Ginger of a Week

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Only 5 more days left! Only 5 more days left!ย 
ย This is the line I keep repeating in my head as I am reaching for that bottle of Tylenol in my cupboard.ย 
Of those five days, only four are with kiddos. Yes, I have a PD day the last day before Holiday breakโ€ฆ (grumbleโ€ฆ)
ย This time of year really wears me down! But weโ€™ve been busy working through my gingerbread man unit and the kids are having a blast. Thatโ€™s what itโ€™s really about isnโ€™t it? ๐Ÿ™‚
I blogged earlier this week about our sampling/graphing of gingerbread and of course the overwhelming response was they LOVED it. ๐Ÿ™‚ย 
In addition to our reading of the โ€œtraditionalโ€ telling of the Gingerbread Man, we also read โ€œThe Gingerbread Girlโ€
(LOVE!)
This quickly became the โ€œmust readโ€ of the day.
We used the two stories to flex our compare and contrast muscles and worked together to find the similarities and the differences.ย 
Students filled out this chart from the pack and then shared it with a neighbor. We then glued it into our Reading Response Journals for future reference.ย 

Later in the week, as a culminating activity, I had students compare two of their favorite Gingerbread stories in teams of 4-5 students.ย 
Gingerbread books we had read this weekโ€ฆ
Each team choose a gingerbread book and took a moment to reread their chosen tale.ย 
ย (Reading finger! WOOT!)
ย (Trying to read like a teacher with some help from a friend! :))
(Wish this pic had sound! He was singing the Gingerbread Girlโ€™s little โ€œcatch phraseโ€! Fluency? Common Core? Check! Check!)
Once they finished rereading their story, each team received an โ€œAlike and Differentโ€ poster.
(Forgot to make these in advanceโ€ฆ so they are pretty simpleโ€ฆ)
Working together, they gave *at least* 3 similarities and 3 differences between their version and the classic retelling of โ€œThe Gingerbread Manโ€.ย 
(Donโ€™t worry, I reminded them about capitalizing proper nouns and story titles, but looks like we need another quick review lesson.)
Hereโ€™s a peek at some of their finished posters.

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Math time was just as sweet!
One afternoon, we used gingerbread boys and girls to measure items around the classroom.ย 

ย (Donโ€™t judge the teacherโ€™s desk! This is a real working classroom people! Not a Pinterest page!)ย 
Seriously? How cute is this girl?! <3!ย 
On Friday, we put our addition and budding subtraction skills to the test with creating a gingerbread house using items purchased from the โ€œSweetโ€™s Shopโ€.
You can use a mini milk carton and cover it with graham crackers, but Iโ€™ve found it more fun (and completely editable) to use spice flavored cupcakes and cover them with icing.
I gave each student a budget of $1 to spend on candy to decorate their โ€œhouseโ€.ย 
Using the price list
students filled out their order formsโ€ฆ
Before they could go โ€œbuyโ€ their candy with their dollar, I came around and checked their math. Great way to grab a snap shot of who is solid in their addition/subtraction with grouping!
Then, they got in line to make their purchases!
(Thank the lord for my amazing parent volunteer!)
Some pics of our finished cupcake houses!

Told you this activity involved one exhausted teacher! LOL!
All of this activities(and Oh so mcuh more!) can be found in my โ€œCanโ€™t Catch Me!โ€ Gingerbread Unit.ย 
Click the pic or here to check this out!
Now itโ€™s time for me to clean (UGH!) and get things ready for my little guyโ€™s FIRST birthday!
#wherehasthetimegone?!

ย 

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Hi, I'm Leigh.

The Applicious Teacher is all about creating hands-on and engaging lessons that align with the standards while still having time for your life. This is your place for ideas, tips, and resources for the REAL teacher!

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