1-2-3 Come Do Some Spook-tacular Activities With Me!

Halloween is just around the creepy corner, so I thought I'd blog about a few of our Halloween-themed FREEBIES. Since the Fact Family Schoolhouses were such a huge back-to-school hit,  I thought I'd repost the Fact Family Haunted Houses.

The Packet includes:

• Fact Family "craftivity" templates.
• Fact Family spinner game templates.
• Directions and link for a home-school math connection, for fact family online-homework practice.
• Directions and sample of how to make mini dry erase envelope boards.
• Fact Family T-bar "mad-minute" skill sheets +
• A certificate of praise.

If you're looking for a language arts activity, one of my favorites is the Trick or Treat Word Family packet, which will help reinforce Common Core State Standards: RF.K2a, RF.K2c, RF.K2e

It's a fun way to review the -ick and -eat word families.  Students make this "craftivity" and pull the letter sliders through the treat bag windows, to reveal humorous new ways to say "Trick or treat!"

I've also included traceable word flashcards for the -ick and -eat families (28 cards) + another "Trick or Treat!" word activity game extension.  Click on the link to view/download the Trick or Treat Word Family packet.

Thank you for visiting today.  I design and blog daily, so I hope you can zip on over tomorrow for more FREEBIES.  Feel free to PIN away. 

To ensure that "pinners" return to THIS blog article, click on the green title at the top, it will turn black; now click on the "Pin it" button on the burgundy menu bar.   If you'd like to see all of the wonderful-educational items that I spend way too much time pinning, click on the heart to the right of the blog.

I wish you and yours a very Happy Halloween.

"The whole idea of living, is to believe the best is yet to be." -Peter Ustinov

1-2-3 Come Do Some Pumpkin Activities With Me!

A quick, easy and fun way to help little ones understand number sense, is to have them practice 1-to-1 correspondence. The numbered apple cards, were such a huge success, I decided to make some with pumpkins. With the repetition, children feel empowered, as they know what to do; you don't have to spend time explaining directions, and because there's a new theme, students' interest is still high.

I've included a set of 1-10 pumpkins in color, as well as a set in black and white. Print off, laminate and trim several sets of colored pumpkins.  Using small manipulatives such as mini-pom pom's, flat-backed jewels, or pony beads is great fine motor practice.You can run off the black line set and send home with students who need more help, or as a table top worksheet, have children draw X number of "seeds" to match the number on the pumpkin.

I've found that using a smaller card, instead of one with all 10 pumpkins on it, is less overwhelming for little ones, and keeps them from messing up their piles as they work. When a child completes a mat, they can get another one with higher numbers. You can also use a set of mats to review ordinal numbers.  Click on the link to view/download the 1-to-1 Correspondence Pumpkin cards.

Another quick and easy fall game, is Peek-A-Boo Pumpkins.  It took me an entire morning to design yesterday, but only half an hour to make the actual game, so little ones can play it.  You'll find it so worth your effort, as you can do lots of things with just the letter cards!  I've included a list of activities + Kaboom cards to play even more games. 

To make the Peek-A-Boo alphabet game, simply trace the pumpkin template onto orange construction paper and cut 4-6 pumpkins at a time.  Fold the pumpkins in half, and glue just the edge, to the left side of your yellow-construction paper cards, so that the pumpkin will flip open on both sides of the card, revealing the little ghost.  You can write the letters by hand, or use an extra set of pumpkin tiles and glue them to the front of the pumpkin.  I colored mine to add a bit more pizzazz. 

Children choose a card, and look at the letter on the front of the pumpkin.  They place the matching lowercase letter tile on the card, that they think will match the ghost hiding under the pumpkin.  They flip up the pumpkin to see if they are correct.

To add math practice to the activity, have children keep track of how many answers they get right, by making tally marks on their "pumpkin pal". When children have done all of the uppercase pumpkins, they can flip the cards over and do the lowercase ones on another day.  Click on the link to view/download The Peek-A-Boo Alphabet Pumpkin Game.

For a Pumpkin Word Find, click on the link. There's an alphabetical list of wonderful pumpkin words to increase your students' vocabularies. 

As a little something for "early finishers" print off some easy-to-difficult pumpkin mazes, by clicking on the link:  "A-maze-ing" Pumpkins. I hope YOUR "little punkins" enjoy these fall activities with a pumpkin theme.

Thanks for visiting today.  I blog daily; so I hope you can stop by tomorrow for the newest FREEBIES hot off the press.

Feel free to PIN away.  To ensure that "pinners" return to THIS blog article, click on the green title at the top; it will turn black, now click on the "Pin it" button on my menu bar.  If you'd like to take a peek at all of the awesome-educational items, I spend way too much time pinning, click on the heart to the right of the blog. I have an entire board of just pumpkin activities.

"The one exclusive sign of thorough knowledge, is the power of teaching." -Aristotle

1-2-3 Come Play Some Pumpkin Games With Me!

Games are a wonderful way for students to practice important life skills.  They are also a quick & easy way to grab and hold children's interest, while they review and reinforce a variety of standards.   One of my little ones summed it up: "We didn't even know we was learnin' cuz we was havin' so much fun!" 

Because subitizing (being able to "know" how many there are, without counting) is extremely important; playing with dominoes and dice, are a great way to help students recognize these groupings at a glance.  Before too long, I could flash 6 dots (in the pattern on a dice/domino) and my students would call out the number 6, without having to stop and count the dots.

Keeping this in mind, I designed 6 pumpkin-themed dice games + a listening and following direction activity, that will help review ordinal numbers. They are all in one Pumpkin Games packet.  To view/download it, click on the link.  Because the rules are pretty much the same, students feel empowered, as they know what to do, and can get down to business, and you aren't using up valuable minutes explaining things for the umpteenth time.

Because the apple basket counting game, was a popular download, I decided to revisit that concept using pumpkins.  Print off the farmer's wagon on brown construction paper, laminate and trim.  Do the same thing with the pumpkin tile master.  Have each child take 20 pumpkin tiles, (or to expedite things, have 20 pre-counted and put in Snack Baggies. After children have played the game, to make sure that they have 20 pumpkins, have students count them one at a time into their bag.) This is great counting practice for little ones, and also ensures that you don't have incomplete games, because pumpkins fell on the floor. 

Children choose a partner and share the wagon.  The object of the game is to get all of your pumpkins into the wagon, by taking turns rolling the dice.  Whatever number a child rolls, is how many pumpkins they pick up from their pile and place in the wagon.  You can make the game more difficult, by having students roll an exact number towards the end of the game.  i.e. if they have only 1 pumpkin left, they need to roll a one.

In the game "Roll and Color," children roll a dice.  Whatever number they roll, is the matching numbered section on their pumpkin, that they color.  The first child with a completly colored-in pumpkin is the winner. 

"Roll and Draw" works with the same rules, only children draw a shape on their pumpkin to make a Jack-O-Lantern.  This is a great opportunity to review a square, triangle, circle and rectangle, and possibly introduce the crescent shape as well.

Because 5 Little Pumpkins Sitting On a Gate, is such a popular rhyme/story in October, I thought it would be fun to follow it up with a game.  To conserve paper, you can print, laminate and trim the gates.  If copying is not an issue for your school, it's nice if each child can have their own "gate" so they can continue to practice at home.

Run off the pumpkin master.  Students color and cut out their pumpkins and place them on the gate.  When you are explaining the game, you have a great opportunity to review ordinal numbers as well.  Children take turns rolling a dice with their partner.  Whatever number they roll, they take the matching numbered pumpkin off the gate and have it go "rolling into the night..."  The first child who gets all of their pumpkins off the gate is the winner.

Pumpkins in a Row on a Roll is similar.  Children color the numbered pumpkin that matches the number that they roll.  I also made an ordinal number activity with this same template.  This is wonderful practice for listening and following directions too, as the teacher reads what (s)he wants students to do.

Finally, children trace the numbers and color their pumpkins as they take turns rolling the dice in Pumpkins On A Roll . Simply run off the template, trim and give each student a strip of pumpkins.  Click on the link to view/download the Pumpkin Games packet.

Thanks for visiting today.  I blog daily, so I hope you can pop back tomorrow for the latest FREEBIES hot off the press. Feel free to PIN anything from my site.  I think sharing is so important, and truly appreciate everyone's creative abilities, that help us roll with it"  rather than spend time, we don't have, reinventing the wheel.  To ensure that "pinners" return to THIS blog article, click on the green title at the top; it will turn black, now click on the "Pin it" button, located on the menu.  If you'd like to take a peek at my awesome educational boards, click on the heart to the right of the blog.

"A college degree and a teaching certificate, may define a person as a teacher, but it takes hard word and dedication to truly be one." -Evan Esar