1-2-3 Come Do Some Fire Safety Activities With Me
October is Fire Safety Month. I truly believe fire safety is some of the most important information we can share with our students.
With that in mind, I designed some quick, easy and fun activities that will help reinforce those skills. Today's blog features 3 of my new packets.
First up, is some fire safety word fun. Studying fire safety provides a real opportunity to build important vocabulary.
Words like fire drill, smoke detector, hydrant, and fire extinguisher may all be common for us, but they are brand new for most young children; so I designed this fun word work packet, which is appropriate for preschoolers through 2nd grade.
This diversity will also help you differentiate lessons for those who are struggling, those who are right where they should be, as well as having the ability to challenge others who are ready to advance.
You can use the pocket chart-size word cards in a pocket chart, or attach magnets and use them on your white board. You can also attach Velcro dots and use them on a flannel board.
Later, reinforce the vocabulary by using them as flashcards, then adding them to a “fire safety” word wall. I’ve included a “header” poster for this.
I’ve also made a template where the cards are grouped into 3 columns of word cards.
Print, laminate and trim. Toss them in a fire hat or other container and have your students pick X number of cards, which they can alphabetize on the ABC worksheet, or use to make sentences, using the “I can write sentences!” worksheet.
Students can also sort these mini word cards on the “Syllable Sorting” mat. There’s a matching bookmark of the words, which children can keep in their writing journals. For more practice, there are 2 word finds, along with an “ABC Me” worksheet.
Another way to practice vocabulary is choose whatever words are appropriate for your kiddos, write them on the board, and have them copy them into their “fire safety vocabulary booklet”, which fits in wonderfully for “Daily 5 word work” or your writing block. (There are 4 cover options).
Use the 24-colorful picture cards for Memory Match or “I Have; Who Has?” games.
Younger children can match picture to picture, while older children can match a picture card to a word card.
The packet also includes a “My Itty Bitty Word Booklet” as another fun way to build vocabulary. Children color the pictures, trace & write the words, then cut and collate the squares into a just-the-right-size booklet.
Music is a super-fun way to build vocabulary as well. Since my kiddos love singing "The Wheels On The Bus", I used that tune and made up "The Wheels On The Fire Truck" which also helps reinforce some fire safety rules.
The packet includes . . .
* A song poster with the words.
* Colorful pocket chart cards you can refer to while you’re singing. Later pass them out to see if children can sequence them in the correct order.
* To build vocabulary and practice writing skills, I’ve also included a flip booklet where students trace, write, color, cut and collate.
Finally, this fire truck "slider" craftivity, features some of the basic rules of fire safety.
So that you can quickly and easily make a sample to share, I’ve included templates in full color.
There are also 2 black and white “slider” options for your kiddos. One without words for little ones, the other with a few words for students who are learning to read.
Children color the graphics, cut and glue their slider together, then slip it through the pre-cut slits on their fire truck.
Trucks can be run off on white paper so that children can color them, or to expedite things, give children a choice & run off on red and yellow construction paper. Students simply add some accent colors with crayons.
There’s also a set of 5 colorful posters to help explain the fire safety rules, which can later be used for a bulletin board or wall display.
I’ve also included a letter home to parents, should you want to have your students make and share their fire escape plan.
(Why teach rules, when there’s no follow through at home?)
Because I think this is so important, I made the Fire Safety Escape Plan Letter today's featured FREEBIE. Click on the link to grab your copy.
One never knows when this simple homework assignment might save a life.
Well that's it for today. I hope you found something useful.
It's an absolutely gorgeous fall day, so it's time for a much-needed brain break. Wishing you a carefree day.
"Education is the passport to the future. For tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today."
1-2-3 Come Do Some Fruity Fun With The 5 Senses Activities With Me
Apples are a big deal here in Michigan, so it's one of my first fall themes. As part of our science standards, students need to learn about the 5 senses as well, so I thought it would be fun to teach the 5 senses using an apple theme.
I had so much fun designing these activities, that I made 3 different packets for you to choose from, and am featuring them on the blog today.
First up is the 5 Senses With An Apple Head packet. Completed projects turn out absolutely adorable; and are rather hilarious, so if your kiddos are like mine, you'll hear: "Can I please make another one?!"
Suspended from the ceiling, or use as a border for the top of a hallway wall. I’ve included a “Fun With The Five Senses” apple head poster for your display.
There's a huge assortment of facial feature options. Simply pick a few of your favorites.
Children select a nose, mouth, and some ears & eyes, then glue them to their apple head. (There’s also a pattern for a stem and leaf).
Besides the facial features, I’ve also included patterns for a hair bow/bow tie, glasses, a mask, and a selection of mustaches.
I give the option of adding dangling legs with cute sneakers. (Accordion-folding paper, is a great fine motor skill, which will help strengthen finger muscles.)
To reinforce the 5 senses, there’s a set of labels students cut and glue to their apple head as well; or they can simply label their creation.
Besides the craftivity, laminate a set of apples, along with 3 or 4 facial feature options, plus a set of labels, to be used as a “design an apple head” independent center activity.
Allow children to take a photo of their completed creation, then make small thumbnails of each child’s apple head and put them in a class-made, picture booklet. I’ve provided a cover and album page for this as well.
Because there’s such a huge variety of facial feature options, laminate some and have little ones sort them according to which sense they go with. I’ve included a colorful sorting mat for this.
Children can also use the pieces to create patterns: AB-AB, ABC-ABC etc.
For more practice, there's a BW worksheet, where children cut & glue the facial feature to one of the matching 5 senses, which makes a quick assessment tool.
One of the nice things about these activities, is that even if you don't have time to plug them into your apple unit, they easily fit in during October and November with a harvest theme as well.
Next up is an Itty Bitty Booklet: "The 5 Senses With An Apple." There are 4 pages, on a one-page template, for an easy-peasy, "print & go" activity.
I started out with a simple little apple graphic, but then started diddling around with the idea of making the apple look sort of like a “Mr. Potato Head”.
The result made me laugh. I thought your students would find this silliness fun too; thus there are 2 options for the booklet.
For one use the realistic apple or go a bit wild and crazy with the "apple head" option. You could also give your kiddos a choice.
I’ve included a full color sample of both booklets, so that you can easily make an example to share with your students, to help explain what you want them to do.
Remind them, to not only complete the sentence by thinking up an adjective, but remember to add the end punctuation as well. (Woo hoo for extra teachable moments!)
For more reinforcement, I’ve included a set of Memory Match cards, which you can also use to play the whole-group game “I Have; Who Has?”
There’s also a set of “label me” worksheets, which come in full-color, for you to use as a sample to help explain what you want children to do, then later, hang up for a poster that students can refer to.
There are 2 options for the BW student worksheet. For one, students cut and glue the labels to the matching section of their apple head. For the other worksheet they write in the words.
If you’d like to whole-group assess the 5 senses, have students do the cut and glue one first, then later, as an assessment tool, use the worksheet where they write in the words.
To heighten the experience of using all 5 senses, give each student an apple, or at least a slice of one. They examine it as they complete each page.
Finally, I thought maybe there are some teachers out there who'd like more of a variety than just apples, thus the Fruity-Faced Friend Five Senses packet was born, which is my personal favorite.
Designing one is really quite addicting, so be prepared when your kiddos ask to make another one!
Besides apples, there are 15 black & white fruit head options, plus a huge assortment of fruit-themed facial features to depict the 5 senses.
Completed projects look adorable suspended from the ceiling, or used as a border for the top of a hallway wall. There are 9 posters for your display.
Children look over the options, then snip one from the pattern page.
This way, all you have to do is run off the templates, while children get practice cutting, coloring and gluing together a 5-senses “fruity-faced friend”.
I’ve included “gloved hands” (like Mickey Mouse) for the “touch/feel” sense, but children could also trace one of their hands on a sheet of folded paper, then cut once to make two hands, which they glue (thumbs up) to the sides of their fruit head.
To reinforce the 5 senses, there’s a set of labels students cut and glue to their fruity face as well; or you can simply have them label each sense with a marker.
Besides the craftivity, there are templates for a “Design A Fruity-Faced Friend” independent center.
Choose from 20, colorful fruit head posters, along with 5 sheets of facial feature-fruit options, and colorful hands.
Children arrange the various fruits ’til they come up with a “fruity-faced friend” that they really like. (This activity is also quite addicting, as it’s so much fun mixing & matching to create hilarious fruity little friends!)
Even if children use the same "feature" cards, just by tweaking how you "arrange" them, changes the character entirely. I diddled around to create 6 different fruity-faced friends, then took a photograph to show you what I mean.
Allow students to take a photo of their completed creation, then make small thumbnails of each child’s fruity friend and put them in a class-made, photo album.
I’ve provided a cover and album page for this. Students color the picture, write their name in the blank, as well as the name of their “fruity friend”.
Laminate the pages, collate & put in your center. Keep your collection of photo albums (as you collect them each year) in a basket in this center to give students ideas.
For another center activity, there’s a set of “label me” fruity-faced friend posters. Children place the word labels for the five senses, on the posters.
For further reinforcement, I’ve also included 5 worksheets. Do a “cut & glue” version first, then later, to whole-group assess, do one of the “fill-in-the-blank” worksheets.
As always, there's a FREEBIE in each blog. Today's featured FREEBIE is an apple math mat game.
This apple "craftivity" is a super-fun way to reinforce addition and/or subtraction. If you teach older students, I've also included a template to make a multiplication apple game.
Well that's it for today. Thanks for stopping by. Our son is getting married this Saturday so my feet have hit the floor running this morning.
Still some fun little things to accomplish, as we have family staying with us from out-of-state. Wishing you a love-filled day.
"The best thing in life that you can hold on to, is each other." -Unknown
1-2-3 Come Do Some Apple-icious Activities With Me
Studying apples is a great way to plug in some science and interesting math activities into your day.
Today's blog features 3 of my newest apple packets that are a quick, easy and fun way to do that.
First up is Apple Fraction Action.
I had a request for some easy fraction activities for kinders, so I thought I'd use apples because you can easily cut them in half and then quarters to show children. An apple pie is also a perfect example of this math concept.
The packet includes:
* games
* worksheets, which can also double as whole-group assessments
* 4 craftivities
* lots of posters plus . . .
* puzzles
* graphing activities
* pocket chart cards
* 2 emergent reader flip booklets and...
* 2 “Itty Bitty Fraction Action” booklets, all with an apple or apple pie theme.
Use the numerous sets of (12-on-a-page) apple & apple pie cards, for explaining, sorting, sequencing and playing games like Memory Match and “I Have; Who Has?”
The bulk of the packet reinforces whole, half and quarter fractions; however, there are a few items which also include higher fraction options (up to 8ths & 12ths) to challenge students and add diversity.
Next up apple-themed "Fix the Sentence" cards.
These 39, pocket chart-sized cards, are a quick, easy and fun way to review a variety of apple related facts, while practicing capitalization and end punctuation.
Read the cards together as a whole group to practice a lot of sight words. This activity not only helps improve students writing (proofing & editing) skills, but recognizing those Dolch sight words as well.
Choose a student to come up and using a dry erase marker, circle letters that should be capitalized and then add end punctuation. (period, question mark & exclamation point). You can do this on a whiteboard, with a pocket chart, or pass a card out to each child to correct.
For more practice, as an individual activity, have students choose X number of mini cards and rewrite the sentences correctly on the worksheet provided. I've included 2 sizes of mini "fix the sentence" cards for this, which makes a nice Daily 5 word work activity too.
Finally, my simple and fun Apple Investigation packet covers a variety of math standards (particularly measurement), with a splash of science, as children use all 5 senses to learn about apples and record their findings.
To make this easy-peasy, I’ve purposely set up the 9, “print & go” pages of the booklet, so that they act as a single worksheet for that particular skill/standard/vocabulary, which students can do independently, with a partner, in small groups, or as a whole group.
For beginning or non-readers, complete each page as a whole group as a “monkey see-monkey do” activity.
Teacher reads the sentence of a numbered activity, demonstrates it, then pauses for students to complete the task with their apple, and record that information in their workbook.
To use with preschoolers, have one investigation booklet, which you work on together using one or two apples, then call on children to participate, as you investigate and do the activities on each page.
I’ve included a KWL to introduce the lesson. There’s a template in black & white for students to fill out, as well as one in color to use as a whole group to list your findings.
The booklet is a great way to teach a variety of measurement vocabulary and how to find out height, weight, width, circumference, as well as the tools used to do that. (ruler, scale, measuring tape), along with non-standard units of measurement (blocks & apples).
Children use guess-timation while analyzing their apple, then investigate to find the result, then compare their guess with the correct answer, using more math vocabulary (equals, less than & greater than).
They also use observation & comparison techniques as they study the outside as well as the inside of their apple.
Students trace and write vocabulary-building words, predict, answer questions, + collect & analyze data.
Grab that teachable science moment, to discuss the 5 senses, as students use all of them while completing their apple investigations.
The “pick a partner” and find out "how many apples tall" you are, as well as the “Does my apple sink or float?” are 2 of my students’ favorite activities.
Finally, there are 5 whole-group graphing extensions for more math practice, which you can do after children finish their booklet.
I've also included a mini-certificate of praise children glue to the back of their cover.
"I Spy a . . ." is today's featured FREEBIE, which also has an apple theme.
Teach, review, practice and whole-group assess with these game sheets.
The packet includes worksheet-games for uppercase letters, lowercase letters, shapes, numbers 0-10, numbers 0-20, plus a blank template to fill in with higher numbers.
Students enjoy playing the game and you can see at a glance who is having difficulty.
Well that's it for today. Thanks for stopping by.
Fall is in the air here in Michigan, and I've really been enjoying the cooler, sweater weather. Wishing you a fun-filled day.
"Use your imagination to not scare yourself to death, but to inspire yourself to life." - Adele Brookman
1-2-3 Come Do Some Apple Activities With Me!
Learning about apples is one of my students' favorite units. It's a great way to plug in all sorts of science too. Today's blog features 3 of my newest apple packets.
First up is "Life Cycle Of An Apple Activities". This packet includes a variety of quick, easy & fun, “Print & Go” activities that will help your students learn about the apple's life cycle.
Choose which one is appropriate for your kiddos, or give them a choice.
They are different enough so that you can do several: one to introduce your lesson, another to reinforce it, then later to assess.
You could also do one in class, then tuck another in backpacks for homework. They are great for early finishers and a sub tub too.
The packet includes:
* A Life Cycle of an Apple Wheel, which comes in full color so you can explain the science, then use as an independent center.
There’s also one in black and white, so that students can make their own.
* For a center, there’s a Life Cycle of an Apple “puzzle pie”, as well as…
* A Life Cycle of an Apple worksheet-poster, with a variety of options, plus 2 completed teacher samples you can use to explain what you want your students to do, or leave in your center so students can self-check their work.
Completed projects make a sweet bulletin board. I’ve included a poster for the center of your display.
* There's also a set of sequencing cards for the apple’s life cycle. These can also be used for a Memory Match or “I Have; Who Has?” game.
* Create more games by using the life cycle word cards, ordinal number cards and the ”Kaboom!" cards, plus you can add the cover to make an "Itty Bitty" Life Cycle of an Apple Booklet.
* Finally, use the colorful life cycle of an apple bookmarks, as a mini- certificate of praise, which students can refer to as they share what they've learned with their families.
Next up is an apple-shaped “flip” booklet, which is a quick, easy and fun way to teach the life cycle of an apple as well.
I’ve included full-color patterns so you can quickly & easily make a sample to share, as well as a BW version for students.
Simply run off the whole apple “cover” on red, yellow & lime green construction paper. (There are 2 options: One with graphics, the other with just words.)
The inside life cycle “pages” are 2-on-a-page to conserve paper.
There are adorable boy & girl graphic options to make the booklet more personal.
I purposely made the booklet just 2 pages long, so this would be a simple activity that can be done in a short amount of time.
Children color, trim, and glue their pages to the right hand side of the apple base, then add the cover.
When everyone is done, read the picture booklet as a whole group to review the science vocabulary, and solidify the life cycle's sequence.
Finally, I think you will really enjoy the versatility of The "Itty Bitty" Apple Booklet packet.
My kiddos absolutely love “Itty Bitty” booklets.
I call them that because my pattern has 4 small pages on a one-page template, making the completed booklet “just the right size” for my students.
Because the booklet is little, children are not overwhelmed with a lot of worksheets, but instead, enjoy working on the mini pages. It's a super-fun alternative to the "same old-same old worksheet".
Even though I just assign a few pages, many of my students ask if they can do more! The booklet keeps everything nice, neat and organized too, plus printing’s a breeze conserving paper and ink.
Another advantage of this packet is that you get to design your own booklet to suit your students’ levels and reinforce the skills you want them to practice.
It’s also super-simple to diversify which helps slower learners feel comfortable, while choosing other pages to challenge your brighter kiddos.
I’ve included 80 different options ( ! ) so your kiddos can practice a variety of math & language arts standards.
Assemble a “big” Itty Bitty booklet, with a variety of pages, or make several for the different subjects.
They can be used for morning work, Daily 5 word work, a math center, for homework, early finishers or tucked in a sub tub.
Today's featured FREEBIE also has an apple theme, which will help you explain the 4 seasons by using a seasonal apple tree poster and worksheet.
It's a great activity to transition to after reading the story, "The Seasons of Arnold's Apple Tree" by Gail Gibbons. I hope you find it useful.
Well that's it for today. Thanks for stopping by.
Gotta dash, getting my haircut in an attempt to beautify myself for an upcoming wedding. Wishing you a stress free and relaxing day.
"Just because you find one bad apple, doesn't mean you should give up on the whole tree." -Unknown
1-2-3 Come Do Some Constitution Day Activities With Me
I'm all for easy, when the administration throws these "According to the law, everyone has to teach something about the Constitution on April 17th..." zingers at us.
With that in mind, and because I couldn't find an emergent reader that simplified the Constitution for PK-K, I decided to make my own.
This little, non-fiction Constitution booklet, is filled with basic facts, in easy to understand, kid-friendly terms, which help explain what the Constitution is all about.
So...Woo hoo! Simply "print & go" and you're all set with a quick, easy, and interesting little something to plug in for Constitution Day.
Students "read" the simple sentences (I used plenty of words from the Dolch lists) then trace and write the main idea word. Doing so, will help build vocabulary and reinforce comprehension.
Besides the "kiddy" emergent reader version, I also added more factual information to make a non fiction booklet which is suitable for 3rd & 4th graders.
For quick printing, there are two pages on one template. The booklet for older kiddos has 5 more pages.
This 16-page packet is just $1.95 in my TpT shop. Click on the link to pop on over. Emergent Reader Constitution booklet.
I turned the last page of the booklet into a Constitution Day coloring page. It's one of today's featured FREEBIES. Click on the link to grab a copy.
Another quick, easy & fun little something to do on Canstitution Day, is play games with a set of Constitution themed Memory Match cards.
They match my Constitution Day Number Puzzles, which makes for a nice coordinated center/station.
Students can match the picture to the picture or the picture to the word card. I've numbered them, so children can self-check.
You can also play an "I Have; Who Has?" game. "I have George Washington. Who has his name card?"
Use the picture cards to build vocabulary and explain a bit about the Constitution.
"The men on these cards are some of the "Framers" that worked on the Constitution." etc.
Use them as flashcards to see who can tell what's on the card and how that person or thing relates to Constitution Day.
Later in the year, bring the game out again in February for Presidents' Day, posing the question: "Which of these men became President? Who was the first?"
My other FREEBIE for today is one of the puzzles from the 25 Patriotic Number Puzzles packet.
Click on the link to grab your copy today. "Hip Hip Hooray For the USA!"
Well that's it for today. Thanks for visiting. It's pouring rain so a perfect day to tackle my too long "To Do" list.
"The Constitution only gives people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself." - Unknown
