Saturday, September 17, 2011

News Worthy!

Download your FREE newspaper work station printable {here}. Leave me some blogger love, please. Happy hunting!

Friday, September 16, 2011

Punch Print Work Station


Each letter is printed twice per page. So - when you copy them, make sure to cut in half for small sizes that fit perfectly in your students' hands! This can also be adapted for Math Work stations...students could punch numbers or number words. PARENTS - Print these off and make a "punch print" at home. Your little one will enjoy reviewing their letters while outside the classroom for sure! Leave a message and let me know your thoughts. Happy punching!

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Calendar Math

I've changed up calendar math and started implementing a new journal. While my students started out a little slow, they are getting the hang of it now! And the fact that they get to use a highlighter -OH EM GEE! ha It's the little things with kinders and it makes my heart happy! :)
Students write their name and highlight: the day of the week, month, and year. Then, they write: the date, date in #s, number of days in school, and it's place value. Afterwards, students illustrate the weather. Keep in mind, this is something that has to be done whole group for quite.a.while. My students are just now getting to a place where they can do this independently. This journal is great to pair up with Stephanie's monthly calendars. You can find those {here}. Click on MY image for your free calendar journal download. What do you do to assess students during calendar math? 

Monday, September 12, 2011

Writer's Workshop & a handout!

I've started easing my students into Writer's Workshop by having them respond to writing prompts through illustrations. Today, I took them a step farther and discussed labels.  Students helped me fill out this chart (pinterest inspired):
From there, students learned the 5 things you need to become a good writer. A brain to think of good stories with, a smile to write happily, hands to journal, and a pencil and paper to record. Students labeled the items they needed on this handout. 
Click the image for your free download. Enjoy and happy labeling!

Friday, September 9, 2011

"I Can" snag a freebie!

With the implementation of Common Core standards, my school system is mandating essential questions or in the lower grades...I can statements. They are requiring them to be written on our boards so when administration is making their rounds, they can easily identify the goals being taught. While I know my teacher bloggy friends are quite familiar...for my parents - "I Can..." Objectives are a technique of presenting objectives to students in the form of declarative statements. Before, during, and after learning, students rank their ability to successfully do what the "I Can..." asks of them. I've been jotting down my lesson's "I Can" statements on the board each week, and just wasn't pleased with their overall appearance. I wanted it to get students' attention and look cute all at the same time, so I created this:
Thanks to a friend, my plan is to write my units' statements on sentence strips, laminate, and re use each year.  They'll be posted below the "I can" sign and changed out as needed. Click the picture to download your freebie!  ~Miss E