Image Map

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Monday Made It (a day late!): Kiss Your Brain

I’m currently enjoying a fabulous family reunion with my dad’s side of the family. We are staying in a gorgeous mansion that was originally built by Mr. Warren. My family is so large that we are occupying both the main house as well as the carriage house. Our days have been spent lounging on the beach, swimming in Lake Michigan, shopping and golfing while our nights begin with delicious dinners and end with games and bon fires on the beach. The house is located right on the lake with over 200 feet of beach frontage. The remote location of the house means cell phone and internet have been nonexistent, thus my tardiness in posting this week’s Made It Monday. I had to drive to a tiny grocery store on the side of Broken Arrow Highway where they are kind enough to let me briefly utilize their internet to post this.



Pinterest is full of different versions of the “Kiss Your Brain” container. When I went about creating my own little version, I wanted it to be something that I could quickly and inexpensively make.
My first stop was Hobby Lobby where I grabbed some scrapbook stickers in the shape of lips as well as colorful alphabet stickers. Then I headed to Target to buy a clear container as well as large bag of Hershey Kisses. All together I got the supplies for less than $20.
The creation of my “Kiss Your Brain” container took less than ten minutes! I simply put the letters on the container to spell out Kiss Your Brain and then added the lips. Finally, I put in a large bag of Hershey Kisses. I found that my container was actually large enough to house two of the Hershey Kiss party bags.

When school begins this coming year I plan to use the “Kiss Your Brain” container as a way to reinforce student participation. Over the years I have come to realize that positive reinforcement of some type encourages students to answer and more fully participate in class. What better way to provide that reinforcement than with chocolate! Plus, I love chocolate and find myself needing the occasional piece so my “Kiss Your Brain” container will surely be put to good use!

Once again I would like to thank Tara from 4th Grade Frolics for allowing me to link up with her for Monday Made It.

Monday, July 15, 2013

Monday Made It: Alaska Chill Out Spot


Have you ever had a student that just needed a moment to “chill out” so that he or she can refocus and turn their day around? I most definitely have had several students of this nature. I saw a post from Made In The Shade In Second Grade about an Alaska Chill Out Spot where she sends her kids when they need a moment to regroup. I took the idea and gave it my own personal twist.

I work at a school that teaches our students the 7 Habits so I knew I wanted to incorporate the Habits into some sort of a chill out spot. As a result I came up with a short poem which I printed on a sheet of dark t-shirt iron-on paper. I then ironed the poem onto a beach chair that I got really cheap at Target.
 

Next I printed another copy of the poem on paper and Mod Podged it onto the top of a container. This container will be stored underneath my Alaska Chill Out Spot chair. Inside of the box I will keep books that students can read while they chill out and regroup. All of the books will be books we have read together as a class and discussed how the 7 Habits are exemplified throughout the books.
 
 
Do you like my version of the Alaska Chill Out Spot? Hop on over to my Katie Can Resources TpT store and download it as a FREEBIE! J


 
Many thanks to Tara over at 4th Grade Frolics for allowing me to link up with her again for her Monday Made It. Take a few minutes to check out what other fabulous bloggers have made!


Monday, July 8, 2013

Monday Made It: Share Chair


I am very excited to link up with 4th Grade Frolics for the very first time for my Monday Made It post.




There are many different versions of the “Share Chair” that can be found on the internet. As I was talking with my friend and colleague, Renee, we decided we wanted to have Share Chairs in our classrooms this coming school year. However, we wanted to make the Share Chair special for each subject we teach.

Renee and I decided that the easiest way to change the chair for each subject we are teaching is to embroider on pieces of fabric the various names we came up with. Once we came up with the names to make the Share Chair special in relation to each subject, we then grabbed some fabric, ribbon, paint brushes and acrylic paint from the craft store. Then we picked up a pair of chairs from Goodwill.

Our first order of business was to sand and then prime our chairs. Once the primer was dry, we unleashed our creativity and literally spent a leisurely day painting.

Since the painting took an entire day and I had to head up north to Michigan for a wedding, Renee graciously volunteered to make the flaps that can be changed based upon the subject we are teaching. Our plan is to make a classroom job that has a student flipping the fabric to the subject we are sharing.
 
 
 
 
 

As you can see, this Monday Made It project took several days and some help from a fabulous friend. I think it was time well spent. Renee and I cannot wait to have our students use these Share Chairs this coming school year when they are sharing their work with the class!



Before I sign off for the night I want to ask you to take a moment to follow my blog on Bloglovin. Thanks! 

Sunday, July 7, 2013

Field Trip to the TOP of the Mackinac Bridge


Talk about a once in a lifetime experience!
 

This past Monday started out just like any other Monday during the summer. I was enjoying a cup of coffee and hanging out with one of my best friends and her family. Then the phone rang informing us that a relative, Steve, had arranged for us to have the opportunity to go to the top of the Mackinac Bridge. We quickly kicked our rears in gear and literally ran out the door. By ten-thirty in the morning we had crossed the Mackinac Bridge and pulled over to the Mackinac Bridge authority parking lot where we met up with Steve.

Our first order of business was to sign a liability waiver. Then we each donned a fashionable yellow vest and climbed aboard a Mackinac Bridge Authority van. Once inside the van we crossed the bridge back to the lower peninsula and then turned around and began to cross the bridge headed towards the upper peninsula. The northbound lane of the bridge had been shut down by the first main tower so that we could safely exit the van and enter the main tower.
 

After we exited the van, we split into two groups. Ross and I chose to be the first to head up with Steve, while Mamie and Wayne came up second.  It is certainly a good thing I went up first with Ross and Steve because if I had stood on the bridge under the tower very long and had the chance to truly contemplate how high we were about to go, I most likely would have chickened out had I been given the time to contemplate going 522 feet in the air. Did I mention I am afraid of heights?

We began our journey to the top by climbing through a small door and several portals to arrive at an elevator. The elevator literally only fit three people, squished back to front, so it was a rather cozy ride up. With no windows in the elevator, it was a relatively quick and uneventful ascension. Once the elevator went as high as it could go, we disembarked and awaited the rest of our group.
 

The last leg of our ascension consisted of climbing about 40 feet of ladder. In order to do so, we had to literally stretch our bodies into a vertical line – in other words, our arms were stretched high above our heads—so that we could maneuver through the small openings and up through the oval manhole at the top.
 

The view from the top of the Mackinac Bridge’s tower was simply breathtaking! We could see both the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan as well as Mackinac Island. Thankfully the wind was minimal, so we were able to enjoy the view and take advantage of magnificent photo ops while we were at the top of the tower.
 
 

This was a phenomenal opportunity to travel 522 feet in the air and take in the majestic Pure Michigan scenery. I learned some interesting tid bits about the Mackinac Bridge. For example, the Mackinac Bridge spans 5 miles to connect Michigan’s lower and upper peninsula thus making it the fourth longest suspension bridge in the world. The first time traffic flowed on the bridge was November 1, 1957. At the most, vehicles can travel at 45 miles per hour while crossing the bridge.


It was a beautiful day to take in the view from the TOP of the Mackinac Bridge!