Monday Made It! 3 of 'em!

Linking up with Tara at 4th Grade Frolics for THREE Monday Made Its!!

Don't you just love when ideas randomly come together?? I've always wanted a Jumbo Checker Set from Cracker Barrel and my whole family knows this. At the end of the school year, my youngest son's teacher was cleaning out her classroom and she had one of these awesome sets to GET RID OF! So my son snagged it for me - isn't he the SWEETEST?!?!? Anyway, I thought it would be an awesome free time activity for the kiddos... UNTIL I saw FlapJack Educational Resources' post on Classroom Freebies... She made Jumbo Checkers Measurement Facts!! Her FREE printables focus on Common Core 4.MD.A.1 and 4.MD.A.2.

Since I'm in Texas and we don't do Common Core, I tweaked mine to fit our math TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills --- for those of you in Texas, 4.11.A is a Readiness skill)... Our students don't have to memorize conversions between standard and metric units because they are given a Math Conversion Chart. Our big push in measurement is knowing how these measurements apply to life... For example, what does a gallon/cm/ton LOOK like? So I adapted my checkers to question my kiddos on what I call "real life measurements". I also threw in the formulas for finding area, perimeter and volume.

All regular checkers rules apply, however to move, you must answer the question on the pawn you're moving. You can check to see if you're right by looking on the bottom... Incorrect? Lose a turn!

I printed my questions and answers onto regular copy paper, cut them out and modge podge'd them to the checkers. They crinkle a bit, but they do stick! Want a copy? Download for FREE HERE!

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Do you have jobs in your classroom?? I have classroom "managers". Last summer, I posted a Monday Made It where I explained WHY I use classroom managers, showed HOW I use classroom Managers and posted pics on WHAT it looks like in my classroom (see the post HERE). This year, I've made a downloadable version for YOUR classroom! 

You can purchase the pack in my TeachersPayTeachers Store HERE. The pack includes 21 manager positions (including "Managers on Vacation") and blank cards for you to create jobs in your own classroom. There is also a Classroom Manager Positions description sheet (so kiddos know what positions are available) and an application page (I make my kiddos apply for their jobs - be sure to check out why in my blog post from last summer!)

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One of my favorite things about summer is I have the time to hang out with family and friends. We had a party last weekend and I made Texas Caviar. It's a delicacy in Texas -- not really but it is delicious. 

Here's the recipe!

- 2 cans yellow corn

- 2 cans Rotel (I like the HOT version)

- 1 can of black beans

- 1 can of jalapeno pinto beans

- 1 red onion, chopped

- 4 cloves of garlic, chopped

- 1/2 package of taco seasoning (or more to your liking)

- splash of Italian dressing (as much as you like)

I like mixing all of this up the night before and letting the flavors get all yummy and delicious together. Then right before serving I add avocado! I usually use 3-4 depending on their size. Serve with Tortilla Chips! 

Hope you've enjoyed all of my Monday Made Its! They're all kind of Texas themed... YEEHAW!