl, I'm afraid of you!
Children, you've been warned.
Your teacher is determined!

I knew that I had finally passed the Good Mommy Test,

when one evening we all got home from school (and work)

and the entire neighborhood was without power.

We live in the South where air conditioning is a MUST, so

King Common Sense said, "5 minutes...pack it up! We're off to a hotel!"

Now, my 3 older kids having grown up  with their dad,

all went running like mad throwing things in bags.

They knew that the car would be started in exactly 5 minutes,

and they'd better be in it.  Enough said.

How I ended up with him, I have no idea....

let's just say that opposites attract!
Better yet, God has a sense of humor!

If it was left up to me....we would have all

slept in our skivvies with the windows open

(and DIED from the heat),

or at the very least taken at least 2 hours to pack.

15 minutes later we were riding in the elevator in a very

cool, air conditioned hotel...and I finally had a minute

to take stock of my 3 older kids (11-17 at the time).
ALL 3 of them had a rolling suitcase in 
one hand, a pillow tucked under an arm (never enough pillows in hotels),
and a big, fat novel clutched to their chests.
I looked at the baby's stroller (that I had prepared),
where my own book was tucked in with a bunch
of board books for the youngest.
That was the big moment that I knew....
I finally passed that imaginary Good Mommy Test,
or at least the Parenting Pop Quiz that was thrown at me!
Give her a round of applause ladies
and gentlemen!
My own kids LOVE to read!
When their father told them "Necessities ONLY"...
each one thought that a book was a "necessity".
Ahhhhhhh.....let me take a moment to revel in a good memory!
That is seriously awesome!

As a teacher,
my ultimate goal is to have my students
grow up LOVING to read....
not just knowing how to read.
True that sista!

I tell my parents at Parent Teacher Night,
that when their children are in
Middle School and High School....
I want their children pestering them
for a new book from
the library or ordered on-line
so that they can read at night before they go to sleep. 

After all, you never know where a good book will take you!
A book is a gift you get to
open again and again.

My favorite thing to do on cold, and rainy days
(no snow where I live)....
is to curl up with a cup of hot cocoa and a book.  
Now why is it still 82 degrees outside in the middle of December?

Come on, Santa....I've been good....

I've learned how to share....can't you make it snow?

Girrrl!  It's 20 degrees here....windchill makes
the 'real feel' -8.
Yah there's snow but if you go out
and enjoy it, you'll freeze!
Santa WAS good to you.
Hence the 82 degrees!
....but you're right.
You have learned to share really well.
Thanks for these great freebies!
You're welcome!

.......BUT..... 
Your best teaching plans can easily go awry
especially during this extremely exciting time of year...

...SO...

As a last  ditch effort at sanity during the Holidays....

teach your kids how to draw!

If you're using Common Core State Standards it lists

drawing in several of its standards.

What most people don't realize

unless they live 8 hours a day with these little guys....

is that most 5 year olds don't know how to draw.

Period.

So, I made some simple

drawing sheets for my students to use.

My kids SERIOUSLY enjoy learning

how to draw Christmas items...

they don't care if your drawing skills

are at the level of stick figures.

Anything YOU draw will be 100%

better than what they can draw,

so anyone can be an artiste extraordinaire

in the eyes of a 5 year old.

Trust me....go for it!

We all sit together.

Some students choose to sit at tables,

some on the carpet with clip boards,

some even lie down on their bellies while drawing.

If they're calm...

they can be drawing upside down

as far as I'm concerned. 

I talk them through the steps of drawing,

and we all draw together.

They use pencils to draw with me,

then they trace their pencil lines with a black marker,

and finally they can color with either crayons or colored pencils.

 I Can Draw Christmas! Blank Drawing Paper

This activity teaches them how to draw,

interests them,  entertains them,

keeps my class calm,

keeps me sane,

AND

hits:

Kindergarten Common Core State Standards

K.W.1  use drawings…

K.W.2  use drawings….

K.W.3  use drawings…

K.W.5 use pictures….

AAAAaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh......