Birthdays and Open House

Birthday Celebrations

I celebrated another candle blowing day this past week. It reminded me I haven't posted my ideas for celebrating birthdays with the students in my class. We usually begin the day with the students writing or decorating a "love note/birthday greeting" for the birthday boy or girl on a half sheet of colored paper--either construction paper or copy paper works. I have a little sign I put up that says, "Happy Birthday" and I write the birthday boy or girl's name under it. The birthday child decorates a white lunch bag for the container while the others are writing to them. All notes are placed in the bag for enjoying at home. At day's end we gather together and sing (with me it will be off key) and I read my greeting card and give them a small token present (which is merely a toilet paper tube with small birthday items inside and all wrapped up with birthday paper.) I usually make ten to a dozen of them up at a time after shopping the dollar stores for balloons, confetti, party blowers, noise makers, finger toys, small balls, tops, and other small items that will fit inside the tube. I portray it as a birthday in a tube and for them to not expect anything expensive or large. The fun part is the anticipation in waiting for it all day AND having to wait until they get home to open it (the confetti might make a mess anyway.) They are not allowed to tell anyone what is inside and I tell them each one has different items inside--which they usually do. On the outside I tape the small poem below:

A special child was born today,                    A special child was born today,
That's what his friends and teachers say.      That's what her friends and teachers say.
Happy Birthday, Friend.                                Happy Birthday, Friend.

The author is unknown and I usually make a page or so of them and have them cut apart to tape on the tube the day of the birthday (or the Monday or Friday before if the big day falls on a weekend.)

Below is a picture of some of the goodies for this year's tubes. 

Here is a completed tube ready for giving.

Open House

This past week included getting all DRA testing done, Open House, AND our first set of Progress Reports--with only 15 days of school to gather grades! I know I ate a couple of birthday cakes and certainly slept well at night--from sheer exhaustion. I was so pleased to have a nice turn-out for Open House. It's certainly a lot of work getting ready and when only 3 sets of parents show up, it's a little discouraging. However, this year I was even able to get my slide show presentation to work (with a little help from my sweet neighbor at school.) I'd love to share it but the pieces came from so many different places, I don't know about the freedom to do that. We've gotten our Daily 5 time up to 19 minutes and switched out our books twice. I introduced Word Work at my station but haven't had time to demo Spelling City on our iTouches. Next week's goal will be to train access to our Net Books...and that will mean I'll be making some favorites again. The Net Books were reimaged and all I had on them was wiped out in the process. I feel lucky to have these pieces of technology in my room though. 

May this next week be less eventful and may routines really become second nature with fewer reteachings and modelings.

Later,

Pam