Open House and a New Blog!!

Mr. Whimsical and I returned from our trip to Kansas City yesterday right before my Open House, so needless to say, it has been a busy 24 hours!

At the aquarium

Boulevard Brewery :)

Sporting Kansas City soccer game

Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

Mr. Whimsical was such a trooper and was so helpful! Even though he drove the entire way back from Kansas City, he was still willing to come to my classroom and help me with finishing touches. He's such a great guy :)

Overall, I would say Open House was a HUGE success! I am so excited about all of my kiddos and parents! Out of 23 students, 10 of my students are new to our school--talk about crazy!

I added a couple of things to my Open House routine for my students, to make them feel welcome and keep them entertained while the parents and I talked.

1. My third graders from the 2011-2012 school year made crayons for the new students. I found a super cute cake mold from Target similar to the one below. We used my students leftover crayons for the year, and ended up having a lot of fun making these cute little presents! 
2. I also created a Classroom Scavenger Hunt to help my students become more familiar with our room and with the students in our room. I'm adding the scavenger hunt I used in my room as a Freebie. If nothing else, you will be able to use it as a reference for your own scavenger hunt! My kids really enjoyed doing this last night, and my students really got to know each other. SO exciting!

If you get a chance, I would love for you to check out my very best teacher friend's blog Sensational Seconds. I am very excited that she decided to start her own blog, and know that you will love it!! It's so hard starting a new blog (as I am still doing), so please stop by and show her some love!!

Hopefully I will find time to blog again soon, so I can share some fun lesson freebies. 

What do you have planned for open house? What fun activities do you do at the beginning of the year with your students?

Jillian