Ahh, Spring Allergies

Letter W Activities

Another round of testing at school meant a few more activities to help fill up those times when there was no PE or enrichment/block!

To begin our letter W fun, we took this master, put our name on the circles (one letter per segment), and made Name Worms!

 

On another day, we made Our Window on the Weather, featuring the days we most often see down in south Texas (sunny, partly sunny, cloudy, and rainy.) The master is here. You may want to substitute snow for one of the days, or whatever reflects your local weather. And don't forget the curtains!

I had seen this idea on Pinterest, but there was never a template, so I created one (which you can download here.) For the seeds, we used a hole punch and black construction paper. Those hole punches certainly help strengthen their arm muscles!

 

For Fun Fun Friday, we played Water games! Our first game we called "Squirt the Bottle". The class was divided up into two teams. I got those neat pool noodle squirters at Walgreen's. Anyway, the kids would fill the squirters with water, then try to hit their target bottle. If they did, their team got a point.

 

Our second game was "Squeeze the Sponge". Each team member got their sponge soaking wet from the tub, then ran across the playground and squeezed it out into the blue containers. Once everyone had had their turn, I measured the water. The team that managed to squeeze out the most water won!

Once we finished our games, it was time to come in for snacks. And what other snack could we have than watermelon!

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teachers Who Use Technology

36 Things Every 21st Century Teacher Should Be Able To Do

 

Very insightful. Go hear to read the entire blog.

Letter T Activities

We had a lot of fun with our letter T activities this week.

Of course, we worked on AB patterns with Texas and a top.

I found an old math sheet of various shapes, and created a Triangles/Not Triangles worksheet to go with it. I didn't have the kids color the shapes - just cut out and glue. But I've used that initial sheet as a color sheet (ex: color the squares blue, etc.) In retrospect, I think this sheet should have had fewer shapes on it for this activity, but it was a good way to get a quick observation grade on their shapes.

I also made this worksheet of shapes, that they colored, cut out, and put together to make a truck!

What made it fun was adding their photo to the "cab" so that it looks like they're driving.

But the activity that was the greatest fun was making our paper plate turtles. (You can get the master here.) Unfortunately, I ran out of paper plates (it's been that kind of week), so I quickly traced a plate onto manila construction paper. The kids colored the plate and turtle parts, cut and glued, and then I added googly eyes.

And, since it was Fun Fun Friday, we all enjoyed Trix cereal for our snack/treat! I've never had Trix before today, and I've found them to be fruity and very addictive!

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On a Typical Day in Kindergarten

Because we have lunch at 10:30, we have snack in the afternoon after nap time. Paul here had brought an orange to eat. Without me having to tell him to, he bent over the trash can to peel it and eat it, dripping enough juice to fill a small cup. But the room took on that wonderful, fruity scent that lasted for hours afterward.

It's the little things you remember.

Letter U Activities

Just when we thought we wouldn't have a lot of activities for this letter, we ended up having a terrific week!

 

* We used underwear and umbrellas to make ABB patterns.

 

 

* Speaking of umbrellas, we painted coffee filters with watercolors (giving the parasol portion a beautiful stained glass effect). Once they were dry, we took a pipe cleaner, punched a hole in the center of the filter, made a tiny loop in the top, and curved the bottom section so it looked like the handle.

 

* We suspended them from the ceiling so they would sway and dance and twirl.

 

* Next, I found a boxer pattern and a panty pattern on the internet. Ran them off. Everyone got to design their own underwear.

* We then hung them on the "line" in the hallway, and I invited all the teachers to come vote for their favorite pair (one boy, one girl) by putting a tally mark on the yellow post-it note.

 

* Our underwear contest ended up with a tie for the best girl's panties, and one boy winner!

 

* Because the letter Uu is a vowel, it's more often found inside a word (CVC) than at the beginning. So I created a game called "Buggy".

 

 

* I found a ladybug graphic on the internet, blew it up, and made a game board out of it (4 to a sheet of cardstock.) I then made 35 little copies on a sheet, and pasted pictures from an assortment of worksheets and workbooks on the backs.

 

* Here's how the game works. I placed all the little bug pictures in the empty kleenex box. A student pulls one of the pictures and identifies what it is. (Ex: lips) Does "lips" have the short  /u/ sound? Yes or no. If the child answers correctly, they keep the card, and get to cover one of the spots on their game board. If they get the answer wrong, they put the picture card back into the tissue box. First person to cover their game board wins!

 

* On Fun Fun Friday, I gave everyone a cone template that I found on the internet. They got to color the shape and cut it out. I folded the shape and stapled it into a cone, hole-punched a hole on each side, and gave the student a length of yarn.

 

We ended up with a class full of unicorns!

And It's Still That Way Today

As many times as I try to correct my kids, and have them sing The Alphabet Song correctly, they still revert to their old ways. What's funnier is that, if I ask them to SAY the song instead of sing it, they STILL string those four letters into one almost incoherent word.

My Kindergarten Dictionary - April Edition

    tor mato

    watch ateria

   baybing suit

Letter K Activities

Wow! What a busy week it's been! Because the upper grades were in the middle of state testing, we had to find some extra activities to keep us busy, since we didn't have P.E. or enrichment/block.

* Here, I took an earlier idea and expanded it. I made a template of 20 blocks, and gave a sheet to each table. As a group, the children had to find 20 Ks in the newspaper, cut them out, and glue one per block. I had 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners.

* I found a key pattern on the web, and inserted pictures from some old worksheets. Each key sports a picture of something that begins with "k". One key bears the title MY KEY RING. They colored the keys, cut them out, punched a hole in the hole, and strung them on a silver ring. You can get my master here.

* We made kites! Using this master, we colored and cut out the shield and the "bows", and used yarn for the tail. Hanging them from the ceiling makes them "fly" when the AC comes on!

* I found a different key picture, and one of a koala, and made copies. We used the pictures to make AAB patterns.

* For Fun Fun Friday, I'd bought some cheap red lipstick. Dabbing a bit on each child's lips, they kissed a sheet with a capital K. Some kids needed 2 or 3 dabs. I tried applying with Q-tips and cotton balls, but the tip of my finger worked best (cleaning it off with a moist diaper wipe after each child.)



On a Typical Day at School...

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Have a Great April Fools Day!