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If you're in the Goldsboro, NC area this weekend, check out the Wayne County Professional Development Conference at Wayne Community College. I will be presenting Manipulatives Makeover: DIY Edition and Rain, Rain, Don't Go Away during sessions 1 & 2, respectively.
More info on the conference here. Just wanted to share a couple of crafty tidbits!
I abhor school-supply-company stamp pads. Yes, they are a great size for handprints, but those little hands dip from one to the other to the other at lightning speed, leaving you with a complete set of brownish-blackish stamp pads. Joy. Assuming one or two do survive, they dry up if those oh-so-secure (not) plastic lids are not covering them perfectly. However, if you visit your local Dollar Tree, they have these wonderful soap containers with locking lids (that are extremely little-hand friendly, btw). They also have sponges, which can be cut in half to fit perfectly inside the aforementioned containers. Just wet and wring out the sponge, then add a splotch (or a blurp, if you prefer) of washable paint under and over the sponge, and VOILA! If it gets all mixed up with another color, you wash it out and add a little more paint. These things SEAL, so they do not dry up. Another re-purposing idea for your blocks center- ROADS. If you order them, you are likely to get something expensive and bulky. But, if you have a kid or a husband, I can guarantee that you also have outgrown and/or holey jeans. Cut those suckers up, paint a yellow line down the center, and VOILA! I made intersections, curves, straightaways, and curvy roads. I made them all the same width, so that the roadways can be connected however the kids like. And they fold/crumple right up into nothing for easy storage in a small container in your block area. How many times have you thrown something away, just to find a use for it days later? Well, here are a few odd things I have learned NOT to throw away:
*Old/broken clipboards- they can be made into personal chalk or dry erase boards *Torn up board books- same as above *Puzzles with missing pieces- the back can be used as above, the pieces can be made into activity markers What do you save to make into other things? Looking forward to hearing some new ideas! Back to School with Pete the Cat!! Parents and Students got to see exactly how groovy our classroom is! And after touring the class, the wee ones got a few special treats: Button cookies! (Nilla wafers with piped on button-hole icing.) It was my intention to have them red, blue, green, and yellow, but the food coloring did not want to cooperate (and the blue walked away), and it was 12:20 am..... I'm told they were delish. Pete the Cat puzzles. I had 4 piece, 9 piece, and numbered (1-10 and 11-20), for a variety of skill levels. And games! Sorting, size ordering, counting, patterns, all kinds of games! Everyone got to pick one puzzle and one game to take home and play with.
I wrote the directions for the game on each bag, and added some extension questions for at home learning. And they each got a bag of cookies- some made it home, some didn't... :) I found these wonderful printables here: http://3dinosaurs.com/wordpress/index.php/free-pete-the-cat-pack/ http://blog.heidisongs.com/2012/08/a-pete-cat-freebie-and-brand-new.html and there are a bunch more here: http://www.kindergartenworks.com/kindergarten-teaching-ideas/writing/pete-the-cat-freebies/ Exciting news! I will be presenting at the NCaeyc Annual Conference in Raleigh, NC this September 18-19! Please join me for my workshops:
'Manipulatives Makeover: DIY Edition' Friday, Session 3 (3:00-4:30), Room 202 Tired of the same old games and activities in your classroom? Wish you could provide materials for parents to use with students at home? No budget for either? Join me for a fast-paced, idea-packed workshop that will give you new ideas that you can take back to your classroom immediately! Learn how to better manage transitions and wait time, make small group activities tailored to your children’s needs, and create your own manipulatives for literacy, math, and fine motor! As an added bonus, you’ll be able to help parents reinforce skills at home with these inexpensive, easy to make activities! 'Rain, Rain, Don't Go Away!' Saturday, Session 5 (10:40-12:00), Room 302A Who says rainy days aren’t fun? Bring the playground into your classroom with these fun, easy, DIY activities that will have your children hoping for rain EVERY day! Learn how to create an indoor gross motor wonderland that will engage your students without destroying your classroom OR your budget! Even when the weather doesn’t allow outside play, you can provide a fun and safe learning environment that develops most of the necessary gross motor skills your students need. More info Here: http://ncaeyc.org/conference/ Hate having to dig through your books to find what you have on a given theme? If you're like most, your books are in various places, come in different sizes, and can be hard to organize. You forget if that great book you read once was a library book, or borrowed from a friend...
Here's a tip: Take pictures of all of your book covers, then post the pics to your Pinterest board for that theme! My boards are all organized by teaching theme, so when I get ready to plan for that week, I go to my board for all of my ideas and crafts, etc. Now, pics of all my books are right there, too, so I can easily pick which to add to my lesson plan! As an added bonus, I commented on where it was located in my room to make it easier to put my hands on it! And if it is a favorite that you don't own, find a pic of the cover to add to your page, and write yourself a comment, such as "XXX Library" or "Borrowed from Jane Teacher." http://tn.ntis.gov/ (link opens in new window)
From USDA/Team Nutrition I stumbled across this order form while looking for a source of MyPlate posters to replace all of my old Food Pyramid materials. I was actually planning to find a good graphic, then transfer it to a poster board via the Promethean, but found this instead. I ordered the Kindergarten curriculum, plus several other supporting materials (like the posters!). When the boxES(!) came, I was very pleasantly surprised by the quality and quantity of materials I received! The emergent reader books (set of 6) was actually a full class set of 6 different books! One for each food group. I see that they have since expanded the materials offered, and it now has materials for grades PK-8, so there is something for everyone! |