I don't know about you, but last week was 110% chaos in my classroom! For some reason, beginning of the year behaviors were starting to sneak back in and we were having trouble listening and following directions.That's why I decided to do this polar bear directed drawing on Thursday. Of course, it went with our polar bear unit, but it also was a great way to practice those listening skills in a fun way! My principal even showed up for a surprise walkthrough during this activity and said he was ...
Read More
Free Gingerbread Positional Words Reader
This free gingerbread positional words reader (here) is perfect for working on positional words with your class! We use this during our gingerbread unit, which you can read about here.Depending on the level of your students, you can work on receptive language and following directions to place the gingerbread on each page, or you can have students read each page themselves.My friend Abby had a great idea to laminate the book and make it reusable for her small group:She made it a little more ...
Read More
Gingerbread Activities for Kindergarten
Our past two weeks have been full of fun, hands-on gingerbread activities! The December chaos has hit my room hard, and these were this was the perfect way to let us have fun while still learning a lot.The History of GingerbreadWe started the first day by activating our schema about gingerbread and reading about their history. If we were going to be spending weeks doing gingerbread activities, I thought knowing what gingerbread actually is would help!We read this nonfiction book to find out all ...
Read More
The Easiest Winter Trees Craft for Kids
This is a winter craft that I love pulling out year after year! It's so easy to prep and it always turns out cute. So when I had literally half of my class out this week, it was easy for me to switch up my plans for the afternoon to make this winter trees craft!See how cute they turned out (even if kindergarteners do not yet understand the concept of 'less is more' when it comes to paint.)?Materials needed:* White triangles (not pictured. I just made a full-page triangle in powerpoint using the ...
Read More
Germs and Hand Washing Activities for Kindergarten
You know you're a teacher when these are your best friends:It feels like the germs and sickness are never-ending! That's why, when it gets really bad, I pull out this tried and true activity.We start by reading about what a germ is. I love the book "Germs Make Me Sick." Students need some background knowledge on why they should avoid these unseen things.I have all of my students sit in a circle. Then, I tell them I am going to pretend to sneeze and the green glitter is going to be the germs on ...
Read More
Reindeer Activities
If you've taught kindergarten in December, then you know it can get a little crazy. I learned a long time ago that the best way to survive is to embrace the chaos!That's why I love learning about reindeer every December! My students are amazed to find out the reindeer are real and - big shock here - they don't fly. Mind. Blown.As we read about reindeer (which we learn are also called caribou), we add information to our anchor chart on sticky notes. I love this because I can laminate the anchor ...
Read More
