Silent E, Magic E, How About a FreeB E? :)

Hi, Everybody!

Pinterest has introduced us to so many clever new ways to introduce long vowel/silent e words - magic fairy dust, chants, foldables, etc.   If you haven't seen them, you really should head over and take a look! 

I just put the finishing touches on a packet of silent e task cards and games, all with a picnic theme.
The set has 36 pairs of word cards (like can/cane, bit/bite, etc.) and task cards for 8 games and activities.There are activities for individuals, partners, and small groups. Take a look here at my TPT store !

Here's a little freebie for you from "Time for a Picnic!". It includes 12 sets of cards and one task card.

Hope you'll enjoy it! Click here or on the picture to download from Google docs.

Do you have a special way to teach the silent e pattern? I'd love it if you'd share it in a comment!

Happy Teaching!

 

                           

Word Wall Partner Games - Freebie!

Hello, Teaching Friends!

It's that time of year when all of your Word Wall words have been introduced, danced, chanted, stomped, clapped, rainbow-written, and all of those other fun and wacky things we do to get them (hopefully!) stuck forever into those sweet little heads! So, it's time to look for some new ways to review.

One of my very favorite Word Wall "variety" books is Making Your Word Wall More Interactive by Trisha Callella. It's an excellent go-to source of whole-class, small group, and individual fun ways to practice. The activities are reproducible and directions are clear and thorough. I'm sure you'll find some that you and your students will love!

My freebie for you today is a set of two partner activities for your Word Wall. For that matter, why not use them for your spelling words, word analysis skills (contractions, compounds, etc.), or even content area vocabulary. As soon as your students have a list of your "objective" words (whether they're on the Word Wall or listed on your Smartboard), they're ready to play. Reproducible student pages in this set are in grayscale to save on your ink. Common Core standards are included. Click on the image below to go to my TPT store and get yours!

These two games are part of a set of seven games (below) also available at my TPT store. I hope you'll click and take a look!

Happy Teaching!

                     

   

3D Shapes - A Free Math Center Activity!

Hello, Everyone!

Before I tell you about today's free gift to you, I want you to build a picture in your brain, as we say to the kiddos.

"Boys and girls, this is a sphere. (cupping hands around an imaginary ball). It's a sphere, not a spear."
(running across the front of the classroom, pretending to throw the imaginary spear I'm carrying above my shoulder).

Next picture: "It's not a prison (holding clasped hands up on either side of my face as I peer through imaginary jail bars), it's a prism!"

Ah, those tough words continue to befuddle the first graders.

Or course, we know that it's really about the concept more than the exact word, but wouldn't it be great if just a few more of the words could be recalled? By the time we finish talking it, teaching it, acting it out, reteaching it, and above all sorting and resorting lots of honest-to-goodness hands-on shapes again and again and again, we're still ususally looking for yet one more way to reinforce the concepts and vocabulary.

So, that being said, here's your freebie: a set of 24 dominoes for sorting space shapes. Or 3D shapes. Or geometric solids. Or whatever your math series is currently calling them. Add them to all of those pingpong balls, juice boxes, and birthday party hats in your Shapes Math Tub. Enjoy!

Click here to get it free at my Teachers Notebook shop.

Laura Candler of Teaching Resources is hosting a collection of terrific ideas for your math centers at her Corkboard Connections blog. Click on the logo below to take advantage of this amazing resource. Check back often, because the collection is sure to grow!

Happy Teaching!

                             

All of Your Freebies... In One Place!

Hi, Everyone!

Thanks to the ambition and generosity of one TPT author, you now have access to a whole book full of listings for TPT freebies at every grade level, all organized by grade level in one place!

Pam Olivieri, otherwise known as Mrs. O's Rockin' Resources, has gathered materials from a group of many TPT sellers (yep, me, too!:) and has posted an ebook with freebies for PreK through grade 12. From ELA and math, through Science and beyond, they're all there!

Click on the picture to go there, and be sure to take a peek at Pam's other great items, too!

Happy Teaching!

                      

Free Game - Make It Your Own!

Hi, Everyone!

I'm guessing your files might be like mine... loads of activities and games, but sometimes still not a thing to practice the skill you're working on this week! Maybe you need something for working with specific content area vocabulary for science or social studies, or a quirky little math skill that you know your students could use more practice on.

Well, whatever the skill, here's a game that should help you out. March of the Ladybugs includes a board, blank cards, 2 game cubes, and 2 spinners. Laminate the cards and use an erasable marker to program them with this week's spelling words, or coin combinations, or contractions, or... you get the idea - whatever you need right now! Then when you have need for practice in a new skill area, wipe off and start again!

Click on the image to grab yours  FREE at my TPT store!

While you're there, you'll see another free set of game boards to grab...

There are also three grade-specific sets for K-1, 2-3, and 4-5. Each of these sets has a list of suggestions for programming, like uppercase/lowercase letters, multiples of five, state capitals, etc., and each set includes 20 different game boards! The sets are $5 each.

I hope you'll find them useful for your classroom!

Happy Teaching!

 

  

Time for Summer Camp! A Camping FREEBIE for Your Class!

Hi, Everyone!

Okay, well. maybe it's not quite time yet for really going to summer camp, but I know that lots of you are planning for a camp theme in your classroom at this time of year. This is a theme that can be kept simple, but it's so much fun to get going with the tents, flashlights, compasses and everything else that will have your kids going crazy...but also learning like crazy!

Instead of handling this theme all by yourself, consider teaming with another teacher (how about using one classroom for songs and stories, the other for nature and camp games?), or brainstorming ideas with your class ... it's a great opportunity for a little shared writing!  The sheer number of ideas is huge, so be prepared to pick and choose to keep it manageable.

Here are a few sources of ideas to get you thinking!
This is what one first grade teacher wrote about her one-day camping event.
http://teachers.net/lessons/posts/415.html

This  post is aimed a bit higher for grade levels 3+, but take a look at some of the awesome links that are listed at the end!
http://www.educationworld.com/a_tsl/archives/04-1/lesson022.shtml



The always-amazing Cherry Carl has some great things, including themed writing paper and a word list for writing at http://www.carlscorner.us.com/Camping.htm .


KinderCorner has a super collection of ideas, many of which will be useful for first and second graders and even beyond. There is a wonderful collection of summer camp read-alouds here!
http://www.kinderkorner.com/camping.html

It will definitely take you some time to sift through all of the resources here, but http://www.ultimatecampresource.com/  truly is "ultimate"! Don't miss the camp songs! Try copying some of the songs on charts for shared reading. Individual copies would make good additions to Song and Poem Notebooks. Gather around the classroom "campfire and enjoy!



And finally, the promised FREEBIE! Dashing around filling up jars with fireflies (we call them lightning bugs here in NJ!) is a memory-maker on any camping experience! Mix in some math facts and you've got...

Click here to download!

It includes 12 sets of matching cards like these...

... as well as a student recording sheet. 

"Catching Fireflies" is one of the 24 literacy and math activities in my new Summer Camp unit at Teachers PayTeachers. Here are a few more!

Click here or on the cover to see the complete set.

If you use a summer camp theme, what's your favorite activity?

Happy Teaching!