1-2-3 Come Do Some 3D Shape Craftivities With Me

So that my kiddos can better understand the cylinder shape, and make that word part of their vocabulary, I make windsocks several times during the year.

They absolutely LOVE making them, plus, they’re easy-peasy for me, look fantastic suspended from the ceiling, and take just a short amount of time.

It seemed only appropriate to make one specifically to highlight examples of real world cylinder shapes.

There are two patterns to choose from which show graphics of a variety of cylinders your students should be familiar with.  Pick one, or give children a choice. 

You can also use one as a worksheet for children to color at a later date or use for homework, early finishers or tuck in your sub tub.

While students are happily coloring, I point out that the cylinder is made up of the flat, 2D rectangular shape, which they are now working on, but when rolled, will turn into a 3D cylinder. This simple fact never ceases to amaze them!

To transform this worksheet into a windsock, simply add some colorful strips of paper for the "tails". I cut mine one inch wide, the length of the construction paper, using a paper cutter.

My sample incorporates all the colors of the rainbow, but students could choose any colors they want.  Color choice is also an interesting way to practice AB-AB or ABC-ABC patterning.

To get in some writing practice have students write the names of each example on a colorful strip before they glue them down.
They could also write attributes on the strips.

Gently roll the paper & staple into a cylinder shape. The front will show examples of real world shapes, while a poem ("Cylinders here. Cylinders there. I spy cylinders everywhere" is on the back.

Punch 2 holes on either side, add a yarn loop & suspend from the ceiling.

I’ve included a poster for the center of your display.  I print two and glue them back to back, so I can suspend along with the windsocks. 

We always get lots of compliments, which really helps build self-esteem and a sense of pride in their work. 

Today's FREEBIE also helps review 3D shapes.  My son Steven, started juggling at a young age; now as an adult, he’s quite skilled and shared with me, that a true master can juggle a variety of objects, that are different sizes and weights.

One of his sillier stunts, was juggling a roll of toilet paper, a plunger and a bowling ball!
This was especially entertaining for little ones, as evidenced by their giggles and clapping.

Steven’s juggling escapades, inspired me to design these quick, easy and fun “Let’s Juggle 3D Shapes!” worksheets, as an interesting way to review the sphere, cube, cylinder & cone.

Patterns come in black and white, featuring a boy as well as a girl juggler. The air above them is blank.

Students fill that space, by coloring, cutting, and gluing whatever 3D shapes they have chosen, from a selection of examples on another worksheet.

Children must choose at least one of each shape, then as many others as they want to fill in the rest of the empty space.

Afterwards, using the shape key, they label the various shapes with a letter.

I’ve also included 2, colorful & completed posters, which you can use as examples to help explain what you want your students to do.

When everyone is finished, have students share their poster, pointing out their favorite object that’s being juggled and what type of 3D shape that is.

Since they are all different, completed projects make a cute bulletin board display.  Fun for a math center, homework or a sub tub too. 

Well that's it for today.  Thanks for stopping by.

It's going to be rather hot and muggy, so I need to don my gardening hat and give my flowers a much-needed drenching! 

Wishing you a fun-filled day with whatever you have to juggle.

"Life is a juggling act that sometimes requires you to drop everything." -Linda Poindexter

1-2-3 Come Do Some 3D Shape Activities With Me

Besides learning 2D shapes, another of our Y5 standards is to be able to recognize, name, and give an example of the 3D shapes: cone, cube, sphere & cylinder.

Instead of learning each one independently, I teach all four of the 3D shapes at the same time. 

To help my students learn this vocabulary, I used glue dots to stick a small, solid 3D shape on my calendar display. 

It takes just a few seconds to point to each one and have my students say the name 3 times. They enjoy using their normal voice for the 1st time, a loud voice for the 2nd time, and then they whisper the word. 

I switch things up and sometimes ask them to say the shape words in a grumpy voice, high-pitched squeaky voice, or whatever.   In october we use a monster, Dracula, witch and ghost voice.  They learn this vocabulary very quickly.

Initially, I noticed that when I pointed to the plastic ball, some of my students were saying spear, instead of sphere, so listen carefully  and correct. To help reinforce the sphere as well as the other 3D shapes I use a beach ball.

You can buy them at The Dollar Store.  Using a permanent marker I drew each shape on a section of the ball, along with its name.  In just a few minutes everyone gets a turn to catch & toss the ball. 

Wherever their hands land, they point to and share the name of that shape. Since it's so light weight and travels slowly, even if a toss bonks someone or something we're safe. 

Since my kiddos absolutely LOVE this activity, I have beach balls for letters, numbers & the other 2D shapes.

We also make cubes with plastic waffle blocks.

Another super-fun thing we do, that takes just a moment is when my kiddos are transitioning, I'll say: "I spy a cube? Who else sees it?"  We then recognize various cubes around the room. 

I also have an extra set of the solid shapes and sometimes put them in my pocket, then when we are in the hallway on bathroom break. I'll hold one up 'til someone notices that I have a shape. That child gets to decide how many times (1-10) we hop on one foot and say the name. 

It's a great way to get the wiggles out while waiting. You'll find that there are lots of teachable moments in the day to cram in a bit of learning in fun & interesting ways.

Besides the above tips, I designed a jumbo 3D Shapes packet, which is filled with a nice assortment of activities to help learn, reinforce, review & assess.

The packet includes:
* A “My 3D Shape (trace, write & color) Booklet”
* A “Flip the Flap” Craft: So that you can choose different skill levels, there are several options, which will practice the solid shape, its name, a real world example, as well as attributes. 

Simply choose which is right for your kiddos . Besides black & white, patterns also come in color, so that you can quickly & easily make an example to share.

* Also included, is a 3D Shapes: Popsicle Stick Puppet Pal, which is a quick, easy & fun way to whole-group assess, at the same time reinforcing attributes.

Children become 3D shape detectives. You read clues from my list.  As students listen, they decide which shape is being described, then hold up that shape on their puppet stick. 

Teachers can see at a glance who is having difficulty.  Jot yourself a note, and work with these kiddos later. 

The packet also includes:

* Pocket Chart Cards
* Posters plus...
* Venn Diagrams, which are one of my favorite ways to teach comparison & contrast.  Because I teach all 4 shapes at the same time, this is a quick, easy & fun way to reinforce differences, so that students can easily describe & identify the shapes. 

Older students can do these individually or partner up to complete a worksheet, while younger kiddos can complete one as a whole group activity. There are also a number of ...

* Centers as well as...
* A variety of "Print & Go!" Worksheets.  One of my students favorites is "I Spy Real World Shapes", which is a color, cut & glue activity.
* Some of the worksheets & games double as interesting & fun Assessments.

*The 3-piece "match me up" Puzzles, plus the number strip Puzzles are another way to immerse children with the shapes.  The strip puzzles reinforce number recognition plus counting from 1-20 & skip counting by 10s.  I love hitting several standards with one activity.

There are activities for a variety of standards such as: sorting, patterning, graphing counting, attributes, groups/sets, simple addition & subtraction, as well as greater & less than.

I've also included a number of simple GAMES:
* “What Shape’s Hiding?”
* “ Four Corners”
* Memory Match
“ I Have; Who Has?
* “What’s Missing?”
“I Spy!
“* 3D Shapes on a Roll!”
* Spying Real World Shapes!
* “What Shape Am I?”

Finally, there are templates you can use as paper manipulatives.  Simply print, laminate & trim.  Students can pattern, sort, count, show groups & sets, as well as make equations & do simple addition & subtraction problems using the math symbol "tiles". 

The packet can be used for morning work, review, assessing, centers, whole-group activities, early finishers, homework or something for your Sub Tub. Click on the link 3D Shape Activities to zip on over to my TpT shop to take a look.

There are two featured FREEBIES today, both help reinforce the 3D shapes as well. One is a set of 3D posters that come in a variety of sizes so that you can use them as anchor charts, flashcards, bookmarks or for games. 

The other is an emergent reader: "Community Helpers Shape Up!"  I hope you find them useful.

I also found a cute 3-minute YouTube video where Exie the excavator is building a city with 3D shapes. Click the link to have a look.

Well that's it for today. Thanks for stopping by.

PTL the clouds have burst and the sky is soaking my thirsty garden. 

A wonderful respite from the hot & muggy weather we've been having. Wishing you a refreshing day.

"Some people feel the rain; others just get wet." -Roger Miller

1-2-3 Come Do Some 2D & 3D Shape Activities With Me

So that my students are interested and engaged, I’m always looking for different and creative ways for them to practice shapes.

Today's blog showcases my brand new puzzle game, along with the "oldie-but goodie" Lorax craftivity, just in time for a "Celebration of Seuss" for March Is Reading Month coming up.

First up are the 3 & 4-piece puzzles that feature 2D and 3D shapes, their attributes, as well as a “real world” example.

SHAPES INCLUDED:

* 2D shapes: circle, semi-circle, oval, square, rectangle, triangle, hexagon, pentagon, octagon, rhombus, trapezoid, heart, star, & crescent.

* 3D shapes: sphere, cylinder, cone, cube, pyramid, rectangular prism & triangular prism.

Simply pick which shapes are appropriate for your students, then print the colorful patterns on card stock, laminate and trim. 

I’ve also included black and white templates so that students can make their own puzzles.

Children can put them together in an independent puzzle center. To make this a self-correcting activity, number the back of each piece: 1a, 1b, 1c etc.

Make an extra set to be used for a Memory Match or “I Have; Who Has?” game.
i.e. “I have the triangle word piece, who has the shape and “real life” example pieces?”

Students can also sort them into 2D and 3D shapes.  I’ve included 2 sorting mats for this.

For a whole group comprehension activity, toss the shape pieces into a container.
* Children choose one and give the attributes.  The color-copies have them listed, where as the BW patterns have this section of the puzzle blank.

OR…
* Children can give 3 clues about the shape card they are hiding; their classmates guess which shape they think is being described.

OR…
* Toss the “real life” picture pieces into a container. Students pick one and tell what shape it is. OR…
* Toss the word pieces into a basket. Children pick one, read the shape word, then draw a picture of that shape on the board.

To practice the “spatial direction” aspect of this standard as a whole group, have children pick a shape piece.
Call out directions for children to follow. i.e “Place your shape above, below, between, on, behind " etc.
You can see at a glance who is having difficulty.

Students can also pick a piece and go on a shape hunt; listing,then totaling up how many items they found in your classroom that are that shape. I’ve included a worksheet for this.
 
Besides using them as individual puzzle pieces, I designed a variety of covers for both the 3-piece and 4-piece puzzles, so students can make an “Itty Bitty” 2D and/or 3D flip booklet.

These make a fun homework assignment, something for early finishers or struggling kiddos; as well as an interesting lesson for your sub tub. 

Next up is "Shapin' Up With The Lorax";  a quick, easy and fun craftivity, with a variety of game options.
It's one of my most popular shape craftivities.    

There's also an emergent reader, which practices capitalization and end punctuation too.

I’ve provided both 2D shapes as well as the four, 3D ones. 

Make a set to use for a bulletin board display. We always get tons of compliments on ours.

Make an extra set; cut them in half, and use as puzzles for an independent math center and an interesting way to review symmetry.

Play 4-Corner FREEZE; a game that practices a variety of life skills, like listening and following directions, as well as the 2D/3D shape vocabulary, plus recognition, and counting backwards from 10 to 0.

My kiddos absolutely LOVE this game. Easy-peasy for me, and only takes a few minutes, so it’s perfect for the end of the day. I’ve included directions in the packet.

You can also use the Lorax shapes as big flashcards. Hold one up. Children call out what shape it is, along with its attributes, like the number of vertices.

Play “Who’s Missing?” Display a set on the wall. After children leave, take one away. In the morning, children guess which one is missing.

I’ve also included a 2-on-a-one-page template, so children can pick their favorite shape and create their own Lorax.

For a cute keepsake idea, students can use their hand prints as the mustache, and add accordion-folded legs and arms. (Super fine motor practice!) 

Have older students write attributes on the back. 

There are TWO featured FREEBIES today: a 31-page, 2D-shape poster pack   as well as a 10-page, 3D shape set.

They come in a variety of sizes, so you can use them for anchor charts, a bulletin board, flashcards, centers & games.

I've also included a bookmark of the 2D-basic 6, & 3D-basic 4, which students can tuck in their math journals. 

Well that's it for now.  Thanks for stopping by.

It's 27 degrees out and snowing, so don't think spring will be along any time soon here in Michigan. 

Perfect weather to snuggle in and dream up some spring activities as an escape. 

Wishing you a cozy day.

"It's only cold if you're standing still." -Unknown

1-2-3 Come Practice Shapes With Brown Bear And Me

Brown Bear Brown Bear is one of my students' all-time favorite stories.

With that in mind, I designed a super-fun Brown Bear's Silly Nose packet.

It's chock full of cute, brown bear craftivities & games, which practice the following shapes: (3D) sphere, cone, cube & cylinder; plus (2D) circle, oval, square, rectangle, triangle, hexagon, pentagon, octagon, rhombus, trapezoid, star, heart & crescent.

The packet includes:

* Pocket chart cards
* A large and small "Bear's Shapely Nose" slider craft, which is also a quick, easy & fun way to whole-group assess.

* Whole-group graphing extensions
* Bookmark writing prompt
* 4 worksheets (graphing, attributes, spatial directions, shape words)

* "Spin & Graph" game.
* "Roll & Color" dice game.

* 3 sets of "Memory Match" or "I Have; Who Has?" game cards.

* "Pin the Nose on the Bear" game.
* "Brown Bear What Do You See?" whole-group chant activity, with different shaped noses, a poster & pocket chart chant cards. 

I have two featured FREEBIES for you today. Both have a shape theme as well. 

The first one is a set of 2D shape posters. The 2nd is a matching set of 3D posters.  I hope you find them useful. 

Well that's it for today. I imagine, like most of you, my summer is flying by, with still so much left to do. 

Wishing you a productive and fun-filled day; and hoping you have lots of relaxing moments.

1-2-3 Come Chew On Some Common Core With the Very Hungry Caterpillar and Me

Since so many people read The Very Hungry Caterpillar, I wanted to use Eric Carle's cute little critter as a spring board to studying a variety of Common Core Standards.

I created the caterpillar template and made a list of all sorts of ways I could use it, then set about to design the details.   You can choose which one you want your students to do, or give them a choice. 

Teachers could also make up their own set and laminate to use as anchor charts. 

Make several sets but don't glue the body-segment circles together, to use for independent, sequencing centers or to play games with.  

You could also use them to  independently or whole group assess the various standards.

In The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats the Alphabet, students trace and write upper and lowercase letters. 

I've also included a set where a bit of the butterfly's life cycle is also included with the letters. 

For example, for the letter  Zz, I added:  Zzzzzz sleeping in a chrysalis, and then included a butterfly pattern with the letters all over her wings to be cut and glued on the last section. 

Completed projects make a sweet spring bulletin board.  I've included a poster for the center of you display.

The packet also includes an alpha-pillar craftivity teachers can make, which features upper or lowercase letters, which actually look like the background pattern of Eric Carle's book! 

These make a wonderful  border, or puzzle center as well. 

There's also a set of uppercase, as well as lowercase (12-on-a-page) letter cards, with matching picture cards of things that begin with that letter, plus a set of word cards for those objects, which provides a variety of center activities and games. 

I also made a set of 2-on-a-page alphabet anchor charts, which feature the beginning letter object on the caterpillar's tail end. 

This packet makes a nice spring review, as I find that just because I've taught and practiced something with my kiddos at the beginning of the year, doesn't mean everyone retains everything later on.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats a Rainbow, is a quick review of color words, plus days of the week, which follows the format of Carle's story line. 

There's a blank version, where older students think of something edible that color, then write it down and draw a picture of it, as well as a simpler version, where the black line graphics are on the page for children to color. 

I've also included a teacher's copy with full color graphics, so you can quickly make a sample to share. 

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats Some Numbers, is similar to the alphabet packet.

This caterpillar counts from zero to ten, where students trace and write the numbers as well as the number words. 

There are also caterpillar "body" circles for skip counting by 2s 3s, 5s, and 10s.

If you are practicing counting backwards from 10 to 0, simply have children put the caterpillar in reverse order. 

I've also included a "You Can Count On The Very Hungry Caterpillar" craft for teachers to make, just like the alphabet one mentioned above.

As with the alphabet packet, there are posters, anchor charts, games and a worksheet.

In all of the packets there are 4 patterns for the caterpillar's head, plus a variety of options for butterflies.

Since I have many requests for shape craftivities, particulary 3D shapes, I thought I'd make The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats 2D & 3D Shapes, which reviews: the circle, oval, triangle, square, rectangle, rhombus, trapezoid, star, heart & crescent, plus 3D shapes: cone, sphere, cylinder & cube.

There are various options to choose from. Simply choose which "body segments" are appropriate for your students.

Older students can write the attributes of each shape on the back. One of the options also practices the days of the week.

On the last day the caterpillar rests in his chrysalis, then awakens as a beautiful 3 dimensional butterfly with the various shapes on its wings.   

Since telling time is also a standard, I made a "clock-apillar" which reinforces time to the hour and half hour. 

Use as a whole-group craftivity, game, center or assessment tool.

Like wise, we are also studying coins at this time, so I made a "coin-apillar" too.

These caterpillars feature a penny, nickel, dime, quarter, half dollar and dollar coins.

The packet also includes "What's the Value?" caterpillar-coin worksheets.  

Finally, if you want to practice reading with a very hungry caterpillar, your kiddos will enjoy making the versatile "Word-apillar".

I use this craftivity as a super-fun way to build vocabulary and practice whatever “word work” I want to reinforce: Dolch & Fry sight words, word-family words, seasonal words, whatever...

I’ve included a list of 31 “word work” ideas, along with ideas for games you can play after you choose your words.  

Whew! That's a lot of Very Hungry Caterpillar options!  I hope they help your kiddo-caterpillars blossom into smart little butterlies! 

Today's FREEBIE also features a butterfly.

It's one of my personal favorite spring craftivities, which makes a wonderful keepsake for mom, as the wings of the butterfly are a child's shoe print.

Do this with your butterfly activities, then tuck it away for Mother's Day.

Click on the link for the "Fluttering By With A Mother's Day "Hi" craft.

Thanks for visiting. I normally don't post on weekends, but I finished so many things up over spring break that I wanted to share. 

Wishing you a relaxing and fun-tastic weekend.  

"Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself." -John Dewey

1-2-3 Come Do Some Kite-Themed Activities With Me

One of our themes for spring is kites; so I've been busy designing an assortment of kite activities to help teach a variety of standards.

Today's blog features 4 of them, along with the featured FREEBIE.

Practice 3D shapes with the "Shapin' Up With 3D Kites" packet.  The  emergent reader reinforces 3D shapes as well as colors.

The packet includes:

* A 2-on-a-page emergent reader booklet.

* Students read the simple sentences, trace and write the shape and color words, then color the pictures appropriately.

* A set of colorful, 3D shape pocket chart cards, with matching black and white ones, so that students can color, cut, and add the cover, to make an Itty Bitty Booklet.

* I've also included a graphing extension, a “design your own kite” worksheet, plus  40 lovely photographs of real 3D-shaped kites, many of which also feature 2D shapes.

Print, laminate and trim. (There are 4 pictures per page.)  Children choose one or two and write the shapes and colors that they see on their “I Spy!” recording sheet.

For writing practice, have students write a sentence or two about the kite picture. To use as an independent center, have students sort the photographs by shape. The pictures also make a lovely spring bulletin board.

* Since I included color words in the emergent reader, I also included a set of colorful pocket chart cards, as well as a set in black and white, so students can add the cover and make a “Flipping Over Colors!”  Itty Bitty Booklet. (“grey” & “colours” spelling options are also included). 

Next up is an ordinal number "craftivity". It's a quick, easy and fun way for students to review ordinal numbers, ordinal number words + sequencing.

Encourage children to color the stripes on their kite in a pattern, or in rainbow-color order.

I've included ordinal number kite cards to play a Memory Match or "I Have; Who Has?" game, as well as a set of mini, sequencing cards, which could double as a bookmark for students' math journals. 
There's also a whole-group assessment worksheet, with 2 size options.     

Do your students enjoy playing with pattern blocks? Spring things up with these 2, kite-themed pattern block games.

I've included a full-color pattern, as well as a black & white version, so that little ones look for a shape, rather than a color.

There's also a set of pocket chart cards that show and name the pattern block shapes.

Use them to introduce the lesson, then put the cards in a center, for a "trace, draw, and place the pattern piece" activity.

Students can play "Spin to Win" with the spinner, or practice numbers as well, by rolling a dice, then referring to the poster to see what pattern block they should place on their mat.  Students can play independently or with a partner. 

Finally, practice synonyms with the "Soaring With Synonyms!" packet.  So that you can also do this packet with younger kiddos, I've included a blank kite pattern.
They could list rhyming words, sight words, color words etc. PK students can simply do the craft.

The back of the kite can also be used for a writing prompt, or spring poem. Completed projects look awesome suspended from the ceiling in our hallway.

Studying synonyms and antonyms not only increases vocabulary, but enhances students’ writing; making it more interesting and vivid, as it gives children a better word base to choose from, so their writing is not redundant and boring, filled with over-used words like “said”, “pretty”, “went” etc.

Besides the synonym/antonym kite craftivity, the packet also includes:

48 kite word cards to play Memory Match & "I Have; Who Has?” games, plus a blank set of kite cards to program with whatever...

Black line mini kite worksheet for more synonym/antonym practice, plus a full-color, completed worksheet to use as a sample, along with synonym and antonym “definition” anchor charts plus . . .

An alphabetical, word-list poster of 70 words students can choose from to complete their kite, with background information about synonym/antonym word work, as well as a list of 290 synonym/antonym pairs. 

The FREEBIE today also features kites.  It's a set of alphabet cards.

I've included separate upper and lowercase letter cards, as well as ones displaying both letters. 

There's also a tip list of things you can do with the cards, including playing games like Memory Match, "I Have; Who Has?" and "Kaboom!" 

Well that's it for today. The wind is howling outside and making my office window rattle, the perfect background to work on my wind activities!

Wishing you a fun-filled, easy peasy breezy day. 

"I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination." - Jimmy Dean

1-2-3 Come Do Some Dr. Seuss Activities With Me    

 Seuss is on the loose and I'm celebrating with some super-fun Seuss-themed activities. Today's blog features some of my favorite ways to practice standards using a Seuss hat.

First up, word families. The "Stackin' Up Word Families With A Seuss Hat" packet includes 39 word families! Not surprisingly, a lot of these words appear in Dr. Seuss’s stories!

Simply choose the word families that your students are working on.  

Use them for a bulletin board display, your word wall, centers, games, assessing and worksheets! 

Next up are the "Flipping Over 2D and 3D Shapes!" emergent reader booklets.   

Students read the simple sentences, underline the capital letters and add end punctuation.

They trace and write shape words, then trace, color and draw the various shapes.

Gluing the top square to their cat’s hat, then snipping on the lines, creates a "flip the flap" booklet.

I really think it’s important for students to not only be able to identify the various shapes, but pick them out in real life and give examples. 

With that in mind, I designed both booklets with graphics of real life things.

When everyone is done, read the booklets together as a whole group, to reinforce concepts of print.

I specifically used lots of Dolch word pronouns for more teachable moments. I’ve also included a graphing extension.

Finally, I created some Seuss-hat, telling analog & digital time to the hour and half hour activities for the "It's Time For Seuss!" packet.

There are dice games, worksheets, an anchor chart, cat clock craftivity, clothespin clip game, sequencing time "Speed" game, pocket chart digital & analog time cards to the hour and half hour, an Itty Bitty Time booklet, praise certificates and an assessment!    

The featured FREEBIE today is a Seuss hat writing prompt with a "Seussism" quote poster. 

Use the poster to introduce the lesson, then display it in the center of your bulletin board display, surrounded by your students' completed hats. 

Simply run off the template. Students write the things that they enjoyed doing the most during their day at school, writing something on each stripe of the cat's hat.

They write their name in the oval on the bottom.  Add a school photo for that finishing touch.

Since a lot of teachers decorate with Seuss for back-to-school,  I’ve also included a template for that special first day.  

Well that's it for today. Time to get busy with Horton and Green Eggs & Ham stuff!  

Wishing you a non-crazy, carefree day!

"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go!" -Dr. Seuss

1-2-3 Come Do Some Dr. Seuss Lorax Activities With Me   

Ever since the movie came out, my students absolutely love the Lorax. He's such a cute little fluff ball, and the inspiration behind my "Shapin' Up With The Lorax" packet.   

This craftivity is quick, easy & super-fun and includes a variety of game options.

There's also an emergent reader, which practices capitalization and end punctuation as it reviews shapes.

I’ve provided 2D shapes (circle, oval, square, rectangle, triangle, hexagon, pentagon, octagon, trapezoid, rhombus, heart, star & crescent), as well as the four, 3D ones: cone, cube, cylinder andsphere. 

Make a set to use for a bulletin board display.

Make an extra set; cut them in half, and use as puzzles for an independent math center and an interesting way to review symmetry.

Play 4-Corner FREEZE; a game that practices a variety of life skills, like listening and following directions, as well as the 2D/3D shape vocabulary, plus recognition, and counting backwards from 10 to 0.

My kiddos absolutely LOVE this game. Easy-peasy for me, and only takes a few minutes, so it’s perfect for the end of the day. I’ve included directions in the packet.

You can also use the Lorax shapes as big flashcards. Hold one up. Children call out what shape it is, along with its attributes, like the number of vertices.

Play “Who’s Missing?” Display a set on the wall. After children leave, take one away. In the morning, children guess which one is missing.

I’ve also included a 2-on-a-one-page template, so children can pick their favorite shape and create their own Lorax.

There are 2 mustache options: “I ‘mustache’ you a question. What shape am I?” is written on one, the other is blank.

For a cute keepsake idea, students can use their hand prints as the mustache, and add accordion-folded legs and arms. (Super fine motor practice!)

Have older students write attributes on the back. 

Next up is a Telling Time With The Lorax Game, which practices analog and digital time to the hour.

There are several ways to use the packet.  Make a large Lorax teacher’s clock to use as a whole-group assessment tool. 

You can also have children make their own, mini (4-on-a-page pattern) Lorax clock, to whole group assess in another way.

Ask children to show you 11:00 or whatever time. Sitting at their desk/table, they manipulate their paperclips to display that time.
You walk around the room making sure children have the correct time.

Another option: Instead of using paperclips, children can use a dry erase marker to draw hands on their clock, to show you the time, then erase it with a tissue.

The “clocks” can also be used as spinners to play the “It’s Truffula Tree Time!” game.

To use for a math center activity, laminate the full-size truffula trees, and medium-size spinners, and attach a large paperclip with a brass brad.

Using a dry erase marker, children play with a partner, spinning the paperclip to see what time they will trace on the truffula tree trunk.

The winner of the game, is the first one to fill in all of the times, or who has the most times traced when the timer rings.

So that children practice numbering a clock, I’ve also included mini-blank clocks without numbers. 

When students spin, they not only trace the time on their truffula tree, they also write that number on their mini clock worksheet.

I’ve included 2-on-a page templates of the game, so that you can play this as a whole group activity too. 

Children can play with a partner or in a group of 3-5.  Each student makes their own truffula tree, has their own blank clock, and shares the spinner. 

Today's FREEBIE also features Seuss's Lorax.  It's a super-cute writing prompt. Making a mustache to launch a writing prompt, is an interesting and "Suessical" way of doing things. I think your students will enjoy it.

For an adorable bulletin board, take everyone's photograph wearing their mustache and put it next to their writing.  Your bulletin board title could be the same question you are asking: "We mustache you, would you save a truffula tree?" 

Flank the board on either side, with 2 colorful truffula trees, made out of strips of neon-colored tissue paper, and rolled up green bulletin board paper for the trunk. Stripe it with brightly colored boarder.

Well that's it for today.  I can't believe spring is just around the corner, as it's bitter cold today and the bleak view out my window is still snow covered! 

Wishing you a wonderful week!

"Life is like a mustache.  It can be wonderful or terrible, but it always tickles!" -Unknown

1-2-3 Come Do Some 3D Shape Activities With Me

This poster packet features four, 3D shapes: the sphere, cylinder, cube & cone.

There are a variety of sizes to choose from: large 8x10, as well as smaller 5x7 ones, to use as anchor chart posters or flashcards.

I've also made a poster with all 4 shapes on one page, as well as that poster with 2-on-a-page.

There are cards to make a Memory Match or "I Have; Who Has?" game.

Students could play "Speed" with a partner, taking turns flipping over a pack of cards. 

The frist one to say the name of the shape, gets to keep the card. 

Print off the 6-on-a-page, 3D shape bookmarks; laminate & trim.  Pass them out to your students to tuck into their math journals.

Make an extra set of the large ones, cut them up, and use them for an independent puzzle center.

This is a special FREEBIE in my TpT shop to celebrate 400 followers.  If you're one of them, I want to thank you so much for following me; I truly appreciate it!

I know it sounds a bit corny, but I really do get excited when I see the numbers grow. 

I promise to post at least one FREEBIE each month, plus celebratory "milestones" like this one, which are only available in my TpT shop.

Click on the link to grab the 3D Shape Poster packet today.   I hope you find it useful in helping your kiddos understand 3D shapes. 

That's it for today.  My husband is whisking me away to the Henderson Castle!  The fact that our last name is Henderson, makes this date even more special.  Wishing you a delightful day, over flowing with love-filled moments.

"Let us always meet each other with a smile, for the smile is the beginning of love." -Mother Teresa

1-2-3 Come Chew On Some Common Core With the Very Hungry Caterpillar and Me

Since so many people read The Very Hungry Caterpillar, I wanted to use Eric Carle's cute little critter as a spring board to studying a variety of Common Core Standards.

I created the caterpillar template and made a list of all sorts of ways I could use it, then set about to design the details.   You can choose which one you want your students to do, or give them a choice. 

Teachers could also make up their own set and laminate to use as spring anchor charts.  Make an extra set to use for independent sequencing centers or to play games with.  Don't glue the body-segment circles together, and you could also use them to  independently or whole group assess the various standards.

In The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats the Alphabet, students trace and write upper and lowercase letters.  I've also included a set where a bit of the butterfly's life cycle is also included with the letters. 

For example, for the letter  Zz, I added:  Zzzzzz sleeping in a chrysalis, and then included a butterfly pattern with the letters all over her wings to be cut and glued on the last section.  

I glued just the thorax portion to the last "body" circle and bent the wings up so that the butterfly is 3D and looks like she's flying.

Older students could also make a list of a food the caterpillar could eat that begins with that letter.  You may want to read Lois Ehlert's book Eating the Alphabet (Fruits and Vegetables from A to Z) to give students some ideas.  Click on the link to view/download The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats the Alphabet packet. 

If you'd like to review just the life cycle of a butterfly, you'll want to take a look at The Life Cycle Of The Very Hungry Caterpillar packet.  Students trace and write the words, then color, cut and glue the pictures. 

If you look closely, you'll see that I glued down just the thorax with this butterfly too, so it looks 3 dimensional, like the larger one above.  Click on the link to view/download it. 

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats a Rainbow, reinforces colors as well as the days of the week.  Before hand, brainstorm what kinds of things the caterpillar could eat that are the various colors.  Write these words on the board to help children with spelling.

Students trace and write the color words and complete the sentence with something the caterpillar ate that was that color.  Adding end punctuation reviews another standard.  

Children then draw and color a picture.  I've included my sample so that you can quickly make one to share with your students. Click on the link to view/download The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats a Rainbow packet.

You may also want to read one of the following books for some great examples of rainbow-colorful food: I Eat A Rainbow, by Bobbie Kalman;  Can You Eat a Rainbow? by Anastasia Suen;  and/or  I Can Eat A Rainbow, by Annabel Karmel.   

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats Some Numbers includes counting from zero to ten, where students trace and write the numbers as well as the number words.  I've  included a butterfly pattern to glue to the last section if you want.

There are also caterpillar "body" circles for skip counting by 2s 3s, 5s, and 10s. If you are practicing counting backwards from 10 to 0, simply have children put the caterpillar in reverse order.

In all of the packets there are patterns for the caterpillar's head if you want it to be made out of construction paper, as well as a pattern that students can color, like the "Skip count by 10s" caterpillar in the photo.

Since I have many requests for shape craftivities, particulary 3D shapes, I thought I'd make The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats Some Shapes. 

This is the largest packet, as I've included a caterpillar that reviews 2D shapes, as well as the days of the week.  For this caterpillar, students trace and write the shape words, as well as draw the shapes. 

I've included a butterfly pattern with the various shapes sprinkled on the wings, if you'd like to include that on the last "body" section.  For a cool 3D effect, fold the wings up and glue only the thorax portion down.

Another caterpillar, is a cut-and-glue the 2D shapes on the "body" circles.  Besides the standard 2D shapes, you can also choose to include the hexagon, pentagon, and octagon, and/or the pattern block shapes: rhombus and trapezoid. 

There's also a separate caterpillar that simply "eats" all of the 3D shapes. As with the above activity, students cut and glue the 3D shapes to the "body" circles.  Click on the link to view/download The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eats Some Shapes.

Whew! That's a lot of Very Hungry Caterpillar options!  I hope they help your kiddo-caterpillars blossom into smart little butterlies!

To take a look at all the butterfly-caterpillar FREEBIES on my site, click on the link.  I also have a plethora of more free butterfly & caterpillar activities, crafts, snacks & ideas on my pinteresting PIN boards. 

Thanks for visiting.  The sun has actually ventured out today, so I'm going to bask in it for as long as I can tolerate the wind and 25 degree temperature.  Wishing you a stress-free day.