1-2-3 Come Sing A Song And Learn Names With Me!

On the first day of school many little ones will be overwhelmed with all of the newness of a zillion different things they've never experienced before, including being surrounded by other children who are strangers.

A wonderful "icebreaker" is to help youngsters feel welcome.  Learning their names quickly, is a very important part of that.  

Once children know each other's names, they also feel more comfortable, making friends rather quickly.

Since "being able to recognize their name" was one of my Y5 report card standards, I did all sorts of activities to help children accomplish that in a fun way.

Singing name songs was always a favorite activity. Since most children know the tune of Old MacDonald, I decided to start there.

Simply print off the adorable clipart song poster. Thanks ever so much to the very creative djinkers.com who provides licenses for teachers to use her clipart.

After children catch on, you can point to the words as you sing.

Fill in the blanks by pointing to 2 children and having them say their names. Continue the song 'til you have used every child's name.

As another name recognition activity, run off the farmer name cards and write your students' names on them. 

If you have time, it's nice to allow children to color their card to help with recognition. 

Using a variety of colors, to write the names, will also help really little ones associate their name with the color, helping them to differentiate more easily, especially if a lot of your students' names begin with similar letters.

Laminate the cards for durability. When you sing the song again, instead of pointing to a child, show their name card. 

When they recognize it, they can say their name.  Pretty soon all of your students will be able to read everyone's name!

You can also print off an extra set of name cards to send one home to parents.  If they post it on the bathroom mirror or other prominent place in the home, they can make it a teachable moment whenever their child sees it.

Click on the link to view/download the EIEIO Name Recognition Song.

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"A leader is anyone who has two characteristics: first, he is going someplace; second, he is able to persuade other people to go with him."  -W.H. Cowley

1-2-3 Come Make A Keepsake Booklet With Me!

I loved it when my children made special things in school that became cherished keepsakes, so I was thinking what a nice self-esteem and confidence builder a special keepsake booklet made by parents would be.

During the first week of school, send home the letter of explanation along with the cover and dedication page.

The last week of each month, send home that month's "praise page."

Parents jot down what they were most proud of their child for accomplishing that month and return the page before the end of the month.

Make a file folder for each student.

When a page is returned, share it with that student and have them color their page.

This can also be done at home with parents reading the note and then having their child color it.

As the pages arrive, have a room helper put them in the folder, in consecutive order by putting the current page at the back of the pile.

The last month of your school year, send home the remaining pages and then collate each student's booklet.

Send the booklets home the last week of school.

Click on the link to view/download the Proud As A Peacock Parent Praise Booklet.

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A perfect "go along" with this booklet, is my Proud Pupil Peacock Progress Pal! Makes an adorable bulletin board.

I designed this last year.  It's been one of my most popular downloads, and a wonderful self-esteem builder, as students add feathers when they master a standard or accomplish a goal.

Click on the link to view/download it.

"It only takes a solitary light to guide a thousand ships in from the night." -Unknown

1-2-3 Come Make A Take Home Folder With Me!

My friend and I were sharing. She was excited about making snail mail - take home folders for her students.

Janet can't remember where she got this adorable idea (Pinterest? A teacher magazine?) but the word snail is an acronym for Student work, Notes, And Important Letters.

She wanted to know if I could whip something together to glue to the cover of her folders.  I LOVED the idea & revamped the acronym to Schoolwork, Notes And Important Letters. 

Since I sent a folder home every Friday with my students, which was filled with their work, my weekly newsletter and other correspondence from our school, I thought 'snail mail' was an adorable idea, so I got right to work.

Take home folders were my easy and very successful "life line" for parent-teacher communication, so I highly reccommend doing them. 

Parent feedback was also extremely positive, as they weren't constantly hunting through a messy backpack for news.  I kept the folders in a basket along with anything that needed to go in them, and had a room helper "stuff" the folders sometime on Friday.

Besides the child's name on the folder, I numbered them so they could be put back in order quickly.  This expedited finding a specific child's folder to put their work in.  School pictures as well as report cards were also sent home via this folder.

I explained to parents the importance of making it a habit to take out their folder every Friday and go through it, praising and commenting on their child's work and perhaps choosing a few to hang up on the fridge, a bulletin board or cupboard door. 

Children also enjoy giving special papers to family members.  All of this promotes self-esteem.  By your interest, your child sees the importance of school and that you care about what they are learning there.

If parents tuck the folder right back into their child's pack, it will be ready for school on Monday.  Click on the link to view/download the Snail Mail Take Home Folder Packet.

I've included black and white as well as colored snail labels, along with a reminder and note of explanation to parents. 

This packet will be FREE for an entire year, then it will be revamped and included in "Diane's Dollar Deals" in my TpT shop. 

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"Never tell people how to do things.  Tell them what to do, and they will surprise you with their ingenuity." -George Patton

1-2-3 Come Do Some Father's Day "Craftivities" With Me

Whether you're still in school looking for a quick center idea, or you're on vacation and want your child(ren) to make something special for Dad, I think you'll enjoy these special keepsakes.

Ever since I can remember, I made coupons for the members of my family.  When I was young they were for jobs that I could help with, or simply cleaning up my room. 

Since they were well-received and appreciated, I decided to continue the tradition with my students. 

Before hand, discuss with your students what kinds of jobs they could do to help their dads out, or things they could do with their dads, that their dad would enjoy having a helping hand with.

To introduce the lesson, ask your students if they have ever received a coupon, or seen their mom clipping and using coupons in the grocery store or restaurant.

Explain to children that a coupon is a piece of paper that a person "cashes" in, to receive something.  In this case, their service in doing a chore.  Run the coupons off; have students fill in, color and then cut out. These make a nice tuck in for any homemade card they have already made.

Click on the link to view/download the Father's Day coupons.

Another sweet "tuck in" is a blue ribbon for dad. You can run the template off on blue construction paper, or white and have students color their ribbon.

Children trim their "Happy Father's Day" circle, glue it to the front, and then sign it. To make this "paper love" even more special, add a school photo.

Students choose from 2 writing prompt circles.  They choose one, trim it into a circle shape and then glue it to the back of their ribbon. 

Children can write about why they think their dad is an award-winning father, or why he deserves a blue ribbon.

Click on the link to view/download the Father's Day Blue Ribbon Writing Prompts. Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN anything you think others may find helpful.   My "Pin it" button is at the top of the page.

"Throw your heart over the fence and the rest will follow." -Norman Vincent Peale

1-2-3 Come Learn About Seasons and Months With Me

At the end of the year, I liked to make a list of lessons I wanted to expand on for the fall.

I'd take an item a day and search the Internet for new and fresh ideas through the summer.

One of the topics I listed quite often was calendar.  There just never seemed to be enough time to include everything I wanted to, during calendar time.

So that this activity did not get too long, I'd do a bit in the morning, some in the afternoon, and then tie everything up at the end of our busy day.

There is so much important "trivia" that can be covered in quick easy reviews during calendar time.

I also liked to supplement what we covered in some additional activities relating to days of the week, months, and seasons.

Because these were words on our word wall, short independent activities were perfect for Daily 5.

With this in mind, I designed "My Book Of Months" as well as "My Book Of Seasons."

They both cover a variety of Common Core Reading Standards as well as the math concepts of counting, ordinal numbers andpatterning.

Children read the simple sentence, trace and then write the number, month and season words. They circle the capital letters and add end punctuation as well.

Students color the puffy words in an ABAB pattern with appropriate colors for that particular month.  i.e. red and green for December.

Children also complete the sentence by adding something they see during that month, or like to do during that season. 

There are also additional writing extensions in the season booklet, as students tell what their favorite season is and why, as well as what month they were born in.

These booklets will be free for an entire year, after which time they will be combined and updated into an emergent reader for my TpT shop: Months & Seasons Emergent Reader With Matching Posters Packet

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"You can't start a fire without a spark." -Bruce Springsteen

1-2-3 Come Make Some Vacation Bible School Crafts With Me

Having taught 3-year-olds in Sunday school, I discovered there is not a whole lot out there for this age group.

Crafts, that came with pre-packaged programs, were way beyond their skill level, attention span and time available.

Vacation Bible School programs were not really much different.  They had wonderful activities for older kiddo's, but again materials and crafts for this age group were lacking.

The director of our Children's ministry, asked me if I could design 5 quickie crafts with Bible verses for the 3,4, and 5 year-old age group for this year's VBS.

They group them together, as it's never that big of a group, despite having anywhere from 100-200 kids.

I love designing crafts and helping out, so this was a no brainer "Sure!"

Since I've had several requests for Christian teaching materials, I thought I'd post these, as they turned out really cute.

Their theme this year was Stand Strong in the Kingdom, so I made castles, crowns, and knight shields, however these crafts are general enough that they could work for just about anything.

So people wouldn't have to go out and buy a bunch of stuff, I designed the crafts trying to use materials I knew were readily available.

To make all of the projects pictured, you'll need: construction paper, card stock (for the shields), aluminum foil, scissors, glue sticks, crayons, rhinestones, glitter, curling ribbon, foam, a stapler, hole punch, brass brads, pipe cleaners, tooth picks, Elmer's glue, sticky notes, scrap paper (to use as work mats, newspaper works wonderful) and gold glitter.

I find it best with this age group to skip giving directions. Simply hold up your sample and say, "I'm so excited! We're going to make a castle today!"

Whatever craftivity you are doing with little ones, do NOT pass out all of the materials at once.

This is not only overwhelming for them, they also won't sit still long enough for you to say, do this first, only using these materials. ie for the castle:

1. Pass out castle. Have them cut out.  Have them pre-cut for 3's.
2. Pass out pre-cut triangles. Have them glue the triangles to the castle.
3. Have them cut the door.  Remind them not to cut this completely out, but STOP so there's a hinge.  Show sample at each step.
4. Pass out the door verse and have them glue it behind the castle door.
5. Pass out turrets. Have them roll the turrets. Staple to the castle.
6. Pass out brown crayons to color the door and write their name on their castle.
7. Read the verse together and explain why they did the project, so they can share that info with their parents.

I thought it would be cute to add a toothpick flag. These can be pre-made; ask the child where they want their flag.  

Scotch tape it to the back. Do not let 3's hold the toothpicks.

I made the flag with a sticky note.  No glueing necessary and it wraps right around the toothpick!

Children who finish early can work with a helper learning their verse.

Preparation for these projects is simple.  Run off the templates on construction paper, and pre-cut the smaller pieces to expedite things.

I traced a child's "praying" hand once on a folded sheet of paper and then cut once to make 2.

For the "lamp unto my feet" you need to fold the yellow lanterns in half horizontally for easier cutting. I traced a child's foot with their shoe on.

Click on the link to view/download the Kingdom Crafts.

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"So many books; so little time." -Frank Zappa

1-2-3 Study Community Helpers and Shapes With Me!

Whenever I'm working on a theme, I try to design things that cover a variety of standards. 

Making a booklet featuring community helpers that would incorporate the 8 2D flat shapes, that students need to recognize, was a lot of fun. 

I could have listed a lot of community helpers who work with a rectangle shape, but thought a teacher using their blackboard, was the most appropriate.

This activity will help with the Common Core State Standard:K.G.1 as well as a variety of reading standards.

Students read the sentences; trace and write the shape word, trace and draw the shape, and then cut & glue the appropriate picture to the box.

The booklet makes a nice Daily 5 activity.

Click on the link to view/download the Community Helpers Take Shape easy reader.

After I completed the 2D shape booklet, I thought it would be fun to design a community helper easy reader featuring 3D shapes.

Click on the link to view/download Community Helpers Shape Up.

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"Be a rainbow in someone elses cloud." -Maya Angelou

1-2-3 Come Make a "Berry" Special Card With Me!

Are you looking for a quick and easy "craftivity" card to say thank you to special volunteers, room helpers, secretaries or perhaps a student teacher?

I think you'll enjoy this "berry" special strawberry, perfect for the end of they year and summery weather.

Run off the cover and inside of the card on red construction paper.

If you are making more than one card for a number of people, have students sign the master first and then run it off.

Include a group photograph to make it even more special.

Choose a student, perhaps the child of your room helper, and trace their hand on a folded sheet of green construction paper.

Cut once and add the 2 "leaf" sprays to the top of the cover.

So that the card flips up, hinge the two strawberries together with a staple.

If this is a gift, you may want to include it with a basket of strawberries that are in season and rather inexpensive at this time.

This card also makes a sweet keepsake card for Mother or Father's Day.  Simply have students write Happy Mother's Day or Happy Father's Day on the back of the cover that flips up.

A fun activity to do with your students, is to melt chocolate in a mini crockpot or microwave and have children make chocolate covered strawberries for mom, dad, or those special volunteers.

Click on the link for an easy recipe. Chocolate covered strawberries.

Click on the link to view/download the Volunteer Thank You Card.

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"Be the light that helps others see!" -Unknown

1-2-3 Come Sail Away Into Summer With Me!

Are you in the home stretch and dying to scream: "Woo hoo! School is out for summer!"?  I always liked to give a little something to my kiddos on the last day.  

If you'd like to do something that won't break the budget, I think you'll enjoy the Sailing Into Summer pencil fan-boat.  I've been making little fan boats since I was a child (some 50 years ago-oh my!)

In those days, I’d use a Popsicle stick for the mast, but I thought it would be sweet to include a pencil, marker or candy pixie stick, as the pole, to add that little something extra.

I doubt many little ones will catch the play on words with "fantastic" but I just had to include it.

I've also made a template for the beginning of the year, (Sailing into a new school year...) if you'd like to make these treats for your open house or the first day of school.  You could also have your current students make these for your next year's kiddos.

Here's How:

    Run off the boat template on assorted colors of construction paper.

Cut them out; write your students’ name on the front and then sign them.   Run off the “Have fun sailing into summer. I hope it’s fantastic!” sail, on white card stock and cut them out.      

    I colored the mast brown, but you can skip that step and use a glue dot to fasten a wooden pencil, marker, or candy on top.

    If you don’t have glue dots, simply cut 2 slits and insert your treat.  For a bit more pizzazz, I colored the sunshine with a yellow marker.

Fold a sheet of white copy paper 6 or 7 times. I made my width a little less than an inch.  Cut off the excess leaving a 1 inch margin. 

Glue the “sun” sail to the top of this tab. Pinch the top of the folds and staple them together so that they come to a point at the top of the mast.

Place on your students’ desks or tuck in their backpacks on the last day of school. 

Click on the link to view/download the Sailing Into Summer (or a new school year) "craftivity."  Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN anything you think others may find helpful.  My "Pin it" button is at the top.

"In order to succeed, we must first believe that we can." -Michael Korda

1-2-3 Come Do More Community Helper Activities With Me!

Since the other community helper activities have been such a huge hit, I decided to design a few more. If you missed the other 2 community helpers articles, simply scroll down. They come after the strawberry and sailboat blogs.

Taking a photograph of the individual makes their page extra special. 

I've included a clipboard template, with an interview form for students to follow and fill in.  Completed pages also make a nice class book.

Click on the link to view/download the Community Helper Interview writing prompt.

Finally, I made a Community Helpers Alphabet Booklet. 

Students color, trace and write the upper and lowercase letters and then write down a community helper that begins with that letter.

If you need help thinking of community helpers and their occupations, I've compiled a list of over 300 and put them in alphabetical order from astronaut to zookeeper.

Click on the link to view/download the alphabetical list of community helpers.

Click on the link for the Community Helpers Alphabet booklet that your students make. For those of you who don't study community helpers, but would like to make a generic alphabet booklet, I've included a different cover for you.

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"Everyone should have a blood type of Be Positive!" -Unknown