Seven Days of Creation

School starts tomorrow, so I thought I would welcome the new year with a freebie. Educlips came out with an adorable set of clipart showing the 7 days of creation and I knew I had to use them. I teach first grade at a public school, so I'm not able to use them in my class, but it will be enjoyed by my own children. I also thought you could use this if you are teaching Sunday School or Vacation Bible School this summer.

I included directions on how to create an eight page booklet by using a 12 x 18 piece of construction paper. I use this in few of my resources and find them really easy to assemble. Depending on the abilities of your students, you might have to prep the booklet before the sheets are glued on.

Are there any other stories you would like to see? Enjoy!

Grab this freebie. Enjoy!

Quick Tip Tuesday

I've been in the same classroom for about ten years now. I wanted to freshen it up a bit, but didn't want to spend too much money. I thought about what they always say on HGTV... a little paint is the easiest way to change the look of a room. So, I went down to Home Depot and bought a couple cans of spray paint.
I had this huge tan file cabinet that I needed to keep, but is was drab and boring. I used my two new favorite colors, teal and lime and went to town. I emptied out the drawers and moved it outside, so it took no time at all to dry. It also forced me to clean out my cabinet and I got rid of at least half of my stuff. I think it came out super cute.
Our language arts series has 5 reading books for each student (1.1, 1.2, 1.3....). Trying to follow common core, they are suggesting we teach by theme, so the books they read are no longer in sequential order. One week we might read a story from 1.2, the next 1.4. I have 33 first graders and this just seemed like a nightmare and a huge amount of time would be lost passing out and collecting books. I got out my can of paint, sprayed the outside of my cabinet lime. Then I painted each shelf a different color. I used a small bottle of craft paint I picked up at Michaels for less than 50¢. I needed five shelves, so I did the colors of the rainbow. Now instead of passing out and collecting the books, I can call them by teams and tell them to put their book back on the orange shelf or grab a book from the purple shelf. This seems like a simple change, but I just wanted to avoid unnecessary headaches and passing the books out myself or asking the kids to grab 1.2 just seemed problematic. And with 33 little ones, I'm already way outnumbered, so the last thing I need are problems I can avoid with a little planning.

 I hope you're enjoying summer. It's going by quickly.

Thing1 and Thing 2

I just love this month. There are so many fun activities to do with the good doctor's books. We made these adorable "hats" today and I just had to share because the kids just looked soooo cute. I saw something like this on Pinterest and had to give it a try. I provided you with the Thing 1 and Thing 2 button, if you wanted to give this project a try.

Grab the Thing 1 and 2 button.

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss

March is one of my favorite months in school because Dr. Seuss is the Author of the Month. His books are so much fun and the kids are having a blast with all the activities. Each Wednesday our team chose a book and picked a fun theme to go with it. The first Wednesday is "The Cat In the Hat" (kids wear their favorite or silly hat). Next is "Wacky Wednesday" (kids wear backward or wacky clothes). The last Wednesday is "Fox In Socks" (silly socks or mismatched).
I saw this art project on Pinterest and thought it would be a great bulletin board. Super fun and the kids loved choosing their favorite character.

We've also been doing some easy activities for parents to run in literacy centers. I'll add some more pics as the month goes on. Next week we're making mustaches from "The Lorax".
Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!

This is also included in my March Fast Finisher Pack.

Grab this freebie. This is also included in my March Fast Finisher Pack.

Find the activities above plus so much more...here.

Polar Animals and January Fast Finishers

Grab this literature study from my store.

This year is flying by. The holidays seem forever ago and we are already well into January. It's pretty warm here in southern California. We're wearing flip flops and tank tops, so studying polar animals seems a little out of place. The kids are loving it and the books that go along with the winter season are wonderful.
We've been focusing on two books in particular...Tacky the Penguin and Little Polar Bear. The puzzle to the right is a great challenge for the kids. It also gives them great inspiration to make a super sentence. The kids also enjoy learning nonfiction information about these adorable animals. I found some great nonfiction books for free on TpT for both penguins and polar bears written by Hollie Griffith. The packet also includes color and b/w task cards. I love using task cards in small groups. Parents find them very easy to use, which is great. We did this penguin glyph and hung it on the bulletin board which I LOVE.
 











 



We're also concentrating on vowel teams. "When two vowels go a walkin', the first one does the talkin'." This week was ee and ea. The kids did a pretty good job. Now, we're just going to have to work on their fluency. Pick up this freebie. You can also find it in my Fast Finisher Packet for January.

Grab this freebie for Vowel Teams.

Grab this packet at my store.

Gingerbread Boy Story and Backpack

Each year we build gingerbread houses as part of our classroom party. The children have a blast and I run around the whole time looking for finger lickers. It's just too tempting for these little munchkins sometimes. Their parents would never forgive me if I send them home with a cold during their two week break. Hand sanitizer is my friend during this event.

I wanted to have a few activities with this theme leading up to this grand finale, so I thought we would do a few lessons with our favorite cookie... the Gingerbread Man. I'll be using the reader with my ESL group and focus on vocabulary. This will be a perfect reader for them to build their confidence and brainstorm words that describe animals.

 











 Normally, I would make the backpack for the kids to keep their retell cards in, as well a memory game they can take with them to play at home. This year, we are making sweet little 3 x 6 ceramic tiles as Christmas gifts. I'll have them using their finger tips to form a Christmas tree, put in the kiln, and add a ribbon. Presto! A keepsake a parent would cherish forever. I'll post them when they are complete. I thought these sweet gingerbread  bags would be perfect to place their gift in. Place a little tissue paper inside and the wrapping couldn't get any easier.

Find this packet by clicking here.

So easy to do.

I hope everyone is enjoying the start of December. We have an entire neighborhood a few miles from where I live that decorates their homes to the max. Think Griswald Christmas. I love it. The gaudier the better. We've gone three times since Thanksgiving. What do you love most about this season?

Mooseltoe and Olive the Other Reindeer

We have three school weeks until Christmas and I'm wondering how I'm going to get it all done. One of the best things about this time of year in first grade are the stories. I LOVE all the wonderful Christmas stories. Two of my all time favorites are Mooseltoe and Olive the Other Reindeer. 



I made some activities to go along with these stories. I'm always in need of finding meaningful lessons for my parents to use during their small groups. So many of these are perfect for just that. Often I read a book and don't ask enough questions afterwards. I sometimes feel like we are having to rush from here to there. Now that I have some follow up activities ready to go, I hope to really focus on comprehension.

The two craftivities in the set I love, love, love. First, with Moose, who doesn't love glitter and sequins? Really what more needs to be said. Olive is a craft and puzzle built into one. I love giving the kids the triangles and then telling them they need to use the 9 small triangles to make one large triangle. I always have a few figure it out before I start giving clues. You can also flip the large triangle, cut 9 small green triangles and PRESTO - you have a Christmas tree. Just add sequins for ornaments.

Check it out! Click here.

Here's another fun option to try.