All About Ladybugs

I take pictures of my class All. The. Time.

We make a grade level slideshow and a classroom slideshow every year. So I take lots of pictures to include in both of those. If you want to make a classroom slideshow but don't know how, check out my six part series I made last year here.

So anyways, I was looking through my recent pictures and realized that there was a reoccurring theme...ladybugs!

The ladybugs weren't all planned out, they just happened. I guess when I think spring I think ladybugs.

So bring on the ladybugs!

First we read a nonfiction book about ladybugs. This was part of a bugs pack I purchased from Scholastic a few years ago. I love these nonfiction books for little learners because the pictures are nice and big and there's just the right amount of text.

Then we made a flipchart on the Promethean board where we listed things that ladybugs are, can, and have, based on what we read from the book.

Then they recorded one fact for each part onto their pages.

Obviously this little guy was thinking hard!

Then we made ladybugs.

I didn't provide a pattern for this one. I just showed them the general idea of how to cut and let them have at it.

I've come a long way and now love to let them cut their own art projects. We don't do it all the time, but when we do, I love how everyone's is different and unique.

While they made their ladybugs, I was showing step by step using my document camera.

I love that thing!

Then I stapled the fact pages to their art projects and hung them up on the blinds. If you've never seen my classroom, I have an entire wall of windows and blinds. I finally got smart a few years ago and starting hanging things on my blinds just like I would if there was a wall there.

It was really sunny, so the picture below is a bit dark. But I wanted to show what the ladybugs looked like when they were all hung up.

Then we practiced subtracting with ladybugs!

These work mats and counters are part of my Composing and Decomposing Numbers set. I just modified it to include a space for a subtraction sentence. I will be updating this set this summer to include the subtraction sentence. I absolutely LOVE this set. I used it when we were composing and decomposing numbers back in the fall, then I used it again to teach addition in January/February, and now I'm using it to practice subtraction in April.

I like to use these work mats in partners. I found this Peanut Butter and Jelly Partners idea from DeeDee Wills. I can't remember if it was on her blog or instagram, but I already had some PB and J clipart, so I whipped up my own page.

And I love it! It is so much easier to explain to my kids what to do when I say "Peanut Butter does this" instead of "Partner A or Partner 1 does this."

I can't remember if I talked about partners before, but their partners are actually elbow partners. I specifically place my kids at their tables so that they will have a partner beside them that they can work with. Typically my Peanut Butter will be my higher learner or my leader, and my Jelly will be my partner that needs a bit more support or might be a bit shy.

This page hangs on my wall. You can see my center chart to the left and our classroom schedule to the right. We do partners everyday, not necessarily as elaborate as work mats, but at least some kind of quick activity so they wont forget who their partner is and so that they can practice working together.

For this subtraction activity:

Peanut Butter was in charge of putting the ladybug counters on the left leaf. While Jelly was in charge of getting out a marker and eraser-sock.

Jelly wrote that we were starting with 10 ladybugs.

Then Peanut Butter moved some ladybugs to the right leaf.

Jelly counted the ladybugs that were moved and wrote the number in the second blank. Then Jelly counted how many ladybugs were left on the left leaf and wrote the answer in the blank.

We did these step by step together where I would call out the next direction for each partner.

Then we went around the room and Peanut Butter called out their subtraction sentence.

Peanut Butter then moved all the ladybugs back to the left leaf. Jelly erased the number sentence. And we switched roles and did it again.

Clean up is super easy with partners too!

Peanut Butter was in charge of wiping the numbers off the work mat and putting away the marker and sock.

Jelly was in charge of putting the ladybug counters back in the bags and bringing the bags and work mats to me.

Everyone had a job and clean up was quick and efficient.

They love these work mats. And I love to use them as a quick review at the beginning or end of the lesson.

Next up was my April bulletin board.

I found this super cute idea on Pinterest here.

First we read "The Very Grouchy Ladybug" by Eric Carle. I couldn't find my book, so I did a quick YouTube search and some guy read it to us. He was very animated.

Then I took a picture of each student showing me a grumpy face. To make the ladybugs, I cut the ladybug bodies, the kids cut the legs and antennas, and they finger painted the black spots.