Hey - fall is in full swing! So much learning..... and are you nearly as exhausted as I am? Wow!
I wanted to show you a few "fall" things we've been working with and give you a freebie! :) Do you love free learning stuff? Me too!!
This is all in my fall pack - It's All Fall! -- you can get these literacy and math center activities HERE.
This is letter feature sorting. Kids must spend time focusing and paying attention to letters and the way they look. For example, kids need to notice the difference between an 'h' and an 'n'. This is a critical pre-reading skill.
(recording sheets for the above activity)
This is "Build-a-Scarecrow" Dolch word game.
Working on color words too! :)
There's lots more in this pack....
looks pretty fun, huh?
Here is the freebie I told you about. If you follow my Facebook fanpage, you got early access to this freebie. :) It's a perfect supplement to any study of bats and spiders!
My kiddos are LOVING our Ocean Research unit..... I mean head OVER heels! First we talked about what we already knew about the ocean and what lives there. I was surprised by how little they knew this year. Usually kindergarteners have quite a bit of background knowledge here, but not this year. So, we definitely started from the ground up!
Do you like our octopuses/octopi? They were super easy to make......We taped a piece of construction paper long ways and cut 8 strips about 3/4 of the ways up. Then we used markers to curl up the arms of the octopus. It's actually a great fine motor activity! I got the idea from HERE. I adjusted and changed it a bit though.
Here are our jellyfish and the kids especially loved making these because they got to use my Sharpie markers. We started with clear plastic cups I got at the Dollar Tree. Jellyfish come in all colors so the kids loved coloring the jellyfish. Then we used bubble wrap to make the arms inside and curling ribbon for the tentacles.
Here is a shot of some of our research. We used books, magazines, and Internet sites to learn about jellyfish and octopus this week. Next week we will dive in with sea stars, sea horse, sharks, and whales.
Here is a shot of my kiddos playing a Dolch word wall game from my Ocean Commotion pack. Here are some more activities included:
Flipsy Flopsy - place value to 30.
silent e words (I forgot to take a picture of the darn recording sheet)
sorting short and long vowel words
Ahhh yeah!!! It's that time of year when WE (teachers) get a little appreciation - BRING IT ON! It's time to put our feet up, sit back, and ............shop! Hey what teacher doesn't love to shop. I love this time of year. Yes we are all tired and have our eyes on the prize....summer, but I also love this time of year because I can start to think of next year -- I love new beginnings!
Anyways, TpT is having a Teacher Appreciation Sale and I would LOVE if you take a look in my store. My store will be 20% off and TpT will take another 10% off (don't ask how it turns out to be 28% off........some fancy finagling) Important thing to remember: when you check out, put in the checkout code TAD13.
Here are some of my favorite items for this time of year:
We are so busy in the classroom learning about the ocean and the critters that inhabit it. I wanted to share a couple of projects we've done this week.....
Jellyfish:
The kids LOVED making these jellyfish....They were astounded to learn that jellyfish have no head -- it's just a belly with tentacles......no brain, no eyes, no heart.....but yet it moves and grow, eat and reproduces. Fascinating stuff!
Materials:
clear plastic cups (I got mine 10 for $1 at Dollar Tree)
Sharpie permanent markers in a variety of colors
curling ribbon
tape
bubble wrap
How to Make:
Color the inside of the clear plastic cup. It's just easier to color the inside so the ink doesn't smear and get everywhere. Then when it's finished the kids can hold without fear of getting marker all over them. I encouraged kids to color their jellyfish anyway they wanted to. Jellyfish come in all colors so it was perfect -- it also made each one so unique.
Tape a rectangular piece of bubble wrap inside at the top (bottom of the cup). The bubble wrap only needs to be about 4 inches by 2 inches (these are the jellyfish's arms that are inside it's belly). Then allow the kids to tape about 10 tentacles to the inside edge of the cup all around.... Make the tentacles as long as you wish. I didn't measure them so many were different lengths (just like a real jellyfish).
Octopus
Materials:
9X12 inch construction paper in variety of colors
tape
2 round circles (or googly eyes if you prefer)
How to Make:
Wrap a sheet of construction paper round hot-dog style (long ways) until the end are barely touching and tape at the top and tape about 2-3 inches down. You have made a long cylinder. Then, cut 8 long slits up the cylinder to where the second piece of tape is. Make sure you have 8 strips as an octopus has 8 legs. Kids use a marker or pen and curl each arm up and then let go. The arm stays curled.
Glue 2 large circle on the head and place a black dot in the middle. I ran a piece of curling ribbon through the top for a hanger. I got this idea from HERE. She gave great directions. I adjusted and changed what I made by her directions will definitely get you going!
I hope this gives you a couple of fun ideas to try with your ocean unit!
I have an awesome website to share with you today that will provide tons of great learning experiences for your students and help create memories that will last a lifetime. The possibilities really are ENDLESS!
This website allows you to create photo albums and/or picture books with narration. It's FREE to use and super simple. Here is how I used this website this year in my classroom:
Each year in my kindergarten classroom, we conduct an entire research unit on animals. One of the standards we have to meet is having the kids "present" their research. Typically they make posters, dioramas, book jackets, etc. This year was the first year I chose to try a ditigal storybook and I'm so glad I did. Check out our "Safari Research" presentation HERE.
Pretty cool, huh? This was a hit with the kids! I mean they NEVER got tired of seeing the animals they chose and hearing themselves and their classmates present their learning. It is still one of the most amazing activities I've done with my kiddos. It's very simple, but was a "thumbtack" to post all they learned about the various safari animals.
Something even cooler is that you can purchase the Mp4 download for $.99. (Of course you can view online for FREE anytime). That would be great to put in a listening center. Parents can also purchase the Mp4 as a wonderful keepsake! And, even as a teacher - I know I want to keep this to remember those sweet little ones - just hearing their voices brings back memories....:0) How special!
I am thinking of other ways I can use this wonderful resource. *Books on Tape - well now Mp4 format. I never seem to have enough books for the listening center. I could totally read a book and download it as an Mp4 - and put in the listening center --- ANY book! *Fluency center - kids can record themselves reading and listen to themselves. *Retell center - kids can draw illustrations of the beginning, middle, and end of a favorite story and retell it. *Writing center - kids can draw original pieces and narrate their stories - what creativity that involves!
Here is a quick video that explains even more you can do with Little Bird Tales (it's less than 2 minutes long).
I hope you enjoyed hearing a little about this awesome website and how you can use it with your students. Using technology in the classroom doesn't have to be tedious and difficult or take up lots of time. This site is super easy to use and we made our books in little 5 minute pockets of time....
In the comments below, please let us know your ideas for using this website's ditigal storybooks.
