1-2-3 Come Do Some More Valentine Activities With Me

I had a special request from Iesha, in Michigan, for some 10-frame cards with hearts on them.  Since this was also on my "to do" list, I got right to it.  

All of the new 10-frames packets include extra tiles, so that students can use them as manipulatives to make groups/sets to match the number on the cards, sort the tiles or pattern with them.  Click on the link to view/download the Valentine 10-Frames packet.

1-2-3 Count Valentines With Me compliments the cards, as this easy reader booklet is based on a 10-frame and covers all sorts of standards. 

Students read, trace and write the numbers and number words, circle the number in the sequence, dot that many spots on the 10-frame, then cut and glue the appropriate picture showing a group of that many. 

The new "Count With Me" booklets, also have students add end punctuation to the simple sentences.  Each packet also includes several worksheets. Click on the link to view/download the 1-2-3 Count Valentines With Me packet. 

When I'm diddling around designing, an idea sometimes happens because of the adorable graphics done by really creative artists, like Laura Strickland (mycutegraphics) and DJ Inkers. 

Why Do I Like You?  Let Me Count The Ways... was one of those ideas. D.J. Inkers clip art of a  little boy and girl holding a huge heart, simply begged to be filled with something. 

When I taught high school, my students enjoyed a variety of poetry that I shared with them.  How Do I Love Thee? Let Me Count The Ways, by Elizabeth Barrett Browning,  was a personal favorite. 

I thought this would make an interesting writing prompt for students. Just incase you'd like to share the original poem, I've included it in the packet.

Instead of love, I substituted the word like.  Students can choose to complete the prompt for someone they are close to, or to promote friendship and build self-esteem within your class, have students choose a classmate.  Students write things they like about that person, or things that person does that they like etc. 

To jumpstart your students' creative minds, make one about your best friend, sister, brother, husband or wife to share as an example.  I've also included a bookmark in color, that teachers can fill out for each student.  Write the child's name on the heart and then list a few things of why you enjoy having them in your class.  Click on the link to view/download the How Do I Like Thee? Valentine Writing Prompt packet. 

I didn't have much time to design more valentine crafts this year, but I did want to make a few valentines that your kiddos could make and take home to their families. 

Moms especially LOVE the cute "paper love" keepsakes that their child makes at school.  With that in mind, I designed the "Blow A Kiss!" keepsake card. 

The original idea came from "Life Is Sweet."  She painted her baby's hand and pressed it on some paper for grandma and grampa.  Here's my version:

Run off my template on white construction paper, or for more pizzazz, print it on regular copy paper and then have students trim and glue their card to their favorite color.

Students pick a partner and take turns tracing each other's hand.  For PK kids, have a room helper do the tracing and cutting.

Draw a little tab at the base of the palm, so that the hand has a "hinge" and then cut out.  Glue the hinge to the back, of the bottom of the card, so that it flips down, to reveal the sentiment. 

I made a page of lip tiles (kisses), so that students can glue their "kiss" to the middle of their flopped over hand.  For that finishing touch, add a school photo and some glitter.  Click on the link to view/download the "Blow A Kiss" Keepsake Valentine Card.

Another quick valentine craft is a simple positive-negative reverse picture.  My Y5's were always amazed when they folded the half-heart template, cut on the solid line and then unfolded a whole heart!

Most of them didn't even realize that they were cutting a heart out, and I didn't spoil the "surprise."   I loved their excited exclamations over this scissor "magic."  

Turn this into an interesting writing prompt for older students:  "Half of me enjoys _______ and half of me enjoys ____________."  I had a lot of fun writing a sample for you that will help to explain the lesson. 

For more pizzazz, I cut my photo in half and arranged it on my "heartwork."

To get in some keyboard practice, have students write their rough draft, and then type up their final copy and mount it on construction paper.  Completed projects make an awesome February bulletin board. 

Click on the link to view/download the Folded Heart Writing Prompt Packet.

Thanks for visiting.  Feel free to PIN away.  I hope you have a simply spectacular Valentine's Day! 

"The educated differ from the uneducated, as much as the living from the dead." -Aristotle

1-2-3 Come Do Some Interesting Activities With Me

Since the lists of my all-time favorite books for various units, have been so popular, I decided to make one for my love-themed selections, which include Valentine's Day books and books about hugs, kisses and love. 

I think it's probably my biggest collection, as Valentine's Day has been my favorite holiday since I was five.   Click on the link to view/dowload the list of My 100 All-Time Favorite Valentine Books.

Books need a bookmark, so I designed ten Valentine bookmarks that you can use as incentives (challenge students to collect all of them as they complete various tasks each day) or give as prizes on your party day. 

Click on the link to view/download the Valentine's Day Bookmark packet.

Like the book lists, the punctuation pocket cards, have also been extremely popular, so I made a set of 30 with a valentine theme.  Print; laminate and trim. 

You can put them in your pocket chart, read as a whole group and then make corrections with a dry erase marker. 

Students circle the letters that should be capitalized, and then add end punctuation. 

I made a lot more cards for this packet, as I thought it might be a fun activity for Valentine's Day. 

Pass one out to each student to make corrections and then share the results with the class. 

I purposely included quite a few contractions in the simple sentences to provide yet another teachable moment.  Click on the link to view/download the Valentine Grammar Cards.

While I was making the valentine clock cards yesterday, I was working on several other telling time activities, and finished them today. 

Time For Valentines is a candy heart spinner game.  Children play with a partner or in groups of 3 or 4 taking turns spinning the candy heart clock. 

Whatever number they land on, is the heart that they color on their recording sheet.  Students also write in the digital time, and if you want, have them cover the heart with a candy one. 

The student who completes their clock first is the winner.  The prize can be the candy hearts. Inform students that they may eat one, and then put the rest in the box to take home.  Click on the link to view/download the Candy Heart Clock Game.

Finally, I also finished the Watch Me Tell Time whole-group assessment activity.  Print off the pocket watch page on tan or gold paper, cut off the directions. 

Run off the clocks and digital time rectangles on glossy photo paper. Cut out the clocks and boxes and glue one to each pocket watch paper.  You've now created a dry erase board.

Call out a time. Using a dry erase marker, students draw hands on the clock face and write the digital time in the box.  When they are done, they hold up their pocket watch. 

This is a quick, easy and fun way to whole group assess analog and digital time to the hour or half hour.  (Common Core State Standard:  1.MD.3)  Click on the link to view/download the Watch Me Tell Time assessment packet.

Thanks for visiting today; I hope it's love-filled.   Feel free to PIN away! 

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

1-2-3 Come Use 10-Frames With Me.

As promised, I got the rest of the fall 10-frames completed this week.  Pumpkin 10 frames, Spider 10 frames, Scarecrow 10 frames, Leaf 10 frames, Football 10 frames, Bat 10 Frames, Fire Safety 10 Frames and Candy Corn 10 Frames are now ready for instant download. (Whew!) Just click on the links.  If you missed the apple 10 frames, or the owl 10 frames for September, simply click on their links.  To view all of my 10 Frame FREEBIES click on this link.

Thinking about numbers using 10 frames, can be a helpful and easy way for students to learn basic number facts. A 10 frame is a simple graphic tool that allows people to  “see” numbers.

They will help your students with number sense, place value, patterns and relationships, as well as subitizing (being able to recognize at a glance, domino and dice patterns, without having to count the dots).

There are lots of activities that you can do with the 10-frame packets besides the obvious.  Use them as flashcards, examples in your pocket chart, switch up your number word wall to be seasonal, and post a themed set there. You can make laminated sets for games and/or run off copies of whatever you'd like your students to work on, and use them as a table top lesson, math center, or to make booklets.

A set of numbers, number words, and math symbols (plus, minus, equals, greater and less than) allows students to make equations (covering more standards) plus play a variety of games. i.e.  Match the 10 frame to the number card, or number word, to play a Memory Match game, or play "I Have; Who Has?" 

You can also use the number word cards to ask questions of "How many more to make ______?" i.e. There are 2 pieces of candy corn on the candy corn number cards.  How many more are needed to equal the number on a particular card.  (1 more is needed for the one card, 9 more for the ten card etc. ) 
Do the same with the bat number word cards, that feature 4 bats. 

The scarecrow-number word cards have 2 different pictures in an ABAB pattern.  Ask students which picture is on all of the even numbered cards and which is on the odd numbered cards. You can do the same with the spider number cards as they are 2 different colors.

I'm always looking to improve things, so I thought I'd make some extra tiles for you to print, laminate and cut out, so that your students can use these as matching manipulatives for the 10 frames.  Use them for the above games to fill in a 10 frame.  Children can also count, sort, and pattern with them. For added fun, and a sweet treat, give students 10 pieces of candy corn when you're working with the Candy Corn 10 frames.  As a reward for wonderful work, students can eat a few at the end of the activity.

If there's a fall theme that I missed, that you'd like a 10-frame packet for, simply shoot me an e-mail diane@teachwithme.com and I'll see what I can do.  10 Frames for Turkeys and Pilgrims are in the works for November.  I'll also be making 10 frames for winter and a set for spring as well, so if you have a request, let me know.

If you'd like some links to a few wonderful 10-frame videos and 10-frame games, click on the link to pop on over to that blog article.  For more 10-Frame practice that incorporates reading standards too, try our 1-2-3 Count ____________'s With Me booklets.  They are themed easy-readers, based on 10 frames.  All of the above 10 frame packets, have matching "Count With Me" booklets, that would be wonderful seasonal extensions.  Click on the link to zip on over to my 10-frame section, and scroll down to see all of the 1-2-3 Counting booklets.

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"When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left and could say, "I used everything you gave me." -Erma Bombeckdo

1-2-3 Come Make Some 10 Frames With Me

Thinking about numbers using frames of 10, can be a helpful and easy way for students to learn basic number facts. A 10 frame is a simple graphic tool that allows people to  “see” numbers. They will help your students with number sense, place value, patterns and relationships, as well as subitizing.

While researching 10 frames, I found a wonderful 10 frame game your students can play.  There's no reading involved, a voice tells you what to do. The four games that can be played with their applet, help to develop counting and addition skills. Children can independently play: How Many, Build, Fill and Add.  Click on the above link to hop on over.

I also took a look at YouTube to see if I could find some quick explanations.  There's a  Ten Frame 4-minute video that does a nice job. Click on the link to pop over. For a 1 minute 10-frame explanation click on that link.

Since I planned all of my teaching around various themes each month, I decided to make 10 Frames featuring the most popular ones I could think of.   Working on the same procedures can get a bit boring, but if you switch things up with different 10 frame templates, students will get excited to continue practicing skills.

There are a lot of ways to use these 10 frames.  They certainly enhance number sense.  They also help students subitize:recognize at a glance, domino and dice patterns without having to count the dots. 

Besides the obvious uses, I've also made a set of numbers, number words, and math symbols ( plus, minus, equals, greater and less than) so students can make equations and play a variety of other games. i.e.  Match the 10 frame to the number card, or number word, to play a Memory Match game, or play "I Have; Who Has?"  

To practice subitizing, use them as flashcards to see who can call out the correct number first. They are also nice in a math center, using manipulatives and dry erase markers to fill them in.  To make manipulatives to add to the 10 frames, simply run off extra pages of the 10-filled 10 frame and cut them into squares.  

I'm in the process of making some for each month, and started with September.  I just finished apple 10 frames, owl 10 frames and pirate 10 frames.  Click on the links to zip on over to download these freebies.  I also have pumpkins, leaves, scarecrows, frogs, stars, bats, spiders, dinosaurs and bees in the works, to round out fall, before I begin ones for winter.  If there is a theme that you'd like 10 frames for, shoot me an e-mail and I'll add it to my list, and let you know when I've completed it. diane@teachwithme.com

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN anything you think others might enjoy.  My "Pin It" button is at the top.  If you'd like to take a peek at all of the awesome-educational things I spend way too much time pinning, simply click on the "Follow Me" heart to the right.

"My mother said I must always be intolerant of ignorance, but understanding of illiteracy, because some people, unable to go to school, were more educated and more intelligent than some college professors." -Maya Angelou

1-2-3 Come Work With 10 Frames With Me!

Ten frames are such a visual help for little ones.  I find that most of my kiddo's are visual and kinestetic learners.  I provided pictures and examples of things and plenty of math manipulatives, so they could do a lot of hands-on fun.  At first, children think that these are just toys; they later learn that the "toys" are wonderful learning TOOLS to help show and demonstrate math concepts.

I tried especially hard to design things with little boys in mind, as their attention span as a Y5 seemed quite a bit shorter than the girl's.

Anything to do with trucks was always a hit, so when I was fooling around with what could appropriately hold a 10-frame, that would be exciting to a boy, but fun for girls too,  a semi truck came to mind.

You can print off one and laminate, to use as a "teacher-led" instruction manipulative. Simply put it up on your white board, and using a dry erase marker, fill in a new number or equation each day.  By writing these on Popsicle sticks, and letting students choose them, you can keep track of what you've already covered.

Call on a student to make X's or bingo dots in the correct number of boxes. Using 2 colors to SHOW the 2 numbers in an equation, is extremely helpful. Make an extra 10 frame semi truck and put it in your Math Center, or if you are able to make an entire class set, allow students to choose the colors for their truck and add their school photo, so that it looks like they are driving their semi.

Younger students can work with single numbers to 20, while older students can work with math equations to 20.

This is a quick, easy and fun way to whole group practice and assess understanding.

I've also included 2 ten frames in one of the trucks, so that you can work with numbers greater than 10 and less than 21.

Click on the link to view/download the 10 Frame Math Semi Truck Activity.  

If you're looking for more 10 Frame activities, click on the link to zip on over to that category of freebies.

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"The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it!" -Moliere