As seasonal living has become more of a priority in my life, I’ve come to see spring, summer, autumn and winter not as four, static, monoliths but a succession of mini seasons that blend and circle around each other.
I am so excited to share that first grade no prep packs are here! This resource makes it so easy to teach the first grade standards for math, reading, phonics and writing. No more searching for high quality, engaging worksheets and activities.. they are all here. Plus I am sharing thr
A simple Printable Spring Activity Set that kids will love. This is easy to prep, engaging for kids, and perfect on a rainy day.
I can't believe this school year is almost over! I have only 5 days of school left, Friday is our last day. I will miss my kiddos dearly but am super excited to start my summer vacation. Next school year will bring so many changes for me~~new partner teacher (SUPER excited!!), best friend coming back to teach at my school (YAHOO!!), my baby girl is starting 8th grade at another school (BOO HOO!), and 3rd grade will switch classes next year (SCARED!!)!! I will need the summer to get ready for my 27+ new students next year. I love planning over the summer and will need this summer to prepare for switching classes. Switching won't be so bad, I will teach religion to 2 classes. I am really happy about not teaching science and social studies too!! I always have a hard time fitting these 2 subjects in on a daily basis. My students have been really busy these last 2 weeks doing my favorite all-time writing assignment~~~My Favorite Summer Vacation! I just love this writing and really LOVE how the finished essays turn out. Check them out below. You can click (HERE) to download the sunglasses template. You need to make 2 copies and tape them together. See below!! This year I decided to give out Candy Awards. I literally ran all over town looking for each type of candy. I even had my honey helping me (He was so cute going from store to store!)! I had the hardest time finding Lifesavers (Who would believe that?!). You can download your own set of Candy Awards from Tunstall's Teaching Tidbits. I found these awards during the summer and have been saving them all year. Check them out below! I can't wait to share them with my students tomorrow!!! Here is just a taste of what the awards look like! They are precious!!!! Here is a fun project I did with my class last week. I found this idea on Pinterest and just HAD to try it with my class! Look at the pictures below and try to see the shape! I am in LOVE with this!!
FUN End of the Year Art Projects- It's the end of the year-go out having FUN! I know how it goes at the end of the year-your tired, the kids are tired...EVERYONE is ready for summer break! Go out with a bang with these super fun end of the year art projects!
A NO PREP art/language activity teachers can use any time. All you need is paper!
What are you teaching at the end of the year? "Make" memories with your students and keep them engaged up until the last day of school with STEM! Create a cereal box memory book to help students process the "last day blues", engineer an amazing treehouse, learn about the Chica
Our Kindergarten teachers approached me with a request for an art project for the back cover of their memory books. The kids have filled out pages in their memory books all year and they wanted a colorful back cover. I found a fun and easy way to make fingerprint art on the Frogs Snails and Puppy Dog Tails blog. Then, we used a great end of year poem by Helen H. Moore. We started by dripping water in pans of … Read more... →
I can't even believe May is almost here…. time flies in the spring! This might just be my favorite time of year to teach kindergarten.
Printable Caterpillar Template - Paper caterpillar craft activity for kids
If you are wondering what to pack for Tokyo, Japan then this post might be for you. This trip is for 10 days in Tokyo in March where the daytime highs can hit the mid to high teens, with both the morning and evenings dropping in temperature.
Of all the art and science projects that I have done, lemon and watercolor science has been my #1 fave for YEARS! Let's get started.
Fine motor activities are the perfect way to engage your students with interactive and educational activities. As a teacher we are always looking for fun and hands on ways to enhance your kindergarten students' fine motor skills and it's a bonus when you can also incorporate math. Spring Fine Motor Activities Pattern Block Mats Spring Pattern Blocks are an excellent tool for developing fine motor skills and teaching math concepts such as shapes, symmetry, and fractions. In this activity, children can use pattern blocks to create pictures and included are different ability levels. Students can build the pictures, identify the shapes and count how many of each shape is used in the picture. A great way to incorporate math and fine motor activities. Also included are small easy to store task cards that work well for morning work or early finishers. And also a design your own version, which can challenge your students and beneficial to your visual spacial leaners. I love these more opened ended tasks which are so great for differentiation. Students are able to come up with so many different ways to make the same picture. Snap Cube Activities Spring Snap Cube Activities are another hands on and engaging resource for teaching math concepts and developing fine motor skills in your classroom. In this activity, children can create different pictures using snap cubes, sort by color and count how many of each color. This does require counting up to 20 and is a great way to reinforce that kindergarten standard. You will also fine simple to build mats that are to scale for students and a great fine motor activity and does not involve counting. As well as small task cards and can really challenge students and are great to help develop visual spacial awareness. These are small and easy to store and a great activity to keep for morning bins or early finishers. Geoboard Activities Spring Geoboards are also a great tool for developing fine motor skills and teaching math concepts such as symmetry, shapes, and patterns. In this activity, children can use geoboards to create different spring shapes like butterflies, flowers, and and birdhouses. As an extension activity, students to practice identifying shapes they may see in a picture and record on the mats. Each picture includes both and simple and more difficult version with 10 different pictures included. The small geoboard task cards are included as a freebie at the end of this blog post. Spring Building Brick Activities Spring Building Bricks are another fun and engaging fine motor activities to use in your classroom. Your students will love using Legos or other building bricks to create spring themed pictures such as rainbows, ladybugs, butterflies and bird houses. Included are 10 different spring themed pictures with both small easy to store task cards as well as large to scale cards where students can simply build on the mat You can all of these activities in Spring Fine Motor Bundle which includes a variety of templates for Snap Cubes, Pattern Blocks, Building Bricks, Geoboard Boards, and Pom Poms at a 40% discount. Each set contains 10 different spring themed picture for your students to create. You can fine the Free Spring Geoboard Task Cards here
End-of-the-Year Free Printable Hat is here! Use this editable hat with your kindergarten and first grade students!
Negative leaf print by one of my second grade students earlier this year. Hey, guys! This post has been very popular on my blog...if you are interested in other leaf-y projects, look at my Leaf Relief project and my Pressed Leaf Project as well. Thanks! I don't know what it's like where you live, but here in Tennessee, we are experiencing spring-like weather. For the most part. I mean it did snow the last two Saturdays (and, in Tennessee, "snow" means just a few flakes and a couple of inches) but the other day it was 78 degrees. Crazy, right? For that reason, I've got touch of spring fever. You too? Well then you might enjoy this leafy printmaking project I did at the beginning of the year with my second graders. It's simple, scientific, beautiful and fun...okay, enough talking about me (!), on with the lesson. For this project, you'll need the following: gelatin, not Jell-o. Most grocery stores carry a brand called Knox which sells in boxes of 16 pouches. cookie sheets printmaking brayer, sold at most craft stores printing ink variety of leaves paper Print pulled from the same printing tray, this time the positive version. The night before you begin, you'll need to prepare your sheets of gelatin. To do that, bring about 3-4 cups of water to a boil. Once boiling, whisked one pouch of gelatin into the pot. You don't want any clumps of gelatin, so whisk like there's no tomorrow. You'll end up adding about 12-15 pouches of gelatin into that one pot. Sorry, I'm not into exact measurements. Which could explain a lot about my cooking. If there are any remaining unwhiskable clumps, remove them with a spoon. Pour mixture into a cookie sheet filling it about 1". Leave uncovered over night. If you see any bubbles in the cookie sheet, pop them or remove with a spoon. For my class of 20 students, I made three trays. Pulling the first print always managed to get oohhhh's and aahhhh's aplenty. The following day, we were ready to print. The surface of the gelatin was squishy yet very firm, perfect for holding our printing ink. I think I can explain this best in steps, so here you go: Using a brayer and printing ink, cover surface of gelatin in ink. Place leaves onto the ink-covered cookie sheet with the veiny side down. I don't recommend using anything with pine needles because that will puncture the gelatin. But experiment, you never know! Once leaves are in place, lay paper on top of cookie sheet and rub (er, we call it "massage") the paper. Pull paper off, as you see in the above photo, and viola! You have your first print! Notice how clear the gelatin looks. All of the ink that was once on the tray is now on the paper. I love her dainty fingers pulling up the second print. So sweet. Now for the second print: Gently remove all of the leaves from the tray. It's best to pull them out by the end of the stem. Place a new sheet of paper over the now-empty cookie sheet and rub. Pull second print which will be a positive image of the first. Looks like a black and white photo, don't you think? Once both prints have been pulled, re-ink the tray and begin the process all over again. With a class of 20 students and 3 pans of gelatin, about 10 kids were able to print per half an hour class. The pans of gelatin can last about two days with an endless amount of printing. I tried to cover the gelatin and keep it for a little longer, but condensation droplets created strange little craters on the surface. If left uncovered for too many days, it begins to dry and crack. For that reason, if you plan to do this project for longer than a couple of days, you'll just need to prepare more gelatin pans the night before. Our second go-round of printing involved using white ink on black paper. Just as pretty. This project is so easy and the results so stunning that everyone is successful. I've now had a couple of craft get-togethers and this is always a hit. Once those leaves start growing in your neck of the woods, I do hope you'll give it a shot! I love the photo negative quality of this print.
Six no prep activities to review 5th grade math at the end of 5th grade or at the beginning of 6th grade. The following topics are reviewed: Equivalent Fractions, Operations Practice, Order of Operations without exponents, Compare Decimals, Prime and Composite, Graphing in 1st Quadrant. This is perfect right before spring break, for the end of the year, or the beginning of 6th grade. All you need to do is print and copy. Answer keys are included. More 5th Grade Math Resources 5th Math STAAR Review Resources ***************************************************************************** Other End of Year/Beginning of Year Review Products End of Year Review BUNDLE End of the Year Middle School Math Review End of Year Review #2 ***************************************************************************** Blog Teaching in an Organized Mess *************************************************************************** Customer Tips: How to get TPT credit to use on future purchases: Please go to My Purchases page. Underneath the product name you'll see a Provide Feedback button. Click it and you'll be taken to a page where you can give a rating and leave a comment for the product. Every time you give feedback, TPT gives you feedback credits that will reduce the cost of future purchases. Thank you! Get updates about sales, discounts, freebies, and new products Look for the green star next to my store logo and click it to become a follower. Once you click, you will receive email updates about the store.
Awesome Spring Writing Prompts for First Grade. Narrative, Informative, and Opinion Writing organizers and draft pages included in fun spring themes.
I was introduced to this lesson by Claire Kirk & Katie Flowers. Both amazing artists and art educators I have had the honor of knowing and working with over the years. From observational drawin…
Asparagus Frittata is an easy recipe that involves eggs, herbs, and the spring vegetable! Enjoy this dish this spring and even all year round!
Looking for fun Weather Activities for Preschool? This set is packed with weather charts, activities, and weather worksheets you'll love.
Well, in my 14 years at Zamo we never had rain to contend with during our Celebration of Art festivities... until last night, that is. I must say, that although unusual for San Diego in July, the rain did not dampen the spirit of the event at all:) Attendance was robust and their were tons of smiles to brighten any gloom that drops from the sky may have brought. Again, our incredible classroom teachers and staff were amazing while leading 10 different activities for our community to participate in. Our PTF rocked ticket and food sales. Our administration hung tough in the wet silent auction area. We were visited by our School Board President, the San Diego County VAPA Coordinator, and this morning our SDUSD Superintendent stopped by too. I am so proud of what our kids accomplish every year. It's so great to be able to share the creative work of our students with our school community and VAPA decision makers at the district level and beyond. Thanks to everyone who lent a hand in making the event another great evening of art making and art appreciation! We couldn't do it without you. our school musicians kicking off the evening. rain! Superintendent Marten with Principal Murchison and Mrs. Liggins:) one proud dude! observing and reflecting by writing fan letters to student artists:) from left to right- Principal Derek Murchison, artist in residence Danielle Guimond, VP Robert Vera, School Board President Marne Foster, art teacher Melony Vance, SD County VAPA coordinator Russ Sperling, artist in residence Kathi Arinduque (and her grandson:), and me A peek at some of the hands on activities that kids could participate in. All of the projects below were done by classroom teachers with their classes. Each student is represented on campus in these class displays. kindergarten owls! 2nd grade scratch art! 2nd grade hot air balloons! 4th grade rotational symmetry! 5th grade self portraits! 3rd grade oil pastels! Here's a little video I put together after the event. I think the music suits the spirit of the night pretty well:)
Discover 23 stunning perennials that bloom spring to fall! From coneflowers to asters, find the perfect long-lasting blooms for your garden.
I can't even believe May is almost here…. time flies in the spring! This might just be my favorite time of year to teach kindergarten.
Don't miss these Adorable Kindergarten Worksheets for May. Get the math and literacy practice with the fun of flowers, bugs, and gardens.
Essential tips and advice for visiting Amsterdam in April written by an Amsterdam resident with weather in Amsterdam and key events in Amsterdam in April.
Free kindergarten worksheets and printables for homeschool & classroom teachers. We've created thousands of free kindergarten printable worksheets, game, activities, and more! You'll find kindergarten math worksheets, kindergarten reading worksheets, kindergarten writing worksheets and even a free kindergarten assessment!
Forest farm, spring year ?
This fun sunglasses craft is perfect for the end of the school year or the beginning of the year! The sunglasses template paired with all of these wri
I have done this lesson many times, but this year the results are better than ever before. This year, we had more time to do this project, and therefore their drawings had more detail. This lesson focuses on the concept of foreshortening. This is a hard concept for even experienced artists, so to make it simpler, we traced our hands and feet. The other details were drawn in after. I found the idea for this lesson years ago on the blog Oodles of Art. Over the years, I have adapted this lesson, and this year the results are amazing. I just LOVE these!
Students love creating cave art paintings! Lots of art materials are used for this layered project. I like to have my students create these projects at the beginning of the year to build their conf…
I love using interactive lapbooks in the classroom. They are fun to create, engaging and can be used throughout the year to review skills taught. I finally completely my Lapbook Bundle and I am happy to share the lapbooks included with you. Whether you think your learners will enjoy creating all of the lapbooks, if you
Grab these last day or school crowns to create simple hats to celebrate the last day of kindergarten with your students!
WHAT IS SUBITIZING? Subitizing is not a term that we use often, but it is an important mathematical concept that can greatly benefit student
If you need to beat the stress this year, then simplify your spooky holiday with a super simple minimalist Halloween costumes!
These animal puzzles are a fun way to give your students some hands-on practice at matching baby animal names to the adults.
