tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72340249558521860142024-03-13T19:09:18.478-05:00Keen On KindergartenMeredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.comBlogger91125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-64388259497406929662013-08-25T21:00:00.004-05:002013-08-26T19:04:06.744-05:00First Week Math CentersMy kinders are off to a great start with our math centers! We have mainly been working on number recognition, counting objects, and patterning so far.<br />
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They have time for two math centers a day, and over the course of the week they have a chance to do all nine of the math centers with their partner. They get about 10 minutes for each math center.<br />
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I've been impressed that in just 7 days of school, they almost all know how to read our centers workboard to see which centers I've assigned them for that day. I'll try to snap a photo of our math centers shelf and workboard this week, in case anyone is interested.<br />
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Center 1: Making patterns with different colored bears. </div>
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Center 2: Making pictures with pattern blocks.</div>
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Center 3: Making numbers out of play-doh. You can download these free play-doh mats <a href="http://peacelovelearning.blogspot.com/2013/07/a-bunch-of-bradys-and-pair-of-freebies.html">here</a> from Peace, Love & Learning. I love how they even include ten frames for the kids to represent the number using little play-doh balls. </div>
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Center 4: Making numbers out of wikki stix.</div>
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Center 5: Cookie jar counting game. Students roll the dice, and then color in a cookie with that number of chocolate chips. You can download this freebie <a href="http://happyteacherhappykids.com/?s=cookie+jar">here</a>, from Happy Teacher, Happy Kids.</div>
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Center 6: Number puzzles. (I've built up a collection of different number puzzles from Target and the Dollar Store over the years. The kids especially like this foam one.)</div>
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Center 7: Race to Trace. Students roll the dice and then trace the number they rolled on their paper. It's a race to see who traces all of their numbers first. You can download this freebie <a href="http://www.kidscount1234.com/mathcentersandgames.html">here</a>, from Shari Sloane's website (lots of other great math games on this site too). </div>
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Center 8: Number Match. Student spin the number spinner and then cover up the box on their game board that shows that many items. My kids were trying to get 3 in a row for bingo. This is one of my freebies, and you can download it <a href="http://keenonkindergarten.blogspot.com/2011/08/looking-for-math-games.html">here</a>.</div>
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Center 9: Making patterns with Duplo blocks. You can download the free patterns <a href="http://www.geocities.com/thetoddlerhouse824/mathcenters.html">here</a>, along with some other great math games. </div>
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I'd love to know what kinds of math games you like to start the year with- I'm always looking for new games to try with my kinders!<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: transparent; border: 0 !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-83438377577729051002013-08-18T10:33:00.001-05:002013-08-18T10:33:43.441-05:00First Week of Kindergarten!Well...I survived my first week of school...although to be fair, the kids were only there for 2 days (and 2 days was quite enough!). <br />
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We had lots of fun on the first day, going on our gingerbread hunt all over the school. Of course we were thrilled when we figured out the clues and finally found our gingerbread cookie snack! We also read lots of gingerbread books, like: The Gingerbread Man, The Gingerbread Girl, The Gingerbread Cowboy, and The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School.<br />
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We jumped right in day one and started to learn our routines for literacy centers and math centers. It was a bit scary and chaotic for me, but I think it is better in the long run to just go ahead and get started learning some of our daily routines. They only went to each center for about 5 minutes (thats all we could handle!) but it did give me a few minutes to pull kids to my table and begin some one-on-one assesments for letters, sight words, and numbers. <br />
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All 20 of my kinders this year are just as cute as can be, but wow did they tire me out! After teaching half-day last year, it was quite a challenge to make it through a full day with them. By the time we got to afternoon rest time, I wanted to take a nap! No such luck though, as I had to police rest time instead! I know I will be focusing big time on rules, routines, and behavior all this week! <br />
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Be sure to check back later this week for pictures of our beginning of the year math and literacy centers! Hope you all have gotten off to a good start with your students!<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: transparent; border: 0 !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-66289219472864495472013-08-05T20:43:00.000-05:002013-08-05T21:00:25.019-05:00Monday Made ItI am so excited about my new sign! I had a picture frame that I used last year for the first day, but when I went to dig it out of my closet last week, some of the letters fell off from around the frame. So... I figured I better make something fresh for this year, and I thought a little sign would be even easier than a frame.<br />
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I plan to have each student hold the sign for a photo on the first day, and then I will give the photos to the parents at our curriculum night the second week of school.<br />
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Here are the supplies I used:<br />
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To make the sign, first I bought a wooden plaque (Hobby Lobby had them for only $2.99- Michaels was much more expensive). Then I spray painted primer onto the wooden plaque and let it dry (you might be able to skip this step, but I happened to already have a bottle of spray paint primer from some other projects I've done). Below is a picture of the plaques after they'd been sprayed with primer.<br />
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Then I painted the plaque with chalkboard paint, let it dry overnight, and then painted on a second coat of chalkboard paint in the morning. You could also buy chalkboard spray paint, but I just happened to buy a can of the chalkboard paint. Let the second coat dry really well for 3 days, then you have to rub a piece of white chalk all over the chalkboard to condition it and then you can wipe the board clean with a wet cloth and can begin to use it as a chalkboard (seemed strange, but the directions on the paint said to do this). I used some awesome chalk markers to write the message on my chalkboard.<br />
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After I wrote my message on the chalkboard with the chalk markers, I was pretty much done. Then the teacher part of me panicked that my students might accidentally rub some of the writing off the board when they held it for their photos, so I ended up spraying clear matte spray paint over the whole board to make the message permanent. This means it can no longer be used as a chalkboard unfortunately...so I think I am going to make another one just like it to use as a little chalkboard in the classroom.<br />
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I can't wait to check out what everyone else has been busy making for their classrooms!You can check out the whole "Monday Made It" linky party over at <a href="http://4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com/2013/08/monday-made-it-august-5.html">4th Grade Frolics</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: transparent; border: 0 !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-92161668032337604852013-07-31T09:28:00.001-05:002013-07-31T09:28:17.154-05:00Assessing Numbers 1-10I can't believe the first day of school is almost here! I'm starting to get organized for the first day, and thought I'd share a quick number assessment freebie. This is pretty basic- just the numbers 1-10, but lots of my students don't even come in knowing all of the numbers to ten.<br />
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I plan to test each student on the first day to see if they can identify the numerals 1-10, and also if they can count objects 1-10 and match them up with the correct number. I'll use these number and picture cards to help me assess the students. I'll quickly show the kiddos the number cards in mixed up order to see if they can name the numbers. Then I'll give them the number and picture cards and ask them to count the objects on each picture card and match it to the correct number card. <br />
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Feel free to click the images below and grab the <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BwI01U8_pZtrOWhOeUhJd1loT3c/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">number cards</a> or <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BwI01U8_pZtrRnVMTjJiQTBOVHc/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">recording sheet</a> if they'll help you! <br />
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I'd love to hear about your plans for assessing students on the first day. Even though I plan to test them all on letters and numbers, the first day can be hectic and it doesn't always get done!</div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: transparent; border: 0 !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-61747611523651856582013-07-15T16:44:00.000-05:002013-07-15T16:44:04.029-05:00What's NewOh my goodness- it has been way too long since I have blogged! I have missed you all and have lots of news to share.<br />
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First, I am thrilled to be on summer break and even more excited that I am about to head to Las Vegas for the I Teach K Conference! I hope that I will meet some of you fellow kinder teachers at the meetup tomorrow night! For those of you that aren't able to go to the conference, I'll do my
best to post lots of photos and write about all the neat new stuff I
learn in the workshops!<br />
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My next bit of news is that I finally made a facebook page for my blog. Now, I have no idea what I am doing here, but I would love it if you would like my facebook page (www.facebook.com/KeenOnKindergarten). I promise I will get my act together soon and figure out how to post some fan freebies to that facebook page! I should probably figure out how to make a facebook button for my blog too-anyone know of any awesome facebook tutorials for bloggers?<br />
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And finally, I am very happy that next year I will be returning to teaching full-day K. Teaching two sections of half-day kinder last year was absolutely exhausting-and probably one of the main reasons I didn't update my blog as much as I would've liked to. I am relieved that this year I will have only 20 students instead of the 40 students I had last year!! As I get back into my classroom in the next few weeks I'll be sure to keep you all posted on what I have planned for my new group of kinders!<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: transparent; border: 0 !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-2333417187492137092012-10-20T10:58:00.000-05:002012-10-20T10:58:34.610-05:00Fall crafts!My class has been loving fall! For the last few weeks we've been immersed in everything apples, autumn, and pumpkins. Here are some of the crafts we've made.<br />
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The fall trees were very easy-just torn paper for the grass, tree trunk, branches, and leaves. Then students told me something they like to do in the fall and we added the typed sentence to the bottom of the paper. I like how each tree really has its own personality!</div>
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The apples are probably my favorite craft though! I don't ever want to take them down from our classroom windows-they look so pretty! Just put an apple outline on some clear contact paper, have the kids fill it with tissue paper squares, then cover with another piece of clear contact paper and cut it out. Pretty quick and easy projects! </div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="border: 0px currentColor !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-61106404027134000202012-10-08T21:49:00.000-05:002012-10-08T21:49:51.519-05:00Teaching About Elections & VotingWith election day coming up next month, I have been planning ways to teach my kindergarten students about voting and elections. I think this is a very important topic to teach about-and I hope my kindergarteners will encourage their parents to vote.<br />
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We will be holding an election at my school for the kids (we use the Kids Voting program) so my students will get the opportunity to vote just like mom and dad. We're keeping it simple for the kindergarteners though-we'll only be voting for president, governor, and senator.<br />
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So, how do you explain a topic as complex as voting to kindergarteners? I plan to start with some great read alouds. Here are some of the books I will be reading and discussing with my class (you can click on the books for more info on them).<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1423139992/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1423139992&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=1423139992&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=keenonkinde-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1423139992" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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My favorite book about elections is "Grace for President." It is about a little girl named Grace who runs for school president. It's neat for the kids to see how the candidates make campiagn promises on how they would change their school if elected-and it always leads to a discussion on what we might want to improve in our school. Sometimes I have my kids write about what they would do if they were our school's president.<br />
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<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0689863772" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0689863772/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0689863772&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0689863772&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=keenonkinde-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0689863772" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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I also love the book "Duck for President." It is by Doreen Cronin, the same author as "Click Clack Moo." The illustrations are great and it gives a funny take on the election process. In the end, duck learns that being president really isn't all that fun-it's a lot of work! I saw an idea (on Pinterest I think) where kids write about which storybook character they would nominate for president-I might do this activity as a follow up to this book.</div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004JU1SEE/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004JU1SEE&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B004JU1SEE&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=keenonkinde-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B004JU1SEE" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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Rosemary Wells always writes great books-so I had to get this book she wrote about voting. In the book "Otto Runs For President" a little dog named Otto runs for school president. You get to see how sometimes in a campaign, the different candidates are not very nice to each other, and try to show one another up with campaign promises.</div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0807535443/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0807535443&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0807535443&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=keenonkinde-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0807535443" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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The book "If I Ran for President" explains what it is like to run for president in a way kids can understand. It briefly touches on things like the primaries, conventions, debates, and campaigning. It's told from the perspective of a kid who is imagining what it would be like to run for president.</div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0807535427/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0807535427&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0807535427&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=keenonkinde-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0807535427" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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The book "If I Were President" is also told from the perspective of a kid imagining what it would be like to become president. It highlights some of the perks of being president, like: having your own personal chef, getting to travel to different countries, and being famous. It also describes some of the work of being president too, like: going to meetings, giving speeches to congress, and being in charge of the military. Very kid friendly book!</div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0142411701/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0142411701&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0142411701&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=keenonkinde-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0142411701" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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This is a cute story told from the perspective of a kid who thinks his teacher should be president. He lists lots of funny reasons that she would be perfect for the job! This would be a good book to start a discussion about what the requirements are to become president and what might be some qualities of a good president. </div>
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Are you planning on doing anything fun to teach your class about elections and voting? If so, I would love to hear your ideas-I could use some more ideas for kindergarten appropriate voting lessons, activities, books, and crafts!<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="border: 0px currentColor !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-26031910352822725772012-10-07T15:00:00.001-05:002012-10-07T15:00:47.656-05:00Alphabet & Sight Word PracticeI hope your October is off to a good start! I am still in a bit of shock that it is already October and time to start thinking about report cards! I'm not ready for that at all! September went by so quickly, that I still have tons of photos that I never got around to posting and blogging about-I will try to get to that this week!<br />
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My kinder kiddos have been working super hard to learn all of the letters in the alphabet, and they love playing different alphabet games during our center time. We have also started working on our kindergarten sight words-and I am thankful that I can take my time with our sight words and just focus on one per week (we only have 26 required words-and I know plenty of schools have more than that!). <br />
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Here are some of the alphabet and word work activities we did last week during center time.<br />
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That would be the front to my heater that the kiddos are making words on. I lucked out that the heater is metal so the magnetic letters stick on perfectly! I just used some tape to make a little grid.</div>
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My students this year LOVE wikki stix. They have been practicing making letters and words out of the wikki stix. I have a special dry erase board designated for wikki stix only since it makes the board so sticky!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7UAm_GtXiztdGMgNWXXGvTRXj8_40_tNjdhALvrFcsTyK9BL4-o8MDoaZddPHziWNxYAVfx4TO4zCzu1fLTCGM1wGYl8EukawqjHK5oODUUoe69UAokFSzEUupTCoK8uppXGjWNQh7Ghv/s1600/roll+a+sight+word.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7UAm_GtXiztdGMgNWXXGvTRXj8_40_tNjdhALvrFcsTyK9BL4-o8MDoaZddPHziWNxYAVfx4TO4zCzu1fLTCGM1wGYl8EukawqjHK5oODUUoe69UAokFSzEUupTCoK8uppXGjWNQh7Ghv/s320/roll+a+sight+word.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I just adore this "Roll a Sight Word" game. It is so easy to play-just roll a dice and write down the corresponding word on the sheet. We play this all year long and the kids think it is a new game every time I switch which words are on the paper. To get this awesome freebie from Mrs. Parker, <a href="http://learningwithmrsparker.blogspot.com/2011/10/roll-sight-word.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</div>
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<a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Fall-Fun-Literacy-Games-Pack" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0MaROaBTf550JSdp9BdLiqo1Oei17ILfuF-2QA9xVqhj4HZrLggMsf2lKTYWTYhge10OrPYUBcYp1szuR5uxGPsP6GDp51WIJAYXq0HOH-c-q7b_eFiTMj6t1otwj9fMTOjAPyVfDf_a1/s320/sight+word+cards.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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My students are doing a great job practicing their sight words with these fun little cards. First they read the word at the top, then they build it with letter tiles, and finally they trace the word at the bottom and practicing writing it on the line. These sight word practice cards are a part of my <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Fall-Fun-Literacy-Games-Pack" target="_blank">Fall Fun: Literacy Games Pack</a>.</div>
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<a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Fall-Fun-Literacy-Games-Pack" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM-rWKMu39xxZ-LBiyIN8xx9Z-Q7kvbG75a7FrFXm6Wd5DGVAQkBZYB1pHgRXsEivrZiDqrUB3YtZ_HSCpu16Yfvkj_ZpyiI8e_IMznSH_XbGGO9EoxJtW-Bs9_Sq4izwQqUQ4kVAKtKqV/s320/board+game-+sight+words.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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This little sight word board game was a big hit last week with my students. So easy too-just roll the dice, move that many spaces, and say what word you landed on. This game (along with lots of other game boards) is also from my <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Fall-Fun-Literacy-Games-Pack" target="_blank">Fall Fun: Literacy Games Pack</a>.</div>
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<a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Fall-Fun-Literacy-Games-Pack" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqyYGyvBjbSbncFZHjeJYy8TlV7QYJ0FpjhP9q_8FbR0uqIZhANEA0eT1XAOi83gGXKKz9wgYw47irXfknlUw_dS7dLBKttbCA0QNJzFNq6O58T5Ek9GOsusZpwE5QYVYkm90vHi6dfWA/s320/board+game-+letters.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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We're still practicing letters too-so the kids also had the option to play the same board game, but with letters instead of sight words. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfwkU9dcEOSJWokXH_lnhIcxYle6UvR1Wwuw1lGpEHQuBvuIWcRHdkr0b6iNh2hbUveRYfurCcHrxuggbLFQXAq5Pr1kXjoG9pz-iq4xy7ySLuIF-n7Q8OD_4hyQ_fhJb3wLXDK6-CySeR/s1600/stamping.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfwkU9dcEOSJWokXH_lnhIcxYle6UvR1Wwuw1lGpEHQuBvuIWcRHdkr0b6iNh2hbUveRYfurCcHrxuggbLFQXAq5Pr1kXjoG9pz-iq4xy7ySLuIF-n7Q8OD_4hyQ_fhJb3wLXDK6-CySeR/s320/stamping.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Yes, I am a brave teacher-our stamping center is open for business! My students have been practicing stamping the alphabet with these wonderful free alphabet stamping pages from Shannon at <a href="http://kinder-pond.blogspot.com/2011/01/work-centers.html" target="_blank">Kindergarten Hoppenings</a>. For my more advanced kiddos, I have been using Mrs. Wills' fantastic <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Stamping-Words-Fun-High-Frequency-and-Word-Families-Editable" target="_blank">sight word stamping pages</a>.</div>
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I'd love to hear what your students have been up to-and please share any fun alphabet or word work ideas that you have! </div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="border: 0px currentColor !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-191270802872535502012-09-12T21:16:00.000-05:002012-09-12T21:19:53.225-05:00Apple Themed CentersI'm gearing up to start teaching a unit on apples to my kinders in about a week or so. I guess that means fall is almost here! To go along with our study of apples and how they grow, I like to have a few fun math and literacy activities for my kiddos to do that have an apple theme.<br />
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Last year my students worked on lots of different apple themed math stations. <a href="http://keenonkindergarten.blogspot.com/2011/10/apple-themed-math-work-stations.html" target="_blank">Click here</a> to check out my apple post from last year which includes links to several free apple math games!<br />
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This year I made some new apple themed literacy center activities to help my kinders learn their letters, sounds, and sight words. One of the games my students will play at our alphabet center is this very simple letter tracing game. I'll have a bag of magnetic letters and students will take turns picking a letter out of the bag and tracing the letter they picked on their paper. <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Apple-Alphabet-Pages" target="_blank">Click here</a> to download these <strong>free </strong>letter tracing sheets (both capital letter and lowercase letter sheets included). <br />
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<a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Apple-Alphabet-Pages" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNakikGA8TpNDPO0L80Czhc1hV8n0OVimwHX7h0stOwzS56IKK2gRggLluwhoxLOxvK1KJIAJMPA-uFPARpS0RViwXoc8f_6CePRgoz93Fk43oh2l6SV3cmLrkmL8OdTFMKFLyXnUbtGjt/s320/CapitalLetterApples.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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This game can easily be differentiated for students of different levels. The easiest way to play would be to give them a bag of capital letters and a capital letter sheet so they can trace the exact letter they pull out of the bag. To make it a little trickier, you can give them a bag of lowercase letters along with the capital letter sheet, so that they pick a lowercase letter but then have to find and trace the corresponding capital letters. Or, for really high students, I think I might give them a bag of little objects/toys/pictures and then when they pull out an item they have to determine the item's beginning sound and then trace that letter on the sheet. <br />
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<a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Apple-Themed-Literacy-Games" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9JxZZaDZ8Wm3bHpV-HX29xkSuWZgryf3ip9-jQmWnLusd9K3EfKCfIG3ju-K1CBfX3vtRStl080tqJpPH_BLgm1QxkG5nHaV1JhZmmaTWs3a3hXb8-OAWgmNTHuYrBdxNRXart8fOWl6n/s320/AppleGamePack.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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I also have a pack of alphabet themed literacy games for sale in my TPT store that works on lots of different literacy skills, including: syllable counting, beginning sounds, capital and lowercase letter recognition, and sight words. <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Apple-Themed-Literacy-Games" target="_blank">Click here</a> to check it out! I'd love to give away a free copy of this game pack to the first 2 people to leave a comment (and their email address) on this post!<br />
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Anyone else planning apple activities for the coming weeks? If so, I'd love to get some new ideas and hear what you and your students will be up to!<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="border: 0px currentColor !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-83480440135918224212012-09-09T15:17:00.000-05:002012-09-09T15:17:28.900-05:00Fun New PointersI decided to get crafty this weekend and make some fun new pointers for my students to use! Each pointer has a different letter at that top. These are very easy to make! I saw this idea last year and can't remember where I saw it-maybe Pinterest or someone's blog?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4dLYSzjJpqOTeQ4493VG9ZlP3TISxwvoeOEh6BbwmBFMwqyFib4bGmrLTu_BEZYK8vb3OKwQNQO4ZIuGSuo2lijvbTBobh5bXuk2oTgc35-VTxym-JvvRBklD42UaDqrqi7xksM9vhLlK/s1600/pointers1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4dLYSzjJpqOTeQ4493VG9ZlP3TISxwvoeOEh6BbwmBFMwqyFib4bGmrLTu_BEZYK8vb3OKwQNQO4ZIuGSuo2lijvbTBobh5bXuk2oTgc35-VTxym-JvvRBklD42UaDqrqi7xksM9vhLlK/s320/pointers1.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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I started with a pack of magentic letters from Dollar Tree and 4 sets of plastic swizzle sticks I found at Goodwill (looks like they were originally from Target). You could also make these with popsicle sticks too. In all, this project cost me $3... not too bad!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpV0cKEw5WHrGgkQWVS6IznavpZaTpAOcuvmKmEbEZZF4vxoe-2fWL699zTjew6feS3apiUB4PlsTduQZttgHZ9j1EklWIbIswlIdU95pKeDrEKNPrWe4jvQy0dHFmgKe8QsalPaJOuHHq/s1600/pointers+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpV0cKEw5WHrGgkQWVS6IznavpZaTpAOcuvmKmEbEZZF4vxoe-2fWL699zTjew6feS3apiUB4PlsTduQZttgHZ9j1EklWIbIswlIdU95pKeDrEKNPrWe4jvQy0dHFmgKe8QsalPaJOuHHq/s320/pointers+2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I just put a little hot glue on the back of each magnetic letter and then stuck the letters onto the swizzle sticks. Not much to it!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgswqn2uGkrweUTyHjVJ_w6YYgHlUnpf2C0O9JsoLeDvgaIxUkldNBbeRCOOyGGRdJeSvblFsYHgjdTpUx28mpTpTxFzKtjyzX_-M4FtJj8dge61t7pNyufkaiaczEhqSPTiQSKRtM-GSrG/s1600/pointers3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgswqn2uGkrweUTyHjVJ_w6YYgHlUnpf2C0O9JsoLeDvgaIxUkldNBbeRCOOyGGRdJeSvblFsYHgjdTpUx28mpTpTxFzKtjyzX_-M4FtJj8dge61t7pNyufkaiaczEhqSPTiQSKRtM-GSrG/s320/pointers3.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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So many possibilities for how these alphabet pointers can be used! I could put these pointers at the big book or poetry center and then students could pick a pointer and then use that pointer to locate that letter in the big book/poem they are reading. <br />
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They could also be used at the alphabet center-students could pick a pointer at then practice writing that letter on a dry erase board or make the letter out of wikki stix. <br />
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You could even have just have the class sit in a circle and pass the jar around, and every kid has to take a pointer out of the jar and say the letter they pick-or we all have to trace that letter in the air and the kid with the pointer can use it as a magic wand to trace the letter in the air. So much fun!<br />
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Have you made and fun projects for your classroom lately? If so...please share!<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="border: 0px currentColor !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-54348981223024567722012-09-09T12:36:00.000-05:002012-09-09T12:36:12.839-05:00Product ReviewToday I'm reviewing a fun new product from Lakeshore: The Phonemic Awareness Plinko Game. My students and I tested out this game last week and had a blast!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-A6e06pgukZzbIEe_NBAoaKeIw9kQw-H6EJkMNLr8loMm3lk-Ttm2o-Qz594aBUvzY4k1Hu38CpfVR-fE4gFFC2ANe9oYZ0F8RQSCRvAMuy6tl_-TvBUdFT9pbtXE0Veoi02bnPhjxfIv/s1600/Plinko1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-A6e06pgukZzbIEe_NBAoaKeIw9kQw-H6EJkMNLr8loMm3lk-Ttm2o-Qz594aBUvzY4k1Hu38CpfVR-fE4gFFC2ANe9oYZ0F8RQSCRvAMuy6tl_-TvBUdFT9pbtXE0Veoi02bnPhjxfIv/s320/Plinko1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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It comes with a bag full of very durable wooden chips with pictures on them. Students take turns dropping a chip into the Plinko board, and depending on which box it lands in on the bottom of the board, you either say the beginning sound, ending sound, or a rhyming word. These are all very kindergarten appropriate skills!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7nvKXH2SCopH0I5dfbez2gHXoRAPm5cGMFIUrf02CDIQk3sqC-7HRZs1su_IIWhNFoDt_aWNtwMg_KIOt8yGg_v2rA5vb4E6Crl2uO3OTxYULFb1dyFX6xE2zgc6Stuo8kYWKVLtFqvQK/s1600/Plinko2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7nvKXH2SCopH0I5dfbez2gHXoRAPm5cGMFIUrf02CDIQk3sqC-7HRZs1su_IIWhNFoDt_aWNtwMg_KIOt8yGg_v2rA5vb4E6Crl2uO3OTxYULFb1dyFX6xE2zgc6Stuo8kYWKVLtFqvQK/s320/Plinko2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Obviously, my students' favorite part was dropping the chips and watching them fall through the game board! Everyone wanted a turn!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTq8F2T93RwIkkMLipAmZjPwDfVvnWcMX94p9rJ5kTXN15tG4RPtdv8unOxX7is9xyjwwmA71z1vxUOuwwxzEe_kbKf3mb7QRAYk5K3I1Ivx4o4LpuEE4O0Pm87rh5p1d_wZ_MyCSZSBy-/s1600/Plinko3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTq8F2T93RwIkkMLipAmZjPwDfVvnWcMX94p9rJ5kTXN15tG4RPtdv8unOxX7is9xyjwwmA71z1vxUOuwwxzEe_kbKf3mb7QRAYk5K3I1Ivx4o4LpuEE4O0Pm87rh5p1d_wZ_MyCSZSBy-/s320/Plinko3.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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We played the game together as a whole class since naming beginning sounds, ending sounds, and rhyming words is still a bit challenging for the beginning of kindergarten. I could see my students being able to play this game independently as a literacy center later in the school year though. I also think it would be a great idea to give your kiddos dry erase boards and have them try to write the beginning/ending letter when the chip falls into those parts of the game board. <br />
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Overall a fun game-thanks Lakeshore! If you would like to purchase this game or any other items from Lakeshore, they are currently offering a "Buy One, Get One 50% Off" special: <a href="http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/bogo">www.lakeshorelearning.com/bogo</a><br />
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One new item I am considering purchasing with that coupon is their <a href="http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/seo/ca%7CsearchResults~~p%7CRR741~~.jsp" target="_blank">alphabet picture stickers</a>- I always make alphabet books with my struggling students to help them learn the letters in the alphabet, and these stickers would make that book-making process so much easier! And of course my fave Lakeshore product is my <a href="http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/search/results.jsp?bmForm=keyword_search&bmFormID=1347212073648&bmUID=1347212073648&bmIsForm=true&bmPrevTemplate=%2Fseo%2Fca%7CsearchResults%7E%7Ep%7CRR741%7E%7E.jsp&bmText=initialSearchTerm&initialSearchTerm=lowercase+dough+stampers&bmHidden=search&search=10&bmImage=search.x&bmImage=search.y&bmHiddenName=search&bmHiddenIndex=0&bmImage=search&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EsearchFor&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EsearchFor=lowercase+dough+stampers&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3Epath&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3Epath=%2Fmedia%2Fcontent%2Fsearch&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3Epath&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3Epath=%2FProducts%2FLakeshore&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EobjectTypes&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EobjectTypes=PRODUCT&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EobjectTypes&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EobjectTypes=CONTENT&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EsearchTextOperator&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EsearchTextOperator=and&bmHidden=autocompleteFlag&autocompleteFlag=&bmHidden=ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=1408474395181113" target="_blank">lowercase alphabet dough stampers</a>- these are fabulous and have gotten tons of use in my classroom the last few years!<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="border: 0px currentColor !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-37859869481128982582012-09-05T20:36:00.000-05:002012-09-06T21:33:58.034-05:00Center Time!Today was the 14th day of school and already my new kiddos are becoming pros at their centers. We just jumped right in on the second day of school and have been practicing every day since! I am just thrilled with how quickly my students have picked up on our rules and routines during center time-they are doing awesome! Most don't even need my help anymore to check the center board and figure out which centers they are assigned to each day. <br />
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Both my morning and afternoon classes just adore their center time each day. Last year with full day kindergarten I actually had time for 3 different center times during the day (literacy centers in the morning, math centers in the afternoon, and play centers at the end of the day). No such luck this year in half day, so even though most of my centers are literacy based, I sneak in a few other types of centers too (science, math, play centers) so they can work on those skills too!<br />
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My center time is 45 minutes long, and my students get to go to three 15-minute centers each day. I choose their centers for them, and I also assigned them each a center partner (any more than 2 kids at a center can really be a recipe for disaster). Since they have to stay at each center for 15 minutes (which feels like forever to a kindergartener) I make sure that most centers have at least 2 activities for them to choose from so it holds their attention the whole time.<br />
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Check out what we've been up to at our centers this week! <br />
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Writing Center: Students practiced their handwriting-kinders sure do love dry erase markers! </div>
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Writing Center: Students played "Roll a Letter" and traced the letters they rolled on the dice (this game is from Deanna Jump & Julie Lee's School Fun Centers Pack)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikPXmvEWqXt8e81oDIDSn0TcR74McYuNbSpCGHR8rgwMaT-UO0JbcPBG4dX9YznkcRwzIoslnfcGvnL1EA7CGzlzBZoYYZ73mon-pzCSF59xwrvRvRSPw6ebD2YvrpS_vuTyija7JjbVtl/s1600/ABC+center-game.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikPXmvEWqXt8e81oDIDSn0TcR74McYuNbSpCGHR8rgwMaT-UO0JbcPBG4dX9YznkcRwzIoslnfcGvnL1EA7CGzlzBZoYYZ73mon-pzCSF59xwrvRvRSPw6ebD2YvrpS_vuTyija7JjbVtl/s320/ABC+center-game.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Alphabet Center: I put a set of magnetic letters into a cloth bag, and students took turns pulling out a letter and then coloring in that letter on their paper-this simple game was a hit! (You can grab this awesome and free alphabet page from <a href="http://www.growinginprek.com/apps/blog/show/17865140-new-abc-centers" target="_blank">Growing in PreK</a>)</div>
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Alphabet Center: Students use blocks to build letters (the cards and blocks are from Lakeshore)</div>
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Listening Center: Students enjoyed listening to books on tape (yep-keeping it old school in my class- no iPods or CDs to listen to-just good ole cassette tapes!)</div>
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Library Center: Students chose books to read from our classroom library (so thankful to have a class that loves reading this year- even my kids that don't know any letters love retelling books like <em>Pete the Cat</em> at this center!)</div>
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Playdoh Center- Students made alphabet letters out of playdoh</div>
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Playdoh Center: Students used playdoh stampers to stamp the missing letters on these fabulous alphabet cards made by Leslie @ <a href="http://www.kindergartenworks.com/" target="_blank">Kindergarten Works</a> (playdoh stampers are from Lakeshore)</div>
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Pocket Chart Center: Students matched together capital and lowercase letter flashcards (happened to spot these cute flashcards at Walgreens a few weeks ago-I love that they have the animals on them to help kids that aren't great at capital/lowercase letter matching yet)</div>
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Computer Center: Students played the alphabet letter games on Starfall.com </div>
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Science Center: Students tested different objects to see if they were magnetic or not, and then sorted pictures of the objects onto the pocket chart</div>
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Math Center: Students made pictures out of pattern blocks</div>
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Math Center: Students made numbers out of wikki stix</div>
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Puzzles and Games Center: Students played this board game from my <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Alphabet-Games-Pack" target="_blank">Alphabet Games Pack</a>. Students rolled a dice, moved that number of spaces on the game board, and told their partner the letter they landed on. </div>
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I'd love it if you'd check this pack of alphabet games out at my <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Alphabet-Games-Pack" target="_blank">TPT store</a>. I'd also love to give away this pack of games for free to the first 2 people to leave a comment on this post (just make sure you leave your email address in your comment!). Happy Wednesday!</div>
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Let me know how your first days/weeks of school have been going and if your class has any fun activities they've been enjoying during center time! </div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="border: 0px currentColor !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-19361006075138798002012-09-01T20:10:00.001-05:002012-09-01T20:10:47.448-05:00Fun New Read Alouds!I hope you all have had a great start to your school year! I am enjoying getting to know all of my new kindergarten friends-and they are certainly keeping me busy! I have been coming home exhausted each day! <br />
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Luckily, my new students and I share a love of good books and they are quickly finding some favorites that they ask to be read aloud over and over and over again. I probably read <em>Pete the Cat</em> and <em>Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus</em> every day this week...they just beg and beg until I give in!<br />
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Today my good friend Chrissy over at <a href="http://read-write-sing.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Read Write Sing</a> joined me for a little bookstore field trip where we checked out tons of fun new books. We had a great time and I definitely saw some great new stories I'd like to share with my class. Here are a few of my favorite new books.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0375870865/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0375870865&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0375870865&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=keenonkinde-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0375870865" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0375870865/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0375870865&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20">Rocket Writes a Story</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0375870865" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
is the sequel to the book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0375858997/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0375858997&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20">How Rocket Learned to Read</a>.<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0375858997" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
The little dog, Rocket, makes his own word collection and then eventually is inspired to try writing his very own story. This is such a cute book to get your students excited about writing their own little stories. I will definitely have to share this with my class during writing workshop one day soon!<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1423151283/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1423151283&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=1423151283&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=keenonkinde-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1423151283" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1423151283/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1423151283&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20">The Duckling Gets a Cookie!? (Pigeon)</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1423151283" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
is Mo Willems newest book. I have read my students all the books in the Pigeon series and they just adore them! I think they are really going to find this new one to be hilarious. The duckling asks for a cookie and receives one- which of course makes the Pigeon furious because he says he never gets what he asks for (like getting to drive a bus!). Very cute book!<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0670012335/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0670012335&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0670012335&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=keenonkinde-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0670012335" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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I love the llama llama books, so I was so excited to see this new one: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0670012335/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0670012335&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20">Llama Llama Time to Share</a>.<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0670012335" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
So far my kids are doing a nice job sharing in class, but this book will still be good a good reminder of how we behave in kindergarten! Also a great book for working on rhyming words!<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061921157/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0061921157&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0061921157&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=keenonkinde-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0061921157" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061921157/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0061921157&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20">Kindergators: Miracle Melts Down</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0061921157" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
is the newest books in Rosemary Wells' Kindergators series. I love that she writes about little gators that are having a hard time getting adjusted to kindergarten and how their classmates help them to eventually succeed in class. I have already read <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061921122/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0061921122&linkCode=as2&tag=keenonkinde-20">Kindergators: Hands Off, Harry!</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0061921122" style="border: currentColor !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
to my class and it was the perfect way to start a conversation together about classroom rules. <br />
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Have you found any fun new books lately? I'd love to hear about the stories your students have been enjoying during the first few weeks of school!<br />
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<br />Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-68364477552571977912012-06-29T21:38:00.000-05:002012-09-03T23:29:18.946-05:00Half-day Kinder SchedulePutting together my daily schedule for this coming school year has been a bit of a nightmare since I am going back to teaching half-day kindergarten after a year of teaching full-day. Three hours is just not long enough to squeeze everything in! I am waiting for the day my school district decides to do away with half-day for good! I know some of you other half-day teachers were interested in my schedule, so here is what I'm planning for this year:<br />
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<u><strong>Half-day Kindergarten Schedule (A.M. Class)</strong></u><br />
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<strong>8:45 Arrival and Seatwork</strong> (handwriting practice or independent reading from book boxes)<br />
<strong>9:00 Shared Reading</strong> (alphabet chart, poems & big books)<br />
<strong>9:10 Writing Workshop </strong>(mini-lesson, independent writing, and then sharing)<br />
<strong>9:40 Guided Reading Groups & Literacy Centers</strong> (three 15-minute rotations)<br />
<strong>10:25 Recess</strong><br />
<strong>10:40 Specials</strong> (art/music/P.E./technology classes)<br />
<strong>11:05 Math</strong> (10 minutes each for: calendar, math lesson in workbook, and 1 math station)<br />
<strong>11:35 Theme work</strong> (quick science/social studies activity or read aloud)<br />
<strong>11:45 Pack-up</strong><br />
<strong>11:50 Dismissal</strong><br />
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I didn't post the schedule for my P.M. class because it looks pretty much exactly the same, I just do everything all over again with my afternoon class from 12:20-3:25 p.m. The most important thing for me as I made my schedule was that I carve out big chunks of time EVERY day for the kids to have guided reading and centers (45 minutes), writing workshop (30 minutes), and math (30 minutes). My half-day students will be going to first grade with kids that have been in full-day kindergartens so they need to spend lots of time on literacy and math each day so that they aren't behind.<br />
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You'll notice that lots of things on my schedule only get 10 minutes. A 10 minute mini-lesson is totally doable though! Especially in the afternoon class, because you'll have already taught that EXACT same lesson in the morning and you'll probably be better at teaching it the second time (at least that's what I remember from teaching half-day in prior years). <br />
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For my 10 minute shared reading lesson, we do the alphabet chart each day, and then usually just work on one poem or big book per week (although depending on the length of the big book and poem, sometimes you can do both). I have found that having some sort of weekly schedule for shared reading works best when you have so little time. For example:<br />
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<strong>Monday:</strong> introduce the new big book/poem<br />
<strong>Tuesday:</strong> work on new vocabulary and comprehension skills with the book/poem<br />
<strong>Wednesday:</strong> work on concepts of print (locating: first word/last word, specific letters, spaces, punctuation, counting letters and words, etc.)<br />
<strong>Thursday:</strong> work on sight words in the book/poem<br />
<strong>Friday:</strong> work on rhyming words/word families in the book <br />
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This way you make sure you cover lots of different skills throughout the week, even though you only have a tiny bit of time each day (in full-day kinder I had time to do many of these things everyday in shared reading).<br />
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I have set aside 30 minutes for writing workshop each day since I think it's really important for kindergarten kids to practice writing every day. I plan to spend about 10 minutes on my mini-lesson-this will usually be a modeled writing or interactive writing lesson. Then I will give students 15 minutes of independent writing at their seats. I will end with 5 minutes of sharing time (I let one table share per day). 15 minutes isn't much for independent writing, but my students will also visit the writing center each week during literacy center time, so they can also work on their writing then as well (and of course we practice writing skills during guided reading groups some days).<br />
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I think math is going to be my biggest challenge. In full-day I had so much time that I could teach my lesson in the workbook and then still have a full half hour for my students to do math work stations. This year I will only have 30 minutes for math each day and that will include my calendar time. My plan is to start the year splitting that 30 minutes into three 10-minute sections. So I would start with 10 minutes of calendar, then do 10 minutes of whole class math in the workbook, and then finish with 10 minutes for the kids to do 1 math station with a partner. By January, I plan to do calendar every other day since the kids will have many of the basic calendar concepts learned by then, so this way some days my kids will have an extra 10 minutes to do a second math work station. Actually, I have found that doing calendar every other day when you teach half-day kindergarten is ideal. One day you can do calendar with your morning class and then the next day you can do calendar with your afternoon class, and this way you can avoid having to re-set the calendar and everything else that goes with it on your lunch break so your second class can do it all over again.<br />
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Ok, but what about the fun stuff? Well, each class gets 25 minutes a day for specials. Then they also get 15 minutes each day for recess as well. I like to do indoor recess some days instead of going out to the playground so that they can have the chance to do some play centers (housekeeping, blocks, puppets, art, etc.) because my centers during our literacy center time will be more strictly academic (writing center, library center, alphabet center, work work center, pocket chart center, big book center, listening center, etc.). I also try to squeeze in some fun theme-based stuff at the end of each day-but I only give 10 minutes for this. If we have a longer project or craft to go with that week's science/social studies theme, then I will have to end math a little earlier to squeeze in some extra theme time. I also try to make sure the poems/big books I read with the class during shared reading go along with whatever theme we are studying that week.<br />
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Finally, my biggest tip is just to stay flexible. Teaching half-day kindergarten is tough-especially when you have colleagues teaching full-day and see all the awesome stuff they have time to do. I think it's okay to occasionally throw out the schedule for a day and do some of those fun activities-we still have 100 day, holiday parties, assemblies, and other days where we just cannot keep to our schedule and that's okay because most days the kids are getting lots of academic instruction even in half a day. <br />
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I also don't make myself stick to my schedule the first 6 weeks of school-you are so busy setting up the classroom community, having everyone get to know each other, and working on learning rules/routines/centers/etc. that it is impossible to get with the schedule right away in kindergarten. I also like to have the freedom to spend more time on alphabet activities the first 6 weeks since many of my students come in not knowing their letters and so I don't introduce writing workshop right away so that I can have more alphabet review time. The first month of school we do one letter per day-once that's through I start up writing workshop. Same with guided reading, first 6 weeks we learn and practice centers but I don't pull groups (although hopefully I can squeeze in time to do some initial assessments in between monitoring their attempts at centers).<br />
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I find that with half-day I also need to rely on the parents a lot. I send home flashcards and books for the kids to read each night, and I ask the parents to help kids practice things like the alphabet, sight words, and numbers at home since our school day is so short and we just won't have as much time as I want to practice those skills.<br />
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Have you decided on your schedule yet for next year? If so, please share! I'd love to see how my blogging friends will be spending their school days- and of course share any scheduling tips you have!<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="border: 0px currentColor !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-17826114514271611082012-06-28T22:36:00.001-05:002012-06-28T22:42:38.815-05:00Half-day KindergartenThis post is for my friends that are teaching half-day kindergarten...and it seems like there aren't too many of us anymore! This year I will be moving back to teaching half-day kindergarten, so I thought I would share some of my tips for keeping organized.<br />
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In my school district, we offer both full-day and half-day kindergarten classes, but parents have to pay tuition if they want their child to be in a full-day classroom. The half-day kindergarten teacher in each school teaches two half-day classes, an A.M. class and a P.M. class. That means I'm gearing up for potentially 40-50 students here, estimating that their will be 20-25 in my morning class and 20-25 kids in my afternoon class. So, organization is a MUST!<br />
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My biggest half-day tip is color coding everything. I assign each class a color- this year my A.M. class will be red and my P.M. class will be yellow. That way, you know at a glance just by looking at the color, whether something belongs to the A.M. or the P.M. class.<br />
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Here is a picture of the cubbies in my classroom. The bottom part of each cubby where backpacks and coats go will be shared by an A.M. kid and P.M. kid, but the top has a small space for each kid to put their personal supplies (red owl tags for A.M. and yellow owl tags for P.M.).<br />
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I also put 2 nametags at each table seat. The regular-sized nametags you can buy at teacher stores are too big to fit 2 at each table seat, so I cut up sentence strips I got at Dollar Tree. I know some half-day teachers just skip table nametags altogether, but I always have tons of kids that start school not knowing how to write their name, so I feel like I have to have each child's name on their table spot to help them learn to write it. Again, I use color coding, so each table spot will have 1 red and 1 yellow nametag (I won't write the names on the tags until my class list is finalized!). </div>
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In my district, 40 minutes of guided reading is required each day- doesn't matter if you teach half-day or full-day. So...I had to make sure I was organized for a whole lot of guided reading groups, since I will be doing it each morning and afternoon and could have 4 or 5 groups in each class. I'm using red baskets and folders for my A.M. class and yellow baskets and folders for my P.M. class. I absolutely LOVE these baskets from Calloway House because they are divided onto 3 sections so I can keep the group's guided reading books for the week in one section, their journals for writing/word work activities in one section, and my folder with lesson plans/running records in another section.</div>
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I love those little baskets they have been selling in the Target Dollar Spot the last few years. I have tons of them in all different colors due to my Target addiction. This year, I will use one of the red baskets to hold the math books for my A.M. class and one of the yellow baskets to hold the math books for my P.M. class. When I taught full-day I just had them keep things like math books in their chair pockets, but that is just too much stuff for one chair pocket with half-day kids sharing the chair pockets now.</div>
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For my behavior system, I use a clip chart with apples. I clip clothespins onto the sides of the chart and the kids all start each day on the green apple. As they get warnings in class, I move their clip down progressively (to the yellow, "orange," and red apples). The apple chart under the red owl is for A.M. and the chart under the yellow owl is for P.M.</div>
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One of my literacy centers is the pocket chart center. I have a big pocket chart at this center that usually has some sort of poem or song that you can put students' names in. For example, we will start the year with "Who Stole the Cookies from the Cookie Jar?" in the pocket chart. Then students can take nametags with their classmates names/photos and insert them into the poem to read it. I will use the red pocket chart to hold all of the A.M. students' nametags/photos for the pocket chart center and the yellow pocket chart for the P.M. students (these little pocket charts are the ones Target sells in their Dollar Spot each summer). </div>
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I know at this point you're probably thinking I'm a bit crazy to take the color-coding so far, but honestly it really helps. I do it with absolutely everything- even their take-home folders and their writing journals. In terms of assessment, I keep a red binder for my A.M. class and a yellow binder for my P.M. class, and then I also have hanging files for each student as well (you can buy colored tabs to put at the top of each hanging file if you want to color code these too).</div>
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I will be sharing some of my other half-day teaching ideas as well as my half-day schedule later this summer as I continue getting organized for the upcoming school year...should be fun to try to figure out how to fit in guided reading, writing workshop, and math work stations (not to mention everything else) in under 3 hours! </div>
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I would love to hear tips from other half-day teachers out there! Us half-day teachers have to stick together and help each other out!</div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="border: 0px currentColor !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-11115257355108184402012-06-11T12:27:00.000-05:002012-06-11T12:29:53.296-05:00Summer Projects!We've only had 2 weeks of summer vacation so far, but already I'm thinking of going back into the classroom this week to tackle some summer projects! It's pretty hard to keep a teacher away from school for too long! <br />
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Last year I wasn't able to get into my classroom until just days before school started, which was really tough! This year though, I begged the custodians to clean my room first, and they took pity on me. Here's what my classroom looked like last week...it sure looks a lot bigger without all of my stuff!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjs7oDDzw1oJiFSMivUh6Pz3npRHdBYxW5Y7BSkG9jSMO-aZozCzYIQWh0qD4i8IG5fRiwP-kiA-lZpV9yXvkWENE6dfl-GFN2GYCmQGMq64yhEl00VelHCBD-S1nGY0YCvSuH-nxSOHFj/s1600/photo+(20).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjs7oDDzw1oJiFSMivUh6Pz3npRHdBYxW5Y7BSkG9jSMO-aZozCzYIQWh0qD4i8IG5fRiwP-kiA-lZpV9yXvkWENE6dfl-GFN2GYCmQGMq64yhEl00VelHCBD-S1nGY0YCvSuH-nxSOHFj/s1600/photo+(20).jpg" /></a></div>
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The floors have been cleaned and waxed and my furniture is being moved back in today, so I can go in and get ready for next year anytime now! I'm so excited that I won't be going crazy in August racing to get it all done since I can work on it a little at a time all summer.<br />
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After catching up on all my blog reading these last few days, I see that lots of you are WAY more organized than I am. Wow! I really need to get my act together, so I've decided to tackle organizing my files into theme binders. I'm really hoping that this way I can clean out an entire file cabinet or two and get rid of them to make some more space in my classroom. <br />
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I'm thinking that if I better organize the closet in my classroom, I'll have space to store all of these binders in there. It took forever just to label all the binders-so I can't even imagine how long it's going to take me to organize all of my papers inside each binder!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyyNcJnXHm0dafLf-NPdAteJgZ2Aq_dCxBY5hT7qMTbIB3wQtllO0mr53LdyPr8rExcHPquHuE0mSRQy4hzxYsbSiO_HdGhVPn81JWFYD7Il5L6nrkZRSYPNDmQapnQF-2VvXdjox9gMt5/s1600/photo+(17).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyyNcJnXHm0dafLf-NPdAteJgZ2Aq_dCxBY5hT7qMTbIB3wQtllO0mr53LdyPr8rExcHPquHuE0mSRQy4hzxYsbSiO_HdGhVPn81JWFYD7Il5L6nrkZRSYPNDmQapnQF-2VvXdjox9gMt5/s1600/photo+(17).JPG" /></a></div>
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After I tackle all those binders, I think that I'll also have to rethink how I store my center games and materials. I've always done literacy centers and so I feel like I have those materials under control, but with implementing math work stations for the first time last year, I feel like now I have way more stuff. I think all this organizing is going to take quite a bit of time!<br />
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What classroom projects are you tackling this summer? Anyone else overwhelmed by all the organizing they need to do?<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="border: 0px currentColor !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-89587619121770313272012-04-23T19:43:00.000-05:002012-04-23T19:43:19.796-05:00April Math StationsNow that it's April my kinders can really do a lot in math! We just wrapped up our unit on measurement about a week ago, and have moved on to learning about addition, so our stations have lots of measurement and addition practice. Next month we'll study subtraction and then do some final review before the school year ends! I think my kinders are in great shape math-wise this year since they have gotten so much math practice each day from our work stations. <br />
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Here's some of what we've been up to at our math stations this month.<br />
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Station 1: Bug Jar Counting</div>
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(Each bug jar has a number at the bottom and students count out that many bug erasers into the jar. I made lots of jars so my students could practice with the numbers 1-31. I can't remember where I got my jar template, but here is a <a href="http://sweetlyscrappedart.blogspot.com/2011/07/mason-jar-i-love-mason-jars-free.html" target="_blank">free mason jar template</a> I found that is very similar.)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijIbEWz8hII2DPxi-8jufXOD-6ozIgV6Z3ttzrpndMAYgM__DvCAbY9FmFrzhIctc_oXQ_ivscy1Hc-hbVq4qNy6ocHjfCAk1070V-S1oIDH2HATRUp9ck_tJki0uynLPhts9dX3FdvPgy/s1600/Center2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijIbEWz8hII2DPxi-8jufXOD-6ozIgV6Z3ttzrpndMAYgM__DvCAbY9FmFrzhIctc_oXQ_ivscy1Hc-hbVq4qNy6ocHjfCAk1070V-S1oIDH2HATRUp9ck_tJki0uynLPhts9dX3FdvPgy/s320/Center2a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Station 2: What Comes Next?</div>
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(Students roll a die and write the number they rolled in the square. Then they write the numbers that come after that number in the carrots next to the square. Good counting and number writing practice! You can download this cute game for free from <a href="http://kinder-pond.blogspot.com/2011/03/spring-hoppenings.html" target="_blank">Kindergarten Hoppenings</a>.) </div>
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Station 3: Adding Up Strawberries</div>
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(Students roll a die a place that many strawberries in the first basket on their workmat. Students then roll the die again and place that many strawberries in the second basket on their workmat. Students record the addition problem they have made on the recording sheet and then solve the addition problem. I got these plastic strawberries from Lakeshore, but you could also just use red unifix cubes and have the kids pretend they are strawberries. You can download my free workmat <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwI01U8_pZtrV3EtUGVwT3JWenc" target="_blank">here</a> and the recording sheet <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwI01U8_pZtrQjRZWU5FaE5jOWs" target="_blank">here</a>. I copy the recording sheet back-to-back so they have space to do more addition problems.)</div>
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Station 4: Egg Addition</div>
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(Students open up a plastic egg and take out the erasers that are inside. Inside each egg I put different combinations of bunnies and carrots. Students write an addition sentence for adding together the bunnies plus the carrots and solve for the answer. My students used a recording sheet I got from <a href="http://mrsriccaskindergarten.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Ricca's</a> <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/April-Math-Literacy-Centers" target="_blank">April Math & Literacy Centers</a>, but in the past I have also done this game with students just writing the addition problems on scratch paper. The mini erasers are from Target.)</div>
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Station 5: Hatching Numbers</div>
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(Students roll two dice, add the numbers together, and trace the sum on their recording sheet. This game, with the darling graphic of the very hungry caterpillar, is from <a href="http://www.mrswillskindergarten.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Wills'</a> <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Incredible-Egg-Oviparous-Math-Work-Stations-Common-Core" target="_blank">Incredible Egg Oviparous Math Work Stations.</a>)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4WVCupBP_fSI3LeA-p9zfQwzwK63TwHaG_igNNCLe2LtglTVXpvRtrUQqzMG4d8GP3XND8vQtMXippsUlFq69bg6l9bp0EWXGRS3r1HqJjsZ1WKl2KgSNX24PTFVEtW9naJI1OpexhQyf/s1600/Center6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4WVCupBP_fSI3LeA-p9zfQwzwK63TwHaG_igNNCLe2LtglTVXpvRtrUQqzMG4d8GP3XND8vQtMXippsUlFq69bg6l9bp0EWXGRS3r1HqJjsZ1WKl2KgSNX24PTFVEtW9naJI1OpexhQyf/s320/Center6.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Station 6: Best Cookies Ever!</div>
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(Students pick a cookie card and solve the addition problem written on the cookie. Students then record the addition problem on the recording sheet and set the cookie card on the cookie jar showing the correct answer. I let my students use unifix cubes to help them solve the addition problems as they played this game. This game is from <a href="http://www.mrswillskindergarten.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Wills'</a> <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Frog-and-Toad-Common-Core-Literacy-and-Math-Stations" target="_blank">Frog and Toad Literacy and Math Stations</a>.)</div>
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Station 7: Egg-cellent Measuring</div>
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(Students measure different sized eggs with unifix cubes and recorded the lengths on the recording sheet. This fun game is from <a href="http://mrsriccaskindergarten.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Ricca's</a> <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/April-Math-Literacy-Centers" target="_blank">April Math & Literacy Centers</a>.)</div>
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Station 8: Picnic</div>
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(Students roll two dice and cover up the picnic basket with the sum on the game board. This game is from <a href="http://www.mrswillskindergarten.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Wills'</a> <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Frog-and-Toad-Common-Core-Literacy-and-Math-Stations" target="_blank">Frog and Toad Literacy and Math Stations</a>.)</div>
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Station 9: Domino Addition</div>
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(Students pick a domino, draw what their domino looks like, and write the corresponding addition problem for their domino. You can download the recording sheet for free <a href="http://www.first-school.ws/t/numbers/worksheets/domino-addition.htm" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div>
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Station 10: Measuring Weight With Carrots</div>
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(Students weighed classroom objects in our balance scale to see how many carrots they weighed. I found these little carrot erasers at Target and they were fun to use to weigh different things. If you bought these same erasers and want to have your students measure objects with them, you can grab my free recording sheet <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwI01U8_pZtrWVdnVXBlMXVNNkk" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div>
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Hope you got a few new math station ideas! I'd love to hear what math stations your students are working on right now!</div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: transparent; border: 0 !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-21047360610363319972012-04-22T19:02:00.001-05:002012-04-23T19:44:33.557-05:00Spring is here!I've been so busy lately that this is my first blog post this month- and now I log on today to find out that Blogger has completely changed! I just don't know if I can handle this-can I make it go back to the old layout?!<br />
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Well, moving on, my kindergarten class has been studying spring weather, insects, animals, and plants this month! We made these darling ducklings that I saw <a href="http://lifeinfirstgrade1.blogspot.com/2012/01/writing-activity.html" target="_blank">here</a>. We also made umbrellas out of paper plates that we cut in half and added pipe cleaners to. I was brave and let my students get out their water color paints to decorate the umbrellas-they turned out pretty cute!<br />
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We have been learning about the parts of a plant and made these darling art projects as well. This idea is from <a href="http://larremoreteachertips.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">April Larremore's</a> <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/All-About-Plants" target="_blank">All About Plants</a> unit which I totally recommend! <br />
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We also made this cute carrot graph from the unit. I loved getting my kinders to eat some healthy carrots for a snack! I think next year I might go a step further and have them try eating all different kinds of veggies that represent the different parts of a plant (i.e. carrots for the root, celery for the stem, spinach for leaves, and broccoli for flowers). Then we could graph which part of the plant we think tastes best!<br />
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We did some fun experiments in science to learn about plants too. The students loved seeing the leaves of the celery change color as the celery stems sucked up different colors of water.<br />
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We are also growing bean plants in baggies on one of our windows. I sure hope they grow! Some years I have had great success with growing beans and other year the beans just rot- I have no idea what makes for successful bean growing-so I am crossing my fingers that things work out this year!<br />
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During shared reading this week we read a fun poem about plants. This poem can also be sung to the tune of "Row, row, row your boat." We have been working on highlighting blends in our poem. We also read the big book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0340945117/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=keenonkinde-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0340945117">Jasper's Beanstalk</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0340945117" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
which I love. It is a cute book about a cat that tries to grow a beanstalk and isn't very patient about it. My favorite thing about the book is that it is a day of the week book (similar to the book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0698114353/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=keenonkinde-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0698114353">Cookie's Week</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0698114353" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
) and each page tells what happened on a different day of the week. I have been encouraging my kinders to try out writing books like this in writing workshop and some of them have made very cute books using this structure. <br />
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We have also been doing some fun math activities to go along with our study of plants. My students enjoyed measuring different things using sunflower seeds-and of course they liked eating the seeds when they were done with math!<br />
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We also played the "Plant a Garden" game, which you can download for free <a href="http://www.kellyskindergarten.com/math/math_activities.htm" target="_blank">here</a>. Students take turns picking a flower card, and and using the number at the top to put the card in the correct spot on their game board. First player to get all their cards in the right number order and "plant their garden" wins.<br />
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I know I have not been great about updating my blog lately, but I do have several posts planned for this week to show what we've been up to in literacy and math stations and some center freebies too. I also have a tour of my classroom library coming up too-so please keep following my blog! I'd love to hear what you've been up to this month in your classroom!<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: transparent; border: 0 !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-26843288087812142402012-03-27T00:15:00.002-05:002012-03-27T00:22:07.969-05:00March Math StationsIs it really the end of March already? What a busy month!<br />
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Would you believe that I took lovely photos earlier this month of my students working on their Dr. Seuss and St. Patrick's Day themed math stations and just never got around to posting them? Now we've moved on to spring themed activities and will be studying weather, plants, and farm animals so of course I'll be looking for math stations that go along with these themes.<br />
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Here's what we're up to this week in math.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyyQST94MaX6LlDbpnkBNfSFbSCoYKLAZTKgWjrvd3IwX4hbRKN2V0I4b6Kc80cqW4VdvB-2VAhJgFe5SC7lsJ0kFkHQlewWrIbGaM1Rg7Nl3KmNdy2S26LMF5QXZpeewudd3nQixudFpK/s1600/Station+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyyQST94MaX6LlDbpnkBNfSFbSCoYKLAZTKgWjrvd3IwX4hbRKN2V0I4b6Kc80cqW4VdvB-2VAhJgFe5SC7lsJ0kFkHQlewWrIbGaM1Rg7Nl3KmNdy2S26LMF5QXZpeewudd3nQixudFpK/s320/Station+1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Station 1: Count and Link Game</div><div style="text-align: center;">(Students pick an elephant, read the number on the elephant, and connect that many links to the elephant's trunk. This game is simple but extremely popular with the kids-they love using the links. This game is from <a href="http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/seo/ca%7CsearchResults%7E%7Ep%7CDD764%7E%7E.jsp" target="_blank">Lakeshore</a>.) </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi76IA26PJT38I1sCEtB4solZuYNZaAjxIg2gUZirBVvZ3eTtg08yl-LfYcVttSf-u_y6rv1XNiC4d4upzHdaTNQIEGDvGruruupoeSGfVR3aqQ7D3AAaFY1IKEIKwzS8itrfv8Zw3KANr-/s1600/Station+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi76IA26PJT38I1sCEtB4solZuYNZaAjxIg2gUZirBVvZ3eTtg08yl-LfYcVttSf-u_y6rv1XNiC4d4upzHdaTNQIEGDvGruruupoeSGfVR3aqQ7D3AAaFY1IKEIKwzS8itrfv8Zw3KANr-/s320/Station+2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Station 2: More or Less Game</div><div style="text-align: center;">(Students each pick a number card, compare their cards to see which partner has more/less, and then spin the spinner to see if the student with more or less wins the cards. The cards for this game are great since they have number words, numerals, tally marks, ten frames, and even objects to count. Lots of super number practice! This cute game from <a href="http://www.mrswillskindergarten.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Wills</a> can be found <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Incredible-Egg-Oviparous-Math-Work-Stations-Common-Core" target="_blank">here</a>-it is a part of her Incredible Egg Oviparous Math Stations pack which has tons of great games in it that my kids have really enjoyed.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnuGIWLLfwzyfyCu4wB0VPnAv0-m-BYW9mq6yJggRd7VBnfYU1lYosMNztMnb0bgcSwD8sfoASCBhG9JOwKMEs1MuNWaSPiTqCbyLhE35TuCn7QtjCqXEpxFd1A6u38qE2mhod4DIZ7w8d/s1600/Station+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnuGIWLLfwzyfyCu4wB0VPnAv0-m-BYW9mq6yJggRd7VBnfYU1lYosMNztMnb0bgcSwD8sfoASCBhG9JOwKMEs1MuNWaSPiTqCbyLhE35TuCn7QtjCqXEpxFd1A6u38qE2mhod4DIZ7w8d/s320/Station+3.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Station 3: Roll-Count-Color</div><div style="text-align: center;">(Students roll two dice, add together the 2 numbers they rolled, and color in the egg showing the sum. This fabulous freebie from <a href="http://meandmarielearning.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Me and Marie Learning</a> can be found <a href="http://meandmarielearning.blogspot.com/2012/03/easter-inspired-math-games-freebies.html" target="_blank">here</a> along with some other great math freebies!)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR7VIcGXKCnM_Mtgo68Lg4zbhz-63wJS8Z2JcnTUZ66g0x0_aiTGASOOCUH7zMA2GsudymqnjMAgBcXYrty8k0oQp0qBblrn9TdcJcPsLmgsJKGFCfaj3iD9ldYJT_1JQx7aI4z-SEpRsO/s1600/Station+4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR7VIcGXKCnM_Mtgo68Lg4zbhz-63wJS8Z2JcnTUZ66g0x0_aiTGASOOCUH7zMA2GsudymqnjMAgBcXYrty8k0oQp0qBblrn9TdcJcPsLmgsJKGFCfaj3iD9ldYJT_1JQx7aI4z-SEpRsO/s320/Station+4.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Station 4: Strawberries in a Basket Counting Game<br />
(Students roll the die, and then add that many strawberries to their basket. First player to collect 10 strawberries in their basket wins. A pretty simple game, but the kids love it - you can never get enough counting practice, right? I think this game will find its way to our play kitchen after it leaves our math stations. This darling game is from <a href="http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/search/results.jsp;jsessionid=PxFTbspvp2QqhS6Qnl22XM4PJcmFL5Tl2pbbTR5Gn7dhdTtlxTc7%21207833743%212126962007?bmForm=keyword_search&bmFormID=1332823348253&bmUID=1332823348253&bmIsForm=true&bmPrevTemplate=%2Fhome%2Fhome.jsp&bmText=initialSearchTerm&initialSearchTerm=Strawberries+in+a+Basket+Counting+Game&bmHidden=search&search=10&bmImage=search.x&bmImage=search.y&bmHiddenName=search&bmHiddenIndex=0&bmImage=search&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EsearchFor&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EsearchFor=Strawberries+in+a+Basket+Counting+Game&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3Epath&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3Epath=%2Fmedia%2Fcontent%2Fsearch&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3Epath&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3Epath=%2FProducts%2FLakeshore&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EobjectTypes&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EobjectTypes=PRODUCT&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EobjectTypes&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EobjectTypes=CONTENT&bmHidden=SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EsearchTextOperator&SEARCH_INPUT%3C%3EsearchTextOperator=and&bmHidden=autocompleteFlag&autocompleteFlag=autocomplete_search&bmHidden=ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=1408474395181113" target="_blank">Lakeshore</a>.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-rub7BSuWaixOcpJKh4kiEAP_tD01Qf85ahv4c2r8dCugoSo42HBkfyxM-i4jOZReUAtaFdOAq6rm5olm4YFKwlGXSVavAwsA2Bv0hyphenhyphentk0bJinJ7pmyjQjvusGAl3WLx4gVWyIe4YFfvg/s1600/Station+5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-rub7BSuWaixOcpJKh4kiEAP_tD01Qf85ahv4c2r8dCugoSo42HBkfyxM-i4jOZReUAtaFdOAq6rm5olm4YFKwlGXSVavAwsA2Bv0hyphenhyphentk0bJinJ7pmyjQjvusGAl3WLx4gVWyIe4YFfvg/s320/Station+5.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Station 5: Alligator Babies Game</div><div style="text-align: center;">(Students spin the spinner and then cover-up the corresponding number on their game board. I like that the spinner shows the ten frames and my kiddos certainly need the extra practice with teen numbers! This game from <a href="http://www.mrswillskindergarten.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Wills</a> can be found <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Incredible-Egg-Oviparous-Math-Work-Stations-Common-Core" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_4fNsF5VF8apZB8y1J3ok3WzlYCb58I02eJ_OKbtLVndXkPzWBJTgabMaeSxJm2t_CFr8nBePBBJ29dm3Bo2ZRQIHj4k6yYcDCsbsQz-RYRu2ubXLSJWkVz4KoUjTIeXDQr8CO4RH9l19/s1600/Station+6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_4fNsF5VF8apZB8y1J3ok3WzlYCb58I02eJ_OKbtLVndXkPzWBJTgabMaeSxJm2t_CFr8nBePBBJ29dm3Bo2ZRQIHj4k6yYcDCsbsQz-RYRu2ubXLSJWkVz4KoUjTIeXDQr8CO4RH9l19/s320/Station+6.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Station 6: Time to Hatch</div><div style="text-align: center;">(This is a memory game where students turn over cards and try to make a match. The hen cards show clocks, and the egg cards show the corresponding times. Once students have made a match, they record it on the recording sheet. A great game for practicing telling time to the hour and very cute graphics! This game from <a href="http://www.mrswillskindergarten.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Wills</a> can be found <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Incredible-Egg-Oviparous-Math-Work-Stations-Common-Core" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigiyTdKgS5x0Z-w0pcINDk6aPkBY3JGa75zQY6eYQI1tK0Pwnu8FnvnHUypgOxnjKUdLpDyQ-2jjF2Sw57czdDU4Ny4N5EMPf5QRcZevd3SRettpf0D_dk_aYnLNh5vkHGek1FWVJvOMsB/s1600/Station+7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigiyTdKgS5x0Z-w0pcINDk6aPkBY3JGa75zQY6eYQI1tK0Pwnu8FnvnHUypgOxnjKUdLpDyQ-2jjF2Sw57czdDU4Ny4N5EMPf5QRcZevd3SRettpf0D_dk_aYnLNh5vkHGek1FWVJvOMsB/s320/Station+7.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Station 7: Oviparous Animals Spin and Graph</div><div style="text-align: center;">(Students spin the spinner, and then tally and graph their results on the recording sheet. Great for my kiddos that need some extra practice with tally marks! This game from <a href="http://www.mrswillskindergarten.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Wills</a> can be found <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Incredible-Egg-Oviparous-Math-Work-Stations-Common-Core" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOnTLhekNq0vP2LFQgc6_E1BH7nm02qSlCMWHbHTdBdRaDX7qBHRK8FEvwmj8z83JlTXdZTyQBiv7h8hlZnq6zqOkFsoUVX-kkDQzMLZvgUSAFCULdNOTJH9d8TkNS_v7zncFg-6Nuitbc/s1600/Station+8a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOnTLhekNq0vP2LFQgc6_E1BH7nm02qSlCMWHbHTdBdRaDX7qBHRK8FEvwmj8z83JlTXdZTyQBiv7h8hlZnq6zqOkFsoUVX-kkDQzMLZvgUSAFCULdNOTJH9d8TkNS_v7zncFg-6Nuitbc/s320/Station+8a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Station 8 A: Umbrella Number to Tally Match</div><div style="text-align: center;">(Students match up umbrellas-one set of umbrella cards shows tally marks, the other set shows the numeral and number word. This great freebie is from <a href="http://kinder-pond.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Kindergarten Hoppenings</a> and can be found <a href="http://kinder-pond.blogspot.com/2011/03/spring-hoppenings.html" target="_blank">here</a> with some other great spring freebies!)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTcKLaKKIaAwrR36X2a288jmb7KOyYAzJiI_FgblRRKlYMaLc6j0hKG71Hbrth0ILDgw65MT8-UPO-w2E59cpx0VSxCtdt2w1GR_BK9ZAw4KYcT_3Nx4mO9dpI2Z9ktKrR97EB-jY00Rs_/s1600/Station+8b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTcKLaKKIaAwrR36X2a288jmb7KOyYAzJiI_FgblRRKlYMaLc6j0hKG71Hbrth0ILDgw65MT8-UPO-w2E59cpx0VSxCtdt2w1GR_BK9ZAw4KYcT_3Nx4mO9dpI2Z9ktKrR97EB-jY00Rs_/s320/Station+8b.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Station 8 B: Missing Number Game</div><div style="text-align: center;">(I also put this umbrella themed number game in the Station 8 basket. Students look at the 2 umbrellas and have to figure out what number comes between them, then they put the missing number in the middle using the cloud cards. Great practice for number order. This game is from <a href="http://thoughtsofesme.blogspot.com/2011/03/spring-has-sprung-new-unit.html" target="_blank">Musings of Me</a>.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1NalT5tIY5HyMhjhcVvRZ2Fs8UA-TsMPFlTZk3ajJWjAqSkajLEBdfNBbsJf0blDwXfjO6Vmnr-SbqtKDXQmZGNdz28wYMGVvh8XOVH7NonPVZ5x1e-L5rIPQ63xzCKOrwkXhQls3fSdD/s1600/Station+9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1NalT5tIY5HyMhjhcVvRZ2Fs8UA-TsMPFlTZk3ajJWjAqSkajLEBdfNBbsJf0blDwXfjO6Vmnr-SbqtKDXQmZGNdz28wYMGVvh8XOVH7NonPVZ5x1e-L5rIPQ63xzCKOrwkXhQls3fSdD/s320/Station+9.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Station 9: Raining Cats and Dogs Board Game</div><div style="text-align: center;">(This game has the cutest game board! And is easy to differentiate too! Students can use either number cards or addition/subtraction cards to determine how many spaces they move forward on the game board each turn. This game from <a href="http://www.mrswillskindergarten.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Wills</a> can be found <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Raining-Cats-and-Dogs-0-9-Addition-and-Subtraction-Board-Game" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnT4OyCN-yO9uhzehTbWwTKDs3pvIu9dc6f_hj5Jw4POD_O5Sir9N_z90CFVizwg44CfpeO5SoXk5Mq1roF5fTq1Q4DUn23VpFYxI77HYAesmeCXw-zcG2YZZ_tFr27d-DDbKrUEv49ASf/s1600/Station+10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnT4OyCN-yO9uhzehTbWwTKDs3pvIu9dc6f_hj5Jw4POD_O5Sir9N_z90CFVizwg44CfpeO5SoXk5Mq1roF5fTq1Q4DUn23VpFYxI77HYAesmeCXw-zcG2YZZ_tFr27d-DDbKrUEv49ASf/s320/Station+10.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Station 10: Coin Grab Graph</div><div style="text-align: center;">(Students take turns pulling a coin out of the bag and recording the coins on their graph. I still have a few kiddos that are really struggling with coin recognition, so this is good practice! This game is a freebie from me that you can download <a href="http://keenonkindergarten.blogspot.com/2012/02/learning-about-coins.html" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><br />
I'd love to hear how your math station have been going. I'm just loving what math stations have done for my students this year. They get so much extra math practice each day and review skills that we may not be focusing on in our math book, but that they still need to keep fresh with.<br />
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My students are getting very good now with skills like number recognition, counting, comparing numbers, and graphing. We still need some extra practice with skills like coins, telling time, and measurement. We're coming up on addition and subtraction in our math book next, so I expect many of my stations to focus on that next month. <br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: transparent; border: 0 !important;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-23430273271729977802012-03-07T21:34:00.000-06:002012-03-07T21:34:59.297-06:00Tackling the TattlingHas anyone else had enough with tattling? I know this issue seems to pop up every year, but this particular class of kinders is full of tattlers. I have been doing everything I can to discourage tattling, but it just isn't working. So...I just bought two new books about tattling that will hopefully help me out.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivVftt2JXmsyXirWUYC7iSWpCyptl9MUwesTMUbB14rUBeTmT6Xyueq0sZYM16mUa82xelFRNGIvh3CKjGqlLwB4S0GCC0o6T3GS7wUvDquaMZNsVST9cJn5BxaHkC15QUk0SN7KPTkn-A/s1600/tattletongue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivVftt2JXmsyXirWUYC7iSWpCyptl9MUwesTMUbB14rUBeTmT6Xyueq0sZYM16mUa82xelFRNGIvh3CKjGqlLwB4S0GCC0o6T3GS7wUvDquaMZNsVST9cJn5BxaHkC15QUk0SN7KPTkn-A/s200/tattletongue.jpg" width="200" yda="true" /></a></div>The first book I found about tattling is called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1931636869/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=keenonkinde-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1931636869">A Bad Case of Tattle Tongue</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1931636869" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px;" width="1" />. It is about a little boy who tattles so much that his mom tells him he will catch "tattle tongue" and his tongue will turn yellow with purple spots if he keeps it up. Thankfully, after a visit from the Tattle Prince, the boy is able to learn the rules about tattling and get his behavior under control. Even if parts of the books seem a little silly, I think the kids will really like this. There are lots of examples of tattling in the book that make it clear when it is okay to tell the teacher and when it is just tattling. I think I might copy this book's tattling rules onto poster board and implement them with my class!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Y25FcCqWJdkLTDFWZ2Y-5IT2zeC7hrZk1eGOh_ZtKs5ldXRzjCsGYedgC32GBUGQBY4lmBJGG9qW0W5MOqNVEN0TTYHUY0hEe8qNtn-Pvt_H1YKrBds-W0UA07bFPnWxK4cckDfXCnXf/s1600/don'tsqueal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Y25FcCqWJdkLTDFWZ2Y-5IT2zeC7hrZk1eGOh_ZtKs5ldXRzjCsGYedgC32GBUGQBY4lmBJGG9qW0W5MOqNVEN0TTYHUY0hEe8qNtn-Pvt_H1YKrBds-W0UA07bFPnWxK4cckDfXCnXf/s1600/don'tsqueal.jpg" yda="true" /></a></div><br />
The second book I found about tattling is called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591472407/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=keenonkinde-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1591472407">Don't Squeal Unless It's a Big Deal: A Tale of Tattletales</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=keenonkinde-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1591472407" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px;" width="1" />. It's about a classroom of little pigs and their teacher who has had enough with their "squealing" - I can totally relate. The teacher eventually teaches the class the difference between when something is a "big deal" and it is okay to come to her and when something is a "kid-sized problem" that the kids can work out themselves. I think after reading this book to my kiddos I might have them work with me to create a list of "big deals" vs. "kid-sized problems" and then we can role play ways to solve the "kid-sized problems."<br />
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If you have any other great book recommendations of books that deal with tattling or other classroom behavior issues let me know!<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-62694723384057987392012-02-25T20:22:00.002-06:002012-02-25T20:31:42.206-06:00Learning about coinsLast week we started learning about money in kindergarten. We're just focusing on the basics like naming coins and their values. We've also been counting pennies-nothing too challenging! I'm planning on adding some money games to my math work stations this week. Here are some freebies for you in case your students need some practice with coins too!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwI01U8_pZtrNXo1VWI3UEdURE9RMDZfYVNNU1hlQQ" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" lda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW6Rx4bA02xKacu1zaX1Vdk04k7g7Qznpj_ukmJmGqfWws5PyThQwvyil3TqYZ2VUDLo7_Mp27Yg87sCDbpkK4r2Xunfx2M1ckKfAd-qwmN-2Napt1sU9pTbIAyNR4DW6apI_YmDj_gwlk/s320/CoinGrabGraph.png" width="241" /></a></div><br />
This game is called <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwI01U8_pZtrNXo1VWI3UEdURE9RMDZfYVNNU1hlQQ" target="_blank">Coin Grab</a> and it practices coin recognition. I fill a little cloth bag with an assortment of coins (you could also fill a paper lunch bag or little purse) and then students take turns pulling out a coin and graphing it on their recording sheet. They do not grab a whole handful of coins at once-this is important to explain to kinders. Once they reach the top of their graph with one of the coins, the child stops and records how many of each coin they had on the bottom of the recording sheet. You can laminate the recording sheet and let students fill it in with a dry erase marker, or what I usually do is just copy it in black and white so students can fill it in with a pencil (and it is not a big deal to the kids that the coin pictures are not in color). <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwI01U8_pZtrNUFaeUV5R1pUY3FLcXlwTUJtRVZHQQ" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="239" lda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhodjMVHal1WgbhqwUHwQiSTs1rCs0WzzPAXqvzYQiUJ_F6SyPhPn8cAIqyntaYGeUb99BRwxc6k4r0i-WBCOHVKfpPSa5HRSK2UBMV_Qcygq1FiVmJPkatawSd1g84icZS72NXZjiuZgPd/s320/toothgame1.png" width="320" /></a><img border="0" height="200" lda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2GJhNVhXgB_gFsMnYF3U-ykCONaLX84SnKQ57fsrqVJfVVNgyoeRyBq_fIPuTeDHEtgNTPk3QNiPRLFxMQkjL2ZY1_8hgtKSF7TnGmTuYU-YWgNjIe7UsX2gCD-J56craaEeQNdPYr7JO/s200/toothgame2.png" width="176" /></div><br />
In case you're still studying teeth for dental health month, here is a simple little <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwI01U8_pZtrNUFaeUV5R1pUY3FLcXlwTUJtRVZHQQ" target="_blank">tooth math game</a> that works on money skills. Students spin the spinner, count how many cents they spun, and move that many spaces on the game board. <br />
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I'll be back later this week with pictures of all my current math work stations. I'd love to hear what you're up to this week!<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-37320121610003669632012-02-09T23:14:00.003-06:002012-02-09T23:24:12.972-06:00February Math StationsValentine's Day may not be until next week, but we are already celebrating with lots of heart themed activities. My kinders have definitely gone valentine crazy!<br />
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We've been practicing measurement, counting, graphing, patterns, and addition this week with our math stations. Most of these station activities are meant to be done using candy hearts, but I decided to save the candy for Valentine's day and we have been using foam hearts, plastic hearts, and heart erasers instead. <br />
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The kids have been LOVING these stations-my class loves using manipulatives and I guess all the cute little hearts are hard to resist! <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6fAgZQvALkJ14qIG7JHvkJ3Wl0WkYcBgIbdsXs9ILQgRlyQ_Z7jydkhLikVD6c3KwKrHmeBab-SNdnhs38oKvzq3GFmqqgcapMaZTjWdbbqoP6Jbw-BimeG5sDdhVJQ3XxGcsC4UAFyLx/s1600/Station1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6fAgZQvALkJ14qIG7JHvkJ3Wl0WkYcBgIbdsXs9ILQgRlyQ_Z7jydkhLikVD6c3KwKrHmeBab-SNdnhs38oKvzq3GFmqqgcapMaZTjWdbbqoP6Jbw-BimeG5sDdhVJQ3XxGcsC4UAFyLx/s320/Station1.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div align="center">Station 1: Candy Heart Patterns</div><div align="center">(Students make a pattern with candy hearts (we used foam hearts) and then color in their pattern on the recording sheet. You can get this great freebie from <a href="http://mrsriccaskindergarten.blogspot.com/2012/02/valentine-math-literacy-centers.html" target="_blank">Mrs. Ricca's Kindergarten</a>.)<br />
</div><div align="center"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5ZqE5ywQZU_m3ZK7Un8YcPIlcoJIMlaPA2-Br8ZL_G4mJ1pUUKLfwXwVRSSr3t7GiXsdDj2cDsUZEZ_M-FxFryUGIANxviMmM98kz6A6ly4jmwQfxp5SYQihsmRfmqe8i79HM8pVlBUI0/s1600/Station10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5ZqE5ywQZU_m3ZK7Un8YcPIlcoJIMlaPA2-Br8ZL_G4mJ1pUUKLfwXwVRSSr3t7GiXsdDj2cDsUZEZ_M-FxFryUGIANxviMmM98kz6A6ly4jmwQfxp5SYQihsmRfmqe8i79HM8pVlBUI0/s320/Station10.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 2A: Counting Hearts</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(I wrote numbers on a bunch of those little heart containers from Target, and then students had to put the containers in number order and fill them with the correct number of heart erasers. Simple number and counting review!)</div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ueImIVjrAazG5_syabM8FdtYhw9ec64rTo6PRluJV9Ovb_AIA528ZDOuD0yv-CON9-b_mi5cBNBpw7KXIY1FCy5yv4vi6Gnt19rIn5D42jIG5zE6X3HDZg820dIR-6TL4kMjFkI5XuwS/s1600/Station2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ueImIVjrAazG5_syabM8FdtYhw9ec64rTo6PRluJV9Ovb_AIA528ZDOuD0yv-CON9-b_mi5cBNBpw7KXIY1FCy5yv4vi6Gnt19rIn5D42jIG5zE6X3HDZg820dIR-6TL4kMjFkI5XuwS/s320/Station2.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 2B: Valentine Clip Cards</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students count the monsters and then clip a clothespin onto the heart showing the correct number. Such an adorable activity! The heart clips are from Target and the monster cards are a freebie from Amy at <a href="http://theresourseroom.blogspot.com/2012/01/currently-and-freebie.html" target="_blank">The Resourceful Room</a>. This is a pretty quick activity so that is why I had this game in the station 2 basket along with the heart containers counting game (above). Both games give great counting practice!). </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2XYA8NBl1gRM-RfW_LqO5JR_UtCYcdpkN2qb34coBS1B28UMAVBlnuHqYmKRPmHvtlqONuw2UUzrVEkI0PhQSRxfTDNv-R4E34beVR4oUQb1rDeSXjCZqLTRMSCAcTlh_qqUzFP-br5nw/s1600/Station3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2XYA8NBl1gRM-RfW_LqO5JR_UtCYcdpkN2qb34coBS1B28UMAVBlnuHqYmKRPmHvtlqONuw2UUzrVEkI0PhQSRxfTDNv-R4E34beVR4oUQb1rDeSXjCZqLTRMSCAcTlh_qqUzFP-br5nw/s320/Station3.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 3: Race to 50</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students take turns rolling the die and covering up that many numbers on their game board. My kiddos used heart erasers to cover-up their game boards. First player to get to 50 wins. This fun freebie is from <a href="http://www.kidscount1234.com/mathcentersandgames.html" target="_blank">Shari Sloane's Kids Count website</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo8I2CgB9bHGfIPh9Xrs65BXylnllyBLcVtyUYwkOgdeq7jxtMrsbtkPnjmAsvfar8j6rcqFv8wNdM0DyhoaM6k8i2u0hEZFK94y3aV40FBsGNn-kDN-q8wTEI_bwQZgRej9z2rrVIkWwa/s1600/Station4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo8I2CgB9bHGfIPh9Xrs65BXylnllyBLcVtyUYwkOgdeq7jxtMrsbtkPnjmAsvfar8j6rcqFv8wNdM0DyhoaM6k8i2u0hEZFK94y3aV40FBsGNn-kDN-q8wTEI_bwQZgRej9z2rrVIkWwa/s320/Station4.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 4: How Many Letters Graph</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students took a conversation heart out of the bag, counted how many letters were on the heart, and graphed it on their paper. This station snuck in a little literacy too! This fun freebie is from <a href="http://thefirstgradeparade.blogspot.com/2011/02/candy-heart-math-making-words-activity.html" target="_blank">The First Grade Parade</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-fVhusoWsHyOSkVUgwPF6Bt-7-C3BXjGCKWr_BM3yGRmq-7DFA0TliSHxM2-bE9PbFpKliYbhz8G3Cl7JXGKVAeC37IXnDFfUlH5r3c3qUPYpLAHzvVvyO88cGHkRC1tbBuKKTtPMRoqG/s1600/Station5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-fVhusoWsHyOSkVUgwPF6Bt-7-C3BXjGCKWr_BM3yGRmq-7DFA0TliSHxM2-bE9PbFpKliYbhz8G3Cl7JXGKVAeC37IXnDFfUlH5r3c3qUPYpLAHzvVvyO88cGHkRC1tbBuKKTtPMRoqG/s320/Station5.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 5: Cupcake Addition</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Are these cupcake erasers not the cutest thing? Thank you Target! Students picked an addition card, placed cupcake erasers over the cupcake images on the card, and then recorded the addition problem and the answer on their recording sheet. This fun freebie is from Amy at <a href="http://theresourseroom.blogspot.com/2012/01/another-freebie-exciting-news-spread.html" target="_blank">The Resourceful Room</a> and she even has cupcake subtraction cards if your kids are ready for that too!)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC1IpdJ0-O4w334VktzenPb6MGlzSslHa6oKURSI5AtQiB3IUn-l3v8PSB6nPb9jRYgUrJomlh5HMUTNjfLCspkReGyR0EXnOQRphRkrJkeCg4jG35TN-aE9qKdGlEf7z3jPNIht8RBJBp/s1600/Station6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC1IpdJ0-O4w334VktzenPb6MGlzSslHa6oKURSI5AtQiB3IUn-l3v8PSB6nPb9jRYgUrJomlh5HMUTNjfLCspkReGyR0EXnOQRphRkrJkeCg4jG35TN-aE9qKdGlEf7z3jPNIht8RBJBp/s320/Station6.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 6: Measuring Length with Hearts</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students used hearts to measure the length of different classroom objects and then recorded their findings on the sheet. You can get my freebie recording sheet <a href="http://keenonkindergarten.blogspot.com/2012/02/candy-heart-fun.html" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZKWrWnfwHkMPmtUwtX4fYxfEVoqkWH1mmKv1kGvcMLkIhSQWhpxgSS2jacmsOsOVzNblOhovezgPBe9N16pXZeHBRWc-nsW-NI0DUBTvQcBog2mFfkRBQNC0stH1a0MV8QCsaZyUmOjhD/s1600/Station7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZKWrWnfwHkMPmtUwtX4fYxfEVoqkWH1mmKv1kGvcMLkIhSQWhpxgSS2jacmsOsOVzNblOhovezgPBe9N16pXZeHBRWc-nsW-NI0DUBTvQcBog2mFfkRBQNC0stH1a0MV8QCsaZyUmOjhD/s320/Station7.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 7: Lovin' Addition Game</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(I just love this type of addition mat. Students were given a bag with a mix of pink and purple plastic hearts (from Target). Then they put some purple hearts on the left side of their addition mat and some pink hearts on the right side of their addition mat. Finally they recorded the addition problem they'd made and the answer on the recording sheet. Even my struggling students were able to use the manipulatives successfully to do some simple addition problems! Grab this fantastic freebie from <a href="http://mrsriccaskindergarten.blogspot.com/2012/02/valentine-math-literacy-centers.html" target="_blank">Mrs. Ricca's Kindergarten</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Tslf_sKnyP7zR0D_ywPcGza5iS21bF1lltpVv4BL9bq2yzmTrxFhIoN1qawWfFrZrEZ3PDNsMiBNvpc4cNge6plYLuYxjDPuAVWcznNjsfKgagN0EfpcnBM72NarmJcU6lu4gqmBcvNG/s1600/Station8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Tslf_sKnyP7zR0D_ywPcGza5iS21bF1lltpVv4BL9bq2yzmTrxFhIoN1qawWfFrZrEZ3PDNsMiBNvpc4cNge6plYLuYxjDPuAVWcznNjsfKgagN0EfpcnBM72NarmJcU6lu4gqmBcvNG/s320/Station8.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 8: Measuring Weight with Hearts</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(This was easily the most popular station this week-but also one of the more challenging ones too since it introduced a new skill. My students had never used a balance scale before, but now they are turning into pros! They weighed different classroom objects to see how many hearts they weighed. It took some real teamwork to count each heart as it was dropped into the balance's bucket. You can grab my free recording sheet <a href="http://keenonkindergarten.blogspot.com/2012/02/candy-heart-fun.html" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh6HE7zZxfSOEb4eWQM8u4L7cOpGpnt4za1ftX4Mj6T3lFNlhjTH-2Hs7pDDWnI5Do45g4SWfprDYoCToiLX61pRGMsU5GTJiGbgLQ4s_EzaiE7zAc-MWODh_c2RD8ZjqYGVebLj9xyjkF/s1600/Station9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh6HE7zZxfSOEb4eWQM8u4L7cOpGpnt4za1ftX4Mj6T3lFNlhjTH-2Hs7pDDWnI5Do45g4SWfprDYoCToiLX61pRGMsU5GTJiGbgLQ4s_EzaiE7zAc-MWODh_c2RD8ZjqYGVebLj9xyjkF/s320/Station9.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 9: How Big is Your Heart?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students used little foam hearts to measure and then record how long different sized hearts were. You can grab the heart template and recording sheets for free from <a href="http://mrsriccaskindergarten.blogspot.com/2012/02/valentine-math-literacy-centers.html" target="_blank">Mrs. Ricca's Kindergarten</a>.) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I hope your class is enjoying some valentine fun as well! </div><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-85215730374124864932012-02-05T11:20:00.005-06:002012-02-05T11:35:13.859-06:00Candy Heart Fun<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Looking for some fun ways to use candy hearts? I picked up a small box of conversation hearts for each of my students so that they'll be able to do some fun learning activities with them and then have a sweet little snack. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ9AMc65AmPeZR-26oK_7fuQ8IM0MneNDlIMd36HiPlSjmMu1Axa4F_4-Fm4xqDetcBAW55rJtIinOdQ-E5klrNc5EhgRYa7l5Ql80-S0q0kHgCfRVaHLFSFBursuMtTxGE_FkbUj-tgB0/s1600/hearts.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="148px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ9AMc65AmPeZR-26oK_7fuQ8IM0MneNDlIMd36HiPlSjmMu1Axa4F_4-Fm4xqDetcBAW55rJtIinOdQ-E5klrNc5EhgRYa7l5Ql80-S0q0kHgCfRVaHLFSFBursuMtTxGE_FkbUj-tgB0/s320/hearts.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><br />
One way we'll be using candy hearts this week is in our math stations. I'll let students use the hearts to practice nonstandard measurement. They'll get to practice measuring how long different objects are and how much they weigh using candy hearts (you could also use plastic hearts instead of the candy). <br />
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Here are some <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwI01U8_pZtrMDI4OTk0M2YtOWMyMS00ZGVlLTgxOWQtNDYyN2U1ZDBjYTcz" target="_blank">freebie recording sheets</a> in case you're interested! My kinders will draw/write the object they are measuring on the left side of the chart and then record the object's length (or weight) on the right side of the chart. This will be their first experience using our balance scale-should be interesting!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwI01U8_pZtrMDI4OTk0M2YtOWMyMS00ZGVlLTgxOWQtNDYyN2U1ZDBjYTcz" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="290px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR1FgUdSAeCy2Wx-I2TrM5yftQZO3wEntSZ0W_FzL0rbSSBbp1n8fK59iPG00TGov_GhnWJ8qJ8f32oGLEN20YOtZmMzmVzIHYOz8gaaISEJ4XrZHl3jo57mF5C-bdIAiJnwJcwPcnes7W/s400/valentinemeasurementpic.png" width="480px" /></a></div><br />
We'll also being using our candy hearts for patterning and then sorting, counting, and graphing by color. I've been doing this activity for years, but love the <a href="http://sharingmyfabulousfinds.blogspot.com/2012/01/valentines-find.html" target="_blank">cute recording sheets</a> Erin from Eberhart's Explorers made. I also like the idea of letting students graph how many letters are in the "conversation" on each of their candy hearts and plan to use the <a href="http://thefirstgradeparade.blogspot.com/2011/02/candy-heart-math-making-words-activity.html" target="_blank">cute recording sheet</a> from First Grade Parade (she has a cute candy heart probability game too!).<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I bought the candy hearts at Target (of course!) where they were $2 for a set of 8 boxes. Not sure if they have them cheaper somewhere else. I was happy to find that Brach's candy hearts have not been processed with peanuts, since I have a peanut allergy in my class, and it seems most other candy heart brands like Necco have a peanut warning on the label. I also found a few other cute things at Target.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoY1qLjaW51ftNDL0yw5qZkjITqPhUPqDpUQUJyD6XvL_yeEr1MAbUHv6C4gQG7-WlEegJ2uuXDwJWWVBjQi28j-EphChcLVHASGzME0TPwqjEQAt3NUGBamvD57p5Tnzja_XyalRZF0kR/s1600/erasers.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="184px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoY1qLjaW51ftNDL0yw5qZkjITqPhUPqDpUQUJyD6XvL_yeEr1MAbUHv6C4gQG7-WlEegJ2uuXDwJWWVBjQi28j-EphChcLVHASGzME0TPwqjEQAt3NUGBamvD57p5Tnzja_XyalRZF0kR/s200/erasers.JPG" width="200px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjquX38BIj1F-qhpT-4sO64JGudNiKW7e0jPM-XJ5sFHuGzH61i3ykwrlhFERqtGXNuipMK7XdCFpXaxJuoq7OxoPZEtruwSp_gr1Yz_59QV-0BIln7w0D7Y1Y_9yxVhuwAkHsFG7Cy4UU/s1600/bags.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjquX38BIj1F-qhpT-4sO64JGudNiKW7e0jPM-XJ5sFHuGzH61i3ykwrlhFERqtGXNuipMK7XdCFpXaxJuoq7OxoPZEtruwSp_gr1Yz_59QV-0BIln7w0D7Y1Y_9yxVhuwAkHsFG7Cy4UU/s200/bags.JPG" width="200px" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">These cupcake and dinosaur erasers will be great to use in some sort of center activity and the little grocery bags are going straight to my dramatic play area. My fave is the "I love my farmer's market" bag since I am planning to turn my dramatic play area into a farmer's market later this spring!</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Can you believe it's already February? Happy Valentine's Day!</div><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-80789089263313598432012-01-29T13:46:00.000-06:002012-01-29T13:46:35.953-06:00Valentine Fun!Looking for a cute valentine to give your students? Head on over to the <a href="http://sharingmyfabulousfinds.blogspot.com/2012/01/valentines-day-crayons.html" target="_blank">Fabulous Finds blog</a> where I just posted a fun idea for making your own heart-shaped crayons! It is super easy and I have the step by step directions and even a free template ready for you!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvXR9JHG1jRoZyDibdgALzmJUVLzh2QXjqe7MfdJhjxf-Es9q8HOTAppPtoj36btKvmu1n4Cbo3gZQEejQuiSDPxAkzvcPBv197eXpdyaHFj_OKtlwvQqTyLTtoMDMZTzK-Cr4ETuDRpaT/s1600/Step6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="150px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvXR9JHG1jRoZyDibdgALzmJUVLzh2QXjqe7MfdJhjxf-Es9q8HOTAppPtoj36btKvmu1n4Cbo3gZQEejQuiSDPxAkzvcPBv197eXpdyaHFj_OKtlwvQqTyLTtoMDMZTzK-Cr4ETuDRpaT/s200/Step6.JPG" width="200px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Also, if you're looking for some fun literacy centers for your students to do in February, I just added a pack of Valentine Literacy Games to my <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Valentine-Literacy-Games" target="_blank">TPT store</a>- just a few cute activities to practice the alphabet and sight words. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Valentine-Literacy-Games" target="_blank"><img border="0" gda="true" height="295px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQag63-o9ivzYjiDhdJ3zkBqJ51K67Exkbhb9tA-Lwoukrmx6o7t1w3nxTBUjJnWc6-EFXF0wYTk0xCYNUW6hHTXmQk3mV3ZGOAQXDQn0i9rfaZ-vzR7O3aLl8USB1W-VtnCYMk_tk07cB/s400/ValentineLiteracyGamePreview.png" width="400px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I'd love to hear what fun things you've got planned for celebrating Valentine's Day in your classroom!</div><div align="left"></div><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7234024955852186014.post-35567435093016586812012-01-25T23:32:00.003-06:002012-01-26T16:50:04.543-06:00More January Math StationsJanuary is starting to feel like a very long month! I just recently switched out our math stations from earlier this month for a new round of stations. Still lots of winter themed games and also a few fun Chinese New Year math games too! The best part about these math games....nearly every one is a freebie!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoFIKQxSzmVGBMIk3cPzRuqoEXdAg72TQxqiFYYWqMTPgMqOOqSEYOPntgwYGdXol0I8x9mVCEpY1917fdNqy_9YCkjJcaG7E3R3AojCTRsKEDvgDvnMorKGsX0KQTJEC0QzmVtkfWhbWz/s1600/Station1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoFIKQxSzmVGBMIk3cPzRuqoEXdAg72TQxqiFYYWqMTPgMqOOqSEYOPntgwYGdXol0I8x9mVCEpY1917fdNqy_9YCkjJcaG7E3R3AojCTRsKEDvgDvnMorKGsX0KQTJEC0QzmVtkfWhbWz/s320/Station1.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 1: Race to 100</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students roll the die to see how many squares they can color in on their hundred chart. First player to get to 100 wins. A fun game and great for a week when we are celebrating the 100th day of school. Any old 100 chart you have lying around will work for this game.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNO2jXDsiggYtV2iWgc2JWv-1pq-7_LlxPJCAmFW9L9gBvGWxTW9hJUhwQnwd2PvrnEr9s-yviAPiWrLhAXqOHzkYV9DaxPdbVGQYZnJjnSWjhyphenhyphenM08ge-4I3cQUBXnoOiRV_EopR9hBVZ1/s1600/Station2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNO2jXDsiggYtV2iWgc2JWv-1pq-7_LlxPJCAmFW9L9gBvGWxTW9hJUhwQnwd2PvrnEr9s-yviAPiWrLhAXqOHzkYV9DaxPdbVGQYZnJjnSWjhyphenhyphenM08ge-4I3cQUBXnoOiRV_EopR9hBVZ1/s320/Station2.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 2: Tic-Tac-Teen</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students spin the spinner and cover up the teen number they spun on their little game board. First player to get three in a row (tic-tac-toe) on their game board wins. My students are using some cute X and O plastic table scatter pieces I found at Target to mark their game boards-and I am storing the pieces in a play-doh can. We are really hitting the teen numbers hard this month! This game can be found <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Tweeting-Teens-Games-Activities-for-Teen-Numbers" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinmyESg1MG6LJXIJjso5CL1Bs5fn0xfjE5V-ASgNprDT85siIAO77Hgvy1lIz43BBQ9URC-gjEY6BrxQuEM-2IUGsvZ8rfJc2Sy-r0rrWpJJ-pGgmnB37SX137VzG8VlmM_eHSeMgF9kNR/s1600/Station3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinmyESg1MG6LJXIJjso5CL1Bs5fn0xfjE5V-ASgNprDT85siIAO77Hgvy1lIz43BBQ9URC-gjEY6BrxQuEM-2IUGsvZ8rfJc2Sy-r0rrWpJJ-pGgmnB37SX137VzG8VlmM_eHSeMgF9kNR/s320/Station3.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 3: Lantern Cover-up</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students roll 2 dice and cover up the sum on their game board. First player to cover-up all their lanterns wins. This freebie of mine can be downloaded <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Chinese-New-Year-Math-Games" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM5PBU5uRF3BdW1sJADctpjaQA9xo9iwr03vUSKxCFX6ky_WrNHJ1BcInZjzZWwK9IPVJ3ASx2wX9lsAHlF0qtqRX8f7f2oqot70LDh1mYLWSesYhEqqmqfEw-InF8iRRXmYmU47VQSCpq/s1600/Station4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM5PBU5uRF3BdW1sJADctpjaQA9xo9iwr03vUSKxCFX6ky_WrNHJ1BcInZjzZWwK9IPVJ3ASx2wX9lsAHlF0qtqRX8f7f2oqot70LDh1mYLWSesYhEqqmqfEw-InF8iRRXmYmU47VQSCpq/s320/Station4.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 4: Polar Pals Roll and Cover</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students roll 3 dice and cover up the sum on their game board. First player to cover-up all their numbers wins. Using 3 dice is a great challenge! My higher kids are adding up the numbers in their head while my lower kids are pointing to each dot on the dice and counting up their total. This freebie from <a href="http://mrsliretteslearningdetectives.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Lirette's Learning Detective's</a> can be downloaded <a href="http://mrsliretteslearningdetectives.blogspot.com/2012/01/polar-bears-penguins-and-awards-oh-my.html" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGUrf-ckCPQsLFZlwlodIUOG61WgXsytmSoBca3n7GW6vD7QlX6g-pFjl3wju7vOs5DvZii5aji27hjA_QaIssbucTdqKwerghhHPVdeb59ujAlnFH2eWnbc-2yB8__Ks6UToVLccX3OGd/s1600/Station5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGUrf-ckCPQsLFZlwlodIUOG61WgXsytmSoBca3n7GW6vD7QlX6g-pFjl3wju7vOs5DvZii5aji27hjA_QaIssbucTdqKwerghhHPVdeb59ujAlnFH2eWnbc-2yB8__Ks6UToVLccX3OGd/s320/Station5.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 5: Spin a Character In The Mitten</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students spin an animal on this darling spinner and then color in the graph with the appropriate color to record what animal they spun. This super cute game goes with the book <em>The Mitten, </em>and can be dowloaded for free <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Spin-A-Character-In-The-Mitten" target="_blank">here</a> from Fran at <a href="http://kindergartencrayons.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Kindergarten Crayons</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggDFYVIlp11VeVPs426b-bZh16JcGmsLcM3bs2r4nIyFCxhaBP_D-Cwl0fFswnYDcEyso4TeSedgu00a6trKnqGFVJfhowiWWNmczY7NJ_SpGAxPQhENzB2hpr-mA1Ra08RlTLnzZ1DDQ8/s1600/Station6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggDFYVIlp11VeVPs426b-bZh16JcGmsLcM3bs2r4nIyFCxhaBP_D-Cwl0fFswnYDcEyso4TeSedgu00a6trKnqGFVJfhowiWWNmczY7NJ_SpGAxPQhENzB2hpr-mA1Ra08RlTLnzZ1DDQ8/s320/Station6.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 6: Race to Trace</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students roll the die and trace the number they rolled on their sheet. First player to trace all the numbers on their sheet wins. Super cute little polar bears on this game sheet too! I wrote the numbers 15-20 on a foam cube to make my dice. This fun freebie from <a href="http://ketchenskindergarten.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Ketchen's Kindergarten</a> can be downloaded <a href="http://ketchenskindergarten.blogspot.com/2012/01/january-math-stations.html" target="_blank">here</a> along with some other great winter math games!)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMHF_8RMi8oyez2ewFFdQEDkhogupWhh-2CV4J0d34itbnCvQYZE5XZj7tcAKG_c5mPjdNdrgrGksF6wRHfvnoYdkL9Rug-17UXJrWtsSet848eaeGNIJc7hPST5auMvCd82xps8T_rPlp/s1600/Station7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMHF_8RMi8oyez2ewFFdQEDkhogupWhh-2CV4J0d34itbnCvQYZE5XZj7tcAKG_c5mPjdNdrgrGksF6wRHfvnoYdkL9Rug-17UXJrWtsSet848eaeGNIJc7hPST5auMvCd82xps8T_rPlp/s320/Station7.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 7: Chinese New Year Counting Game</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students pick a red envelope with a number word on it, and then match it to the corresponding picture and number cards. All of the picture cards are Chinese New Year themed. The free picture and number cards I made for this game can be found <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Chinese-New-Year-Math-Games" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiALmTJs8YH815s280Js4WlRz9yuSlB5E9LYDKejn16hkoeytHewj1g4OQf7bcsxffwv2-EsnHhTaPfPZ6BFIQpS38AgjaZUDoIe2wtIi9hVQ2Ch1LSOQTJESBpw1fZ4uQb1uWld-90Hl7b/s1600/Station8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiALmTJs8YH815s280Js4WlRz9yuSlB5E9LYDKejn16hkoeytHewj1g4OQf7bcsxffwv2-EsnHhTaPfPZ6BFIQpS38AgjaZUDoIe2wtIi9hVQ2Ch1LSOQTJESBpw1fZ4uQb1uWld-90Hl7b/s320/Station8.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 8: Count Your Change</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students pick a change purse, count the change inside, and record the amount on their sheet. Each little purse has a sticker with a letter on it for recording purposes. To give this game a little Chinese New Year flair, we are using little Chinese purses. Sorry I don't have a link to a recording sheet for you-I copied this sheet from a book of math games I have-but students could easily record the purse's letter and amount of money on a piece of scrap paper.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzwlV_AHfpNC5tjwZN9nYxyKLg3FmD93d_JQBQWT5B-_lE-bqj7UOKdk-1O2ZqelV_DOkXE338s0INKoaVElI4CaFU8N6C-Uo1jN47R8mXez1RrQ50Zlqfek0fhE3YcSc7GWBEIrEPSynn/s1600/Station9a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzwlV_AHfpNC5tjwZN9nYxyKLg3FmD93d_JQBQWT5B-_lE-bqj7UOKdk-1O2ZqelV_DOkXE338s0INKoaVElI4CaFU8N6C-Uo1jN47R8mXez1RrQ50Zlqfek0fhE3YcSc7GWBEIrEPSynn/s320/Station9a.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 9: Snowman Button Counting</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students look at the number on the snowman's hat and count out that many buttons to put on the snowman. This game was a hit! Kinders love anything with fun buttons. This cute game from <a href="http://creatingandteaching.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Creating and Teaching</a> can be downloaded for free<a href="http://creatingandteaching.blogspot.com/2012/01/snowman-button-counting-freebie.html" target="_blank"> here</a>.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglALXlInS7tPhvIfOfHmLesw-8vLSiV-0VIB-ghFUAmye_s92TjNEf4oYB2PJfb95Iom1nu4-ui7kwS1fJQZx4XxhpEQMIQavG5qSsCYC6hk2ePZ5Aj0sU8ypNGsNz3h6I8hLYp4PAlivH/s1600/Station9b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglALXlInS7tPhvIfOfHmLesw-8vLSiV-0VIB-ghFUAmye_s92TjNEf4oYB2PJfb95Iom1nu4-ui7kwS1fJQZx4XxhpEQMIQavG5qSsCYC6hk2ePZ5Aj0sU8ypNGsNz3h6I8hLYp4PAlivH/s320/Station9b.JPG" width="320px" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Station 10: Snowflake Counting</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Students count our the the correct number of pom-pom balls to match the number written on their snowflake. I happened to find these foam snowflake cut-outs in the dollar spot at Target a few weeks ago.) </div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Let me know how your math stations are going-I'm on the look out for any cute February stations I can use next month!</div><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/209/C41DE5B5C9362D1FBE0966F61CDDBCFF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Meredithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16494849868073451460noreply@blogger.com2