Five For Friday with a Free Font: June 20

 

I have been working on emergent reader texts to go along with the introduction of sight words in kindergarten.  Our kindergarten team created the order and have it mapped out for the year on our curriculum map.  I started this week with the first emergent reader.  Our team introduces the words "I" and "am" the first week of school.  The following emergent reader is the first of many that I will be creating.  I am making them easy to print, cut, staple, and put together.

The one below is for the words "I" and "am".

Many of our teachers meet for lunch once a week to catch up on things that have been going on.  We see each other every day during the school year so we become like family.  We each bring a dish and this week was salad week.  It's like a Pinterest party because when you ask where people got their recipes they all say Pinterest.  

I was driving this week and noticed the farmers have all the crops out and they are looking good!  Where has the time gone?  I blinked and the corn is taller than me and the winter wheat looks ready to harvest!

Stephany is working on some new easy prep sub packets that are based on children's books that most teachers already have a copy of in their classrooms.  Her first sub packet is for the book "Bad Kitty."  Leave a comment below (before Sunday evening) with your e-mail address and a book you think would be great for a sub packet... it has to be a pretty common book that is found in most elementary classroom!  She will pick 5 random winners to get the "Bad Kitty" free!

We are also linking up with The Teaching Tribune for Free Font Friday again!  Stephany has created another Super Cute Free Font.  Her Super Cute Font Pack is available on TpT.  I use her fonts all the time!!

 

Endless Possibilities,

Stephanie and Stephany

Summer Stock Up!

We are so excited to be participating in the "Summer Stock Up" where you can grab some freebies, see products in action and pick up some great ideas in the process!  You can pick up freebies that go along with these products by visiting our facebook page and clicking on the tabs at the top!

Classroom Organization

One of the things on my summer to-do list is to create a "Sub Tub" complete with easy to prep sub lessons that go along with children's books that most teachers have a copy of in their classroom.  I started with the book "Bad Kitty".  This packet is filled with easy to print graphic organizers that include a "cheat sheet" for the sub.  This way you don't have to spend time explaining how to complete the graphic organizer...the directions are all right there!  

It also included some easy to print & copy math activities.  

I just copy the printables, label them with an "activity" number and then in my schedule/plans I say what number activity to complete.  If you copy the activities ahead of time and have them ready to go, all you have to do is lay them out for the sub.  This will be a lifesaver on those mornings when you drag your sick self into school to make plans!

There will be more packets, bundles, and a sub binder coming soon to my store!  You can pick up this full pack by clicking HERE! Check back for a more detailed post about how I plan for subs!

Classroom Decorations

I have created several classroom decor sets but this Bright Buntings & Patterns packet is by far my favorite.  I use it in my own classroom and I love how versatile it is!  Here are just a few pictures around my classroom to show you the packet in use.  

You can grab up the word wall headers from this packet over at our facebook page along with the pre-primer word wall cards from one of my Dolch Word Wall sets!

Guided Reading

Tina over at Warm and Fuzzy in First Grade had a great reading fluency packet that she uses during guided reading time.  It even has a rubric that goes along with it so you can assess student with each passage!

You can pick up a freebie sample of this product by heading on over to Warm and Fuzzy in First Grade's Facebook page and clicking on her tab at the top!  You can pick up the whole packet by clicking HERE!

Guided Math Book Study: Chapter 4

This chapter in Laney Sammons' guided math book focuses on whole group instruction and how you use it in your math block.  There are many great tips for making sure that your whole group instruction is effective and is reaching all of your students.  

During my math block I would estimate that it breaks down to 30/70.  The 30 would be whole group and the 70 would be rotations/small group instruction.   First graders tend to learn more effectively when they have hands on materials.  There are two big obstacles when it comes to manipulatives in a whole group... having enough of the manipulative to go around and keeping a whole group of first graders on task with manipulatives sitting in front of them.   I'm not saying I never use manipulatives during whole group instruction, but I try to limit it as much as possible to save time, headaches, and lost manipulatives.  This is why I tend to focus more on small group, hand-on instructions during my math block. 

I mostly use whole group instruction mainly for introducing new topics and for assessment purposes.  

When I am introducing new topics I like to read a math related book and make an anchor chart to help use as reference during and after we have learned about the topic.  You can find some great math anchor charts for the primary grades by CLICKING HERE!  These are two of my favorite sets of math related books that you can purchase.  They have a ton of different topics to choose from!

For assessments, I use the quick assessments that I created for the First Grade Common Core.  Each standard has a pre-test and three assessments.  I use these assessment results to determine how much focus I need to give a standard during whole group instruction and how I can divide my students up during small groups.  These assessments are quick and give an accurate and measurable glimpse into the student's mastery of the standards.

How much time do you spend on whole group instruction in your classroom?

Don't forget to enter the rafflecopter below and click on the links to read more from the Guided Math Book Study!

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