We borrowed The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister last week, and just fell in love with it! Naturally, we had to come up with a craft to go along with such a wonderful story. This time, I asked the children what they thought would be fun to do and clay got a unanimous vote. There are amazon affiliate links in this post in case you want to find ...

Happy Mother's Day from the Beezy Teacher, teaching Kindergarten in Germany Take a look at these kinder-made 'mommies'  that are relaxing around our classroom! Look closely and you'll notice that they are clothed in pages of 'samples' from a wallpaper book.  At the heart of every cultural family is a mother whose words speak a universal ...

Well, we have a winner kids! The winner is Cheryl Saoud and one lucky friend!  I wish I had more certificates. If people realized how conferences help re-energize our love for teaching, they would make SURE we could attend these conferences EVERY year. They want us to bring up the standard of teaching? Well, FEED US! There is a book for ...

I discovered construction paper during my first year of teaching and I will never stop using it. We refer to it as scrap book paper or craft paper because at my school, that's what we use it for - art, craft, cutting, folding, gluing, etc. It's not only the students using it, I use it too! Why? Let me list the reasons: 1. ...

I discovered construction paper during my first year of teaching and I will never stop using it. We refer to it as scrap book paper or craft paper because at my school, that's what we use it for - art, craft, cutting, folding, gluing, etc. It's not only the students using it, I use it too! Why? Let me list the reasons: 1. ...

This is the time of year when everyone is wearing thin. Teachers are nervous about state testing. Kids are excited about summer break. Personally, I feel more frazzled now than I have all year long.  Here lately, each week seems to be a Monday to Friday battle.  I feel I spend countless hours preparing for my students' ...

APRIL SHOWERS BRING “MUD!” It is that time of the year when I watch the plants poke their little heads through the damp, cold, muddy earth.  Every child should have the chance to see this spring event.  They should be able to predict: what will happen as the flowers grow what color will they bewhat kind of flower is it (daisy, tulip, etc.)how ...

''Test Prep Fun?!''  Is that an oxymoron?! My kids and I have been working very hard to prepare for the CRCT.  We've worked hard all year long to master the content and now it's time to show what we know. I have many ideas and activities that I'm going to use for test prep,  but this one is more fun than the ...

Hello again and Happy Spring from Ayn at little illuminations!  We have been learning about weather in our class lately. Even though the calendar says Spring is here, it has still been unseasonably chilly in our area. We've talked a lot about the weather and how certain weather conditions happen. Our discussions have led to several science ...

Happy Saturday!!! I'm getting all packed up for Miami! I'm ready to get my toes in the water and my butt on the sand!  :)   I'm getting ready for Earth Day (Monday, April 22nd).   I've found several books: I also put some Earth Day freebies in my April newsletter. (click the pic ...