1-2-3 Come Study 2D Shapes With Me Woo Hoo! I just finished the final packet in The Kissing Hand "triolgy". Technical issues had me nearly throwing my computer out the window. I'm sure some of you can relate with how frustrating it is when a glitch happens, causing a gnashing of teeth and ripping out of hair. Arggg! Any hoo, I have managed to peel myself off the ceiling and will endeavor to try and post this really cute Kissing Hand-inspired Shape Packet before something else happens. If you've read the adorable book The Kissing Hand, by Audrey Penn, then you're familiar with Chester, an anxious little raccoon. Since he is such an endearing character for children, I thought I'd incorporate him into some fun hands-on shape games & activities. The packet reviews the 2D shapes: circle, oval, square, rectangle, triangle, hexagon, pentagon, octagon, trapezoid, rhombus, star & heart, simply choose which ones you want your kiddos to learn. I've included a variety of activities including a trace & write mini booklet, several craftivities, shape word cards (with and without the shapes on them), as well as several shape games with different options for playing. There are also posters, pocket chart cards, a shape “slider” that’s a fun way to whole-group assess, plus a variety of worksheets; including a graph, & ones that review attributes and spatial directions. The two raccoon crafts are extremely versatile. Teachers can use them as anchor chart-posters, bulletin boards, a fun way to individually or whole-group assess, as a game or independent center activity! In the first raccoon shape craftivity, the eyes, nose and bows (for a girl raccoon) or bowties (for a boy raccoon) take on the various shapes. I've also made a student-one, where children just change the nose. In the next photo is "Bandit" wearing all the different shaped masks. You don’t have to use wiggle eyes, but I thought they added that finishing touch, and made the raccoon look more realistic. Not sure why the color looks sort of blue instead of gray like the others. Chalk it up to more cyber craziness beyond my ken. You can also use the bowties & bows from the other raccoon for more options for Bandit. Students could also place the pocket chart card with the shape name above or under the raccoon as a center activity. Review the various shapes as a whole group, by passing out the masks to your students. Show the word card, or ask for a shape. The child holding that mask comes up and places it on the raccoon. I used magnet dots on the back of Bandit to stick him to my whiteboard. I used Velcro dots on the masks. Once Bandit is wearing a shape mask, ask children what things he sees that are that shape. For example, he’s wearing the rectangle-eyed mask and sees a door, window, Kleenex box, book, piece of paper etc. To celebrate getting ready for back-to-school, this 65-page raccoon-themed packet is on sale for just $3.95. Click on the link to pop on over to my TpT shop to have a look. The packet matches The Kissing Hand Literacy packet & the "Where’s the Raccoon?" packet, which were featured in other blog articles this past week. If you're a follower, you know I always post a FREEBIE in each blog article. Today's is the shape slider from the packet. I've also included "slider strips" for upper & lowercase letters, numbers & skip counting. I hope you find it useful. Click on the link to grab it. As for me, I'm escaping for some much-needed sanity far away from my computer. Wishing you a stress-free day filled with giggles galore. "Do what you love; love what you do." -Unknown