Christmas Tree Math Craftivity (Number Combinations)



Hello Friends,
We have been talking about and practicing how to make different number combinations. I thought it would be fun for my students to create a Christmas tree using the same procedures as when we used red and yellow 2-sided counters.  The kids colored the ornaments with red and yellow oil crayons and then used green water paint for the tree. They added construction paper gifts and did the math story problem. Easy peasey! You can click the photo below for the words and Christmas tree.


The photo above shows 9 ornaments on the tree. I used the editable template included in this download to type the number 9. The colors are red and yellow on the editable sheet.






The template for the number ten with the ten ornaments on the tree is included in the download, too.


Until next time!

Blessings,



Fall Scarecrow Writing and Craft


Hello Friends,
Here is a fun scarecrow writing and craft that can be quickly and simply prepped for your students to do during these lovely days of fall.

This is a free resource in my TPT store. Here is what is included:




You can find this resource by clicking the image below! Happy Fall!

Until next time!
Blessings,







Pumpkin Life Cycle - Let's Make a Book in 3 different Ways!

Hello Friends,
It's October and that means learning about pumpkins! I have done these books with my students throughout the last few years and I thought that I would share you with you the different styles.

OPTION 1:
I wrote this original poem several years ago. It DEFINITELY is a shared reading activity. I read it to my little ones and we listen for rhyming words and as well as how the words describe how a pumpkin grows. When I have read the poem, we then go back to each part. My kiddos then use cut paper techniques to illustrate each stage in the life of a pumpkin. I give them templates to use if they become frustrated with the drawing and cutting.



OPTION 2:
The words in this book are written in a simpler, emergent reader style. We read the sentence together and then directions for how to illustrate the pages are given on each page.



OPTION 3:
Even those this option takes more time and teacher prep, this is my favorite book. I cut 12"x18" blue construction paper in half. My students glue the simple words to the top of the paper and illustrate the pages with cut paper. My students have tracers to create many of the shapes.


If you are interested in this pumpkin life cycle book packet, you can find it by clicking the image below.


https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Pumpkin-Life-Cycle-Lets-Make-a-Book-4112725
 Until next time!

Blessings,








Unpacking my Classroom and Making New Slip Covers for my Dramatic Play Chairs



Hello Friends,
It is July and time to start getting into my classroom and making it look like a classroom again. I am not sure about you, but I often find myself like Chevy Chase in the movie "Vacation" when he gets to the Grand Canyon and instead of enjoying the scene, he nods a few times, turns around, and then leaves. I FEEL LIKE THAT EVERY YEAR THE FIRST TIME THAT I WALK INTO MY CLASSROOM! I pump myself up to go and think of everything that I am going to get done. But when I get there, I stand in the middle of the room and become overwhelmed with the WORK and leave.... LOL..... That is where I was last week. I looked at THIS and walked out.... Sigh.....


BUT.... towards the end of the week, I started to slowly get back into my classroom and decided to try little things. One thing that I love doing in the summer is sewing. When I stayed long enough in my classroom to take note of what I needed to do, I looked at my dramatic play center. I noticed that the chairs looked a little drab. They were cute as a button when I purchased them 10 years ago! But as with all things (especially in a kindergarten classroom), they were losing their shine. It is hard to tell from this photo, but they were becoming discolored - especially in the area where those little bottoms sat every day... LOL....


 So, I decided to make new slip covers for them and they turned out great!


I followed this tutorial from "Interiors by Sarah Langtry." Sarah gave an excellent, easy to follow tutorial for making slip covers for my classroom POANG chair. A disclaimer... I didn't know that they were called  POANG chairs until I read Sarah's tutorial.... LOL.... Her chair is from IKEA, but I purchased my chair at our local grocery store about 10 years ago! It didn't matter, though, because I was able to take the measurements for MY chairs and use them to follow Sarah's tutorial.

Here is the "new" chair - I love it! My main classroom color is teal with accents of primary colors, so these slip covers will fit in perfectly with my color scheme.

Following Sarah's directions and making my own measurements gave me a really nice slip cover that will brighten up the dramatic play area..... when I finally get to creating it!


So that's it for now, my friends. As I slowly work towards returning my classroom to the place in which I want to spend so much of my week, I will share photos along the way.

Until then, I leave you with one last photo... This is from my garden... I love this photo because it shows that there is beauty in everything; even when it is not perfect.....

 Peace and blessings,



Two Alphabet Resources - Animal Alphabet Book with Editable pages and Matching Printable Posters

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Alphabet-Animal-Crafts-Lets-Make-a-Book-3222241


Hello Friends,
Summer has arrived and I once again have some time to revise and create some of the resources that I used in my classroom this past school year.

One activity that I use every year is the creation of an alphabet book. I have tried many different styles and ways to make the books. There has always been something that made it difficult for my students to use as a resource. A few years ago, I learned how to create editable pages and I have been hooked ever since! Because students are not cookie cutter kids, it is important to me that the academic activities in which my students participate be written to their skill level. On the other hand, I also feel that my students are five years old and despite the fact that they might be super readers, they still need reinforcement and joy in letter identification. So, being able to edit an alphabet page with appropriate skill levels as well as work on the same craft as every student in the classroom has been a perfect solution to this dilemma.

Here you can see that we are working on the letter B. All kids are making the same alphabet animal on their page, but the words have been written in different skill levels. I can do that because the alphabet page is editable - I love it!



This packet has been in my TPT store for a couple of years. I recently revised it. The previous version had a craft for each letter, but they were not all animals. It has been changed to include animals only. The other change I made was to add a classroom set of alphabet posters that matched the crafts. Kids, of course, can hear that the B sound in bear sounds like the B sound in bus, but it is just simpler to have my classroom line match the alphabet crafts. Plus, the kids get a kick out of looking ahead and telling me what animal they will be making this week for their book.

Here are photos of the alphabet line.....





Another challenge that I worked out was how to organize the student book pages. My students keep their books at school until we have completed every letter of the alphabet. I have used a 3-ring binder for many years, but punching all those holes and then repairing the holes that tore out of the binder drove me nuts. Instead, I asked parents to provide a pack of sheet protectors for their child. I stored them in the classroom and when the kids finished their alphabet page, it was inserted inside the page protector. I taught my students how to open and close the rings in their binder, so they were able to handle this all by themselves.



For teacher organization, I, too use a 3-ring binder. I insert the animal craft inside a sheet protector. Behind the example,  I insert the templates needed to create that animal.


Of course, many teachers (me included) do not like to give templates to their students to create every craft. If this is you, then my suggestion would be to have your students look for shapes in each animal and draw them upon the desired paper color. Cut the shapes out, assemble, and glue upon the alphabet page. I suggest that you show them an example first, though.

I usually give my students templates because the goal of this activity is not to create art; rather to create a representation of a beginning letter sound. The MAIN objective of this activity (for me) is to have my students read the words on the page and associate it with their illustration.



Even with patterns, kids can still get creative!




So, that's it for now, my friends. I DID write about this packet awhile ago, but with not as much detail. Plus, this packet has been revised, so I thought that I would share the updates. You can find both the Animal Crafts and the Animal Alphabet Line in my TPT store.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Alphabet-Animal-Crafts-Lets-Make-a-Book-3222241

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Alphabet-Line-Classroom-Posters-Animal-themed-4639148
Until next time!

Blessings,