Gobble Gobble, Turkey Math!

Is November as hectic in your building as it is in mine? In Jersey, we kick off the start of the month with the NJ Teachers Convention- which means two days off of school. This is followed by Veterans Day which then leads into a set of four half days for Parent-Teacher Conferences and closes out the month with Thanksgiving and Black Friday. Tons of days off coupled with tons of extra responsibilities! When I feel like I'm getting a bit overwhelmed at the thought, I try to find the fun I can infuse into the classroom.

One of my students favorite November activities over the years has been this Gobble Gobble Turkey Count Math activity!

I love the hands on nature of the activity and the kiddos love the sweet little turkeys! I adore Math because you can show answers and methods in more than one way. This is particularly useful in Kindergarten as we are constantly working on number sense.

The feathers show numbers in numeral, tally mark, number word, fingers, and ten frames. With greater practice, the kiddos develop stronger subatizing skills.

Colors are vibrant, learning is happening, and it's ENGAGING! Snag your copy of this fun Thanksgiving Math Center here!

I like to use them first in Math Centers with a paraprofessional. Then I transition them to Independent Math Centers and finally I place them in Morning Tubs. 

How will you use these darling little turkeys in your classroom?

Keep you head in the clouds!

Up and At Em! A {Groundhog's Day} Pack!

I still feel like we are just coming back from Winter Break, and yet, Groundhog's Day is only 2 weeks away! Groundhog's Day is one of my favorite holidays to celebrate in the classroom. It is super child-friendly and adds a sense of "magic" to the air simply by the fact that the act of a shadow can predict our weather patterns. Just in time for the occasion, I've decided to make a Groundhog's Day Pack to help channel in on the fun of the day!

This pack has everything you need to celebrate the big day! Starting of course, with party hats! There are two choices depending on what happens with the groundhog's big debut in Punxsutawney! 

Along with the hats is a foldable reader with one sentence explanations of how the holiday works and what happens if the groundhog does or does not see his shadow. While these are a lot of fun, my favorite part of the pack is the ultra simple craft!

What better time to introduce (or reintroduce) the shape, hearts! Just in time for hearts to flood our classroom for Valentine's Day, this sweet groundhog craft is made out of three hearts!

There's also an option for a blank face if you'd like your kiddos to draw their own groundhog face!

There are also printables for tallying and graphing predictions for if the groundhog will see his shadow, making predictions as you read, and compound words (like groundhog!)

I hope you can find TONS of use for this pack in your own classroom! Get it here in my TPT store!

Have a Happy Groundhog's Day (I personally am rooting for no shadow and Spring to come early!)

Keep your head in the clouds!

xo

Bugging Out!

We're continuing to get BUGGY in preschool this week! My students absolutely LOVED this idea! Inspired by The Measured Mom, I created Bugging Out! I have been looking for more fun ways to up the opportunity to identify teen numbers, but still create an activity that my morning, younger students could access. Differentiating with the multiple number cubes was the way to go!

I just printed, laminated, cut, and taped. Super easy AND durable for little hands!

You can get your copy of the entire activity (jar sheets, bugs, and number cubes!) here!

Keep your head in the clouds!

xo

An A-Bee Pattern!

These few days off have been so refreshing for me! I think simply clocking a full 7-8 hours of sleep each night has been enough to rejuvenate me. That needs to be a new goal for myself going into the last few months of school.

Keeping with my Bug and Insect theme I plan to start when I return, I have another unit I'm eager to get going on- it's quite.. buzzworthy! ;)

It's An A-Bee Pattern!

I really strived to make it kid-friendly and hands on driven.

I plan to start my unit on patterns by introducing bees. It's an ideal segway from our overarching insect theme to an intro to patterns. Talk about a perfect real world example of learning in the classroom.

I always make sure to have my students color the key. This helps create more independence as they continue with their coloring. I also chose Color by Letters to create exposure to letter-sound recognition and phonemic awareness.

My older kiddos would be able to cut and paste in addition to creating patterns so this was made in particular with them in mind.

I can't wait to encourage my higher thinkers to color in a pattern as well when they finish.

I always try to include hands on, center activities in addition to a worksheet. You can only do a worksheet once, but hands on activities can be thrown into rotations, centers, and work groups throughout an entire unit!

I've created books your kiddos can use to help get started with working on patterns!

Just Laminate, connect books with a brass fastener, and throw in a center! Pattern starters help the kiddos who are still catching the hang of it, while blank sheets allow students to expand their knowledge and carry their patterns differently than just an AB, ABC pattern.

As their practice improves, allow them the chance to record their pattern!

Voila! Differentiated instruction, tactile learning, and special ed friendly!

Purchase the entire A-Bee Pattern Unit here!

What are some of your favorite ways to teach and practice patterns in your classroom?

Keep your head in the clouds!

It's a Numberpalooza! Early Number Activities

Hello Friends! It's hard to believe we are approaching mid-August. Can you believe it? I cannot get into my classroom for another few weeks, so I've been keeping busy making some Math Centers that I think you'll love!

These stations are filled with number writing games, number identification and recognition, some early addition skills, and number words. Take a look:

Did I mention they are each themed? School themed! Apple themed! School Bus themed! Fall and Autumn themed! Perfect for back to school in PreK, Kindergarten and First! Once I get back in the classroom I'll snap some pictures of the centers in action and share them out.

Enjoy the numberpalooza! And remember..

Keep your head in the clouds!