Five for Friday!

Happy Friday! I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs for her "Five for Friday" link up party. Here are five random things that happened in my classroom this week: 

1. BTF - it must be the new BFF! Don't know what it means? Check out number 2 below. 

2. BTF Explained - Seriously, aren't they the sweetest?! 

3. We've been studying the /ar/ phoneme in phonics. (I wish I could include the sound instead of just typing it - just say it out loud like a pirate to get the full effect!) We had so much fun making up pirate riddles and speaking like pirates - major emphasis on the "AR!" Some students brought in eye patches to add to the pirate themed fun. I love having them make up their own riddles because it forces them to think about words that have the /ar/ sound. 

Here are a few riddles my students created:  

Q: How does a pirate get from place to place? 

A: he drives his car

Q: What is a pirate's favorite vegetable? 

A: an artichoke

Q: Where does a pirate buy his fruit? 

A: at the market

Q: What is a pirate's favorite animal? 

A: a shark

After making up several riddles, we made our /ar/ words walk the plank. I created the simple pirate template using the bottom of a Clorox wipe container. (Where's a compass when you need one?) Then, they had to brainstorm 15 words that have the /ar/ sound. I think they turned out pretty cute and I love how they are all unique - different words, smiles and one student chose to add waves to the bottom of his picture. A few parents told me their children have been making up pirate riddles all week!

4. Cupcakes! My incredible room mother brought in Kara's Cupcakes so the class could celebrate my birthday. They loved them! (And so did I...)

5. National Lutheran Schools Week! We had a great time celebrating this week. You can read my post about specific activities here. Some highlights included - an all school sing along, a visit from the San Francisco Zoo Mobile, skyping with a 2nd grade class in Michigan, relay races and popsicles outside (it's January in California!), a Veggie Tales movie in the gym and perhaps their most favorite part of the week - they didn't have to wear their school uniforms! 

LCMS

What a fun week in 2nd grade and here's to a fun weekend ahead - Go 49ers! Speaking of football - head over to 2nd Grade Shenanigans for some cute football inspired lessons. Her class predicted the Ravens to win - my class is cheering for the San Francisco 49ers. The city is already painted red!