1-2-3 Come Do A Thanksgiving Craftivity With Me

I’m always looking for a few things that are quick, easy & fun for my students to do, during that last day before our Thanksgiving break.

With that in mind, I designed these 2 simple and versatile crafts, which are nice “wind things down” activities, for that sometimes hectic time.

First up is a cute owl card. There are 2 pattern options.
One says, “Guess whooo’s wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving?”, while the other one is generic, for students who may not celebrate this holiday: “Guess whooo is wishing you an awesome autumn?”

Children color & cut out their owl, along with the extra hat.
When that top tab on the hat is folded and glued in place, the hat will flip up to reveal a child’s school photo and the answer to the above question: “Me! That’s whooo.”

You don’t have to, but for some pizzazz & 3D pop, add wiggle eyes attached with glue dots. For that “finishing touch”, an extra beak and pair of wings (which also flip up), adds even more dimension.

If you do add the wings, students can write their greeting underneath.
If you decide to skip this step, I’ve provided a hexagon-shaped writing prompt, which is glued on the back.

There’s a blank hexagon, so you can have children complete a writing prompt, as well as a “Happy Thanksgiving” or “Happy fall”, where little ones trace the greeting, then sign their name.

I chose a hexagon shape because that’s one of our “toughies” to remember, so this provides a teachable moment to review it.

Next up is a "Welcome To My Home" activity. This project can also be used generically for fall, as well as Thanksgiving.

Use it as a card for younger children to make, or as a writing prompt craftivity for older students.

Ive discovered that anytime I toss a bit of craftiness into a writing lesson, my students are excited to get right down to business and more happily engaged.

Completed projects make a sweet bulletin board too.

I’ve included a list of 21 writing prompt options for them to choose from.

Besides the writing prompt choices, there are also several patterns for different “keepsake” cards you can make.

Personally, I designed this activity for Thanksgiving; ( “Welcome to my home for Thanksgiving” ) however, I realize some children don’t celebrate this holiday, so I’ve also included a generic “Welcome To My Home” pattern as well.

Choose which template is appropriate for your kiddos or give them a choice.
Templates come in black & white for students, as well as full color, so that you can quickly and easily make an example to share.

I purposely used the word “home” rather than “house” because home has a connotation of a place where you live, which could be an apartment or igloo, while a house is specific.

I’ve also included extra patterns with a bit of blank space on the door and doorstep, so that children can practice writing their address.

As you can see, both activities are an educational and quick,” little something”, you can plug into that often hectic last day before Thanksgiving break.
Easy-peasy for you; super-fun for your students.

Today's featured FREEBIE is a "Fall Leaves" packet, which will help your students practice their reading skills. The emergent reader booklet covers lots of Common Core and reinforces color words. 

Children read the simple sentences (packed with lots of Dolch and word wall words). 

They correct beginning capitalization, add end punctuation and then trace, write and color the color words with a matching color crayon or marker.

A graphing extension, color word matching worksheet and spinner game are also included. 

We'll that's it for today.  Thanks for stopping by.

Our church passed out shoe boxes to fill for needy children, so time to brave the chilly weather and go shopping.  

Wishing you a happy-go-jolly kind of day. 

"To get the true value of joy, you must have someone to divide it with." - Mark Twain

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

Are you studying 2D shapes?  If so, I think your kiddos will really enjoy learning & practicing with these super-fun, hands-on activities, featured in my newest packet: Scarecrow Shapes.

The packet is stuffed with a variety of hands-on fun for learning 2D shapes.

Here’s what you’ll get:

* An emergent reader, “The Scarecrow’s Nose”, which practices a variety of standards, and packs a lot of sight word clout, as I’ve included 33 Dolch words.

Children read the sentence, add end punctuation: (period, question mark & exclamation point).

They trace and write the shape & color word, trace and draw the shape, then color the picture.

There is a pattern with 2-on-a-one-page template, as well as 4-on-a-page to make an Itty Bitty booklet.

On the last page, children draw a scarecrow. The nose is their favorite shape and color.

* There’s a whole-group graphing activity to graph the results.

* I've also included a really cute “My Scarecrow’s Nose” slider craftivity. 

"Socrates" is not only super-fun, but a quick, easy, and interesting way to whole group assess 2D shapes.

I’ve included a full-page size, as well as a smaller, 2-on-a-page pattern.

* There's also 7 shape worksheets that practice a variety of standards, as well as ...

* 6 colorful pocket chart cards, plus a matching black and white set, so students can make a Shape Flip Booklet, plus ...

* 5 shape games along with ...

* 4 assessments using just one worksheet!  And finally,

* A bookmark-size, “color me” certificate of praise. 

This packet is a whopping 63 pages long. 

Click on the link to zip on over to my TpT shop to have a look: Scarecrow Shapes: Emergent Reader, Games, Worksheets & Craftivities and let the learning fun begin.

I hope your kiddos enjoy learning with "Socrates" as much as mine did. 

Today's featured FREEBIE is also another fun way to practice shapes.

Back in 2009, I designed Silly Shaped Penguins. 

Because it's one of my most popular downloads, throughout the years I've added to the menagerie. 

Since it's fall, I thought the Silly Shaped Owls were perfect for a fall FREEBIE.  Hope you enjoy them.  

Well that's it for today.  I have so many projects "in process" and scattered all over my desk , that I'm not sure where to begin. 

October is flying by way too fast! Wishing you an awesome autumn. 

"I craft so hard, I sweat glitter!" -Unknown

1-2-3 Come Practice the "Owl-phabet" With Me

I’m delighted to post anotherDollar Deal from Diane.
This “owl-phabet” craftivity is a super-fun way for students to practice upper & lowercase letters .

Look closely at Ollie the owl’s eyes.  You will see an uppercase letter in one, and a lowercase letter in the other.  Ollie is one of my "Turn & Learn” alphabet wheels.

Play "I Spy” a letter & have children turn the "eye wheels" 'til they've found both.

They hold their owl in the air, and you can see at a glance who is having difficulty.

You can also play “Whoooo has a clue?” Call on a child to choose a letter, then give 3 clues to the class. For example: “My letter is a vowel; it comes before P and after N. What’s the ”mystery letter?”

Children turn the owl’s “eyes” ’til they’ve found it. “Whoooo was the first? Is that person correct?”

I've also included a few owl-themed worksheets and a "color me" bookmark in the packet.

Besides playing games with Ollie, use it as a non-threatening way to assess.

Turn Ollie into an “Owl” miss you!” activity at the end of the year, so that students can review letters over the summer, lest they forget all you’ve crammed into their heads.

For a quick & easy way to make the letter “windows” in the eye, I used a circle paper punch. 

I set Ollie up as a center/station activity that children get to do after they have completed their morning table top work. 

All of the pieces and parts are on a table, with a variety of colors to choose from.  They pick out their parts & return to their desks to put Ollie together. 

You can also do this as a whole-group "monkey see-monkey do" activity, where you demonstrate the assembly step-by-step & children copy what you are doing. 

Click on the link to pop on over to my TpT shop to grab Ollie for just a dollar.  I hope your kiddos enjoy their owl-phabet pal as much as mine did. 

The featured FREEBIE for today is a set of owl alphabet cards.  Click on the link to get your set today.  There are 3 sets in the packet. Owls showing both the upper & lowercase letters, as well as separate sets of each, so that you can play Memory Match, Speed, and "I Have; Who Has?" games. 

Well that's it for now. Thanks for visiting.  It's still chilly out, so time to grab my jacket and take my poodle pup Chloe for a walk. 

Right now she's asleep under my desk.  Maybe she thinks it's a bit too nippy today too. 

"I  don't know what my path is yet.  I'm just walking on it." - Olivia Newton-John

1-2-3 Come Give A Hoot With Me

Are you looking for an activity for Earth Day (April 22nd)? If you're into owls, then I think you'll enjoy the "Give a Hoot; Don't Pollute!" writing prompt craftivity.  Take a close look and you'll see that I used 2D shapes to design the owl, which provides a teachable moment on Earth Day to review shapes, as well as ways your students can take care of the earth. 

The packet includes the owl poster pattern pieces and a writing prompt for older students.  They can glue this to the back of their poster. 

Completed projects look wonderful suspended from the ceiling. 

I set this up as a listening and following directions-whole group activity, so that I could assess how my students were doing with that life skill. 

Everyone got a large sheet of blue construction paper at their desk, along with the owl body and caption to cut and glue to their poster. 

When everyone accomplished that, I passed out the shapely owl pieces. 

To expedite this, I had set all of them out in student piles ahead of time.  From there I'd hold up a piece and glue it on my sample and my Y5's would do the same. 

We continued "monkey see-monkey do" 'til everyone had their poster done, which took us about 12 minutes.  If you have older students, they can simply get their supplies and work away. 

I've also included some "Give a hoot" bookmarks in full color as well as black and white for your kiddos to color.  Click on the link to view/download the Give a Hoot Earth Day Owl packet.

Well that's it for today...  Short and sweet, or at least I'm trying.  Thanks for visiting. I have my grandchildren Kaitlyn and Kaiden today. (5 months and 2 years)

Hopefully the weather will warm up, so we can go for a nice long stroller ride.  Regardless, it will be a day filled with snuggles and giggles.  Wishing you a love-filled day too.

“Is the spring coming?" he said. "What is it like?"... "It is the sun shining on the rain and the rain falling on the sunshine...”  -Frances Hodgson Burnett  from The Secret Garden

1-2-3 Come Do An Owl Craft With Me

Whether you do this activity at the beginning of the school year for a back to school icebreaker, or in the fall for October or November, this owl craftivity is a wonderful way to get to know your students, and for them to get to know their classmates better. 

Completed projects make an adorable fall bulletin board.  A caption could be: "Owl Stars!" as a play on the words all star.

For those finishing touches, have students cut out their owl, fold the wings inward, and add some highlights with crayons.

Adding a pair of wiggle eyes, stuck on with glue dots, is also cute.  I've included owl templates with the pupils missing, so they can be creative.

Where they place the eyes really changes the personality of these cute little critters. They can even make them goofy, like I did in my sample.

There are two options to choose from:  Students can make an owl for themselves: "Owl" About Me... or have children pick a partner and make one for that student: "Owl" Be Your Friend.

If you have chosen the personal owl for your kiddos to do, adding their school photo makes this a sweet keepsake. 

If you're doing this in October, it's a fun activity for your Halloween party day. 

Children can write "Happy 'Owl-oween!" on the back and present the card to their friend. 

Click on the link to view/download the Owl Writing Prompt Craftivity. 

Thanks for visiting.  I'm off to do a zillion and one things that I never have enough time for.  Wishing you an energizing day.

 "If we were meant to talk more than listen, we would have two mouths and one ear." -- Mark Twain

17 pages.

This owl craftivity is an interesting and fun alternative to making a school memory booklet. Packet includes templates for preschool through 3rd grade, plus a blank one to fill in with whatever.

1-2-3 Come Do Some End Of The Year Writing Prompts and Craftivities With Me

Since yesterday's article on having current students make something for your next year's kiddos was so popular, I decided to make one with an owl-theme, as owls continue to be really popular.  I know I love them. 

This one is entitled "___________ (fill in your grade) was a hoot.  I've included templates for preschool through 3rd grade, plus a blank one to fill in with whatever.  Here's how to make one:

Run off the templates on a variety of colors of construction paper. Students choose and trim.

Print the facial pattern, trim and trace on an old file folder.  Trace once and cut 3 to 6 eye pieces out at a time.  If you want your beak to be 3D, cut on a fold.

Place and position wings, poke a hole with a protractor at the top and insert a brass brad so they “fly” open. Choose your grade-level heart template and run off on a variety of colors of construction paper. 

Explain to students that what they will be making will be given to your new kiddos in the fall.  They write why their current grade was a hoot.  What a nice surprise for your incoming class to find on or in their desk.  These could also be put up on a bulletin board.
To make it even more personal, have students glue their school photo somewhere.

If you don't want to putz with a craft, I've included just the writing prompt as a template. As with the above craft, I've included templates for preschool through third grade, plus a blank one to fill in with something else.

There's also 2 different bookmark options to give your current students.  Click on the link to view/download the "___________ Grade Was A Hoot" packet.

As with the "tree-mendous" packet yesterday, (scroll down to the next blog article to take a look), I also made a keepsake craft for your students to make for themselves.  This packet is called "School Was A Hoot."

I used 3 file folders to make my sample, but you could also use 2 large sheets of construction paper.  Here's how to make them:
Open up 2 file folders. Glue the right side of one to the left side of the other.  You will now have a left flap, middle section and right flap.  Use the pattern to trace the wings and then trim.

I used a third file folder for the head, but you could also use a sheet of construction paper.
Students can draw their own face, or you can use my pattern.  You could also cut these pieces out of construction paper and have students glue them on.

Choose your grade-level flag and run them off on a variety of colors of construction paper.  Students trim and glue only the left portion of the pennant to the left wing.  Add a school photo to make it extra special.

Brainstorm with students about all of the things they did that year that were a hoot.  You may want to jot these on the board to help with spelling.

After students have written a rough draft, they rewrite their final thoughts on the writing prompt page that will be glued to the middle of their owl.

Students can draw a full-sized body picture of themselves in the oval, or just their face.  Have students really think about what they'll write in the "favorites" and "memories" sections, which will be glued to the wings. 

The autograph page goes on the back.  Students color it and can collect their own signatures or to expedite things, you can have everybody sign a master sheet and then run it off for everyone.

Make a sample of your own to share with your students.  I’m sure they’ll enjoy hearing about their teacher’s favorite things and why (s)he thought this year was a hoot. 

“A picture is truly worth a 1,000 words” and will help you explain what you want your kiddos to do.  Click on the link to view/download the file folder School Was A Hoot packet. 

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN away.  

"No matter how much you think you hate school, you'll find that you'll miss it when you leave." -Unknown

1-2-3 Come Make Some Valentines With Me

Since Valentine's Day is Friday, this will be my last blog post with heart-themed "stuff" 'til next year.  It's time to move on to President's Day. 

Before I do though, I wanted to whip together a few special valentine things for you. 

I always sent a Valentine's Day Party information note home, as well as a list of their child's classmates, followed up by a thank you note to anyone who helped with the party, or donated something. 

I thought perhapes you could use a time-saving template for those things.  Simply print and then fill in your own info.  Click on the link to view/download the Valentine Note Packet.

Since the mustache craze continues, and so many teachers have that as a theme in their classrooms,  I thought I'd make a mustache valentine. 

Before I design anything new, I surf the net to see if anyone has done what I'm thinking about; no sense reinventing the wheel. 

Erin had done just that, as I found a simply adorable mustache valentine FREEBIE over at:  I Love Naptime! 

Aren't they cute?  I love how she inserted the sucker so that it looks like a nose.  Your kiddos can trim off the writing and wear their mustache while they slurp away, which makes for a sweet photo op.  Click on the link above to grab her FREEBIE. 

The Internet provided all sorts of examples of old-fashoned, vintage, and handmade valentines.  A few hours quickly slipped away, as I flitted from one site to the next.

One of my favorite finds was made by Kristen over at Yellow Bliss Road. She overlayed the word love on top of one of my favorite Bible verses.  Click on the link to get this lovely FREEBIE, suitable for framing.

If you're looking for vintage valentines, you definitely need to click on the link that will take you to Lisa Thorarinson's Pinterest board. She has over 600 exquisite examples!  Many are in the public domain.

Another great site that's less overwhelming, has 70 vintage valentine FREEBIES  and can be found at Sweetly Scrapped. 

I really enjoyed taking a trip down memory lane, as my grandmother collected all sorts of valentine postcards from the early 1900's.  I fondly remember paging through her scrapbooks. 

To save you time, I used a  few free clips to make a vintage valentine packet.

I've laid them out so there are minis you can print for all of your kiddos, as well as a larger one with only one valentine on the page, to print and give to that special someone.  Click on the link for my Vintage Valentine packet.

I was pleasantly surprised at the popularity of ALL of the writing prompt valentines that I've been posting.   They have been the most downloaded items these past few days. 

TeachWithMe is mainly geared towards early elementary, but most of the writing prompts can be tweaked up, and some, I specifically designed for older students. 

With that in mind, I decided to make a folded heart envelope, which my crafty grandma Lydia, taught me a zillion years ago.  Give older students a writing prompt or have them record whatever they want inside. 

I've also included a few poem ideas they could use as well, or challenge them to write their own poetry. There's a heart pattern that includes one of my favorite "love" quotes, which I used for  "my special saying" that went under my senior yearbook picture. 

Run off the heart pattern on a variety of pastel colored construction paper, or for especially pretty "envelopes" print on patterned scrapbook paper that has a plain flip side. Click on the link to view/download the Folded Heart Envelope Valentine Writing Prompt.

Finally, since yesterday's keepsake "Blow a Kiss!" craftivity was such a big hit, I wanted to design a few more "keepers."

While surfing the net, I came across the idea of making thumbprints look like hearts; they were posted on a variety of bridal pin boards. I LOVED this idea, so I had my husband press his thumb on a bronze stamp pad and then I pressed mine next to his, so that it looked like a heart. 

I cut out my construction paper heart and glued it to a circle of textured scrapbook paper, which I glued to the back of a paperweight. 

I thought it turned out really cute.  I got the paperweight from Michael's Craft Store for only a dollar, but you could buy a bag of the clear glass, flat-backed stones to make this an inexpensive project.  Simple hot glue a magnet to the back. 

I also designed a sweet "thumb body" loves you valentine, for your kiddos to do the same thing on.  There's a color as well as a black and white pattern. Click on the link to view/download the Keepsake Thumbprint Valentine.

I hope you found a few things here that you can do personally, or with your students to make your Valentine's Day extra special. 

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN away.

"Love wasn't put in your heart to stay; love's only love when you give it away." -Rogers and Hammerstein

1-2-3 Come Tell Digital and Analog Time With Me!

I was pretty happy; after I got done with the Whooo knows the time? owl clock. Everyone I showed it to thought it was cute.

A friend commented that she felt a smaller version might be better for students.

I know that some teachers might not have the time for their kiddo’s to create the larger ones, so I decided to make mini Whooo knows the time? owl clock PADDLES. My “coin paddles” are one of our most downloaded items, so perhaps these will be a winner too.

While frogging around gluing the analog owl to the Popsicle stick, I thought why not put a digital one on the back, so teachers could review both Common Core State Standards. (1.MD.3a) They can use the big one and call out a time. Using dry erase markers, children draw the hands on their clock, and the numbers on the digital side, and then hold it up. Does it match the clocks that the teacher is holding? You can whole-group assess in seconds!

Print off the colored ones, or run off the black and white template on white construction paper. Students color their owls any color they want. Laminate and return to them to cut and glue to a Popsicle stick, gluing the analog owl on one side and the digital clock on the other.

If you want to use your owls each year, instead of having students make their own, print off the colored owl template and laminate.

Mr. Clean Erasers do a nice job of cleaning dry erase, and even permanent marker off laminate! Students only need a small square of the eraser, so cut your Mr. Clean ones in 8 pieces.

You could also make a few of the big clocks and have students partner up. One plays the teacher, and the other shows their student-paddle.  This is a great way to pair up a strong student, with a struggler, for more one-on-one review time.

Click on the link to view/download the large owl analog clock, the owl clock paddles, and/or the large digital owl clock.

Thanks for visiting today. Feel free to PIN anything on my site. My “Pin it” button is at the top. To make sure that pinners return to THIS blog article, click on the title of the blog article, so that it turns black, then click the "pin it" button. It's maddening clicking on  pins, only to find yourself at some other blog article and then have to scroll around to find what you're looking for.  If you’d like to take a look at all of the other awesome things I fritter hours away pinning, (should I even admit that?) click on the “Follow me” heart on the right.

“There is no failure except in not trying.” –Elbert Hubbard     It’s also nice to remember and remind, that failure is NOT permanent!

1-2-3 Come Review Upper and Lowercase Letters With Me!

I liked to make up a summer fun packet for my students to take home at the end of the year.  It was a nice review of everything we had learned.

This packet was also handy for parents to have their child work on, if they complained of being bored, or an easy thing to give children when they wanted to play "school," while on vacation.

I designed this KnOWLedge Owl "craftivity" with that in mind. You could also make it at the beginning of the year, so that students can practice their letters, with their families at home.

Here's How To Make Them:

 Run off masters on a variety of construction paper. I chose funky color combinations, but you could also do more realistic owls in various shades of brown.

 Rough cut so that students can get their pieces and trim.

 You may want a room helper to cut the beaks and feet, just to expedite things.

 If you’re having someone cut these for you, it’s easier to trace a template on an old file folder. The helper traces once and then cuts 3-6 at a time.

 Pre-cut long envelopes so that students have a pocket to put their extra letter wheels in.

 Set up this “craftivity” as a center. When students are done with other work, they can come up and get the color owl pieces of their choice.

 Students glue the wings to either side of the owl. They can add some crayon details for more pizzazz.

 Student glue the feet to the bottom of their owl so that the tops are glued to the back. I also added crayon details here and then traced the belly of the owl with a white crayon so that the writing “popped.”

 Students cut out their white alphabet wheels. Older students can cut and poke their own holes in the eyes; younger students will need this done for them.

 To expedite things, I used a circle paper punch to make the letter “windows.”

Poke a hole through the owl’s head and attach whatever wheel you want your students to work on; fasten with brass brads.

 Students glue their beak on, after their eyes are in place.

 If you want the beaks to be 3D, simply cut a 4-inch wide strip of yellow construction paper, and fold it in half. Trace the triangle template so that it butts up against the fold, then cut the triangles out

Students glue their envelope half to the back of their owl and write their name on it.

 Close the open side with a piece of Scotch tape.

 This is a safe place where students can keep their extra wheels, so that they don’t lose them.

 There are lots of activities you can do with the KnOWLedge owl.

 Use as a review game. Choose a quiet child to call out a letter from a-j, k-t, or u-z.

 Students spin the top eye wheel ‘til they find those letters. You can also have students partner up and play this game with each other.

 You can play “I’m Thinking Of A Letter.” Give clues about the letter and students spin the wheels ‘til they find it. i.e. “I’m thinking of a letter that is a vowel. It comes after the letter N and before the letter P.”

 Play “Speed.” You call out a letter and see who can find the upper and lowercase letters the quickest.

 Use as an alternative or additional fun way to assess upper and lowercase letters.

 These are terrific sent home at the beginning of the year, so that students can practice with their parents.

 They also make a nice end of the year activity, so that students don’t forget what they learned over the summer, or preschoolers can practice before they come to kindergarten in the fall.

Ollie, the "Owl-phabet Owl" will be FREE for an entire year, after which time, he'll be up-dated and put in Diane's Dollar Deals in my TpT shop.

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN anything you think others may find helpful.

"Tell me and I forget, teach me and I remember, involve me and I learn." -Unknown