1-2-3 Come Play A Shape Game With Me

Come the end of November, my Y5's could identify their 2D shapes, but I liked to continue to incorporate some sort of shape review with them throughout the year, so they could retain that knowledge. 

The vocabulary words hexagon, pentagon and octagon, constantly needed to be reinforced as they easily confused them.

Thus, I like to create games and hands-on crafts that not only review shapes, but other skills & standards as well. The Native American headband does just that.

Run off the shape masters on matching construction paper.  Rough cut and have students trim.  Make the headbands out of strips of white construction paper that are 3 inches wide and 24 inches long.

Students choose a partner and take turns spinning.  Whatever shape they land on, they glue the matching shape to the center of their headband.  After the game, students can glue a feather to the back of it. 

You may want to give an extra feather to the winners of the game, or an extra shape. (When you cut out the hexagon, pentagon and octagon shapes you will have different sizes of diamond shapes as scraps.)

For extra pizzazz, students can add flat-backed rhinestones to the center of their shapes with glue dots.  If you'd like to add some writing to this activity, have students write something that they are thankful for under the shapes. 

These things should be the color of that shape.  i.e. I'm thankful for the blue sky.  You may want to brainstorm with students prior to the writing portion.  As children share things that they are thankful for that are those colors, write the words on the board to help with spelling.

If you've studied the Wampanoag people or Squanto you can also have students write a fact that they learned on the feather.

If you need some facts to share with your students I highly recommend the books: Squanto:The Miracle of Thanksgiving by Metxas,  Squanto Friend of the Pilgrims by Bulla and Squanto's Journey by Brucha.

I also found several sites that have some good factual information: Wampanoag Fact Sheet is extremely helpful with lots of links and pictures. Plimoth Plantation's site is also an excellent source as is Social Studies for Kids.   Current tribal information can be found here.  You can also check out ABC Teach,  Activity Village & Squanto.

Click on the link to view/download the Native American Headband craftivity.  Thanks for visiting.  I'll be designing lots more things today, so I hope you can pop back tomorrow for the newest FREEBIES.  Feel free to PIN away.

"I don't think the Lord wants any pompous proclamation of thanks on one Thursday in November as much as He would like a little humble service from us every day in the year." -Burton Hillis

11 pages.

I think your students will really enjoy making a Native American headband while playing the shape game.  Children take turns spinning; whatever shape they land on, they glue it to the middle of their headband. To incorporate writing, have students write something that they are thankful for that is that color under the shapes.  They can also write a fact they learned about the Wampanoag people on the feather.

9 pages.

Review fractions with this fun "craftivity" that smells scent-sational!

8 pages.

Students write something that they are thankful for on each leaf.  There are several options for making this fall writing-prompt wreath.  Adding a school photo as well as some glitter, gives them that finishing touch.  These make a wonderful November bulletin board too.  This packet will be FREE for an entire year!  Woo hoo.  After which time, it will be up-dated and put in my TpT shop. 

Click on the link to zip on over to have a look see at this now 27-page fall writing prompt craftivity.

5 pages.

Your room will smell delicious when you make these acorns that are sprinkled with ground cinnamon & /or ground cloves.  Practice name writing with the glitter acorns.  Both make cute borders for your November bulletin board featuring student work.

1-2-3 Come Make a Thanksgiving Placemat With Me

Because I get into designing frenzies and have so much to share, sometimes my blog posts get a bit too long,  (Mr. husband calls this my "hurricane mode". )  Today I'm endeavoring to try and keep things simple, and since I only got one thing completed yesterday, being brief will be easy.

My husband and I were eating out the other night and we noticed some really well-behaved children, busily working away on the activity placemat that quite a few restaurants hand out.

I think this is a wonderful "super-duper-shutter-upper" and a great way to keep children occupied, with something educational until their food arrives. 

Since my brain never shuts down, when it comes to thinking up new things to make, I wondered what kind of placemat I could dream up, and right away thought one for Thanksgiving would be especially appropriate.

Our kindergartners always had a mock Thanksgiving feast on the floor in the cafeteria.  (I did a Thanksgiving "tasting" feast with my Y5's.)   Click on my link if you'd like to see how easy and educationally fun, a tasting feast is for your kiddos. 

We made Pilgrim hats and Native American paper bag vests the week before, so some children chose to attend the feast as Indians, the others Pilgrims.

If you do something similar, making a placemat on that special day would be a fun activity.  Since the last day before any vacation seems to be a high-energy day, this would also be something you could easily plug in for a little quiet time, before dismissal.

However you use it, I hope it's enjoyable. So that you have an answer key, I've included one that I filled in with my grandson's handprint.  

If you happen to think of any more words using the letters in November, I would enjoy hearing from you.  diane@teachwithme.com I putzed for around 15 minutes and 51 is all that I could come up with. 

Click on the link to view/download the Thanksgiving Placemat.

Thanks for visiting. The snow plows woke me up, so I have plenty of time to fritter away crafting this morning.  Wishing you a fun-filled day.

"Even though we can't have everything we want, we can be thankful that we don't get everything we sometimes deserve." -Unknown

2 pages.

Print off these activity placemats, for your students to fill-in, while they wait for your school Thanksgiving feast, or have them complete it as a fun activity the day before break, so they can take it home and use it on their own table.  This is a special FREEBIE in my TpT shop.  Click on the link to zip on over & grab your copy today: Thanksgiving Placemat.

7 pages.

The paper plate body acts like a dustpan; the 1/4th of the plate is the "wing" that acts like a broom.  Children sweep the crumbs off the table onto Gabby, their turkey gobbler, and then into the garbage.  My Y5's LOVED making these and couldn't wait to try them out.

5 pages.

Practice fine motor skills and review rhyming, with this sweet turkey poem craftivity.  I've also included a scissor snipping turkey for even more fine motor fun.  You can also have students write what they are thankful for on the feathers.

1-2-3 Come Make a Terrific Thanksgiving Turkey Craft With Me!

If you're looking for some fresh new turkey "craftivities" that your kiddo's will enjoy, you've come to the right place!  Here are some of my all-time favorites.  I hope you find a few that you'll want to make with your own little turkeys.

Turkey Art Projects + Activities is a whopping 81-pages long and features over a dozen quick and easy turkey crafts + a few worksheets, songs and a game.

It was one of the first units that I put together 3 years ago, before I had all of the fonts, and software programs that I use now for a more professional look, so all of the patterns are hand drawn in this packet. 

They are still easy to follow, with complete directions.  If you have construction paper, glue, scissors and crayons, then you're all set!  Click on the link to view/download the Turkey Craftivities packet. 

Happy Fall Y'all is a football-shaped turkey.  Under his wing is a poem I wrote so you can have a teachable moment about rhyming words:

November’s for turkeys with piping-hot stuffing
and blowing winds that are huffing and puffing.
Orange, red, and yellow, fall-colored leaves
sweatshirts with warm, snuggly-long sleeves.
Tiny-tot turkeys that go gobble-gobble
jointed and cute, that wibble and wobble.
They say: “Stay inside and watch some football.”
and oh by the way “Happy Fall Y’all!”

Hyrum is an adorable stuffed turkey.  His body is a lunch bag stuffed with scrap paper.  He's wonderful for fine motor practice, and makes an adorable centerpiece for your kiddo's to present to their mommies.

Patty is a paper chain turkey that can be used to practice pattering and counting.  For writing practice, have students write their spelling words, fall vocabulary, or things that they are thankful for on each strip.

Turk, the ribbon-legged turkey, is a sweet dangler.  To incorporate writing with this art project, give students a prompt and have them complete it, and then glue it to the back of Turk.

Trudy is the thankful turkey.  A note home is included, so parents can help children write what they are thankful for on the feathers and then glue them to the turkey.  Accordion-folded legs, are great fine motor practice too.

If you'd like to practice counting, you may want to make Clark the Count On Me turkey booklet.  There's a blank circle template if you want to work on teen or higher numbers, or even skip-counted numbers.  

Clara is made out of a TP tube and reviews counting as well as colors.  Wiggle eyes, a 3D mouth and pipe cleaner feet, all add to her goofy appearance.  My Y5's LOVED her; she makes a cute table decoration too.

All of the above turkey craftivities can be found in the Turkey Art and Activities packet along with a few more + some songs, worksheets and a game.  Click on the link to view/download it.

In another packet, is one of my personal favorites.  I named her Gabby The Crumb Gobbler.  I was inspired by my beloved grama Lydia when I designed it.  She always said: "Many hands make light work." so I made a little poem, with that thought in mind: "Many hands make light work, this I know is true, so let my little turkey, gobble up crumbs for you."

Children color and cut Gabby's head and glue her to the top half of a paper plate and then color the ridged portion of the rim to look like mini feathers. 

Her body acts like a dustpan.  The quarter section "wing" is the sweeper.  This really does work and "sweeps" crumbs off the table, onto Gabby, and then into the garbage!

Students glue the poem to the center and practice "sweeping."  I paperclip the sections together and send them home.   My Y5's always thought their "turkey broom" was especially fun.  Click on the link to view/download Gabby.

Finally, there's Thomas the twirled turkey. His body sports another poem:

"This is my turkey round and fat.  His feathers show a color pattern imagine that! Red-Orange-and Yellow make him a bright happy fellow.  I twirled strips of color around a pencil you see, then glued them as feathers, so my picture's 3D. He's a special present to you from me.  Made with lots of TLC."

Twirling strips of colored paper around a pencil, was not only great fine motor practice, but enjoyable for my Y5's too.

I've also included Sally for scissor snipping practice in this packet.  Click on the Turkey Twirling link to view/download them.

I design and try to blog daily, so I hope you can stop by tomorrow for the latest FREEBIES.

"For in every adult there dwells the child that was, and in every child there lies the adult that will be." -John Connolly