Grab your Free Song Poster and MP3

Click on the picture to learn about this great new thematic unit and grab your free original song poster and MP3!

Ocean Thematic Unit

We are having oceans of fun this week! Click this link to see more on our new webpage.

An Arctic Winter

 

The great Arctic Freeze is here once again! Capitalize on the weather through winter related units and activities. Investigate the Arctic and the Antarctic. Read the guided reader Arctic Friends, compare quantities with Polar Bear Fishing, construct walruses, and sound out words with the game Arctic Hunt. Next, turn your attention to the Antarctic and the penguin. Write about penguins, read about them, construct penguins, and play penguin games such as Rescue the Penguins - a teen math game and March of the Penguins, a letter fluency game. The Arctic air is cold, but make the best of it with our Arctic Freeze activities!

Snowman Fingerplay: Poetry in the Classroom

Five Little Snowmen Fat.

Each wore a funny little hat.

Out came the sun

Just to chat.

What a sad thing was that!

Down, down, down.

I have enjoyed this finger play for many years with literally Hundreds of kindergartners. Download this freebie, copy, cut, laminate, and
attach to sticks and the poem is ready to go!

Click to Download

If you wish to have the entire "Standards Aligned" unit, it is available here.

Table of Contents

Literacy Activities:
Snowman Spill: Automaticy of Lowercase Letter Sounds
Snowman Match-up: Matching Letters and Sounds
Build a Snowman: Blending and Segmenting Words
Snowman Melt: Reading High Frequency Words
Draw a Snowman: Reviewing Early Phonics and Phonological Skills
My Favorite Things: Identifying Medial Sounds
Beginning Sounds: Identifying and Writing Beginning Sounds
A-Z: Fluently Connecting Dots From a-z.
Writing the Alphabet A-Z and a-z: Practicing Alphabet Letter Formation

Math Activities:
Snowball Fight: Comparing Numbers
The Snowman's Buttons: Decomposing Numbers
Snowman Sets: Joining Sets Using a 10 Frame Strategy
Snowman Sums: Making a Sum of 10 Using an Unknown and a KnowN Addend With Visual Representation.
Symmetry Snowman: Symmetry Activity
Snowman Puzzles: Using Geometric Shapes to Construct a Snowman
The Tallest Snowman: Measurement
Snowman Number Hunt: Matching Quantity and Numerals
Math Journal Prompt (Labels): Joining Sets

Guided Reading Books
The Snowmen (Level B)
The Snowmen (Level C)

Writing Prompts/Word Wall
My Snowman
How To Build a Snowman
Snowman Word Wall
Snowman Label-it (3 Levels)

Science
The Melting Snowman: Observing States of Matter
Science Journal Page: Why does the sun melt the snowman?

Art Projects
Snowman Gallery Art Show
Marshmallow Snowman
Shape Snowman
Painted Snowman Portfolio Sample

Songs
Five Little Snowmen
I'm a Little Snowman
Drawing a Snowman

Happy New Year: COMPLETE Thematic Unit

Although learning to tell time is not a math skill, and is not included as a Common Core Standard in kindergarten, the teaching of clocks as a tool for mathematical thinking is crucial. 

A clock is made of the numbers 1-12 laid out in numerical order. This alone makes the clock a handy aid when teaching counting and cardinality. Giving a student opportunity to work with clocks help develop number recognition, sequencing, and numerical order.

I think I have introduced clocks the first day back from winter break for the entire 23 years of my career (thank you Ruth Hepworth). Waiting for Monday morning, right at my carpet/calendar area, I have my little student size Judy Clocks ready to go and my copy of Hap Palmer’s, Paper Clocksready for the play button to be pushed. After we have manipulated the clocks to the song a couple of times, I love to have the students construct their own clocks to take home and show off their new skill of telling time to the hour. 

You may wish to check out our Happy New Year Unit that focuses on ways to measure time: Clocks and Calendars.

Gingerbread Houses: The Christmas Kitchen

Looking for a special project to try before your Christmas or Winter break begins? Consider decorating graham cracker “gingerbread” houses! 

Recruit a volunteer to make the houses, make them yourself, or help your students put them together. Ask students to bring candy to share...tootsie rolls, kisses, hugs, m&m’s, dots, skittles, red hots, licorice, peppermint wheels, and candy canes are just a few possibilities.

If you make the entire house at school, it’s easiest to construct them during a center. Have the students work with you or another adult to put together the 4 walls. Next, join the 2 sections of the roof and set aside to dry. The roof can be attached to the house when everything is dry and stable. 

Whether you make the houses with the students or provide pre-made houses, the fun really begins with the decorating. Some students will cover the entire house with a conglomeration of candy; others will carefully choose candy and strategically place it on the house. Whatever the approach, the creations are beautiful and the students are thrilled with the results!

Although gingerbread houses are often associated with Christmas, you can decorate them at any time of the year. Use candy hearts in February or jelly beans in April! Culminate a gingerbread boy unit by decorating a house for him or make a special house for Hansel and Gretel as part of a fairy tale unit. Whenever you decide to decorate gingerbread houses, they will be a hit with your students! 

Check out detailed directions on the internet or find step-by-step directions in our Gingerbread Man unit.  Or try any of our Christmas products found on the side-bar of our blog. Have fun!

Christmas Around the World: World Tour Mega Bundle

We have received numerous requests for a bundle of our Christmas Around The World products, and here it is! We are offering this for a great savings of $7.00, priced at only $18.00 for 370 pages of around the world cross-curricular fun for grades Pre-K, T-K, Kindergarten and 1st Grade.

Contents Include:

Christmas: A World Tour Part One

Part One of the “Around-The-World Tour” is filled with time-tested, quality activities that are strategically linked to Common Core Standards. It is divided into areas of literature, music, art, literacy, math, social studies, creative writing, word wall, and guided reading.

Part One Contents

Germany
Australia
Russia
Denmark
Spain
England
France
Africa
Canada
Greece

The activities include:

Literacy Activities
Australia: Surfing Santa: Segmenting Words
Russia: Land of the Sweets: Comprehension 
France: Le Reveillon: Rhyming
Greece: St. Nicholas’ Boats: Naming Sounds
Italy: Befana’s Toys: Changing Initial Sounds to Make New Words

Math Activities
German Advent Calendar: Solving Problems Using Mental Math Strategies.
Denmark: Nisse The Elf: Subtraction
Africa: Candle, Candle: Decomposing Numbers
Canada: Tree Delivery: Making Combinations for 10
Spain: Spanish Shoes: Writing Numbers
England: Stocking Stuffing: Counting Objects For a Given Number

Songs and Fingerplays
Germany: O Tannenbaum
Australia: Six White Boomers
Denmark: Ten Little Gnomes
Spain: Navidad

Art Projects
Germany: Star Christmas Countdown
Russia: Nesting Dolls/Nutcracker
Denmark: Danish Christmas Heart
Spain: Balthazar & the Wise Men
Africa: Candle Art
Canada: Strip Christmas Tree
England: Christmas Cards
France: Christmas Santons 
Greece: Christmas Fishing Boat

Kitchen
Australia: Pavlova

Writing
Country Word Walls

Guided Reading
Christmas Friends: Sight Word Reader
Class-Made Book: Around the World

Part Two of the “Around-The-World Tour” 

is filled with time-tested, quality activities that are strategically linked to Common Core Standards. It is divided into areas of literature, music, art, literacy, math, social studies, creative writing, word wall, and guided reading.

Part Two Contents
India
Sweden
United States of America
Bahamas
Peru
Israel
Mexico
China
Italy
Scotland

The activities include:

Literacy Activities
USA: Decorate Away: Blending Phonemes
Bahamas: Junkanoo: Using Common Nouns in Complete Sentences
Israel: Identifying Letters or Decoding Words
Italy: Befana’s Toys: Changing Initial Sounds to Make New Words
Mexico: Poinsettia Race: Naming Letters Quickly
China: Christmas Lanterns: Writing Alphabet Letters

Math Activities
India: Diwali Day: Identifying and Comparing Numbers
Sweden: St. Lucia Day Deliveries: Composing Teen Numbers.
Peru: Fiesta de Navidad: Classifying and Sorting Objects
Scotland: The Mischievous Elves: Identifying Numbers


Songs and Fingerplays
India: Little Clay Lamp
Sweden: Lucia Day
USA: Ring Your Bells
Peru: Fiestas de Navidad

Art Projects
India: Clay Lamp
Sweden: Star Hats, St. Lucia Wreaths
USA: A Gift for Mom & Dad
Bahamas: Starfish Santa
Israel: My Star
Italy: My Ceppo
Mexico: Poinsettia Construct
Scotland: Shape Elf


Kitchen
Australia: Pavlova
Peru: Panettone

Writing
Country Word Walls

Guided Reading
Around The World: Sight Word Reader
Class-Made Book: Around the World

Part Three of the “Around-The-World Tour” 

is filled with time-tested, quality activities that are strategically linked to Common Core Standards. It is divided into areas of literature, music, art, literacy, math, social studies, creative writing, word wall, and guided reading.

Part Three Contents
Eid
Kwanzaa
Hanukkah
Diwali

The activities include:

Literacy Lessons 
Eid: Reading Sight Words
Eid Variation: Reading Alphabet letters
Happy Kwanzaa: Reading Nonsense Words
Spin the Dreidel: Naming Alphabet Letters
Spin the Dreidel Variation: Decoding CVC Words
Follow the Lamps: Blending and Segmenting Words
Art Projects
Eid: Crescent Moon
Kwanzaa: Kinara
Hanukkah: Star of David
Hanukkah: My Menorah
Diwali: Rangoli
Writing

Scrapbook Pages:
Eid
Kwanzaa
Hanukkah
Diwali
Songs/Fingerplays
Eid
Kwanzaa
The Dreidel Song
Diwali is Here

Part Four of the “Around-The-World Tour” 

Allow students to keep the memories of their world tour by completing A Scrapbook or Passport Book, and then binding into an around the world memento. 

Part Four Contents
Two Scrapbook Cover Options: Color or Black and White
A Scrapbook Page for each of the 20 countries and 4 holidays Found in our Christmas World Tour Series. These pages are available at two levels.
A Culminating Scrapbook Activity to include in the scrapbook.
An original song adaptation of Let There Be Peace On Earth.


Part One Features:

Germany
Australia
Russia
Denmark
Spain
England
France
Africa
Canada
Greece

Part Two Features:

India
Sweden
United States of America
Bahamas
Peru
Israel
Mexico
China
Italy
Scotland

Part Three Features:
Eid
Kwanzaa
Hanukkah
Diwali

The Three Bears: Kindergarten Thematic Teaching

Bears Anyone?

This week we have been studying the great traditional tale, "The Three Bears."

If you would like to offer your students a wealth of "Three Bear Fun," check out our great Bear Themed products that are filled with cross-curricular learning and aligned to Core Standards!

The Three Bears and a Family Thematic Unit

Thanksgiving is the perfect season to talk about the importance of families, and to celebrate the importance they play in our lives.

To begin my unit study on families, I love to start with two of my favorite books, "Hairy Bear," and  "The Three Bears." 

After discussing fantasy stories, where animals talk, we move to the discussion to the families of each of my students. This unit always seems to be a favorite for all! And it should be, who is more important to each of us than our families!

Family Unit Contents:

This developmentally appropriate thematic unit: The Family offers a variety of family themed activities that will connect all facets of the Kindergarten, Pre-K, or Homeschool curriculum.

Contents Include:

Literacy Games/Activities:

Family Vacation: Segmenting Words
The Family Reunion: Producing and Generating Rhyming Words
Family Camping: Identifying Upper and Lowercase Alphabet Letters
Family Camping: Identifying Sight Words
Animal Families: Fluently Naming Upper and Lowercase Alphabet Letters
Animal Families: Fluently Naming Sight Words

Math Games/Activities:

Birth Order: Gathering, Sorting, and Interpreting Data
Family Counting Tree: Addition and Subtraction
Cookie Jar: Counting On
The Family Tree: Matching Quantity and Numerals


Guided Reading Books

The Family

Songs/Fingerplays

With My Family
Families
My Family Tree

Writing

My Family Tree: Scaffolded Writing Lesson
Family Word Wall
My Family: Writing Prompt

Social Studies

Family Traditions: The Patchwork Quilt
Birth Order: Family Combinations
My Family: A Family Home-Connection Activity

Art

My Family: Shape People

Skeleton Thematic Unit

D’em Bones

 The human body is amazing! It can lead to a number of different science studies including a study of skeletons. With Halloween around the corner, this is a fun time to learn about skeletons. Books, art projects, posters, playdough, letter (or word) and number (or addition) games, songs, models, and puzzles can add to the scientific information that you present. 

Although skeletons can give a Halloween atmosphere to your classroom, they are fascinating at any time during the year. Just find a few books and some supporting materials and you will have the beginning of a captivating unit of study. For learning games and related ideas, check out our Skeleton unit.

This "Developmentally Appropriate Thematic Unit starring Skeletons will thrill the students in your classroom or homeschool setting.

The Skeletal System is intriguing to learners of all ages, and Halloween is a great time to strengthen science knowledge of the human skeleton with a little bit of haunted fun! However, this unit is intended to be used anytime during the year to teach about human skeletons. 

All activities have clearly defined objectives and are strategically linked to the common core standards.


Activities include:

Literacy Activities
Six Swinging Skeletons: Naming and Generating Beginning Sounds
Black and White Party: Naming Opposites
Skeleton Dance: Matching Letters
Skeleton Dance: Matching Letters
Skeleton Town: Uppercase Alphabetical Order
Skeleton March: Identifying and Writing Alphabet Letters

Math Activities:

Skeleton Match-Up: Matching Quantity With Numbers
The Bone Yard: Counting Backwards
Skeleton Squeeze: Greater Than/Less Than
Collecting Bones: Counting and Cardinality
Skeleton Family: Writing Numbers

Songs
The Skeleton March
The Ghost of John
Bones: Metacognition Activity

Art Projects
Skeleton Construct

Science
Q-Tip Skeletons: Following directions to make a skeleton.
The Human Skeleton


Guided Reading Books
Skeleton
The Skeleton

Writing Prompts
What I Know About Skeletons
Skeleton Word Wall Words (Realistic Photos)
Label-It Skeleton