How did you celebrate your 100th Day of School? We had a blast this year with our 100th Day Stations! It took me a little prep time, but it was well worth it! My fab firsties had so much fun and all of the activities were basically independent and needed very little help from me. So here's a look at some of the things we did! 100th Day of School Treat The firsties were greeted when they came ... read more
Five Tips To Teach High Frequencey Words
One of the most important skills in reading, yet also very challenging, is memorizing high frequency words. Kindergarten and first grade students need a lot of practice with activities that will keep them engaged and motivated to learn the most common words that they will see in their reading. A great place to really focus on these words is in your small group, guided reading time. ... read more
Winter Evergreen Trees
Are you looking for some new winter activities? How about a mini unit on Evergreen Trees? This is a great topic to study with your kids in the snowy month of January since the evergreen stays green all winter! Who says you can only make evergreens in December, right? So here's a new take on the old Christmas tree! The perfect place to start this unit is on YouTube. I have some great, kid ... read more
Chattering About Chipmunks
Here's a peek at what we've been working on this week....I love this time of the year to delve into my sciences standards. I think fall really lends itself to woodland creatures, habitats, how they prepare for winter and hibernation. This week we did a little mini unit on these animals and focused on those pesky little critters, chipmunks! ? I always like to begin with a read aloud and this ... read more
Stellaluna Bat Activities
Stellaluna bat activities are perfect during the fall and around Halloween! These bat lesson plans include anchor charts, a bat cave, story map and more! Last week we read the book Stellaluna and some non fiction books about Bats on Epic Books (it's like Netflix for books.....and its FREE for teachers!!) We did a little mini unit on Bats and their habitats.This fits in ... read more
Monsterously Good Adjectives!
Here is a great way to get your students excited about adjectives using the book Go Away, Big Green Monster! Check out our anchor chart and adorable monster crafts that we made in this fun halloween writing lesson! Lately we have been working on different parts of speech.....we started with nouns and verbs and the last couple of weeks we've been focusing on adjectives. I really love ... read more
September Word Work Center
What's at your Word Work Center? Are you looking for a few quick and easy ideas? Here's what's happening at my Word Work Center in September. Since it's the beginning of the school year, I like to put a review of Kindergarten words and things that are very simple for my Fab Firsties. I believe centers should be a review and practice of skills that have already been ... read more
How to Get Organized and Leave School On Time!
Are you someone who needs some simple teacher organization tips? Do you find yourself staying late at school every day? Are you missing soccer games and taking home a lot of fast food dinners? Girl....I hear you! This was such a problem for me for so long! I decided I need to get organized and stop living at school! So how did I do it? 1. Use a checklist. I used to have ... read more
Crayon Themed Classroom Ideas For First Grade
Do you have a classroom theme? I've had many different themes, but this year I decided on a crayon themed classroom. I liked the idea of using a rainbow of colors and what better way to do that than with crayons! Welcome To My Crayon Themed Classroom As you enter my room you're greeted with a brand new quote on my door. A friend made this for me with her Cricut machine. I loved that she added a ... read more
Why I Give My Students A Number
Do you give your students a number? I think it's a great Classroom Management technique....and I'll tell you why! 1. Lining up is a breeze! For many years I went the route of "Line Leaders" and a "Caboose". Every day I would pull two names out of a jar and those were the "chosen" kiddos of the day. One was the line leader and one was the caboose. The rest of the kids ... read more
