I'm weird...and a freebie!

Today has been a lazy day - still in my pjs. Yup. That's me. We've all had naps (well, the 2 year old didn't take a long enough of one!) and watched football and movies all day. ha! Then, I realized it was Sunday. All the days are kind of running together now. With my not working right now and my husband doesn't have a 9-5, Monday through Friday kind of job, it's really easy to forget what day is what.

As I realized that it was Sunday night, I remembered that tomorrow all my friends are going back to work tomorrow (with kiddos). While I'm so excited that I get to stay home for a little bit longer (well, minus the fact that I won't be getting paid for 1/2 of my leave since I don't get ST disability - grrrr.), I must say I'm going to miss going to work. But I really could just sit and stare at my baby girl all day, making those cute sounds and movements...and snuggle up with her all day....newborns are the BEST to snuggle with.

I know. Call me crazy. I know I am.

I crave routine. Which is why I like being a teacher...lol. 90% of the time, our life is nothing but routines...we all know that we always get those interruptions and kinks thrown into our routines. lol. I think the routine cravings come from some of my OCD. Not that each day is the same...in fact, each day is SO different, which is also why I love teaching. lol.

And I'm kinda bummed I'm not going to be able to teach my kiddos. I know they are in good hands. My maternity sub is my senior intern that I had who just graduated in Dec. She knows my methods and my systems. So I know they won't  get destroyed while I'm gone (ahhh! Flashback from my first maternity leave - I came back and things were DISASTROUS!). And she's a pinterest addict, so I know she'll find some good activities to do with them...courtesy of y'all! :) But this stems from my controlling issues..lol. (Apparently, I have a lot of issues...lol. My mom and husband tell me that I have the perfect job because I get to be creative AND be the boss - ha!). But also, with all the fabulous activities that I've been finding from all of you...

BIG cheese moment, be forewarned....

Seriously. In my last 4 months of blogging, I have come to see a "whole new world" of teachers. You guys share some GREAT stuff! I've accumulated a lot of freebies, or purchased a lot of units (shhh! don't tell the hubby! ha!), or just shared some of your pix from your classes which get me inspired. I have been teaching for 9 years, taken COUNTLESS Title I workshops (that are actually really good!), am a National Board Certified Teacher, and I have my masters. And I am going to go out on a limb here and say that the best professional development I've had is blogging and blog stalking. And of course, all the encouragement that ya'll give each other is fabulous too.

Ok, now moving on to the math/science freebie..lol.

When I taught 3rd grade, each January, we would start our Measurement unit (well, I say start, even though I incorporated it throughout the year). My friend and I (we worked together for a few years in 3rd grade, and I must say, we were an awesome team! We complimented each other and helped each other with our "weaknesses." Oh...p.s...did you see Stephanie's blog post about writing using Strengths and Weaknesses?? SUPER CUTE!) would always do this activity, which combines math (measurement) with science (matter).  Sorry, that was a hodge-podge of a paragraph if I ever saw one! lol

ANYway...with this activity, the kids all bring in EXACTLY one cup of dry substance. And we measure each bag - and discuss our findings...how even though it's the same amount, the amount of mass of each item makes it weigh more-type thing...Now, you can do this in a few ways; whole group or small group. I've done both, depending on my kids. I won't give you my excel sheet because you may have your own units you want to use. We've used grams, ounces, or you can even use nonstandard units...like on a balance scale. I don't have any pix to show you of them in action, or of the finished product, sorry...that's what happens when I'm not at work! lol. 

Hope you can use it! 

If you like it, leave some love :)