• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Ericas Ed-Ventures

Primary Education Ideas

  • Home
  • Blog
  • Classroom Decor Inspiration
  • Teacher Style
  • Shop
  • Contact

Happy Hanukkah

Today we celebrated Hanukkah by creating dreidels with “dr” blends (blends are something we are studying in phonics) and taste tested latkes.  None of the students had ever tried latkes before and they really had a blast.  I actually had never had them up until eight years ago, when a parent of a Jewish student offered to bring them in.  I thought it was a fabulous idea and I have kept up the tradition ever since!

The cute owl clip art is by Pink Cat Studio. 

Click below to download the How We Like Our Latkes Graphing and Analyzing Data Activity for free from TpT. 

Filed Under: Hanukkah, Uncategorized

Previous Post: « It is OK to Laugh!
Next Post: Tis’ the Season to Shop! »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lisa Mattes

    December 12, 2012 at 1:12 am

    Super cute – thanks, Erica! When we've had latkes we get them from Trader Joes…not nearly as tasty as homemade, but much easier when making them for a whole class!
    Growing Firsties is having a giveaway!

  2. Kristen

    December 12, 2012 at 1:26 am

    This is so cool Erica!! Your kids must have had a blast 🙂

  3. Jill H

    December 12, 2012 at 2:11 am

    so yummy, I love taste tests. This is really cute! I was trying to explain how yummy latkes are to my kinders yesterday. No vote of confidence from my crew. I tried to share a link before, but my comment disappeared 🙁 google the video candlelight by the Maccabeats. It tells the story of Hanuakkah to the dynomite tune. It's my favorite every year! We have to watch it a few times to get over the "I know this song" talk and final get them to follow the words and the story. You will have it stuck in your head too – "I throw my Latkes in the air sometimes, singing ay-o spin the dreidel 🙂 enjoy!

  4. Jill H

    December 12, 2012 at 2:12 am

    ps CONGRATS on the toy winners

  5. martha brown

    December 12, 2012 at 2:33 am

    We did our graph! We had lots of fun making the latkes (I wish that I had made more — the kids LOVED them! It's funny how different my results were — in my class of 20, 8 of them liked them plain, then it was 4 each for the rest of the categories! My favourite way was with applesauce AND sour cream, LOL!
    Oh, and I just checked out that Maccabeats video — I can't wait to show that to the kids tomorrow!

  6. Sarah

    December 12, 2012 at 4:49 am

    Really cute! I had a parent come in the other day and teach the kiddos how to play dreidel. Great practice with equal shares!! I love the latke idea!

    Thanks!
    Sarah
    The Fabulous First Grade

Primary Sidebar

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Search

Categories

Subscribe via Email

Featured Products

Disclosure: This website/blog contains affiliate links.  What that means is that when you click on a link to a merchant and purchase something, I get a small percentage of the sale at no additional cost to you.

Footer

Latest on Instagram

📚 Back-to-school magic starts with the right read- 📚 Back-to-school magic starts with the right read-alouds!
These are my absolute favorite first-week books for building classroom community, easing those first-day jitters, and setting a positive tone from day one.
From Our Class is a Family, All Are Welcome, The Book of Rules, and so many more — these stories never miss.

Which one is a must-read in your classroom? Drop it in the comments and I will send you the links to my follow up activities!

#BackToSchool #ReadAlouds #picturebooks
These play-doh first day gifts are cute and practi These play-doh first day gifts are cute and practical!  The play-doh gives your students something fun to do while you are busy greeting students at the door.  Then once everyone is in, then you can unpack supplies as a class. 

Want the link to the FREE tags and to see what else I do on the first day?  Comment “first day” below and I will DM you the links!

#teacherhack #teacherfreebies #playdoh #teachersfollowteachers #backtoschool
How do you handle this situation? Do you put the How do you handle this situation?  Do you put the new student at the end of the alphabetical list or do you start over with a new one?
I know I am next for a new student (I have 24 kids and everyone else has 25), so I am holding off until the night before the first day.  I wish I could just wait but I like modeling where their bags and mail goes, both of which are set up using numbers.

True story: One year on the first day, I had a no show.  Then I was assigned a new student.  That student fit perfectly in the alphabetical order spot that was left.  I should have played the lottery or something.  What were the odds of that?!

#teacherproblems #teacherhumor #primaryteacher
5 things that are worth the money for your classro 5 things that are worth the money for your classroom!

1. A color printer.  We don’t have color printers at school and this has saved me from having to remember to print something at home. I brought in mine from home and then bought a new one for home. 
2. MacBookAir - This is my personal laptop.  I bring it home on weekends and holidays but for the most part I keep it at school.  I did need approval to get it on our district WiFi, which meant my phone could not also be on the WiFi.  There is a one device per teacher rule.
3. A lay-flat binder for my plan book, dismissal binder, and sub binder.  These save so much space and they are flexible. 
4. A laminator at school and a laminator at home.  It took me many years before I caved and bought another one but again, it saves me from remembering to laminate at home and I can also laminate during snack time and preps. Matte laminating is also worth the splurge.
5. My teacher toolbox! This toolbox has been with me for over 10 years, I just change out the labels to go with my decor theme.  Everything has a place and it keeps my desk organized.

Want the links?  Comment “links” below and I will DM you them. 

#classroommanagement #amazonfinds #classroom #teacherhacks #firstgradeteacher
✨Center time just got so much better! ✨ These 1st ✨Center time just got so much better! ✨
These 1st grade phonics-based literacy centers keep my students engaged, independent, and actually cheering when I say it’s center time. 🙌
Year-long skills that spiral and build (short vowels → digraphs → blends → vowel teams → multisyllabic words and more), primary lined recording sheets, supportive visuals, and activities that are easy to prep once and reuse all year.

Perfect for Science of Reading classrooms, Fundations® users, Daily 5, or anyone who wants structured, decodable practice while you pull small groups.

My students know exactly what to do… and I get to teach without interruptions. Win-win! 📚💛

Comment LINK if you want a full year of ready-to-go phonics centers and a free sample set!
#PhonicsCenters  #LiteracyCenters #FirstGradeTeacher  #Phonics #WordWork ReadingCenters
🌻Sunflower Classroom Decor Room Tour🌻 This was my 🌻Sunflower Classroom Decor Room Tour🌻

This was my room decor before the pastels.  It worked well to incorporate my old farmhouse items (my decor theme before that) and as a bonus it made my Ukrainian students smile (the sunflower is the national flower of the Ukrainian).

Do you want the links?  Comment “sunflower” below. 

#classroomdecor #tptcheckoutmyclassroom #firstgradeteacher
Teacher Tip: Sort and store your printables for th Teacher Tip: Sort and store your printables for the upcoming weeks in a file tray above drawers for the days of the week.  This helps to keep you organized for the weeks ahead.
Save and use leftover colored copies as dividers. This makes them less bulky, than if you had used binder clips.
When you near the end of the week, pull the papers from the tray and sort into the weekday drawers and centers.

Have questions?  Ask them below!

#classroomorganization #classroommanagement #teachertips #teacherhacks
Follow on Instagram

Copyright © 2026 · Website Design By Jumping Jax Designs