CVC Sound Boxes Freebie

Sound boxes are great  activities for beginning readers and writers!  They are pretty simple, to the point sound boxes that:
~help students segment the sounds in a word
~increase phonological awareness
~help students learn to decode words
~reinforce the short vowel sounds

You can make a set for each kid in your class, just a few sets to put out for early finishers, or use them as a station.  I spend time modeling how to use the sound boxes.  Modeling the direction and how to "push" the sounds with a spacer are important so that students get the most out of the activity.

I number each card in each set on the back with a flair pen before I laminate.  This helps keep kids from getting them mixed up when they are working together or when a loose card shows up we know which set it goes with.  

Finally, I just place the cards in a baggie with an eraser and dry erase marker.  My students keep them in their rainbow drawers.  This way they can pull them out when they finish something and need some meaningful independent work.  Each week as we learn new vowels, I add the new vowel but leave a few of the vowels we have worked on in the past in the baggie.

You can grab up the "short a" version of the boxes HERE for free!  

The whole set can be grabbed up by clicking HERE!

Grinch Goo!

Ingredients:
*1/2 Cup Liquid Starch
*1/2 Cup Water
*1/2 Cup Clear Glue (White glue will work but clear glue makes it more transparent for the hearts to show through.  I bought my clear glue on Amazon.)
*Green Food Coloring
*Red Confetti Hearts

Directions:
1.  Combine the glue and water.  Stir until it is mixed well.
2.  Add a couple of drops of green food coloring and mix. Stir well.  (Add more drops if you want darker slime.)
3.  Add confetti hearts and stir.
4.  Slowly stir in the liquid starch and mix.

Download a printable copy of the recipe by clicking HERE!

The slime will set up quickly.  I made two batches and it was more than enough for all of my students (18) to have about a half full condiment cup (which are 2 oz.).  

I let them play with the slime on sheets of wax paper so they didn't pick up pencil shavings and dirt in their Grinch Goo.  When we were done they put their lids on and took it home.

Here are a couple of free printable downloads to use with your Grinch Goo to link it to some learning standards!  Click here to download them FREE!

 

Next week we will be having a Reindeer Fuel day!  You can grab up that packet by clicking HERE!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Quotation Stations with a Freebie!

We have been brushing up on our quotation skills the last couple of weeks.   It is such a hard skill for students to grasp in first grade, but once they reach second grade it's like something "clicks" and they can pick it up quickly.  (So don't stress yourselves out first grade teachers!)  Here is our quotation mark anchor chart... we used quotes from our Magic Tree House read aloud that we have been reading.

During stations, we used play-dough to create quotation marks on our sentence cards. 

Then we recorded the sentences correctly on the recording sheet.  I always include these with my stations so I can check for understanding when I am not able to roam the room while students are working.

Later in the week, students roamed the room to rewrite sentences correctly including the quotation marks.  You can also use this activity for scoot or stations.

We also added quotation marks into sentences, rewrote sentences with quotation marks, and created our own sentences with quotation marks.

You can grab up the activities in this packet by clicking the image below...

Here is a quotation mark freebie to get you started!  Click on the image below to download.

Spider Snacks with a freebie!

We are wrapping up our spider unit in class this week so today we made a cute, easy spider snack!

You want to make sure you don't have any nut allergies before you make this snack!  Luckily we don't have any in my classroom so we were good to go!  If you do, you could use a spreadable cheese instead!

Start by placing peanut butter on one of the round crackers.  Students will take 8 straight pretzels and place them coming out of the side of the crackers as the "legs" of the spiders.  Place a little more peanut butter on the other cracker and place it on top!  We used a little bit more peanut butter to hold on the raisin eyes.  Of course if they didn't want raisin eyes they didn't have to have them since spiders can have no eyes!

You can practice sequencing while you make this spider snack!  Click below to grab up a free copy of this graphic organizer.

You can check out some healthy snack ideas over at Nuts.com... they have a whole page full of great ideas for healthy snacks for kids!

Check back on Sunday for a full post about all of our Spider Fun and more freebies!

Stephany

Valentine's Day FREEBIE!

Starting off the New Year, our school has a new librarian.  She is a wonderful lady that taught preschool for 25 years and has a true love of books and reading.  She was a WONDERFUL find and we are so glad to have her.  She asked me this week if she should get Valentine's for the whole school.  Instead of having her buy so many Valentine's, I decided to make her Valentine bookmarks that she could give to the kids!

  

I made a black and white version and color version.  Both can be downloaded for FREE here! They look great on colored paper and much cheaper to print.  

Copy them on white paper and you have a bookmark that the kids can color themselves. 

 I am hoping that if my son colors one, he might not loose it.  This is what he uses as a bookmark...any scrap he can find.

Have a great Valentine's Day!

Kathi

Tracking Mastery & Reteaching

I think over the course of the last few years I have had tuned, retuned, and re-retuned how I track standard mastery in my classroom a million times.  It's hard to find a way that isn't totally time confusing and one that you don't have to have a road map drawn out for evaluators to understand.  You know what I am talking about... "Well I mark an X here and then highlight in pink for every time they fail but only if I retaught it twice.. but the purple check mark means that they mastered the pre-test....  This paper over here is the results of the second assessment after the pre-assessment and a green highlight means that they mastered it but if it's just half green that means they barely mastered it..." and by the end of the explanation everyone is looking at you like you are nuts. 

I came up with these super easy tracking sheets for mastery of the first grade Common Core Math Standards.  Basically there are 4 columns for each of the math standards.  If they master it on the first try, they get a check and I highlight it yellow.  If they master it after that they get a check and a pink highlight.  If you decide to reassess the whole class then they will just have a bunch of lovely checks... if you only assess a few after small group reteaching.. they just get the check in that column.  It's pretty easy to see this and know automatically by color of highlights who is struggling each time you teach a skill.  It's also super easy to see what standards you can reteach and what kids need pulled over during that reteaching time.  Basically, once you earn that check no matter if it is yellow or pink... you have shown mastery of that skill.  

You can download these tracking sheets for free in my TpT store!  Just click on the image below!

How do you keep track of mastery, reteaching and all that super time confusing but necessary data?  Leave a comment and share your ideas!! 

Stephany

Favorite Beach/Pool Gear

We are linking up with Across the Hall in 2nd to share some of our favorite beach/pool things.

We do not have a beach where we live; however, we have a good teacher friend who lets us use her pool.

Here are a few things that I consider to be "must-haves" when headed to the pool.

First, everyone must have a good bag.  The bag that I bring all my pool/beach gear has small holes for wet towels, sand, etc.  It is also super sturdy.  It's not too big and not too small.  I purchased it at Target a couple of years ago and it's still durable and somewhat fashionable.

 

Next, I make sure to pack along some sunscreen.  It can get steamy hot here, in Indiana.  I usually pack one kind for the kids and one for me.  My favorite brands are Banana Boat and Oil of Olay when it comes to sunscreen.

I also like to take a few books to the pool or beach for some relaxing reading.  These are the two books that I am currently reading.  The only bad part about take a book you love is when someone SPLASHES you and the book gets soaked!  Has that ever happened to anyone else?

 
But, we always like to give back to our followers, so grab this Summer Fun in the Sun ABC Order Freebie before linking up your favorite pool/beach must-haves.  Link up with Across the Hall in 2nd.

 

Endless Possibilities,

Stephanie

Traditions

 

  
It is always fun to visit the track.  As a child, both Stephany and I had yearly traditions with our own families.  Sitting in the infield or on the corner or backstretch...  it didn't matter, as long as you're at the track.  It was always a tradition for my family to get a brickyard burger...  tasty!

Another tradition is listening to Back Home Again in Indiana.  Here is a link to Jim Nabors singing at the Indianapolis 500.  I just happened to find this one on YouTube.  It even has the playing of the Taps.

Have an enjoyable Memorial Day and remember...  It is never too late to start your own traditions!

Endless Possibilities,
Stephanie, Stephany, and Kathi