Tuesday, April 30, 2013

And Here Are The Winners From My "Meet New Friends" Giveaway!

Congratulations to my new friends Kim McGuire and Breanne Simons!  I've sent you an email!

Thanks to all my new friends for entering and leaving such nice comments!  I appreciate all of you following me! 

I think my next giveaway should be, "The 100 Followers" Giveaway! I'll start it at 75 Followers and then we'll race to 100!  I'll be thinking about a great prize for that giveaway!

Any suggestions? 

Have a great day!!!
Kim

Monday, April 29, 2013

Here's Our Little Duckling! Finally Out Of The Shell!

Last night, our little duckling finally hatched!  It is really so sweet! We're coming to the end of our Spring hatchings and our tadpole observations!  The older, bigger chicken is getting too big for our classroom aquarium so hopefully she will be going to the farm to live this week. In the meantime, we'll enjoy our latest little duckling!


 

 
On Friday we're going on a field trip to learn about how a working farm runs, how animals survive in their habitats and how animal babies are like their parents.  It should be a great week!  Enjoy your week too!

Kim

Last Chance To Enter My Target Card Giveaway! Hurry!

We're coming down to the last few hours before my first giveaway will end!  You still have time to get in on the fun!  I appreciate that you have taken the time to enter and I hope you win!

Scroll down to enter! Yeah!!

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

The Chick in A-1!

Or Taaaaa -Daaaaa!
And here she is!  Adorable!  This chick is so cute!  I just want to carry her around in my pocket all day!  Of course, that won't work, but it sounds like lots of fun!
Thanks for checking in to follow the chicks in A-1!

Did you sign up for my Groovy Giveaway today? 
Did you get your extra entries in so that you can win one of the Target Cards?
There's still time!
Scroll Down To Enter Or To Get Extra Entries!





Thanks for visiting!
Enjoy every minute of your day!
Kim

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Our Newest Chick Has Arrived!

It seems that all I have been writing about lately are the chicks, but they are so stinkin' cute that I  can't resist!  So this newest one hatched out last night!  She is so very precious!  She's so fluffy and cute!  She was cheeping so loudly after school that I wasn't sure if she was cold or lonely, so I carried her around for a little while and she was completely silent!  She even dozed off for a few minutes!  It was adorable!  I'll have to post a few more pictures before we're finished with this project!

No name has been picked yet.  We'll probably decide on one tomorrow!

She stayed in the incubator for a little while this morning and for a few minutes this afternoon.  Now she's in an aquarium with a warming light attached. 
Watch for upcoming pictures this week to keep track of such a sweet little chick!


Thanks for checking out my blogspot!
I hope you're having a wonderful and very productive day!
Kim

Monday, April 22, 2013

EGG - CITING NEWS! The eggs are hatching tonight!

All the waiting is almost over!  Two of our classroom eggs are beginning to hatch!  The little chicks inside are trying to come out!  It is so sweet!  We're so excited!

Look!
 

 
 
 The newest little chicks are on the way!  I'll keep you posted on the lastest chick information!  I can't wait for the kiddies to see our new baby chick tomorrow!

Have a great night!
Kim
 
 


Sunday, April 21, 2013

Oh My! That Chick Is Getting Big!

Check out the Giveaway in my Blog!  I would love for you to win!!


Here's an update on my chick!  She's really getting big and she's getting her adult feathers already!
It's so interesting to observe her and my kiddies are really enjoying the time we have with her in the room!  The eggs in our incubator are scheduled to hatch this week.  Keep your fingers crossed that they'll hatch! 




 
This week we're going to learn about Earth Day, Earth's Oceans and Earth's Habitats!  We're also going to continue to learn about the sun, moon and stars! 
 
I hope you have a great week!  Thanks for visiting!
Kim
 
 

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Look What Else Is Hopping Around In Room A-1

Great news!  This week in Room A-1 we're learning about frogs, toads and tadpoles!  We still have our sweet little chicks, but we're adding these to the mix of animals in our classroom!



Aren't these just so beautiful?  They are, it's true!!  Thanks to Mr. S. at the High School for sending them over to us!  The kiddies are already so excited to see these!  If they start croaking in the room, I'll have to figure out a way to keep the kiddies on track and try to help them to not be distracted by them!  Any suggestions?


We will follow the frogs and our bullfrog tadpoles so that they kiddies can learn about and enjoy these sweet little frogs!





Here's a picture of our other fishy friend, Ernest Ray, the Beta fish.  He's pretty quiet, just likes to go along swimmingly. 

                                                               Ernest Ray, our fish

Spring is a busy time in our Kindergarten classroom!  Have a great week in yours!
Thanks for visiting!
Kim

The Hens Are Growing! Chicken Little Isn't So Little Anymore!

Those chicks are getting bigger every single day! It's been an exciting and interesting Science activity in our classroom! The boys and girls are very interested in observing the behaviors of the chicks including how the chicks feel about their new roost! It is really hilarious to watch the chick explore the cardboard "coop" we made and finally take a step inside! One of the chicks finished out the day by sitting on top of the box, just contently watching us!

The best part is that the kiddies are learning about animals and animal habitats! They are asking so many great questions that I know they are thinking and learning about animals. Life Science is great!

Wait until you see what else we have coming to Room A-1!







Tuesday, April 9, 2013

It's Time For A Little Giveaway!

Thanks for following my blogspot! Let's have a little fun! Enter to win one of these gift cards from Target! You can enter everyday! I hope you win! Thanks! Kim a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Need A Great Bread Recipe?

I was thinking that you might want the recipe for the bread we made in class!  It's really easy and it's an old family recipe!  It came from my Great Grandma and I use it all the time!

Grandma Hicks' White Cottage Bread
2 3/4 c. lukewarm water (about 110 degrees)
2 packages of active dry, quick rise yeast (You can use regular rise, but quick rise is great for school!)

Add:
2 Tablespoons Sugar (You can use Natural Sugar, Agave Nectar or Regular White Sugar)

Let the yeast bloom (about 10 minutes) and then add:
1 Tablespoon Salt (any kind)
3 Tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (or melted butter)

Mix.  Then add:
3 3/4 c. unbleached white flour

Add as much of the next flour as you need to make the dough smooth, elastic and not sticky.
3 c. unbleached white flour

Knead until smooth and elastic.  Place back in the bowl and brush with extra virgin olive oil.  Cover with plastic wrap and a towel.  Let rise in a warm, draft free place until double in size. 
When doubled, punch down, knead again and shape into 2 big loaves, 4 small loaves or about 24-36 rolls, depending on the size of each.

Cover and let rise again until doubled.
Bake in a preheated  350 degree oven for about 35-40 minutes (for big loaves) or 20-30 minutes for smaller loaves or rolls.  The bread is done when the crust is golden brown.  When tapped on top, it will sound hollow. 

Remove from the oven and remove from the bread pan and allow the bread to rest on it's side until cool. 

Enjoy!  I hope you love this as much as my kiddies did!  It is really yummy!
Thanks! 
Kim

We're All About Hens, Chicks and Bread Baking!

As you can see from our classroom pictures, the chicks are all the rage this week!  We've been reading all about chicks, all about hens, roosters and oviparous animals!  We have done a literature study on different versions of, "The Little Red Hen" stories.  We've done comparisons with the different versions, discussing characters, settings and plot.  To finish and wrap up our study, we decided that we should bake homemade bread!  So we did!  We discussed using our 5 Senses to help up with the activity.  The kiddies loved the smell of the yeast!  That surprised me!  They were so excited!  After mixing up the dough, we observed it rising and we observed it falling when I touched it to release the air.  They helped with kneading by making their own small "loaf" of bread!  My boys and girls were surprised that it took all day to make the bread!  This bread making activity was, for ALL my students, the first time they had ever made home made bread so I was really glad that they had the opportunity to participate.  Check out our great bread making activity!



 
 
 







 
These loaves of bread were so delicious!  Most of my kiddies ate all of their bread!  Some took home a little piece in a baggie for moms or dads to try! 
 
It was a great experience and the kiddies did it, "All by themselves!"
 
Enjoy the week!  It might be nice this week!  Warmer weather and only a chance of rain!
Outside recess, here we come!
Thanks!
Kim

It's A Hen Party! Chicks Are Peeping in A-1!

Back from Spring Break and chicks have come to our room!  We are studying oviparous animals and these chicks have stolen our hearts!  We have eggs in the incubator and chicks in the house!  They are so stinkin' adorable it's hard not to hold them all day and carry them around!  I do have to admit that the one named, Chicken Little-Cutie Pie is absolutely my favorite!  She is so sweet and she enjoys being held, so, I carry her around during the day, let her sit on my desk when I'm working and let her sit in my lap while I do my lesson planning!  The kiddies love her as much as I do!  They came up with names and then we voted on the 4 most popular!  "Chicken Little" and "Cutie Pie" were only separated by 1 vote, so the kiddies decided to let "Cutie Pie" be her last name. Okay with me!
When you look at the pictures you can see why she has this sweet little name!

Here's a picture of our classroom incubator!  It's a Brinsea Mini Advance Egg Incubator with an automatic egg turner.  It is an awesome incubator!  I love it!  I've been using it for 3 years now!


















Now can you see why there's a Hen Party going on in Room A-1!  They are beautiful!  They are just starting to get their feathers! 

I hope you're having a great week!  Are you having a Hen Party in your room too?  Let me know!
Thanks!
Kim