Fun With Plastic Eggs!

Eggs are an easily recognized symbol for spring; you see them everywhere.  The plastic eggs are also an inexpensive manipulative.

I use them in a zillion different ways in my classroom.

IDEAS:

• Put part of a contraction on one side of the egg, put the other part of the contraction on the other and have students match them up.
• Have students find a half and then locate their partner with the matching half.
• Sort them by color.

• I have now collected eggs that are small, medium, large and jumbo and have students also sort by size.  They enjoy hiding them inside each other as well.
• Put a number on one side and a specified number of dots equaling that number on the other side and have students find the matching set.
• After they have found all the numbered eggs, have them sequence them.

• Put the eggs in rainbow color order.
• After my students have completed their tabletop work, they may choose a prize-filled egg from the Easter basket to take home.
• I fill them with jellybeans for jellybean sorting & graphing activities.

• Put math equations inside for students to solve.
• Put a writing prompt inside for students to write a sentence or a 1-paragraph story about.
• Put 3 stickers inside that students have to use, when writing 3 sentences or a 1-paragraph story.

• Hide them around the room and allow your students to find 1 to 2 to keep.

• Put an uppercase letter on one half and the lowercase letter on the other half. Break the eggs apart and sprinkle them around the room.  Set a timer and have students find the matches.  After they have found and put together all of the eggs, have them put them in alphabetical order and sing the ABC song.

• Make a set of eggs for all of the skip counted numbers that you have learned. Have students sequence them.

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• Put CVC words on the eggs as well as some word wall words so that students can choose 5-7 eggs and write sentences for Daily 5.
• Challenge students to learn a new word for the week.  Write a different new word in each egg and have students pick an egg out of the basket.  They crack open their egg and share it with the class.  This will be their bonus word on their spelling test and the one that they use in their work during reading and writing block time.
• Have students make long lines with the eggs and measure how long their line is.  Then have them take them apart and make a tower.  How tall can they build a tower before it topples?
• Have students make ABAB, ABCABC etc patterns with the eggs. How many patterns can they think of? 
• Use half an egg to make a circle stamp art picture by dipping the circle shape into paint and pressing it on paper or tracing it.
• Put pictures of flat and 3-D shapes inside the eggs.  Have students sit in a circle and choose an egg out of the basket.  They crack it open and identify what shape is inside their egg.  If they can identify it, they get to keep the egg.  If they cannot, the egg goes back in the basket.
• You can put anything inside an egg that you want to review.  Students choose an egg.  Play “I Have Who Has” with the contents of the eggs.  i.e. “I have uppercase letter A who has lowercase letter a? “Lowercase letter a asks “Who has the a ah apple word/sound?”etc.
• Play Doggy Doggy Who Has Your Bone? with a plastic egg and call it, Hen Hen Who Has Your Egg?
• Play Hot Potato and call it, Hot Egg

Use them for a quick and easy art activity and make a fat bumble bee, owl, bunny or pig (my personal favorites!)

Or simply add some wiggle eyes and a smile to make an egg creature.

Children can insert an "I love you!" note inside and give them to a family member or friend as a sweet Easter or springtime gift.

• Click on the link to visit Designs That Inspire for the directions for these cute animal "craftivities".

Have you thought of ways to include plastic eggs in your day? I'd enjoy hearing from you.diane@teachwithme.com or leave a comment here.

Thanks in advance.  Be sure and pop back tomorrow for some more fun "Spring Has Sprung" teaching tips!

Show Me A Pattern

A quick way to whole-group assess patterns is with these “High Flying” kites.

Run them off on a variety of brightly colored construction paper.

Students cut them out, punch a hole in the bottom and tape on a yarn tail.

Pre-cut a variety of brightly colored “tail” strips so that students can show you ABAB, ABCABC, AABBAABB, ABBA, AABAAB etc patterns.

Students raise their hand when they have completed placing a pattern on their kite string.

Afterwards children can choose a particular pattern that they like, write it on their kite and glue the strips to the string.

Mount them on a bulletin board, or hang them back-to-back from the ceiling for a super spring decoration in the hallway.

They look great hung in a row at the top of the wall as a pretty border as well.

Make it a special keepsake by having students glue their school photo to the kite.

You can also turn this into a partner game by using the pattern cards.

Students choose a partner, flip over a pattern card and see who can make that pattern the fastest. 

The one who does so, gets to keep that pattern card. When all of the cards are gone, or when the timer rings, the one with the most cards is the winner.

Click on the link to view/download Pattterning With Kites

Be sure and pop back tomorrow for another teacher tip.

Do you have one you can share?  I’d enjoy hearing from you! diane@teachwithme.com Or…feel free to leave a comment here, especially if you use one of my ideas!  Thanks in advance for your time.

Smooth Sailing

There’s nothing like a game to get students interested in learning.

I try to incorporate several subjects when I design a game so I get more “bang for my time-buck” so to speak.

Smooth Sailing does just that.

It involves the science of weather and the math concept of skip counting + those valuable life skills children learn when they play games with other classmates and learn patience and cooperation etc.

4 different game boards have students skip count by 2's, 3's, or 5's.

I’ve also included a board for counting by 1’s for younger students.

The object of the game, is to get a sailboat safely through the various weather to the port.

There are 24 different sailboats to choose from, directions for the various games and 2 certificates of praise.

Encourage older students to skip count as they move their sailboats around the board.

Laminate the game boards so you can use them each year, or run them off so students can trace the skip counted numbers, take the board home and play with their families to reinforce lessons.

Click on the link to view/download Smooth Sailing Weather-Skip Counting Science-Math Game

Happy sailing!

Be sure and pop in tomorrow for some more teaching tips!

Look Out The Window! What's The Weather Like?

Studying the weather offers a nice chance to plug in a bit of science along with math-graphing skills.

I designed the easy reader booklet What’s The Weather so that students would become familiar with the various kinds of weather as well as those weather words.

To help in that endeavor, I’ve included 10 traceable weather word cards + matching picture cards and a cover, so students can make an Itty Bitty Weather Word booklet.

This weather packet includes a data collection sheet where students record the date and type of weather that’s taking place, as well as a graphing extension to see what everyone’s favorite kind of weather is.

Students trace and then write the weather words, and then cut and glue the matching picture to the appropriate page.

When everyone is done, read the book together as a whole group to reinforce concepts of print.

Click on the link to view/download What’s The Weather booklet.

Be sure to pop back tomorrow for more teaching tips.    

Having A Blast With Wind!

There just never seems to be enough time in the day to get everything done that has to be done and then try and include some science too.

Then if you manage to make the time, there’s always the problem of where can you go to get some quick and easy things to plug in, that will interest the students and be grade-level appropriate!

This was a dilemma that I had with every grade I taught. I wasted tons of time on the web searching for who knows what.

Now I just design my own mini science lessons to match the theme I’m doing for that particular month.

By including some math skills and writing activities in the process, I get lots of bang for my “time buck”.

Wind is a terrific theme for March and can easily be tied in with clouds.  Both offer lots of opportunities to learn a little science.

In my Wind Packet I’ve included several hands-on “craftivities” that make a great incentive center.  i.e., complete the required lessons for the morning and then you get to visit this special center and make a pinwheel, wind cloud, or wind-fact tinsel cloud!

Pinwheels are a fun way to show the movement of wind.

I’ve included 5 patterns for you to choose from, or simply run off the plain pinwheel on a variety of brightly colored construction paper.

Having students pretend to be the wind and blow paint around on a cloud using a straw, reinforces the colors of the rainbow and makes a pretty pattern.

Your students will enjoy making a Wind Facts - Tinsel Cloud, which gives a list of facts about the wind answering questions like: What is wind? , What makes wind? and What is the record for the fastest wind?

There’s a writing prompt on the back that gets students to think at a higher level and is a nice introduction to metaphor or simile.

I’ve also included 4 quick and easy wind experiments sure to knock your students socks off and add interest to your science time.

Will The Wind Blow It? Has students become little scientists. They make predictions and record data and then analyze the data and come to  conclusions about the results.

Wind Chill uses hand sanitizer for a fun “hands on” evaporation and wind experiment that takes just a few minutes.

Up Up And Away involves a balloon race and incorporates measuring and comparison skills.

The Egg In A Bottle looks into wind pressure and is my personal favorite.  It will have your little ones in awe!

If you do all of the experiments do the graphing activity and then have students make the class wind book writing about which one was their favorite. 

I've also included the nursery rhyme "Rock A Bye Baby" with links to several YouTube videos. I try to include this genre into my story time whenever it fits in with a theme that I'm doing.

I hope these ideas add delight to your day.

No one will ever think that you’re a boring wind bag when you spice things up with a little scientific fun!

Click on the link to view/download the Wind Packet

Be sure and pop in tomorrow when I’ll some weather activites!

Spin A Story Wheels

Looking for a way to spice up your Writing Center or add something different to your Daily 5?

Include a Spin A Story Wheel and help motivate your students to WANT to write!

Students spin the wheel 3-4 times and write sentences or a 1-paragraph story and include the picture ideas in them.

Challenge students who are writing sentences to try and write one sentence incorporating ALL 4 picture prompts!

Click on the various links for the Spring-Summer Spin A Story Wheels.

March Story Wheel,  April/May Story Wheel,  Summer Story Wheel

For your convenience, if you’d like the entire collection, I’ve bundled them up in one download as well.

ALL Spin A Story Wheels

Write on and happy spinning!

Be sure and pop back tomorrow for more teacing tips!

Cloudy With A Chance Of Learning...

Yesterday we were flying high with kites in the sky. 

Today clouds are in the sky.  It’s another one of the themes I like to touch on during March Is Reading Month.

I like to design easy readers that help review difficult standards like those tough 3D shapes.

I figure if I can make a little booklet about them, my students get to do a hands-on activity that makes learning more fun.

My 3D-Cloud booklet, covers concepts of print as well as writing skills, while reinforcing the 3D - shapes, so I get more “bang for my time buck!” so to speak, plus students really enjoy making these just-my-size booklets and sharing them with their families, so they help reinforce the lessons at home as well.

I include a graphing extension to nail yet another standard, which get students actively involved in discussion.

Click on the link to view/download My 3-D Cloud booklet.

The Shape On My Cloud reviews 6 basic flat shapes, colors and counting. The surprise ending incorporates a rainbow for a little bit of science.

Students trace the shape, colr and number words and shapes. Click on the link to viw/dwonload the cloud booklet.

Great Reads: Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs, Little Cloud and It Looked Like Spilt Milk

While surfing the net this morning I came across a Linky Party.

Click on the link and join Jeannie at Kindergarten Lifestyle. Add your blog to her list.  She’ll be turning it into a pin board list on Pinterest.

Just click on the little blue “Add Your Link” button on her blog.  It’s super easy!

Enjoy and have a great day!  Spring has really “sprung” here in Michigan.  It’s going to be 80 today!

I hope wherever you are, you too are enjoying the rejuvenating sunshine and sweet smell of springtime.

Celebrating March Is Reading Month With Kites

Need some reading and writing activities for those block periods or Daily 5?

I’ve got some quick and easy ones revolving around kites today:

The Wind Blew is an easy reader with 4 on a page to conserve on paper when you print.

This also helps reinforce sequencing when students cut the pages apart and put their booklets together.

The end of the story allows students to think of their own “thing” that the wind blows, write it down and illustrate their page accordingly.

When everyone is done with their booklets have students share this page with the class and write down how many things they thought of that the wind blew.

Pat Hutchins has a cute book When The Wind Blew that would make a nice transition activity. {amazonWS:itemId=068971744X}

The last page allows you to nail another core standard by asking students if they like when the wind blows.  A graphing extension is provided for that.  Discussion can follow of why a student does or doesn’t.

Click on the link to view/download The Wind Blew booklet.

Go Fly A Kite is also an easy reader that involves spatial directions.  Students cut and glue the kites to the various positions on the page.

Make this a special keepsake by having students glue their school photo to the boy or girl face on the last page.

Click on the link to view/download Go Fly A Kite

My Shapely Kite reviews the 6 basic flat shapes.  Students have the option to either trace the various shaped kites or to cut and glue a construction paper shape to the appropriate kite.

To reinforce reading and writing skills, students trace the shape words as well.

Click on the link to view/download My Shapely Kite

Where Have All The Kites Gone? Is another easy reader that reviews simple subtraction skills.

Students trace and solve the equations X-ing out a kite as they go.

Discussion of what else could have happened to the kites can stimulate a writing prompt and nice transition to another activity.

Click on the link to view/download Where Have All The Kites Gone?

Be sure an pop back tomorrow for some more March Is Reading Month activities!

Do you have an idea you'd like to share?  I'd enjoy hearing from you: diane@teachwithme.com or feel free to leave a comment here, especially if you use an idea!  Thanks in advance.

Let’s Make An Oogalie-Googalie

What’s an Oogalie-Googalie (Og for short) you ask? It’s a themed slider with huge cut out eyes that helps you review report card standards in a fun way!

The name comes from a very old song lyric about ooglie googlie eyes.

Your students will go Ga Ga over these monthly OG's!

You can make one each month, or just a few for whatever fits a particular theme you’re doing.

Since it’s March making the kite one offers a fun way for your students to review a variety of report card standards in a unique way.

Run off the slider parts on construction paper.  Students cut and glue them to make an adorable Og.

Choose whatever strips you'd like your students to review and run them off. Students slip them through the eye-slits creating a slider for easy review.

Og’s are a quick art project that reviews: shapes, colors, numbers, upper and lowercase letters, simple equations and CVC words.

For a cute keepsake, have students glue school photographs on the strip and key the blank strip with names. This is a fun way to read names and review who is who in your class.

Use the blank strip to fill in other report card standards you want to review like more difficult addition and subtraction equations than the ones I've provided.

Click on the link to view/download Oogalie Googalie report card standard helper sliders.