How to Use the Play Planner: Click to download the planner as a PDF. The PDF file includes live links to individual posts that will provide you with more information on each activity. Hover over the activity of your choice and then click the link. Alternatively bookmark this page on your phone or tablet to...
Teach children about respect, honesty, and gratitude at school and in the classroom with these social-emotional learning lessons and hands-on activities for kids.
Are you ready for the month of March? We are all geared up for some fun learning this month! Our March NO PREP packets are done and we are ready to go!
Loving, Learning, Living
Hi, Teaching Friends! Teaching the sequence of the months of the year can be done with lots of group chanting. But why not have some extra fun with it? Here’s a set of ideas (and some printables!) to add some new variety to your teaching of the months! Happy New Year, and Happy Teaching, too! ... Read More about January, February, March, April … Teaching the Months of the Year
Are you ready for the month of March? We are all geared up for some fun learning this month! Our March NO PREP packets are done and we are ready to go!
Song Index
I hope you’re still in the middle of your Christmas vacation like we are! Here is our preschool plan for January 2012. We’re continuing on with letter N which is perfect for the New Year and all those numbers on our new calendars. You can find more details on any of the activities included by clicking on the letter categories in the sidebar. If you download this preschool plan, I’d love it if you’d leave a comment letting me know if they’re helpful to you! To download: Click on the calendar below. Click on “Print” icon (at the top left) You can also find each month over in the right sidebar. Feel free to email with any questions! Happy 2012!
Teaching music with fun, tried & tested lessons, DIY classroom projects & ideas your students will love with Tracy King, the Bulletin Board Lady.
Are you ready for the month of March? We are all geared up for some fun learning this month! Our March NO PREP packets are done and we are ready to go!
This has been an ongoing project for a Month or so, after reading an interesting post by An Everyday Story on Reggio inspired learning ...
Are you ready for the month of March? We are all geared up for some fun learning this month! Our March NO PREP packets are done and we are ready to go!
The Bumper Book; A bumper crop of good stories and poems to grow on” Illustrated by Eulalie Edited by Watty Piper 1946
Welcome to the Windy Month of March!We recently tried a few challenges that all deal with using wind power! This was great fun in celebration of a new month, but these challenges can definitely be use
Blog about Easy and Fun Kid Art and Crafts Activities
You’re probably thinking…who’s Edward Elgar? Unless you were in your high school band, then you probably know him as the “Graduation March” guy. It’s true, his most notable work is the Pomp and Circumstance trio or “The Graduation March.” He also wrote several other well-known pieces that you will learn more about in this month’s …
Are you ready for the month of March? We are all geared up for some fun learning this month! Our March NO PREP packets are done and we are ready to go!
Are you ready for the month of March? We are all geared up for some fun learning this month! Our March NO PREP packets are done and we are ready to go!
Are you ready for the month of March? We are all geared up for some fun learning this month! Our March NO PREP packets are done and we are ready to go!
A twist on the traditional chatterbox or cootie catcher, perfect for revising sight words and early reading strategies, whilst also having a giggle.
Oh wow I am so excited for this month's Books Teacher's Love Post!! We are talking all things MARCH today! As you know from reading my previous posts, I love using meaningful activities relating to each monthly book I choose. This month I chose, Fiona's Lace by Patricia Polacco. O-M-G what an amazing book! It is […]
When I first began teaching 23 years ago (yikes!) I didn't keep track of song repertoire the way I do now. I also often felt pressed to sin...
I love to spend over two weeks in the month of March reading a different Dr. Seuss book to my students each day. After reading the Dr. Seuss book, I have my students complete fun activities that go with it! I like to begin my unit by talking about who Dr. Seuss was. I go through my "Who Was Dr. Seuss" Anchor Charts that I made! Here are just some of the Dr. Seuss activities we do after reading each book: Green Eggs and Ham After reading the book Green Eggs and Ham we used these charts to graph our responses to the following questions: Instead of making actual green eggs and ham I like to make these cookies that look like green eggs and ham. I don't show the cookies to the students until after they answer the anchor chart questions. They always think they will be eating actual green eggs and ham. They are always shocked and excited to see it is a cookie! LOL The Cat in the Hat I have my students use their picture to make themselves into Thing 1 and Thing 2! Mr. Cat Comes Back! I always love to read the Dr. Seuss book: The Cat in the Hat Comes Back the day after reading the original version. Here are some of the different activity pages I have my students complete after we read the book... Activity 1: Comparing the two stories using a Venn Diagram Activity 2: Writing Prompt: How would you remove the ring from the bathtub? Activity 3: Comprehension Crossword Puzzle Activity 4: Word Search Click HERE to download these activities! Feet, Feet, Feet! The Foot Book is one of my favorite Dr. Seuss books! There are so many great lessons and activities you can pair with this book! After reading The Foot Book to my students we cover antonyms, adjectives, non-standard/standard measurement, skip counting, etc! Here is a look into some of the fun activities we do... I like to teach a quick mini lesson on what antonyms are. We use the brain storm chart together as a class to think of words that are antonyms. I have the students complete the Antonym Foot Match worksheet as a quick assessment. For a fun antonym activity, I give each student a pair of feet with one word written on one of the feet. They have to think of the antonym to that word and write it on the other foot. Finally, they illustrate what each word means. I display the antonym feet on a large foot that I make out of butcher paper on my classroom door! I like to place these activity at my literacy centers... For this activity, the students match the pair of antonym feet! Here the students sort each flip flop depending on if it goes on the left or right foot. I also like to review adjectives with my students using The Foot Book. I like to slip in a quick review lesson on adjectives anytime I can since they can be so difficult for some first graders to understand! Here we review what an adjective is and brain storm adjectives that describe feet. We fill in the foot chart together as a class. Finally, I divide my students into small groups and give each group a copy of The Foot Book. They work together to find adjectives in the book. They record their answers on the worksheet. For a fun non-standard measurement activity I have each student trace and cut out their foot. They measure their foot using cubes, paper clips, and pennies. They record their answers on their worksheet! This is another great non-standard measurement activity. I place long strips of masking tape on the floor of my classroom. The students use their feet to measure the length of each line and record it on their worksheet. After everyone is finished we discuss what answers each student got and why everyone got different answers. Here is an example of a tape strip on the floor for the students to measure. After we discuss why everyone got different answers we then discuss the actual foot measurement on a ruler. I pass out a ruler to each student and they work together to measure each tape strip in actual feet for the second time around. When everyone is finished we share our answers and discuss why everyone got the same answers now. Here are some skip counting worksheets I like to place at my math centers. Click HERE to download these activities! Fox in Socks After reading the book, Fox in Socks we talk about what Synonyms are. The students write a pair of synonyms on their pair of socks and illustrate what the words mean. The Lorax After reading the book, The Lorax we go through these story element Truffula Trees as a class! Then, each student makes a poster on how they can take care of the Earth. One Graph, Two Graphs, Three Graphs, More! The Dr. Seuss book, One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish has so many great activities I like to pair it with...especially math activities! Here is a look into some of the fun activities we do with this book... After reading the book to the students we discuss/review what an antonym is. I reread the book to the students as they point out the antonyms they hear in the story. We add the words on our T-chart. I place this Fishing for Antonyms activity at one of my literacy centers. My students LOVE this antonym center activity! The fishing rod has a magnet on the end of it and the fish have brads in their eyes. The students use the fishing rod to "fish" for words that are antonyms! I have my students complete this antonym worksheet as a quick assessment on what they know. Here are two other literacy center activities I place at my centers during the week. For this activity the students play "Go Fish" for rhyming words. Here the students sort the fish depending on if they have a real or non-sense word written on them. I use Goldfish crackers for a lot of my activities. I place the Goldfish in snack sized Ziploc bags and staple the bag toppers on! My students complete different graphing activities with the Goldfish crackers. We learn and practice with Tally Graphs, Bar Graphs, and Picture Graphs! Each graphing activity just takes 10 Goldfish crackers! Tally Graph: Picture Graph: Bar Graph: Mixed Graphing Practice: Class Survey Graphing Activity: For this graphing activity the students get to taste a Goldfish cracker and a Swedish Fish. Then, the students go around and ask each classmate which snack they liked better. They tally the results and graph the data on a bar graph. Making Estimations: I set up two different estimation jars. One jar is filled with Goldfish crackers and the other is filled with Swedish Fish. The students guess how many fish are in each jar. The student that gets closest to the answer gets to have the snack to take home. Here is another estimation activity we do with Goldfish crackers. Measurement Activities: Not only do we use Goldfish crackers to graph...we also use them as a non-standard measurement tool. My students love making a fish out of their own hand. They use different measurement tools to measure the length of their hand/fish. Goldfish crackers are perfect for making patterns with too! :) For this fraction activity the students get ten Goldfish crackers. They write the fraction for each color. Here are some additional math activities: Click HERE to download these activities! Who Saves the Day? After reading the Dr. Seuss book, Horton Hears a Who! we discuss a couple character traits that Horton has. We fill in the chart together by listing the trait and the evidence in the story that made us think Horton had that trait. I also have my students complete the character trait bubble worksheet on their own. As a class, we also answer the Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How Questions about the story on the newspaper anchor chart. Finally, the students get to make these super cute crafts! For this craft and writing prompt the students pretend they are a Who and write what they would say to Horton in the speech bubble. For this craft and writing prompt the students fill in their name and a silly name of something they hear on their clover and write about it! I also have my students complete the following Venn Diagrams. Click HERE to download these activities! Up, Up, and Away We Go! After reading the Dr. Seuss book: Oh, the Places You'll Go! I have my students create a hot air balloon and suitcase craft. Each one has a writing prompt that the students answer and attach to their craft. For the hot air balloon craft the students pick one of the following writing prompts to write about.... Prompt #1: If I could go anywhere, I would want to go to... Prompt #2: If I could be anything when I grow up, I would want to be a... Underneath the hot air balloon is the student's writing. Using silly student pictures would be super cute! For the luggage craft, the students pick one of the following writing prompts to write about.... Prompt #1: Where I want to go...Why I want to go there...What I'm bringing with me... Prompt #2: Who I want to meet...Why I want to meet them...What I would bring them... The suitcase has a luggage tag with the student's name on it. The writing prompts are glued inside the suitcase! Click HERE to download these activities! The Alphabet Book Activities After reading Dr. Seuss's ABC Book to my students, I have them complete the following activities... Parts of Speech Word Search For this activity, the students look for nouns, verbs, adjectives, and Dr. Seuss's original words in the ABC Book. Class Alphabet Book I assign each student a letter. They think of a word that starts with that letter and fill in their page. Each student shares their page with the class as we add it to our class book! A through Z Scavenger Hunt The students walk around the classroom to find items that start with each letter of the alphabet. They write the word on their recording page. I always like to make this a challenge with my students. We like to see who can find the most words! Literacy Center Work I place this worksheet at a literacy center. The students think of their own letter and words to complete their page. The students also complete this letter match activity at their center. Click HERE to download these activities! There's Something in My Pocket! There's a Wocket in my Pocket! by Dr. Seuss is another one of my favorites! There are so many fun activities I like to pair with this book. Here is a look at some of them... After reading the book we think of as many words as we can that rhyme with the word pocket. We add them to our anchor chart. Then, I have my students create their own silly creature. They add their creature inside the t-shirt pocket. They name their creature so it rhymes with the word pocket. Finally, I have them write about their creature! I like to break my students up in small groups and give each group of students the There's a Wocket in my Pocket! book. They work as a group to find a pair of rhyming words. Then, they decide which word is a real word and which word is a made up word by the author. They write the words in the correct column on their page. Instead of using a pocket...here the girls in my class create a creature, name it, and add it to their locket. The boys in my class do the same, but for a rocket! For this activity I have my students create a creature and add it to an object of their choice. Then, they give their creature a name that rhymes with the object they placed it in. (Large Version) (Small Version) This activity is so much fun for the students! They secretly draw an object and add it to their pocket. Then, they write three clues. Each student will read their three clues to the class and see if their classmates can guess their object! (I created a small version of this craft to make it a 1 page craft.) I have my students create a class rhyming book. For this activity I give each student their own page. Each student creates a creature and completes their rhyming riddle. Each student shares their page with the class. I like to place these fun pocket sorts in my literacy centers for the week! Long/Short Vowel Word Sort Real Word/ Nonsense Word Sort Rhyme/Don't Rhyme Word Sort Click HERE to download these activities! MOO! MOO! Onomatopoeia Activities for YOU! The Dr. Seuss book: Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? is filled with lots of different onomatopoeias. I use this book as a fun way to teach a mini lesson on what an onomatopoeia is and to also review what a noun, verb, and adjective is. Before reading the book I teach a quick mini lesson on what an onomatopoeia is. After reading the book, I have the students give me some of the examples of the onomatopoeias they heard in the book. I list all their examples on our Brain Storm T-Chart. Then, as a class we complete the puzzle by matching the different sounds with what makes the sound. We then create an onomatopoeia class book where each student completes the writing prompt: I can go ____ like a/an _____. I have each student share their page when they are done and we add it to our class book! Finally, we review the different parts of speech and sort the words on each hat. I have each student complete this worksheet independently at their desk. Here is another chart I've made to review the different parts of speech. Click HERE to download these activities! To end our fun week of Dr. Seuss activities we eat these yummy hat cookies! I made the hat cookie cutter out of a large metal can. The can was shaped and the edges were sanded to make the hat cookie cutter!
This month we are focusing on the M2.1 expectation in mathematics which is compare and order two or more objects according to an appropriate measure (e.g. length, mass, area, temperature, capacity) and use measurement terms. This week we focused on temperature for 2 days. First I read this book "Hot or Cold" and talked about the hot and cold things we see in each picture. Then I asked the students to come up with something that is hot or cold (either from the book or their own idea) and we put them on this chart. We did 5 of each the first day and added 2 more for each column the second day. Then during centres students worked with an educator to complete this hot and cold t-chart. This was my example. (Sidenote: I'm loving these clear photo frames I got at Dollarama, they are great for displaying centre instructions, exemplars, mini anchor charts etc!) And here is some student work! Simple yet effective... exactly how I like it! Do you have any fun activities for comparing temperature? ___________________________________________________________________ Added 08.11.21: I now have a full non-standard measurement unit with lesson plans and printables! Click here or on the image below if you are interested in taking a look: I also now have a digital non-standard measurement unit! Click here or on the images below if you are interested in checking that one out:
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Happy Wednesday folks! Lindsay here . . . I cannot even believe that March is over halfway over. After finishing up conferences last wee...
If you have been following me for a while, you will know that I LOVE teaching young ones how to read, and the alphabet is where it all starts! Truly one
These math and literacy clip cards are perfect for kindergarten math this St. Patrick's Day and month of March! They work on tons of skills, and build up fine motor too!
Wind Experiments, Activities, and Book List March is the perfect month to do a learning unit on wind. Here are some suggested activities along with a book list. Can you see or capture wind? Have children look out the window or turn on a fan. Ask the children if they can see wind. How do […]
We’re back! After a short summer break, the Latin@s in Kid Lit crew is back to begin our third year online, celebrating children’s literature by/about/for Latin@s. In December 20…
Trumpet craft and jazz music lesson for preschoolers, kindergarten, or elementary kids, focusing on Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald. Great for Black History Month!
Multicultural Kids' Blog series is celebrating Women’s History Month, honoring the contributions and accomplishments of women around the world.
One of my favorite units to teach is Black History Month. I love to study about the contributions by famous African Americans. My students are always surprised by how many things they use that were invented by African Americans. Garrett Morgan invented the traffic light. Students will make a traffic light cookie. Parent note asking for supplies and teacher tips are included. After making the cookie students will write a "how to" on the paper above. Benjamin Banneker invented the Farmers Almanac. Set up a center with almanacs. Let students go on a scavenger hunt and answer the questions on the page above. P.B. Downing invented the first street letter box (mailbox). Combine Valentine's Day and Black History month by having your students make Valentine's Day mailboxes. A parent note asking for supplies is included. William Purvis invented the fountain pen. Depending on the age of your students, either let them use ink pens or fountain pens to write their spelling words or word wall words on the page above. Dr. George Grant invented the golf tee. Let your students practice their math facts by putting golf tees in playdough. There are different addition and subtraction worksheets included with this packet. George Crum invented the potato chip. Let your class have a crunch off! A parent note is included asking for different types of potato chips. Students will taste the different chips and then graph their favorite one. Dr. Daniel Hale Williams performed the first open heart surgery. Many school participate in the Heart Association's Jump Rope for Heart in February. Included is a jump rope rhyme. Your students will find the rhyming words. Then they will write their own jump rope rhyme on the template included with the packet. Click HERE if you'd like to visit my TPT store. I found some more resources that will enrich this unit. (click) (click) (click) (click) Garrett Morgan (video) Click HERE for the link. Benjamin Banneker (video) Click HERE for the link. George Crum (video) Click HERE for the link. Dr. Daniel Hale Williams (video) Click HERE for the link. I found some books that would enrich your Black History month unit. Click on the pictures below to read more about them.
Here are a few poems I plan to share with my kids this week for the month of March. Let's hope for no more snow!!! I am ready for spring! click here for March Poems
For the month of March, my students participated in a Rhythm Challenge. Each grade level first through fourth grade (my highest grade) competed against other classes in their grade level and were told there was a "surprise prize" at the end for the winning class. Students read and played rhythm cards appropriate to their level at the beginning of each class along to a rap track. Before reading each card, I would say in rhythm, "Ready go". If one or two mistakes were made on a card, I called it an oops and a forgiveness. If three or more mistakes were heard, I called time and that was the high score for the day. If anyone "fussed" at another student for making a mistake (long chat about how everyone makes mistakes) the class would lose 30 seconds from their score. Thankfully no one lost time off their score. Top score was 2 minutes, 30 seconds. I kept track on the board each week and after 4 weeks or 4 scores (whichever came first) we had winners. Then, the best part- the Surprise Prize - everyone was having a Glow in the Dark Music Party during their next music class! The winners would have the Party for the whole class and the others for half their class (half the class was regular music but would have games and other fun activities we don't do very often). It was a HUGE hit! I posted a video yesterday on my facebook page - @o for tuna orff, and show the setup and talk about activities. This would be a PERFECT end of the year music party! Then I realized I needed to make it a blog post! It truly has been one of the highlights of my year and while it takes some prep, is SO worth it!! I even did the Clap Clap song by the Klaxons with my youngest student so they could experience some of the fun. Of course, everyone loved getting to take a glow stick home with them! If you would like a pdf of this, please send me an email at [email protected]. Happy Glowing!
Are you ready for the month of March? We are all geared up for some fun learning this month! Our March NO PREP packets are done and we are ready to go!
Are you ready for the month of March? We are all geared up for some fun learning this month! Our March NO PREP packets are done and we are ready to go!
Are you ready for the month of March? We are all geared up for some fun learning this month! Our March NO PREP packets are done and we are ready to go!
