Happy Summer!!

I am SO excited that today is the official FIRST day of summer!! Even though it has clearly been summer in Phoenix for a while now. Luckily, my parents have a home in New Mexico, up in the mountains, where it is nice and cool. And THAT is where I am currently at. Sitting on the porch, in the wind. :)

Yesterday was what I like to call "summer school Friday," because we only go Monday - Thursday. It's great. My first Ooey Gooey science class {that consists of 3 kids, I might add} wanted to try out the Diet Coke and mentos experiment again because they thought they could get the bottle to launch like a rocket or something.. :) So I bought smaller bottles of Coke, and just got regular this time instead of diet {and HOPED that it would still work}. Lucky for me- it did. :)

Unfortunately for my students, it would not fly. Haha What they thought they would be able to do was hurry and put the mentos in, turn the bottle over, and have it shoot into the air like a rocket, but there was no time for any of that because right after the mentos hit the soda, it erupts {which I was real glad about.. :)}.

I hope you enjoy your first day of summer as much as I plan to! AND if you come back tomorrow, there may or may not be a post about homemade bouncy balls.. How enticing!! :)

Super Erb saves the day!!

Well look at me- here I am 2 days in a row. :)

Let me tell you, my summer school kiddos are awesome. They love the things we do in the classes, and they are so inventive!! We got a little off topic today and were talking about MY first name. It's so funny how intrigued they are that teachers have first names. I happen to have Katie's in two different classes and one of them thinks it's cool to call ME Katie. Meh- it's summer school, right?

So today's science project was LAVA LAMPS!! If you've made these before, then you know that A LOT of vegetable oil is needed. I emptied three bottles {24 students!!} and the little scientists panicked each time one ran out. But don't worry, this is where I got my NEW name- Super Erb. It caught on real fast as a new bottle of oil would appear as soon as another would run out. I'm ok if it sticks. Ha.

If you HAVEN'T made a homemade lava lamp before, you need just a few simple ingredients:

1 Clear, Plastic Water Bottle {We used the 15.9 oz variation. :) And took the label off for the full bubbly experience.}
1/3 C. Water {That's an approximate measurement, I just poured water out of the bottle until it looked good.}
1 Drop of Food Coloring {Drop this in after the water and swish the bottle to mix it into the water.}
1 1/2 C. Vegetable Oil {Also an approximate measurement, I just filled them almost to the top.}
A LOT of Alka-Seltzer

Since I had so many kids to get to AND we had money to buy summer school supplies with, I bought a few cases of water and just poured what they didn't need out and that way everyone had a clear bottle with a lid. :) Next, I gave 4 color choices and had the students go to the appointed corner for the color that they wanted and that really cut down on the time it took to get food color to everyone. Then, I walked around with the bottle of vegetable oil and poured some into each bottle. And last but not least, I quickly passed out a pack of Alka-Seltzer to each kiddo and instructed them to open the package and break each tablet in half- this gave them each 4 pieces.

On the count of three everyone put some Alka-Seltzer into their bottles and watched the magic happen!!

Make sure you have LOTS of Alka-Seltzer, because a few just WON'T be enough.

Also, if you REALLY want to impress the crowd, turn out the lights, put a flashlight under the bottle, and THEN add the Alka-Seltzer. Impressive. Haha :)

Well, I think that's all I've got for tonight! If you try this and find that something works better, PLEASE let me know!! :)

Ahhh!! and a little ooey gooey science!

Wellll, it's been about a week and I can't say I'm doing all too great at blogging.. ha. BUT, nevertheless, here I am. :)

First things first, I have 4 followers!! Wow! How does that even happen?? GRANTED, one of them is ME.. haha But it's still pretty awesome. I'm really excited about this whole blogging adventure!

Secondly, this summer {well, for the month of June} I am teaching enrichment summer school classes. Ooey Gooey Science and Itty Bitty Activity. Aka, fun summer school. I never dreamed that I would be such a master slime maker, but we've made A LOT over the last couple of weeks and both the kids and I LOVE it.

I found several different slime recipes on my quest for ooey gooey experiments, and this is what I found to work the best:

1/2 C. White Elmer's School Glue
1/2 C. Water
1 Drop of Food Coloring {"Oh, don't spill that! It will stain your skin.." "Oh great, now you tell me."}
2 TBSP Borax {Found in the laundry section of a store.. I got mine at Target :)}

We mushed all of the ingredients together in a quart size FREEZER bag {hopefully a little more spill/leak proof than non-freezer bags}, and then we went outside {food coloring & carpet- I've learned my lesson..}.

The kids LOVED it!! 1st - 5th grade. All of them. I mean, it's slime, who wouldn't?? Ha. :) 

I'm really excited that I'm such an expert now and that I can make some more with my class next year!! 

Well, tomorrow is Wednesday which means there are only 6 more days of summer school, and then it's SUMMER VACATION for me!! I can't wait! :)

Keep checking back for more fun science experiments/projects/activities {I can't decide what to call them..}!

Currently...

I love linky partys!! AND this is my very first one! Woot! I'm linking up with Oh' Boy 4th Grade with the June currently! I can't believe it's already June. I also can't believe that TOMORROW is June 12th. Wowwwy.

Now, it is YOUR turn!! How are you currently feeling?? Link it up!! :)

Welcome!

Hello!! My name is Katie and Erb Rhymes with Verb is my little blog dedicated to teaching and all of the adventures that come along with it! I am a seasoned blog-stalker, but am brand new to ACTUAL blogging!

I have taught for a year and a half now in both Kindergarten and 1st grade. I will be teaching 1st grade again this coming school year and I LOVE what I do! I love that teaching brings new adventures and learning experiences every single day and I look forward to sharing these adventures with you!