My Language Arts Stations for the Weeks of 9/30 and 10/7

Station 1: Guided Reading with me.

Station 2: Build an Alphabet House (source here)

Station 3: A - Z Beginning Letter Sounds (source here)

Station 4: 3-Letter Word Puzzles I found at the dollar store.

Station 5: Computers and Listening Center

Before or After Alphabet Card Memory Game

This is played like a regular memory game using a single set of alphabet cards. I used a deck I'd bought at a dollar store. (Just make sure the backs of the cards are all alike, and don't give any hint as to what's on the other side.)

Real simple - a player draws 2 cards. If the cards are "connected" (ex: H, I  or  P,Q), the player keeps the pair. If the pairs aren't "adjacent" (ex: B, R), they turn the cards back over and the next person draws.

A can be paired with Z. When the only cards left are ones that can't be paired, the game is over, and the student with the most pairs wins. (*Note: If the children were having difficulty - some were even singing the alphabet song - I gave them a simple chart to help.)

Using Pinterest Pictures in the Classroom - Sea Urchin Shells

* What do you think they are?
* How many do you see?
* Where do you think they came from?
* What can you tell me about their shape?
* Are they all exactly the same? Why or why not?
* If you were to put them in different categories (or piles), how would you separate them?
* How would you describe what they looked like to someone who hasn't seen this picture?
* Why do you think someone took a picture of them?
* If I were to give you one, what would you do with it?

Mist Them on Those Hot, Hot Days

On those hot days when we go outside for our very brief recess, I take a spray bottle of water with me. The children often run up and ask me to spray their faces and the backs of their necks. They love this method of cooling off!

Math Anchor Charts for Classroom Journals - a Freebie!

I created this math anchor chart for my students to fill out and glue inside their journals. I ran off 2 to a page, and the half page works beautifully. Just click on the 8.5x11 picture to get the full size, then right click and save!

My Language Arts Stations for the Weeks of 9/16 and 9/23

These are my Language Arts Stations for the weeks of September 16 and September 23.

As always, Station One is my Guided Reading Station, and Station Two is the split station where two students go to the computer, and two go to the listening center. At this time the kids on the computer are using Starfall .com. I also have FunBrainJr .com, and ABCya .com.

STATION THREE: We were given these alphabet mats. I have the students using the blue letters to cover their match on the mat.

STATION FOUR: I made my own alphabet mats for the kids to roll and cover with Playdough. Right now they're doing A through E. Next month I'll give them F through J. (Don't forget to laminate your mats first, so the Playdough doesn't stick to the paper.)

STATION FIVE: Write the room! At the beginning of school, we labeled one object per day using pink index cards, until we had ten labels. Now they use their WtR sheets to find those numbered labels and write the word on their sheets. Next time I'll use a different color of index cards, so we can do this activity again.

My Math Stations for the Weeks of 9/16 and 9/23

Our math stations these next two weeks are simple and fun.

Station One: a quick little board game I found on Pinterest. So many of my students have never played a board game, so this fast-paced one is ideal to keeping their enthusiasm up.

Station Two: Calendar Math - Great practice writing their number, especially with the Vis-a-Vis markers they got to use. I gave them copies of this month's calendar, which they duplicated onto their boards. I plan to do this activity every month.

Station Three: I got this game off Pinterest. It was originally a "Roll and Color" page, but we're limited to how much paper we can use, so I ran off just five copies, had them laminated, and now they "Roll and COVER". And they love using the colored flat-bottom glass rocks.

Station Four: A piece of masking tape on the end of a pipe cleaner, a number on the tape, a box of colored beads, and you have a fantastic counting activity that also strengthens fine motor skills.

And Station Five is with me for guided math practice. This week, I'm using that time with the students to assess them on their counting skills.

Happy Friday the 13th!

Fill 'er Up Math Game and Freebie!

2-6 players

The object is for each player to draw one card at a time and match it to the correct number. If they draw a card for a number that's already full, they put it back. First person to fill 'er up wins! (Or you could start with completing one row.)

The cards include the number, the word, a die, a domino, a ten frame, objects, tally marks, fingers on a hand, and when they're ready for a little addition (or you just want to go ahead and introduce it), simple addition sentences. There are some blank cards, if you come up with another way to show the number.

Grab the jpegs below. All boards are 8.5x11, but I ran them off onto cardstock as half pages. I also included a blank template, if you want to expand the game.

My Morning Routine

At the request of a couple of teacher friends, I thought I'd share what teachers at my school call the Morning Routine. This is what we do before we start the school day.

First, when my students enter the room, I greet them with a smile and a handshake. They go straight away to hang up their backpacks and turn in their homework folders. Next, they find their names to write. (This week we're tracing dotted names, then writing it underneath.)

They turn in their names, then get to choose between a coloring page or a puzzle. The coloring sheet is always about something we're studying.

Once the first bell rings, and we have morning announcements, the color sheets go into the backpacks, and the puzzles (which must be completed) are returned to the table.

If you have a different routine, I'd love to hear about it!

My Math Stations for the Weeks of 9/3 and 9/9

My five math stations use the same schedule and bins as the Language Arts stations.

STATION ONE:
I have a set of cards that pair up with a number to a picture representation of that number (ex: 5, 5 birds). The students use the cards to play Memory.

STATION TWO:

Got this idea from Pinterest. Using the colorful popsicle sticks/tongue depressors, I put before-middle-after numbers on them, then made clothespins for them to clip on the answers. (Ex: __ 4  5, or 3  __  5, or 5  6  __.)

STATION THREE:

Got this idea from Pinterest, as well. I used colored index cards to make sets with the numbers 1 - 5. The object is to use a hole punch to put that many holes in the card as indicated by the number.

STATION FOUR:

I'm using the 1 Die Blackout game I created and featured here. You can download the template, too. The object is to shake the die in the cup and cover the corresponding number. If the number is already covered, you lose that turn. First person to cover their card wins.

STATION FIVE:
This was a freebie board game I got off Pinterest (again!). But instead of a die, they're tossing a penny. Heads = move forward 1 square. Tails = lose a turn. Later on in the year, tails will equal Move Back 1 square.

My Language Arts Stations for the Weeks of 9/03 and 9/9

These are the Language Arts stations I'm using these next two weeks. There are five stations which will rotate on a daily basis. I will use these stations for two weeks before changing them out.

This is the schedule. Each table has a different colored bucket/bin, which is how the students know who gets what and when. If you want to use it, just click on the picture to get the full size image.

STATION ONE

* Computers and Listening Center

As I have only 2 computers, 2 students go there, and the other 2/3 go to the listening center. At the listening center, they listen to a book on CD. After which, they draw a picture about the story they just heard.

STATION TWO:

These children will come to me for guided reading. They use the popsicle sticks/tongue depressors to help them keep track of which line they're on.

STATION THREE:

I got this idea and free mats from Pinterest. The students make the letters using tangram shapes.

STATION FOUR:

I got this idea from Pinterest, too. Students draw a card that either has a capital letter, lower case letter, or picture. They write over that letter with a Vis-a-Vis marker (which wipes off with water when they're done). If they draw a letter they're already out of, they lose that turn. First person to finish filling out their letters wins.

I've since laminated my worksheets. The worksheet was a freebie for ABC. I've since made my own version for DEF, and will do more later.

 STATION FIVE:
I call this game Ready Set Go. I put the alphabet on cardstock using a neat shield font. (You can get your own copy here.) Then I bought some great little "alphabet charms" from WalMart, and they also use a set of tweezer-like chopsticks I found last year. The object of the game is to be the first person to put a charm on each letter using the chopsticks.

Happy Labor Day!

Special Days - September