Flip Flaps and a Freebie!

I finally got my FLIP FLAPS packet finished for Language Arts! 

My math version has been a big hit 

and I have had requests to do a LA version. 

So here it is!

You can check it out on my TpT shop.

It covers a variety of skills.

This is great for a review, or as you teach the skills, or in a center as a reinforcement or even send home for a fun homework page. And the kiddos LOVE making the flip flaps!

You can save if you buy the BUNDLE!

I put both packets together in a bundle for a discount.

And here is a FREE download from the LA packet. 

You can only get it here on my blog.

Just click HERE!

Thanks for stopping by and Happy Teaching!

Digraph FREEBIE

For some unknown reason our firsties are having a hard time with digraphs this year.

Our speech teacher came to our team meeting and said that a lot of them didn't pass their digraphs on the speech test. So we've been working HARD on them! 

Just thought I'd share some of the things we are doing.

This is a packet I created last year and we've been working hard at it the past few weeks.

I also put together a little scoot game that I just uploaded to my shops. (check it out at my shops on the side bar)

And here is a little FREEBIE from the packet.

It can be used as a practice sheet or assessment.

Check HERE to download a FREE copy.

I'll be doing another assessment this week to see how they are doing. I hope they have finally mastered it.

Problem and Solution FREEBIE

It looks like I have been neglecting my blog for a little while. I've been very involved in life for the past month and blogging has not been on top of the list. So sorry.

I'm teaching Problem and Solution this week and just made a little practice sheet to go along with my Smartboard slides. I hope you can use it in your classroom.

Click HERE for a free download.

I also finished reading one of the best books I've read in a looong time.  'Crash Course' by Kim Bearden is very inspiring. It's not just for teachers. A lot of blogger recommended it this past summer when it was released. So I thought I'd give it a read. Boy am I glad I did. I loved the format with 'Class Notes' and 'Homework'. It will make you want to be a better teacher as well as a better human being. I'd sure LOVE to visit the RCA and see Kim in action.  

Well, thanks for stopping by. I'll try not to be a stranger and post more often.

Have a great week!

FREE Ideas for Writing Lists

The countdown is on. I'm about to begin another exciting year with my wonderful first graders!
I have 2 days of summer left not counting my weekend. I can't believe how fast it has flown by.
I'm excited to begin a new adventure!

One of the first things I like to do with my firsties in writing (after procedures have been established) is to write lists. It's a fun engaging activity. I try to find things they can connect with.

(It's a good thing I teach first grade because I draw like one. I am NOT an artist!)

 Here is a fun little picture chart that I put in my writing center to give them ideas. I like pictures because some of my littles can't read all that well yet. It even helps them springboard their own ideas from the pictures.

Very EASY prep, just print the picture chart on card stock then laminate. There are 2 different writing pages for the kiddos to write their ideas on.

I hope your students enjoy it as much as mine.

Click HERE for a free download.
THANKS for stopping by!

Morning Math Review FREEBIE

Ahhhh!

 I don't think there is anything better than a teacher on spring break!

I'm loving my vacation. This year we decided to take a little trip down south to St. George on the weekend to enjoy a little sunshine. Then I'm just resting and relaxing at home by myself for the entire week while my hubby works. Is this what retirement is like? Humm!

I've finally been able to get some work done on some packets I've had waiting in the wings.

I've been using this with my class for the last 2 years and finally got it posted this morning on my shops.

It's a great little review packet just for the 1st grade math core. There are 39 practice sheets, one for each week of school. It starts out on an easy kindergarten level and then gets more difficult as the year progresses. I use them for a self-start every Monday but they are also great for homework or centers. It's a great way to see if students are getting the concepts your teaching so you could use them for assessing too. You don't need to go in order, you can skip around if you like.

Very EASY prep, just print and use.

If you click HERE you can download this FREE sample.

You can get the same free sample if you download the PREVIEW on TpT.

Well, I'm debating whether to stay in my jammies all day and curl up with a new book. I've already finished 2 since Friday. 

Did I mention how much I'm lovin' spring break!

Hope you have a wonderful spring break whenever yours is!

Christmas Math FREEBIE & Giveaway Winners

Hi everyone! I hope you are all surviving these few weeks just before the holidays. It's starting to get CrAzY in my classroom. It doesn't help that we have had 6 straight inside recess days. And it looks like the rest of the week will be inside as well. It didn't get above 15 degrees today. A little too cold for my firsties to go out to recess. Thank goodness for Adventure to Fitness and some fun dance videos to get all that energy out.

We did a great math activity today. It was suggested by my terrific first grade team.

Our district has been BIG on math tasks this year. Which are real world activities that the students have to solve on their own with very little help from me. They are pretty simple on a first grade level but lots of fun. Here is the one I did today- called Decorate the Trees. The task was: "You have a total of 10 ornaments to decorate each Christmas tree. You need to use 3 different colors. Make each tree different. Write a number sentence for each tree." I was very surprised at how well my class did. Even my struggling students were able to do at least 2 different trees. We have just introduced adding 3 or more numbers so this was a great activity to reinforce that concept as well as changing the groups of addends to get the same answer. We have also been working on combinations of 10 and doubles. I let them use tiles or cubes if they wanted to. Tomorrow I will increase the number of ornaments for my higher kids and let them try it again. 

Here is what the activity page looks like.

You can download a FREE copy HERE.

A BIG THANK YOU to everyone who commented on my last post. I just LOVE this fun, amazing, friendly, teacher, blogging world. The Christmas Spirit just hit me BIG today and I just couldn't pick only 3 winners. So I sent my Christmas FUN packet to everyone who commented before midnight yesterday. I hope everyone got the packet. I hope your students enjoy the activities. Thanks for reading and commenting on my blog!!!

A Fun Way to Review = Dot It! (FREEBIE)

GIVEAWAY WINNERS ARE MARYBETH, BECKY AND CHERIE. I've emailed you the class book packet. Thanks everyone for all the GREAT comments on my last post.

One of my all time favorite things to use in my class are Do-A-Dot markers. I bought mine at Amazon.com.

I found these a few years ago and I'm always trying to think of ways to use them. Finally, I finished a fun review packet using them.

 

I use these review pages in reading centers or for fast finishers. My kiddos LOVE them!

This packet has sight words, long & short word families, blends and digraphs.

You can check it out at my shops. Just click on the sidebar.

If you don't have the Do-A-Dot markers you can use crayons or markers and just draw a large dot on the answer.

Here's a little freebie for you to sample. This is one of the sight word pages from the packet.

Click HERE to download.
ENJOY!

Random-ness and a FREEBIE

Well, I'm back to school. I've been going in for about half a day all week.

This is what greeted me on Monday. LOTS of work to do!

My room looks so big until the desks, tables, and kiva get put in place.

That reminds me, I've had requests for more pictures of my kiva.

About 28 firsties can sit comfortably. Any more and it's crowded. I forgot to take a picture of the back. But it's a shelf where I put my genre book baskets and then there is storage on the floor.

I found this cool tape at Wal-Mart. It's like a cross between painters/masking tape and washi tape by Scotch. I've seen the cute duct tape patterns but was afraid to use them because duct tape doesn't come off easily. But this stuff is suppose to peel off easily (I hope!). I put it around my boards, mirror, and windows. It comes in tons of colors and patterns.

I was reading Holly's blog- Crisscross Applesauce In First Grade a few days ago and she had a post about Planbook.com. Click HERE to read Holly's wonderful post.
I've always made and printed my own plan book. I hated writing everything each week and thought it easier to make it on my computer. Here's what mine looks like.

I put them in a binder and print them back to back.

But after reading Holly's post about Planbook I did some investigating. You have a 30 day free trial and then if you like it, it only costs $12 for the whole year. Pretty cheap. So I signed up and I'm going to try it out. All ready I'm loving it! I can access my plan book from home on my iPad or home computer. That will be nice when I wake up sick and need to write sub plans. I can also work on my plans at home without bringing my binder home. It has lots of features and is very easy to use with GREAT tutorials. You can link documents & homework to a lesson, share with teammates, bump your lesson to the next day because you didn't get to it with one click of a button (no more erasing), reuse your lessons for the next year, link to the Common Core, send you lesson plan to your administrator if he/she wants it, and more. So I'm going to try it and I'll let you know what happens.

I told you this was RANDOM-NESS and now for the freebie.

Here's a fun game we like to play in math stations. It helps reinforce number order. Click on the picture to grab a copy of the game. 

You have to be careful when you buy your sand timers. There are some out there that aren't accurate. My team found these at EAI Education. They were reasonably priced and accurate. They are 10 for $5.75 We got the 3-minute ones. Click HERE for a link to the website.

Sorry for such a LOOOONG post. 

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you found something useful for your teaching and classroom.

I'd LOVE to hear your comments!

More and Less Freebie and New Number Charts

Man oh man, summer is flying by at a rapid speed! I only have 4 1/2 weeks left and I have a ton of things I still want to do. Isn't that just how life is though. Why couldn't the school year fly by at a rapid speed?

I've completed my More and Less packet and it is up on my shops. My kiddos need lots of practice with this concept and I hope this will help.

 There are 12 activity sheets on different levels so you can differentiate your teaching or use at different times of the year. They are grouped as one more or less < 50 or > 50 to 120 and 10 more or less < 50 or > 50 to 120. There are find a friend activities, color it and the more/less boxes.

If you'd like a copy of this FREEBIE from the packet click HERE.

There are 2 activities that could be used in math stations or with your whole class. My class absolutely LOVES the Swat It game.

I also added some new number charts with cute new backgrounds.

This one is 'Nautical Theme'

This one is 'Owl Theme'

This one is 'Chalkboard Theme'

And this one is 'Circus Cat Theme' (aka Cat in the Hat but I can't call it that)

Some of the packets are 0-20 and some are 0-30. If you don't see a theme that matches your classroom decor, just email me and I can make one for you. 

You can check out all these and more at my shops by clicking on the my sidebar.

I hope you're enjoying your summer and it is going by very s-l-o-w-l-y!!!

Find a Friend FREEBIE

I just got back from a very fun, relaxing trip to the beautiful Utah mountains! It was so nice to get away and enjoy the outdoors with all the family.

I just finished a fun little packet called Find a Friend. My kiddos LOVE this activity so I made several of them for different math skills. The kids go around the room finding a different friend to answer each problem. There are 17 different first grade math skills included from shapes, fractions, clocks, addition, subtraction, tally marks, 10 more and 10 less, to place value and more.

If you'd like to try one with your firsties you can download a copy for free. This one is practice with counting on.

Just click the picture to download.

You can find the packet in my shops. Just check out the side bar on this blog. I hope your students like it as much as mine!

Prefix Safari and a FREEBIE

It's been in the works a long time and it's finally finished- my newest packet!

With the new core, I didn't have anything to teach prefixes. So I put this little packet together. It focuses on Un-, Re-, and Dis-. Here's a preview:

Not shown in the preview are some practice sheets for each prefix. 

Click HERE for a FREE download of this UN- practice sheet.

You can check out this new packet at my shops. Just click on the side bar of my blog.

Thanks for stopping by!