Summer days are long and sunny. You may be tempted to hide inside in the air-conditioning but there are a lot of great experiments and learning opportunities you can do centered around the Sun. Here are a few of my favorites. Create a Sundial The Sun can be used to tell time, direction and seasons. For older students you can…
Once your child is able to recognize letters and their sounds the next step is to learn to read 3 letter words with the consonant, vowel, consonant pattern. These are words such as: man, fan, bat, cat, mop, fun. Here are some printable word lists. 1. Roll and Read games I LOVE incorporating the roll and read activity into my…
Pirates are so much fun to learn about. I especially like doing this unit as the weather gets warmer in late Spring or Summer. Pirates are fun and interesting to children but they provide a lot of meaningful learning topics! Start by reading some pirate books from your local library. My Favorite Pirate Books There are soooo many awesome pirate…
You may be a classroom teacher, homeschooling mom or a parent who wants to give your child some meaningful activities at home. Mastering the basics of creating letters and being able to recognize them is key for ensuring reading success letter on! These ideas are fun, low-prep and great practice. 8 Active Ways to Practice Letters 1. Write Letters in…
Even though we are all stuck inside right now, we still need social interaction. Whether you live alone or with your spouse and kids, chances are you’ll want to reach out and interact with others outside your home at some point. Here are some creative ways to have fun with friends and family while still practicing social distancing. 1. Make…
Kids are going to be spending a lot of time stuck at home over the next few weeks. The key to keeping them engaged and not driving you crazy is to provide a variety of different activities for them. Don’t sit them in front of technology all day (even if they are on educational websites). That much screen time is…
The games/activities below can be used with any grade, any vocabulary list, in any subject. Slap! This is a great game to reinforce vocabulary. Line 3-4 pictures up in a row on your smartboard (or just print pictures and stick to the wall). Bring up two students at a time. The teacher says a word and the students try to…
The word phonics can sometimes seem abstract or overwhelming. Parents and teachers alike often feel afraid they won’t teach reading in the “correct” order and then what they are doing won’t be effective. Here I will break down the basic steps to teach a child to read using phonics. Phonics is all about helping children understand the parts/sounds of a…
With Halloween coming up students can’t help but feel excited and a bit distracted. Rather than trying to fight them why not embrace the holiday for a few days and try some of these great activities in your classroom. 1.Build a spooky Halloween town. It’s a great Stem activity that also encourages teamwork and a positive classroom culture. You can…
Why is it so hard for teachers to take a break? There’s a teacher in my school now who recently hasn’t been eating or sleeping because all she does it work. She gives up her weekend and time with her boyfriend, to work. Some teachers might look and say: “well, that’s just part of the job”. But, I reject that…