Sunday, December 8, 2013

It's feeling a lot like Christmas...

Hey friends! It's feeling a lot like Christmas - in my classroom, that is! It's certainly not outside. Boo. This girl needs a snow day...or 4! ha I've been flushing my ice cubes, sticking a spoon under my pillow, wearing my jammies inside out...ya know, the whole nine yards - - but no luck so far. I'll stay hopeful for January. Anyways, we are bringing the Christmas spirit indoors and engaging in lots of fun classroom activities. Here is a break down of what's going on. Our elf, Jingles, has been up to a lot this week. 
1. The Super Heroes were trying to protect us from Jingles the villain. 
2. Jingles made a snow angel (out of sprinkles)!
3. Jingles took a Hot Air Balloon ride.
4. Because every elf needs a sick day....

I'm having so much fun with this little guy. ha ha It's seriously ON when I have kiddos of my own. Onward to the ornament making. 
I try to make an ornament a day in December. I know, I know - I've lost my mind! But, in all seriousness, the parents love it and tell me (every year) how much they cherish them. Here are just a few we've made this week. The snowman to the far left is from Oriental Trading...but I found 2 dozen at a Garage Sale!! Score. In the middle, the classic popsicle reindeer. Love! And the snowman on the right is out of a toilet paper tube. We painted them and hot glued pom poms/pipe cleaner to make the ear muffs, then, my students added details. I'm pretty pleased with how they've turned out so far.
I'm also getting close to finishing the decorations to my classroom door. I always do a big scene outside, each year. For those of you wondering, the roof is white paper plates, and the border on the bottom is painted paper plates. Pretty easy and cheap! I'm pleased with the way it turned out. (Note: Thanks to my Dad for his help) Hope everyone has a great Sunday. I'll be back with some freebies this week. Stay tuned for more adventures from Jingles. 

Monday, December 2, 2013

Elf on the Shelf

Happy Monday, friends! I hope everyone had a great 1st day back from Thanksgiving break. I have 13 1/2 days left until Christmas break...but who is counting? There is seriously SO much to do and I am 12 kinds of stressed. Anyways, we kicked the day off right. Santa came to visit while my students were at lunch (wink, wink). He snuck in through the window and when he did, his hat got caught. Oopsie! He even left a few bells from his sleigh. 
I guess there must be a lot of snow in the North Pole, because there was snow everywhere!
Santa left an official letter, reindeer food, and Elf on the Shelf. My students were so excited and could hardly wait to read the book and learn all about their new Elf friend. We voted and decided to name our Elf, Jingles. But it was a toss up between Justin Bieber, Ryder, and Jake. ha ha If you do not do Elf on the Shelf, I highly recommend it  - it encourages great behavior and also gets students in the holiday spirit. 
Stay tuned for the adventures of Jingles. I have lots of things up my sleeve. If you are interested in some great Elf on the Shelf ideas, be sure to visit my Pinterest board. Just click the image below.