Compliment circles-creating a kind and respectful classroom. An easy activity that builds community and teaching students how to give and get compliments.
Your students are going to LOVE using this Then and Now sort printable! Perfect for social studies or as a creative writing prompt.
Are you looking for super fun measurement worksheets and activities for kindergarten?? You found them!! Your students will LOVE these hands-on learning activities and fun, extra practice worksheets that teach a variety of kindergarten measurement concepts.
So my awesome Peeps have put me in charge of sharing something meaningful with you this week! My class loves center time so I wanted to share just a little about how we rotate centers. This year I am going to split up my literacy & math centers. So I am only going to share about my literacy center rotation today. I have 8 literacy centers. Each child gets to go to 2 centers for 20 minutes each while I am pulling groups. I try to put a higher student or 2 with a lower student. That way if they need help there is usually someone there to help. Also when I pull groups according to reading levels there are still children in the center. I take their pictures on day 1 and print them to use for center groupings. The pictures are put up with sticky tack. So if we need a group swap it's easy to move them. The centers in the middle are on velcro. That way each morning I take the bottom center off and move all the centers down one spot then the groups get 2 new centers each day. How do you swap your centers around? Click below to go grab my center sign freebies. Don't forget to check back next week for a tip from one of my Peeps!
Printable Classroom helper signs can simplify your job as an educator by clearly defining roles and responsibilities for your students..
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.
You've tried everything to change your defiant child's behavior. Here are ten methods of dealing with defiance that don't backfire in the long term.
We all want to raise kind kids. When you ban these 15 surprising things, you will raise kinder kids, and have a kinder home.
These teacher hacks are brilliant ideas for your classroom that'll make your life so much easier this year. Number nine will change your life!
Looking for a fun kids summer printable craft to do with your kids? This Snorkel Diver Craft Printable is the perfect summer activity to do inside.
This is a Blank Face / Portrait Template Outline. -This is a face template for students to design- Can be used at beginning of the year or in an All About Me/ Star Student project.- Great time-saver in the classroom (kids won't spend time trying to draw the perfect shaped head, ears, etc) - Great in...
When life’s path takes a sharp turn and leads us
Make teaching about past vs. present in your kindergarten social studies lessons a breeze with these fun and engaging resources.
Knit this pullover with our downloadable pattern and our DK Sportweight yarn. This cute project originally included Paton's Astra, which had 133 yards per skein. Please note availability, and yardage may have changed. Includes sizes 2, 4, 6 in the pattern. Requires knitting needles sizes U.S. 3 (3.25 mm) and 6 (4 mm). Get creative and have a blast! This is a downloadable (nonpaper) pattern. For questions about yarn requirements, please contact us. After your purchase, you may download the pattern from your account.
Hi Teachers! If you’ve been following my blog, you may have seen recent posts about this new resource line, Interactive VocAppulary™! This resource is essentially an interactive vocabulary activity where students design apps for each vocabulary word for their themed Smartphone! What is unique about Interactive VocAPPulary™ is that it combines the use of
Strewing - a term coined by Sandra Dodd - means simply leaving interesting things out for your kids to discover on their own terms. A simple way to begin having a more learning filled home is to intentionally strew interesting things around. You could even have a designated table top that you use and change out regularly.Having a home that has an atmosphere of learning grows kids who learn all the time. If you enjoy planning ahead and organizing, you could have monthly themes, kind of like a deconstructed unit study. If you do this, I do recommend that you allow the kids to do what they like with the stuff, and not try to organize them. Let them explore on their own. Or, if you are a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants type, like me, change it up when you come across something neat you would like your kids to discover. You also do NOT have to use a designated table top. I leave new library books on the coffee table, put a board game by the fireplace, or even put the globe on the dinner table for a great dinner conversation. Here are some ideas to get your imagination going with the possibilities: Science:A microscope (old-school, non computer connected ones are my favorite), samples to observe like a dead fly, a cat's claw or whisker, snake skin, fabric, etc. Experiments - baking soda, vinegar, food coloring, oil, milk, corn starch, and lots of little containers for mixing Magnetism - magnets, magnetic and non-magnetic metal objects, iron shavings in a sealed baggie Birds - binoculars, bird book, feathers, a nest, an egg (from the fridge), bird seed, bird house kit Insects - magnifying glasses, books on insects, microscope, jar for collecting, paper, pencils Math: Numbers - abacus, calculator, dice, cards, some board games like Monopoly, Yahtzee and Battleship Shapes - pattern blocks, Jenga, Legos, Magna-Tiles, K-Nex, geometric solids Measuring - ruler, compass, protractor, tape measure, graph paper, string History:Family - old family photos, family tree worksheet, maps, any small family heirlooms (not breakable is best for littles) like a quilt, a silver cup, a hat, etc. World War I - photo of ancestor in uniform, bucket of army men, popsicle sticks for building, map of battle lines, Snoopy
Did you know that a clean classroom can impact learning and so much more? Read on for motivation and information on classroom decluttering!
I Am Thankful for Worksheet Free Printable. I am grateful page printable for kids or adults. Great Thanksgiving or Christmas holiday activity.
We all need encouragement. When the chips are down, one of these powerful, Florence Nightingale Quotes, could inspire you to take action and move forward.
ANT's are automatic negative thoughts that impact our thinking and beliefs about ourselves. Have students write various ANT's in the jar, then have them challenge each ANT with positive thinking outside the jar.
Kids will be WOWED with this hands-on, fall science experiment where they will explore Why do Leaves Change Color for kids! Fun Leaf Activity!
I have been really bad about posting my plans- It takes time to make them them cute and readable with all the links to the products I use, so today I'm just going to try it a different way. Read through- I have freebies for you! We start each day with Calendar Notebooks Then we have our school wide reading program- I'm given the materials to use, so nothing fun there to share. After our snack recess the work and fun being with Literacy centers. We do these 4 days a week. Letter of the Week: X Morning Literacy Centers: I will be using My X Book Sorting X Beginning Sounds and Computers Listening Center: A Pocket for Corduroy and Beginning and Ending Sound Sorts from my February No Pep Just Print Rainbow Writing the Letter X Doing only 1 center a day gives me time to work with a small group each day, reading with, assessing and reteaching. This week I will be assessing for report cards. We are currently reviewing skills so I am using a lot of work from my February pack of No Prep Just Print listed above. During Math and Literacy Stations I'm using my February Math and Literacy Centers I'm also introducing Shake-Spill-Count I can't wait for the kids to play these games. We will be starting off with 5 counters, use to teach the concept of how to play. Then we will work our way to 10. Clic the picture for a copy of this page. I will also be introducing my Word Families CVC Word Work at one of my Literacy stations. Click the page below to get a copy and try it out. I know my kids will be having fun using the stamps. Next week is our school wide literacy week, so I will be prepping for that too. I've set up a Math and Literacy Night for our students and families to enjoy and we have a guest author coming- Jonathan London- He writes all those fabulous Froggy Books. Want to see what other teachers are doing this week- head-on over to Mrs. Wills Kindergarten to see.
I learned this song from my KTIP mentor, Alicia Franklin, during my first year teaching. I introduce this song in kindergarten and we sing it everyday when we line up. I sing the first note as a fermata and hold it until every student is joining in and doing their job to line up. There are hand motions to accompany the song. On the first word "my", we raise our hands in the air (this makes it easy to see who is actually paying attention in line and ready to sing the song). Then, we do what the song says. Phrase 1: place hands back Phrase 2: exaggerate good posture Phrase 3: take 2 fingers, point at eyes then straight ahead Phrase 4: hands return behind back Phrase 5: zip lips, pretend to put in pocket, hands return behind back, mouth is closed When the kids get to 1st grade, the song only makes guest appearances when we need help remembering how to line up or when I want to see if they can apply the musical concept we just learned. Using the Song For Assessment Assess Tempo If we learned about tempo that day, we may choose a tempo (largo, moderato, allegro) and sing our song accordingly. They may also get to line up to a tempo. I may ask them to show me allegro feet, largo feet, or moderato feet to line up. Depending on how much time is left in class, I may do this individually or in small groups. If I do it individually, I usually take notes in my grade book for a performance assessment. Older students can watch the conductor and respond to accelerandos and ritardandos. Assess Dynamics If we learned about dynamics that day, we may choose a dynamic level for the entire song (piano, mezzopiano, mezzoforte, forte) or watch the conductor to see how the dynamic levels change throughout the song. Older students can usually remember a pattern to assign different dynamic levels to each phrase. Similar to the game discussed above, sometimes we can line up with piano feet (tiptoeing) or forte feet (stomping). Again, depending on the time remaining in class, this is either done individually or in small groups and is sometimes used as a performance assessment. Assess Melody If we learned about melodic direction that day, we may use our hand levels to show the melodic contour. (That's why I like the simple shape of this melody going upward then downward.) If we discussed pitch, we may sing it in a high key or a low key. Assess Harmony If we learned about minor harmony (Halloween), we may choose to change the song to minor and make it sound spooky. (All the kids LOVE this!) Assess Timbre If we discussed different types of voices (speaking, whisper, calling, singing), we may choose to use different voices to use throughout the entire song, or we may change our voices for each phrase. I also have voice cards that I can hold up and show the students what to change to. (View the next post for printable voice cards.) Assess Rhythm If we discussed rhythm (long and short sounds), we may sing the song exaggerating note lengths in tenuto or staccato style. If we discussed a fermata, we may choose one or two words to have a fermata and sing those words really long. Coda These are just a few examples of how I use our line up song for assessment. Sometimes, instead of telling them how to sing it, I let the kids pick a variation to sing. Again, I only sing it every time with kindergarten; and they never get tired of singing it. It only appears occasionally with older grades. It appears sometimes as a warning to those not ready for the hall: "Do we HAVE to revisit kindergarten and sing the line-up song?" Their behavior is quickly corrected. Many older students LOVE the line up song, as it brings nostalgia from kindergarten. Even if you have a line-up song already in place, you could probably use these assessment strategies with your song as well. I would love to hear other ideas to use line-up songs as assessment tools. If you have some more ideas, please comment below.
I am volunteering in the elementary classrooms every other week this year doing art projects with the students. Ashton is in 2nd, and ...
Have you ever tried to flip your classroom.
Open House Ideas {Fab Ideas from the Weekend Warriors} 5 comments Tips and Tricks, Weekend Warriors It's time for Weekend Warriors! I love our monthly link up. I really do! Our goal has always been to share great ideas with you, but we are always striving to make things better. Over the past month we've made some exciting changes to Weekend Warriors. First, we have a new look! Eek, don't you just love it? Another change we've made is to open up the linky! That's right, if you have a blog and some ideas to share that go with the current month's theme, then grab the buttons, post away, and link up! We'd love to check out your ideas! So, let's get started with this month's theme! This month, we are linking up to share our favorite Open House ideas, and more! We hope to share some fun ideas that you can use at your own Open House, or whatever annual nightly event your school might host. Warning, you are about to be photo bombed. My apologies in advance. But, I have lots of ideas to share with you. Each of which helped make our Open House a successful event. I truly hope you can take an idea or two away from this post! We recently had our Open House, so I thought it would be fun to take a peek at what we did. This year we spruced up the inside of our classroom by displaying new work on our bulletin board. It's always so nice to hang fresh work up for these kinds of events. The kids had a blast making this adorable display from Bright Concepts 4 Teachers. They wrote about why their future will be so bright. The parents loved this display! I kept our self-portraits up so the kids could play a guessing game with their families (you may recall from a few posts ago, that I never take this board down, or change it out). A few weeks ago, I removed the name tags that were on display with their artwork. With the names gone, the kids asked their families to figure out which portrait was theirs. It was a fun to watch this! If you're looking for a fun way to get students interacting with their families and their work, this is a simple way to do so. Just have your kiddos complete a self portrait, put them on display, and watch the fun unfold! Look for quick and easy projects to fill smaller spaces in your classroom. We put together this quick and easy little "board." This space is actually where I hang my anchor charts, but I didn't need those on display, I wanted student work on display. The students finished the prompt and colored their iPod. Easy peasy. You can grab a copy of this quick project here. Another idea is to spruce up your desks or table groups. That's exactly what we did! The students wrote letters to their parents thanking them for attending and noting the things they wanted their families to look at. We set these out with newly decorated name tags and bouquets of tissue flowers. I had the students hide their well loved name plates in their desks and they made new ones. I simply cut some white card stock into strips (2 1/2 inches by 8 1/2 inches) and wrote the students' names on each one. Then, they used colored pencils to decorate! This is my sample (and I really should have colored a bit darker...oops). I will be laminating their name tags so that they can use them as bookmarks. They are very excited about this! The finishing touch? We made some fun tissue paper flowers to set out at our table groups. Aren't they amazing? The following Monday, I sent them home with the students (they each took home a mini bouquet). My sweet colleague suggested this idea, and I am so glad she did! It made our room look super cute, the parents were really impressed, and the kids had a blast. And, they are super easy to make! To make these beauties, you need some tissue paper circles (I used 4 inch circles that I cut out on our die cut machine), pipe cleaners, and some "vases" (I used the small Mason jars). Fold one end of the pipe cleaner over (twice). Stick the opposite end through a mini stack of tissue circles (3-6 pieces). Gently slide the circles up to the folded end. Then, take your whole hand and scrunch the circles upward. Then, open the layers one at a time and rescrunch each one. Finally, trim the stems and stuff them into some Mason jars! Another fun idea is to set out any class books you might have. My students were so excited to show these to their families! Finally, to create a calm and welcoming environment, make it smell nice! I can't be trusted with a Scentsy, but I love the Air Wick plug in air freshener. I found a great tropical scent the other day and plugged it in. Our room not only looked great, but it smelled great! I realize this is soooo not necessary, but it's a nice touch. DON'T FORGET IT: PIN IT! Don't forget to visit these fabulous ladies to grab some more great ideas for Open House and more! And, if you've got some great Open House and More ideas to share, feel free to link up! An InLinkz Link-up Share It:
This FREE class about "free-flowing" centers will help you increase learning and save time with independent Pre-K & Kindergarten centers!
Science experiments for kids are big in our home. My kids love them—and so do I. While teaching Kindergarten, I made science experiments a priority. Kids are so naturally curious about the world around them, and science experiments bring this learning fully to life! This is my ABSOLUTE favorite science experiment of all time—oh yes,
Kindergarten homework made easy! Find a simple and effective way to do homework in kindergarten with these printable and editable homework calendars.
So I’ve been making lots of teasing comments about koi and kasuri lately, with a very good reason. This year, our annual quilt for The American School in Japan Gala fundraiser is a deep indig…
Second grade is the best! Look at how good they are... In this lesson, I used a PowerPoint from Ms. Brown's website http://www.mrsbrownart.com/2nd.htm which helped the students learn what Op Art is all about. They also learned about Complementary colors - if you stare at one color for a long time, sometimes you will see the opposite of that color when you stare into a blank space. So hopefully when you stare at their pictures for long enough, the shapes will start to disappear!
How to finally get your toddler to listen without having a mental breakdown.
